28 
HORN EXPEDITION—ANTHROPOLOGY. 
undertook after some little persuasion and the promise of rewards by Mr. 
Thornton. 
Though, of course, such a rehearsal has not the interest or value of the real 
performance, there is no reason to believe that it was other than a correct 
representation and ,it may therefore be interesting to describe what took place 
as a supplement to Mr. Gillen’s notes, especially as the account has reference 
to another tribe (Luritcha). 
After some negotiations, allusions to the subject being made by the natives 
in a whisper, they consented to go through the performance, but evidently first 
took the greatest precautions that the women should see nothing of it. While 
arrangements wei’e in progress I noticed some females moving about in the camp 
about three hundred yards away, and holding up part of their clothing as a screen 
as if to prevent them from looking in our direction. 
The performance began by one man going down on his hands so that his body 
rested on all fours. Under his belly, from either side, crawled three or four others 
who similarly rested on their hands and feet and propped up number one. The 
man who was to represent the subject stretched himself on his back at full length 
on the top of this living mound of men, while another seated himself astride of 
his prostrate body. The operator, who seemed decidedly nervous, then imitated the 
action of cutting, or rather, as he did it, of sawing ofi’ the prepuce with a piece 
of stone. The men engaged said that subincision was similarly performed. An 
illustration of this scene will be found amongst the photographic I’eproductions. 
From Mr. Gillen’s account it will be seen that special ceremonies accompany 
both operations amongst the Arunta Ilpina section, but I should mention that 
I was told both by members of the Luritcha and of other sections of the 
Arunta tribe that there was no special ceremony attached to subincision—that 
circumcision was, in fact, the important function. I am not quite sure how much 
reliance is to be attached to this statement which, however, was made by men 
believed to be trustworthy and to have a good knowledge of native customs. 
While speaking of these subjects I might also mention that in Palm Creek, 
about a mile and a half above its junction with the Finke River, there is a place 
which the local black accompanying me stated, with evident reluctance, had been 
formerly used for these cutting rites, though it was long since it had been used. 
Loose stones had apparently been roughly arranged so as to form a semi¬ 
circular curve with the two horns abutting on the ends of a low natural face of 
