Memoirs of the Polynesian Society. Vol. FIELD NOTES ON THE Culture of Vaitupu ELLICE ISLANDS. % BY DONALD GILBERT KENNEDY. NEW PLYMOUTH, N.Z.: Printed by Thomas Avery & Sons Limited. 1931 Frontispiece. In the lagoon, Nukufetau: Canoes leaving the ship; village in the distance. Vaitupu from the south. The main village may be seen beyond the schooner’s boat derricks. Vaitupu Island women at a festival. DIVERSITY Or AUCKLAND LIBRARY N.Z. AND PAFMFIC FOREWORD In New Zealand the native-born ethnographers of the older generation are represented by Percy Smith, Elsdon Best, and Herbert Williams. A perusal of the following memoir will show the author to be a worthy successor to these. His work needs no further commendation. D. G. Kennedy was an undergraduate of Otago who went into camp at Trentham in the closing phase of the war. The armistice came before training was completed, but he did not return to the University. After some years of teaching, part of which was spent at the Maori Boys’ School at Otaki, he joined the Colonial Service in Fiji, where his interest in ethnography took more definite shape. Thence he was transferred to the Western Pacific High Commission, his duties leading him first to the Gilbert and later to the Ellice Islands. How much Polynesian ethnology has been the gainer by this experience is demonstrated by his Field Notes from Vaitupu. — H. D. Skinner. \ CONTENTS PAGE Foreword .... ...... .... .... .... v List of Illustrations .... .... .... .... ix Preface ... .... .... .... .... xiii F inal Introduction .... .... .... .... xv Introductory .... .... .... .... .... 1 Calendar and Time .... .... .... .... 9 Fishing for the Palu .... .... .... .... 12 Fishing for Bonito .... .... .... .... 39 Fishing for Paid (K ing-F ish ) w ith the Running N oose .... .... .... .... .... 56 Fishing for Flying-F ish (Fai-isave) .... .... 61 T he Ellice Islands Canoe .... .... .... 71 U nits of Measurement ... .... .... .... 101 Colour-Sense and Colour N ames .... .... 102 Diet and Cooking .... .... .... .... 104 Games .... .... .... .... .... .... 110 Vaitupu Songs .... .... .... .... .... 125 Religion ....„ .... .... .... .... 147 Traditions and Folk-Lore .... .... .... 153 Surgery and Surgical Instruments .... .... 236 Sickness and its Treatment .... .... .... 247 Obstetrics .... .... .... .... .... 258 Dwellings and other Houses ... ...... .... 265 Material Culture .... .... .... .... 285 Final N otes .... .... .... .... .... 295 Index .... .... .... .„... .... .... 321 vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS F rontispiece . .. .. .. Facing Title Page PAGE M ap xvi F ig. 1—Leg-forks and barb-forks for palu hooks 16 „ 2—Proposed position of scarf-joints 16 „ 3— Scarf-joints ready for lashing 16 „ 4—Palu hooks showing different kinds of cordage and barbs 17 „ 5—Ruvettus hooks in use on Vaitupu, 1928 17 „ 6—Ruvettus hooks in use on Vaitupu, 1928 17 „ 7—A rather poor night’s catch .. 32 „ 8—Typical palu fishers 32 „ 9—Hauling in a palu 32 „ 10—A typical Vaitupu fishing-canoe 32 „ 11— Hook no. 2 engaged in lower jaw of a ruvettus 32 „ 12— Hook no. 3 engaged in lower jaw of a ruvettus 32 „ 13—The morning after 32 „ 14—Three palu-fala 32 „ 15—Barb of native-made iron hook 33 „ 16—About to be clubbed 33 „ 17— ( a ) Palumakau; (b) Palu kuakua 33 „ 18—Typical pa 40 „ 19—Typical kofe .. 41 „ 20— Attachment of the tu kau .... 41 „ 21—Typical bonito lure 41 ., 22—Butt end of rod inserted in matapili .. 50 „ 23—Trolling on the bonito grounds 50 „ 24—Nearing a shoal 50 „ 25—A shoal before the canoe gets in 50 „ 26—In the thick of a shoal 50 „ 27—In a shoal of bonito .. .. .. > i 50 „ 28— Tautai swinging in a bonito 50 „ 29—Mate! 50 „ 30—Waiting for a shoal .. 50 „ 31—Chasing a wandering flock of noddies 51 „ 32—The return of the canoes 51 „ 33—Bringing the fish to the malae 51 „ 34—Fishing for pala with the running noose 56 „ 35—Fishing for pala 56 „ 36— Schematic diagram of inverted canoe 100 ,, 37—Diagram showing the principle of the fakafiti 100 „ 38— Showing insertion of fono 100 „ 38a Cross-section showing te kautaka 100 ix X Culture of Vaitupu, Ellice Islands. PAGE Fig. 39— Cross-section showing te takaoa 100 „ 40— Schematic cross-sectional sketch amidships 100 „ 41—Vaitupu type canoe immediately after fitting the oa- planks 100 „ 42—Typical Nanumea canoe after the fitting of the oa- planks 100 „ 43—Types of outrigger float 100 „ 44a Ordinary lashing of boom to side 100 „ 44b Manga-lua lashing .. .. .. .. 100 „ 44c Boom-lashing from above 100 „ 45a Traditional Vaitupu-style lashing 100 „ 45b Lashing removed 100 „ 45c Three-peg arrangement 100 „ 46— Showing arrangement of pegs 100 „ 47a Direct lashing 100 „ 47b Schematic diagram of cross-section of float to show method of direct lashing 100 „ 48— Typical Vaitupu canoe showing various parts named in text .. .. 