Page:The Melanesians Studies in their Anthropology and Folklore.djvu/423

] different ones for them, and put points to their arrows. And when they could both shoot the small birds tatagoras he took the bows away and broke them, and made them bows much larger than before, and put points to their arrows, and then they could shoot doves. So they came to be able to shoot all kinds of birds; and then he cut clubs for them, and they killed rats with them, and he took them away and broke them; and presently when they were full-grown youths he made clubs for them again, for one a oi utu (Barringtonia fruit) with four corners to it, for the other a simple tarara with a ring and spike.

Qatu brought them up till they were quite big, and then one day he told them about Taso, saying that they were not to go carelessly about or go where Taso was without due cause, because he had killed their mother and was a man-eater. When they had considered this they set a taboo upon a banana belonging to them, and said to their uncle Qatu, If you go into the garden and see our bunch of bananas beginning to ripen at the top and ripening downwards to the end, Taso has killed us; but if you see that it has begun to ripen at the end and is ripening upwards we shall have killed him. So their uncle turned his back and went his way, and the twins started off to take Taso by surprise. They came to Taso's place, but did not find him there, because he had gone down to the beach to sharpen his teeth ; so the twins asked Taso's mother, Where is this Taso gone? We have come here to see him. And Taso's mother called to them to come up and sit by the gamal to wait for him, and they came up to the gamal and sat there waiting for Taso. Now short round yams had been dug, and a fire lighted in the gamal, and they heated the yams, and pulled out the stones that lined the ovens, and put them on the fire to pelt Taso with. There were two fire-places in the gamal, at the one end and at the other. And Taso's mother came down from the house; and the old woman lay down on the ground and sang a song, crying down to Taso on the beach. This is the song: ''Taso! sarosaro ganga tamate, a ganga i tuara,''