Part 6 (2/2)
Fish violently seized by the natives--Another expedition of the Governor--Further account of the manners and manufactures of the native inhabitants of New South Wales--Difficulty of obtaining any intercourse.
9 July 1788
On the ninth of July, an effort was made by a party of natives, which seems to indicate that they were still distressed for provisions, or that they very highly resent the incroachments made upon their fis.h.i.+ng places.
A general order had been issued to those sent out on fis.h.i.+ng parties, to give a part of what was caught to the natives if they approached, however small the quant.i.ty taken might be; and by these means they had always been sent away apparently satisfied. But on this day, about twenty of them, armed with spears, came down to the spot where our men were fis.h.i.+ng, and without any previous attempt to obtain their purpose by fair means, violently seized the greatest part of the fish which was in the seine. While this detachment performed this act of depredation, a much greater number stood at a small distance with their spears poized, ready to have thrown them if any resistance had been made. But the c.o.c.kswain who commanded the fis.h.i.+ng party, very prudently suffered them to take away what they chose, and they parted on good terms. This is the only instance in which these people have attempted any unprovoked act of violence, and to this they probably were driven by necessity. Since this transaction, an officer has always been sent down the harbour with the boat.
Governor Phillip went out about this time with a small party, to examine the land between Port Jackson and Broken Bay. Here were found many hundred acres of land, free from timber, and very fit for cultivation. He proceeded as far as Pitt Water, and saw several of the natives, but none of them chose to approach. When the party returned to the boats near the mouth of the harbour, about sixty of these people, men, women, and children, were a.s.sembled there. Some hours were pa.s.sed with them in a peaceful and very friendly manner, but though in all this time they discovered no uneasiness, they seemed best pleased when their visitors were preparing to depart. This has always been the case, since it has been known among them that our people intend to remain on the coast. Many of the women were employed at this time in fis.h.i.+ng, a service which is not uncommonly performed by them, the men being chiefly occupied in making canoes, spears, fish-gigs, and the other articles that const.i.tute their small stock of necessary implements. Two women were here observed to be scarred on the shoulders like the men; this was the first instance in which they had been seen so marked.
The sailors who waited on the beach to take care of the boat saw about two hundred men a.s.sembled in two parties, who after some time drew themselves up on opposite sides, and from each party men advanced singly and threw their spears, guarding themselves at the same time with their s.h.i.+elds. This seemed at first to be merely a kind of exercise, for the women belonging to both parties remained together on the beach; afterwards it had a more serious aspect, and the women are said to have run up and down in great agitation uttering violent shrieks. But it was not perceived that any men were killed.
As it had been supposed that many of the natives had left this part of the coast, on account of the great scarcity of fish, the different coves of the harbour were examined in one day. At this time, not more than sixty-seven canoes were counted, and about one hundred and thirty of the people were seen. But it was the season in which they make their new canoes, and large parties were known to be in the woods for that purpose.
A few days after this examination, Governor Phillip himself went again to explore the coast between Port Jackson and Botany Bay. In this journey few of the natives were seen, but new proofs were observed of their having been distressed for food. In the preceding summer they would not eat either the shark or the sting-ray, but now even coa.r.s.er meat was acceptable, and indeed any thing that could afford the smallest nourishment. A young whale had just been driven upon the coast, which they were busily employed in carrying away. All that were seen at this time had large pieces of it, which appeared to have been laid upon the fire only long enough to scorch the outside. In this state they always eat their fish, never broiling it for more than a few minutes; they broil also the fern root, and another root, of which the plant is not yet known; and they usually eat together in families. Among the fruits used by them is a kind of wild fig; and they eat also the kernels of that fruit which resembles a pine-apple. The latter, when eaten by some of the French seamen, occasioned violent retchings; possibly the natives may remove the noxious qualities, by some process like those employed upon the ca.s.sada. The winter months, in which fish is very scarce upon the coast, are June, July, August, and part of September. From the beaten paths that are seen between Port Jackson and Broken Bay, and in other parts, it is thought that the natives frequently change their situation, but it has not been perceived that they make any regular migrations to the northward in the winter months, or to the south in summer.
