ABOKIGINAL TRIBES OF NEW SOUTH WALES AND VICTORIA. 335 



of her people, I obtained the following information respect- 

 ing the initiation of girls. At the first sign of the menstrual 

 flux, the girl is taken charge of by an elderly female, who 

 is not her mother, and is removed into the adjacent bush. 

 They are accompanied by some young matrons who help 

 the old woman in her duties. After painting the novitiate, 

 her arms are decorated with strings cut from the skin of 

 the ring-tail opossum, with the fur on. These strings are 

 bound round the upper arm about midway between the 

 shoulder and the elbow and also round the thick part of 

 the forearm. The strings are not wound tightly on the 

 arm, but like any other bandage which closely fits the limb 

 bound, they cause the arm to swell after wearing them for 

 some time. 



The old dame, assisted by those who are with her, builds 

 a fire by laying wood upon the ground and applying fire 

 until it is well ignited. Green bushes are then laid on top 

 of the fire, and on top of this covering of bushes earth and 

 sand are thrown to prevent the wood from blazing up, 

 and to augment the issue of smoke. Two of the women 

 present help the novice to get on top of this smouldering 

 heap. When she has remained in the smoke for a consider- 

 able time, the old woman hands the girl a yamstick, with 

 which she jumps off her smoking pedestal. 



In the meantime, a hut or shelter has been erected of 

 boughs, into which the novice is put by herself and she 

 sleeps there all night — the other women sleeping a few 

 yards away. Next day the smoking ceremony is repeated 

 in the same manner, morning and afternoon. This pro- 

 cedure is continued until the novitiate is cleansed. The 

 bandages are then removed from the girl's arms and she is 

 painted as before. A girdle manufactured from the fur of 

 animals is now put round her waist, from which depends a 

 narrow apron, ngurraty, made of emu feathers, covering 



