THE CAROLINE ISLANDS. 199 



string, but he bit it off himself; he said he would 

 take care of himself, and would not suffer a mortal 

 to touch him. He recollected that it was cus- 

 tomary to give to new-born infants the milk of 

 a young cocoa-nut to drink, and came to his 

 mother, who gave him a cocoa to drink. He drank, 

 and turned his eyes towards heaven, where he per- 

 ceived his father Lugelang, who called to him. He 

 then followed the call of his father, with his mother. 

 Both, therefore, left the world. When Olifat ar- 

 rived in heaven, he met there several children, who 

 were playing with a shark, round the tail of which 

 they had tied a string. To remain unknown, he 

 pretended to be leprous. The children thereupon 

 kept at a distance, and would not touch him. He 

 asked them for the fish to play with, but they refused 

 him. One of them, however, had compassion and 

 gave him the string to which the fish was fastened. 

 He played with it for a short time, and then re- 

 turned it to the children, desiring them not to be 

 afraid, but to continue playing, the fish would do 

 them no harm. He, however, bit all of them, ex- 

 cept the one who had been kind to Olifat. Olifat 

 had cursed the shark, which before had no teeth, 

 and was harmless. He then went through heaven 

 cursing all creatures, on similar occasions, because 

 he was provoked in the glory. As nobody knew 

 him, and he had not yet come to his father, who 

 was alone able to recognize him, his life was 

 sought to be taken. He came to a place where a 

 large house was building ; he asked the workmen 



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