NEW GUINEA AND THE PAPUANS 
403 
which to tuck any small article. The western Papuan 
does not paint himself much, but is fond of decorating 
his breast and arms with raised scars produced by the 
frequent use of the moxa. Elsewhere the painting of the 
face and body with various colours—black, white, yellow, 
or red—is common. 
Papuan architecture is in many ways remarkable. 
The houses are in all cases built on piles, as indeed are 
those of nearly all Australasian peoples, but communal 
houses are a marked feature. They exist also in Borneo, 
as we have seen, but in Papua they are of much larger size. 
Buildings of this nature, containing many families, are 
not infrequently over 500 feet in length, and some have 
been measured over 700 feet. The roofs are often 
“ turtle-back,” but in the eastern part of the island ridge 
roofs and rising gables are seen. Club houses, of the 
same nature as the “ balais ” of Sumatra, are found in 
most villages all over the island, at all events on its 
seaboard. The very peculiar “ dobbos ” are apparently 
more or less confined to British territory. These are 
houses built in high trees, their use being chiefly that of 
an acropolis in times of danger, but some tribes who are 
especially harassed by warlike neighbours appear to live 
entirely in them. 
The Papuan is only a very indifferent seaman. 
While the Bugis of Celebes think little of voyaging 1000 
miles across the Banda Sea to the Aru Islands, the natives 
of the Papuan Gulf creep along its shores in their 
“ lakatois ” with considerable mistrust, usually anchor¬ 
ing at night if they can. The Papuans of Salwatti 
Island form an exception to this rule, and construct good 
sea-going praus, which they manage with skill. On the 
whole the race may-be described as agricultural, especi¬ 
ally in the eastern portion of the island, where the 
