Chapter XI

EARLY START TO VISIT BUSH KANAKAS--A TERRIBLE TRAGEDY--
GOVERNOR’S CLASSIFICATION OF ARCHIPELAGO PEOPLES--DENSE
BUSH--NATIVE VILLAGES--METHOD OF CATCHING FLYING FOXES

One fine morning having breakfasted I stood on my verandah listening for the sound of wheels. Punctually at 5.45 his Excellency appeared in a little, low, pony carriage belonging to his wife. Light gigs are generally used, but as Dr Hahl kindly considered my comfort, for the drive was long and the way uphill, he had given the preference to this vehicle.

Our destination was the police and telephone station of Thomá, over 1000 feet above sea-level, situated twelve miles inland, at the extreme limit of German settled territory inland. Energetic, alert, and emphatic, the Governor talked as he strode along beside the horse where the road was rough and steep.

Ascending in a south-westerly direction, “far from gay cities and the ways of men,” for the most part between the plantations of the New Guinea Company and those of the firm of Forsyth, occasionally passing a manager’s house, a beautiful view of Blanche Bay, with the volcano opposite, flanked on the east by the majestic contour of the mountains of New Ireland, was afforded us. On its gleaming waters, shallow over the reefs but of great depth where the passage for the mail steamers is indicated, a small steam launch belonging to one of the firms was busily hurrying to Matupi; nearer to the shore, like tiny dots on the surface, natives in their canoes were fishing. A small steamer lay off the landing-sheds of the Catholic Mission; probably it had brought a load of timber from the station of St Paul in the Baining country, the Governor thought, then referring to the able and successful Bishop Coppée, he declared that as statesman, as settler, and as missionary, the prelate’s gifts were of the first order. Their politics, naturally antagonistic, had at times brought them into collision with each other, but that in no way had prejudiced him against the ecclesiastic, who was in duty bound to work for the extension of his Church.

When we were not very far distant from Thomá, a settler’s house was pointed out as the scene of a terrible tragedy, in 1902, when the inhabitants of those native settlements we were about to visit had been severely punished. I had heard of this in the hotel, and indeed had met the husband at dinner one night whose wife and child had been murdered. It appeared that Frau Wolf with her little boy and Miss Parkinson, who was staying with them, was holding a market upon the verandah in the front of her house, when a body of natives entering unseen from the back, passed through the central living room and brained the poor lady to death, also killing the boy. The other lady was hidden in an outhouse by a friendly native, from which she eventually, by crawling through the bush, reached Herbertshöhe. The reason for this outrage seemed to be that the lady’s husband had disturbed for agricultural purposes, some old burying-grounds belonging to their _gunans_.

His Excellency went on to explain that although the natives were treacherous and cruel and only understood fighting as ambushing their foe, yet he had found them uniformly loyal to blood relationships. He proceeded to discuss the Archipelago races from an ethnographical point of view, so far as he had as yet made their acquaintance in his frequent expeditions. The following is an outline of their racial affinities.

In New Britain the coast natives of the Gazelle Peninsula, the inhabitants of the Duke of York Islands, and the coastals of the south of New Ireland possess affinities in language, customs, and physique, although they speak in many dialects. This demarcation includes the islanders from Massava on the north to Löndup on the east coast with those living on the islands of Massikunabuka, Massava, Urar, Watom, and Matupi, and stretches inland as far as the Varczin. In New Ireland it includes all living on the coasts south of Gardner Island, taking in St John’s, Caens Island and Gerrit Denys.

The Taulils living south-west of the Varczin, though few in number, are to be regarded as a complete race. They resemble their neighbours in the Gazelle Peninsula, but have a different grammatical language.

The Bainings living in the mountains to the west of the peninsula differ in appearance, customs, and speech, from any people living in the Archipelago.

The Sulkas living round Cape Orford are apparently a distinct race in language, customs, and appearance. These people by artificially binding the temples in infancy, cause the region of the occiput to protrude, and the peculiarity has earned for them the name of “Spitzköpfe.” Its apparent isolation is curious. New Hanoverians and the natives living north of New Ireland, including Sandwich, Fischer, and Gardner Islands, differ from the first people described--less in appearance than in customs and speech--but notwithstanding the various dialects are nearly related to each other.

Buka and Bougainville are inhabited by almost black Solomon islanders, different in speech and appearance to the others.

The Carteret and Sir Charles Hardy Groups are the meeting-places of the lighter-coloured New Irelanders with the dark Buka.

The Admiralty islanders are different to any others in appearance and language. The Papuan frizzy hair is to be seen here as well as the Polynesian curl.

The natives of St Matthias, Storm and Hunter Islands, resemble those of New Hanover.

The fast-disappearing inhabitants of the Hermits, the Anchorites and the Exchequer Islands, show very mixed traits; whilst those of Matty and Douro point to Malay or Mongol origin.

