Islands far away; Fijian pictures with pen and brush . There was an old woman here who boasted of having been a thorough out and out,,_ cannibal. She must have reached a greatage, for her son and hergrandson and her greatgrandson were all in thevillage. With difficultywe induced them tocome out and stand, sothat T might perpetuatethe group. The son toohad been a expression of all,except that of the littleboy, was distinctly re-pellant though therewas a certain hand-someness about old woman was wellpreserved, erect of car-riage, and with remark-able eyes, sharp andpiercing
Islands far away; Fijian pictures with pen and brush . There was an old woman here who boasted of having been a thorough out and out,,_ cannibal. She must have reached a greatage, for her son and hergrandson and her greatgrandson were all in thevillage. With difficultywe induced them tocome out and stand, sothat T might perpetuatethe group. The son toohad been a expression of all,except that of the littleboy, was distinctly re-pellant though therewas a certain hand-someness about old woman was wellpreserved, erect of car-riage, and with remark-able eyes, sharp andpiercing and hawk-like. The lobe of her ear was distendedand a large white shell inserted and her fingers were muchmutilated. Many of the older people here had severaljoints missing from fingers and toes ; this was a sign ofmourning. In case of a death the relatives and friends cutoff a finger or toe joint with a sharp stone, searing the stumpin the fire, and then carrying the bit to the house where thedead lay. Even children sometimes gave of themselves in. CANNIBAL FAMILY—FOURGENERATIONS. Namosi. 95 this way, and the trophies of affection and regret were hunground the door. In the case of a person who bad been muchbeloved, or of a very high chief, there would be wreaths ofthese ghastly relics, on which the near relatives gazed \sithproud satisfaction. This old woman was tatooed, as were all the older womenin the place. One woman, who had been done with especialcare, invited my companion in to see her tatooing. It wasexactly like a short pair of drawers and was always hiddenby even the scanty clotliing of long ago. Though no onecould see it, and the process was horribly painful, the girlswillingly submitted to it, because this costume was de riguevrwith the god Ndengei who ruled in the world of spirits, andno woman wdthovit her tatoo garment was admitted to hisheaven. It was done at the age of twelve or thirteen andoccupied days. The young girl was held down by one woman,while anoth
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, bookidislandsfaraw, bookyear1921
