Miago ordered the two widows of his brother to prepare his hut, that as soon as the sun had set he might sleep there.  Bennyyowlee, who, with his friends and supporters were encamped within a few yards of the other party, went up to Mugawit and ordered her to follow him to his Mya, or bark hut; this she declined doing, and he immediately speared her in the thigh.  Miago now, as in duty bound, threw a quartz-headed spear at Bennyyowlee, which, if the latter had not most dexterously avoided, must have proved fatal.  A general disturbance would have taken place had not I and several other Europeans come up at the same moment and pacified Miago, whilst Bennyyowlee took advantage of this temporary calm to evacuate the field, followed by insulting shouts of laughter from Miago’s friends.

A circumstance strongly illustrating the peculiar family customs of this people occurred this evening.  Moorroongo, Miago’s stepfather, was a Tdondarup, and as such stood in the relation of matta-gyne to Bennyyowlee; his hut stood therefore amongst those of this native’s friends, and Miago’s future wives remained in the care of his mother, and of course amongst the friends of his rival.  When however Bennyyowlee departed Miago’s mother and the two native girls went over to the Ngotak and Nagarnook party, who were, on this occasion, united.  They then built a hut for Miago and lighted a fire; the old mother herself swept out the hut, so as to make it perfectly clean and nice; the brides then laid down in it, one on each side, so as to leave a vacant place in the centre for their new lord and master; and Miago’s mother, having seen all these arrangements completed, returned once more to the hut of her husband.  This was a remarkable instance of a stepfather and son being by custom compelled to espouse opposite sides of a quarrel because they bore different family names.

BURIAL OF A NATIVE IN THE LESCHENAULT DISTRICT.  BURIAL AT THE VASSE.

As these forms of interment have considerable interest and are somewhat varied in their details in different localities, I have subjoined the following account of the burial of a native, as described in an extract of a letter from Mr. Bussel, a gentleman resident near the Vasse River in Western Australia: 

PROCESSION TO THE GRAVE.

The funeral is a wild and fearful ceremony.  Before I had finished in the stockyard the dead man was already removed and on its way to the place of interment, about a quarter of a mile from where the death took place,* and I left our house entirely guided by the shrill wailing of the female natives as they followed, mourning, after the two men who bore the body in their arms.

(Footnote.  He had been murdered by his countrymen whilst tending Mr. Bussel’s cattle.)