598 



that any omens were used in choosing the spot for the garden. 

 The natives possess a great knowledge of the soil, and know, 

 by the nature of the wild jungle, whether taro, bananas, or 

 yams will succeed. The size of the garden depends ceteris 

 pai^ihus on the amount of yam eyes, taro tops, and banana 

 seedlings available for planting. They also plant in their 

 gardens some of the aromatic plants worn in armlets as per- 

 fumes and for decoration, as well as those yielding the poison 

 used for stupefying fish. Of recent years they often plant 

 the introduced pawpaw and pumpkin. 



Magic used in garden making will be described in chap v., 

 sec. 2. 



When making new gardens sex taboos are observed, and 

 in olden days, when the Duhus were in existence, the men slept 

 in the Diihu and the women remained in the house. At the 

 present time the men sleep in a bachelors' house, or felse the 

 men club together in one house and the women in another. 

 It is considered that anyone not observing complete sexual 

 abstinence when taking part in the making of new gardens 

 would blight the crops. 



Another important agricultural activity is sago making. 

 There are sago swamps at the bottom of the deep valleys at 

 the foot of the hills near the coast, on which the mainland 

 Magi villages are perched. Thus all the mainland villages 

 had their sago swamps. One such swamp might be used for 

 sago-making by several neighbouring and friendly villages. 

 For example, the villages of Boreho, Dc'igoho, Unevi, and 

 Pediri make sago in the same swamp, which was situated in 

 the valley at the foot of their respective hills. In the swamp 

 there seem to be boundaries between the spheres of influence 

 of each village, but I was unable by inspection to ascertain 

 the existence and nature of these boundaries. At any rate, 

 I was assured that trespass over these boundaries, or disputes 

 between the villagers about sago have never occurred. 



The Mailu islanders had their sago swamp near Maganho 

 Point, the tract of country being called Lea. As mentioned 

 above (chap, iii., sec. 6), they had to be on the watch for the 

 Magori people, and while working the sago had to set scouts 

 (Paiiua). 



The natives distinguish three kinds of sago palms — Tsini, 

 a not very large tree, with many thorns on the bark ; Fdhia, 

 a big tree, without thorns on the bark ; and Na'dfa, a tree of 

 moderate size, also without thorns. The general name for sago 

 is, in Mailu, OcIeH; in Motu, Rdhia. 



The process of making the sago is as follows : — After the 

 tree has been felled and opened, the pith is pounded, washed, 

 and shaped into more or less large cakes, or put into vessels. 



