301. Once when the Ipisía people were fishing in Abaúra a heavy wind prevented them from returning home for a long time. They ran short of food, and soon had nothing to eat except fish and crabs. The women asked their husbands to launch a canoe and try to sail over to Ipisía, but the craft was driven back by the waves. One day two women died of hunger, and were buried. The next day three women died, and then not one day passed without a death. The survivors were all worn out and haggard. They swore at the wind saying, "No good me humbug along wind, no good you me (we) finish here altogether.“ The children all died.

"

A new moon came up, and at length the wind abated. The people at Ipisía loaded four canoes with provisions and sailed over to Abaúra. None came to meet them on their landing, for the people on shore were too exhausted. You fellow all right?" the new-comers asked them. „No, me no all right, some man he die." They were so weak that they could not go and fetch food, but after eating they gathered more strength. Early the next morning they all sailed back to Ipisía. The people there wailed saying, Oh, no good some man he die there, I got plenty kaikai; wind he humbug." They collected food for a great mourning feast, and some people went to Abaúra to catch fish and crabs. On their journey home a canoe ran on to a sandbank and was wrecked, and the people perished. The crews of the other canoes said, "Oh, that's obísare (mythical beings in the water, cf. no. 131) he been catch that canoe," and no one dared go near it. When the people heard of this fresh disaster they said, „No more you me (we) go along Abaúra. First time some people he die along Abaúra, this time some man he lose along water."

The Wiórubi people had caused the strong wind in order to take revenge upon a certain Ipisía man who had not paid sufficiently for a canoe which he had bought from them. (Bíri, Ipisía).

302. Long ago the Ipisía people once went to Sagéro to make sago. When they were ready to return a very high wind sprang up, and they had to wait. After some days they managed to sail over to Aibinío, but in the night the wind increased again. Some evil man had raised it. The people had to wait in Aibinío several days, and once when making an attempt to leave, a man named Dábi lost his canoe and was drowned. At last the wind abated, and some people sailed over to Abaúra while others went straight home to Ipisía. The people there heard of Dábi's death and learnt the name of the man who had caused the wind. The man was still at Abaúra, but on his arrival at Ipisía the people straightway shot their arrows at him. He crept into the canoe and they called out to him, "Suppose you man, you come shore; suppose you woman you no come!" The man thought to himself, „I man, no good you call me woman," and he went on shore and defended himself. When the fight was over he gave payment for the men who had perished. (Bíri, Ipisía).

303. An Ipisía canoe was once sailing across the mouth of the Fly to Abaúra, but the wind ceased, and as the crew had no means of anchoring, the current swept the canoe on to the open sea out of sight of land. It was no use trying to paddle against the tide. The men slept

two nigths on the open sea, and on the following day they managed to reach Úmudo island. They were received by a Wáboda party who gave them food. At length they came back to Ipisía. After that it was six months before the Ipisía people dared to sail over to Abaúra. (Bíri, Ipisía).

304. Some Mawáta people were once returning home from Mábudaváne walking along the coast. Among them was a pregnant woman named Sówa, and when they arrived at Wádapebéna her delivery was fast approaching. Oh, he no got no kaikai here, what's way (how) he born him that pickaninny here?" lamented the people. In the evening Sówa gave birth to twins, and the people determined to rest there the following day. Some of them caught fish and crabs and others went to Djibáru to procure vegetable food. One of the women made a basket of coconut leaves, and when the people resumed their journey Sówa carried her two babies in the basket. She did not notice that after a while one of them fell out and was left behind on the beach. „Where other pickaninny he go?" she exclaimed at length on looking into the basket. ,,Oh, you run, go look!" she called to her husband Sirówi. He ran back, found the baby, and brought it to the mother. They put a mat underneath the two babies in the basket so as to prevent them from falling out. But next day on their arrival at Mawáta the little baby who had dropped from the basket died. The parents wailed over it, and after the burial a mourning feast was held. Sirówi said to his wife, "You look out (after) good that pickaninny he (who) stop." (Sáibu, Mawáta).

305. The Mawáta people once went to Kúra to catch fish, and when they returned a man named Adági found that his dog had remained behind. He was sent by his mother to fetch it and went back alone. At Kúra he saw his dog together with five others. When he tried to catch it all the dogs ran some distance away, but when he stopped and came back they followed him. Then Adagi shot an arrow at a certain large dog called Múiere, and the dog ran out on the beach with the arrow dangling from its back. Múiere started to swim across the Kúra creek, but the current carried it a long way out of its course. Adági swam after the dog in order to recover his arrow, but he too was swept away by the current. After a while the dog reached the beach on the other side, but Adági was carried right out to the open sea. He held on to his bow and bundle of arrows and tried to swim towards the beach, but the tide was too strong, and he nearly got drowned. He floated on the bow and arrows and swam with one hand till he became tired, and then he changed hands. The sun had passed a long way on its course when at last he reached the shore and lay down exhausted with his face on his arms.

