Publisher's Synopsis
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1896 edition. Excerpt: ... The worst semi-civilized native I ever came in contact with was a blackfellow who had frequented a mission station. I found that the missionaries had wrought a physical as well as a moral deterioration in this degenerate scion of the River tribe? The main hiding places of the denizens of this region are ranges composed of enormous blocks of red sandstone, cleft aud piled one upon another. The rivers and creeks have steep banks, hidden in luxuriant vegetation, out of which large eucalypti and pine-trees tower above the bohemia and mimosa. On the margin of the large waters the native companion (Grus Australianus), jabiru (Xenorhynchus Asiaticus), snipe (Gallinago australis), wild pheasant (Leipoa), turkey (Eupodctis australis), and many other species abound. Crocodiles, iguanas, large snakes, eggs, honey, opossums, and hundreds of things are obtainable, and still these savages will destroy cattle in their wantonness. They make smoke signals to one another from range to range and mount to mount; they tell each other by smoke signals that the native police are about. My trackers learnt the meaning of the smoke signals from lubras and boys we had travelling with us. Two smokes close together, and going up at the same time, was a signal for the boys and lubras travelling with us " to run away the first chance;" a big dense smoke going straight up at long intervals meant " the police are about j" a broad smoke running along the side of a range, and continuing to rise now and again, meant they were travelling, the smoke itself gave the direction they were going. I have noticed prisoners travelling with us in chains get quite excited when reading the smokes to the right and left of them, and sometimes do all they can to escape. On account of...