CHAPTER IV. 



HUNTING AND FISHING. 



HUNTING must be of great importance, especially for the nomadic New Guinea tribes 

 (see page 127), who of course do not occupy themselves with agriculture; but also the settled 

 Papuan far from being a vegetarian, by hunting provides himself with the animal food the 

 forest can procure, none of which he despises, unless Islam or animism forbids. Although 

 KENNEDY (Annual Report [1894 — 95, 38]) asserts that private hunting rights do not exist, we 

 should consider the hunti ng-ground divided among the différent tribes or villages by 

 common assent, and the European New Guinea traveller (Pratt [1906, 135, 195] ) should 

 always be aware of being in other people's hunting-ground. WEBSTER [1898, 57] also expe- 

 rienced this, when one of his people shot a wild boar in the midst of a primeval forest and 

 the inhabitants of neighbouring villages, arms in hands, claimed their rights to the animal; 

 t having no brand or ear-mark of any sort, I knew this to be untrue", WEBSTER adds not 

 without ingenuity. 



I never had an opportunity of watching the way in which the natives captured différent 

 sorts of game, but I found the confirmation of the fact that, in contrast to K. W. Land, the people 

 of Netherl. N. G., as well as those of Br. N. G. (MACGREGOR [1897, 70]), use dogs in hunting. 

 Although FlNSCH [1888, 54] positively says that the dogs are no good for hunting, their use 

 in boar hunting has already been mentioned by Van DER GOES [1858, 119, 47] from the 

 Gulf of Kaimani and the hinterland of Lakahia, where boars are driven into a narrow dell 

 and killed with arrows and lances. D' ALBERTIS [1880, I, 50] also relates this about the interior 

 of Sorong and De CLERCQ and SCHMELTZ [1893, 85, 113] tell the same about Geelvink Bay. 

 The Manîkion people also informed me of the use of dogs, especially in boar hunting. Though 

 their dogs seemed to me very small, they nevertheless bravely and fiercely attack a boar 

 which, being bitten in its back and sides, while trying to escape, must at last stop to défend itseif 

 against its assailants and is then killed with spears and lances. Though the use of dogs in 

 hunting is less fréquent east of Geelvink Bay, we should pay attention to the dog as a com- 

 panion and housemate of the Papuan. 



FlNSCH [1888, 53, 54] gives an accurate description of the New Guinea dingo. MACGREGOR 

 Nova Guinea. III. Ethnogkaphy. 20 



