The Passing of the Aborigines

A Lifetime spent among the Natives of Australia

by Daisy Bates

Heinemann, 1966, [Second Edition], black and white photographic plates, black and white photographic frontispiece, paperback

Very Good Condition, a little edge and shelf wear, a little rubbing and bumping to edges and corners, some discoloration and minor creasing and rubbing to covers and spine, previous owners gift inscription on front endpaper, discoloration to edges (see photographs)

“Daisy Bates, O.B.E., was an extraordinary woman.  At the age of 41 she went to Australia as The Times correspondent to investigate the question of the Aborigines.  She stayed with them 35 years, retiring in 1936 at the age of 76, having spent a private fortune on them.  She claimed to be the only woman in the world on whom primitive tribes and conferred blood brotherhood.  This allowed her to assist at tribal ceremonies, forbidden to the eyes of women.
She spoke 188 Aboriginal dialects and herself dug the grave for Dowie, the cannibal chief, who, by the age of nine, and eaten four infants, and who later dealt likewise with his five wives.
They named her ‘Kabbarli’ (Grandmother) as a token of their love and trust, and her astonishing book reflects that completeness with which she committed herself to them.  It is a unique human document.”