To an
Eastern Polynesian it would be ridiculous to call it a feast, seeing
there was no pig. In the evening we had a good deal of palavering with
spears and shields, fighting an imaginary foe, and at times retreating.
Their movements are swift and graceful: advance, retreat, advance,
pursue, ward off to the right, to the left, shield up, down, aside,
struck on knee, a shout, all gone through, with the greatest alacrity,
and I am not at all astonished at so few being killed or wounded in a
fight. They value shields that bear the marks of spears.
19_th_.--Our old friend Oriope came in to-day, and handed us the
tomahawk, stolen by the deserter on our last trip. He says when he heard
how Someri had served us he sent at once to Sogeri, and got the tomahawk,
telling them it was very wrong to steal from such dear friends of his.
One of the Kupele natives stole a knife, but he had to give it up to the
Keninumu friends, who returned it to us. I should have liked to have
started a station at Chokinumu, so as to try the climate of both sides of
the district this wet season.
Pages:
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190