HUTCHINSON'S

AUSTRALASIAN ENCYCLOPEDIA.

The following abbreviations are used throughout:-N.S.W., New South Wales; N.Z., New Zealand; Qd., Queensland; S.A., South Australia; Tas., Tasmania; Vict., Victoria; W.A., Western Australia.

of the eighteenth century by epidemics policy, the unauthorised digging up of of small pox and measles. The aborigines one root in its soil to be a casus belli, had no fixed habitation, but lived in the suddenly finds not only that strangers of open air during the summer, and in huts another race have located themselves permade of boughs and bark in the winter. manently upon their lands, but that they They lived upon animals, birds and fishes, have brought with them a multitude of insects, roots and wild fruits. Their rights animals, which devour wholesale the roots to the soil over which they hunted were and vegetables which constitute their never recognised by the British Govern- principal food, and drive off the game ments, and they were treated with very they formerly hunted. Besides this the little consideration by the colonists, and tribe finds itself warned by the more merwith none by the convicts, who formed ciful settler, that as cattle will not remain the servants of the original settlers. No upon a run about which blacks seek their organised attempts were made by the daily food in the usual way, as they are aborigines to repel the European in- alarmed at their very smell, they must give vaders, but there were many isolated up that practice, or be shot down whenattacks by the natives upon the colonists, ever met; the tribe being threatened and many settlers were from time to time with war by the white stranger if it murdered. These outrages provoked re- attempts to get food in its own country, prisals, in which scores of aborigines and with the same consequences if it were shot down, sometimes by soldiers, intrudes on the lands of a neighbouring sometimes by armed constables, but tribe, finds itself reduced to make choice most frequently by colonists. Occasion- of certain death from starvation, or proally black men were hanged for murder-bable death from the rifle, and naturally ing whites; and sometimes white men were chooses the latter. A considerable porexecuted for murdering blacks. Upon tion of the males of a tribe having been one occasion, in 1838, seven white men shot down, the black learns the uselesswere hanged for the murder of a tribe of ness of his resistance, and sues for peace. twenty-eight aborigines at Myall Creek, When the white man is of opinion that N.S.W., on a station belonging to Henry the tribe has been so weakened and subDangar. Intermittent efforts were made dued that his small party has nothing to to civilise and Christianise the aborigines, fear if moderate precautions are taken, but these were rarely successful until the peace is granted. From this epoch a number of the unfortunate creatures had been reduced to a mere remnant, and until the full-blooded blacks had been succeeded by a race in which there was a certain admixture of white blood. The skir mishes commenced at Rushcutters' Bay, Sydney, in 1788, when the soldiers and convicts ill-treated the native women: the blacks in return killed six convicts and two soldiers; the Government retaliated by shooting a large number of blacks. And the fight was continued all over Australia until the present day. Mr. Edward Curr in his book upon the Australian race writes as follows: "The meeting of the white and black races in Australia, considered generally, results in war. Nor is it to be wondered at. The white man looks on the possession of the land by the blacks as no proper occupation, and practically and avowedly declines to allow them the common rights of human beings. On the other hand, the tribe which has held its land from time immemorial, and always maintained, according to native

few of the men of the tribe receive occasional employment on the station, for which they are paid in food; the refuse of animals slaughtered for station use is also given over to the tribe; food is also received by the blacks from some of the men for the prostitution of their wives and daughters. The consequences which follow are that the venereal diseases are invariably introduced and disseminated through the tribe, and that many die from them. Another outcome of this chronic debauchery is that infanticide, from being exceptional, becomes the rule. Besides this, experience has shown that, of the few children allowed to live, the majority die between the ages of fifteen and twenty of consumption, the result probably of venereal disease in their parents. When this stage has been reached, the Colonial Government have stepped in in several cases, collected the remnants of some or all of the tribes, and located them on what in Victoria are called Aboriginal Reserves, and the children learn reading,

writing, and arithmetic more easily than attention of the Supreme Court, no white white children." Speaking of the treat- man except the officer in charge accomment of the aborigines, Mr. Curr writes: panies the troopers, save in rare instances, "Since 1850, the areas of squattages, when he allows an owner or overseer on more especially in Queensland, have enor- whose prudence he can thoroughly rely mously increased, and populations being to be present. The evidence of a black correspondingly small, an increase of is not admissible in our courts. Were mounted troopers has been found neces- there several whites present on these sary. To save expense, white troopers ever-recurring expeditions, it would be have been discarded in favour of corps impossible for the present system to be composed entirely of blacks, each led by maintained. Its enormities have been an officer called an Inspector or Sub- brought before the Queensland Parliament Inspector of Native Mounted Police. In and exposed in the papers. Its advocates this service the practice is to enlist a maintain that it is both effective and score of young savages in a district in cheap. After a massacre has taken place which the tribes have become somewhat the officer who supervised and assisted at civilised, and send them to another in it reports that he has 'dispersed' a tribe, which there is some disturbance, perhaps which had been troublesome in his distwo or three hundred miles from their trict; and there the matter ends. . . . As own. When cattle are speared, or have regards the blacks, I should sum up the taken alarm at the sight or smell of the outcome of their contact with ourselves blacks, and moved off, the aggrieved in this way. The only success which our squatter sends for the nearest Inspector, treatment of them has had is in the cultiwho proceeds to the spot, and, accom-vation of their intellects; and if their panied by a portion of his men, commences education is persevered in for several a search for blacks. Any blacks will do. generations, I see no reason to prevent Into such enterprises his troopers enter their being brought in this particular to with fiendish energy and ingenuity, and a level with ourselves. In bodily health on the first blacks encountered this they have conspicuously receded. Their English official looses his thirsty war- state of dependence on us has undermined hounds. Keeping at a safe distance from their former self-reliance, and left them spears, as many males as possible are without character. Religion and civilisathen shot down with the rifle, whether tion our blacks have not attained. The they have been offenders or not; none, white race seems destined not to absorb, if possible, are allowed to escape; the but to exterminate the blacks of Aus. trooper gives himself up to his enjoyment tralia." The census of 1881 showed that of blood, the Superintendent of Police the number of aborigines had dwindled often proving himself the crack shot of to 31,700, of which the greater proportion the party. The massacre concluded, the resided in the unsettled districts of English officer gives over the women- Queensland, South Australia, and Western who, to save their lives, do not attempt Australia. The aborigines of Tasmania, to fly to satisfy the lust of his boys,' who in 1803 numbered at least 5000, were as he calls the troopers. Indeed, his life extinct, and there were only 780 in Vicwould not be safe were he to do other- toria, of whom a large proportion were wise. So much do the bloodthirsty pro- half-castes. The relations between the clivities of the savage increase by this settlers and the colonists form a series of sort of work, carried on from week to chapters in Australian history of which week, that their officers are afraid, as a the Europeans have no reason to be rule, to ride before the men on the march, proud. lest any whim might lead to their being shot down. Should two of the troopers differ about the possession of a girl after a fight, probably one of them shoots her down in a fit of jealousy. An orgy ensues, and not unfrequently some of the troopers carry off captive girls to supplement their harems at headquarters. To prevent such proceedings attracting the