In consequence of the very extraordinary shyness of these people since the arrival of our settlement, little addition has been made to the knowledge of their manners attained by Captain Cook: but most of his observations have been confirmed. The whole, indeed, that can be known of a people, among whom civilization and the arts of life have made so small a progress, must amount to very little. The a.s.sertion that they have no nets*, is amongst the very few that have been found erroneous. Some small nets have been brought over, the manufacture of which is very curious.
The twine of which they are made, appears to be composed of the fibres of the flax plant, with very little preparation; it is very strong, heavy, and so admirably well twisted as to have the appearance of the best whipcord. Governor Phillip mentions having had lines of their manufacture, which were made from the fur of some animal, and others that appeared to be of cotton. The meshes of their nets are formed of large loops, very artificially inserted into each other, but without any knots.
At a small distance they have exactly the appearance of our common nets, but when they are closely examined the peculiar mode in which the loops are managed is very remarkable. Some ladies who have inspected one of these nets lately imported, declare that it is formed exactly on the same principle as the ground of point lace, except that it has only one turn of the thread, instead of two, in every loop. This net appears to have been used either as a landing net, or for the purpose of carrying the fish when taken. They have also small hoop nets, in which they catch lobsters, and sea crayfish. Their canoes and other implements are very exactly described by Captain Cook.
[* Cook's first voyage, Hawkesworth, Vol. III. p. 233.--If it was only meant that they have no large nets for fis.h.i.+ng, like the feine, as the New Zealanders have, the remark is certainly true.]
The inhabitants of New South Wales have very few ornaments, except those which are impressed upon the skin itself, or laid on in the manner of paint. The men keep their beards short, it is thought by scorching off the hair, and several of them at the first arrival of our people seemed to take great delight in being shaved. They sometimes hang in their hair the teeth of dogs, and other animals, the claws of lobsters, and several small bones, which they fasten there by means of gum; but such ornaments have never been seen upon the women. Though they have not made any attempt towards clothing themselves, they are by no means insensible of the cold, and appear very much to dislike the rain. During a shower they have been observed to cover their heads with pieces of bark, and to s.h.i.+ver exceedingly. Governor Phillip was convinced by these circ.u.mstances that clothing would be very acceptable to them, if they could be induced to come enough among the English to learn the use of it. He has therefore applied for a supply of frocks and jackets to distribute among them, which are to be made long and loose, and to serve for either men or women.
The bodies of these people in general smell strongly of oil, and the darkness of their colour is much increased by dirt. But though in these points they shew so little delicacy, they are not without emotions of disgust, when they meet with strong effluvia to which their organs are unaccustomed. One of them, after having touched a piece of pork, held out his finger for his companions to smell, with strong marks of distaste.
Bread and meat they seldom refuse to take, but generally throw it away soon after. Fish they always accept very eagerly.
Whether they use any particular rites of burial is not yet known, but from the following account it seems evident that they burn their dead.
The ground having been observed to be raised in several places, like the ruder kind of graves of the common people in our church yards, Governor Phillip caused some of these barrows to be opened. In one of them a jaw bone was found not quite consumed, but in general they contained only ashes. From the manner in which these ashes were disposed, it appeared that the body must have been laid at length, raised from the ground a few inches only, or just enough to admit a fire under it; and having been consumed in this posture, it must then have been covered lightly over with mould. Fern is usually spread upon the surface, with a few stones, to keep it from being dispersed by the wind. These graves have not been found in very great numbers, nor ever near their huts.
