I Supped With The Great "Buli" That Evening, And We Fared Sumptuously
On My Duck, River Oysters And All Sorts Of Native Dishes.
We were
waited upon by two warriors in full war paint, and the "Buli's" young
and pretty wife, shining with coconut oil all over her body, sat by me
and fanned me.
The "Buli" was an aristocratic-looking old fellow with
a large nose and a very haughty look. He is a very important chief,
but knew no English, and we carried on our conversation through the
medium of Masirewa. He spoke in a kind of mumble, with a very thick
voice. Once when he had been mumbling worse than usual there was a
kind of restrained titter from someone in the crowd at the back. The
"Buli" heard it, and slowly turning his head he transfixed the crowd
with his piercing gaze for many seconds amid a dead silence. I wondered
afterwards if anything ever happened to the unfortunate one who was
so easily amused. I learned that besides having an impediment in
his speech, the "Buli" was also paralyzed in one leg. I Put up in a
different hut, the "Buli" apologizing for his hut being crowded with
the influx of visitors.
I watched a "meke-meke" or native dance that evening in which about a
dozen girls covered with oil took part. There was a sound of revelry
the rest of the night, for there was feasting and dancing in several
huts, and discordant chanting and the hum of many voices followed
me into my dreams. The next morning I went out shooting pigeons in
some thick pathless woods about two miles away, and I also shot some
flying foxes which I gave to my companions, as the Fijians consider
them a great delicacy, as do many Europeans. These woods were full of
pineapples, which in places barred our way. Many of them were ripe,
and I found they possessed a fine flavour.
In the afternoon the ceremonies were continued, the "Buli" sending
for me to sit by him in the doorway of his hut to watch them. First
about forty women with "tapa" cloth wound around their bodies went
through various evolutions, swaying their arms about and chanting in
their usual discordant manner. They then unwound the "tapa" from their
bodies and threw it in a heap on the ground, following this by more
manoeuvres. About twenty men came into the square, some with their
faces blacked and their bodies stained red with some pigment, and
wearing only aprons of coconut strings, with bracelets of leaves on
their arms and carved pigs' tusks hanging from their necks. They went
through some splendid dancing, falling down on the ground and bouncing
up again like india-rubber balls. They sang, or rather chanted, all the
time, and so did a kind of chorus of men who beat on wood and bamboo,
while the dancers danced round them in circles, and squares, and then
bent backward, nearly touching the ground with their heads. As they
danced they kept splendid time, with their arms, legs and heads.
Then amid shrill yells and cries from the crowd, another procession
approached from the far end of the village in single file. First came
several men with spears, which they shook on the ground every now and
then, shaking their bodies at the same time in a fierce manner. Behind
them in single file came a lot of women, each bearing a. rolled-up
mat, which they threw down in a heap. These mats are made from the
dried "pandanus" leaf. Then several men appeared bearing enormous Fiji
baskets full of large rolls of food wrapped up in leaves, also smaller
baskets made of the fresh leaves of the crimson DRACAENA, also full of
food. From the enormous number of baskets, the food supply was enough
to feed a large multitude. They were all put down together by the mats.
Then there was dead silence, in which you could almost have heard
the proverbial pin drop, and an oldish man stepped forward and stood
by the mats and baskets, his body wound round with "tapa" till it
stuck out many feet from his body. The crowd broke silence with an
ear-piercing yell. He then spoke, and was interrupted from time to time
with cries of approval or the reverse, and sometimes loud laughter,
while the "Buli," sitting by me, every now and then shouted out,
or broke into a childish giggle. Then the speaker uttered a lot
of short sentences very fast, and every one present said "Venaka"
(good) at the end of each sentence. Then the old man unwound the
"tapa" around him and threw it on the mats, as did others.
Silence again, and I began to think all was over, but suddenly there
was another shrill sort of yell from the crowd, and from the back of
our hut, amid a tremendous uproar from all present and the beating of
"lalis" (drums), appeared a procession of about fifty warriors in their
usual picturesque get-up, all brandishing large war-clubs. They paraded
into the square in very stately fashion, singing in their curious and
savage discords, and then went through some grand dances, keeping
wonderful time with their clubs and bodies, and from time to time
giving forth a loud yell which was really thrilling. They next rushed
backward and forward brandishing their clubs and killing an imaginary
foe, and then clapped their hands together in even time. Then off
came the "tapa" from around them, and the heap was made still larger.
Another yell from the crowd. Then silence, followed by more speaking,
and every now and then a deep "Ah-h" from all present, which sounded
like distant thunder and was most impressive. Then all the people
clapped their hands and chanted a few words in low suppressed voices,
and the ceremony, lasting between four or five hours, was over. From
time to time a man would approach the "Buli" and fall down on all
fours and clap his hands before he could speak.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 14 of 59
Words from 13203 to 14222
of 59060
