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calls. Most exciting of all she showed her how to make fire by rubbing the sticks
together, and cook in the ashes the aboriginal way. (Wallace, 1958, p. 112)
Lura’s superior knowledge is further communicated by being able to respond to questions
from Julie, such as:
“What are they?” whispered Julie.
“they are brolgas or native companions,” said Lura. “They are Australia’s only
true crane.” (Wallace 1958, p. 112)
So, while the types of knowledge Lura shares with Julie are very traditional Indigenous
knowledges which could potentially categorise Lura (as representative of Indigenous
Australians) as only belonging to a traditional culture and not part of contemporary society,
two key points in the narrative dismisses this claim from being made. First, Lura and her
family live on a share farm with other non-Indigenous families as stated in the opening two
paragraphs:
Julie, a little English girl, arrived with her parents to live in sunny Queensland. They
were to help with a share farm along the coastal region.
On this farm also lived an aboriginal couple, who had one piccaninny, named
Lura, just about Julie’s age. (Wallace, 1958, p. 112)
The second key point is the image of the two girls, where both girls are dressed the same, in
contemporary clothing (see Source 6.40 to view this image).
Racial heritage is an important marker (in this story) whether from the dominant culture, in
the case of Julie or from the non-dominant culture, in the case of Lura. Both have their racial
heritage mentioned when the reader is first introduced to them. Despite this, the indigeneity
of Lura, as one of the two central characters in the narrative, is not used in a way to make her
a ‘spectacle’ or ‘other’. Instead, Lura’s knowledge is respected as both interesting (in the case
of the story of the Brolgas) and useful (in the case of building shelter, and cooking food).
Terms such as “piccaninny” (Wallace, 1958, pp. 112, 113) and “lubra” (Wallace, 1958, p.
113) are used; the first to describe a young Indigenous girl and the latter to describe an
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