Chapter 6

It took about half an hour for Jos to manoeuvre his ute to the Springs, following the Victoria Highway. There appeared to be a great deal of traffic, but it seemed to be largely local.

“Insects whose nest has been disturbed,” explained the frogmouth. “Agitated birds flock and swoop; ‘roos, rabbits and cattle stampede together. Insects and whitefellas run about in every direction.”

They stopped at a group of European houses. “The Corporation built these according to a plan they imposed in 2010. They are ‘very nice.’ The people say they don’t feel right. Although membership to MG Corp is limited to native title holders, MG Corp is not a native title prescribed body corporate. However ‘MG Corp has the authority to assist MG peoples in relation to planning, management and use of traditional lands.’ That means they do what they want, no matter what we say.”

“I understand why some might want to come to a new effort.”

“What they have done is to the benefit of the wider community,” frogmouth said. “The wider community is mostly whitefellas.”

“Of course. In 1788 100% of Australia was native. Today, only 3% of the 25 million are. How many Wijilawarrim are there?”

“Perhaps 150. The state says we are a ‘small community.’ At least we haven’t been forced to move, as many others have.”

“Yet some would come to Yardungarl?”

“Of course. Will you call it Yardungarl?”

“That is a good question. My impulse would be not. It will not be the one that was there. It will be recovered or reclaimed or regained. I have not the words in a blackfella language.”

“Boobook might help.”

“True.”

“Stop here.”

Zeke hadn’t said a word. “Are you OK?” Jos asked.

“I’m thinking. You’ve given me a lot to decide. Should I go back to the job? Should I stay here? What will I do? The cool season will begin soon. That would be a good time to either go back or to stay and help. That sorta stuff.”

“That’s very heavy.”

“Especially for me.”

They were shown sleeping places and given food and drink.

In the late morning, Frogmouth told Jos there were nine or ten who wished to go to the new place. “Two couples, two men, two boys, two women.”

“So, four women and six men. A beginning.”

“There will be more from Mirima.”

“I suppose so. I have been thinking of a name.”

“Give it time, do not push.”

“I will sit and read.”

“Read?”

“We read Cicero at school. He wrote: ‘Read at every wait; read at all hours; read within leisure; read in times of labor; read as one goes in; read as one goest out. The task of the educated mind is simply put: read to lead.’”

“Here is a Bible. Augustine heard the children say ‘tolle lege, tolle lege‘ and turned to it. [‘take up (the book) read, take up read,’ Confessions]”

Jos had been reading Paul’s letters for an hour when Zeke interrupted him. “Jos, what do you plan?”

“I’m not sure. Would you be happier with a plan?”

“Yes. I’ve always been happier when I knew what was conin’ and what I was to do.”

“We’ll know soon. Not today. Maybe tomorrow, though.” He thought for a moment. “Let’s go visit boobook.”

They found frogmouth and told him. He told a young man to drive them to Mirima Village. Boobook was sitting on a bench telling a group of children about the Great Serpent.

“The Rainbow Serpent or Snake is a long creature made of different parts of animals we know -- such as a kangaroo’s head and a crocodile’s tail -- with a huge snake body. The Rainbow Serpent was the creator of human beings. It has life-giving powers that send conception spirits to all the waters, billabongs, rivers, creeks and lagoons. It is in control of rainfall.

“The Rainbow Serpent is the protector of the land, the people, and the source of all life. But the Rainbow Serpent can be a destructive force if it is not properly respected. In times of anger or rage it causes storms and floods to act as punishment against those who disobey the laws.

“The whitefellas dammed the rivers. The Serpent is slow to anger. But it can become enraged. It lashes its tail and raises the water.

“In the floods the Rainbow Serpent swallows people and regurgitates their bones, which turn into stone. The Serpent can also enter a man and give him the gift of magical powers, or leave ‘little rainbows’ within his body and make him die.

“We must beware the Serpent and respect the forces.”

“Thank you,” said the oldest child.

“Aeschylus wrote: ‘Memory is the mother of all wisdom.’ They will remember your teaching.”

“Aristotle said: ‘Those who know, do. Those that understand, teach.’ I try to pass on what I have learned.”

“That is good. And from your teaching and what the nungungi said, I see that I have been a tool of the Great Serpent. But I still don’t know what to do.”

“Do some of the Wijilawarrim wish to move?”

“Frogmouth says about ten.”

“There will be at least double that from here. You will have a group. Freud said that ‘groups take on the personality of the leader’...”

“And what does that mean? That they will read? That they will be aimless?”

“You need to await. You are striving so hard that nothing will come to you. You and Zeke were guided to Yardungarl. He who was helped you to aid the Great Serpent and the Serpent, as in my telling, exerted destructive force against the work that violated the laws of nature.” Boobook paused. “Do you know of anarchy?”

“I have read what there was available.”

“Nearly 200 years ago Michael Bakunin wrote ‘I receive and I give — such is human life. Each directs and is directed in his turn. Therefore there is no fixed and constant authority, but a continual exchange of mutual, temporary, and, above all, voluntary authority and subordination.’ He was wise.”

“I have read Proudhon, who came before Bakunin. After the 1848 revolution, he wrote: ‘To be ruled is to be kept an eye on, inspected, spied on, regulated, indoctrinated, sermonised, listed and checked-off, estimated, appraised, censured, ordered about, by creatures without knowledge and without virtues. To be ruled is, at every operation, transaction, movement, to be noted, registered, counted, priced, admonished, prevented, reformed, redressed, corrected. It is, on the pretext of public utility and in the name of the common good, to be put under contribution, pressured, mystified, robbed; then, at the least resistance and at the first hint of complaint, repressed, fined, vilified, vexed, hunted, exasperated, knocked-down, disarmed, garroted, imprisoned, shot, grape-shot, judged, condemned, deported, sacrificed, sold, tricked; and to finish off with, hoaxed, calumniated, dishonoured. Such is government! And to think that there are democrats among us who claim there’s some good in government!’ [P.-J. Proudhon, The General Idea of the Revolution, 1851].”