NAVIGATION. I95 



On Lake Sentâni two kinds of craft are met with; one, roomy and long, fit for 

 removing heavy loads is, as may be guessed, the women's boat and is called kaji, or after 

 the nature of the wood (?) antow kaji. It bas, as fig. 124 shows, a round keel, a hull, oj, which 

 is narrower at the top than half-way dovvn, a blunt bow, ebegwe, and similar stern, mêri 

 or mort, each with a projecting prow, flat on top, in which alongside of each other and 

 at a distance of ± 10 cm. two square holes, puni, to fasten a line (see at the right of 

 fig. 125). In the bow and stern of the hull, where the core, fèw, of the original tree trunk 

 is, a thickening, kena, katiâ, is left, by which this place, inclined to split, obtains the neces- 

 sary strength, (perhaps the word kanà means hère the rosin with which the slits are filled 

 up; see N°. 225). During the first period after the construction, 6 — 8 short cross pegs are 

 placed between the edges of the side walls, to prevent thèse from bending inwards; later 

 on, care is still taken not to expose the canoës too long to the direct rays of the sun ; they 

 are therefore fastened under the houses. 



The ornamentation generally consists only of a ridge, farôi, along both edges, 

 ending fore and aft in a triangle, with a circulai - centre which was called, joro, presumably 

 representing an eye [=jore, joche). Below the bow of a women's canoë, belonging to the village 

 chief in Asé, I also saw suspended a bundle of palm leaves, as PARKINSON [1900, 30] 

 illustrâtes of the Berlin Harbour district. In thèse crafts the women sit on the bottom; they 

 go in them to the gardens, and, as fig. 125 shows, often several at a time in one boat, 

 paddling first to the right and then to the left. At Ifâr, I could already hear a women's 

 canoë approaching a long way off, by the noise of the paddles dropping together on the 

 sides of the canoë at the end of each pull, for they are guided by the sound. Whoever wishes 

 to navigate Lake Sentâni safely with native craft, must as BlNK [1897, 188] and also the 

 expédition did, make use of this kaji, on account of its great loading capacity. 



The men's canoës, isja, are of no use for this purpose. BlNK [Le. 189], as well as 

 KOKING [1904, 276], mentions the isja, but it still deserves particular attention, as it is, as 

 far as I know, not mentioned with certainty in other parts of N. G. The peculiarity of this 

 craft consists in its being very narrow (26 cm.) and short (on the waterline 3 m.), and still 

 more in this, that, when left to itself, in conséquence of the light spécifie weight (the whole 

 craft only weighs + 12 K. G.) and the high-ending prow, it falls over on its side and then 

 generally fills. This aptitude for capsizing, of course, increases as soon as a person steps into 

 it, who, on account of the small width between the edges (in the spécimen of the collection, 

 X°. 657, 16 cm.) must seat himself on the top of the edges, with his knees in the air and 

 one foot placed before the other in the canoë. The use of an outrigger would be hère 

 expected, but the Sentâni man, and this is the strangest part of it, uses another expédient. 

 He places his paddle, held in the usual manner with both hands, alongside the canoë in the 

 water, the blade of the paddle parallel to the axis of the canoë. In this way he obtains a 

 transverse résistance, by which any inclination to capsize is prevented. A few times I tried 

 in vain to sit on an isja ; although I am not unaccustomed to water sport, yet, nothwith- 

 standing my earnest, persistent, and therefore to the spectators amusing efforts, I was unable, 

 even for a single moment, to maintain my equilibrium. The Papuans of Humboldt Bay were 

 equally unsuccessful. Although it appears incredible, it is a fact, that the Sentâni man with 

 his Isja is constantly in unstable equilibrium, and his cleverness deserves sincère 



