The Folk-Talcs of llie Knvai Papiians. 351 



shaped like a man and regardeci with great vénération, plays a part in the ceremony, but in Kiwai they 

 use a number ol' wooden figures, maie and femaie. The burning torches are put down for a moment 

 on the figures before serving for the fight. 



286. At Old Mavvâta a certain man nameci Bôromobiiro went oui one morning to shoot 

 fish with his bow and arrows. While thus occupied he savv a small stone swimming towards 

 him like a fish, causing a ripple in the water. Bôromobùro thought ihat it was a fish and shot 

 at it but the point of the arrow broke off.*' „Hallo! what name (what is) that.'" he exclaimed, 

 „I think that no fish," and he picked up the stone. „What name that thing corne like fish.' I 

 no been see that thing before." Instead of going home he built a small hut on the beach and 

 spent the night there. He chewed a little of a certain plant called ntånabåba and spät the juice 

 at the stone. Then he la}' down in the hut on his back with one hand under his head and the 

 stone placed in the angle of his elbow. In the night the stone appeared to him and said, „M3' 

 naine niim/a, you fellow no talk my name along woman. I come out from water, you pick me 

 up, my name stone. That time you make mimta (the ceremony), you make me nice, good; red 

 paint you put along me, make fast daguri (head-dress of cassowary feathers), amtira (bird-of- 

 paradise plume), take me in.side house. When you make inimia, you make fire, fight him people 

 along pitla (torch). Young man he coms, all he fright good that time he see my face. Any time 

 _\'ou fellow go spear him dugong, turtle, you sing out my name first. When I come from water, 

 I leave him all kind fish, you fellow go spear him dugong, turtle, you sing out my name first. 

 Plenty kaikai along bush too I give you." The man was instructed how the mimia ceremony 

 should be performed. On waking up in the morning he thought, „Oh, good thing I find him, 

 good dream 1 got, I look plenty thing." 



BfSromobiiro carried the stone home, put it uncTerneath his house, and covered it with a 

 turtle-shell. Without anybody knowing it he rubbed the stone with sweet-smelling plants and painted 

 and decorated it carefully. Then he hid it under a mat and summoned all the men and grown- 

 up boys to come and look, and when they were assembled, he drew aside the mat. „All Mawata 

 man," he said, „you fellow look that thing. What name (what is) that thing?" „Me no savy 

 what name that thing, me no been see before." Then Bôromobùro told them how he had found 

 the stone in the water and shot an arrow at it, and how the stone had come to him in a dream 

 (abbrev.). He also told the people about the mim/a ceremony and taught them to beat each 

 other with burning torches according to the rite. 



When the ceremony was över, the people removed the leaves and other ornaments with 

 vvhich the stone was decorated and buried them in their gardens to make all the fruit and plants 

 grow. Parts of the same décorations were also used as „medicines" when spearing dugong and 

 turtle. After the conclusion of the ceremony the mimia stone was taken outside through a hole 

 in the floor; it was never carried out by the door, for that would cause some great disaster to 

 the Community. (Gaméa, Mawåta). 



A. Bôromobùro found the inimia stone e.xactly as in the first version, and the stone had eyes, 

 nose, and mouth. He lett it in the bush and went home. In the night the stone turned into a man 

 and came and taught him the same things as in the first version. Before striking each other with the 



N:o 1. 



