CIVILISING THE BLACKS.
In this column we propose to narrate a few incidents illustrating the relations between whites and blacks in Queensland. We shall take every possible care that nothing appears here but what is true—the plain unexaggerated statement of something that has actually occurred. But it is not always easy to get a true description of these incidents. It is seldom, for instance, that any white spectator is allowed to witness the manner in which the native police transact the business we pay them to do, and they are strictly forbidden by their official superiors either to report their proceedings or to describe in print the simplest occurrence with which they have been officially connected. Moreover, men are naturally reluctant to confess in public deeds which, though sanctioned by our Government and Parliament, and by the public sentiment of a section of our colonists, are yet of a nature which would according to the common law, bring them to the gallows. We do not, therefore, propose to give names of people or localities. It would be unfair to single out individual perpetrators of crime which we, as a community, tolerate and even encourage. Our readers must trust to the care which we may fairly claim to have always exercised in investigating the facts we have laid before them, and believe our assurance that we shall be particularly careful not to add unnecessarily to the disgraceful tale we have to tell. And we regret to add that for the reason we have given there is good cause to believe that the real truth far exceeds anything they will read here. All that these columns will contain may be regarded as mere echoes of the shameful tragedy that has been played since this colony was first founded, and which is continuing actively at the present day, even at the very moment we write.
With these preliminary remarks we shall proceed to tell the story of Toby. This was the name of a black lad, one of a tribe that had its headquarters on a well-known Western station. In that particular tract of country rational humanity had quieted the blacks. The tribe in question, finding how useless it was to contend with the white man's weapons, and not being unnecessarily molested, soon "came in," and their main camp was at the head station. The superintendent, a sensible man, had made an arrangement with one of the blacks, a sort of head man in the tribe. If one of them was guilty of any depredation he warned the head man that it had occurred and demanded the surrender of the offender. He was always produced, even if the tribe had some difficulty in hunting him up, for all knew the value to them of keeping on good terms with the whites. When caught he was duly whipped in presence of the whole assemblage of blacks and whites, the head man of the former agreeing as a sort of assessor with the superintendent as to the amount of punishment. The system answered admirably, and although there were sometimes hundreds of blacks on the run they neither disturbed the cattle camps nor touched the shepherds' huts. But the station passed into other hands, and a new superintendent, who had none of these "d———d Exeter Hall notions," took charge. It happened that Kanakas were introduced on the station about the time, and the blacks at first hardly knew what to make of them, but afterwards became quite friendly with them. One evening Toby, who was a bright young lad, and very useful in working the cattle, but who also possessed a full share of the mischievousness common to growing lads, black and white, took into his head to go with two other black lads to the hut of a Kanaka shepherd, about a mile from the head station. What happened there is not very clear. The Kanaka came into the head station declaring that they asked him for rations, and were going to kill him; but as he arrived with his boots on, and not at all blown, it is not likely that three active young blacks would have let him escape so easily if they had really meant mischief. It is probable that he was timid, and the boys had asked him for sugar, and that he became frightened, and they thought it a great bit of fun. On examination, it appeared that his ration of sugar was gone—or at least so much of it as a Kanaka would be likely to have left near the end of the week. Undoubtedly Toby had offended, and the former superintendent would have given him a crack with his whip when next he saw him. Toby evidently expected something of the kind, and, as was his custom when he had been in mischief, absented himself for a week or two. On his return the blacks told Mr. ——— that he was in the camp, probably expecting that he would go down and give him his fair deserts. The superintendent, however, telling the storekeeper to accompany him, went to the camp, and, seeing Toby there, spoke to him mildly, half jokingly, and warned him not to do such a thing again. Then, as if he had dismissed the subject, he told him to get the horses, for he would be wanted to go down to the cattle run. Toby cheerfully obeyed, and the three started in the direction indicated, poor Toby, in his joy
