Relationships between the two races began to deteriorate as the Europeans began taking fish from the harbour, shooting animals and birds for food and felling trees. They were unaware of it but they were breaking Dreamtime lore. The Aborigines resented this, however the relationship soured further when sailors and convicts began stealing weapons and artifacts. Soon there were a number of instances of convicts being speared. To show that British law had replaced dreamtime law Governor Philip ordered the offending Aborigines to be arrested, but the culprits could not be found. After many more confrontations and some violent clashes, it was decided to keep the natives at a greater distance from the settlement. Soldiers were authorized to fire their guns if any Aborigines came within the boundaries of the camp. The Aboriginals were stripped bare of everything they once knew. Once upon a time, they were the ones who decided what was best for the land, however not any more. They had no say in anything to do with the country and were thought as if they belonged somewhere else. This terrible treatment continued for hundreds of years, but was at its worst during the 19th century unofficially referred to as the Black War?. In most cases the conflicts arose because of the appalling and vicious persecution of the Aboriginal people. In this era there appears to have been little attempt to understand their customs and needs and even less attempts to treat them fairly. In some areas white settlers pretended friendship but then gave the Aboriginal groups flour and meat that was laced with arsenic. These Settlers knew of course that all members of the group including the children would share the food. This act was common at the time. Although the Aborigines put up a strong resistance to the British, their traditional weapons were no match for European firearms. The introduction of their own system of law, with no regard for Aboriginal rights, gave the British a keen advantage in the running of the country.
