100 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 



from the young leaves, and the latter from the old, which are pre- 

 pared by beating them with a mallet to render them pliable. On the 

 yellow mats they bestow a great deal more of their attention : the 

 young leaves are laid aside for two or three days after they are 

 plucked, till they are withered ; they are then roasted, by holding 

 them in the hand over the fire, and afterwards laid in the sun for 

 three or four days, to insure them being sufficiently dried. During 

 the latter part of the process, they are brought every evening into the 

 house, to protect them from the dew or rain. When the leaves are 

 sufficiently dry, they are left all night to bleach in the dew ; they are 

 then rolled up in balls, and pounded with a mallet to render them 

 soft and pliable, and when this is accomplished, they are slit with a 

 shell and are ready for use. The brown and white slips are braided 

 together, so as to form regular figures, squares, or diamond-shape, 

 which have a pretty effect. The colours being in the material itself, 

 are retained as long as the fabric lasts. The mode of weaving this 

 matting has been described. The conical cap of the men is at times 

 quite becoming. They cover their shoulders with a small oblong mat, 

 having a slit in the middle through which the head is passed. This 

 part of their dress resembles a " poncho" of small size. The women's 

 dress, which they call "iriri," is quite becoming and graceful : it is a 

 kind of fringe, made of cocoanut-leaves, cut into slips about a foot 

 long, and tied by one end to a string, which goes round the middle : 

 the young leaflets are selected for this purpose, and the rib of the leaf 

 is removed by slitting it down on each side. The leaves are next 

 rolled up and beaten with a mallet, after which they are chewed until 

 they become quite flexible ; these narrow ribands are then knotted to 

 a double cord. The dress is fitted on the person, and is then clipped 

 off at equal lengths all around : it has a light and elegant appearance, 

 and yields to any motion of -the body, yet never becomes entangled or 

 out of order. 



At Apamama, they dip the iriris in cocoanut-oil ; at Taputeouea, 

 they steep them in an infusion of the juice which is obtained from a 

 small tree, with large green leaves, called meo : of these leaves a 

 number are pounded in a shell, and a little water poured on them, 

 which is then filtered through the pellicle of the cocoa-nut tree and 

 mixed with molasses. After being steeped in this liquid for some 

 time, the iriri is rolled up in a mat with some leaves of the meo and 

 pandanus-nuts, and roasted in a native oven. By this process it 

 acquires a soft and flexible appearance, and a peculiar odour, which 



