Foreword to 1971 Ngarluma vocabulary

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FOREWORD

H. Aubrey Hall, J.P., was born in Perth, Western Australia on 20th May 1871, the second son of Wm. Shakespeare Hall and his wife, Hannah Boyd (née Lazenby). W.S. Hall came to the Swan River Settlement in February 1830 at the age of four, with his two brothers and three sisters and his parents, Henry Edward and Sarah Theodosia Hall from Shakerstone Manor, Shakerstone, Leicestershire. They brought with them considerable equipment, live stock, necessities and luxuries which entitled them to a land grant of 16,594 acres in the new Colony. Shakespeare Hall, as he was called, was reared at Mandurah for the first years and subsequently at the family farm "Wongong" near Armadale. In the 1850s he spent eight years at the Victorian diggings. Shortly after his return to W.A. he joined F.C. Gregory's exploration party to the North-West in 1861, returning in 1863 to establish the first station (Andover) in the Roebourne district on behalf of John Wellard.

It waas to Roebourne and Cossack (the port) that the young Aubrey was taken at the age of five — in 1876 — and to him it seemed an idyllic childhook. In between attending the tiny local school and being tutored by his well educated father he swam, dived, fished, boated and played with his elder brother and their young aboriginal companions. This early and long exposure to the language and culture of the local Ngalooma tribe finally led to his compilation of the following Vocabulary. Evidence suggests taht he commenced this work soon after the turn of the century.

It was only the necessity to seek better educational opportunities for his three daughters that forced Aubrey Hall to consider leaving the Roebourne area and this he did in 1926. He moved further south to Carnarvon and it was not until about 1958 that he finally left the country life to retire to

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Perth. He died there suddenly in 1963 in his 92nd year and apart from failing sight he remained alert, vitally interested in his family, his many friends and the world in general.

Right to the end of his life he worked on the finer points of his Ngalooma vocabulary and it is unfortunate that he failed to interest anthropological circles in his work. Elderly Aborigines in Roebourne today will tell you that he knew more of their folklore, and spoke their dialect, better than any other white man in the area. He appears to be remembered with great respect and warmth for his understanding and kindness to Aborigines — a traditional attitude extending over three generations of Hall men. Early records show that Henry Edward Hall and, in particular, two of his sons Henry Hastings and Wm. Shakespeare were well known for pleading for less harsh treatment of the Aborigines

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