46 ' L. HARGRAVE. 



1908. Lope de Vega's house was somewhere near where 

 the camera stood, so placed that he could see if people 

 came to steal his turtle. This work is far beyond any con- 

 ception of a native mind, but is well within their united 

 power to construct when directed by a Spanish head. It 

 is also a work that no sheller or beche-de-mer fisher would 

 be at all likely to make or encourage others to make. 



At Stephen's Island (Ho-gar), a little further on, I think 

 one, if not the last of the pioneers died. When I was 

 there in December 1877, and walking round the north end 

 of the island, I saw a small hut, little larger than a dog- 

 kennel. My curiosity was aroused, and I pulled aside the 

 pandauus leaves that hung across the front of it, and saw a 

 long object lying on some dry palm leaves. It was about 18 

 inches by 4 inches diameter. This was covered with the 

 brown gum the natives secure the barbs on their arrows 

 with, and a number of jecquerity seeds (Abrus precatorius) 

 were stuck in the gum. A native came out of the scrub 

 with signs of fear at my proceedings. I calmed him, and 

 he saw I meant no harm ; we sat down and in the gibberish 

 of the Straits tried to understand one another. This is the 

 translation I made and entered in my notes at the time : — 



"There is a valuable curiosity on Hogar, it is in a small 

 hut by itself on the north side of the island, it has been 

 watched with jealous care by three generations of a man 

 called Ma-te. It is death for a woman or beardless boy to 

 look at it. The custodian has to visit it daily without 

 clothing or arms. Sundry skulls are around that were 

 taken by an ancient Papuan man whose name I could not 

 catch. Ma-te told me not to tell the missionary as he 

 would steal it. He said I was the first white man who 

 had seen it." 



It is obvious enough to me now that Ma-te was not the 

 man's name, but Muerte (Spanish for death), and the three 