100 „ 49—One style of Ian go 100 „ 50—Vaitupu type bow-cover 100 „ 51—Bow of Nanumea type canoe 100 „ 52— Stern of Nanumea type canoe . 100 „ 53—Vaitupu type stern-cover 100 „ 54— Steering paddle (foe uli) 100 „ 55—Ordinary paddle (foe) 100 „ 56—The bailer ( te asu) 100 „ 57—Another style of bailer 100 „ 58—A Vaitupu canoe 100 „ 58a Plan, elevation and cross-section of Vaitupu canoe 100 „ 59—A Nanumea type canoe on Vaitupu Island 100 „ 60—The suki are made of the iron-hard ngie (Pemphis acidula) 100 „ 61—A style of outrigger-boom sometimes seen 100 „ 62—The log, roughly shaped and hollowed out 100 „ 63—View of the hull from the stern 100 „ 64—View of the hull from the bow 100 „ 65—Finishing the interior with the atu-pa 100 „ 66— The bow, from the port side 100 „ 67— The oa fitted and clamped down with fakafiti 100 „ 68—Vaitupu type bow and stern-covers 100 „ 69—Nanumea type bow and stern-covers 100 „ 70— Showing the differences in the sterns of the Vaitupu type and Nanumea type canoes 100 „ 71—New canoe with an old-style outrigger 100 „ 72—Vaitupu five-paddle canoe 100 „ 73—Nanumea canoe on Funafuti Island 100 „ 74—Launching a Nanumea type canoe - .. 100 „ 75—Typical lagoon paopao ,, ,, ,, ,, 100 Illustrations xi PAGE Fig. 76—Paopao with fish-trap on the lagoon .. 100 „ 77—Vaitupu lancets 238 „ 78—Vaitupu lancets in Otago University Museum 238 „ 79-—Implements for removal of lipoma (see p. 242) 238 „ 80—Cautery (tutu) for stiff neck .. 238 „ 81—The tufunga massaging by the suki method 238 „ 82—Operation for subcutaneous lipoma 238 „ 83—Bandaging the wound 238 „ 84— (a) Authentic ponga kiva; (b) Authentic ponga faka- ala; (c) Aoao, sennit bag 239 „ 85— Showing scar resulting from excision of leprous tissue 239 „ 86—The tufunga dressed in his finery 258 „ 87—The midwife (tufunga faka-fanau) with the appliances of her craft .. .. 258 „ 88—Bandages, belts, etc. 259 „ 89—Plan of Punatau, an ancient village .. 272 „ 90—End elevation of old-style house 272 „ 91— End elevation of most recent type 272 ,, 92—Arrangement of roof-plates and tie-beams 272 „ 93—Eight-posted house with reversed arrangement 272 „ 94— Six- or eight-posted house with longitudinal beams (inner) resting on posts .. 272 „ 95—Longitudinal section of substructure of old-style house 272 „ 96—A variation of type 3 272 „ 97— Schematic diagram of frame of most recent style of dwelling 272 „ 98—Interior view showing slanting rafter-brace, etc. 272 „ 99—Three methods of attaching rafter to roof-plate 272 „ 100—Schematic section of attachment of verandah to main building 272 „ 101—Rack (palepale) attached to rafters and roof-plate .. 272 „ 102— Showing principles of the construction of roof-frame 272 „ 103—Raised platform floor, traditional style 272 „ 104—Raised platform floor, alleged Gilbert Islands style .. 272 „ 105—Coconut-leaf breakwind (d matangi) .. 273 „ 106—Outdoorsleeping-platform (pāpā) 273 „ 107— Schematic diagram of section of ridge 276 „ 108—Woman with apita 280 „ 109— Carrying apita in from the bush 280 ,, 110— Most recent type of house 280 „ 111— Smoothing the leaves (solo) .. 280 „ 112—Roll of smoothed leaves (pupu-lau) .. 280 „ 113— Heaps of prepared thatch-pieces (lau) 280 „ 114— Sewing smoothed leaves 280 „ 115—Inserting point of sisi pole into piece of thatch 280 „ 116—A street in the main village (Fale) Vaitupu .. 280 „ 117—Thatch-piece (lau) coming up 280 „ 118—Thatching the author’s house .. 280 „ 119—Another view of the thatching process 280 Cu ltu re of V a it u p u , E l lic e I sl a n d s . 120— Close-up views of thatching .. 121— Thatching from inside 280 122— Plaited coconut-leaf ridge-covers (fakatafiti) 280 123— Finishing off the ridge 280 124— The side completed 280 125— Different twill patterns in the weaving of screens (pola) 280 126— Woman weaving screens 280 127— Method of hanging screens (pola) 280 128— Dwelling of the round-end type 280 129— Pile dwelling on the lagoon 280 130— A grand project uncompleted 280 131— Pearl-shell pendants (pdkasoa) 292 132— Pearl-shell shank lures of bonito hooks used in neck­ laces 292 133— Whale’s tooth pendants 292 134— Polished whale-bone pendants and necklace of por­ poise teeth 292 135— A model of the pump-drill 292 136— Four tridacna adzes from Vaitupu—front view 292 137— Back view 292 138— Side view 292 139— Tridacna adzes, group 1 .. .., 292 140— Tridacna adzes, group 2 292 141— Enlarged view of two adzes .. 292 142— Adzes, group 3 292 143— Coconut graters (tuai) group 4 292 143a Method of using coconut grater ( tuai) 292 144— Hollow-ground and rounded-surface adzes; shell chisels 292 145— Toki uli and tupe fatu 292 146— Weight for fowling line (atau) 292 147— Boy setting a malei .. 292 148— Method of using tattooing instruments 292 149— Example of ear-lobe distension 292 150— Shrine, Te Afu o Punga 292 151— Oval enclosure on north side of Te Afu o Punga 292 152— Old-style grave 292 153— A back-rest (pale) 316 Text F igures.