you no kill him." "No," the eldest girl replied,,,you last girl, that man belong me." Another girl said, "My man!" and another, "No, my man!" After some dispute they settled the matter: „He no can take one girl, by and by other girl he kill him. More better he take altogether girl."

So the girls all lived with the boy in his house. In one night they all became pregnant. When they looked at each other they said, "Amo (nipple) belong you he come black." You all same, too." The children were born on the same day, and this was the beginning of the Bóigu people. (Ábai, Mawáta).

160. A Díbiri boy while walking about in the bush came upon the house of the busérebusére (cf. no. 133). The girls were all away making sago except two who had hidden themselves in their beds, and so he could not see them. The boy wondered, "Oh, who belong house, long house, no man stop inside.“ While he was looking round, the two girls stole upon him and caught hold of him. The boy cried out, "Oh, you no kill me!" They said, "I no want kill you, you me marry." ,,No man he stop here?" he asked them, "Where plenty man (all the people) he go?" ,,No man he stop, that's all woman, all he been go bush make sago." The girls spread out a mat for the boy, lighted a fire, and cooked food for him. He ate and afterwards smoked. The girls made an enclosure of mats round the boy and themselves. When the other girls arrived, they wondered what the mats were for, and one of them went to look. Greatly surprised at seeing the boy she called the other girls, and they caught hold of the boy and tried to pull him away from the first two girls: „Oh, my man," they shouted. After a little tumult the two girls kept the boy, and he married them. In due course they bore two children, whom all the girls looked after..

The boy grew tired of cutting sago for all the girls, and one day he said, "Me no one man (not alone) he stop my place, plenty boy he stop." The girls at once said, "Oh, more. better you me (we) go you (your) place, look man." They set off, and on approaching the place the girls said, "You go first look you place what boy he stop." The boy went on alone and was received by his people with joy: "Oh, that boy he come, long time he been lose!" He said to the boys in the village, "Oh, altogether boy, I tell you other thing. Plenty girl he stop that place, I marry two girl finish. All girl he. come up, he want man, more better you come that place." "All right," the boys said, altogether girl he stop good place?" "Oh, he good place, plenty kaikai, all same this place, sago, banana, sweet potato, coconut." He counted over to them how many girls there were, and they all went together. The girls were sitting silently on the ground („he no talk, stop quiet"). The boy said, "Altogether girl you come, all boy he here." All the buhére-buhère got up and each of them caught hold of a boy saying, "You man belong me, I catch you." Afterwards they all set off and came to the girls' place. They went into the house, and the girls lighted a fire and prepared a meal, and they all ate together. The girls all said, ,,Oh, he (this is) good; long time I stop, no got no man." (Káku, Ipisía).

161. Inside a large tree there lived an ororárora (cf. Introduction to no. 102) and his daughter. Once when looking out of the tree the girl noticed a fine young man named Tu, who was walking in the bush. She took a liking for him and called her father, saying, "You come

look, good fellow boy he come." The ororárora jumped out from the tree and seized Tu. The terrified boy cried out, and the girls said, "Father, you no kaikai, I want marry him." So they kept the boy in the tree (cf. no. 139). Tu's father and mother missed their boy but could not find him anywhere, so they wailed for him, and as they believed him to be dead prepared a mourning feast. One night the boy wanted to go and see his parents, and his wife went with him. They heard the wail of the old folk in the house, and the boy called out to them to open. the door. The mother and father received them with great gladness, and the boy told them what had happened to him. In the morning all the people came to see him and asked him a number of questions. Many of them went with the boy and his wife, when they returned to their home in the tree. The ororárora opened the door, and in spite of their terror the boy's mother and father were induced to go into the tree which inside looked like a house. The boy and his ororárora-wife continued to live in the bush, but went frequently to see the old people in the village. (Japía, Ipisía).

AN EVIL BEING CONCEIVES A PASSION FOR A WOMAN AND SUBSEQUENTLY KILLS HER.

162. A Dáru woman named Wásido, while in the act of climbing up a neére tree to get the fruit, was seen by a young male óboro (spirit) with her skirt in disorder. He was seized with a passion for her, and when she came down, he caught hold of her and had connection with her. Afterwards he warned her saying, "You go back you (your) place, you no speak nobody, one óboro been do that thing." Wásido returned home and gave her two children the fruit. Her husband was out on the reefs fishing.

At night the same óboro came underneath the house where Wásido lived and hearing her voice thought that she was telling the others what he had done. He became furious, thinking to himself, "My God, I been speak you, you no tell no man."