Acclimatisation Society of Victoria was founded in 1857 by Edward Wilson, part proprietor and editor of the Melbourne Argus, and received a grant of land in the Royal Park, Melbourne, which was devoted by them to acclimatisation and zoology, and was the commencement of the present Melbourne Zoological Gardens. The Society introduced a large number of

British singing and game-birds, hares, deer, trout, and other fresh-water fish, and made several partially successful efforts to introduce and acclimatise the Angora goat, the ostrich, the alpaca, and the salmon. Similar societies have been formed in New South Wales, Queensland, and Tasmania.

Acheron, Vict. A town 75 miles N.E. of Melbourne, in co. Anglesey, situated on the left bank of the Acheron, a tributary of the Goulburn.

paid a second visit to England.-John Gordon Griffiths, born in Shropshire in August 1810, went on the stage shortly after leaving school, was a member of the McKay Company, and played regularly at Glasgow and London. Went to Sydney in 1842, and appeared at the Victoria Theatre as Hamlet, Coriolanus, Iago, Falstaff, and other Shakesperean characters, in which he displayed great ability; was manager in turn of the Victoria and Prince of Wales's Theatres, and died at Manly Beach, near Sydney, March 4th, 1857.--Mark Last King, known professionally as Morton King, was brought up as an actor, but when he arrived in Australia in 1846, he adopted the occupation of auctioneer, and only appeared on the stage at intervals, and "starred at Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney in the principal leading characters of the legitimate drama. Mr. King was a robust but very excellent actor of the old school. He acquired a considerable fortune, entered the Legislature, and died about 1870 in a good social position and easy circumstances.-Francis Nesbitt Mc Cron, known professionally as Francis Nesbitt, was born at Manchester in 1809, was educated for the medical profession, but went on the stage, and played important parts at the Glasgow Theatre. Left the stage in 1840; but having married a young lady against the will of his and her family, he emigrated to Sydney in 1841. Finding it impossible to obtain any suitable employment he returned to the stage, and made his first

Actors. The principal actors who appeared in Australia prior to 1857 were Gustavus Vaughan Brooke, born at Dublin in 1818, who occupied a high position on the English stage. In 1855 he went to Melbourne under engagement with Mr. Coppin, and appeared at all the principal cities of Australia. He returned to England in 1864, and while on his voyage back to Australia was drowned in the Bay of Biscay, on Jan. 10th, 1866, in the foundering of the London.-George Coppin, born at Steyning, Sussex, in 1819, went on the stage at the age of seventeen, and in 1843 arrived at Sydney. Opened the Queen's Theatre, Melbourne, in 1845, and in 1845 went to Adelaide, where he played at the Theatre Royal; built a theatre at the Port, and speculated heavily in copper mines. When gold was discovered he transferred his allegiance to Victoria, played in Melbourne, and then became lessee of the Geelong Theatre, where he was very successful. In 1854 he paid a visit to England, played in London, and returned the following year to Melbourne with an excel-appearance in Australia as Pizarro. In lent company, including G. V. Brooke, Richard Young, Robert Heir and Miss Fanny Cathcart. He was very successful; opened public gardens at Cremorne, Richmond, where he built a theatre, and eventually in conjunction with Brooke took the Theatre Royal, Melbourne. Ruined by his different speculations he accepted the offer of Mr. and Mrs. Kean to accompany them in a tour through Australia, California and the United States, during which he made enough money to pay off all his debts and to again become manager of the Theatre Royal. Since that date he has been extremely prosperous, has been returned to the Legislature, and been a director of banks and several public companies. In 1886, the Colonial and Indian year, he

1843 he made a tour through the colonies, after which he returned to Sydney. Up to 1849, when he sailed for California on a professional visit, he was the leading actor in Australia. In San Francisco he was very successful; returned to Australia in 1852, and while playing the part of William Tell at Geelong was seized with a severe illness, from which he never recovered. Died in 1863 at Geelong, and was buried in the local cemetery, where a monument, erected by G. V. Brooke, marks his last restingplace.-G. H. Rogers, the best actor of old men's parts on the Australian stage up to the day of his death, was originally a private soldier, and came to Hobart with his regiment; retired in 1842 with the rank of sergeant, and after obtaining