ADo:aIOINAL BOltA. 99 A. LtvERSIDOE. 98 The Bora is a great educationa.l institution for the admission of KERARGYRITE. 'the youtns of the tribes to the privill'ges; duties 9.lid obligati,ons Plate 2 is a particularly fine group of The specimen figured on p' t ry Mine Broken Hill, , Qf manhood; and iii the most important ceremony practised by the hI .d from the ropne a , crystals of silver c on e .th t ny matrix or extraneous .aborigines. The youths who are initiated, are carefully instructed f b nd octahedra WI ou a by the old men in their traditions-their moral and religious made up 0 cu es a db Mr J 0 Armstrong. matter whatever. Collecte Y .' • cod'es-and the laws of consanguinity and intermarriage. The CUPRITE. eeremonies are intended to strengthen the authority of the older , ed the same plate are of unusually men over the younger, and to impress in an indelible manner ur The cuprite crystals fig .on 12 m across and of a splendid {' ',' those rules of conduct which form the moral law of the tribe. ,. th rincipal cube bemg m.· .. 1 tal e • ~ large SiZe, e P . h h' h lustre' the prmClpa crys - This national rite partakes partly of a civil, and partly of a t b red colour WIt Ig, d transpa~en ru y- • d b th rh,ombic dedecahe ron religious character, and is the great educational system by which ... h .ts dges replace Y e is a cube WIt I e It' s found in the same the exact observance of the laws i", inculcated. The games and 1 b the octahedron. wa '. and its ang es y. Broken: Hill South Silver Mme. <lances of tIleir forefathers are also taught by the old men who boulder as the' nantokite at the conduct th'e ceremonies. Meetings for the Bora are summoned ri," .at irreKular periods, as emergencies arise; they are generally ;j-. held in the summer on account of the greater chance of having ", I 'J :fine weather; but they may be held at any time of the year. •',1 The Bora mentioned by Mr. Glass, which will be referred to ,if: presently, was held during May, Jnne, and July, which are D AT GUNDABLOUI IN 1894. ;\ winter months. The Bora which was held at the 1\1ole, near ABORIGINAL BORA HEL I' MATnEWS Licensed Surveyor. Quambone, last year took place in April, May and June. The By R.'H , , 'I [With Plates III. and IV.] Kunopia Bora, referred to in this paper, was held in October, November and December, 1891. The time of full moon is generally ,. f NB Wa.les, July 4, 1894.] [Read. before the Roya.l Bocwty 0 .' selected for the commencement of the ceremonies, so as to have light at night, but this, also depends upon circumstances. The this Society has taken a great interest in .ceremonial of the Bora is much the same in all parts of the colony; FOR some years past f the Australian aborigines, with a the manners and customs o. thentic records of a race who there are a few variations in the mode of assembling the tribes, in · and preservmg au view of co11ectmg h f that no circum- the form of the Bora grounds, and in the actual initiation, but so . way Itseems t ere ore, far as I have been able to learn,.there is no very essential difference. are now rapidly passmg a . t 0 time more suitable, no Id b e appropna e, n ' ! It cannot be doubted, however, that the aborigines have left off stances cou e mor. h th present to bring before our 't more fittmg t an e db 'i'some of their native customs, in consequence of their contact with QpportuUl Y B' h' h has recently been hel y nt of the ora w 10 , ;r,Europeans, and it is every year becoming more difficult to obtain members an accOU f G 'dabloui in the parish of the . r the town 0 un , :r'eliable information about the Bora. the aborlKmes nell. f F' h' this Colony. Gundabloui 1: . the County 0 mc, ill same name, ill.. t ten miles below where it is crossed f;: ,-r will now digress for a few minutes for the purpose of briefly is on the MooUle RIver, ll.bou ldrawing attention to descriptions of Boras by other writers many by the Queensland boundary. :\' ;1' :t\ ' ABORIGINAL BORA. 101 ~~l \ R. B. MATHEWS. bodies of a number of blackfellows lying Bat on their faces on the 100 'j .. th books containina the narratives' ; iground. Following this there was a spectacular display of native I do thiS because e . " years ago. t f print and can be found only weapons, after which the ceremony of knocking out the front . h I will refer are noW ou 0, ~ to whlc . d d th m here for the purpose OL ,tooth commenced. The first boy to be operated upon was seated . 