BY JAMES BARNARD, V, P, 61 



Commenting upon this doctrine of Strzelecki, West 

 observes (Hist, of Tasmania, vol. 2, p. 75), " A natural law by 

 ■which the extinction of a race is predicted will not admit of 

 such serious deviations." 



Some explanation may properly be expected from me 

 for reviving a question which was supposed to be set at rest 

 when Truganini was consigned to the tomb, and declared to 

 be the last woman of her race. I will therefore mention the 

 incident which has given me something of a personal interest 

 in the matter. It is now nearly 40 years ago that I was 

 accustomed occasionally to accompany my friend the late Dr. 

 Milligan, the Medical Superintendent of the Aborigines, to the 

 settlement at Oyster Cove, where I saw a good deal of the 

 native people, at that time some 30 or 40 in number. Among 

 these I have a distinct recollection of Fanny, who was then 

 apparently about 17 years of age, slender and active, less 

 dusky in colour, but rather more prepossessing in appearance 

 than any of her kind ; and certainly at that time I never 

 heard a doubt expressed of her not being a true aboriginal. 

 There was one circumstance in particular which impressed her 

 upon my remembrance, and that was on one occasion we 

 crossed over in a boat from Oyster Cove to Bruni Island, 

 rowed by four of the black men, and Fanny taking the steer- 

 oar, which she handled with marvellous skill and dexterity. 

 My visits to the settlement shortly after ceased, and from 

 that time t j the present, until a few weeks ago, when I was 

 greatly surprised to receive a visit from this identical Fanny, 

 who had become transformed into a buxom matron of 

 considerable amplitude. 



By the courtesy of the Hon. P. 0. Fysh, Chief Secretary 

 and Premier, I have been permitted access to the official 

 records bearing upon the subject of this investigation. 



The first documents brought under my attention were two 

 letters imder date June 23 and 26, 1882, embodying a report 

 from the Police Magistrate of Franklin, the late E. A, 

 Walpole, emphatically stating that Fanny " is a half-caste, 

 born of an aboriginal woman, by a white man whose name is 

 unknown, at Flinders Island, in or about the year 1835." N"o 

 authority beyond the expression of his individual opinion is 

 adduced by Mr. Walpole in support of his statement. 



The next document was a letter by the late Dr. Milligan? 

 Medical Superintendent of Aborigines, under date July 17, 

 1854, enclosing William Smith's consent to marry Fanny 

 Cochrane, and describing her as an aboriginal girl belonging to 

 the establishment at Oyster Cove. This affords strong 

 evidence in support of the opposite view of the case, as those 

 who knew Dr. Milligan would remember how precise and 

 accurate he invariably was in any statement of facts. 



