116 THE PAPUANS: COMPARATIVE NOTES, ETC. 
the missionaries placed teachers on the Island. The Teste 
men are capital sailors, and were readily engaged by the labour 
vessels as interpreters. They obtain their canoes from Bute 
Island, one of the Redlich Group, near St. Aignan, and navigate 
as far as the Woodlarks in search of pigs, shell-money, and other 
valuable merchandise. They were cannibals originally, and 
although they pretend a horror of human flesh, I have seen 
enough of them when away from their teacher to impress the 
belief on my mind that they would not hesitate to partake of 
a cannibalistic feast when or wherever it might offer. 
The women throughout New Guinea remove the hair fromthe 
pubes, but the men allow it to grow. I think that in the former 
case it is simply done from a hygienic point of view. Imme- 
diately after confinement, or during their menses, women bathe 
freely in the sea, and do not appear to suffer any ill effect from 
the practice. 
Illegitimate children, as between Papuans, are unknown. 
Infanticide may account for this, although I cannot say that I 
succeeded in obtaining any positive information on this subject. 
The crotons cultivated near every village were pointed out to 
me as being used to procure abortion. 
Cooktown, 18th July, 1885. 
