the apron of emu feathers, are their clothing. All else that they use is put on rather for ornament than because it is necessary. Their cloaks, their aprons, their necklaces, their nose-bones, the hunger-belt they tie round their bodies, the extraordinary head-dress of feathers worn by the natives of the north—resembling the masks of the Ahts of Vancouver's Island, the Momo of New Caledonia, and the circlets of feathers with which the men of Guiana deck their heads—and the manner in which they paint themselves, are shown in the descriptions and figures in this work.[1]
The cloaks are made of the skins of the opossum. These skins they neatly sew together, using for thread the sinews of the tail of the kangaroo. The rug is ornamented with various devices, and whether the outside or the inside is presented, it is a work that every one likes to look at, because it is strong and durable and honestly made, and never in the lines drawn on it exhibiting the unpleasing forms that are invariably chosen by our own people when they attempt decoration.
The apron of feathers used by maidens, and the skirt, kilt, or fillibeg, made of strips of skin, with which the men clothe themselves, resemble in form the African apron of thongs, the grass dresses of Fiji and New Caledonia, and the feather aprons of tropical America.
The fillet worn round the head reminds one of a similar ornament used by the people who dwelt on the banks of the Euphrates and the Tigris, of that of the Persians, of the band tied over the hair that the Greeks and Romans affected, and the modern fashion of tying the hair with a ribbon.
They bored the septum of the nose, in this repeating the custom of the Sachet Indians of De Fuca's Straits and the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North America.
Their necklaces, simple as they are, have their representations now in the rich and costly adornments which the females of Europe delight in placing on their necks.
The hunger-belt of the Australians is like that of the Moors of Africa and the Red Indians of America. The specimens in my collection are beautifully wrought.
Their practice of distinguishing by an article of dress, such as the apron of emu feathers, the females who were not yet matrons, finds even now its equivalents in many modes of attire amongst civilized peoples; and indeed it is difficult to name any of their customs that are not apparently the germs of varying phases of fashion that exist at the present day, the origin of which, unless we seek it in the habits of savages, is hidden from us. The wearing of armlets and anklets, the ear-rings which no woman dislikes and many men are glad to exhibit, the tattooing that the sailor more especially rejoices in, and even the crown that sovereigns are compelled to assume, are all
- ↑ The head-dress of feathers (Oogee), obtained by Mr. J. A. Panton from North-Eastern Australia, is somewhat like that described by Jukes in the narrative of the Voyage of H.M.S. Fly. When visiting Darnley Island or Erroob, Duppa, a native, appeared with a fillet crossing over his head from which proceeded a semicircle of large white feathers, vandyked at the edges, and radiating round his head like a glory.
