Page:The sexual life of savages in north-western Melanesia.djvu/172

Rh clan is the very one from which a Tabalu chief ought to choose his principal wife. The girl must have been very good-looking, and she certainly was a "real lady," possessing charm, dignity, and simple honesty. The two were deeply attached to each other and remained so; and the union was blessed by five boys and a girl, the youngest child. I have called Kadamwasila "the chief's favourite wife," meaning by that that theirs was a union of love, a real companionship, and undoubtedly in its early years, a passionate relation. The chief, however, even before his accession, took to himself other wives, each from one of the communities which have to supply him with an annual contribution. It often happens that when a chief's wife dies, the community from which she came supplies the heir apparent, instead of the actual chief himself, with a girl who counts as substitute for the deceased. To'uluwa had become possessed of three or four wives of this kind, when his elder brother and predecessor died. Then he inherited the late chief's widows, who automatically and immediately became his wives, while their children became part of his household. The majority of the widows were fairly old, some having passed through the hands of three husbands. It seems that the chief would not have any obligation to live sexually with such inherited wives, but of course he could do so if he wished. Subsequently To'uluwa married four other wives, from such communities as were not represented among his complement at the time. The marriage of a chief does not differ from that of a commoner, except that his wife is Rh