512 TRANSACTIONS OP SECTION H. 



that the owner may have to demolish his dwelling-place at short notice owing to 

 the incidence of a thahu or curse. 



The question of the members of the tribe who are qualified to remove the 

 effects of these curses has been carefully examined, as, apart from the practical 

 value of such investigation, it may throw some light upon the evolution of the 

 priestly function among primitive peoples. 



The ceremonial which takes place on the occasion of a death has also been 

 carefully investigated, as it does not appear to have been fully inquired into 

 before, and it shows how closely the Kikuyu tribesman is bound down by the 

 ritual of the guild to which he belongs from early years up to death. 



Another important phase of native life is the procedure which has to be 

 adopted in the case of a murder, for unless the proper observances are carried out 

 the crime of homicide is likely to create an hereditary feud between the two 

 families which will eventually lead to further bloodshed, and until the ceremonial 

 has been completed, no member of the murdered man's family can eat food out 

 of the same dish or drink beer with a member of the family of the murderer. 

 It has been discovered that the power of the ' Evil Eye,' which is so widespread 

 in South Europe, extends to Kikuyu and Ukamba. Certain people in the tribes 

 are believed to be born with it ; they can, however, neutralise its evil effects by 

 ceremonially spitting upon the object supposed to be afflicted or to be in danger. 



One clan of the Kikuyu tribe, called the Ethaga, are supposed to possess 

 magical powers ; in fact, they are classed as a family of wizards. Some are sup- 

 posed tp have power over the rain ; others can kill people with their magic, can 

 lay a curse upon a thief, and can place spells upon patches of forest to prevent 

 people from cutting them down. 



In travelling through Kikuyu one will occasionally meet a young man carrying 

 a rattle made of a gourd ornamented with cowries and inscribed with devices ; the 

 owners sing songs about the devices on these gourds. The singer commences to 

 sing about the design at the lower end of the gourd, and gradually works his way 

 through the various patterns, singing a verse about each. If he makes three 

 mistakes and his accuracy of the interpretation of the pictographs is challenged 

 his gourd becomes forfeit to the challenger. The translation of these songs and 

 the interpretation of the devices are of interest, as they possibly illustrate the dawn 

 of the ideograph. 



2. The Economic Function of the Intichiuma Ceremonies. 

 By B. Malinowski. 



The way in which man works at a low level of culture differs essentially from 

 economically productive labour in psychological conditions. Economic labour 

 must be systematic, continuous, or periodic; it requires forethought and pre- 

 supposes organisation. The attitude of savage man at work approaches much 

 more nearly that of our play or sport, and does not in general give rise to the 

 qualities essential to economic labour owing to the feeble development of certain 

 psychological factors, such as self-constraint, attention, intellectual and volitional 

 effort In all cases in which the savage endures continued exertion as in war, 

 the dance, hunting, and some highly skilful and elaborate technical achievements 

 certain elements (play, excitement, ecstasy, intoxication, rhythm) can be pointed 

 out which act as stimuli and either supersede or render unnecessary free voli- 



10 Tf we°examine the Intichiuma ceremonies of the Arunta tribe (and some of 

 the other tribes of Central Australia) we find that the work accomplished in these 

 ceremonies presents a highly economic aspect— in the sense just explained— it 

 the general level of culture in the said tribes be taken into account. This work 

 is the result of collective and organised activity, as it is performed by the local 

 group as a body under the lead of the alatunja or headman. It is to a certain 

 extent regular and periodic, and connected with the seasons; it always evidences 



i For a fuller treatment of the subject and examples c/. K. Buecher, ' Entstehung 

 der Volkswirtschaft,' and ' Arbeit und Rhythmus'; and G. Ferrero < Les formes 

 primitive du travail,' in Rev. Scknt., 4* ser., vol. v., 1896, pp. 331 and seq. 



