The natives of the Gulf of Carpentaria, and also those on the eastern shores of St. Vincent's Gulf, practise the rite of circumcision. That is, this remarkable rite is known to be observed in two points of the continent of Australia exactly opposite to one another, and which are separated by a distance of about twelve hundred miles.
OTHER SCRIPTURAL CUSTOMS.
The injunctions contained in Deuteronomy chapter 23 verses 12 and 13 are literally fulfilled by the natives in several parts of the continent. In addition to my own testimony on this point I will refer to Wilson's Voyage round the World, page 165, where he states:
They are cleanly in their manners, and in some respects superior to the Europeans, fulfilling the injunction of Moses in the twelfth and thirteenth verses of the twenty-third chapter of Deuteronomy.
This passage relates to the natives of Raffles Bay on the extreme north of the continent of Australia, whereas I have observed the custom in the South-western parts of Australia.
They also conform strictly to the injunctions in Leviticus chapter 15 verse 19.
CHAPTER 17. CHARACTERISTIC ANECDOTES.
The following casual anecdotes, though trivial in themselves, will assist in illustrating some of the peculiarities of the native mind and character.
MIAGO'S IMAGINARY SPEECH AS GOVERNOR.