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It cannot be too strongly recommended to those who are endeavouring to attain a knowledge of the language of Savage nations, the necessity of dismissing from the mind the trammels of European schools, and simply to trace out the natural rules of languages which have been not sophisticated by Art. The almost sovereign contempt with which the Aboriginal language of New South Wales has been treated in this Colony, and the indifference shown towards the attempt to gain information on the subject, are not highly indicative of the love of Science in this part of the Globe, and for which it is difficult to account, but on the ground if that universal engagement in so many various employments consequent to a new colony, where every individual must be dependent on his own exertions for the necessaries and comforts of life.
The Indians of North America have a "transitive conjugation" expressing at the same time the idea of the person acting and that acted upon, "which has excited much astonishment and attracted the attention of the learned in different parts of the world." The Aborigines of this Colony have a similar form of expression, explained in the Australian Grammar page 29, No. 3, which I have denominated therein "Active. Transitive, Reciprocal, " which constitutes "the reciprocal modification," in the Dual and Plural number, as Bun-kil-lan-ba-li, thou and I strike each other reciprocally, or fight, which would be thus analyzed; Bun, the root, to strike; kil, the sign of the infinitive to be, to exist; lan, sign of the present time and of the action being reciprocal; bali, the dual pronoun subject and agent conjoined, we two; I fight with him would be thus expressed; Bun-kil-lan-ba-li-no-a, in which balinoa means he and I conjoined fight; but to say he and I fight another would be Bun-tan-ba-li-no-a, the object is understood in the letter t; an, being the sign of the present time, the t is derived from ta, it.
The Cherokee use no distinct word for the article a and the; but when required they use a word equivalent to the numeral one, and the demonstrative pronouns this and that agreeably to the original use and nature of the words which we call articles; so likewise the aboriginals of this Colony, who use wa-kol one for a; and the pronoun demonstrative both of a thing and place, as un-ni, this here; un-nung, that there, The Delaware, according to Mr. Du Ponceau's notes in Eliot's grammar possesses an article wo, or m' which is used for a and the, but not frequently because the words are sufficiently understood without it. The Tahitians possess an article definite TE, used for our The; but express a by Tehoe, one. The American Indians have in common with the Tahitians, an extra plural denoting We excluding the party addressed. This pecularity the Aborigines of New South Wales have not in their language, though they have in common with the American Indians and the Tahitians a Dual, beside which they have an Extra Dual denoting the Object and Agent conjoined described fully in the Grammar, page 24 and 36, denominated the Conjoined Dual Case. A similarity of form is described as belonging to Delaware Indians under another name denominated "Personal," "In which the two pronouns governing and governed, are, by means of affixes, and suffixes, terminations, and flextions, included in the same word."
EXAMPLE,
Delaware. K'dahoatell, I love thee,
Tahitian. 1. Ua au taua. We two, thou and I suit each other.
Aboriginal, N.S.W. 2. Pi-tul-ba-li-ha-kil-lan. We two, thou and I live peaceably, or joy one with the other.
1. Analyzed thus; Ua sign of the present time, au to suit, agnunee, fit, &c. &c.; taua we two.
2. Pitul, means joy, peace, delight, &c. bali the Dual pronoun, We two conjoined; kahillan the verb to be in a state of continuation, thus; Ka the root of the verb to be, to exist; hi the sign of the indefinite; lan, the sign of continuation at the present time.
Note.-- The word Pital in this language and Au, in the Tahitian are the nearest words to express Love, to Smite is much better expressed in both languages. The negative form of the example would stand thus :--
Aboriginal New South Wales. Ke-a-wa-ranbu-lipi-tul ho-ri-en. We do not love one another, or agree one with the other. Keawarun, is the denial in the present tense, from Keawai the infinitive negative. The imperative negative is Kora, as; Pi-tal-ban-ko-ra, do not be peaceable. ban, is the present of the Verb to be in action. In the Delaware there is a similarity of construction in the negative, thus: "Matta the negative adverb no, future thus; Mattatoch not. The last word in the Aboriginal sentence horien, is the negative adverb not, thus there are two negatives, which are essential to express the negation. The Aboriginal phrase, Bunnungbunung, I shall smite thee, shows at once the similarity of construction of this Aboriginal language with that of the Indians of North America, for, though, I write it separately thus: Bunnun lenung, because I know the word to be the conjoined dual pronoun, yet it is pronounced as one word and would be so considered by a stranger. If determination is to be expressed the particle wal must be inserted thus; Bun-nun-wal-ba-nung I shall and will smite the. Analyzed thus: Bun, the root of the Verb to smite; nun, the particle denoting futurity; wal, denotes determination; ba, is part of the Verbal pronoun bang, I; The personal pronoun is Ngatoa, I, and nung is the pronoun it, nung in the Objective case accented to a person, without an accent to a thing.
The Aborigines complete their Dual by carrying it out to the feminine in the conjoined dual case which the American Indians do not in the "Second personal form."