The Little Black Princess. By Jeannie Gunn. (A. Moring. 5s.)
—Bett-Bett was the niece of King Ebimel Wooloomool, commonly known as Goggle-Eye. She narrowly escaped being killed in an onslaught of the enemies of her tribe, the Willeroo blacks, was sheltered by Mrs. Gunn, and repaid her, not only by gratitude and devotion, but also by giving her an opportunity of learning more about black ways of thinking and acting than white people can commonly compass. (The scene of the story, which we are assured is a true one, is laid in Northern Queensland.) And a very strange picture it is that Mrs. Gunn has put together for us out of these materials. These Australian blacks have a highly developed system of social and religious observance, though their religion is certainly a analacuaorta. The poor King himself comes to a bad end. He knew too much, and the "magic men," alias the priests, "sang him deadfellow" and pointed the death. bones at him, and he wasted away,—a curious topsy-turveying of "faith-healing." Bett-Bett was seized with " bush-hunger " and
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