364 ON THE ABORIGINES OF THE LOWER MURRAY, 



them speared. A loop of grass-rope, or green hide, attached to 

 the side of the canoe, through which the spear is ran into the 

 bottom of the river, answers the purpose of an anchor. 



Passing farther down the Murray, the natives increased in 

 numbers, and at a lagoon near Kilkine, we found some 50 or 60 

 of them assembled for the purpose of " making young men ; " 

 these wretched youths being passed through various ordeals, one 

 of which was to mount the candidate upon the shoulders of 

 the biggest man in the tribe, to run round the camp fires 

 with him, all the rest following with hideous noises, and to 

 deposit him without as much as a shirt on, in some part of the 

 scrub. Five or six of them passed the night there, shivering 

 and hungry, until released by the men the next morning, 

 and introduced to the adults of the tribe as " men." I do 

 not think that these ceremonies were gone through in the 

 orthodox style, and the youths did not appear to believe 

 in them at all ; they assured me they only submitted 

 because of their rights hereafter to take a lubra unto 

 themselves. 



Both men and women were well made, with highly intelligent 

 countenances ; but, except the young girls, none of them 

 wore any covering whatever. When the men approached at 

 the first interview, they wore two or three feathers of the White 

 Cockatoo in their hair a sign of their being messengers of 

 peace, and two of them who accompanied our party to the 

 Darling Junction, never removed these feathers as long as they 

 were upon the hunting grounds of another tribe. 



On no occasion did I notice any of the natives to travel at 

 night, and whenever noises were heard, for which they could not 

 account, they were invariably put down to the credit of Devil- 

 Devil, and no promise whatever could induce them to leave 

 their fires. 



A few miles from Milldura, at a place called Mondellemin by 

 the natives, a permanent camp was established, and in a few days 

 some twenty of them, including men, women, and children, were 

 assembled near our huts ; they could not at first understand what 

 brought us there, but when we purchased some of the native animals 

 captured by them, they ever after brought in a good supply 



