Primary tabs
Transcription
23
other Wyalla boys away to their humpies, took him to one particular hut, and told him that the spirits were in a hurry, and that although they were not shy they bargained that no fires, pipes etc should be lit, or any attempts made to catch them. To quote Hislop's own words. - "He then told me that inside this hut was an old woman, the only spirit that had come, but that, if asked, she could summon other young gins to come out from the ground in this particular hut and answer any questions put to them. The other blacks now began to gather round, and one of them, Blucher by name, was told that this spirit of the old woman was his mother-n-law : B. accordingly went by hinself inside, and called out (in the Kokoyalanji dialect) "Are you there, mother"? to which she replied (speaking Kokowara) in the affirmative. B. then asked her where she came from : she said she had come from the west, had lost her way and was done up, and that although she had a lot of spirits with her they were very tired and sleepy after their long journey. I thereupon chimed in interrupted the conversation and asked the old lady to come out and show herself to me, but she said she was only a woong-gâ-jí spirit (lit = song, with) spirit, and that it was only the té-mâ-roo (spirits from out of the ground belonging to dead normanby blacks) who could show its make their presence visible. In the darkness she told Blucher that she had summoned a young gin for him, and that the latter was a very fine girl and wanted to marry him. The girl herself thus summoned then began to speak, and told B. what a fine fellow he was, flattered his vanity and self-esteem, and told him how delighted she was at the prospect of entering wedlock with him : she also enquired where his own particular humpy was, as she would pay him a visit (in response to his solicitations) ^ but only on condition that he did not attempt to lay hold of her. The intermediary