country, to prefer London, with its pleasures and abundance, to the
woods of New South Wales. It was not, however, until August, 1795, that
Bennillong reached his native shores, having become accustomed to the
manners of civilized life, by his long sojourn among the English people.
He declared to his old acquaintance, with an air and tone that seemed to
expect compliance, that he should no longer suffer them to fight and cut
each other's throats, but should introduce peace among them, and make
them love one another. When they visited him at Government House, he
wished they would contrive to be somewhat more cleanly in their persons
and less coarse in their manners; and he was quite offended at his
sister, who came in such haste to see him, that she positively forgot to
bring anything else upon her back, except a little nephew! Bennillong
had been an attentive observer of manners, which he was not unsuccessful
in copying; his dress was an object of no small concern to him, and
every one was of opinion that he had cast off all love for savage life.

Upon his arrival, Bennillong made inquiries after his wife,[75] but
having heard no very good account of her conduct, he at length tempted
her by some rose-coloured clothes and a gipsy bonnet to leave her new
lover and return to her former husband. Bennillong's presents, however
pretty, were of very little practical use, and he was soon afterwards
missing, having gone into the Bush to give his rival a good beating with
_fists_ after the English method. However, all his valour was lost upon
his wife, who deserted him,--an event which did not appear to give him
great uneasiness, nor was it much to be wondered at, since she had been
stolen by him. His absence from the governor's house became now
frequent, and when he went out, his clothes were usually left behind
him, although he carefully resumed them on his return before he made his
visit to the governor.

[75] Like most of his countrymen, Bennillong had two wives, but one of
them, Barangaroo, had died, as it appears, before his departure for
England. See page 154.

Within a year of his arrival from England this poor creature had a
quarrel with his bosom-friend Cole-be, whose wife he had coveted, and
from whom he received some severe wounds, together with the cutting
inquiry, "Whether he meant that kind of conduct to be a specimen of
English manners?" Thus Bennillong by degrees returned again to all the
habits of sava