Having arrived at Thomá, we left the carriage and ascending a hill obtained a splendid view of the district and of the mountains to the west. Then our way led along a wide road which eventually would join Thomá to Simpsonhafen. Here we met several natives, who seemed to have plenty to say to the Governor concerning the making of this road, which is the condition upon which they hold their reservations. Compared with the tigerish aspect of the Admiralty natives, these bush kanakas looked almost imbecile. As bush natives they are different from the coastals. The chief was pointed out. His scanty goat-like beard and general bearing were by no means impressive. When Dr Hahl explained that we were going to visit their villages, several immediately offered to escort us. Soon we plunged into bush shoulder-high, and followed our guides on a well-beaten but very narrow, tortuous track. I do not recollect how long we were before we came, walking always in single file (_gänsemarseh_) to a clearing where bananas and cocoanut-palms, with taro, were cultivated; but in that heat, for it was nearly ten o’clock, it seemed a very long distance. A circuitous path then led to the entrance of the palisaded hillock, chosen by this family group doubtless for its possibilities of defence. A thick fence, made of closely-staked, split, bamboo poles, from five to six feet high, securely fastened to each other by ratang grass, enclosed a space not exceeding half an acre. Here some seven or eight low, oval-shaped huts, thatched with dried palm and banana leaves, clustered at the extreme opposite to the entrance. My surprise was great at the cleanliness of the ground, which was indeed swept and garnished, not in anticipation of our visit, but on account of the ingrained fear which these people have of magic; for if an enemy possessed himself of some _débris_, like crushed cocoanut, or of personal matter, such as hair, nails, he would, by his incantations, weave a spell against the possessor, who probably would die in consequence. I learnt that everything was collected most carefully and safely buried. On my inquiry as to where were their women, they replied that they were away at market, but they pointed out a girl, who was sick, lying on a mat of woven palm inside a hut. We were invited to enter a dwelling about twelve feet long and five or six broad. It was necessary to stoop to get inside, nor could one stand upright when there. Excepting for native mats on the ground, the place was bare! No pottery! No household utensils! A compartment at the further end served as sleeping accommodation for the unmarried daughter. Water was brought us to drink from a hollow bamboo cane. In one hut I espied the embers still hot where a fire for cooking purposes had been kindled on the floor. We sat upon the curved trunk of a palm-tree and assuaged our thirst with the contents of the chief’s cocoanuts. The latter showed us the proper way to enjoy this beverage, pouring the liquid down his throat without swallowing it. We tried to imitate him, but failed ignominiously. Not far from where we sat the chief’s hut was situated, and immediately in front of it, on a spot of recently turned soil, three crotons were planted, the centre was allowed to grow much higher than its neighbours. The three were laced together by twigs. At the roots some cocoanuts which had dropped from the trees were stacked. This betokened that they were _tabu_ or sacred to the chief. I saw in several other places in the settlement this curious sign, denoting that property thus placed was not for the common herd. After a short time we were then conducted to another fenced enclosure, always through bush. Here there was but one long hut, which belonged to the unmarried men of the village, who were away also.

We were again invited by our guides to enter, which we did, but it was impossible to stand upright. Suddenly I started, for a black object suspended from the roof hit my nose. The Governor laughed, cut it down and, with the native’s consent, presented it to me. It was not an inviting object, on nearer inspection being nothing less than a dried bat! It was explained that the bachelors preserved them to present to their prospective brides. Since returning to Europe it was interesting to read in a publication issued by an Australasian scientific society, in a paper describing the folk-lore of the aboriginals of New South Wales, the following statement: “Over a very wide area of the Australian continent, the bat is held in great reverence.” The writer then went on to say: “In most tribes with which I am acquainted, the _bat_ is considered sacred to man, and figures frequently in their legendary lore.” Gazing around, I noted that the men who had brought us here were deep in conversation with each other, and from their glances I guessed they were remarking upon my personal appearance. I asked Dr Hahl what they were saying about me. He was much amused as he listened to them, and it was evident they were interrogating him as to my presence in their midst. Then he smilingly explained that I had made a great impression upon them, and that they had asked if I were not a queen, or a very important person in my own country.

“I suppose the reason is that you are piloting me round?” was my questioning remark.

“Not at all,” replied he, “it is because they have never seen a woman as big as yourself!”

I asked him then to find out if these bush kanakas venerated any special animal. He talked a little with them and then said: “They hold no totem in respect. They say they are not like the coast people, who come of pigeons or of fish, they came from the hills, and can take wives where they choose.”

A long walk to a distant settlement led again through dense bush, but at one place there were some very tall trees. Here we saw a snare set to catch flying foxes, always considered by the natives as a delicacy. A tree was selected for its great height, a long bamboo pole was fixed, slanting outwards to the trunk as near the top as possible. From the end of this a string with an ingenious contrivance of meshes was fixed, the other end being fastened to a stake driven firmly into the ground. When the fox alighted upon the bamboo, it was suddenly enmeshed in the string.

In the next village we watched natives catch a chicken. One man squatted on the ground with one end of his twine in his hand, the other being fastened to a stake about ten paces away. The string between, lay loosely on the ground in an oblong loop held in place by tiny twigs stuck in the sandy earth. Another native scattered scraped cocoanut around and called to the chicken.

When the latter began to peck within the loop thus made, the string was drawn instantaneously and the fowl was thus caught by the leg by the man squatting some paces off on the ground.

On our return to Thomá, the natives led us by what we were given to understand was to be a short cut, but it proved to be a very long and fatiguing walk. One struggled up steep cliffs to descend them by clinging on to shrubs and trees.

The Governor accelerated the pace, which was fairly smart before; the heat was tremendous, for it was approaching noon.

He explained when at last we had Thomá in sight, that he had foolishly left his revolver at home!