Another night the óboro returned with his bow and arrows meaning to kill Wásido. But she saw him and kept watch all night so that he could not steal upon her. In the morning she called her daughter, and they went to the beach, where she picked up two empty white shells. She made holes in the shells and tied them over her eye-balls. You look my eye," she said to the girl, he stop good?" "Yes, mother," the girl said, "that all same proper eye belong you, that two shell." In the night Wásido, before going to sleep, fastened the shells over her eyes, and the óboro who came stealing into her house saw them and thought that the woman was awake. So he crept back, thinking to himself, „That woman no sleep, he open him eye."

The next day, when Wásido was away in her garden, the same óboro appeared in the shape of a man and went into her house. He found Wásido's two children and asked them, Where mother belong you two fellow?" ,,Oh he been go garden." „Night-time, mother belong you what name (what kind of a thing) he make fast?" "He make fast two shell." ,Where mother he leave him?" The girls showed them to the óboro, and he took them away with him. When Wasido returned, she asked the two girls, „Any man no been come see you two fellow?"

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,,Yes, one man been come. What name (what) that man he say?" "No, him he come ask that two shell."

"You two been show him?" "Yes, me been show him, him he take, go."

In the night the óboro came into the house with a large basket, into which he first put the two girls and then Wásido, and carried them away into the bush. There he climbed the same neére tree, in which he had seen Wásido the first time, and hung the basket on a branch. The óboro summoned some friends of his, and asked them to cut a long ,,bush-rope" and tie one end of it to the top of the tree. When they had done this, they all hauled at the other end of the rope, and at last the tree broke and fell, and the woman and children were crushed to death. The óboro all sat down and ate the three dead bodies.

Wásido's husband returned from the reef and asked for his wife. The people said, "Oh, woman belong you, all time we ask him come sleep along me fellow, no good he sleep along empty house. He no come. One óboro he come humbug every night, I think he kill woman belong you." The man found the bones under the neére tree and wailed for his wife. He said to the people, "Oh, that oboro been kill that woman." (Gibúma, Mawáta).

TALES OF WOMEN WHO HAVE BEEN CARRIED AWAY BY MYTHICAL BEINGS (no. 163-167; cf. Index, Mythical Beings).

163. The women of the Mánibádo people, who live on the right bank of the Bínatúri, used to go to Méreovéra on the coast, to catch shell-fish while the men were hunting pig and kangaroo in the bush. Inside a large tree not far from the coast there lived a certain storyman", Glepádo by name. When he wanted to come out from his dwelling he blew at the tree, and it opened. He came out and blew again, and the tree closed up. At night Glepádo used to shoot sting-ray, king-fish, and other kinds of fish, which he cut up and left to dry in the sun. He had no fire and therefore ate them raw. In the morning he returned to his home, blew the door open, and went into the tree, which he closed behind him.

1

you

Once when the Mánibádo women came to the beach, they found Glepádo's fish drying in the sun. ,,Who been put him that fish?" they wondered, somebody been put him me (we) leave him, you me no take him." They left the fish there and went on with their work. But even after their return home they kept on wondering among themselves, „Who been leave that fish outside, put along sun? He no got no fire." You no been see no man?" the Mánibádo men asked them. ,,No, me fellow been see fish, that's all, me no been see no man." Next time when the women went to the shore, there were no fish, for Glepádo had eaten them in the meantime. The various occupations of the people went on in the same way from day to day (abbrev.).

Among the Mánibádo women there was a beautiful girl, who once went to catch fish some distance away from the others. In the evening she called out to them, and Glepádo, deceiving her, answered, „Me fellow here." She thought that it was some other girl. Glepádo came, and she saw what large ears he had. When he went to sleep he used the one ear to lie upon and the other to cover himself with, if it was cold. 25 Glepádo caught hold of the girl and carried her into his tree, which opened of itself when he blew at it. He put her down and closed

the tree. There he kept her, and whenever he went out, he left her inside and frightened her by saying, "Suppose you run away, I speak along shark, he come cut you, fish he go kaikai you.“ The other women were looking in vain for the girl: "Where that girl? I think he been go home." On arriving home they asked the people, „No come that girl?" "No," the people said, "I think he stop along sand-beach. Where you fellow leave him?" „Me fellow leave him along road." The father and mother of the girl began to wail saying, "I think snake kaikai him. You me (we) no savy, I think he lose road now some way."

In the morning they all came to search for the girl, but could not find her, and at nightfall they had to return. The girl was nowhere to be found, and the people held a mourning feast as after a death. The girl's father and mother wailed for her day and night.

The woman inside the tree felt very unhappy. „I no like that man," she thought of Glepádo, what kind ear he got!" Gradually her own ears grew to the same size, and like the man, she used to sleep between them. "Me all same him," she said, looking at her ears, „he been give me same kind ear. She felt sad at the thought of her home and parents, and was seized with hatred for Glepádo.

