310 PROCEEDINGS OF SECTION F. 
figure hops into the vilage, jumps and dances through it, and 
then goesaway. Ina short time two and three, and, finally, the 
whole five of them came at once, one of whom bore a human 
skull in his hand, part of which was painted red. After this, 
a large number of men, all armed with spears, clubs, and toma- 
hawks joined them, and all advanced with weapons poised as 
if attacking some enemy, or performing a war dance. As they 
passed the, houses, we heard loud screams, and found that they 
were from the woman whose late husband’s skull was borne by 
the Dukduk. After this dance was over there was a most 
singular ceremony performed. Two old chiefs took their stand 
at one end of the square, and a number of men rushed out, and 
began jumping and poising their spears as if looking for an 
enemy. Then one by one they danced up in front of one of the 
old chiefs, and after making a few feints with their spears, 
many of them in turn suddenly turned their backs, and stooped 
down, one at a time, whilst the chief gave them each a smart 
blow on the back with the stick he held in his hand. One of 
the chiefs used a thick soft stick, but the other one had a hard 
stick about the thickness of a walking-cane, and he laid it over 
their backs very heavily sometimes, quite hard enough to make 
them wince, and to leave a good mark on some of them. I 
noticed that some of the men took the blow from both the 
old chiefs, but the majority of them were quite satisfied with 
one experience. 
I saw the same custom, but a little varied, on another occa- 
sion, when the old chief Topulu was the principal actor. During 
the progress of the feast the old man commenced dancing in 
a most vigorous manner for a man of his age. This seemed to 
be somewhat of the nature of a challenge, for a man imme- 
diately rushed out from the crowd as if to attack him. He 
danced about in front of the old chief, making feints at him with 
his spear, and uttering loud cries of defiance, and then suddenly 
stooped down, with his back to the chief, who at once dealt him 
a very severe blow on the back with a stick which he held in 
his hand. Others followed, and the process was repeated in 
each case. Some of them, however, repeated the performance 
in front of the Dukduk, and received the ceremonial blow from 
him as well as from the chief. About twenty or thirty men 
went through this performance, and the wales raised on their 
backs showed that the blows which they had received were 
very heavy. Native money (diwara) was given to all the 
dancers, and spears, some of which were wound round with 
diwara, were given to the chiefs. What this beating means I 
cannot tell. The only explanation I could get at the “time from 
the natives was that the people were supposed to be killed, but 
this seemed then, as it does now, an incomplete explanation of 
the ceremony., 
