tion with their superstitions, and that it was regarded in
the light of a charm.

Before the country was occupied by Europeans, the natives say that this
dance was frequently celebrated, but that latterly it has not been much
in use. No other instance of it ever came under my own observation in any
part of New Holland.

The songs of the natives are of a very rude and unmeaning character,
rarely consisting of more than one or two ideas, which are continually
repeated over and over again. They are chiefly made on the spur of the
moment, and refer to something that has struck the attention at the time.
The measure of the song varies according to circumstances. It is gay and
lively, for the dance; slow and solemn for the enchanter; and wild and
pathetic for the mourner. The music is sometimes not unharmonious; and
when heard in the stillness of the night and mellowed by distance, is
often soothing and pleasing. I have frequently laid awake, after retiring
to rest, to listen to it. Europeans, their property, presence, and
habits, are frequently the subject of these songs; and as the natives
possess great powers of mimicry, and are acute in the observation of
anything that appears to them absurd or ludicrous, the white man often
becomes the object of their jests or quizzing. I have heard songs of this
kind sung at the dances in a kind of comic medley, where different
speakers take up parts during the breaks in the song, and where a
sentence or two of English is aptly introduced, or a quotation made from
some native dialect, other than that of the performers. It is usually
conducted in the form of question and answer, and the respective speakers
use the language of the persons they are supposed to represent. The
chorus is, however, still the same repetition of one or two words.

The following specimens, taken from a vocabulary published by Messrs.
Teichelmann, and Schurmann, German Missionaries to the Aborigines, will
give an idea of the nature of the songs of the Adelaide tribe.

KADLITPIKO PALTI.
Pindi mai birkibirki parrato, parrato. (DE CAPO BIS.)

CAPTAIN JACK'S SONG.
The European food, the pease, I wished to eat, I wished to eat.

MULLAWIRRABURKARNA PALTI.
Natta ngai padlo ngaityarniappi; watteyernaurlo tappandi ngaityo parni
tatti. (DA CAPO.)

KING JOHN'S SONG.
Now it (viz. the road or track) has tired me;
throughout Yerna there is here unto me a continuous road.

WILTONGARROLO kundando
Strike (him, vi