Page:Aboriginesofvictoria01.djvu/563

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MYTHS.
479

them, and took all their fire. All the mob of black gins ran after him, but could not get the fire back. A crow was there, and caught up a black snake (Thoon-ya-rack), which he threw at Bowkan. Bowkan was so frightened that he dropped the fire, and the gins recovered it."

The Native Dog.

"Some blackfellows were once camped at the Lakes, near Shaving Point. They had been successful at fishing, and were sitting in their camp cooking and eating what they had caught. Just then a native dog came up and looked in. They took no notice of him, nor did they give him anything to eat. He became cross, and said, 'You blackfellows are no good—you have lots of fish, but give me none.' So he changed them all into a big rock; and this is quite true, for the big rock is there to this day, and I have seen it with my own eyes."

Another version of the dog and the natives at Shaving Point, as related and explained by Toolabar:—

"Near Shaving Point, at the Lakes, a big mob of blacks were fishing with the big grass-nets. They were fishing all night, and came to the camp in the morning where the women were. They said, 'Oh, we have got plenty of fish.' The women said Yacka-torn (very good). One of the dogs belonging to the women sang out Yacka-torn also. Then they were all made into Wallung (a rock). If a dog belonging to you or me were to talk like that, then we should be changed directly into stone. Once at Swan Reach I heard a dog sing out very loud. My father and I heard him. I was a very little boy. We ran away very fast. If he had been near to me we should have been 'like it Wallung (stone).' All the blackfellows sang out and ran away. I could only hear the dog say 'Bring' (bone). I think he was saying Bringu tarnu ginganunga."

The History of Bolgan.

"About the year 1861, 'Bolgan' was a young girl of perhaps fifteen years of age. She was the daughter of 'Bookur,' or, as the whitefellows called him, 'Edward.' At the time I speak of a number of the Murray River and Lake blacks had agreed to go up the coast as far as Twofold Bay, and they were to be guided by 'Jackey the Whaler,' who had been there years before 'spearing whales.' It was also determined that they should accept the invitation of a blackfellow, 'Tommy,' to visit him on the way. This Tommy was in the service of some whites who had a small cattle station in the middle of the great wilderness of country lying between the Snowy River and Cape Howe. It was to this station, to visit Tommy, that the party were to proceed, and of this party were Edward, his wife, his daughter Bolgan, and his little eight or nine years old son, Charley. How many blacks went I know not, but there were, so far as I can ascertain, some ten or a dozen—men, women, and children—all more or less related to or connected with each other. In due course they arrived at the station, having followed up a river from the coast until it became