exhaustive search made. In other quarters original deeds have been laid under contribution, while as far as regards printed books, maga. zines and newspapers, search after matter calculated to throw light upon local history has been unsparing. Thus Fulham Old and New will be found not to have missed much that is of value.

The Tower of Fulham Church, looking west, showing Moat in foreground.

(From a Drawing executed in 1835, signed "A. P.", preserved in the Vicarage

66

Faulkner".)

The author deals with the parish in the course of a tour, starting from old Fulham bridge, built in 1729, and the ancient ferry, whose existence he traces back to the time of King John. Then the High Street, Burlington Road and Church Row, and the church, rebuilt in 1880-81. Old Fulham Church possesses a fascinating story. No one before has been at the pains to search out the memorials of the church

and its monuments, though they are full of interest. Then we come to the lives of the vicars. Most of these worthies are probably unknown to-day, though many of them have been men of distinguished parts some have been raised to the Bench.

The King's Road is a thoroughfare full of interesting associations. Parson's Green, long the aristocratic quarter of Fulham, has been the home of famous men and women. Fulham Road overflows with its wealth of antiquarian lore. Walham Green, though the poor quarter of Fulham, is none the less interesting. North End Road, old North End (now modern West Kensington) and Gibbs Green abound with memories which deserve to be recorded. Fulham Fields, the great market grounds of Fulham, and the older roads across them, have never yet received more than passing mention. The concluding portion of the journey is along the river. Mr. Fèret starts at Crabtree and so south to Fulham Palace. He has much to say concerning the ancient Manor House and the Bishops, who were, down to 1868, the Lords of the Manor. Passing through Bishop's Park, he takes a survey of ancient Millbank, between the old church and the river. Next, he crosses to Hurlingham, and so on to the Broomhouse, the Town Meadows and Sands End.

Fulham Old and New will be issued by the Leadenhall Press, Limited, in three well-bound quarto volumes, tastefully printed and profusely illustrated with views of the parish, past and present, portraits of local worthies, maps, plans, facsimiles of ancient deeds and other documents, at a price of £3 3s.

THE JOURNAL

OF THE

British Archaeological Association.

JUNE 1898.

AUSTRALIAN LIGHT ON BRITAIN IN THE LATER STONE PERIOD.

BY REV. W. S. LACH-SZYRMA, M.A.

(Read February 16th, 1898).

AN we suppose that Australia could ever throw any light on the prehistoric life of old Britain, on "the old men" of very early days? The question may seem futile, but really we know so little of the ancient world of the Later Stone or Bronze Ages that any light is useful, however dim it may be. The best existing living illustration of the Stone Age, and what it was like, in our nineteenth century, is in Australia. Scientists say that in the now-extinct Tasmanians we had the best representation of mankind in the Early Stone Age; and in the Australians still existing, and our fellow subjects (as we were reminded at the Jubilee) of the British Empire, we have some of the best living representatives of the Later Stone Age or Neolithic period. Of course, climatic forces tell somewhat, and it would be inaccurate to say the Australian was quite like the dolmen builder or the prehistoric Briton of very ancient days; but he represents a stage through which the early inhabitants of

Cornwall, to judge by their granitic remains, once passed, as well as probably those of other countries. One of the most interesting and difficult points is, What was the line of thought of people in the Stone epoch ?" The subject is a difficult one. The Australian answer, as far as we can understand it from Mrs. Langloh Parker's Australian Legendary Tales, is a great confusion between human beings and animals. This is very marked in the Australian folk-lore. We find animals spoken of as human beings, and men and women almost as animals. The fact is that the Australian lives in touch with nature, and in a nature which art has as yet little modified. But was it not so in Europe? Do we not find some of this spirit in Esop's Fables or Ovid's Metamorphoses: perhaps folk-lore tales from a remote age of Southern Europe? Even in Cornish folklore, the transformation of witches into hares and of hares into witches, in several of Mr. Hunt's and of Mr. W. Bottrell's Cornish drolls, tends just the same way. Then our Newlyn legend, told me by J. Kelynack, that "if a certain tree in Newlyn was cut down, the Buccaboo would turn the man who did it into a monkey", has something of this tone. Here we have a very primitive folk-belief lingering almost to our own day.

Then again," How did they view the heavenly bodies?" There were primitive ideas on astronomy. We know some have said that the Maen-an-tol, in the Land's End district, is connected with sun-worship, and so also some of our stone circles. Sun-worship was a power in Britain, even till Christianity came. Then the stars were counted spirits and living beings: this was the case in the ancient world generally. In the Australian folk-tale of " Meamei, the Seven Sisters", we have a pretty illustration in the seven witch-girls who were turned into the Pleiades.

MEAMEI, THE SEVEN SISTERS.

Wurrunnah had had a long day's hunting, and he came back to the camp tired and hungry. He asked his old mother for durrie, but she said there was none left. Then he asked some of the other blacks to give him some doonburr seeds, that he might make durrie for himself. But no one would give him anything. He

flew into a rage and said, "I will go to a far country and live with strangers; my own people would starve me". And while he was yet hot and angry, he went. After he had gone some distance, he saw, a long way off, an old man chopping out bees' nests. The old man turned his face towards Wurrunnah, and watched him coming, but when Wurrunnah came close to him he saw that the old man had no eyes, though he seemed to be watching him long before he could have heard him. It frightened Wurrunnah to see a stranger having no eyes, yet turning his face towards him as if seeing him all the time. But he determined not to show his fear, but go straight on towards him, which he did. When he came up to him the stranger told him that his name was Mooroonumildah, and that his tribe were so called because they had no eyes, but saw through their noses. Wurrunnah thought it very strange, and still felt rather frightened, though Mooroonumildah seemed kind and hospitable, for he gave Wurrunnah, who, he said, looked hungry, a bark wirree filled with honey, told him where his camp was, and gave him leave to go there and stay with him. Wurrunnah took the honey, and turned as if to go to the camp; but when he got out of sight he thought it wiser to turn in another direction. He journeyed on for some time, until he came to a large lagoon, where he decided to camp. He took a long drink of water, and then lay down to sleep. When he woke in the morning, he looked towards the lagoon, but saw only a big plain. He thought he must be dreaming: he rubbed his eyes and looked again. As he was wondering how the water could have disappeared so quickly, he saw a big storm coming up; he hurried to get into the thick bush for shelter. When he had gone a little way into the bush, he saw a quantity of cut bark lying on the ground. Now I am right", he said. "I shall get some poles, and with them and this bark make a dardurr in which to shelter myself from the storm I see coming". He quickly cut the poles he wanted, stuck them up as a framework for his dardurr, then he went to lift up the bark. As he lifted up a sheet of it, he saw a strange-looking object, of no tribe that he had ever seen before.

This strange object cried out: "I am Bulgahnunnoo", in such a terrifying tone, that Wurrunnah dropped the bark, picked up his weapons, and ran away as hard as he could, quite forgetting the storm. His one idea was to get as far as he could from Bulgahnunnoo.

On he ran till he came to a big river, which hemmed him in on three sides. The river was too big to cross, so he had to turn back. As he turned to leave the river, he saw a flock of emus coming to water. The first half of the flock were covered with feathers, but the last half had the form of emus, but no feathers. Wurrunnah decided to spear one for food. For that purpose he climbed up a As they passed by he picked out the one he meant to have,

tree.