Page:The sexual life of savages in north-western Melanesia.djvu/65

Rh of these fires, at each of which a couple of women sit opposite each other and pass the leaf to and fro in front of the flame (see pl. 9). Loud chatter and song enlivens the work, gay with the anticipation of the coming entertainments. When the material is ready, it has still to be cut, trimmed, and dyed. Two kinds of roots are brought from the bush for the dyeing, one giving a deep purple, and the other a bright crimson. The dye is mixed in large bowls made of giant clam shells; in these the leaf strips are steeped, and then they are hung up in thick bunches to dry in the central place, enlivening the whole village with their gay colour (see pl. 10). After a very complex process of piecing together, a resplendent "creation" results; the golden yellow of the pandanus, the soft haygreen or dun of the banana-leaf, the crimson and purple of the dyed layers form a really beautiful harmony of colour against the smooth, brown skin of the woman.

Some manufactures are carried out by men and women together. Both sexes, for example, take part in the elaborate process which is necessary in preparing certain shell ornaments, while nets and water-vessels may be made by either sex.

It will have been seen, then, that women do not bear the brunt of all the drudgery and hard work. Indeed, the heaviest tasks in the gardens and the most monotonous ones are performed by men. On the other hand, women have their own province in economic activity; it is a conspicuous one, and through it they assert their status and importance.

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