it. The belly was ripped open, and the people found the boy's head and body which they placed on a mat and subsequently buried, but the hiwai-abére was cut in pieces and burnt in the fire. (Gibúma, Mawáta). A. The tide washed up an amuhe from the Úriómu to Dáru, and there it was found by some boys. They raced to catch it, and one of them brought it to his mother asking her to cook it, but she ate it and gave him a bad ámuhe instead. He wept and could not be comforted, and in the night he was carried off by a hiwai-abére or óriogorúho (cf. no. 135) who had heard him crying. The beast was seen by an old woman named Wásido, but she thought that it was the boy's mother who took him away somewhere. The monster killed and devoured the boy. In the morning the parents after a long search were told by Wásido what she had seen. The óriogorúho was killed and burnt in the fire, and the remains of the boy were buried except his skull which his parents kept hanging round their necks in turn. Since that time it is a rule among the people that the parents may not take from their children anything which the latter have come in possession of. (Sáibu, Mawáta). B. The same incident with the fruit. The boy was carried away by an óriogorúho which had white hair, and they were seen by the old woman Wásido who did not know what kind of a being it The boy was eaten by the beast. The next day the people found the lair of the óriogorúho in a hole in a large tree, and the monster was killed and burnt in the fire. (Médi, the elder, Mawáta). was. C. The mother lied to the boy that his nóvai (at Mawáta dmuhe) had burnt up in the fire. The boy was seized and devoured by an origorúso, and the incident was seen by an old woman who told it to the boy's parents. The lair of the órigorúso was discovered in the ground, whereupon the beast was killed and burnt. The people carried the remains of the boy home and buried them. (Obúro, Iása). D. The father roasted and ate his son's nóvai. The boy wept, but the next day his father brought him a basketful of the fruit, which the boy ate. In the night the boy was taken by an origorúso who had heard him crying, and the beast ate him except the head, hands, and feet. 29 The next day the beast was found underneath the house and shot dead. His head was cut off, and the body was thrown into the water. (Japía, Jpisía). E. · 66 The weeping boy was carried away by a wario (large hawk). Its nest was found in a tree, but the people dared not climb up. The bones of the boy were found on the ground underneath. In the night the spirit of the boy came to his mother and said, "Mother, you no go close that tree. That pigeon (bird) he bad, by-and-by you go close to, he kill you.' However, under the cover of darkness, the father and mother crept up to the tree, gathered together the bones of their son, and returned without being detected, for the hawk was sleeping in its nest. The next day the two warned the people not to go near the tree, and the path which lead thither was blocked up with a tree. (Nátai, Ipisía). F. The Wáboda children were swimming in the water, and one boy found a nóvai which his mother ate. The boy cried till late in the night, and his mother thought, ,,No good I been kaikai that fruit belong boy." Next morning she went to the bush with three baskets to fetch nóvai fruit. She found a nóvai tree and after filling one of her baskets with fruit she left it hanging on a branch. A little further on she found another tree and filled another basket. Then she she went to a third nóvai tree, and leaving the basket on the ground, she climbed the tree to pick the fruit. In the tree was a large hole, and there lived two útumu (spirits of people whose heads have been cut off, cf. no. 134), a male and a female. They dragged the woman into the hole, killed and ate her. Her husband wondered where she had gone and asked everybody whether they had not seen her. In vain the people called her by name. When it became dark they had to give up searching for her but the next day they started again, tracking all the different paths which she might have taken. They carried their trumpet-shells with them and said, "Suppose you find him that woman, you sing out, make lúture (sound the trumpet-shells). When they were tired they rested, cooked some food, ate, and smoked, and then resumed their search. But in the evening the different parties returned without having seen anything of the missing woman. » The útumu had thrown the woman's bones outside the tree. At length one of her baskets was found, and the people eagerly followed up the clue. Next her second basket was found, whereupon the people came to the large tree, and found the third basket there. That basket he no been fill him up yet," thought the people, he got fruit there, he been go knock him down, I think.“ On the other side of the tree they came across her bones. ,,That bone belong that woman," they said, "that no bone belong pig, bone belong cassowary, no, that bone belong man. The people brought them home and said to the woman's husband, „I find him bone, I think útumu been kaikai him." The leading men seized their stone axes and other arms and went to the place. One of them climbed the tree. Oh, útumu he been catch him true," he said, „útumu stop inside tree, stink he come up." The man who had climbed up came down, and they started to fell the tree. At length it was hewn, and the male útumu came out and was killed. A man went to look into the hole, and there was the female ulumu. „Oh, you no kill me fellow," she wailed, "I no útumu ('she gammoned,' said the narrator), more better you catch me, keep me," but she too was killed, and the heads of the two útumu were cut off. The bodies were cut in pieces and burnt, and the bones of the woman were