The recent 'black armband' or 'Aboriginal wars' debate amongst senior historians illustrates just how difficult it is to sort fact from fiction, truth from myth. Let’s avoid all that and talk about what we do know.
We know that Aboriginal Australians have lived in the area for at least 20,000 years – at least a hundred times as long as Europeans. Captain Cook saw them from the deck of his ship and many early settlers report of 'encounters'. The area through which The Kings Highway now travels was no Terra Nullius.
Contrary to many early reports, the original inhabitants of the area were not of an inferior build to Caucasians. Here is a report from a Robert Kennedy describing his first encounter in 1852.
“The average height of a black fellow was 5’10”, well formed, with medium size mouth, dark piercing eyes, white regular well-set teeth with small hands and broad flat feet. They were very active on their feet, good runners, great swimmers and climbers, tip-top horsemen, good trackers and far superior to whites in sharpness of sight and keenness of hearing”
Different, but equal in physique and intelligence.
One area where the local Aboriginal enjoyed superiority over white settlers (and their convicts in particular) was in the diet.
Diet
Their menu consisted of…
-
Eels - Fish - Oysters - Crustaceans - Prawns from the sea and rivers
-
Possum - Kangaroos - Wallabies - Koalas
-
Birds - Bird eggs - Reptiles
-
Lily roots - Wild nuts - Berries - Cabbage Palm leaves
-
Wild honey - Nectar from Banksia blooms - Roots and seeds
Good protein, fibre & vitamins
Winter Dress
Aboriginal Adult: Kangaroo coat - reversed with fur against the wearer’s skin for warmth, skin on outer-side for waterproofing, protection and decoration.
Convict Adult: Light to medium-weight smock worn summer and winter.
Population numbers are a bit of a guess as the area the tribes covered was large and their habits itinerant.
Modern scholars are inclined to accept smaller rather than larger estimates. By the time of the 1828 census, Aboriginal numbers were, probably, reduced by the spread of European diseases such as smallpox, TB, measles and flu. Diseases to which they had little natural resistance.
A Richard Saddlier gave his ‘best estimate’ of the marginal population as being…
|
POPULATION |
Persons |
|---|---|
|
Walbanga Tribe |
* |
|
Munkata (probably living around present day Braidwood) |
90 |
|
Alleleun (probably in the Araluen Valley) |
110 |
|
Wallbandian Tribe Bundong (near mouth of Shoalhaven) |
68 |
|
Kangaroo Ground Tribe (probably kangaroo Valley) |
71 |
|
Parramarrago |
90 |
*others reported other group names within these tribes such as the Yuins on the coast, Bemeringal (mountain dwellers) and Paienra (forest people)
Like so many things about the past, the cultural lives of the Aboriginals who lived in the area for 20,000 years, or more, are poorly understood. The original settlers showed little interest in such matters. They were more interested in trying to recruit (and train) natives as part of their workforce - not a very successful venture.
What we do know, is that the coming of the Bogong moth in late summer brought hunters and feasters together for a celebratory time. These moths, roasted, were a favourite. (They were roasted in ashes until the legs and wings were burnt off and then eaten before being scorched).
Delicious and nutritious - but (even then) too fattening for women to eat. These roasted munchies were reserved for men and children. Women took moths back to the coast and crushed them into a flour type meal from which they baked a biscuit-like snack for their own (and their family’s) consumption.
This story is based on THE MOTH HUNTERS by Dr. J. Flood
All in all local Aboriginals lived in harmony with nature for thousands of years. We, today, may find their largely unchanging lifestyle a materially poor one. Collectively, however, we know that their way of life was a sustainable one that never threatened the environment.