o make us acquainted with their friendly disposition towards
us. They began to call loudly to their gins, who stood assembled under a
large tree at some distance, and we plainly understood the invitation of
the men to visit these females. But our party was much more disposed to
fight than make love; and I have little doubt that by throwing a single
spear the natives would have pleased them more than by all the civility
they were evidently anxious to show us; so desirous were they, at that
time, to avenge the late murders--when even the odour of corruption still
hung like a pestilence about the articles recovered from the plundered
camp. The natives however PERHAPS out of pure cordiality in return for
our former disinterested kindness, persisted in their endeavours to
introduce us very particularly to their women. They ordered them to come
up, divested of their cloaks and bags, and placed them before us. Most of
the men appeared to possess two, the pair in general consisting of a fat
plump gin, and one much younger. Each man placed himself before his gins
and, bowing forward with a shrug, the hands and arms being thrown back
pointing to each gin, as if to say: Take which you please. The females on
their part evinced no apprehensions, but seemed to regard us beings of a
race so different without the slightest indication of either fear,
aversion, or surprise. Their looks were rather expressive of a ready
acquiescence in the proffered kindness of the men, and when at length
they brought a sable nymph vis-a-vis to Mr. White, I could preserve my
gravity no longer and, throwing the spears aside, I ordered the
bullock-drivers to proceed. I endeavoured to explain by gestures that two
of our party had been killed by their countrymen, and pointed to the
place so that, as Mr. White thought, they understood me. On seeing the
party again in motion most of the natives disappeared, one or two only
lingered behind trees, and it then occurred to me to offer them a small
iron tomahawk in exchange for that of stone which lay beside the spears.
I therefore sent Dawkins to them to make a bargain if he could, but on
going back he saw most of the natives running off with spears in their
hands, and could not make his object understood by those who remained.
The earth in this part of our old track had become very soft and,
although the surface undulated, it possessed a peculiar rottenness, so
that where the upper crust bore me on horseback the cart