NATIVE CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS. 443 



rative money, to the chief, at the same time asking him to name 

 a day when all the people of both tribes may meet to feast and 

 dance and exchange presents. 



After the great event all hostility between the tribes concerned 

 ceases, and those who were once the worst of enemies become the 

 best of friends. 



It sometimes happens that the chief of one tribe will not accept 

 the terms of peace offered by the chief of another tribe. In which 

 case hostilities continue as heretofore. 



After a murder, peace is usually made by the chief of the village 

 to which the murderer belongs offering a large sum of money 

 (" kesa ") to the chief and people of the murdered man. In the 

 event of the money being refused, the murderer, or some poor, 

 imfortunate innocent being belonging to his village, will lose his 

 life at no distant date. In some parts of the island a tit-for-tat 

 business goes on for years, and in some instances continues until all 

 or nearly all the members of both tribes have been wiped out. 



5. — Marriages. — The laws regulating this question are very 

 simple. The wife is always acquired by purchase. When a man 

 makes a proposal for the hand of the girl of his choice and is accepted 

 he immediately informs his father, or should the father be deceased, 

 the chief of the village, of his intention to marry. When the 

 parent, guardian, or chief, is satisfied that all is well he hands 

 over to the bride's father or guardian a portion of the purchase 

 money. The balance is paid at the end of the probationary period 

 (which lasts from a month to three of four months) provided that 

 all is satisfactory and the parties are agreed that they can live 

 happily together. But it sometimes happens that the two are 

 agreed that they are not well matched, and accordingly decide to 

 separate. In which case the deposit money is refunded and no 

 further notice taken of the affair. In the event of everything being 

 right a big feast is made to celebrate the happy occasion , after which 

 the newly wed settle down either in the man's village or the girl's. 



If a girl's father or guardian asks a certain lad to marry his 

 daughter he (the girl's parent) has to provide the marriage feast, 

 but if the boy asks permission of the girl's father to marry his 

 daughter the boy's father or guardian, or chief, has to provide the 

 feast, in addition to finding the purchase money, which must always 

 be what is known here as " ke.sa," or big money. 



When a widow wishes to marry again she cuts off her hair — 

 which has gro\\'n to a great length during the period of mourning — 

 bedecks herself with all her ornaments and finery, moves about 

 from village to village and lets it be known that the first good offer 

 of marriage will not be rejected. 



On this island it is not the custom to have more than one wife, 

 though I know of several cases where a chief has more than one. 

 In each instance the man took to himself a second wife only when 

 the first became too old and helpless to work for him — for on this 

 island, as in many other parts of the group, the women are always 



