Note 13 — Chapter XXVII · REMARKS ON THE EARLY MIGRATIONS OF THE HUMAN RACE.

Of the natives of Van Diemen’s Land Cook remarks that their hair differed in texture from that of the natives of New South Wales, being in Adventure Bay as woolly as that of any native of Guinea, while that of the aborigines of New South Wales was naturally long and black, though cropped short.—Cook’s Voyage, 1769-71.

Bligh says that the aborigines of Van Diemen’s Land are black, and that their hair, “which resembled the wool of the Caffres,” was separated into shreds, and powdered with red ochre. They were generally slender, tolerably well made, kept their shoulders back, and upon their prominent chests several had marks raised in the skin.—Bligh’s Voyage—Adventure Bay, 1788-1792.

Flinders saw only one native of this country, but his appearance much resembled that of the inhabitants of New South Wales. He had also marks raised upon the skin, and his face was blackened, and hair ruddled, as is sometimes practised by them. The hair was either cropped close, or naturally short, but it had not the appearance of being woolly.

In Marion’s voyage a skirmish with the natives of Van Diemen’s Land took place, after relating which, the writer says, “on entering among the trees they found a dying savage. This man was a little more than five feet seven inches in height, (French measure). His breast was marked like those of the Mosambique Caffres, and his skin appeared as black; but, on washing off the soot and dirt, his natural colour appeared to have a reddish tinge.”