(2.) AUSTRALIAN MOTHERS.
(See [page 758].)
CHAPTER LXXV.
AUSTRALIA—Continued.
FROM CHILDHOOD TO MANHOOD.
AUSTRALIAN CHILDREN — CEREMONIES ATTENDANT ON BECOMING MEN — ADMISSION TO THE RANK OF HUNTER — CEREMONY OF THE KANGAROO — THE KORADJEES AND THEIR DUTIES — KNOCKING OUT THE TOOTH — TRIAL BY ENDURANCE — TEST OF DETERMINATION — THE MAGIC CRYSTAL — THE FINAL FEAST — INITIATION AMONG THE MOORUNDI AND PARNKALLA TRIBE — THE WITARNA, AND ITS DREADED SOUND — THE WHISPERERS — TAKING THE SECOND DEGREE — THE APRON AND HEAD-NET — THE THIRD AND LAST CEREMONY — ENDURANCE OF PAIN — A NAUO MAN — STORY OF GI’ÔM — MAKING KOTAIGA OR BROTHERHOOD.
Australian children, while they remain children, and as such are under the dominion of their mothers, are rather engaging little creatures. They cannot be called pretty, partly owing to the total neglect, or rather ignorance, of personal cleanliness, and partly on account of the diet with which they are fed. Their eyes are soft, and possess the half-wistful, half-wild expression that so peculiarly distinguishes the young savage. But they are never washed except by accident, their profuse black hair wanders in unkempt masses over their heads, and their stomachs protrude exactly like those of the young African savage.
In process of time they lose all these characteristics. The wistful expression dies out of their eyes, while the restless, suspicious glance of the savage takes its place. They become quarrelsome, headstrong, and insubordinate, and, after exhibiting these qualifications for a higher rank in life, they become candidates for admission into the rights and privileges of manhood. Among civilized nations, attaining legal majority is a simple process enough, merely consisting of waiting until the candidate is old enough; but with many savage nations, and specially with the Australians, the process of becoming men is a long, intricate, and singularly painful series of ceremonies.
These rites vary according to the locality in which they are celebrated, but they all agree in one point, namely,—in causing very severe pain to the initiates, and testing to the utmost their endurance of pain. As many of these rites are almost identical in different tribes, I shall not repeat any of them, but only mention those points in which the ceremonies differ from each other.
One of these customs, which seems to belong to almost every variety of savage life, namely, the loss of certain teeth, flourishes among the Australians. The mode of extracting the teeth is simple enough. The men who conduct the ceremony pretend to be very ill, swoon, and writhe on the ground, and are treated after the usual method of healing the sick, i. e. their friends make a howling and shouting, dance round and hit them on the back, until each sick man produces a piece of sharp bone.
This ceremony being intended to give the initiates power over the various animals, a series of appropriate ceremonies are performed. On the morning after the sharp bones have been mysteriously produced, the Koradjees, or operators, dress themselves up with bits of fur and other decorations, which are conventionally accepted as representing the dingo, or native dog. The wooden sword, which is thrust into a belt, sticks up over the back, and takes the place of the tail. The boys are then made to sit on the ground, while the koradjees run round and round them on all fours, thus representing dogs, and giving the lads to understand that the succeeding ceremony will give them power over dogs. In token of this power, each time that they pass the boys they throw sand and dust over them.
Here it must be remarked that the Australian natives are great dog-fanciers, the dog being to them what the pig is to the Sandwich Islanders. There is scarcely a lad who does not possess at least one dog, and many have several, of which they take charge from earliest puppyhood, and which accompany their masters wherever they go. Besides their value as companions, these dogs are useful for another reason. They are a safeguard against famine; for when a man is in danger of starving, he is sure to rescue himself by killing and cooking his faithful dog. The animal has never cost him any trouble. It forages for itself as it best can, and always adheres to its owner, and is always at hand when wanted. The object, therefore, of the first part of the ceremony is to intimate to the lads that they are not only to have dominion over the dogs, but that they ought to possess its excellent qualities.
The next part of the ceremony is intended to give them power over the kangaroos.