October 30, 1890] 



NATURE 



641 



pass to others which had a less sacred significance. All 

 the native ceremonies were associated with processions, 

 or with movements of a less regular character, the per- 

 formers of which were invariably specially dressed for the 

 occasion — usually there was a special costume for a 

 particular rite, one distinguishing feature of which was 

 the wearing of masks or head-dresses. It is convenient 

 to describe these functions as dances ; and a series can 

 be traced extending from the most sacred initiation and 

 funeral dances on the one hand, through the seasonal 

 dances to the war and ordinary festive dances on the 

 other. 



Profanation of the initiation or of the funeral ceremonies 

 was punished with immediate death. In some instances, 

 at all events, dance-masks could only be worn at the 

 appropriate festival ; even the casual putting on of one 

 was supposed to cause slow but certain death. It was 

 my good fortune to witness a seasonal dance at Thurs- 

 day Island. This was anticipatory of the fishing season 

 during the north-west monsoon. 



The men were clothed with a petticoat made of the 

 shredded sprouting leaves of the coco-palm, and adorned 

 with various armlets and leglets ; but the striking part of 

 the costume was the mask, of which the lower portion 

 represented a conventional crocodile's head, surmounted 

 by a human face ; above this was a representation of a 

 saw-fish, some five feet in length, and overtopping all was 

 a long red triangular erection decked with feathers. The 

 ceremony was called the Waiitutu kap, or " saw-fish 

 dance." The actual dance consisted of two men at a 

 time coming out from behind a screen and going through 

 their simple evolutions to the monotonous accompaniment 

 of the drum and a lugubrious chant. 



More varied was the costume of the secular dance. 

 All their bravery was donned. The effective head-dress 

 of egret's feathers, or the cassowary coronet, framed the 

 face, a shell skewer pierced the nose, breast ornaments, 

 coco-palm leaf petticoats, armlets, leglets, ornaments or 

 implements carried in the hand, all went to make up a 

 picture of savage finery. Here, too, the women were 

 occasionally allowed to participate, though of course both 

 sexes never danced together. When women were allowed 

 to be present at the more important dances, they were 

 merely spectators. 



The large canoes of the Torres Straits Islander of 

 former times must have been very imposing objects when 

 painted with red, white, and black, and decorated with 

 white shells, black feathers, and flying streamers ; and 

 not less so when actively paddled by a noisy, gesticulating, 

 naked crew, adorned with cassowary coronets, shell orna- 

 ments, and other native finery ; or swiftly saihng, scudding 

 before the wind with mat sails erect. 



The body of a canoe is a simple dug-out, on to the 

 sides of which gunwale boards are lashed. There is a 

 central platform supported on a double outrigger. The 

 thwart poles of the outriggers are usually six feet apart, 

 and extend to some ten feet beyond the stem of the 

 canoe ; a doubly-pointed float is attached to the ends of 

 the thwart poles on each side. Receptacles are built 

 into each side of the platform for the storage of bows 

 and arrows, fishing gear, water-bottles, and other 

 belongings. 



The sails are two in number, and are oblong erections 

 of matting placed in the bows, some twelve feet in height, 

 and each about five feet wide. The mats are skewered 

 on to two long bamboos, which support the sails along 

 their length ; a bamboo stay also serves to keep the sail 

 upright. 



The longest canoe I measured was nearly sixty-eight 

 feet in length. A stone lashed on to a rope is kept in the 

 bow for an anchor. When sailing, a man stands in the 

 stern holding the steering board. 



The canoes are made at the mouth of the Fly River, in 

 New Guinea, and are fitted with but a single outrigger, 



NO. 1096, VOL. 42] 



as theirs is only river navigation. I was informed that it 

 was at Saibai that the canoes were re-fitted, this time 

 with two outriggers, and an attempt at decoration was 

 made, but the latter having a purely commercial signi- 

 ficance was rather scant. The ultimate purchasers orna- 

 mented their canoes according to their fancy, as they 

 usually prided themselves on having fine canoes. 



I was much puzzled when I first went to Torres Straits 

 by occasionally seeing a canoe with a single outrigger. 

 I afterwards found it belonged to a native of Ware (one 

 of the New Hebrides) residing at Mabuiag, and that he 

 had re-outrigged a native canoe according to the fashion of 

 his own people. When I was staying at Mabuiag some 

 natives of that island were fitting up a canoe in imitation 

 of this one. Here a foreign custom is being copied ; how 

 far it will spread among the Western Tribe it is impos- 

 sible to say ; but, strangely enough, the Eastern Tribe 

 has entirely adopted an introduced fashion, and I did 

 not see a solitary canoe with a double outrigger. It 

 would be tedious to enter into a comparison between 

 these various canoes. In the Eastern Islands the plat- 

 form baskets are absent, and European sails are in 

 universal use — mainsail, foresail, and jib. Among the 

 Western Tribe, European sails have not yet quite sup- 

 planted the original, mat sails. Throughout the Straits 

 the canoes are not decorated in the old style. It was in 

 Mabuiag alone that I found two canoes which were more 

 or less decorated. Utilitarian ideas are now two widely 

 spread for the aesthetic faculty to be indulged in. 



I have dwelt at some length on this subject, as it is 

 important to record all transitions. As an example of 

 how rapidly and completely some changes occasionally 

 come about, I may mention that at Mer, one of the 

 Eastern Islands, some, at all events, of the young men 

 did not appear to know that there had been a change in 

 the rig of their canoes. 



But, after all, the most interesting feature in connection 

 with the canoes is the method by which they are pur- 

 chased. I have previously mentioned that they were 

 made on the mainland of New Guinea on the banks of 

 the Fly River. Supposing a native of Muralug (Prince 

 of Wales Island, the island which is nearest to Cape 

 York) wants a canoe. He sends word, say, to a relation 

 of his in Moa, for the inhabitants of these two islands 

 often intermarry. The latter sends a message to the 

 next island of Badu. A Badu man passes on the word 

 to Mabuiag (these two also were intermarrying islands) ; 

 the Mabuiag native informs a friend in Saibai, who in 

 turn delivers the message at Mowat, on the mainland of 

 New Guinea, or Daudai, as the islanders call it, thence 

 the word passes along the coast till it reaches the canoe 

 makers. As soon as the canoe is ready it retraverses the 

 route of the order, being handed on from place to place, 

 and island to island, until it . at length reaches its 

 destination. Should, however, there be a new canoe 

 for sale on any of the intermediate stations, this might be 

 sold, and thus obviate the tedious delay of waiting for 

 one to be made to order. Another trade route is through 

 Nagir and Tud to Mowat. The Murray Islanders send 

 to Erub, and the natives of the latter island trade 

 directly with Parem and the mouth of the Fly River. 

 The most remarkable feature in these transactions is that 

 payment is usually extended over three years ; in fact, 

 that canoes are purchased on the three years' hire system. 

 This method of purchase, though but recently adopted 

 by ourselves, has for an unknown period been practised 

 by the naked islanders. The mere fact of its existence 

 demonstrates a high level of commercial morality, for if 

 the debts were often repudiated, the whole system would 

 long ago have collapsed. 



This commercial morality corroborates to a considerable 

 extent the ethical standard said to be imparted to the 

 youths during initiation. Nor would I like to say that 

 they acted less up to their standard than we up to ours : 



