590 



When it was decided to make a raid there was a feast and 

 a dance — the Daihje dance, as a rule. There were some men 

 who had the decisive word in war affairs, and these were not 

 identical with the clan headmen ; and upon those going out 

 to fight there was a taboo imposed called Gohu. 



For purposes of defence the mainland people had tree 

 houses or platforms — I could not definitely settle which — called 

 Lihni. The situation of the villages, which were invariably 

 perched on the tops of hills, allowed the natives to control the 

 approaches, and in order to make the defence more 

 effective they built the tree fortifications on forked branches 

 of the Bdni tree. In these they used to keep plenty of spears 

 and stones, and, in cases of need, men, women, and children 

 used to take refuge in them and hail missiles on their adver- 

 saries. The most effective way of attacking such a fortification 

 was to cut down the tree. On the average there were about 

 four such houses in a well-sized Magi village, which consisted 

 of some forty houses. The villages were also stockaded. 



Another form of fighting must be mentioned — viz., the 

 fights and quarrels which seem to have been invariably 

 associated with the feasts. Squabbles over pigs and women 

 and personal resentments, assumed naturally an acute form 

 at feast times, when nerves were highly strung and passions 

 on the alert. Unfortunately, my informants left me with 

 general assertions, and I was not able to obtain any concrete 

 instances. 



The weapons in Mailu were identical with those of the 

 coastal tribes in the Central Division. The heavy wooden 

 spear, made of one piece, with the point barbed on one side 

 with fairly large barbs. Sometimes there were two or three 

 longitudinal barbed ridges running towards the point. There 

 Avas also the stone club, but I was not able to ascertain the 

 specific forms used, as there are now no clubs in the villages, 

 all having been sold out to curio collectors. 



A broad wooden shield, nearly a square, with rounded 

 edges and slightly tapering towards the base was used. It had 

 a handle of rattan cane and was ornamented in front with a 

 rather broad belt of plaited cane, ornamented with coloured 

 feathers at the edges. The shield was called Vet si, and was 

 made of a soft wood (Una). 



An essential part of the war equipment, especially at 

 times of organized raids, was the war dress. Besides the 

 perineal band, they used to wear round the loins a piece of 

 rattan (lawyer cane). The head was decorated with a crown 

 of cassowary feathers (GiHa), or with the feathers of Tsi'ai (a 

 bird of paradise). They used also to insert cassowary feathers 

 in their armlets and in the belt. The face was painted all 



