The coverings and ornaments used and worn by the Australian natives–male and female–are fully described in the notes prepared at my request by the late Mr. William Thomas, and in the letters and memorandums furnished in reply to questions put by me, by Mr. John Green, of Goranderrk, the Rev. Mr. Bulmer, of Lake Tyers, in Gippsland, and Dr. Gummow, J.P., of Swan Hill.

The males paid attention to their weapons rather than to their dress; and the females relied more on the attractions presented by their forms unadorned than on the necklaces and feathers which they carried. The proper arrangement of their apparel, the ornamentation of their persons by painting, and attention to deportment, were important only when death struck down a warrior, when war was made, or when they assembled for a corrobboree.

In ordinary life little attention was given to the ornamenting of the person.

Different from the women of Polynesia, the Australian females seem to have no love for flowers. The rich blossoms of red, purple, and yellow, so abundant in the forests, are never, or very rarely, twined in their hair, or worn in rich garlands around the neck: nor do they deck themselves with the bright plumage of birds. A warrior may wear a plume, but his daughters are content with the grey, hair-like feathers of the emu for the slight covering which decency demands.