A DALUNGBARA PERSPECTIVE continued

5Photo 15: Taken at Benalla in Victoria, 1879.
This was the tracker contingent together with their officers who travelled from Queensland to Victoria at the request of the Victorian Government to help track the Kelly gang. The local trackers were hesitant to help the Victorian Police for fear of reprisals. This is why the trackers from Queensland had to volunteer their services, as it was a highly dangerous situation. They were assured of receiving a fair share of the 8000 pounds reward money, which by the standards of the day was an enormous sum.

At left is Senior Constable Tom King, standing and Sub-Inspector Stanhope O'Connor, is seated. On top rail is Barney or Gary Owens, then Jack Noble and on the top rail, Hero. Next are Superintendent J. Sadler and the Police Commissioner Captain Standish of Victoria. Seated are two unnamed trackers from Mackay.

After the historic shoot-out at Glenrowan at which the trackers were directly in the line of fire, one of them being wounded, the Reward Board, in 1880 allotted portions of the reward to those involved. Of the 8000 pounds allotted, at the bottom of the list of 68 recipients, the lowest amount of 50 pounds was awarded to each tracker. Was this a 'fair share'? Sub-Inspector O'Connor objected and refused to take his share. The recommendation of the Reward Board was that 'it is not recommended that a large amount of money should be handed to those unable to handle such a sum and that the money be handed to the Victorian Government to be dealt with at their discretion'. This clearly indicates a Duty of Trust of the Victorian Government. The Protector of Aboriginals, Archibald Meston, 18 years later wrote to the Queensland Commissioner of Police inquiring as to what happened to the reward shares. He was told that the Victorian Government had never forwarded the money on.

It was after the Aboriginal University of Australia Dalungdalee Trust made a thorough search of the archives of the Queensland Police Museum that the irrefutable proof that the trackers were never paid was found. Letters that were sent to the Victorian Government to settle this 'long outstanding wrong' as the Aboriginal Protector, Archibald Meston put it. A denial by the Victorian Government and the failure of the Queensland Government to act as Trustee for the benefit of the descendants of the trackers forced litigation which began in 1994 and is still proceeding. The action has attracted worldwide interest as it involves the Kelly gang, and the accrued interest of each outstanding 50-pound amount is over 60 million dollars.

5Photo 16: Taken on Fraser Island in 1920's.

The bullock team was owned by Berthelson and driven by Roger Bennett, uncle to Grace Jones nee Dow. Alf Dow and Daniel Dow helped driving the team, which hauled timber. The timber was offloaded at the mouth of Bennett's Ck and Yankee Jack Ck then rafted across the Sandy Strait to the mouth of the Mary River from where it was towed to the sawmills.

LOW TIDE WALKWAYS FROM FRASER ISLAND TO MAINLAND.

Our Dalungbara and Ngulungbara people frequently walked the sea walkways from Fraser Island to the mainland at low tide. Particularly during the king tides when one could follow the known paths without having to swim some of the way. White historians erroneously suggested that the Island Aborigines were a different 'mob' from the mainland.

Our people were expert in making canoes as can be seen from some of the remaining scarred trees on the mainland and Fraser Island. These are important cultural heritage sites. I have noticed when flying over the Island it is easy to identify the walkways that connect the island to the mainland. Locals at Urangan often witnessed Roger Bennett and his son Elliott walking from the island after timber getting on the island.

5Photo 17: Taken at Hervey Bay, 1920's.
From left is Jack Noble and Roger Bennett, father of Elliott Bennett, Australian boxing champion, 1948-54.

5Photo 18: Taken in Brisbane, 1948.
Elliott Bennett, Australian Bantam and Featherweight champion 1952.

The legal status of Aborigines or any person with a 'strain of Aboriginal blood' is that of a Beneficiary created by numerous statutes describing the protection and promotion of welfare for the Aborigines by the Government which is established as Trustee by these statutes.

To date the Crown, both State and Commonwealth are reluctant to acknowledge this Beneficiary-Trusteeship relationship as it answers any argument of the Crown that past debts to Aborigines may be time barred by the Statutes of Limitation when these claims are brought against the Government. A Trustee cannot argue that Statutes of Limitations apply against a claim brought by the Aboriginal Beneficiary.

It is with this legal backdrop that I, the eldest of the Dalungbara and direct bloodline cousin to Elliott Bennett have instigated litigation against the State of Queensland, which pursuant to the Aboriginal Protection Acts placed Elley Bennett's earnings 'in Trust'. Elley earned a large amount of prize money the hard way, over a 10-year career of professional fighting. His earnings were seized and placed into bank accounts that could only be operated by the Aboriginal Protector of Native Affairs. Elley Bennett was one of the main contributors towards the notorious Welfare Funds created by the Aboriginal Protection Act for their 'benefit'.

