84 
which indicates that only the chiefs are permitted to use the betel nut 
which many people grow in their gardens. It is easy to see that Poly- 
nesians give him more "trouble" than do the Melanesians, and he reiterates 
what Frasier told me nine years ago about cooperatives; they sur- 
vive and lose money slowly in Melanesian hands with government subsidy 
and extreme government support; on Polynesian islands they fail miser- 
ably, usually after enormous financial losses and total consumption of 
government subsidies, repeated until, in exasperation and almost pouting, 
the government offlcals close them down. 
Graciosa Bay, Nande (Santa Cruz) .. .October 18, 1972 
I was writing last night here, in Dr. Lee's home in such an exhausted 
state, that several times I lapsed into sleep writing, and produced dream- 
like sentences: 
"a few neonatal infants easily brought on board" in the middle 
of an account of chieftainship on Anuta and Tlkopia surely reflects 
my concern for Dr. Lee's desire to bring his wife and two small children 
of 1 and 4 years to Anuta and Tlkopia with us on the Alpha Helix and 
the captains wise reluctance since the ship is really dangerously rough! 
Later I produced a phrase "dormitory for the students from afar" in 
a list of buildings of the Santa Cruz station when there is no such 
structure! I will have to stop compulsively trying to keep notes when 
I am at the point of exhaustion. 
Dr. Lee has shown me a remarkable role of Santa Cruz traditional 
feather money made by one of the four old people who still make 
custom money well. It is a long flat, 2 inch wide, belt- like coil of 
minute red bird feathers (only a few mm long) all glued to the outer 
surface of the thick belt-like coll which is made of flying fox bones 
covered with a fiber braiding of very fine and tight weave. Even here 
it id. worth over $200 Australian and in U.S. ^seum circles might fetch 
$2,000 or so! Beautiful plume-like sticks covered with such small 
red bird feathers are also made to be worn in the hair or placed on 
ceremonial food bowls and these sell for about $3.00 Australian each 
here. The custom feather money is used for bride price, buying pigs or 
adoption payments in adoption ceremonies. Each time it is used and grows 
older and it loses value (rather than gains in value, as I would have 
predicted) . It is stored carefully wrapped in leaves over the house 
fires to keep it free of Insects and in such storage it is preserved 
very well for years. The people in villages along Graciosa Bay try 
to sell us for $20-$30 the old, "beat-up" custom feather money with 
few feathers left on them. These I reject and finally a very fine ‘ 
colorful and moderately well-preserved ceremonial money is offered 
to me for $160. I now have purchased it for $65. 
The new and extremely beautiful rol^ of such custom money which 
the Lees have is one of the most beautiful Pacific artifacts I have 
ever seen! 
