The Folk-Tdles of lite Kiivai Papuans. 427 



exciements to eat, but her ovvn daughter used to share her food with Mürke, and VVöböiäme also 

 at times gave her some food. Once when VVöböiäme went avvaj^ to hunt, Miirke starved, and 

 when her fatlier came home, she said to him, „Oh, lather, me hungry, poor altogether. My 

 hell}' he got nothing, I hungr}- altogether, close up me die novv."' All she had eaten were 

 some scraps which her half-sister had given hei\ VVi')boiâme let her ha\'e some food and 

 scolded his wife. 



Another tinie when WiJboiàme went away Miirke thought to herself, „Oh, what name 

 (what) 1 kaikai?" She coUected s(.)me wild yams in a basket and provided herself with some 

 bamboo shoots and a fire-stick and then went away. An old wonian working in her garden 

 asked her, „What place you go, small gir!.'" „Oh, old woman," said Miirke who wanted to 

 keep her plan secret, „me fellow go make gammon (play) garden there, some girl he stop there." 

 She proceeded on her way and on arriving at Ubuvväle lighted a fire and cooked some food, 

 and before leaving she planted onc wild yam and one of the bamboo shoots there. Then she 

 went on and came to Gàlepûpu creek between ßiirave and Tsée, and there again she planted a 

 yam and a bamboo. A narrow log of wood formed a bridge över the creek and she was very 

 afraid of falling or of being taken b\' a crocodile, and on reaching the other bank she cried out, 

 „I man now, I life, no more dead!" At every place where she rested she planted a yam and a 

 bamboo, for she wanted to enable her father to foUow her track: „Father, me there been walk 

 about." Thus she passed Dümegi'de and came to the large swamp cailed Bädemöpe where there 

 were manj' crocodiles. She prepared a meal before crossing the swamp, for othervvise the 

 crocodiles would have caught her. But she was very frightened and cried to herself, „Oh, alligator 

 catch me along that big swamp. What's way (how) I go other side?'' 



In the meantime Iregide brought home food with which hi nourished himself, 

 smelling at it. • 



Miirke swam across the swamp carrying her basket on her head, and cried all the while 

 with fear. At length she reached the other side, and cailed out, „My god, I come now, alligator 

 no more get me, I all right now!" 



\X the edge of the swamp Miirke found some refuse of the fish which Ircgide had caught, 

 and in the distance she saw the smoke rising from his house. There she planted her fast yam 

 and bamboo. She hesitated whether she should venture to go near the house. There was much 

 food which iregide had thrown away after smelling at it. Seeing that the inhabitant of the place 

 was a man, Miirke said to herself, „I think he go marry me. I think he all right; one thing he 

 got no mouth. He got whiskers, one thing where hole?" At length Iregide noticed her. and she 

 began to tremble. Iregide wondered what people she could belong to, ,,I never been see all 

 same, I think she come other place." He could not speak and only muttered, „Hm." He motioned 

 her to sit, and she did so, and he placed some bananas close to her and signed to her to eat. 

 When he was moving about Miirke noticed that he was without an anus. Iregide said to her 

 by gestures, „You stop here, you no go back. Plenty garden here, \'ou kaikai. You pickaninny 

 belong me, I got no pickaninny." 



Miirke collected all sorts of sweet-scented herbs and mashed them in a dish into a 

 „medicine", and she also brought home a number of gay croton branches. In the night when 

 Iregide was asleep she eut up his mouth and anus, and a great quantity of white matter looking 

 N:o 1. 



