I 



nadi 





2 



âbàmà 





3 



âbâmâ 



?zadi 



4 



âbâma 



bâm'ô 



S 



marna 



riba 



ANTHROPOLOGIE. 32 1 



When one makes them count without using the limbs, most of them make mistakes. ROBIDÉ 

 VAN DER Aa [1S79, 121] saw a Tobâdi man make 10 knots in a string, but in order to make 

 sure, he counted over the number on his fingers. For numbers up to five the right hand is 

 never used ; — at Tobâdi, to indicate that our carriers, hired from that village, were expected 

 back in 3 months, the women, sad at parting (see p. 276), held up thumb, index and middle 

 finger of the left hand, whilst calling out: tor ! for! They never begin with the left little 

 finger, passing to wrist, elbow and body, as described by CHALMERS [1885, 163; 1903a, m] 

 and HADDON [1894, 21] of British New Guinea, by Ray and Haddon [1896, 162] of the 

 Saibai. MOOLENBURGH [1904, 176] cornes to the conclusion that in H. B. they reckon by 

 „fours" and groups of „twenty-four" are formed. His expérience [1. c, 178] that also in 

 counting on the fingers and toes groups of "four" are formed is, hovvever, by no means 

 mine. In accordance with KERN [1900, 149] it is proved by MOOLENBURGH that 10 is called 

 "eight plus two", just the reverse of the method attributed to ail Papuan tribes by BROWN 

 [1887, 327], of calling S u ten less two". 



The numéral System of Nagramâdu is apparent from the following: 



6 mariba nadi 1 1 marabâmâ nadi 



7 mariba banni I 2 marabâmâ bâmâ 

 S mariba bâmâ nadi 1 5 marabâmâ mariba 

 9 mariba âbâmâ bâmâ 20 âbiasi nadi 



10 mania r ■âbâmâ 



At Angâdi (Lake Jamïïr) the numbers are: 



1 janâûwâ 4 awaitâmâ jaminatia 6 màhâre janâûwâ 



2 jaminatia 5 mâhârc ajâlùrauri 10 mâhâre jaminatia 



3 jaminati janâûwâ 



A man of Goréda, a village on the southern shore of the lake, gave me for 1 ûnakwa, 2 jamanini, 

 5 mahèri hèrori, 10 taôru. 



Thus in both places Nagramâdu and Angâdi they hâve the binary System of 

 enumeration, mentioned by MACGREGOR [1897, 81] of the Fly estuary, by Ray and HADDON 

 [1896, 160] of the western tribe of Torres Straits. It is, however, clear that the binary System, 

 according to Ray [1895, 31] and MûLLER [1897, 140] characteristic of the true Papuan (the 

 décimal system being Melanesian), is not pure, but that refuge is always taken in the hand 

 for "five", and both hands for "ten". The people of Kaimani, S. W. coast, also use both 

 hands (Van DER GOES [1858, 129]). — Pratt [1906, 316] reports of British N. G. that 

 people could not count farther than "three"; — a numéral for „three" is ascribed to Australian 

 influence (Ray and HADDON [1896, 161]). Still on reaching "twenty" a small pièce of stone 

 or wood is generally placed apart. 



MEYER [1873, 309] mentions that the Arfak people cannot count beyond five, a 

 mistake explained by the fact that the fingers of both hands hâve the same name as the 

 toes of both feet. The idea of higher numbers, however, exists with them just as well as 

 with the Manfkion with whom, as appears from VON ROSENBERG [1875, 97], they entirely 

 agrée in the way of counting. For numbers above "twenty" they begin again with the left 

 hand. The Karon count similarly (Bruyn [1877, 192]). 



As I could not get information about the construction of the languages, I must 



Nova Guinea. III. Anthropology. 41 



