A Limited Vocabulary Means That Each Word Shall Be Overworked.
Thus, Fella, In Beche De Mer, Means All That Piecee Does And Quite A
Bit More, And Is Used Continually In Every Possible Connection.
Another Overworked Word Is Belong.
Nothing stands alone.
Everything is related.
The thing desired is indicated by its
relationship with other things. A primitive vocabulary means
primitive expression, thus, the continuance of rain is expressed as
rain he stop. SUN HE COME UP cannot possibly be misunderstood,
while the phrase-structure itself can be used without mental
exertion in ten thousand different ways, as, for instance, a native
who desires to tell you that there are fish in the water and who
says FISH HE STOP. It was while trading on Ysabel island that I
learned the excellence of this usage. I wanted two or three pairs
of the large clam-shells (measuring three feet across), but I did
not want the meat inside. Also, I wanted the meat of some of the
smaller clams to make a chowder. My instruction to the natives
finally ripened into the following "You fella bring me fella big
fella clam - kai-kai he no stop, he walk about. You fella bring me
fella small fella clam - kai-kai he stop."
Kai-kai is the Polynesian for food, meat, eating, and to eat: but
it would be hard to say whether it was introduced into Melanesia by
the sandalwood traders or by the Polynesian westward drift. Walk
about is a quaint phrase.
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