"

Adági's wife, after waiting some time for her husband, came to look for him. I no see nothing there along sandbeach," she thought. What's that come up there along water? I think somebody been capsize canoe, lose him, he come swim along outside? I no savy, some pig, come cassowary he swim along water?" Lastly she saw that it was a man and thought, I go back, by-and-by that man he kill me." But then Adági called out, You come, that's me." She came back and said, "What's way (how) you go along water, swim? Me think about you there along Kúra." And Adági told her what had happened (abbrev.). His wife wailed and they returned home. (Adági, Mawáta).

306. Some Mawáta people once arranged to go to Kúra the following night, and a certain little boy wanted to accompany his mother, a woman named Taváni. „No, no, you stop," she said, but as the boy went on begging she at length conceded. During the night the people got up and sailed away in their canoes, but as Taváni found her son sleeping she left him behind. Some little time afterwards the boy woke up and finding that his mother had gone set off to run after her along the beach. He was pursued by a very wild dog named Gísúri and wailed to himself,

Some people in the last canoe heard the boy crying, but thought that his mother was with him. He tried to get away from the dog but was soon overtaken and bitten to death, whereupon the beast ate part of his body and then lay down to sleep by the side of it.

After reaching Kúra some of the people started to fish and others, Gísúri's owner included, went out hunting. But the owner of the dog did not shoot anything, for the spirit of the dead boy, although invisible, came and humbugged him, and prevented him from shooting any pig. This action of a soul belongs to the phenomena which are called mabuáre. The man, however, thought that Gisúri had been taken by a crocodile and that different kind of mábuȧre was the reason of his bad luck.

The next day the people went on their way back to Mawáta and found the boy lying dead on the beach with the dog by his side. „Uéi! who belong that pickaninny?" they exclaimed, „belong bushman? belong what place? Uéi! where Taváni? That pickaninny belong Távani!" Taváni wailed and explained how she had left the boy at home. The body was buried, and the people killed the dog.

Taváni ought to have awakened the boy when she went away, as she had promised to take him with her, said the narrator. (Námai, Mawáta).

D. THE TREATMENT OF SHIPWRECKED PEOPLE (no. 307-311; cf. Index).

307. Long ago a certain married woman at Mawáta named Kúmi, the wife of Tabáia, used to bestow her favours upon a boy named Wárawía. One day a man said to Tabáia's father whose name was Yángána, „Éterera (daughter-in-law) belong you he like some boy; he stow away kaikai all time, give boy,,, and Yángána said nothing but kept the information to himself.

Once when the people were preparing to go to the reef Yángána procured a powerful ,,poison" from a man named Músu who was versed in those things. In the night prior to sailing Músu applied the "medicine" to one of the canoes saying, „You make him that canoe he sink.“ The next day the Mawáta canoes all set sail and went away. One of the great men named Máiári travelled in the canoe, which had been prepared with poison", and was accompanied by Jogóva, Onii, Áudo, and a Dáru man named Táradára. The canoes sailed past the Útamabu reef and landed at the large reef called Mádjaía or Áuo-mádja, where the people started to catch fish.

On the same day a certain Túritúri man named Kakába raised a rain-storm in order to make his garden grow. The Mawáta people saw a black cloud rising and hastened to return home. Between Mádjaía and Ótamábu the canoe which had been given medicine, capsized. The people on board called out to the other canoes, „Come here, canoe he sink! You come, give him rope belong dugong, pull me fellow along (to the) reef!" They wanted to be towed to the reef, holding on to the rope in the water, and after reaching the reef be distributed among the different canoes, for one canoe could not hold them all. But the wind was very strong, and the people in the other canoes were afraid and thought, „By-and-by them fellow come along canoe, canoe he sink down," and none of the other canoes came to the rescue. After a while the shipwrecked men began to fight among themselves. On seeing Táradára the rest thought, „He no belong this place, he Dáru man. More better you me (we) kill him before me lose, before shark he get me. You me lose now; me kill him first." So they ran Táradára through with a spear, and the weapon remained sticking in his body. After that all of them perished.

The other canoes returned to Mawáta, but none of the crews cared to tell the people at home that one canoe was wrecked. When all had arrived the father of one of the missing boys came and asked the people, "Where boy belong me canoe he go?" He received no answer. At last a man named Káivai said, "Oh, canoe he sink altogether, he lose. Me fellow leave him middle Ótamábu and Mádjaía." Then the old man in an outburst of rage set fire to the men's house, and he wailed. None of the others dared to say anything, for he was a great man.