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Once Glepádo went to catch fish and left his wife alone in the tree. to get home, so she chewed a certain leaf and spat the juice at the tree. door to open, and she ran away.

She was longing
This caused the

When he came

Glepádo cut up the fish he had caught and put them in the sun to dry, home, he saw what had happened, „My word where my woman? He been run away?" The girl returned to her home and was received with great joy by her parents, "Oh, girl belong me he come now!" The girl said, "Oh, I think, mother, father, you make big house, water no can move him. By and by that man sing out water, sing out fish." The people took her advice and built a strong, large house. 23

come!"

Glepádo followed the girl to her place and found the house. He called out, „Water, you And the sea came rushing in, bringing many sharks and other fish. The people were in the house, and the water and sharks tried to break it down. The terrified inmates threw out a dog to the sharks, but they did not care for that kind of prey. 24 Then the girl's father said, "You want I chuck away my girl, by and by (otherwise) shark cut all me fellow." "You chuck away me," the girl said, „by and by shark kaikai you fellow." So they threw her out, and in a twinkle she was torn to pieces by the sharks and other fish.

Glepádo returned to his place on the shore. (Gúi, dírimo).

A. A girl had once been carried off by an ororárora (cf. Introduction to no. 102), who kept her inside a nábea tree. She wanted to get out and scraped at the tree with a shell, trying to make a hole. All the time she was singing to herself,

„Oh, póriki póriki súra gémede gémede gimo dóburáve. I want open him door."

The ororárora did not give her any food. At last she cut through the tree and came out, and she was all skin and bone. Her mother and father received her, weeping at her pitiful plight. They carried her to the water and washed her. (Mamatúa, Súmai).

164. At Nákedárimo a woman who was very beautiful once remained alone in the village, and at the same time a male oboúbi (cf. no. 132) came up from the water. Although he looked

like a man he was quite different from ordinary people, and everything he saw was new and strange to him. The woman asked him, "Where you come?" "I come from house belong me." He asked her the meaning of the different things in the house. At last he looked her in the eye and asked her what it was. That damari, eye," she answered. He caught hold of her and had connection with her, after which he went back into the water. When the people returned, the woman kept her adventure secret from them. The next day the woman remained alone, and things befell exactly as before (abbrev.).

"

One day the óboúbi man carried off the woman into the water where she remained. Her parents thought that she had been taken by a crocodile, but somebody said,,,Alligator he no been catch him, another man catch him, take him go along water." (Máia, Oromosapúa).

165. A Súmai woman, who used to go to the shore every day and smear her hair with white ashes and water, was once seen by some male óboúbi (cf. no. 132) who wanted to carry her off. One day she was caught by one of them, who dragged her into the water and kept her there, but she was not dead.

The people all looked for her in vain and at last concluded that she had been taken by a crocodile. One night her husband dreamt that she came and told him, "Oh, alligator no been catch me, I stop house belong óboúbi man." The man woke up and full of joy shouted, "Oh, wife belong me I been dream! Oh, alligator no been catch him, that óboúbi been catch him."

The woman was anxious to go back to her people, and thought to herself, „No good I stop there along water, I got pickaninny." Her husband found the marks where the óboubi man had dragged her into the water. He went after her into the sea and found the house of the óboúbi where the woman was. An oboúbí man was standing at the door and asked the newcomer, Halloo, where you been?" You no been see wife belong me?" the man asked him. ,,Oh, he stop, he been married finish." The man was angry, but just then his wife came out and grasped his hand saying, "Oh, my God, no good I stop there. You me (we) two go back." The óboúbi man who had carried her off said, "No, no, you no go, you me (we) two married." But the woman said, "No, I no want stop, proper man belong me he been come, you been steal me." The husband and wife ran away as fast as they could and finally came up from the water and back to their people. Everybody asked them "Oh, where you been?" The woman said, ,,Oh, house there inside water, I been stop that house, one man been catch me." (Bíri, Ipisía).

166. A Dorópodai woman while swimming in the water was seen by a half-devil man" who wanted her. Once when she was bathing as usual he caught hold of her and carried her into a cave which he had dug in the ground. He kept her there, and she cooked fish for him. The husband and friends of the woman looked for her everywhere but to no purpose. At last they concluded that a crocodile had made an end of her, so they held a mourning feast.

One day the woman managed to escape from her captor and returned to the village. A little girl there took her for a ghost and was terribly frightened, but the woman's husband and friends welcomed her joyfully. Everybody asked her, "Where you been?" Where you been?" "I been go swim," she said, one man he stop there, he haul me go inside ground!" "Where, where he stop?" her husband asked her, and she showed him the place. The people told her to ask the man to come