246 R. H. MATHEWS. 



to fourteen years of age. As his description agrees in all essential 

 points with the details of the ceremony told to me by old black- 

 fellows of the Silverton, Broken Hill, and adjacent districts, I 

 propose giving the following resume from the work referred to. 

 In those portions which I have thought it necessary to give fuller 

 particulars, or where my informants differ from Mr. Eyre, I have 

 added the information accordingly : — 



"Early in the morning, the boys to be circumcised were seized, 

 and a bandage fastened over the eyes of each ; they were then 

 led away from the presence of the women and children, to a dis- 

 tance of half-a-mile, where they were laid on the ground, and 

 covered with cloaks and skins, so that they could not see what 

 was passing among the adults. After some preliminaries, the 

 men formed themselves into a circle, and kept walking round in 

 single file — the first man having a long stick or pole held down 

 his back. Presently all the men retired a short distance, led by 

 the man with the pole, where a halt was made, and they formed 

 into line, and commenced stamping and groaning, beginning at 

 one end of the line and gradually continuing to the other. When 

 this noise had been passed backwards and forwards along the line 

 of men several times, they approached where the boys were lying, 

 the bandages being now taken off the eyes of the latter. The 

 man who held the pole fastened it in the ground, and all the 

 others coming up took hold of it, and fell down into a heap. The 

 boys were then thrown upon the heap of men, and the operation 

 [circumcision] was performed by men who were supposed to be 

 inspired, or sorcerers. Immediately after the operation the boys 

 were taken away from the presence of all females and kept on a 

 vegetable diet 1 until recovered from its effects. The head was 

 covered with grease and red ochre, with a bandage passed over it, 

 and was ornamented with tufts of feathers. The yudna, or pubic 

 covering, was worn by the novitiates for some months after the 

 operation." 



i Animal food is also given to the novices in the district referred to in 

 this article. 



