408 Gunnar Landtman. 



any danger the boy walked along, and all of a sudden the bushman jumped up and shot him 

 dead. He unstrung the boy's bow, thrust the bow in his victiin's mouth right through the body, 

 the end protruding through the anus, and then he refastened the string. In that position he left 

 the body and vvent home. 



The boy was found by his friends who vvere filled vvith rage. They drew out the bow 

 and buried the boy with great lamentation. Aftervvards they u'ent to take revenge, but they did 

 not treat the bushmen in the same fashion. They only eut off their heads. (Amüra, Mawâta). 



THE FIGHT BETWEEN MASINGARA AND DARU. 



349. The Hiamu or ancient Dâru people once vvent to visit Måsingåra, that was before 

 the Mawâta people had moved to their present village. Before the Hiamu reached their destination 

 they rested in the bush a little distance off and portioned out the différent lots of fish and dugong 

 méat which they intended to give to their friends. On their arrivai to the village they found the 

 men away hunting pigs and cassowaries. Both parties had previously decided upon the day of 

 the visit by splitting a coconut leaf between them for a tally, each people keeping a half of the 

 leaf which they hung up in the men's house, and a part of the leaf was removed each daj' to 

 keep an account of the time. The R4âsingàra men had forgotten to count one day, and expecting 

 their visitors on the morrow they had gone to procure food. The women were at home, and 

 among them was the wife of one of their leaders, and she had given birth to a child the night 

 before. 



The Måsingåra women called out, „Oh, Dâru people! Oh, Dâru people!" and they vvel- 

 comed their friends. A certain Dâru man went to the vvoman with the new-born baby, for her 

 husband was a friend of his, but she .said, „Oh, you no corne close to me, I been born picka- 

 ninny last night, I stop no good. By-and-by I ask somebody give you kaikai." „Never mind," 

 said he, „I come close to you. No good you teil him other woman bring kaikai, more better 

 you bring him self." „Oh, I no strong now, pickaninny been leave him empty body, too much 

 I shake, I no can take kaikai." Thus she remonstrated. but he kept on asking her to fetch him 

 some coconuts, till at length she yielded (abbrev.). She had only a short grass petticoat on, which 

 did not screen her from his gaze while climbing. When she came down, he commanded her to 

 husk the coconuts, and as she sat down, he caught hold of her and outraged ber. 



The Dâru people did not await the arrivai of the Måsingåra men but departed after having 

 received presents of coconuts for which they gave fish in return. The Måsingåra women asked 

 them to come back soon to receive more food, and again a coconut leaf was split between the 

 two peoples to enable them to keep an account of the days tili their next meeting The Dåru 

 man who had outraged the woman painted himself with clay and put some red flowers in his 

 hair, and his friends concluded that he had done some particular thing at Måsingåra. 



The Måsingåra hunters all brought home a lot of game except the man whose vvife had 

 been outraged, and she scolded him for having left her alone so shortly after her dilivery, and 

 told him what had happened. He said nothing but went away from the other men who were 

 drinking gdmoda and ■ made a number of bow-strings. Then he returned to the village and put 



Tom. XLVll, 



