A VISIT TO CAPE YORK.

Auckland Star, Volume II, Issue 393, 14 April 1871, Page 2

A VISIT TO CAPE YORK.

Ax interesting book, " A Voyage Round the World," by the Marquis de Eeauvoir, has recently been published, in which the following account of a visit to Cape York is given. We may preiniso that the Marquis, a young fellow 22 years of age, was the travelling companion of the Due tie Penthierre, the Prince do Joinville's son. They arrived at Melbourne in the winter of 18GG, nnd, after rambling over Victoria, paying a visit to Tas mania and Sydney,a short visit was paid to Queensland, a*d ship was taken at Brisbane for Batavia. In passing through Torrtß Straits the party, guided by a native girl, had some bargainings with the natives. They came upon a mob of blacks in a scrub, and the Marquis gives the following description of them and the results of the interview:—

(> There they were ! Literally naked, quite black, and stinking. Some of them were even so indecent as to have no bracelet on the right arm ! I counted about six men, thirty children, aud ten women. The former surrounded us as soon as they saw our friendly gestures, and that our revolvers were no longer in our bauds, but in our belts. They came close up to us, felt our clothes, poked U3 in the ribs, and poured forth a flood of words with marvellous rapidity. They had partly laid dowa their arms, and seem disposed to be friendly as soon as they saw the presents that we had prepared for them; but they smelt like v slaughter house in summer. In the meantime tho Indies all dressed alike in rays of sunshine, aud carrying their children on their backs, kept rather behind in modest retirement. We hastened to offer our respects to them. It was evidently the chief's wife who wore knotted round her waist a sash made of red grass about an inch wide ; tho others had only collars nnd bracelets, which they showed us with the charm of* an. orang-outaug. But here comes an old woman, with black, baggy skin, an old black woman with snowy hair. Round her neck she had a collar of fine human bonos, which seemed to have been burnt. Haran called the gardener, to ask, in cannibal language, what this relic was. 'My mother's hand,' was the reply, as one might have said, 'My mother's cross.' But the young girl told Haran that sho believed them to be the bones of white men. From the very first moment I had also believed them to be the remains of a human hand, and I confess ! I was so intensely curious that I tried to obtain this eccentric necklace at any price. I offered her thirty, forty, sixty mils, five watch glasses, my waistcoat, and even an English knife with eighteen blades, which had always been my faithful companion, and to which I was much attached; but no meanness on my part could conquer her, nothing tempted her. I then approached her companions, and began making some exchanges. They su;rounded us, coming close up to us, and poked us, and soiled us with their touch. We wanted to have their spears, their poisoned lances, ornamented with fish-bones, tlieiv necklaces and bracelets ; but tho ridiculous women, grinning with delight, always chose to have something in exchange, and never let go whut they held in one hand till we put something in the

other.

"We parted with our tobacco first, "which they immediately began to smoke in bamboo pipes a yard long. We already had a pile of more thau thirty weapons, one more uncouth than the othor. But our provision of things for barter was exhausted, aud still the handsomest of the ebony tomahawks were not- in our possession. -Luckily I had that morning put on a certain silk necktie, which dated fiota the last Derby. I took it off to ingratiate myself, with these ladies, who seemed enchanted. The price' I demanded was the tomahawk and sash of the chief's wife, which latter she allowed me to untie. Sha then proudly dressed herself in my necktie, sand walked up and down with dignity. She had four daughters, dressed with a feather in their

hair, and armed with a boomerang ; my collar, my pocket-handkerchief, and the leaves of my note book won forme their entire dress. We wjfithed with laughter at seeing them peacocking about, one with a white collar round her black throat, another with a bit of paper suspended lo some plated grass hanging round her neck like a locket. Soon I had nothing left in my pockets, and nothing in my hands ; but a brilliant idea came into my mind. Cutting off the buttons of my coat, waiscoat, and other clothes, I made a clean sweep of the entire costume of twenty two young ladies belonging to the tribe, the whole of which I was able to put in my pocket."