Australian Legendary Tales

"You stay quietly here and do not make a noise, or Piggiebillah, whose camp we passed just now, will hear you and steal the emu if I kill it. He is so strong. I'

e brother was so rejoiced that he forgot his brother's caution, and he called aloud in his joy. The big Weeoombeen looked round and gave him a warning

he came up, said: "

Weeoombeen, "nothing but

han that, or your little brother wo

nd their emu and take it, that he said: "I hit a little bi

erries that I heard. It was for something much more than either, or you would not

lah was a great fighter and very strong, so when they

beens followed him and even helped him to make a fire to cook the emu, hoping by so doing to get a sh

t off and told some black fellows who lived near, that

e the Weeoombeens quickly lead them to Piggiebillah's

all over him, Piggiebillah cried aloud: "Bingehlah, Bingeblah. You can have it, you can have it." But the black fellows did not desist until Piggiebillah was too wounded even

u had evidently been; then they saw that they had dragged

knew of, with a big stone at its entrance, which stone only they knew the secret of moving. They moved the stone,

ide of it. They saw there was a crevice on either side of the stone, between it and the ground. Through these crevices they, drove in their spears, thinking they must surely kill the brothers. But the Weeoombeens t

hen they had gone a little way they heard the Weeoombeens laughing. Back they came and speared ag

ack the black fellows to a fresh attack, determined t

or laughter, that they had killed the Weeoombeens at last, the black fellows hur

ows, for well they knew that should they ever meet any of them again they would be killed w

able the Weeoombeens had escaped alive, but if so, whither they had gone their tracks would show. But search as they would no tracks could they find. All they could see were two little birds which sat on a bush near the hole, watching the black fellows all the time. The little birds flew round the hole sometimes, but never away, always returning to their bush and seeming to be discussing the whole affair; but what they said the black fellows could not understand. But as time we