Notes by Howitt on Kulin from Barak

Transcription - Page 31

20
“This will teach people not to take other
people's children away; no one must
take a child belonging to anyone but each one
[people - crossed out] must look after his own child and
mind his own business”. —————

At the place where this happened there
a big flat rock – on one part of it is the
mark [that - crossed out] where Būnjil sate down, and
opposite to it and a little away is the
mark where Thadagŭn sate down.

Thadagŭn was sometimes seen
by people. I have heard of some blackfellows
who were out once hunting “pheasants”
near that place and they heard Thadagŭn
coming up – she came into the firelight
and looked very white. They were very frightened
and could not speak. She warmed
herself and went away.

11 How the Kūlin first obtained fire
A cluster of stars all together (Pleiades?) were
once a mob of young women. They had fire
at the ends of their yam sticks. When they dug
up yams they roasted some for themselves and
gave the raw one to Waa (the crow). By and
bye Waa found a cooked one. He said
“Hallo! They give me only raw ones” (Mŭrnŭng barm)
Then he went away and caught a lot of snakes
and hid them in an ant nest. He then
said to the young women “come to this fine
ant nest and dig it out” When they began
to do this the snakes came out and the young
women ran away. Then Waa said to the
snakes “you run after them”. When the young
women saw the snakes pursuing them
they turned round and hit at them with
their yam sticks. By this some fire was knocked
out. Waa saw this and picked it up and
put it in his bag. Bye and bye the women
looked for their fire for an hour and Waa
said “what are you looking for – Is it for this?”
shewing them the fire. They said Ah! Ah!

[written in left side margin]
Menura Superba

Buckley says that - crossed out]

This won’t do in a
native legend.