Some time afterwards three great men named Mípi, Áudo, and Oma, called a small boy named Góboi, who had been on board one of the canoes, aside into the bush, and said to him, „Me three man no kill you, Góboi, you talk straight. How long way away (from) that canoe he lose other canoe he been stop?" "Oh, father, he no been stop long way, he go alongside. The people sing out, 'You come give rope, take me go along Ótamábu. Small boy you take him inside along canoe, big man he swim behind along rope, no come inside canoe.' They sing out, sing out. No man he sorry, go give hand." The three men said, "You no tell him no man (that) you been learn (teach) him me fellow. Suppose you tell, by-and-by, give you puripuri (magic poison)."

The Mawáta men knew that Kakába had caused the fatal rain-storm. Without telling anybody Óma went to Túritúri and killed him and cut off his head. The Túritúri people did not dare to do anything, for they were afraid of the three great Mawáta men who had lost their children and friends on board the canoe.

Upon this the three men took revenge on the Mawáta people. (Continued in no. 335 B; Námai, Mawáta).

A. Some Mawáta men once sailed out to a reef, and among them were Djogóva, the son of Audo, and Wárawia, the son of Óma. A strong wind arose, and Djogóva and Wárawía's canoe sank. The men cried out fur help and gesticulated (,,sing out along hand") to some other canoes which were passing by, but those on board thought, "No, we go take him, by-and-by he break him outrigger belong me fellow, altogether lose." Wárawía speared a certain Dáru man named Sávokári who was with him; for he thought, ,,By-and-by I dead, I spear him first." All were drowned, but the canoe with Sávokári's body drifted ashore and was found by some Mawáta people who guessed what had happened. They cut off his head and said, "That bad man, belong other island. All good man he no come, he

been lose." Óma prepared to take revenge upon the Mawáta people. (Continued in no. 335 A; Gaméa, Mawáta).

B. Once on the return journey from a reef a certain Mawáta canoe capsized and the crew was abandoned by their fellow-villagers in the other canoes. Among the shipwrecked was a Dáru man, and he was killed by the rest who thought, „That man belong other island more better you me (we) kill him before you me dead self." The survivors swam ashore in Dáru and were killed by the people there who found them in a state of great exhaustion. Óma's son was among those killed, and the Some Kiwai men recognized Óma's son among those slain in Dáru and brought the news to Úma. He planned revenge. (Continued in no. 335; Sáibu, Mawáta).

father found out the truth from Góboi as in the first version.

C. Some Mawáta people used to boast how fast-going their canoes were. Canoe belong you he no much run, canoe belong me he run," they said. Once when returning from a reef they arranged a sailing-match to find out which canoe was the fastest. In the middle of the race one canoe capsized. The crew called out for help, but were deserted by the people in the other canoes. The tide first carried them and their craft towards Sáibai and then turned and brought them to Dáru, where they reached the shore. They were discovered and killed by the Dáru people who thought, „Oh, he been lose him canoe. Mawáta man he think altogether he been lose along water, he no savy me fellow kill him." A certain Mawáta man who was staying in Dáru brought the news home. Mípi, one of the Mawata leaders, then went to summon the Kiwai people to fight the Dáru people. „Pig there he stop along Dáru," he said to the Kiwais, „me come take you fellow go kill him," and by that he meant the Dáru people. The Kíwais launched their canoes, and when they came to the Úriómu, they entered the mouth of the river and waited there. In the night they paddled over the passage to Dáru and attacked the village at dawn. The Dáru people had been made „cranky" by means of a magic medicine sent out in advance, and a great number of them were killed. The Mawáta people gave payment to the Kíwais for their service. (Sále, Mawáta).

308. It happened once on a harpooning expedition that a Mawáta man named Arúsa speared a dugong which dragged him as far as Kíwai, he and held on to the line all the time. His friends in the canoe thought him to be lost and returned home. The dugong ran ashore in Kiwai and died, and Arúsa coiled up the harpoon-line on the animal and sat down to wait. The news spread among the Kiwais, „,I see one man there sit on top dugong. I no savy what place he been come." A number of Kiwai men came with their bows and arrows and clubs and began to argue as to what was to be done. „More better me take him house, give kaikai," some men said. „No, more better I think me kill him," said the rest. Thus Arúsa was killed and his head cut off. After a time the secret leaked out to Mawáta, and the people launched a great number of canoes and went to fight the Kiwais. (Sále, Mawáta).

309. A Yam island canoe once capsized off Gímini sandbank not far from Mawáta, and all the crew were drowned except one woman who managed to swim ashore. She was very afraid lest the Mawáta people should kill her and hid in a hole in the ground. There she lived three months stealing food from the plantations of the Mawáta people. Once on climbing a tree to look out for her people she saw six Yam island canoes coming in search of the one which was wrecked. She was very glad and put on her grass petticoat and a tail of feathers which