567 



a few native valuables in repayment (probably only partial)- 

 for the bridegroom's gifts. She prepares some food — vege- 

 table and fish only, no pig being boiled on that occasion. The 

 food is placed on a dish between the two, and they both par- 

 take of it, hon ton requiring them to be bashful, and not to 

 look at each other. It is this eating in common (Tuini daha) 

 which constitutes the essence of marriage from the ceremonial 

 point of view. 



The marriage is, however, not consummated immediately 

 after the Tvini daha ceremony. The girl returns to her 

 parents' house for another week or so, and only after this 

 interval has elapsed do they cohabit. The two are now mar- 

 ried, but the mutual exchange of gifts survives the consum- 

 mation of marriage, and lasts indefinitely. 



Relations between a Man and his Wife's Family, as 

 established by Marriage. — This, as said above, may be sum- 

 marized in the man's duty to provide pigs when the clan 

 of his wife's family holds a Maduna feast and in their duty 

 to return this gift in a more or less adequate form, when the 

 man's Aura (clan) gives a feast. The importance of this 

 state of thing's lies in the fact that it throws a new light on 

 "marriage by purchase" in general. There is really no 

 element of barter in the whole proceedings, for it is under- 

 stood that the gift by the bridegroom, or by his father and 

 family to the girl's family will be returned later on — at 

 least partially. Again the psychological aspect of the "pay- 

 ment" — the term here is, of course, not quite correct — is 

 also noteworthy. The girl is not estimated as worth so much, 

 and the corresponding value exacted ; in fact, I think that an 

 insufficient marriage gift to the girl's parents would be 

 accepted without much fuss, though I was not able to get 

 satisfactory evidence on this point. ^^i) On the other hand, 

 the man and his family were extremely eager to give as much 

 as possible for the wife, knowing that by so doing the ambi- 

 tion of his future partner would be gratified, and that his 

 own prestige in the tribe would be enhanced. This view 

 would also apply to all his subsequent gifts. Nevertheless, I 



(41) In this respect I am in possession of much better informa- 

 tion concerning the Motu^peaking people of the Central Division, 

 owing to the fact that I could talk to them in their own language, 

 for to both Koita and Slnaugholo the Motu is a second mother- 

 tongue, and also to the fact that my informants were exceptionally 

 intelligent. I was assured by Ahuia, Maganimero — an exception- 

 ally clever Ligo man — and other authorities that there never were 

 any quarrels about the final gift offered for a bride. On the other 

 hand, when the price (Lardha) given for a widow to her deceased 

 husband's brothers was paid, there was usually considerable 

 amount of quarrelling, and even fighting. 



