The Folk-Tales of the Knvai Papiians. 507 



THE MAN AND WOMAN WHO DRIFTED IN A CANOE FROM MAWATA TO YARUBO 

 AND WERE BROUGHT BACK BY TWO BIRDS. 



463. A certain man named Owâni and his wife named Dagämu once during the wet 

 season went in a canoe from Mavväta to fetch coconuts. On their journey home a heavj^ rain- 

 squall drove the canoe on to the open sea. Try as they might they could not paddle against the 

 wind. After a time they gave up all attempts and sat down in the canoe thinking, „Wind he 

 take you me (us). Suppose me catch iiime one place, me stop." At length they arrived in 

 Yärubo (Darnley Island). 



There was a man working in his garden, and on seeing the canoe he thought, „That 

 canoe? that wood? Oh, canoe he corne, he got two man (persons) he stand up." When Owäni 

 and Dagämu came near he asked them, ..Where you belong?" But they did not understand the 

 Yårubo language and only called out the name of Mawàta and signed to the man that they had 

 drifted över in their canoe. Owåni was a young man at that time, and the Yårubo man said ta 

 him, „You my friend, my boy (son), you come house belong me." The Mawäta man and woman 

 remained in Y'ârubo and were given a pièce of ground to cultivate. 



In the course of time Dagämu bore two boys the one of which was named Ki (.sea gull) 

 and the other Awäia (pélican). Låter on she bore a third son whose name was Kisäro (a little 

 white wader). One day when Ki and Awäia were grown up they and the Y'ârubo children went 

 to catch fish. The Yårubo boys and girls said to them, „Y'ou two fellow one side, me fellow 

 other side; make him race, who catch him more fish." They tried who were the quiekest to 

 catch fish, and all the Yärubo children were beaten by Ki and Awäia. The former were angry 

 and the next day when the contest was resumed Ki and Awäia again proved to be the quiekest. 

 One of the Yärubo boys then said to Ki, „You (your) father, mother no belong this place, he 

 belong New Guinea." Ki began to fight him and called out, „I no belong New Guinea, I belong 

 here, no good you speak me like that," for he did not know that his parents had come from 

 New Guinea. Ki and Awäia went and asked their father and mother, „True that Yärubo boy 

 been speak? Me no belong ihis place, me belong New Guinea?" But Owâni and Dagarna evaded 

 the question and said, „How New Guinea man he come this Island?" 



One evening when Owäni was watching the sunset, he felt sad on thinking of his old 

 home and said, „Sun he go down along my place, make him nice cloud. I sorry (am longing 

 for) all my people." Ki heard him and said, „What talk father he speak?" He came to his 

 father and saw that he was crying. „Whafs the matter, father, you cry?" he asked him. „Oh, 

 yes, true, my boy," Owäni replied, „I no belong this place, place belong me he stop long way, I 

 belong New Guinea." And Ki who felt sorry for his father began to cry with him. " 



The next morning Ki sent his father and mother to fetch food from their garden, and in 

 the meantime he and his brother went and collected a quantity of feathers belonging to the ki 

 and awåia birds. Then they made two birds of wood and attached the feathers to them, and 

 when the birds were tinished, they poured some fresh-water över them, and the birds came into life. 

 Ki passed into the ki bird by its anus, and Awäia into the aivå:a bird, and flying about they said, „Oh, 

 that more better, 1 ihink you me (we) can take mother, father, and small brother back along Mawäta." 

 .N:u 1. 



