The natives of the Murray and the Darling, and those in other parts adjacent, carved on the trees near the tombs of deceased warriors strange figures having meanings no doubt intelligible to all the tribes in the vast area watered by these rivers.
That they possessed the power of conveying ideas by a sort of picture-writing is beyond doubt: picture-writing indeed was common long before Europeans made encroachments in any part of the island-continent. The characters employed, and the meaning of some of them, are referred to in another part of this work. The native not only was able to convey ideas in this manner, but occasionally made pictures, intelligible to all, representing events in his life.[1]
Some years ago, the Honorable Theo. J. Sumner sent me a piece of bark on which were depicted various scenes in the life of an Aboriginal. It was obtained near Lake Tyrrell, from a hut of bark constructed by a native. He had ornamented the sheets of bark composing his hut very elaborately, and one piece was brought to Melbourne by Mr. Stanbridge. The native artist was not a wild black. He had observed the customs of the whites; but he had received no instruction from them, except such as an intelligent man would derive from looking at their works. He cannot be strictly regarded as an uneducated native. The landscapes, if they can be so called, and the figures shown in Fig. 40, are faithfully reduced from the original sheet of bark on which they were drawn, and which is now in my possession. The bark was smoked on the inside by placing it over a fire of twigs and leaves until the surface was blackened but not charred, and the artist drew the figures with the nail of his thumb.
Beginning at the top, we see what appear to be clouds beyond the horizon. A snake is gliding towards the farther edge of the plain, and a part of the body is out of sight. There are a few trees on the plain, and these are placed seemingly for the purpose of illustrating events. There is a pigeon perched on the top of a tree; there are two kangaroos exchanging signals; a native companion walking, and another feeding; an emu at rest, but with the head turned watchfully towards the rear; there is a snake coiled; there are turkeys walking, feeding or pluming themselves; and there is a gum-tree admirably depicted, with apparently a cherry-tree quite near it (commonly seen in the bush—the
- ↑ How like are the practices of men throughout the world! "And so the Indian Cadmus, with his paints of diverse colors, depicts on the smooth birch bark such simple figures and symbols as are now to be found engraven on hundreds of rocks throughout the American Continent; and are in constant use by the forest Indian in chronicling his own deeds on his buffalo robe, or recording those of the deceased chief on his grave-post. This is a simple process of picture-writing, translatable with nearly equal facility into the language of every tribe."—Wilson's Pre-Historic Man, vol. II., p. 125.
The Bosjesman is also an artist. He makes figures on rocks, and paints the roofs of caves, like the Australians and the North American Indians. He represents figures of men and the forms of beasts. He uses in coloring them red and black, and sometimes white, and his drawings have given rise to speculations as to their origin somewhat similar to the theories propounded respecting the cave-paintings of the natives of the north-western part of the continent. He, like the Australian, understands and appreciates art. He loves pictures. They appeal to his intellect in a manner that only an artist can comprehend.
