arty of his countrymen in our
present weak state.
The men, who understood enough of what he was saying to know that he
thought these natives had never seen Europeans, became extremely uneasy
and begged me to allow them to fire a gun as a signal to them: "For if we
are so near Perth as you suppose, Sir," they said to me, "these natives
will come to us." Kaiber hereupon told me that the instant the gun was
fired he should run away. This was rather too ridiculous a threat when
the coward was afraid to move five yards from us; I therefore ordered a
gun to be fired, and then, telling the men to remain steady and prepared
in case of accident, I walked off towards the natives, Kaiber, in the
meanwhile, sitting on his haunches under cover, muttering to himself,
"The swan, the big head, the stone forehead;" and, as these denunciations
reached me, I could not, even in all my misery, forbear smiling at them.
DISCOVERED TO BE FRIENDS.
The natives no sooner heard the gun and saw me approaching than they came
running to me. Presently Kaiber called out to me, "Mr. Grey, Mr. Grey,
nadjoo watto, nginnee yalga nginnow," "Mr. Grey, Mr. Grey, I am going to
them; you sit here a little;" and he then, with his long thin ungainly
legs, bounded by me like a deer. "Imbat, friend," I heard him cry out, as
a young man came running up to him. I grew giddy; I knew Imbat by name,
and felt assured that at all events the lives of a great portion of my
party were safe. In a few minutes Kaiber had given an outline of our
adventures and present state. Fearing such mischances as had really
happened to me, I had, previously to my departure to the north, done my
utmost to cultivate the friendship of the northern natives; and most of
them, even to the distance of sixty or seventy miles from Perth in that
direction, had received presents from me. My name was well known amongst
them as a tried friend, although indeed my common denomination was
"Wokeley brudder," or Oakley's brother; for, from my giving them flour,
they concluded that I was a relation of the baker of that name at Perth.
HOSPITABLE RECEPTION BY THEM.
The women were soon called up, bark baskets of frogs opened for us, by-yu
nuts roasted, and as a special delicacy I obtained a small fresh-water
tortoise. "Now, friend, sleep whilst I cook," said Imbat, and lighting a
fire he made me lie down and try to slumber whilst he roasted some frogs
and the turtle for me. I was not over-well pleased a
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