Page 3 Advertisements Column 1

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 6, Issue 298, 17 August 1865, Page 3

The Australian- Blacks.— Tho Melbourne Age gives tlie following incident of bush life in Australia, showing the narrow escape of a hut-keeper from losing bis life at the bauds of the blacks : —“ The hut-keeper lay in his bunk reading, with his loaded musket beside him. Suddenly he saw the muzzle of his weapon disappear over the side of the bunk ; it had been seized by a blackfellow, who t hen sprang up from the ground, as two others simultaneously rushed in through the door. Having derided and worried the unfortunate man in their usual stylo, the savages ordered him to get dinner ready, adding that they intended to burn him after their feast! He made a largo damper delaying astnucb as possible, then boiled and served up the meat, and when the blacks wore satisfied they compelled him to make an enormous fire for the purpose of burning himself. He began to sing, dance, and go Jthrough various performances in order to amuse them, and so while away the time till two o’clock. At length the hour came and passed, and he was just begihing to despair, ■when bo saw his two white frierds riding round the stockyard. He then began to fear the blackfellows would see them, and murder him before they could interfere. And so lie sang at the top of his voice and with violent emphasis and gesticulation, the song ‘ Helen Macgregor’s Gathering,’ and so continued till his friends rode up to the door. He put his mouth to the slabs aud cried out ‘ Hismount. I'm in the'hands of the blacks!’ The men dismounted in an instant; so rapidly, indeed, that they rushed into the hut without any weapons but their knives. There they stood, three against three, and all knowing that no quarter would be asked or given, and 'that;the first man killed on either side was death to all his companions. Tor a time they eyed each other silently, each' singling out his man; and then they grappled. They were soon on the floor, rolling over and oyer —then up again, then down—all fighting desperately and in silence. The whites had the advantage.pf steel knives over stone weapons ; but the blacks were naked, and thus able to avoid being grasped, while they could better fence and twist about. ICor a long time it was doubtful which party would be victorious; but at length one of the whites seized bis man by tho peck with his teeth, and grasped the black firmly round the waist with his arm, while with the other lie passed the knife into Ins back, below .the shoulder-blade. He then Jumped up and killed another; the third blackfellow attempting to .escape up the lo w wide chimney, but was stabbed and fell back into the fire which he and bis comrades intended for the hut-keeper.”