s, they retreated to their woods, and never returned.
This party attempted to reach Brune Island, and all were drowned, except
one woman.

Mr. Knopwood remembered that, in 1813 and 1814, the natives were fed at
his door. A number of children were forcibly taken from them, and they
disappeared from the camp.

Colonel Davey bears witness to the continuance of cruelty, which he
censured in the strongest language of indignation. Certain settlers
established a species of juvenile slavery: they followed up the mother,
retarded by the encumbrance of her children, until she was compelled in
her terror to leave them. Well might the Governor declare, that crime so
enormous had fixed a lasting stigma on the British name. These
provocations produced their usual consequences: by spearing cattle, and
other acts of hostility, a tribe at the Coal River revenged the robbery
of their children; surely, a slight retaliation for such incredible
wickedness.

An expedition to Macquarie Harbour, in 1817, discovered a tribe hitherto
unknown. They received the first visit with the usual friendliness--a
feeling which was, however, of short duration.

The Oyster Bay tribe are mentioned. They had begun to exhibit that
spirit of hostility which made them a terror to the colony, and armed
the entire community against them. They had speared one man, and killed
another; but the origin of this feeling is distinctly stated: a native
had been shot in an expedition to capture some aboriginal children.

Sorell prolongs the testimony that tells so mournfully in behalf of the
natives. He speaks of firing on the blacks as a _habit_; that
child-stealing was practised in the remoter districts; that settlers had
adopted groundless prejudices against the unfortunate people, as alike
incapable and unworthy of conciliation; that they offered no serious
discountenance to the cruelty of their servants. Thus several whites had
perished, and cattle had been speared, in revenge.[5] He reminded the
colonists that, as their flocks increased and the shepherds extended
their range, this obvious method of retaliation, then rarely adopted,
would multiply the loss both of property and human life. The danger was
proved by examples:--In 1819, a collision occurred; a man on each side
killed, and cattle and sheep were speared; but, the account continues,
the stock-keepers detained and maltreated the wife of a chief. Either on
this, or some such occasion, they were pursued by a