in the hollow of a rock—a large sting-ray! The sting-ray was large, he had a very long spear; from his hole he spied the women; he saw them dive: he pierced them with his spear—he killed them, he carried them away. Awhile they were gone out of sight. The sting-ray returned; he came close in shore, he lay in still water, near the sandy beach; with him were the women, they were fast on his spear—they were dead!
The two black men fought the sting-ray; they slew him with their spears; they killed him; the women were dead! The two black men made a fire—a fire of wood. On either side they laid a woman; the fire was between: the women were dead!
The black men sought some ants, some large blue ants (Pugganyeptietta); they placed them on the bosoms (Paruggapoingta) of the women. Severely, intensely were they bitten. The women revived—they lived once more.
Soon there came a fog (Maynentayana), a fog dark as night. The two black men went away; the women disappeared: they passed through the fog, the thick dark fog! Their place is in the clouds. Two stars you see in the clear cold night; the two black men are there—the women are with them: they are stars above!
How Fire was first obtained.
(According to the belief of the people of Lake Condah.)
A man threw up a spear—upwards, towards the clouds—and to the spear a string was attached. The man climbed up with the help of the string, and brought fire down to the earth from the sun.
A long time after this all the people went up to the other world by the same means, except one man, and from the one man that was left all the people on the earth came. The name of this man was Eun-newt. He is now the Bat. It was the Crow who sent the first rain.
Priests and Sorcerers—Wer-raap.
Wer-raap (a doctor) is made by the spirits (Len-ba-moorr) of deceased doctors.
The Len-ba-moorr meet the man whom they intend to make a doctor in the bush, and instruct him in all the arts and devices proper for him to know, in order that his influence in the tribe may be powerful; but from time to time they visit him subsequently, and give him aid and information. Sometimes they visit Wer-raap in the night, tell him that some one is sick, and furnish him with the means of cure. If the kidney-fat of any man has been taken away, Len-ba-moorr will communicate the fact, and take the doctor to the black who has possession of it. If the wicked man has not eaten it, Len-ba-moorr will give power to the doctor to get it and bring it back, and cure the sick man.
Wer-raap flies away with the Len-ba-moorr, who have given wings to Wer-raap; and sometimes Wer-raap does not return for two, three, or five days.
