Volume 14 Australasia - dana ward's homepage

806 AUSTRALASIA.out ever founaering. Some of the latakoi, or tradiug craft, carry as many as sixrectangular sails or large mats made with the bark of the sago palm, each supportedby two vertical masts springing from the gunwales of the praus. Otherboats hoist only a single sail double the height of the mast, oval and hollowed outat top so as to leave two points, which at a distance resemble the horns of someprodigious animal gliding through the water. The natives also contrive to makesimple canoes quite seaworthy by means of a platform which is attached at its twoextremities to a pointed boom or spar serving the purpose of an outrigger.Although formerly much dreaded by passing seafarers, most of the NewGruinea peoples are of mild disposition and habits. The women are respected andthe children treated with extreme kindness. The slaves, also, in the few districtswhere they exist, enjoy the same food and wear the same clothes as the free men.Homage is paid to the dead with flowers, songs, and ceremonies, but the funeralrites differ greatly in the different tribes. Some bury the deceased immediatelyafter the "obsequies," others wait till the body has been dried by fire or theweather, while elsewhere the bones are distributed amongst the relatives, the sonwearing his father's maxillary as an armlet.A very common practice is to sculpture the so-called kan-ars, that is, littlefigures representing the deceased, or rather the life that has escaped from them.At the son's death the karvar is planted on his grave, with his arms ; he is thusfollowed to the other world by his father's image, while he leaves his own to hischildren.The houses and boats, which serve as temples, are also decked with theeffigies of their ancestors, the worship of whom, combined with that of the goodand evil spirits dwelling in the trees, the rocks, the winds, and storms, constitutesthe religion of all the aborigines. Mohammedanism, however, has already invadedthe small archipelagoes off the west coast and even some parts of the mainland.Christian missionaries have also established stations at various points of the seaboard,which are at least becoming so many centres of civilising influences.Topography of New Goixea.The Dutch, as heirs of the Sultan of Tidor, who retains the nominal suzeraintywithout the right of levying tribute, are the ofiicial masters of west New Guineaas far as 141° E. longitude. But on this vast domain they do not possess asingle town, whence their direct authority might be gradually extended over theinterior. Thire are, however, a few ports of call visited aft more or less frequentintervals by their ships of war to protect the commercial operations of the fewEuropean traders, and especially to show their flag and maintain their authorityin the eyes of the natives.At the north-west extremity of New Guinea the island of Walgpit, that is," Land of Water," seems to be admirably situated to serve one day as a centre oftrade for the insular populations of this region. The deep inlets indenting thesouth coast might afford shelter for whole fleets, while a magnificent roadstead isformed by the coralline islet of Gemien lying near the shore. Unfortunately