THE BLACK AUSTRALIAN.
[To 1718 EDITOR 00 THE SPECTATOR:1 Sut,—At the close of your article on Tennyson's " Locksley Hall," you speak of his representation of the "black Aus- tralian " who hopes that death will transform him into white as being "grotesque." Permit me to say that, whether grotesque or not, it is strictly true as a description of an Australian's highest ideal of bliss. When in Australia some years ago, I heard from a squatter who was well acquainted with the ideas of the aborigines, and he told me that their notion of a future state of reward and punishment is expressed by them in the following way :—" Black man good fellow, he jump up white fellow ; black man bad fellow, he sit down working on," where "jump up" and "sit down" represent their notion of ascent and descent respectively in the scale of being.
I venture to surmise that Lord Tennyson knows more about Australian aboriginal life than year reviewer gives him credit or, or even (pardon the liberty) knows himself.—I am, Sir, &A.,
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