When the latest accounts arrived from Port Jackson, the natives still avoided all intercourse with our settlement, whether from dislike or from contempt is not perfectly clear: They think perhaps that we cannot teach them any thing of sufficient value to make them amends for our encroachments upon their fis.h.i.+ng places. They seem to be among themselves perfectly honest, and often leave their spears and other implements upon the beach, in full confidence of finding them untouched. But the convicts too frequently carry them off, and dispose of them to vessels coming to England, though at the hazard on one side of being prosecuted for theft, and on the other for purchasing stolen goods. Injuries of this nature they generally revenge on such stragglers as they happen to meet; and perhaps have already learnt to distinguish these freebooters, by their blue and yellow jackets, as they very early did the soldiers by their red clothes. Beyond these attacks they have not yet committed any open acts of hostility, except the seizing of the fish in the instance above related. They have not attempted to annoy the settlers by setting fire to the gra.s.s, as they did when Captain Cook was on the coast; nor have they, which is more important, shown any desire to burn the crops of corn. So absolutely indispensable to the welfare of the settlement is the preservation of the grain, that an attempt of this kind must at all events be counteracted; but in no other case will any harsh measures be adopted, or any effort made to drive them to a greater distance.
Conciliation is the only plan intended to be pursued: But Governor Phillip, when he last wrote, seemed to despair of getting any of them to remain among his people, long enough for either to acquire the language of the other, except by constraint. Hitherto he has been unwilling to take this method, but if it can be done in such a manner as not to create any general alarm among them, it will probably turn out to be the kindest piece of violence that could be used. Whenever it shall be practicable, by any means, to explain to them the friendly disposition of Governor Phillip and his people towards them, and to make them understand, that the men from whom they receive occasional injuries, are already a disgraced cla.s.s, and liable to severe punishment for such proceedings, they will then perhaps acquire sufficient confidence in their new countrymen to mix with them, to enrich themselves with some of their implements, and to learn and adopt some of the most useful and necessary of their arts. It may, indeed, admit of a doubt whether many of the accommodations of civilized life, be not more than counterbalanced by the artificial wants to which they give birth; but it is undeniably certain that to teach the s.h.i.+vering savage how to clothe his body, and to shelter himself completely from the cold and wet, and to put into the hands of men, ready to perish for one half of the year with hunger, the means of procuring constant and abundant provision, must be to confer upon them benefits of the highest value and importance.
According to the latest advices from Governor Phillip, the Sirius sailed for the Cape on the 2d of October, 1788, to purchase grain, flour, and other necessaries. Live stock was not to be procured by this s.h.i.+p, as being less wanted in the present state of the settlement, which had provisions in store for eighteen months, but not grain enough for seed, and for the support of cattle. The Fishburn and Golden Grove stores.h.i.+ps sailed in November for England; the Supply was detained in Port Jackson for occasional use. At this time the officers were all in separate houses, and the whole detachment comfortably lodged, though the barracks were yet unfinished. Nothing more, that requires to be related, has yet been heard from the settlement.
REMARKS and DIRECTIONS for SAILING into PORT JACKSON, by Capt. J. HUNTER, of the Sirius.
In coming in with Port Jackson, you will not immediately discover where the harbour is: Steer right in for the outer points, for there is not any thing in the way but what shows itself by the sea breaking on it, except a reef on the south sh.o.r.e which runs off a small distance only: when you are past this reef and are a-breast the next point on the same side, you will open to the south-ward of you an extensive branch of the harbour, into which you will sail; taking care to keep the sh.o.r.e on either side well on board, for there is a reef which dries at low water and lies very near the mid-channel, right off the first sandy cove on the east sh.o.r.e; this reef is pretty broad athwart, as well as up and down the channel, and shoals very gradually: The marks for it are, the outer north point and inner south point touching, Green Point will then be on with a remarkable notch in the back land. To avoid it to the eastward, pa.s.s the inner south head a cable's length from it, and when you open any part of the sandy beach of Camp Cove, haul short in for it until you bring the inner north head and inner south head on with each other; that mark will carry you up in five and six fathom: But if you cannot weather the reef, tack and stand into Camp Cove, which shoals gradually. If you pa.s.s to the westward of the reef, steer in for Middle Cape, which is steep too, then steer up for the next point above it on the same side; when you are that length, you may take what part of the channel you please, or anchor where you like.
It flows Full and Change a quarter past eight.
Rises 4 6 Neap Tide.
Rises 6 0 Spring Tide.
Chapter XV.
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