invincible hatred of established
institutions may be traced to these hours of discomfort in which his life
began.

The very earliest years of Why-Why, unlike those of Mr. John Stuart Mill,
whom in many respects he resembled, were not distinguished by proofs of
extraordinary intelligence. He rather promptly, however, showed signs of
a sceptical character. Like other sharp children, Why-Why was always
asking metaphysical conundrums. Who made men? Who made the sun? Why
has the cave-bear such a hoarse voice? Why don't lobsters grow on
trees?--he would incessantly demand. In answer to these and similar
questions, the mother of Why-Why would tell him stories out of the simple
mythology of the tribe. There was quite a store of traditional replies
to inquisitive children, replies sanctioned by antiquity and by the
authority of the medicine-men, and in this lore Why-Why's mother was
deeply versed.

Thus, for example, Why-Why would ask his mother who made men. She would
reply that long ago Pund-jel, the first man, made two images of human
beings in clay, and stuck on curly bark for hair. He then danced a
corroboree round them, and sang a song. They rose up, and appeared as
full-grown men. To this statement, hallowed by immemorial belief, Why-
Why only answered by asking who made Pund-jel. His mother said that Pund-
jel came out of a plot of reeds and rushes. Why-Why was silent, but
thought in his heart that the whole theory was "bosh-bosh," to use the
early reduplicative language of these remote times. Nor could he conceal
his doubts about the Deluge and the frog who once drowned all the world.
Here is the story of the frog:--"Once, long ago, there was a big frog. He
drank himself full of water. He could not get rid of the water. Once he
saw a sand-eel dancing on his tail by the sea-shore. It made him laugh
so that he burst, and all the water ran out. There was a great flood,
and every one was drowned except two or three men and women, who got on
an island. Past came the pelican, in a canoe; he took off the men, but
wanting to marry the woman, kept her to the last. She wrapped up a log
in a 'possum rug to deceive the pelican, and swam to shore and escaped.
The pelican was very angry; he began to paint himself white, to show that
he was on the war trail, when past came another pelican, did not like his
looks, and killed him with his beak. That is why pelicans are partly
black and white, if you want to know