ubbing together two pieces of a
certain kind of wood; and as the smoke ascended we saw answering smoke-
signals from the opposite shore. The smoke was allowed to ascend in
puffs which were regulated by the manipulation of boughs. Not long after
this curious exchange of signals (and the practice is virtually universal
throughout the whole of aboriginal Australia), we saw three catamarans,
or floats, each carrying a man, shooting across towards our island. These
catamarans merely consisted of a broad plank with a stick placed
transversely at the prow, on which the black placed his feet. He
squatted down on the plank and then paddled forward. I viewed their
approach with mixed sensations of alarm and hope. I was in the power of
these people, I thought. They could tear me limb from limb, torture me,
kill and eat me, if they so pleased; I was absolutely helpless. These
fears, however, were but momentary, and back upon my mind rushed the calm
assurances I had obtained from my clear-eyed mentor, Yamba, to say
nothing about the mysterious message of hope and consolation that had
startled the solemn stillness of that tropical night. I knew these
people to be cannibals, for, during the long talks we used to have on the
island, Yamba had described to me their horrid feasts after a successful
war. Nevertheless, I awaited the arrival of the little flotilla with all
the complacency I could muster, but at the same time I was careful to let
Yamba's husband be the first to receive them.

And he advanced to meet them. The newcomers, having landed, squatted
down some little distance away from the man they had come to meet, and
then Gunda and they gradually edged forwards towards one another, until
at length each placed his nose upon the other's shoulder. This was
apparently the native method of embracing. Later Gunda brought his
friends to be introduced to me, and to the best of my ability I went
through the same ridiculous ceremony. I must say my new friends evinced
an almost uncontrollable terror at the sight of me. Gunda, however, made
it clear that I was _not_ a returned spirit, but a man like themselves--a
great man certainly, and a mysterious man, but a man all the same.
Although by this time my skin had become tanned and dark, there was
seemingly no end to the amazement it caused the blacks. They timidly
touched and felt my body, legs, and arms, and were vastly anxious to know
what the covering was I had round my bod