CLOTHING AND ORNAMENT. 51 



served for the local abstraction of blood. Where this is usual, as in K. W. Land, according to 

 HaGEN [1899, 257] deep insertions are made with pièces of glass, in cases of head-ache, f. i. 

 above the root of the nose, sometimes dovvn to the bone, whereby deep scars are caused [1. c. 

 PI. 23]. Thèse also occur in the Berlin Harbour section and are according to PARKINSON 

 [1900, 24] easily distinguished from proper ornamental scars. As far to the west as Tumleo, 

 this custom does not appear to exist, at ail events ERDWEG [1902] does not report it of this 

 island; wherefore it may be safely accepted that the superficial scars hâve no therapeutic 

 meaning on Netherlands coast territory. 



Finally of very wide distribution, are the stainlike, non raised scars, noticed 

 by a slight différence in colour from the surrounding skin. Nowhere did I see thèse scars so 

 abundant as with the men of Nagramâdu; from the middle of the région of the loins tvvo 

 rows of small round stains ran like a letter V, the lines outward somewhat concave, up to 

 the arm-pits; from a point just below the navel a similarly curved line, like the left half of 

 a V ascended to near and outside the left nipple, the shoulder was covered with the same 

 stains and from there they reached in a wide strip along the outside of the arm down to the 

 elbow joint. HORST [1889, 243] lias seen similar scars between the breasts of marriageable 

 women on Anus, caused by the burning of scrapings of the leaf stalk of the cocoa palm, 

 whilst DE CLERCQ and SCHMELTZ [1893, 32] still mention a number of places in and near 

 Geelvink Bay. In Humboldt Bay thèse scars from burning, nèwisji, also occur, and by no 

 means rarely as Vax DER GOES [1858, 171] thinks. Of fourteen carriers of the expédition 

 from the villages of this bay six were ornamented in this way, principally on the skin of the 

 chest, which perhaps on this account, remains free from tattooing. Thus Pitjâr of Ingrâs had, 

 besides 3 stains in the région of the stomach, 31 distributed over the right breast and 17 on 

 the left one in a double row from the shoulder under the clavicle and running down along 

 the left side of the breast bone. With the five others, only one half of the breast and in the 

 case of four the left half was ornamented with curved rows (1 — 3) from the shoulder down 

 along the nipple. Otherwise they only occur hère on the upper and forearm, as well on the 

 extensor as on the flexor side. On Lake Sentâni and in the allied village of Waba thèse scars, 

 mangu, are again more rare ; hère I also saw them again on the shoulder. From everything 

 stated above, it is proved that in Netherl. New Guinea the scars of the skin are more common 

 than was assumed by De CLERCQ and SCHMELTZ [1893, 214] and being by no means limited 

 to the places to the west of Arimoa (Kumamba) [1. c. 33], are probably most handsome in Humboldt 

 Bay. I hâve not obtained myself any data as to the deeper meaning, and it is thus still undecided 

 vvhether on the Netherl. territory the scars of the skin serve to distinguish différent families, 

 as is the case on British territory (THOMSON [1892, 126, 129]). 



The PAINTING OF THE SKIN belongs no doubt to the oldest form of ornament and 

 JOEST [1887, 21] is certainly right when he says that man lias painted himself before he began 

 washing, although a proper washing with soap can hâve the same effect on a Papuan. Purposely, 

 I washed one half of the face of a young man of the Manikion; compared with the original 

 colour of the other half of the face, it appeared as if the washing had brought on a li'ght 

 colouring, with which the said person was walking about not a little proud ; the demand for 

 soap, which followed, may therefore not be suspected to hâve originated from a real principle 

 of cleanliness. Next to the information by FlNSCH [1888 — 93, 226] that every where in K. W. 



