but I gave you the right answer.
Paul1405,
No you didn't, you just used a cheap excuse !
We could say of any European group that has made an effort to integrate that its people are treated well. On top of it all, there's simply no comparison, in fact it's a wrong comparison.
The Celts, the Romans, the Vikings etc all have integrated, the majority of Aborigines haven't !
They never will because even those whiter than a European will forever keep tearing at the scab that is a convenient excuse for many to bleat victimisation !
Victimisation is easy to display when it plays so well into one's hand !

Dear Paul,

This is a fascinating subject.
I watched The Drum last night. They had
the author - Bruce Pascoe who wrote
"Dark Emu" as a guest. It was interesting
to hear what he had to say.

My husband has
just gone off to my bookshop (Readings) to pick up
"Dark Emu"and "A Rightful Place: A Road
Map to Recognition" edited by Shireen Morris,
for me. I'm looking forward to reading them
both.

I'm also thinking of doing a course of study on
this subject at Melbourne Uni. It's got my interested
in following things up. It may just be the challenge
I need in my life right now.

Paul,

Just where were the Indigenous villages, with houses and gardens/fields?

How about a reference to something on the web?

Dear Paul,

There's an interesting book by Paul Memmott -
"Gunyah, Goondie and Wurley: The Aboriginal
Architecture of Australia," that covers some
interesting facts about how our Indigenous
people lived. It's worth having a look at:

http://www.creativespirits.info/resources/books/gunyah-goondie-and-wurley

Dear Foxy,

Dark Emu is a great eyeopener. There are other early explorers and settlers/invaders who were quite effusive in their assessment of indigenous people in our area of South West Victoria saying they had superiour health, humour and intelligence to most European classes.

“Generally speaking, I think them well disposed, and in point of capacity not inferior to Europeans ; of their usefulness there can be no doubt ; under judicious management I am of opinion they might be induced to attach themselves to settlers ; their tastes for occupation vary much in the same manner as white people's.”
Roadknight

But as the land theft accelerated and the inevitable clashes escalated attitudes changed.

Near us is Lake Condah or Budj Bim where many kilometers of eels sluices and traps were dug sustaining a large village with numerous stone huts. The Aboriginal Protector Robinson speaks of up to a thousand aborigines gathered during the height of the eeling season. Robertson writes of the extent of some of the works in place.

“From conversations I had with the natives it appears that this was a favourite spot. It was the home of several families. [blank] took me to several spots where he had resided and had worns or huts. He also took me to a very fine and large weir and went through, with several other of the natives, the process of taking eels and the particular spot where he himself stood and took them. I measured this weir with a tape, 200 feet; 5 feet high. It was turned back at each end and 2 or 3 holes in the middle was left for placing the eel pots as also one at each end. The eel pots are placed over the holes and the fisher stands behind the yere.roc or weir and lays hold of the small end of the arrabine or eel pot.

Cont..

Cont..

And when the eel makes its appearance he bites it on the head and puts it on the lingeer or small stick with a knob at the end, ... or, if near the bank, he throws them out. The fishing is carried on in the rainy season. Arrabine or eel pot made of bark or plaited rushes with a willow round mouth and having a small end to prevent the eel from rapidly getting away.”

“At the confluence of this creek with the marsh observed an immense piece of ground trenched and banked, resembling the work of civilised man but which on inspection I found to be the work of the Aboriginal natives, purposely constructed for catching eels. A specimen of art of the same extent I had not before seen and therefore required some time to inspect it, and which the absence of transport enabled me to do. These trenches are hundreds of yards in length. I measured at one place in one continuous trepple [triple] line for the distance of 500 yards. These treble watercourses led to other ramified and extensive trenches of a most tortuous form. An area of at least 15 acres [6 ha] was thus tracd over. The whole reminded me of the extensive circumvaliations of Chatham Lines, in miniature, at which works, at an early period of my life, I [had] been engaged under that veteran engineer Colonel De Arcy for seven years. These works must have been executed at great cost of labour to these rude people the only means of artificial power being the lever, the application and inventive of which force being necessity. This lever is a stick chisel, sharpened at one end, by which force they threw up clods of soil and thus formed the trenches, smoothing the water channel with their hands. The soil displaced went to form the embankment ... To me it was new and particularly interesting and evinced great perseverance and industry on the part of these Aborigines. This description of work is called by the natives cro.cup.per, i.e. Bennewongham [said so]. “