1 have mtro uce e in few hbrarIes. d to give them publicity in our ,i on the shoulders of one of the men, who sat on the grass. The d comparison an .' reference an '1 1 wish to study the subject. ',1' boy's gum was lanced with one of the bones produced by the rnal for the benefit of 11.1 W10 may . 'l~oradgies. A wooden peg was then placed against the tooth and Jou , ., Bora with which I am acqullmted The e~rliest deS~rlptlOn of~~l~ins in his Account ofthe English ";':):"hit by a stone, which forced out the tooth. After this a girdle is that given by Lieut.-Col. h d.' 1804 pp 365 - 37 4.-This ~' "!"was tied round his waist, in which was stuck a wooden sword; a. S W; les pubhs e III , ',7 Colony of N .. a , . 't' ted was held at the head. '" ti.'," ligature was put round his head, in which was placed slips of grass . h fifteen youths were mi Ill. 'i Bora, at whlc . F b 1795 nearly one hundred ;; ,a tree, which being white, had a curious and pleasing affect. The S dney III l e ruary , Ii j. same operation was performed on each of the boys, after which of FaiID' Cove, Y 'd 1 in form and measured I', Th Bora-groun was ova , , the assemblage dispersed. years ago. e. h b 'ghteen feet in width, and was f et In lenat Y el . twenty-~even e . " I th evening the nOVices were The next. authentic account of the Bora is that contained in f 'and tImber. n e cleared 0 grass . 1 th' legs crossed under them, at one Mr. J. Henderson's work, Observations on the Colonies ofNew .' down Wit 1 elr placed sltting ,. 't' they were to remain all , round;n whICh POSI Ion :}I,South Wales and Van ])iemen's Land, published in 1832, pp. end of thiS g " • h tl .L_ themselves prostrate on the adg~es* t en uew oft 145 -148. This Bora was held near Wellington in this Colony, night. Two CQr " t gony" After a time each' ,1"1' sixty or seventy years ago, and I will give the account of it in d 11 d about m apparen a . ground, an ro e " b out of his mouth. It being J etended to brmg up a one . 'f Mr. Henderson's own words :-" The portion of the valley selected of them pr. CHins left the place for the mght. 'if· for performing this sacred rite was beautifully situated in a 't' qUite dark, Mr, 0 h by thiS Ime .. the boys were placed at t e , the followmg nlornmg, Ji secluded part of the forest, near the banks of the river Macquarie. On hIS return t some twenty in number, '1 hile the opera ors, is! A long straight avenue of trees extended for about a mile, and head of the C1T~ e, w . hands and feet, imitating dogs. Then ]~.~ these wel'e carved on each side with various devices, most of which d It on thelr , h '3#: : paraded roun . his shoulders a kangaroo, t e ~:i done carrymg on were intended to represent serpents in all their different attitudes. two men appeare , h d After this the boys were ~;'.:tOn . load of brus woo. , . the upper extremity of this, the earth had been heaped up so other carrymg a h 'I for about an hour, durmg . I' 1 in t e clrc e as to resemble the gigantic figure of a human being extended on left sitting III t lelr pace 't lIey near the place, and fitted ( his brea~t, while through the whole length of this sylvan temple, . th tors went In 0 a va which time e ac , . d f ss which they fastened to \~. 'th 1 a taIls rna e 0 gra , , a variety of other characters were observed rudely imprinted on themselves WI on", . dl d came J'umping back to the , t f their glr es, an ' the turf. The devices represented snakes, opossums, emus, the hmder par 0 b f k arooS They then threw off the cockchafer, &c, The evil spirit seemed to be . 't t' g a mo 0 ang . kangaroos, Bora ground l.ml a In h f them caught up one of the boys, and -<lescribed under the form of an eagle; an imitation of his eyrie their grasS taIls, and ealc 0 t the last scene of this extraordinary formed a conspicuous object at the upper end of the grove.