500 GUNNAH Landi'max. 



Ponipôni's smile by vvhich she was to show her favour. Next came the people of Tiidu and Yam and 

 danced, but with no more success, and the same was the case with the people of Muralågo. 



Once there was a great drought, and Ponipôni's mother went to Moa to fetch water and saw 

 there a young man named Kömuhöru (Komuséru), who very much attracted her. He was to corne and 

 dance before Pônipôni, and the girl was told by har mother beforehand of his merits. Komuhoru's 

 father went first on a journey to Boigu and Budji, during which nothing, however, happened. 



For some reason the father rubbed Kômuhôru's face and body with a dead snake, causing a 

 very bad smeil as if the boy had been full of sores. Kömuhöru was rolled up in a mat and brought 

 to More, but \\hen Poniponi saw him she spät on him in disgust and reproached her mother, „Eh, what 

 name (why) you bring him noise (news) good boy he stop along Möa — full up stink!" Afterwards 

 the father washed away all the bad smell from the boy, rubbed him with coconut-oil and sweet-scented 

 medicines, and dressed him in all sorts of finery. When Kömuhöru came before Pönipöni, the girl 

 fiashed her smile at him. Woni, who thought that she smiled at him, lified his drum high in the air 

 while beating it. Every time Kömuhöru danced the girl's smile sparkled. AU the other suitors were 

 ashamed. Wöni jumped into the water and became a turtle (ïvoiii is a certain kind of turtle), he said 

 to the people, „Si.x moon I stop inside along water, si.x moon I float on top along water," which is 

 the custom of that particular turtle („me fellow no see him all time along reef," my informant said). 

 Some fish, among them the shark, had taken part in the compétition, and they went into the water, 

 and some birds, too, and they flew away. 



All the people returned home. Kömuhöru wanted Pönipöni to go and live with him in the 

 water, for he had become a „cranky shark", as his name implies. But Pönipöni went up into the sky, 

 saying to him, „Suppose high water he come, 1 see you walk about close to shore, I laugh along you 

 from heaven," — her smile is the lightning. (Gibiima, Mawàta). 



B. A story, the beginning of which relates how Ndga of Nägir and Wàiati of Mabuiag stole 

 fire from Iku of Möre or Muri (cf. n:o 52), also contains a description of the dance before Pönipöni, 

 who is represented as Wâiati's daughter. Wâiati's, Kûiamo's (cf. n:o 60), Nâgas's and Iku's people 

 had assemblcd in Mäbuiag for the dance. Iku wanted to be avenged for the theft of his fire by 

 niaking the girl „like" his boy Kömuhöru, or Kömusöru. He first smeared the boy with the skin of 

 some fish, but that proved to be „bad medicine", so he used certain sweet-smelling plants instead. 

 When Kömuhöru danced, the girl liked him and smiled at him. So the boy brought her with him to 

 Möre, but when he wanted to take her with him into the water, she went up into the sky instead. 

 Kömuhöru is novv the „cranky shark", and Pönipöni causes lightning in the sky. (Gaméa, Mawdta). 



C. The épisode of Pönipöni is also connected, ralher loosely as it seems, with another tale 

 (ef. no. 195). A man named Bdidam (shark) and his younger brother Aväti lived alone on one side 

 of Böigu, and on the other side of the Island there lived a number of girls, and their meeting and 

 subséquent marriage seem to be the chief contents of the story. Bdidam heard the beating of drums 

 at a dance on another Island, Dàninikava, and danced himself in Böigu lo the sound of it. Once he 

 decided to go över to Dåninfkava, and arrived there floating on a nipa palm to which he had attached 

 a mat for a sail. 



At Däninikava the people danced in order to find out who should win the beauti!\il girl Pöni- 

 pöni or Mahéruo (both names are used in the tale, the former being the Torres straits and the latter 

 the Mawdta term for lightning). Among the suitors were Amarova, räven, Kihsi and Maitåriiiai, two 

 kinds of „cranky sharks", LhIo, „stone-fish", and Anna, sting-ray. The girl liked Baidarn and gave 

 him a branch of a croton in token of her favour. The olhers danced first and could not tempt her 



Tom. XLVil 



