shaped like a man and regarded with great veneration, plays a part in the ceremony, but in Kiwai they use a number of wooden figures, male and female. The burning torches are put down for a moment on the figures before serving for the fight.

286. At Old Mawáta a certain man named Bóromobúro went out one morning to shoot fish with his bow and arrows. While thus occupied he saw a small stone swimming towards him like a fish, causing a ripple in the water. Bóromobúro thought that it was a fish and shot at it but the point of the arrow broke off. 61 „Hallo! what name (what is) that?" he exclaimed, ,,I think that no fish," and he picked up the stone. What name that thing come like fish? I no been see that thing before." Instead of going home he built a small hut on the beach and spent the night there. He chewed a little of a certain plant called mánabába and spat the juice at the stone. Then he lay down in the hut on his back with one hand under his head and the stone placed in the angle of his elbow. In the night the stone appeared to him and said, "My name mimia, you fellow no talk my name along woman. I come out from water, you pick me up, my name stone. That time you make mimía (the ceremony), you make me nice, good; red paint you put along me, make fast dagúrí (head-dress of cassowary feathers), amúra (bird-ofparadise plume), take me inside house. When you make mimía, you make fire, fight him people along pida (torch). Young man he come, all he fright good that time he see my face. Any time. you fellow go spear him dugong, turtle, you sing out my name first. When I come from water, I leave him all kind fish, you fellow go spear him dugong, turtle, you sing out my name first. Plenty kaikai along bush too I give you." The man was instructed how the mimía ceremony. should be performed. On waking up in the morning he thought, "Oh, good thing I find him, good dream I got, I look plenty thing."

Bóromobúro carried the stone home, put it underneath his house, and covered it with a turtle-shell. Without anybody knowing it he rubbed the stone with sweet-smelling plants and painted. and decorated it carefully. Then he hid it under a mat and summoned all the men and grownup boys to come and look, and when they were assembled, he drew aside the mat. „All Mawáta man," he said, "you fellow look that thing. What name (what is) that thing?" „Me no savy what name that thing, me no been see before." Then Bóromobúro told them how he had found the stone in the water and shot an arrow at it, and how the stone had come to him in a dream (abbrev.). He also told the people about the mimia ceremony and taught them to beat each other with burning torches according to the rite.

When the ceremony was over, the people removed the leaves and other ornaments with which the stone was decorated and buried them in their gardens to make all the fruit and plants grow. Parts of the same decorations were also used as medicines" when spearing dugong and turtle. After the conclusion of the ceremony the mimia stone was taken outside through a hole in the floor; it was never carried out by the door, for that would cause some great disaster to the community. (Gaméa, Mawáta).

A.

nose, and mouth.

Bóromobúro found the mimia stone exactly as in the first version, and the stone had eyes, He left it in the bush and went home. In the night the stone turned into a man and came and taught him the same things as in the first version. Before striking each other with the

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burning torches the people must first touch the stone with them for a moment. The people went to fetch the stone, and in the meantime it had grown very large. The ceremony was held according to the instructions Bóromobúro had received. (Amúra, Mawata).

TEE INAUGURATION OF THE HORIOMU, OR TAERA, CEREMONY.

The hóriómu, or táera, ceremony, known by other names also, comprehends a series of pantomimic dances and rites in which the men, masked and dressed up to represent the spirits of the dead, perform before the women. A whole galaxy of different personages appear in the ceremony. There is even a kind of a stage arrangement consisting of two screens with an opening in the centre through which the performers come out to dance, and the ends of the screens overlap so as to prevent the spectators from looking into the shrine. After each dance the spirits retire behind the screens. The women, thinking that they really see the spirits of their departed friends, wail and bring them food. The ceromony is particularly connected with the spearing of dugong.

287. Once when the Dáru people were catching crabs, a woman found one which was at the same time a mythical being. The crab withdrew into a hole in the ground which was full of water, and try as she might to bail out the water the woman could not get at the crab. So she had to return home with an empty basket, while the other women brought in plenty of crabs.

,,Spirit" appearing in the taera ceremony.

The mythical being which had hoaxed the woman was Waímee, the local spirit of Dáru ,,every place got one devil (spirit)." When night came, Waimee sent his urío (spirit) to the woman, and it passed into her, causing her to become drowsy. She thought herself ill and said to her mother-in law, "Oh, áberebúro (old woman), I got sick, I go sleep close to fire." „All right, you go sleep," said the old woman, and she was displeased with her daughter-in-law, thinking to herself, Plenty woman bring crab, what for you no bring nothing? Pickaninny cry all time, no got no fish." The younger woman lay down close to the fire while the old woman slept close to the central gangway of the house.

