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The Native Tribes of South Australia

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THE

NATIVE TRIBES

OF

SOUTH AUSTRALIA,


COMPRISING

The Narrinyeri By The Rev. GEORGE TAPLIN.
The Adelaide Tribe By Dr. WYATT, J.P.
The Encounter Bay Tribe By The Rev. A MEYER.
The Port Lincoln Tribe By The Rev. C. W. SCHÜRMANN.
The Dieyerie Tribe By S. GASON
Vocabulary of Woolner District
Dialect (Northern Territory)
  By JOHN WM. OGILVIE BENNETT.

WITH

AN INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER

BY J. D. WOODS.



Adelaide:

E. S. WIGG & SON, RUNDLE STREET.

1879.

MELBOURNE
McCARRON, BIRD AND CO., PRINTERS
37 FLINDERS LANE WEST

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGES
I. INTRODUCTION vii
II. THE NARRINYERI 1—156
Chap. I The Narrinyeri, or Tribes of Aborigines Inhabiting the Lakes Alexandrina and Albert, and Lower Murray 1
Chap. II. Social Customs
Section 1—Marriage 10
Section 2—Infanticide 13
Section 3—Initiation to Manhood, called Narumbe 15
Section 4—Funeral Rites 18
Chap. III. Sorcery of various kinds
Section 1—Ngadhungi 23
Section 2—Millin 26
Section 3—Neilyeri, or the Poison Revenge 29
Chap. IV. Tribal Customs
Section 1—Chiefs—The Tendi—Ngai-ngiampe 32
Section 2—Games and Amusements 37
Chap. V. Weapons—Manufactures—Taking Game—Cooking—Diseases—Medical Treatment 40
Chap. VI. Relationships—Systems of Kinship 48
Chap. VII. Mythology 55
Chap. VIII. The History of the Mission at Point Macleay 66
Chap. IX. The Primitive Condition of Mankind 119
Chap. X. Language 123
Chap. XI. (Supplementary). Illustrative Anecdotes, &c. 133
Chap. XII. The Future of the Aboriginal Races, and Feasibility of Christian Missions to them 145
Appendix. The Wreck of the Maria 151
III. SOME ACCOUNT OF THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE ADELAIDE AND ENCOUNTER BAY TRIBES 157—168
IV. VOCABULARY OF THE ADELAIDE AND ENCOUNTER BAY TRIBES 169—182
V. MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE ENCOUNTER BAY TRIBES 183—206
VI. THE ABORIGINAL TRIBES OF PORT LINCOLN 207—252
VII. MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE DIEYERIE TRIBE 253—307
Part. I. The Tribe—Its Country—Neighbours—Good and Evil Qualities—Love of Bartering—Food—Dogs—Traditions of the Creation and of the Sun—Subdivision into Families 257
Part. II. Councils—Treaty—Mode of Reception—Armed Party—Laws—Ceremonies—Hole in the Nose—Extraction of Teeth—Circumcision—To Procure Harvest—To Invoke Peace—Operation of the Koolpie—Funeral Rites—Death Spell—Making of Rain—Making Wild Fowl lay Eggs—Making Iguanas—Superstition about Iguanas and Trees—Remedy for Accidents—Expedition for Red Ochre—Diseases—Doctor—Cure for Disease or Wounds 262
Part. III. Catalogue of Animals, &c.—Rats and their Congeners—Reptiles—Birds—Fish—Vegetables—Insects—Manufacturing Products—Weapons and Personal Ornaments 285
Part. IV. The Dieyerie Dialect—Key to Pronunciation—Outline of the Construction of the Language—System of Notation—Astronomical Terms—List of Names distinguishing Age or Relationship—The Ten Commandments—Parts of the Human Frame—Vocabulary 290
VIII. VOCABULARY OF THE WOOLNER DISTRICT DIALECT 309—316

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Native Encampment Frontispiece
Portraits of Aboriginals Page 1
Holding Native Inquest 20
Drying a Dead Body 75
Teenminnie 114
Interior of a Native Hut 118
Stage Bearing Dead Bodies 200
Corroboree 241