May 1, 1900.] 



KNOWLEDGE. 



99 



quent iiidependeut development, has bcconic developed 

 into what may be t.ermed a new type.' It is added 

 that, apart from a Polynesian immigration into South- 

 eastern New Guinea (which does not affect the 

 question), " a relation between Papuans and Polyne- 

 sians cannot be absolutely denied." And some observers 

 have even gone so far as to assert that, with the ex- 

 ception of the difference in the hair, there is very little 

 physical distinction between typical Polynesians, such 

 as tlie Sanioans, and pure-bred Papuans. 



On the other hand, it has long been noticed that 

 many Polynesians, and more especially the Maori, ex- 

 hibit a decidedly Caucasian type of feature, and hence 

 it has been inferred that the immigrant stock which 

 has produced the present race by fusion with the 

 original Jfelanesian element was Caucasic rather than 

 Malay (Mongolian). The fact that the Polynesians 

 generally have straight black, rather than wavy hair, 

 is one among several circumstances that makes me in- 

 cline towai'ds the Malayan theory. 



But by this time my readers must be getting tired of 

 discussions on phylogeny ; and I must accordingly say 

 something in regard to the character and status of the 

 Oceanic Negroes. And here it is well to mention that 

 Negroes of all descriptions stand on a inuch higher 

 platform of intelligence than people like the Austra^ 

 lians or Veddas : their faculties being indeed capable 

 of a comparatively high degree of development, al- 

 though their political organisation is at a low grade. 



We are, it is tnie, accustomed to regard the Papuans 

 as cruel and bloodthirsty savages, but this, according 

 to Dr. Semon (from whose observations the greater part 

 of the remainder of this article is compiled), is far from 

 being a correct estimate of their general character. It 

 is true that the Papuan is hideously cruel in warfare, 

 subject to passionate outbursts of uncontrollable fury, 

 unreliable in his dealings with the foreigners with whom 

 he is brought in contact, and eager to possess himself 

 of valuable or desirable property in the hands of 

 strangers. But he is essentially a creature of impulse, 

 and it is this impulsive nature which leads to his prone- 

 ness to murder and rob his fellow man. His paroxysms 

 of rage are, however, short-lived ; and in his normal 

 condition he is bright, gay, and harmless, displaying 

 great kindness in the treatment of his wife and family, 

 and mourning for his lost relations in a way that marks 

 him as possessing humane feelings of great intensity. 

 Living in a country and climate where he has but few 

 wants except food, and much of the latter being pro- 

 curable with comparatively little exertion, he is 

 naturally not prone to hard work, leading a kind of 

 lotus-eating existence, whose calmness is only disturbed 

 by tribal wars, or by hostile outbreaks against the 

 foreigner. 



Having thus a large amount of time at his 'disposal, 

 and being apparently inclined by nature towards the 

 cult of the beautiful and the ornamental, the Papuan 

 turns his attention towards the decoration of his home 

 and domestic implements and utensils. His artistic 

 efforts cannot be compared with those of civilized 

 nations ; still, the ingrained love of decoration and orna- 

 mentation seem to be more highly developed than in 

 any of the latter. For. as Dr. Semon remarks, do we 

 ever find the European boatman cai-ving and decorating 

 his oar, the carpenter his adze, or the husbandman his 

 plough. And yet every Papuan implement and weapon 

 (and they are too numerous to refer to in detail on 

 this occasion) bears witness to the artistic power and 

 patience of its owner ; while not less noteworthy is the 

 attention paid to the decoration of the person. How- 



ever, Papuan and European ideas of what is becoming 

 in the latter respect are by no means identical. As 

 regards their fondness for personal adornment, both 

 sexes of Papuans present a remarkable contrast to their 

 Australian neighbours ; while in respect to their 

 weapons and implements there is, of course, no sort of 

 comparison between the two races. Not the least note- 

 worthy circumstance is the absence among the Papuans 

 of the one really effectual Australian weappn — the 

 boomerang ; this alone being almost sufficient to indi- 

 cate that the two races have no close relationship. 



Tiic Papuans are to a great extent a coast^dwelling 

 people, the greater part of the mountainous interior 

 of their island, except on the lines of the great rivers, 

 being uninhabited. The chief ])ursuits of the men are 

 hunting and fishing, together with sailing; but they 

 are in the habit of taking long voyages, when rough 

 seas must at times be encountered, nevertheless their 

 fishing is always conducted during fine weather. The 

 women, on the other hand, undertake all the duties of 

 the home and the plantation ; those living in districts 

 where the necessary material is obtainable, manufac- 

 turing pottery for household and other purposes. 

 Liberty and individual freedom seem as essential to 

 the Papuan as to the Briton; chiefs, of a kind, arc 

 recognised, but their sole duty is in connection with 

 foreign affairs. This characteristic freedom is doubtless 

 one cause of the objection of the Papuans to hard work, 

 especially carrying burdens, for which they are indeed 

 phvsically unfit, being absolutely incapable of bearing 

 half the loads carried with ease by African Negroes. 



Neither can the Papuan be credited with the attri- 

 butes of a bold or fearless warrior ; the natives of British 

 South-east New Guinea are stated to be more coura- 

 geous than those of the northern German and Dutch 

 districts. Indeed, cases have been recorded of voluntary 

 self-sacrifice on behalf of a comrade, yet Papuan war- 

 fare is generally characterised by treachery, and ruthless 

 slaughter or torture of the members of other tribes 

 taken by surprise, together with the massacre of defence- 

 less women and children. Cannibalism is also a recog- 

 nised practice. 



Dr. Wallace regards the Papuans as intellectually 

 equal, if not superior to their Malay neighbours, an 

 opinion which is not shared by the majority of ob- 

 servers. Dr. Semon, for instance, considers their in- 

 tellectual standard far above that of the Australians, 

 but decidedly inferior to that of the African Negro, 

 which, under the favourable circumstances existing in 

 America, he is inclined to rank rather high. Compared 

 with his Polynesian neighbours, the Papuan school- 

 child is indeed stated to be decidedly inferior; and 

 this mental inferiority apparently persists throughout 

 life. 



As regards marriage customs, the peculiar prohibi- 

 tions of intermarriage between even distant relatives 

 which forms such a characteristic feature of the Aus- 

 tralian aborigines, are conspicuous by their absence 

 among Papuans in common with Melanesians generally; 

 and this, again, so far as it goes, serves to accentuate 

 the great gap between the latter and Au.«traliana. 

 Polygamy is the recognised custom throughout Me- 

 lanesia; "and, as is generally the case under such con- 

 ditions, the marriage tie is easily loosed. Mourning 

 customs are very strictly observed everywhere, while in 

 many parts of New Guinea the images of their an- 

 cestors appear to receive a kind of worship from their 

 descendants; religion, however, sits but lightly on the 

 Papuan; and among the south-eastern tribes it is even 

 doubtful if belief in a supernatura'. being exists at all. 



