644 pnocEFDiNGs of section g, 



was tbronoh the basins mentioned above. ISear tbis spot 

 stood a coeoa-nut tree, and if tbe s])irit acfidentally colbded 

 witb tbis tree it jiroceeded no turtber, but returned to its 

 vacant body. Natives who bad Ijeen in a deej) syncope or 

 comatose state, and recovered therefrom, were thought to have 

 met witb tbis accident on their way to the Fafa. 



These subterranean regions bad a heaven, an earth, and a 

 sea, as in the upper world ; and the spirits there possessed a 

 corporeal form and engaged in various occupations, as in Hfe, 

 during tlie day, l)ut at night these bodies were changed into 

 chaotic forms Hke sparks of fire, and in this state they could 

 re-ascend and visit their former places of al)ode, but — like 

 Hamlet's ghost — they had to return to their Hades at day- 

 break. They had power to enter the bodies of their enemies, 

 and even friends, and cause disease and death. They could 

 also hold converse with members of their families, and convey 

 instructions to them in dreams, and could also jiredict future 

 events. 



Within the Fafa there was another region for chiefs and 

 eminent Avarriors, called Pulotu. Over this region tbei*e 

 presided a deity, or king, named Saveasiuleo. He bad a 

 corporeal form, viz., the head of a man, and a ponderous 

 body reposing in the temple, the dwelling-place of chiefs, and 

 the extremities, in the shape of a great serpent, sjiread into 

 the sea. The pillars of the temple of Pulotu were composed 

 of chiefs and warriors. 



In the Loyalty Islands, as in some of the New Hebrides, 

 there is no idea of a spirit vvorld other than tbis mundane 

 sphere. Spirits and demons were supposed to inhabit certain 

 uncanny and weird spots of the land and bush — avoided with 

 awe and dread by the natives, — and were at liberty to wander 

 at night in the roads and gardens near tbe villages. On this 

 account tbe natives have a great aversion to leave their 

 houses at night, unless it is moonlight, or there are big fires 

 burning outside. The same word which means a dead man 

 is also used for a spirit. The natives very rarely mention the 

 names of the deceased, from a fear that the spirit of such 

 might be near and be made angry. On many of the New 

 Hebrides widows were strangled that their spirits might 

 accompany those of the husbands. Tbis sutteeism did not 

 exist in the Loyalty Group, yet many widows and mothers 

 immolated themselves with the same design. 



When a body was buried, food was for a time taken to the 

 entrance of the cave or hole and placed on stones for the 