carried home and buried. The people held a mourning feast. (Cf. no. 137; Bíri, Ipisía). PARENTS WHO KILL THEIR CHILDREN 253. The child of a certain man and woman in Wáboda cried incessantly, preventing the parents from sleeping night and day. „No man, no woman help me fellow carry that pickaninny," the mother complained, „me tired, me all time carry that pickaninny." Then she put it in a basket which she wrapped up in a mat, and placed it on a tree lying on the beach. It was then low water, but after a while she saw how the rising tide carried the tree away. Then she returned to her husband, and he asked her, „Where pickaninny belong you?" He had to repeat the question before she answered, „Me tired; me been throw him away, big water take him go." „He all right," said the man. (Duábo, Oromosapúa). · 63 254. A certain Kíwai man had not received payment for his daughter whom he had given in marriage to another man, and he was very angry. You look out, two fellow, some time I make givári (sorcery)," said he. Shortly afterwards the girl was about to bear a child. The father took a certain stone, shaped it to resemble the head of a man and painted it red, black, and white. Then he buried it at the ladder of the house where his daughter lived, and said, "You man, you kill my girl. You go inside, shut him road, no pickaninny come." On going to swim the woman stepped over the stone. No delivery took place, for the stone prevented the child from being born, and the woman died. (Káiku, Ipisía). THE TWO SISTERS WHO FOUGHT OVER A CRAB. 255. Two sisters lived together at Sagéru and spent their time fishing with a basket which they lowered into the water and hoisted up when the fish and crabs had gathered into it. Once the elder sister caught a large crab and tying up the pincers put it in the canoe and brought it home. The next day she went to make sago, and in her absence the younger sister cooked the crab and ate it. Who kaikai my crab?" asked the elder sister on her return home. She was very angry, seized her digging stick and hit the younger girl on the head. They began to fight so fiercely that they kicked the firebrands over the floor, soon the whole house was in flames, and the two girls perished. (Káku, Ipisía). A. The two girls lived by themselves, and once one of them in the absence of her sister ate a crab which belonged to the latter, alleging that it had escaped. They began to fight and set fire to the house as in the first version. (Mánu, Ipisía). B. The large crab caught by the elder sister was about to escape in the night when the younger sister happened to come and tied it up again. She kept it for herself and ate it, and when her elder sister asked for her crab she pretended not to know anything about it. The elder sister found the legs of the crab and guessed the truth. They fought, set fire to the house, and died in the flames. (Támetáme, Ipisía). THE BROTHERS WHO QUARRELLED, AND THE YOUNGER OF WHOM WENT AWAY (no. 256-259; cf. Index, The Family). 256. Two brothers lived together in Manávete; Múmaréva was the name of the elder brother who was married, and Sábaréva the younger. The latter went to his brother's garden and stole yams, and Múmaréva's wife on noticing that food had been taken away said to herself, ,,Oh, my yam! who been pull him out?" On returning home she saw Sábaréva occupied with roasting some yams and recognized them as the same from her own garden. A little later she went down to the beach where the young men had begun to play páru (a kind of hockey), and with her digging stick she hit Sábaréva on the head, at the same time calling out,,,You no go steal my yam!" The humiliated Sábaréva began to cry, and when some of the men wanted to attend to his wound he sent them away and said, "I no want you make him, I leave you." In the night when the people were asleep the boy thought to himself, "What piace I go? I go stop another place." He put some yams, bananas, and coconuts in his basket and went away into the bush. After a long wandering he came to a place where the ground was high and dry, and there he built a hut to live in. An atéraro (ferocious mythical lizard) lived in the same place. The next morning the people discovered that the boy was gone and started to look for him. As none of the canoes were missing they concluded that he had gone away on foot, but they could not find any trace of him. One day while making a garden in the bush the boy met the ateraro and thought to himself, "I don't know, I finish now to-day, atéraro kaikai me!" But the monster beat the ground with its tail to express its friendly disposition, and said, "You me (we) stop, you my boy. What's the matter you come here?" "Oh, wife belong brother he fight me here along head, that's why I come," said he, "I come altogether, no more go back." And the two lived together, and the boy made a large garden in which he planted sugar-cane, bananas, yams, sweet potatoes, and many other things. One day the .boy thought, „Oh, I been plant him plenty kaikai; who kaikai? I want make him dance." The ateraro knew a great many songs and dances, madia, mádo, gánu, báidúo, and others, and taught them to the boy. Then it caused a large dárimo (men's house) to build itself; the posts and rafters cut themselves and raised themselves up, and in a short time the house was ready. The human figures which were carved on the posts decorated themselves (cf. · p. 13), and the boy and atéraro too, decked themselves with ornaments for the dance. A number of fires lighted themselves in the house, and a great quantity of food heaped itself up there of its own accord. The two companions danced and beat their drums, and the carved posts sang and took part in the merriment. " The wife of the elder brother got up in the night and