558 MATHEWS-—THE AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINES. [Oct. 5, 
character of the country occupied and their general surround- 
ings. 
Some of the southerly branches of this wave of population 
marched into Australia at various places on what is now the north- 
ern coast of the continent, from whence they spread over the greater 
part of Australia, continuing their course into Tasmania, which at 
that period formed one mainland, and became what may be called 
the autochthonous race. Northern branches of the same human 
stream passed into New Guinea, New Caledonia, Melanesia and 
Polynesia in the same way. ‘That the race spread far and wide is 
evidenced by the extensive distribution of its remnants. In the 
speech of the present occupants of these lands traces of an original 
stock language can be detected. A language can adopt and create 
as many words as it pleases, without changing its character or alter- 
ing its peculiar construction. Comparative philology must be 
studied side by side with comparative ethnology. Moreover, in 
their skeletal structure and general osteology the autochthones of 
Australia resemble the African negroes and Melanesians, or perhaps 
present a still more primitive type. 
Such a migration as that outlined in the foregoing paragraphs 
continued for a period of prolonged duration—how long it is need- 
less to speculate upon here. One tide of population would be suc- 
ceeded by others at irregular intervals, who would naturally follow 
the pioneers, or advance guard, much in the same way that the 
settlement of countries takes place at present, detachments entering 
Australia at different points along the whole length of the northern 
coast. It may be reasonably expected that the dialects and customs 
of the later immigrants would differ in some respects from those of 
their precursors, owing to their arrival at long intervals during suc- 
cessive ages. 
| Instead of being one race, they were probably a mixture of 
several races of the same primitive type. It is likely that the 
numerical strength of a clan or family would be small, and if they 
kept by themselves for any considerable time the dialect of each 
would be modified. A number of such small clans being distributed 
century after century over such a large continent as Australia would 
account for the immense variety of different dialects we find spoken 
by the present inhabitants. ‘This diversity of speech probably led 
to perpetual hostility and distrust among petty tribes, and so kept 
them separate. The existence of extensive arid tracts in many 
