Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 7, 1896.djvu/28

18 with a petition and propitiation offered by a third person. The following is an outline of the function, which of course was performed secretly. Some person having by obnoxious actions or words given umbrage, the person offended would go to the Taukei of the leprosy stone and would entreat him to impart the disease to the proposed victim. At the same time he would make presentations of yaqona, whale's teeth, masi, mats, or other property, and these the functionary would offer up by placing them upon the stone and performing invocations (vatonaka) for a successful issue. He would then return to his dwelling, and on yaqona being next prepared he would, after drinking his portion and concurrently with the act of clearing his lips or moustache by blowing away the dregs, as usually (and not gracefully) effected by Fijians, exclaim as his toast: "Pfya! Ucu i au," that is to say "Pfya! may his figure become as mine," namely leprous; and speculation would of course run high on this curse being uttered as to who might be the intended victim of the charm.

At times, of course, the spell cast by the Vatu ni Sakuka would fail; but a ready and unchallengeable explanation would lie (and was probably so given) in the presumed inadequacy or unsuitability of the propitiatory offering or magiti. This became the emolument of the Taukei ni Vatu; and it was open to him to attempt or refuse a second trials as he might think fit. The present Taukei of the Vunavuga stone is Botiqele, the eldest son of the late Rasabasaba, who died not long since from pneumonia or some such intercurrent lung affection supervening on advanced leprosy. But there is also living an old man, a younger brother of Rasabasaba, and therefore uncle of Botiqele, named Maia, who has some pretensions to influence in the Nakavidi mataqali. Maia is not leprous, however; but Botiqele is the eldest of three brothers all of whom are markedly so,