98 



Mr. W. W. Rouse Ball 



[March 12, 



5. Tree Burial. (Buneki, Mouth of Bamu River, 

 W. Papua.) 



Opening A. 



L>o the seven succeeding paragraphs of " The Crab " (see p. 96), i.e. 

 as far as " Release indices," but omitting the movement in 

 brackets at the beginning of the third. 



There is a loop catching down the string running between each 

 thumb and little finger ; pass each index towards you through its 

 respective loop so that the longer oblique string is on its radial 

 side ; draw this string out away from you and pass the index 

 fingers over (radial to) the radial thumb string ; turn the indices 

 down and up away from you, thus picking up the radial thumb 

 string. 



Release thumbs, but do not draw tight. With the thumbs lift up 

 each radial little-finger string, thus raising a central string 

 running the length of the figure. 



Tree Burial. 



This represents the platform where the body is placed in a tree, 

 with a rude awning over it. Or as the native who taught it to me 

 described it : " Dead man he sleep." 



6. The Duck* = Welchu. (Chukchi, N.E. Asia.) 



Position I. 



With the right thumb pick up the left ulnar little-finger string from 

 the proximal ulnar side ; do not draw tight. With the left 

 thumb pick up the right ulnar little-finger string from the 

 proximal radial side. Extend figure and release little fingers. 



With the little fingers hook down the ulnar thumb strings. 



Pass the indices proximal to the oblique radial thumb strings and 

 distal to the straight radial thumb string, turning the index 

 fingers down and up away from you pick this string up on 

 their tips. Release thumbs. 



Pass the thumbs into the little-finger loops distally and draw down 

 the oblique ulnar little-finger strings, then pass the thumbs to 



* Collected by Mrs. A. E. Hodder. 



