4 THE KOWEAREGAS. 



of the two races. Still the natives of the Prince 

 of Wales' Islands rank themselves with the 

 islanders and exhibit a degree of conscious supe- 

 riority over their neig-hhours on the main land and 

 with some show of reason j althoug'h themselves 

 inferior to all the other islanders^ they have at least 

 made with them the g-reat advance in civilization of 

 having- learned to cultivate the g-round^ a process 

 which is practised by none of the Austrahan abo- 

 rigines. 



The Kowraregas speak of New Guinea under the 

 name of Muggi' (little) Dowdai, while to New Hol- 

 land they apply the term of Kei' (large) Dowdai. 

 Their knowledge of the former island has been 

 acquired indirectly through the medium of inter- 

 vening tribes. The New Guinea people are said to 

 live chiefly on pigs and sago ; from them are obtained 

 the cassowary feathers used in their dances, and 

 stone-headed clubs. They trade with the Gumu- 

 legas, who exchange commodities with the Badu- 

 legas, from whom the Kowrarega people receive 

 them- These last barter away to their northern 

 neighbours spears, thro wing-sticks, and mother-of- 

 pearl shells for bows, arrows, bamboo pipes, and 

 knives, and small shell ornaments called dibi-dibi. 

 They have friendly relations with the other islanders 

 of Torres Strait, but are at enmity with all the 

 mainland tribes except the Gudang. 



Occasionally hostilities, frequently caused by the 

 most trivial circumstances, arise between two neio-h- 



