e on the part of the person employed is necessary
to ensure success. Though they are always ready to give up or point out
transgressors, if belonging to other tribes than their own.

Chapter VII.

LANGUAGE, DIALECTS, CUSTOMS, etc.--GENERAL SIMILARITY THROUGHOUT THE
CONTINENT--CAUSES OF DIFFERENCES--ROUTE BY WHICH THE NATIVES HAVE
OVERSPREAD THE COUNTRY, etc.

During the last few years much has been done towards an examination and
comparison of the dialects spoken by the aboriginal tribes of Australia
in different portions of the continent. The labours of Mr. Threlkeld, of
Captain Grey, of Messrs. Teichelman and Schurmann, of Mr. Meyer, of Mr.
Schurman, with the occasional notes of visitors and travellers, have done
much to elucidate this subject, and have presented to the world
vocabularies of the Hunter's River and Lake Macquarie districts in New
South Wales; of Swan River and King George's Sound in Western Australia;
of Adelaide, of Encounter Bay, and of Port Lincoln, in South Australia;
besides occasional phrases or scanty manuals of various other dialects
spoken in different districts. From these varied contributions it would
appear that a striking coincidence exists in the personal appearance,
character, customs, traditions, dialects, etc. among the many and remotely
separated tribes scattered over the surface of New Holland. Each of
these, no doubt, varies in many particulars from the others, and so much
so some times, as to lead to the impression that they are essentially
different and distinct. [Note 95 at end of para.] Upon close examination,
however, a sufficient general resemblance is usually found to indicate
that all the tribes have originally sprung from the same race, that
they have gradually spread themselves over the whole continent from
some one given point; which appears, as far as we can infer from
circumstantial evidence, to have been somewhere upon the northern
coast. There are some points of resemblance which, as far as is yet
known, appear to be common to most of the different dialects with
which we are acquainted. Such are, there being no generic terms
as tree, fish, bird, etc., but only specific ones as applied to
each particular variety of tree, fish, bird, etc. The cardinal
numbers, being only carried up to three, there being no degrees
of comparison except by a repetition to indicate intensity, or by a
combination of opposite adjectives, to point out the proportion intended,
a