388 Memoirs Bcniicc P. Bisliop Museum 



There appears to have been a second dart throwing game in which some- 

 what heavier darts were used. 



In this game the darts were thrown at a mark. In throwing, the hirger cml of tlie 

 dart was balanced upon the pabn of the left hand, while the smaller end was held in the right 

 hand with the index finger across the tip. The darts were held at about the height of the 

 waist and were propelled with an underhand motion. 



Games similar to the Marqnesan fcka were of nearly universal occiu-cnce 

 in Polynesia. 



POHUTU 



PoJiufu consisted of bundles of fau leaves rolled up and bound with pan- 

 danus strips, the whole forming a ball about two inches in diameter. One of 

 the pandanus strips was left projecting for some inches to form a handle. The 

 game was played by a single child who held the pandanus strip in one hand and 

 batted the ball with the other, or by two children, one of whom held the strip 

 while the other struck the ball. Poliufu were also used in the pci game, in which 

 geneologies were repeated. The pci game, as described by Handy, suggests a 

 close resemblance between the poluttu and the well known poi balls used by the 

 Maori. 



BALL AND PIN GAME 



Langsdorff (38, pp. 172-3) describes a toy concerning which no informa- 

 tion was obtained. He says : 



Under the title of playthings may be mentioned one which consists of a stick about a 

 foot long and an inch thick. A hole is bored in it at one end through which is run a peg five 

 or six inches in length, and at the point of the peg is stuck a little ball of coco-thread. The 

 stick is then struck with another, so that the ball is thrown up into the air. The game is to 

 catch the ball upon the point of the peg. It is very probable that they have other objects of 

 amusement of a similar kind, which may be ranged as iilaythings, but no others came under my 

 observation. 



TOPS 



Tops, called uiu, are still extensively made and used in the group. Thev are 



made of fau wood, an average specimen being 7 inches long and 2^ inches in 



diameter, with a cylindrical body and pointed head. The shape is almost exactly 



that of an ordinary artillery shell. They are spun by means of a whip. This 



whip consists of a stick handle al)out one foot in length with a lash of fau l)ark 



~y2 to 3 feet long, which is braided to within a few inches of the tip. Several 



boys usually play at tops at the same time, the winner being the one who can 



keep his top in motion the longest. 



BOW AND ARROW, AND SLINGS 

 The bow, called paiia. was not a weapon in the Marquesas. It was some- 

 times used to shoot shrimp, and po'oko, a small tish which frequents the rocks, 



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