CHAPTER I. 

 FOOD, DRINK AND DELICACIES. 



The articles of food of the inhabitant of Netherlands New Guinea are only of vegetable and 

 animal nature. For the so-called eatable earth which, amongst other things, was offered by 

 people from the country of Sëkâ to FlNSCH [1888, 346], was afterwards proved by him, [1888 — 93, 

 226] to be only used as a pigment. On inquiry in the neighbouring Humboldt Bay I found 

 this confirmed. Neither is it used as a medicine. KRIEGER [1899, 218] who still mentions this 

 clay as eatable earth must therefore be mistaken. One of the places vvhere the clay is found, 

 is the hill Dei Mage, situated behind the village of Tobâdi. At the request of the leader of 

 the expédition, the men from this village fetched a basketful of this clay in a moist and 

 kneadable condition; a small sample of this is mentioned as pigment under N°. 228. 



Meanwhile HELLWIG in Nachrichten [1889, 43] has mentioned a greasy, darker coloured 

 clay, containing iron, found by him at the foot of the Saddle Mountain behind Port Finsch, 

 said to be eaten by the Papuans, (See also SCHELLONG [1905, 609]). In British New Guinea, 

 white as well as red clay in single instances is used (ANNUAL Report [1899 — 1900, 102]). 



Of anthropophagy, known on Netherlands territory of the Karon and the Tugeri, 

 I hâve not been able to find a trace during the expédition ; this custom is certainly not as 

 common as stated by PôCH [1905, 442] of K. W. Land and ascribed by him to a want of 

 animal food. According to MACGREGOR [1897, j6] in British N. G. cannibalism is very rare. 



In the case of the common people, animal food should only be considered as a 

 luxury as HAGEN [1899, 247] expresses it ; but FlNSCH certainly goes too far when he writes 

 [1888, 54] that neither the Papuan dog nor his master are hunters, but on the contrary 

 vegetarians. This conclusion may be doubted, particularly by the dog itself, of which FlNSCH 

 states that it is kept purposely with the object of being eaten; its méat is said to be of 

 pleasant taste owing to the fréquent consumption of cocoa-nut. Besides, in K. VV. Land, the dog 

 s only eaten as a festive dish and as such a living spécimen was once offered to FlNSCH 

 [1888, 157]. A similar expérience is mentioned by Hagen [1899, 196] and NACHRICHTEN [1886, 

 127; Augusta River], from British N. G. by MACGREGOR [1897, 68]. 



Consequently a condition still exists hère to which the judgment of LANGKAVEL [1895, 

 Nova Guinea. III. Ethnography. i 



