1884.] 
A Nicohar tale. 
31 
gmoa, iathange de nang. Tiuen- 
gede en tiong lienkok, tiu matai; 
di do (tilt dock) da en kset gmoa, 
kaet nang da ene faekaske da 
Tiomberombi. SkTelende getset de 
lebre omia da bl matai skom tim- 
monggne tiong io koinng en Tiom¬ 
berombi. 
Jncktere te gni kande, gni komia- 
de en Tiomberombi. Hatge-oe-as- 
hende en shorn tiinmonggne tiong 
kenkok, kakok kakokende, kat 
kewe matai, kat taio. 
Tentioaklare de ol tiono^ en Tiom- 
berombi ores ioang tiafa, kawtdle de 
bl kameloe, pompangske en tiong, 
kemeang te danbe ta ot de^ ak. 
Skielende faekange gmoa,iatkan- 
ge nang. Tiuengede en tiong. Di 
do (tilt dock) da. 
the ears (of the crew). The skip 
then left for its own country ; they 
conld not succeed, for they had no 
noses or ears, Tiomberombi had cnt 
them off. Then the chief of the 
country wrote on paper (i. e., is¬ 
sued an order for) ten skips to 
make war on Tiomberombi. 
* Now in the house was kis wife, 
Tiomberombi (himself) was in the 
house of kis fatker-in-law. The 
ten ships of war came sailing (from 
the distant land) and fired their 
guns ; (but) they did not see the 
island, they did not kit. 
Tiomberombi boarded a skip and 
took magic fruit with him, which he 
threw into the sea ; the skips sank. 
One skip (however, still) remained 
(lit. alive). 
t (Again) he set to cut noses and 
cut off ears. The skip left. It 
could do nothing (not succeed). 
its own country, the king whereof organizes an expedition of ten skip 
to chastise him. 
* From the prolonged sound in kataeke we are led to infer that the ex¬ 
pedition had far to sail. When this formidable expedition arrived, 
Tiomberombi was with kis fatker-in-law; only kis wife was in the 
house. He must have left the magic mirror behind him, that would 
explain how it was that the guns were fired many times, but did no harm, 
the island had become invisible. Tiomberombi proceeds on board one of 
the vessels, the crew of which he mutilates in liis former manner, and 
sinks the other nine by throwing magic fruit into the sea. ^ dli = lives ; 
it is usual to use this word, and kapak = die, of vessels. The Nicobarese 
assert that these words mean in this connexion no more than “keep afioat ” 
and “sink,” but I think they do. The Nieobarese may use these terms 
only in a figurative sense noAV, and I believe they do, but yet they sacri¬ 
fice to their canoes (vide “ ceremonies at death &c.”) after a race. I have 
seen them sacrifice on removing a canoe yet in the rough log, out of the 
jungle ; moreover, they use a bow ornament for their boats like the open 
mouth of some monster. Are these traces of some old worship now 
obsolete ? 
t The ship that was spared returns whence it had set out and 
reports the hopelessness of the undertaking. 