In the night Waímee came into the house; scenting his way to the woman. He was no longer a crab but appeared in his right shape, that of a man. Everybody was asleep. Waimee found the old woman and taking her to be the one he was looking for he passed into her. She at oncé became cranky" and began to jump and dance. transformation had come about and felt rather displeased.

The younger woman guessed how the "Oh, that my thing he been come now,"

she thought, "follow smell belong me. What name (why) that old woman been sleep close to me? That my devil (spirit) been catch him now." The old woman kept on dancing for a good while, then she lay down to sleep. She dreamt that Waímee came to her and said, "You take all people go make him clean place along ĺho (a locality in Dáru), make nice; you make dance." That place belonged to Waímee, and it was there that the woman had found the crab.

In the morning the old woman told the others what she had dreamt and they went to clear the ground at Iho, and after painting and decorating themselves the men and women held. a great dance there. The boys and girls were left at home, and in the absence of their parents one of them said, „All father mother make him dance one place. You me (we) find him other fashion." They dressed themselves up to represent spirits of the dead and invented a new dance. The spririts announced their arrival with a whistling and assembled at a place partitioned off by a screen called hóriómu. When the pantomime was ended, the children threw away their accoutrements, and the parents on their return did not know what had taken place.

The next day the men went to spear dugong and the women and children to catch fish and crabs. But the grown-up people did not manage to catch anything at all whereas the children brought home a lot of fish and crabs. What's the matter you me (we) no find him no dugong, no crab? Pickaninny, plenty fish and crab he find him." ,,I think," some of them suggested, „that dance we been make him he no good thing, more better you me (we) leave him."

A certain old woman who had stayed at home all the time 5 said to one of the men, „Next time you me no go, you me go watch all boy girl. I think good fashion pickaninny he find him." And while the rest of the adults went and held the same dance, that man and woman hid and set themselves to watch the children. They saw how the youngsters decorated themselves with young coconut-leaves, and as they looked on at the dance they said to each other, "Oh, good thing pickaninny been find him, by-and-by you me (we) go catch him (copy the dance).“ When the parents returned home, the children quickly threw away their decorations. The next day they all again went to fish, and again the adults did not get anything whereas the children were very successful. The man and woman who had watched the children said to the people, ,,More better you me (we) leave that thing me been make him. Altogether boy and girl, good fashion he been find him, that's why he catch him plenty fish." Then the men all hid in the

bush close to the hóriómu shrine so as to watch what the children were doing. First a whistling was heard and immediately afterwards the spirits put in an appearance and began to dance. They were completely masked with leaves and held some wárakára branches in one hand and a rattle in the other (abbrev.).

When the dance was ended, the girls went home, and at the same time the men came out of their hiding-place and caught hold of all the boys. "Oh!" the latter exclaimed, "what name (why) you fellow come watch me? Me fellow got good thing." The men sent the little boys away but kept the elder boys there, saying to them,,,This thing belong you me (us), good dance. No learn (teach) him mother, no learn him girl, you keep him quiet. Belong you me fashion." In the night the men and elder boys held the spirit dance over again. One of the men said, "My brother he dead, you go dance along óboro (you act as his spirit in the dance)." And another men said, „My wife and pickaninny he been die, you go dance along óboro.“ They also held a great feast in the hóriómu shrine.

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After they had rested the men went to spear dugong and the women to look for fish and crabs. The former caught plenty of dugong, and the latter had not gone far from home before their baskets were full. Everybody said, "Oh, good thing all boy find him, good thing that dance you me (we) keep him." (Námai, Mawáta).

A. Very like the previous version. The old woman who became possessed by Waímee sang,
Ngáina Wakimehe ngáina Wakimehe. That's me Waimee (Wakimehe)." This is said to be

"

Sáibai language.

In Dáru there was a stone which really was Waimee, and the ceremony of the adults was held at that stone. In the meantime the boys invented their ceremony. They decked themselves completely with leaves so that the girls could not recognize them, and made the latter believe that they were spirits of the dead. After the rite was over the boys and girls caught plenty of fish and crabs whereas their parents failed to catch any. The children's dance was found out by the man who adopted it and thenceforth were successful in catching dugong and fish. (Amúra, Mawáta).

B. Another very similar version. The people who formerly inhabited Daru were called Híamu. The dance of the adults was held at the stone which was Waímee. When dancing the boys did not beat real drums but kept time by hitting two shells together. They were found out by the older people who copied their dance. (Gibúma, Mawáta).

