with which the women are treated, and as I found my
question either ill understood or reluctantly answered, I proceeded to
examine her head, the part on which the husband's vengeance generally
alights. With grief I found it covered by contusions and mangled by scars.
The poor creature, grown by this time more confident from perceiving that I
pitied her, pointed out a wound just above her left knee which she told me
was received from a spear, thrown at her by a man who had lately dragged
her by force from her home to gratify his lust. I afterwards observed that
this wound had caused a slight lameness and that she limped in walking. I
could only compassionate her wrongs and sympathize in her misfortunes. To
alleviate her present sense of them, when she took her leave I gave her,
however, all the bread and salt pork which my little stock afforded.

After this I never saw her but once, when I happened to be near the
harbour's mouth in a boat, with captain Ball. We met her in a canoe with
several more of her sex. She was painted for a ball, with broad stripes of
white earth, from head to foot, so that she no longer looked like the same
Gooreedeeana. We offered her several presents, all of which she readily
accepted; but finding our eagerness and solicitude to inspect her, she
managed her canoe with such address as to elude our too near approach, and
acted the coquet to admiration.

To return from this digression to my subject, I have only farther to
observe that the estimation of female beauty among the natives (the men at
least) is in this country the same as in most others. Were a New Hollander
to portray his mistress, he would draw her the 'Venus aux belles fesses'.
Whenever Baneelon described to us his favourite fair, he always painted her
in this, and another particular, as eminently luxuriant.

Unsatisfied, however, with natural beauty (like the people of all
other countries) they strive by adscititious embellishments to heighten
attraction, and often with as little success. Hence the naked savage of New
South Wales pierces the septum of his nose, through which he runs a
stick or a bone, and scarifies his body, the charms of which increase
in proportion to the number and magnitude of seams by which it is
distinguished. The operation is performed by making two longitudinal
incisions with a sharpened shell, and afterwards pinching up with the
nails the intermediate space of skin and flesh, which thereby becomes
consider