BY FRITZ NOETLING, M.A., PH.D., ETC. 4I 



but I feel inclined to think that this view is not correct. 

 We know that the Aborigines shirked all kind of 

 labour, and carrying- a corpse, perhaps for some miles 

 to the nearest burial place, would mean a good deal of 

 hard work. Further, if this had been so, it would have 

 been surprising that no such procession had ever been 

 seen or witnessed bv a European. We might perhaps 

 assume that this was done during the night, but all ac- 

 counts agree that the Aborigines had a great dislike 

 for travelling at night, and this, coupled with their dread 

 of the deceased, makes such an assumption very im- 

 probable. 



If we consider all the evidence that has been handed 

 over to us, together with the evidence which the Charl- 

 ton burial ground affords^ we can form the following 

 view as to the disposal of dead bodies. 



When a death occurred, a pile was erected, and the 

 body cremated on the spot. Probably while the burning 

 was going on the relatives who attended to it used to 

 smear their faces with some of the ashes, and, after the 

 burning had been completed, the fragments of the 

 larger bones were used as amulets or charms, wrapped 

 up in a piece of kangaroo skin, and worn by the rela- 

 tives or friends. The remainder of the ashes were 

 scraped together, and carried, in a kangaroo skin (?) or 

 a basket (?) — ^^to the nearest burial ground, where they 

 were deposited in a shallow hole scraped in the ground 

 by means of a sharp stone (?). After being covered 

 with a little earth, the grass cone and bark pyramid 

 described by Peron were erected, and the place here- 

 after avoided as much as possible. 



It would be very interesting to know whether 

 similar burial places exist elsewhere in Tasmania. Mrs. 

 Burbury, of Charlton, informs me that a similar, though 

 much more extended place, exists near Fonthill, and 

 Mr. Henr}^ Foster, jun., has told me that another one 

 is found on Darlington Park. As I have not seen either 

 of these* places, it is impossible for me to venture an 

 opinion about them, but, to judge from the description 

 given to me, they must exactly look like the Charlton 

 burial ground. If this be so, the fact that the Aborigines 

 had certain places set aside for the regular disposal of 

 their dead bodies is beyond further doubt. The only 



