Item 05: 'Aboriginal words and names chiefly from the Upper Clarence River Dialect, collected by Thomas George Hewitt of Grafton and Lismore', ca. 1909 and transcribed with additional notes by Robert L. Dawson, 6 June 1938 - Page 23

[Page 23]

Note

This record of "Aboriginal Tribes" is both interesting 

and valuable. In my booklet (1935) of "Aboriginal 

Words and Names", "Lower Clarence River Dialect", I

wrote of my informant Freeburn as "a native of 

the Yumbah Tribe". I assumed this as he was

born and bred at the Clarence River Heads which

is called "Yumbah" in the Lower Clarence dialect.

Apparently my assumption was wrong and 

Freeburn probably belongs either to Yoongi

or to Watchi-Watchi. The latter, I am inclined 

to think, for he seemed to know more about the 

country north of the Clarence than that of the south.

Note. An indistinct memo near the end of Mr

Hewitt's notebook appears to state that "the 

Richmond river blacks call the Clarence tribes

Koom-bin-jir, the Logan (Southern Queensland) tribes

Kul-lum-bil, and themselves Kow-al."

                                                     R.L.D