As it turned out, over 27 million dollars were directed to the building of Public hospitals and other works, but the Trustees did not return the monies to the Welfare Funds. The Trustee has the right by statute to control these finances but the overall duty is to be for the benefit of the Beneficiaries. In 1990 an Inquiry was set up to investigate the operation of the Welfare Funds and Aboriginal Banking Accounts. What happened to the Funds?

Elley Bennett was a main contributor, as the Courier Mail highlighted when drawing attention to the money earned by the famous boxer, in all 16000 pounds went missing. It was because of this newspaper investigation that we began legal proceedings in the Supreme Court of Queensland in 1992. At the hearing it was firmly established that the Public Trustee is the Executor of the estate of Elliott Bennett. Justice Paul DeJersey did direct that we access the files. It is to the Public Trustee that I have made the request of a full accounting as to how the earnings were distributed. This legal process is still in the courts.

The critical legal question as to the Beneficiary-Trusteeship relationship between the Aborigines and the State must finally be declared by the High Court of Australia as it not only effects the property of my people such as vacant Crown land but also other property such as Flora and Fauna.

NOTE: Photograph 6, with Tundy, aged about 4 years old standing between John Krotundy and 'granny' Nora. Nora, wife of John Krotundy practiced the ancient custom that indicated that a woman was married. The lower part of the little finger of the left hand was removed. This was done by winding cobweb around the joint, which cut off the circulation to the fingertip. Nora was the last woman of the Wide Bay area to follow this custom.

My mother, Grace Jones nee Dow recalls both Susie Lock nee Dow nee Rooney, her mother, and Nora Krotundy spoke the same Fraser Island language, which differed from the Batchala language. Both the Dalugbara and the Batchala languages differed from the Kabbi Kabbi language, James Davis, also known as Durumboi who lived with the Wide Bay Aboriginals for 14 years attested to this in the Commission of Inquiry into Native Mounted Police. Davis stated that the languages differed from tribal group to tribal group.

The elders of the Dalungbara and the Ngulungbara (Olungbura as recorded by Aldridge) have close bloodline relationships even though the camps of the Olungbura were situated in the north of Wide Bay at Sandy Cape and the Dalungbara area was from Bennett's Ck to Noosa Heads. There were about 19 families related to each other on the island and mainland, speaking the same language.

This was why there was no problem when the castaways of the sailing ship Stirling Castle travelled from the Sandy Cape area along the beach southwards, crossing the Sandy Strait at Inskip Point then south through Dalungbara seas. The usual protocols of gaining permission to travel from one tribal territory to another were not required as they were all related to each other. The southern family group was known as the Gormundy, or Umundi. They mainly camped around the Lake Weyba area. Most were murdered by early settlers around 1865. Records show that the Reverend Fuller established a mission near White Cliffs on the West Coast of Fraser Island in 1875. He spent two years there and then decided to shift to Lake Wybah, both sites well within Dalungbara territory.

5Photo 19: : Taken at Maryborough, 1905.
The Dow family photograph. Seated at left is Robert Dow of Ambrym Island, Vanuatu who married Susie Rooney in 1905 who is standing. Seated also is Alfred Dow with Grace Dow in front.

5Photo 20: Taken in Brisbane at outbreak of WWII, 1939. Grace Jones nee Dow.

5Photo 21: Taken in Brisbane about 1937 prior to going to Ambrym Island, Vanuatu. Alf Dow after being ordained a Minister in the Church of Christ.

5Photo22: Taken in Brisbane, 1939. Alf Dow joined the A.I.F.s 9th Division and became one of the 'Rats of Tobruk'.

5Photo 23: Taken at Pialba, mid 1930's.
Alf Dow, Minister, with congregation at Pialba prior to his missionary works in Vanuatu and WWII. Note that there were a number of white people in the congregation.

5Photo coming: Photo24: Taken at Clontarf Beach, 1950. Grace Jones nee Dow and brother Daniel Dow.

5Photo 25: Taken at Pialba, 1920. Grace Dow aged 18 years, wearing fashionable riding gear. Grace was noted for training racehorses.

5Photo 26: Taken in Melbourne. Susan Dow, daughter of Alf seen here when secretary to Sir Doug Nichols, Governor of South Australia.

5Photo 27: Taken in Brisbane. Three generations of the Dalungdalee, Sara Therese Jones at left; Grace Jones nee Dow aged 90 and John Dalungdalee Jones on right.

5Photo 28: Taken in Brisbane, 1934.
From left is Rex James Jones aged 7years old, Grace Jones nee Dow with John Lee Jones.