DZUM AND THE BARIT. 49 



Island. This name is applied to the opossums of the 

 p-eniis Cuscus which the Torres Strait Islanders 

 occasionally procure from 'New Guinea. However 

 it Avas time for me to be ofi] so I contented myself 

 with promising- a large reward for the animal if 

 taken off to the ship. The produce of our barter on 

 this and previous occasions amounted to 467 cocoa- 

 nuts^ 388 pounds of yams* (then very scarce)^ and 

 159 pounds of bananas. 



While at dinner news was broug-lit that Dzum 

 was under the stern in a canoe, shouting- out loudly 

 for Dzoka, and, on g'oing- up I found that he had 

 broug'ht off the barity which, after a g-reat deal of 

 trouble, I struck a barg-ain for, and obtained. It 

 was a very fine specimen of Cuscus maculatus, quite 

 tame, and kept in a larg*e cag-e of split bamboo. 

 Dzum seemed very unwilling* to part with the 

 animal, and repeatedly enjoined me to take g-reat 

 care of it and feed it well, which to please him I 

 promised to do, althoug-h I valued it merely for its 

 skin, and was resolved to kill it for that purpose at 

 my first convenience. He had also broug-ht a 

 basketful of yams of an inferior quality, as sea 

 stock for the barit during the voyag-e, and promised 

 more on the following" morning-. 



JDec. WtJi.— Two days ag-o we left Darnley 

 Island for Bramble Cay, distant about thirty miles 



* Not less than nine different kinds of yams and yam-like 

 tubers— including the sweet potato— are cultivated in Torres 

 Strait, and are specially distinguished by name. 



VOL. II. E 



