White Fella, Black Fella

By Norman Wheatley

Table of Contents

Table of Contents.....................................................................................................................................i

Preface.....................................................................................................................................................ii

Part One – The Voyage...........................................................................................................................3

Part Two – Escape into the Wilderness...............................................................................................77

Part Three – Billy is recaptured.........................................................................................................195

Part Four – Billy is freed.....................................................................................................................278

Glossary................................................................................................................................................326

Bibliography (partial).........................................................................................................................328

Maps.....................................................................................................................................................329

Research Notes.....................................................................................................................................331

Preface

Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania) was founded in 1803 as a Penal Colony by the British. This novelseeks to portray as accurately as possible the life of the white convicts and native Aboriginals. I havedone this by weaving a story using fictional and historical characters and including real events knownto have occurred. My Research Notes detail the historical events and characters. I have also includedmaps, a glossary and a bibliography as appendices.The majority of the Colonists were lower class and used many different accents and colloquialisms.The language of the ruling class was equally as diverse. I have attempted to capture the spirit of diversity primarily through the use of dialects and accents rather than highlighting the vernacular.There is at present, a fair degree of controversy concerning the demise of the Tasmanian Aboriginalrace and the extinction of their culture. Two bloodlines probably still exist; descendants of theAboriginal women kidnapped by whalers and sealers to live on the islands of the Bass Strait anddescendants of those natives who fled to the interior rather than being exiled to Flinders Island.The Tasmanian Aboriginals did not write and most cremated their dead, thus the remnants of theirculture must be reconstructed based upon the writings of the victors, educated white men, most of whom could hardly be described as scientific or dispassionate observers. I have occasionally drawn onknown details of the culture of mainland Australian Aborigines when details of the TasmanianAborigines were lacking.The 19

Century was very difficult time for blacks and whites alike and the story of both is of merit.Norman WheatleySan FranciscoJune 2009