THE DARLING BLACKFELLOWS 45 



ply from place to place. The service, however, is very- 

 irregular in summer, as then there is often insufficient 

 water to enable the boats to traverse the river, and the 

 danger from snags, always great, is much increased. The 

 bed of the river is full of these submerged tree-trunks, and 

 though thousands are annually removed, others soon take 

 their places. A constant lookout has to be kept on the 

 boats to avoid them, and at night-time a powerful reflected 

 light (often now an electric light) is thrown ahead to reveal 

 their position, for these snags are quite as dangerous as 

 rocks. 



I have visited all parts of the river, and taken many 

 rambles in the adjacent country on both banks, but I have 

 no adventures to record. There is a sparse population of 

 blacks along the river, and they are said to be dangerous ; 

 but such dreadful vengeance is taken for any outrage 

 committed by them that they are usually afraid to attack 

 a party of whites. A few wandering swagsmen, perhaps, 

 fall victims to their savage cruelty, but if they meddle with 

 the shepherds or boundary riders, they have speedy cause 

 to rue it. They are under the protection of the law, and 

 it is a serious offence to ill-use or kill them, but the 

 Darling plains are wide, and the law cannot take cognisance 

 of all that occurs there. No evidence can be collected — 

 no jury will convict. It is understood among all classes 

 of whites, that outrages on the part of the aborigines 

 must be put down with a hand as prompt as it is heavy. 

 I do not think that there is now much cruelty practised 

 against the blacks, and perhaps the loss of an occasional 

 sheep is not much resented by the squatter. But if the 

 lonely shepherd or the wandering traveller is murdered or 

 even maltreated, black blood pays the penalty of the 

 outrage. It is useless for the offenders to attempt to fly. 

 The white man knows that he must, for his own safety, 

 teach them a lesson, and they are hunted down with 

 determined persistence, the "station blacks" being used 

 all too willingly, to track their savage brethren. What 

 follows is never known to " constituted authority," for if 

 any eyes but those of the avengers see what happens, they 



