Colin F. Jones

~ Australia: A History ~
AUSTRALIA: THE GREAT SOUTH LAND

~ 1 ~

1699: The Buccaneer Dampier sailed the seas
In his tall ship Cygnet sleek and fast,
In the King Sound area he found good breeze,
Where he spent three months beneath the mast.
He explored the coast of the Great South Land,
The western coast with its cliffs and deserts,
But described this continent, fine and grand,
Unfit for human life and presence.
But people already shared this country,
Which was divided between the different tribes,
Well organized with law and justice,
Not as Dampier’s book so false describes.
But unchanged by time, their habits and ways
Would soon be shattered in the coming days.

~ 2 ~

250,000 Aborigine people with a possible 500 different tribes, each with its own language and dialect lived in Australia at the time of Governor Philips invasion and occupation of Sydney Cove, and the State of New South Wales.

‘Twas old Botany Bay that served the purpose,
As a penal colony to harbour thieves,
Though some had murdered and were quite merciless,
Some unfair penalties had been received.
But on the good ship Supply in which Philip sailed,
He found Botany Bay a barren scape,
So to Sydney cove they all prevailed,
Where they found the land in better shape.
Despite the people of this country,
Above New South Wales the flag was raised,
Declared the possession of Queen and gentry,
Under the name of God whom they praised.
The great south land was named Australia,
With the Union Jack above it raised.

~ 3 ~

The local populations were considered Stone Age people who were, simply savage natives without Souls and the Fanatical Christian churches condemned them as such while fighting over which church was going to save them from their sins, the Roman Catholics or the Protestants.

Let us take these soulless people,
And turn their ways away from sin,
That they do recognize God’s tall steeple,
And put all their timeless faith in him.
But the black man had his own long culture,
He’d over centuries designed his law,
He had no plans for prosperous future,
And he lived his life by what he saw.
Each tribe had skin a different colour,
And well marked boundaries they all knew,
They lived without the crown and droller,
Gave unique names to all that grew.
They flew no flag and built no palace,
And from the land their spirits drew.

~ 4 ~

Tribes such as the Nungubuya, Mara, Alawa, Rembarrnga and Nuglkpun to name a few had their own special marked out, sometimes overlapping regions, all with their own sacred grounds and special totems.

Each had their totem such as Frill necked Lizard,
Some had Kangaroo and some had Crow,
This was part of their tribes religion,
Each knew where he could hunt and go.
The Rainbow Serpent was life’s giver,
Who took their child seed to give them birth;
Their dream camps of the Sun would quiver,
As a fine new flower bloomed on the Earth.
A new born piccaninny by the great spirit made,
Who into a warrior or Mother would grow,
Raised by a lagoon in a gum trees shade,
Where from the west the spirit winds blow.
And all through the tribes-folk the spirit of joy,
Welled in their hearts for the birth of a boy.

~ 5 ~

As the white man spread out expanding the Colony, The cattle herds trampling the sensitive ground, That had only ever known soft footed animals, Became occasional targets for the skilled Aborigine, Hunter, much less allusive than the Kangaroo, And other Australian animals. Also cattle were not Taboo as they were not “Totems”, so there was No restriction on the killing of them for food.

‘Im not properly come; we run no-more-little-bit,
And they see us not much where we hide,
But whenum not in the shadow sit,
They chase fast us on their horses ride!
… And they slaughtered all the blacks they saw,
Children, Lubra’s and old men frail,
For this was the white man’s racist war,
And sometimes sport! In all detail,
Except was lacking horn and hound,
And fancy coats and old school ties,
Replaced by melodious musket sound,
Exhilarated cheers as another dies.
For death to people without souls,
Was good for tales told round the coals.

~ 6 ~

They steal the cattle from our herds,
Hide in the bush to eat their prey,
But we see their smoke and hungry birds,
We ride in with muskets, to kill them, hey!
Sometimes their spears ran us through,
Their ambushes were skilled even when,
We rode them down not one or two,
But old men and Lubras all of them.
We hunted them from morn till night,
The picaninnies too, we shot ‘em all
Though some were tough and sure could fight,
Before our guns they all would fall.
And we never once did bury one,
Just left ‘em rotting in the sun.

~ 7 ~

But the spirit Doctor sent his Crows,
And instructed ants from Mother Earth,
To rip away the rotting clothes,
And gather all the bodies worth,
And carry pieces near and far,
From the flowing river serpents trail,
To where the giant mountains are,
And where the forest trees prevail.
Where all their souls would join together,
To form in dreaming greater strength,
Made stronger by the bitter weather,
Throughout the countries entire length.
For how could the Spirit in the land,
Be erased by the racists cowardly hand.

~ 8 ~

So they came, singing praise to Jesus,
Gentle, gentle Christ the Lord our Jesus,
Who saved us from our sins and then forgave us,
That we do what we like if it doth please us.
With the invader came the goats and toxic rats,
European illness, horses and fat cows,
There came the fox a million scratching cats,
Red faced folk who to a great Queen bows.
And at dawn the haunting sound of bugle,
Below the pole which flew the English flag,
Momentous coiring of unskilled persons fugal,
Sounds accompanied by the pipes and bag.
These were the convicts, soldiers and the gentry;
Crowded together lest future hopes might sag.

©Copyright circa 2003 by Colin F. Jones