XVI. DREAMS 



(no. 387—407; ef. Index). 

 A. OMENS IN DREAMS (no. 387-390; ef. Index, Dreams). 



387. (By Nårnai, Mavväta). Long ago when the Mawåta and Djibäru people occasionally 

 used to fight, a Mawåta man named Béahe once killed a Djibäru man named Marüde and eut 

 off his head. One night some years låter Marüde's spirit appeared in a dream to Nåmai. The 

 dead man was deeked with feathers and croton branches, he had painted himself, and earried his 

 weapons. His head rested on his Shoulders, but a head-carrier (sling of rattan) stuck out of his 

 mouth. Two dögs were running behind him. The spirit sat down on a refuse-heap and ate the 

 crab-shells whieh had been thrown away there. AU of a sudden the two dögs jumped into Nå- 

 mai s mouth and passed right into his belly, where they remained. Marude showed Nåmai what 

 „medicine" to use in order ne\er to miss his mark when shooting: he was to ehew a fragment 

 of a certain wood and spit it out in the direction in uhich he was going to shoot. 



Subsequently Nåmai often dreamt,- that the two dögs came out through his mouth and 

 ran about barking, and then he knew that some great trouble, for instance a fight, was imminent. 

 From the behaviour of the dögs Nåmai was able to foretell the i.ssue of a fighting expedition. If 

 the dögs came out and ran a long distance before returning, it meant that the fighting party 

 would look for the enemy in vain and wouid have to come back without finding them. If the 

 dögs ran a short way only, the fight would be clo.se at hand, and if, in time of peace, the dögs 

 came out, barked furiously, and jumped back, the people were to expect a sudden attack. Mariide 

 also taught Nåmai that if he woke up in another place than that in which he had gone to sleep, 

 it meant that the person near whom he found himself was going to die. 



385. (By Gaméa, Mawåta). He dreamt once that a big crocodile eaught a female 

 kangaroo at the mouth of the Bi'natûri riv-er. The people saw the accident and wailed. 



Early the next morning, when the birds began to call, Gaméa's sister Isàe went to catch 

 crabs. Gaméa woke up after she had gone. He felt ill at ease on account of his dream and 

 said, „I don't know, no good that woman go catch fish. I been bad dream, alligator been catch 

 kangaroo, people make cry along shore." The people were frightened on Hearing this. .After a 

 while two men came wilh the message that a crocodile had eaught Isàe. The dream had come 

 true, and Gaméa had awaked too late to warn her. He and a number of other men took 

 X:o I. :,(■, 



