24 THE PEOPLE OF NEW GEORGIA 



FORM OF GOVERNMENT. 



The form of Government is that of hereditary chief- 

 tainship. Over each village is a headman — called by tlie 

 natives " Palabatu " — the same word as is used for 

 " husband." The villages are divided into groups, and 

 over each group is a chief called by the natives " na 

 Bagara " — a man of much more imi^ortance than the 

 headman or " Palabatu." Som.etimes the man Avho has 

 the right to these positions is a weakling, and has little 

 or no influence. Or perhaps a man of no famih', but of 

 very strong character, will overshadow him, and will 

 really exercise a greater influence than the " Palabatu." 

 But though the common people will look upon him as a 

 kind of leader, the other chiefs will refuse to recognise him 

 as one of themselves, or will do so very reluctantly. They 

 speak of him in terms of the greatest contempt as " having 

 no father." Human nature is much the same all the 

 world over. Over a big district, or over one of the 

 islands, reigns the principal chief, or " Gati-Bagara." 

 ''Gati" is literally "trunk" or "stem," and thus this 

 chief is the real or hereditary chief, and is generally a man 

 of great importance, and if a man of strong personality 

 exercises a wide influence, and possesses almost unlimited 

 power in certain directions. Sometimes the influence 

 of one of these strong men will extend far be^^ond the 

 bounds of his own district, or even of his own island, and 

 thus his village becomes the political centre of that part. 

 Such a one was Ingava, the chief of New Georgia, known 

 to all the naval officers and traders who have been in that 

 part of the world. 



Generally speaking, the communistic system prevails — 

 land, houses, canoes, and produce all belonging to the 

 community, and not to any particular individual. Since 

 the advent of the white trader, however, this system has 

 been greatly modified. In the way of trade they are often 

 persuaded to purchase from the trader things that they 

 don't really require, and thus a debt is incurred for which 

 some individual is made responsible. Other individuals 

 in the same tribe will run into debt also, and to settle these 

 when the trader asks them to pay up, private claims are 

 made to what was once public property. Thus cocoanut 



