The Folk-Taks of Ihc Kiivai Fapuans. 317 



said to the rest, „What thing I show you fellow, no good you show woman, no good you show 

 boy, no man learn (teach) woman belong him ; that belong me altogether man, that belong you 

 me (our) kaikai. New boy by-and-by me learn him." Standing up and drawing bis bow at 

 the people the man said, „What man he teil him woman I shoot him." Then he swung the 

 buU-roarer round producing a tremendous sound. The people all ran away, some jumped into 

 the water, and others hid themselves under bushes or in holes in the trees. The man shouted 

 ätter them, „You fellow no run awaw, belong you me (us), everybody." The women too heard 

 the sound: „What name (what is) that thing?" they wondered, „I fright!" Mete thought, „Oh, 

 man belong me he make him people savy now," but she too, pretended to be frightened. 



The man let the others swing the bull-roarer too, and everyone of them went afterwards 

 and made a similar thing for himself, and the sound of bull-roarers was heard all över Böigu. 

 The first man taught the rest how to use them when planting yams. . The Saibai and Büdji men 

 and many other people came to find out what the wonderful sound was, and all wanted bull- 

 roarers. They brought their women to the Boigu men as the price of their admission into the 

 secret, and somewhat reluctantly the Boigu men gave them bull-roarers and showed them how 

 to handle them. The use of bull-roarers began in Böigu and spread thence all över the country. 

 The old people prepared the .secret „medicine" for the bull-roarers, and the younger men only used 

 them when ready, for not until they had attained a considérable age were all the détails revealed 

 to them. (Nämai, Mawåta). 



A. All the yams came from Biidji, but formerly they did not grovv well. A Büdji woman 

 discovered Ihe use of bull-roarers e.xactly as in the first version. Mâigidûbu, the snake man (ef. no. 

 414), came and taught her in a dream how to swing the instrument in order to „wake him up ground" 

 before planting yams. She imparted this knowledge to her husband and all the Büdji people. After 

 using the bull-roarers the people put them down on the eastern side of their gardens, the purpose 

 being to „shut him that side where sun he come, no want sun burn him yam." Then they danced in 

 their gardens with their bows and arrows drawn and sang, 



„S(J S/7 koko båhi sa." „Sa sa ini bdbi sa.^^ Bobi means „grow" and koko and im are two 

 kinds of yam. 



And they went through the names of all the différent kinds of yam in the same way. When the 

 planting was över and the people had returned home, one of the leaders performed the kaira rite 

 (ef p. 14) calling upon all the différent yams to grow. These observances are still kept up. 

 (Gaméa, Mawdta). 



THE FIRST COCONUT (Kiwai version). 



262. The Neiåbo people in Dibiri were bailing out a creek on the Gäma-öromo (river). 

 There was a woman named Kakinäbo who had a large growth like a ball hanging between her 

 legs, and the other women were ashamed on her account. Some of the people sent her and a 

 man named Barikäbo to the bush to fetch some bark of a te palm which was needed for bailing 

 out the water. When the two were alone in the hush Barikäbo had connection with the woman, 

 and in thé act the „string" which held the large ball was severed, and the thing dropped off. 

 The man and woman pitched it into the water without thinking anything further about it. On 

 N;o 1. 



