Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 16, 1905.djvu/137

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feast. Thus feasting goes on until the last pig is killed, and then the father, brother, or uncle, whoever is the highest, brings the bride to the bridegroom. Everybody who can, accompanies the bride, who sits in the largest canoe and is covered with mats. As the canoe nears the house of the bridegroom all the men must walk away till the bride is ashore and the wife-dance has been danced. This is performed by the female relations of the bride and bridegroom. The men's dance is held when everyone is assembled on the shore. Feasting then goes on till the food gives out.

The world, and its inhabitants, according to the Shortland tradition, were made by the god Tonatana. At first there was no death, but it arose in this way : Tonatana created a wife, and in order that she should not be alone gave her a child. The wife was eternally young because at certain times she peeled off her old skin and put on a new one. One day when she was engaged with her skin-changing she unluckily allowed her child to go by the entrance, and when the child saw her changing her skin, he was greatly disturbed and began to scream vigorously. The mother being worried about the crying child made several mistakes in putting on her skin, so that the whole would not completely fit, and as she attempted to get rid of the faults by putting the skin on again, she fell down dead. They tell numerous stories when seated round the fire in the evenings ; four of these folk-tales are given.

All the dead are changed into devils in Nitus and go from Alu (the largest of the Shortland Islands) to the Crown-Prince mountains and to the heights of Gieta on Bougainville, and after they have remained there some time they must betake themselves to the volcano Bagama and to Balbi mountain in the north of that island. The souls of chiefs go to a certain person, who is a great magician and wields much power.

There are two kinds of devils r the Sakesali are bad, they rob children, bring storms and sickness, in short, they cause all dis- asters ; they are the bush devils who steal the souls of those lost in the bush or drowned in streams. The magicians can capture these souls and send them to the ordinary place Nitus. The Koriti are good ghosts or devils who protect seafarers, children,