214 
A VOYAGE TO 
[ North Coast 
1S03. 
February. 
Australis, however near, has been found to be entirely the same ; for 
even at Botany Bay, Port Jackson, and Broken Bay, not only the, 
dialect, but many words are radically different;* and this confirms one 
part of an observation, the truth of which seems to be generally admit- 
ted : that although similarity of language in two nations proves their 
origin to be the same, yet dissimilarity of language is no proof of the 
contrary position. The language of Caledon Bay may therefore be 
totally different to what is spoken on the East and South Coasts, and 
yet the inhabitants have one common origin ; but I do not think that 
the language is absolutely and wholly different, though it certainly 
was no better understood by Bongaree than by ourselves. In three’ 
instances I found a similarity : the personal pronoun of Port Jackson, 
gni-a (I), was used here, and apparently in the same sense; when 
inquiry was made after the axe, the natives replied “ Yehangereepy,” 
making signs of beating ; and py signifies to beat, in the Port- Jackson 
language; the third instance was of the lad Woga calling to Bongaree 
in the boat, which after he had done several times without being an- 
swered, he became angry, and exclaimed Bongarec-gah ! in a vehe- 
ment manner, as Bongaree himself would have done in a similar 
case. For the following list of words I am principally indebted 
to Mr. Brown, naturalist to the expedition ; who remarked that 
the word here for eye was very nearly the same with that used, 
both at King Geor ge’s Sound and Port Jackson, to express the same 
organ. 
* This multiplicity of tongues in the same country presents an extraordinary contrast 
with the islands in the Great Ocean, where, from the Sandwich Isles near the northern 
tropic, to the furthest extremity of New Zeeland in 47° south, the language is almost 
every where the same ; and with so little difference of dialect, that the several inhabitants 
have not much difficulty to understand each other. 
C 