wondered what the noise was which came from the bush. The next day she said to her husband, „Middle night I hear plenty drum he come along bush, plenty sing he come. Next night you no go sleep along dárimo, you come sleep along me." Accordingly the man came and slept in the woman's house, and they heard the noise. Before I no hear that thing," thought he. My brother he been go, I no savy he been go water, he been go bush. I think that my brother he make that sing." The following day he told the people what he had heard, and they decided to go and find out the next night. They took with them their weapons and a supply of food. It was dark, and they were guided by the sound of the dance. When they came near, the elder brother went alone to look. "Oh, one man he make dance!" he said, "Oh, plenty post he make sing, hit him drum!" After a while the man went up to his brother and embraced him. They sat down and talked together, and the younger brother related why he had gone away. After that the younger brother and the atéraro continued to live in the bush, and the former was given a beautiful girl in marriage. He taught the people the dances and songs which he had learnt from the atéraro. The elder brother lived with the people in the willage, but the two brothers frequently visited each other. (Káku, Ipisía.) A. The younger brother did not help his elder brother to work in the garden. When the yams were ripe, he went and stole in his brother's garden. He was found out, and his sister-in-law struck him with a large yam. In the night he went far away into the bush and built a house there. Inside a large tree at the same place lived an atéraro who really was a man, and the two made friends and lived together in the house. They used to beat their drums and sing every night. The elder brother felt sorry for the boy. One night on hearing the drums, he went in the direction of the sound thinking that it was caused, by his brother. After penetrating a long distance into the bush he made a mark in a tree and went home. The next day he returned, found the mark, and went on in the same direction till he came to a sago tree, the top of which had been cut off, and he guessed that his brother had done it. After some further searching he met his brother. Both wept, and the former anger was forgotten. The atéraro killed two pigs and some other game for the brothers. The following day the elder of them went home, carrying with him an ample supply of meat. He told his people what he had seen and asked them to prepare a great quantity of sago. Then they all went to visit the younger brother in the bush, and he gave them so much food that they could hardly carry it home with them. (Mánu, Ipisía). B. The name of the elder brother was Mámaréva. Once he caught his younger brother stealing in his garden and struck him on the head, and the boy in anger went away into the bush. There he found a man named Atéraro and his wife whose name was Píyri, and the three stayed together. They built a house and planted gardens. The sound of their drums was heard by Mámaréva who came to look for his brother. But he could never flnd him. (Duába, Oromosapúa). C. A certain Ipisía man used to work all day in his garden, and in the evening he beat his drum. An atéraro was attracted by the sound and one night killed a pig which it placed outside the man's house. The man woke up and was greatly frightened on seeing the monster, but they made friends and stayed together. The atéraro was really a man who at times passed out of the skin of the beast and assumed his human form. The two used to dance and beat their drums, and once they were heard by some people who came to see them. The visitors were at first frightened at sight of the atéraro but after a while he stripped off the skin and became a man. At length the people returned home laden with food which the atéraro had given them. (Nátai, Ipisía). D. The elder brother did not get any help from his younger brother. Once when the latter was visited by some friends he had nothing to give them and went and stole some food in his brother's garden. He was caught and punished by his brother and sister-in-law. In the night he went away and settled down in another place. He met some people there and was given two girls in marriage. His brother thought him dead and felt grieved. met 45 One day the younger man invited all the people to come and dance, and the two brothers and embraced each other, forgetting their quarrel. The younger brother gave a great quantity of garden produce and meat to his former people, but they continued to live in different places. According to another version by the same narrator the elder brother went and searched for his younger brother but could not find him anywhere. (Bíri, Ipisía). "9 257. Two brothers named Meágore and Mórosa lived in Dáru and spent their time making gardens, hunting pigs, and spearing fish. Their dogs wanted to help them in their gardens and said, "What name (why) you go all time self (by yourselves) make garden? good you me (we) go everybody make garden." "Oh, good you fellow stop look out house," replied the men, me fellow make kaikai for you fellow." The dogs understood how to light a fire and cook food. Meágore had good arrows and shot plenty of fish, but Mórosa had bad arrows and hardly got any fish at all. One day the latter pretended to be ill and stayed at home, but when his elder brother had gone to work in the garden, he got up and stole one of his brother's good arrows. Next time when they went to fish the younger brother had much better luck, and Meágore was greatly surprised. He accused his brother of having stolen one of his arrows, and they began a fight in which their dogs joined in. The younger brother was wounded, and some |