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Show Wednesday, December 8, 1971 BEPPPPPPEPDEPEDEEDDDERDDPEEEEEDP THE HERALD,Provo, Utah—Page 27 y SCRATCH & DENT AND DISPLAY MODELS All Name Brand merchandise with 1-Year Guarantee on Parts 7—~ATTENTION BUILDERS & REMODELERS 24’’ Double Oven $98 Built-in model with automatic self- deaning oven. White color. 1 only OLD WAYS DIE HARD among Australia’s aborigines. Restive young want change, but for older generations custom is still custom. By TOM TIEDE YUENDUMUABORIGINAL RESERVE, Australia— (NFA) — For thousands of years the storied Australian aborigines lived in tribal societies which wererelatively free of controversy and clamor. The social system was simple and strict. The leaders decided tribal policies and anybody who objected was removed to a final resting place. Now, however, as it must to all“civilized” peoples, te aborigines are going through the agonies and antics of the changing world. Old people cling to old thoughts. Young people opt for new ways. In short, a generation gap is making the natives restless. Here at the Yuendumu reservation, the evolution is particularly clear and stinging. Many of the 1,000 aborigines at this settlement have only lately came into the white man’s ways. The Wailbri people left the bush 20 years ago; the Pintubi people came out in the 1960s. As a group then, they are s ‘primitive’ as any thal exist in Australia. Unlike the natives who have been gob- bled up in the dominant culture, the Yuendumu bandis still barely into the change over. So it is that the new and old cultures are constantly colliding. As example, take the problemsof Neville Polson. He is a 19-year-old, relatively mod aboriginal youth. And he’s in love with Violet, a 17-yearold relatively mod aboriginal girl. She loves him, too. They want to get married. Et cetera, et cetera The problem is that, according to the old customs of the tribe, Violet has been promised since birth to another man—a middle-aged, relatively conservative fel. low who, as it happens, has no nose. (The nose was bitten off a few ye: ing a forgotten So there it is A twisted triangle Neville and Violet have madenosecret of their romance. They've been dating regularly for months. And so far no trouble has resulted But soon Neville is bound to marry the girl. And the war will likeiy break out The rejected (noseless) suit- or will no doubt get hot. And sewill the older members of all the families involved. Federal authorities on the reserve are concerned that blood will spill Officials here admit there is little anyonecan doto pre: vent bloodletting of some sort. Although the aborigines areliable to Austr tney do not necess (sometimes rightfully) obey it. In this case, Australian law forbids one of the oldest of aboriginal customs — the promising of brides. Thetra dition dates from the time tribal chieftains guaranteed future bliss by marrying in- fants. It has also been a traditional way of settiing debts, obligations, and so on Andit is also part of the complex aboriginal family ’ structure which prohibits willy-nilly, take-y o u r-pick marriages. The custom seems odious. it is in fact a slave tradition. But to the aborigines, it is a sacred right not to be tamperedwith. So, sadly, Violet still belongs to the chap with no nose And legally Neville must just go fish. But Neville is not about to give his true love up, Women don’t count for much in the aboriginal society. They are in fact dutifully subservient to their men. (They are not even allowed to walk equally, but must always stay to the rear.) Yet, worth- -Top-Of-The-Line WASHER when it comes, is likely to be unimpressive. Aborigines have never gone in for pomp and circumstance when it comes to wife taking. They still follow the ways of their fathers. They ask a girl (or twoor three, since polygamy is another hallowed tradition). And if she says yes, or sometimes even if she says no, they simplytake her to their home. But however the marriage happens, whenever it happens, the families involved here will know immediately. Andtribal custom calls for *149 = 5209 DRYER W Deluxe Features in Copper Color. 1 Only. SPECIAL....... == gold. 1 Orly Moderate damage.1 only. | *119 { | } { { REFRIGERATOR | L- 7. White. | | Slight damage. 1 only *129 i “— 14 Cu. Fi, Double Door FROST-FREE REFRIGERATOR -* slight damage. 1 only Automatic, choicecolor. slight damage. 15 Cu. Ft. Refrigerator Ys H.P. DISPOSAL ace 5249 Slightdamage. . . . Harvest Gold, Inonerecent, similar case, a young man walkedoff into Model ISE with deluxe features. 1) ee 18 Cu.Ft. Refrigerator the bush with a promised bride, The rejected suitor followed, tracked them for ub (aborigines are the every day. And informedin- siders are hoping a kind of mutually beneficial a greement can be worked out within thetrio. Yet, in any event, some sort of face-saving gesture will have to be made. ‘‘Neville might get a spear through the leg or something,”’ says one official. “It 22 Cu. Ft. Frost Free Side-By-Side *499 Ali the deluxe features. vou expect and receive from NutoneEasy to install under cabinet or on the wall. 20 Cu. Ft. Refrigerator Freezer MishapsKill 5 MEXICO CITY (UPI) —A string of highway accidents involving three buses and 11 vehicles near here Sundayleft five persons dead and 49 injured, highwaypolice said. Carlos Nicolas Cuesta of the Mexican Highway Police said the accident occurred when a passengerbus travling between here and Cuernavaca, approximately 45 miles south of here, crashed into a highway divider strip and turned over. Seconds later a school bus carrying children on a Sunday excursion jumped the divider while trying to avoid the first bus and crashed inte a bus from the University of Chuhuahua going the opposite direction, police said. Deluxe Model With ice Moker. | only . os NUTONE NON-DUCT RANGE-HOOD FAN REFRIGERATOR AND FREEZER Whitecolor. 1 only. could be worse. He could get his nose bitten off, too, and then Violet might not want either of them.” $ Choice color 2 only.Slight damage Avocado color. Inside chip. 1 only ers. boy a bit and then stuck the 119 White, automatic, window door, 1] 30” DELUXE pRoP-IN $ 129 iy |°229 ae Eien e. 30” DELUXE SLIDE-IN 30” STD. DROP-IN doorin world’s best trackers), caught them, battered the 30”ELEC. RANGE 12-Cu.Ft. punishment—of both offend- girl's feet ina fire Will the same fate befall Neville and Violet? Nobody knows. Officials insist the aborigines are becoming more “civilized” $01 Free standing modelin white with a slight nick on side. aaa the punishment — harsh 5U miles Built-in model with self-cleaning oven in avocado. 1 only. REFRIGERATOR, Avocado color. less as they are in many ways, a good gal is still hard to find—and Neville Polson, a schoolteacher here, has told the world Violet is his find The marriage ceremony, Deluxe Drop-in \ Marriage Thwarted By Aborigine Ideas S419 PAY & PAK PRICES STORE HOURS: Mondaythru Saturday 7-Speed Silex Blender Sunbeam Hand Mixer Schick No. 307 Salon Type Hair Dryer Sunbeam Auto Fry Pan. Steam & Spray Bi A.M. 6 P.M. Sunbeam Iron Electric Siiex Percolator . % BUILDING = SPECIALTIES Complete Household Replacement Hardware TOP OFTHE HILL - SOUTH OREM 1698S. State,Orem 225-3420 |