474 Gunnar Landtman. 



resuit that the latter gave a start and wriggled deeper into the woman. And the cassowary had 

 to go back. 



The people began to wail, but Dagåme sent for another cassowary to puU out the fish. 

 „What for you no been teil me before?" the cassowary said, „I no stop long way, my house 

 close to." The bird spät the juice of a certain leaf at the woman, and again the fish „he kick, 

 go lift him more inside". Then the pig was asked to come and help, and it said, „What for you 

 no been take me first? I no stop long way, I puU him out." The pig spät the juice of a certain 

 grass at the woman, but when trying to pull out the fish with its snout it managed so 

 badly that it pushed it deeper still into the woman. The fish was dead, and its head began to decay. 



The people again started their wail but Dagâme stopped them and sent for the wallaby. 

 „What for you no been take me first? I stop close to here," the wallaby said, and he was the 

 right man to pull out the fish. He spät the juice of a gånuminia leaf at the woman and said, 

 „You fellow been take wrong man, he no savy proper, me more better." And the fish came 

 out. It was about as long as an arm and consisted of bones only, for all the fiesh had decayed. 

 The wallaby pulled it out, but shortly afterwards the woman died. (Vasärigi, Mawåta). 



THE CROCODILE AND THE SEA-HORSE. 



439. The sea-horse {gibu-slbara) was bom by a shell-fish, and at first he and his mother 

 each lived in one half of the same double-shell. Once when the sea-horse came out, the shell- 

 fish said to him (for in those days they could speak, said the narrator), „Suppose you man, you 

 go stop inside along mangrove (bush); suppose you no man you go stop along water, water 

 make you belly tull, feed you." „I no want look bush," the sea-horse thought, „more better I 

 go outside. Some fish he stop along water, more better I go make him /»««a (friend) along him." 

 Whereupon he made friends with the crocodile {sibara). „I feed you, my boy," said the crocodile, 

 „you got no hand (arm), you got no leg, you stop along water. What thing I got I feed you, 

 by-and-by you come big. Who you name?" „Oh, I don't know where my mother." „I think 

 you my first boy," said the crocodile, „I very sorry you no got no hand, no leg; I got hand, 

 leg, I feed you." 



One night the shell-fish went to a bushman and said to him in a dream, „More better 

 you go look my pickaninny, he got no hand, no leg." The bushman followed the tracks of the 

 sea-horse and found him with the crocodile. „Oh, alligator been make påna (friend) belong him." 

 He went back and said to his wife (or the shell-fish.?), „Oh, alligator been catch him, he påna 

 belong alligator." The woman began to wail and kept on all night, and in the morning she said 

 to her husband, „Come on, you me (we) go break him head belong alligator." The man seized 

 his bow and arrows and the woman a stout stick, and they set off to kill the crocodile. Holding 

 the stick behind her the woman in spite of her husband's warning went and called the crocodile 

 to come, and the monster raised its head out of the water and said, „What name (what is) that, 

 who sing out my name sibara?" The small sea-horse kept close to the crocodile, right under 

 one of its forelegs. „You give me gtbu-slbara," said the woman, „you come close to." The 

 crocodile turned its head and caught the woman by her ankle. „Oh, my wife!" her husband 



Tom. XLVn. 



