Chap, xviii.] RELIGION OF THE ISLANDERS. 411 



apparently to swear by during a violent harangue of one of the 

 chief men of Dentrecasteaux Island, who wanted possibly to 

 incite the natives to attack our boat, or to try and capture a 

 much coveted bag of trade gear in it. These feather and 

 bone charms are sometimes made of four human ulnar and 

 radial bones, sometimes of hand bones, and one contained 

 the bones of a large bird, probably the eagle {Fafidion halicefus). 

 It is a curious fact that one such charm, which was purchased, 

 contained an imitation head of a human humerus, cut in 

 wood. Possibly the owner intended to deceive his enemies 

 by this artifice. Some of the officers told me that they made 

 the natives readily understand when they wanted to visit the 

 temple by pointing upwards. It would appear thus that the 

 gods or religious influence are supposed to reside above. 



The only appearance which I saw of a religious ceremony 

 was the chant of the old women. One man who came off to 

 the ship often, invariably with his body blackened all over 

 with peroxide of manganese, was thought to be a sort of priest ; 

 he wore a narrow fillet round his head, with an ovulnm ovum 

 shell suspended from it on one side. 



The dead are buried in the ground. Two different natives, 

 one on Dentrecasteaux Island, and the other on Wild Island, 

 explained to me by signs in an unmistakable way, that the 

 skulls put up about the houses were obtained by burying 

 bodies in the earth, and afterwards digging them up again. 

 The value set upon the skulls and bones as ornaments, and 

 probably also superstitious motives, are no doubt the reason 

 why no marks of burial were seen ; probably no mark is made 

 for fear of the bones being stolen. Two at least of the skulls 

 procured were those of females. 



The fact that some of the men restrain themselves and 

 abstain from the use of betel, seems to be a proof of consider- 

 able strength of character. I gave a hatchet to a guide at 

 Dentrecasteaux Island as pay, according to promise. He 

 seemed grateful, and presented me with his own shell adze in 

 return, unasked, and he made signs that the others had got 

 enough, and that we were not to give more away; that we 

 were being swindled. 



The natives delighted in being towed along in their canoes 

 by the steam pinnace, and clapped their hands with delight ; 

 but of course did not understand how the boat moved, nor 

 apparently see in the fire the cause of motion. They came up 

 to the cutter when sailing to get a tow for their canoes, and 

 apparently expected to see the boat go off, head to wind, in 

 the same style. 



The inhabitants of each small island appeared to be under 