C. Waímeére was a mythical being and also a stone which had the shape of a man. The adults of the Híamu (or Dáru people) used to decorate the stone for their ceremony which was known by the adults as told in the other versions. (Gaméa, Mawáta).

D. There are two more versions very like one or other of the previous ones. (ĺku; Sále

and Saibu, Mawáta).

THE MAN WHO WAS THOUGHT TO BE DEAD AND WHO RETURNED AFTER THE TAERA CEREMONY HAD BEEN HELD OVER HIM.

288. Túdo or Tútu (Warrior island) lacked a good waterhole, so the people there had to fetch water from Yam island. Once when they were returning from Yam with water they saw a turtle floating on the sea. You go fore," they said to a man named Gamíga, turtle there." Gamíga had no time to seize his harpoon, for the turtle was quite near, so he jumped overboard and caught the animal in his arm. The turtle struck out with its flippers and dived down into deep water with the man holding on to its back. Gamíga found that he could not let go his hold, for his arms had fastened to the turtle, yet he was not drowned. At the bottom of the sea there was a hole, and all people belong turtle" lived there. This was no ordinary turtle, for one of the óboúbi (mythical beings of the sea, cf. no. 132) had passed into it. Gamíga's companions waited in their canoe but to no purpose.

to the end of a harpoon-line and threw it overboard by way of anchor. a shark must have taken Gamíga, for none could imagine that he was still alive at the bottom of the sea. Finally they weighed anchor and returned to Túdo bringing the news,,,Gamíga he

been go down, turtle take him," and Gamíga's friends all wailed. They held the táera ceremony and wept when his spirit came and danced.

Gamíga remained seven days with the óboúbi, or turtle people, then they let him return.. The same turtle swam with him to Túdo, and he was still holding on to its back. They stranded at the island, and Gamíga got up and hauled the turtle on shore. He thought to himself, „No good I show my face first time, 1 think people been make something for me.“ So he went to the hóriómu shrine and looked round. "Oh, new coconut-leaf, green one!" he exclaimed. „Devil (spirit) belong me been dance now. They been call me devil now." He was very frightened: „By-and-by I come, people he kill me." For if he returned safe and sound after his spirit had taken part in the hóriómu dance, would not the women conclude that the dancers were no genuine spirits?

A certain Túdo man found Gamíga's turtle on the beach and followed his tracks to the shrine. Gamíga saw him and bent down his head. "Oh, Gamíga!" the other man cried out, „me been make devil-devil for you finish." ,,More better I stop here," Gamíga said, "no good I come along people," so he remained in the shrine. He taught the other man the ceremony connected with the spearing of turtle, for he had learnt it while he was in the water.

The other man went and said to the people, I been see Gamíga, he stop inside hóríómu.“ Gamíga's relatives said, „Me fellow no can say nothing, you fellow been make devil-devil quick. You fellow do self." („They mean kill him," explained the narrator). One man took a stone axe which he sharpened and handed it to another, but he did not bid him, "You kill him Gamíga," he merely handed him the axe. But the other man pitied Gamíga, so he hung his head without saying anything, and so did all the others to whom the first man handed the axe, for none of them wanted to do the deed. Then the first man took his axe back and kept it during the night. In the morning he seized the axe and went to the hóriómu. On seeing him Gamíga thought, „Oh, one man he come, he got something, he want kill me," and he wept. He sat on the ground with his knees bent up and his arms and face resting on them. What good I run away?" he thought, "I no want stow away all time, where find kaikai? Man he been make devil-devil, he spoil me." The other man came up and hit him once with the axe on the back of his head, and Gamíga was killed by the blow. The people buried him in the ground, but they did not tell his wife or any other woman of his return, so they all thought that he had been drowned at sea. In the night the men went and made payment to Gamíga's relatives, four arm-shells for his head, one for his nose, two for his arms, and two for his legs; one harpoon-handle for his penis and another for his backbone, and a string of dog's teeth for the intestines. They gave many other things too as his blood-price. All the presents were placed on the ground outside Gamíga's house, and near by they put the axe with which he had been killed and the stone with which it had been sharpened.

When Gamíga's relatives got up in the morning they wondered at all the things. The people did not tell them why the presents were given, and one of them said, "That time people been go Yam they lose him Gamíga. They fright family belong him, that's why they put him plenty thing." Gamíga's kinsmen did not know that he had been killed, and they wailed and accepted the presents.