THE RAIN MAKER

Greymouth Evening Star, 7 December 1928, Page 2

THE RAIN MAKER

AUSSIE WITCH DOCTOR.

The rain maker takes that place among the Australian aboriginals usually occupied by the witch doctor or medicine man of other dark races (says a writer in the Melbourne “Age.”) He, it would seem, succeeds to office more on account of age and “bora” standing in the tribe rather than by occult knowledge, although he is supposed to be well versed in the black art and the folk-lore of the tribe, lie is, according to his own showing, the maker of charms both good and evil, the associate of evil spirits and the Alcooringa (the totemic ancestors). His chief office is that of rain maker, however, and if he proves unsuccessful for a longer, period than is compatible with the well-being of his tribe, he is often deposed in favour of another aspirant, for many covet the office. It is noticeable that ho rarely commences his incantations before the stoAn season is due to break. That he keenly watches every change of weather is evident, for by deduction and experience he can forecast rain some hours before the event, but, like his white brother, the meteorologist, he makes mistakes, although such blunders weigh as lightly upon his conscience as they do upon that of the white scientist. There are certain ceremonies to be gone through in the aboriginal ritual at the beginning of the wet season, and to omit these would, it is believed, bring upon the tribe the wrath of the totemic ancestor. The rain maker must visit every gully, creek, and river in the tauri, and wherever he finds a pool of water (they are not numerous at that time of the year in Cape York Peninsula), spring or running stream, ho must enter tho,water facing down stream, and with his hand beat the water through his extended legs up against the natural flow of the water course. At the same time he mutters incantations which to the uninitiated seem weird and unholy. At times the rain maker will impress lubras into his service, more especially when the heat is the greatest. To these he will delegate the strenuous task of beating the water, while he promenades the bank of the watercourse, invoking the tribal ancestor, Jimmy (his real name was Kooni-Budgee-Koori, but we called him Jimmy fqr short) was a great rain maker. He stood high in the estimation of his tribe, who considered he could draw moisture from a cloudless sky. For some reason he attached himself to me, and was delighted when I desired his services as a moisture purveyor. If the weather was propitious he would start in at once, and it must be admitted that on several occasions lie brought off the deal, but there were times when, with all the accessories to hand for a deluge—great clouds banking up the right quarter, vivid lightnings, and crescendo peals of thunder, which seemed to shake the very foundations of the universe; these coupled with Jimmy’s most awful incantations and gesticulations, proved of no avail, a gust of wind altered the course of the storm, and the whole thing blew over. On these occasions Jimmy showed the metal of which he was made: far from being disconcerted, he would smile, accept the stick of trade tobacco, and with the sago remark, “Bime-by he come up,” he would betake himself to his camp there to feast and corroboree and live up to his reputation.