Hi, all! In another thread, the song "Tie Me Kangaroo Down" was mentioned, and the meaning of the phrase "Let me Abos go loose" was questioned. Since it constituted major thread-creep there, and since I couldn't find another thread on the subject, I'd like to bring the discussion here and hopefully find out what that song's verse is all about.

Here's a link to "Tie Me Kangaroo Down" in the DigiTrad: TIE ME KANGAROO DOWN

(Note: the DigiTrad version does not include the spoken introduction to this song, in which it is revealed that the singer is at the point of death. If anyone has the words to that intro, please add them to this thread.)

The verse in question is as follows:
Let me Abos go loose, Bruce
Let me Abos go loose
They're of no further use, Bruce
So let me Abos go loose.

I had always assumed that "letting Abos (a slur similar to the American slur 'darkies') go loose" meant freeing them from slavery upon the owner's death, as was sometimes done in the pre-Civil-War US. Am I assuming incorrectly? I searched briefly, using Google, and could not find any historical reference to Europeans ever having enslaved native Australians.

But if the verse does not refer to slavery, what does it mean? Indentured servitude? Imprisonment? How were the native Australians supposedly "of use" to this guy, and how did he prevent them (until his death) from "going loose"?

Thanks in advance for any info or links you can offer to enlighten me on the subject.

Sharon