Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-06-25
SOUTH PACIFIC A
Tho Wars, Dress, Rites and Social Habit
of the South Scs flanders.

\ IL ~
of the South Sc,s Islanders.
The inhabitants of the South Pacns
coast islands are in many respects
strange human beings, andnot the least
singular fact in connection with them
is their manner and custom OF life
| both in the domestic circle and when
battling with other tribes. Some six
thousand miles from this city is the
Marshall group of islands, the inhabit-
ants of which arc conspicuous for their
warlike ~propensities, great size and
gigantic strength, together with other
traits of strongly original character,
and regarding which little or nothing
is known in the civilized world. few
days ago the t~hree-masted schooner
John Hancock returned froma trading
cruise to the GLIDE and Marshall
groups, and the master of the vessel,
Captain William Chapman, secured a
valuable collection of curiosities in the
shape of war-clubs. spears. boat-pad-
dies, shells. etc. With Captain Chip
man, as a passenger, was a young man,
S. T. Gray, of this city, who, during
his visit to the islands, gained much
interesting information concerning the
islands and their inhabitants.
The natives are large and powerful.
They are not unlike inc New ,Zealan1
ers, being Of a dark, copper-cC.''
complexion. In addition to a natural
inclination for warfare they are very
~treacherous and in some portions of
The group are cannibals. Their main
occupation is like that of the Indian,
loating and picking cocoanuts, which
are prepared and shipped to this our
try with considerable profit. When
not engaged i'll harvesting the cocoa
nut crop or loafing about on the ocean
in q dug-out canoe, the Marshall
Islander puts in his time carving gro
tesfue figures on INC paddles and in
whiting out Misunderstanding war
clubs, spears, rrows and other simila,
weapons. In carving they display
great ingenuity and while the figures
as shown on the paddles are not exact
ly pretty, they are very intricate and
are not unlike similar work done in
China.
The figures on the paddle represent
idols and, according to the Islanders
belief, if upon his boat paddle there is
carved the figure Of an idol he can
safely navigate anywhere. In this con-
nection it may be well to state that
these Islanders are the boldest anc
most skillful navigators in the
Pacific. They make voyages EXTEND
ing over many months, trusting to
Providence. or rather rain, to supply
them with fresh water. They navigate
by means of q small chart composed Of
small sticks tied together and repre-
senting the position of the various
islands as regards the point Of depart~
ure.
In warfare their weapons consist OF
clubs, spears and arrows, all of which
they use with the greatest skill and &C.
curacy. The clubs are made of IRON
wood and are very heavy. They are
of various shapes, the most murderous
being the gnarled root Of the ironwood
tree. The other clubs arc of lighter
character. The arrows are made of
light bamboo, the points being of IRON
wood. The spears are also made out
of the same kind Of timber and run
down to a fine point, which is tipped
with Il poisonous preparation. The
feather end is fantastic and gaudy, y
regular bouquet Of feathers pluckcd
from the rarest birds being used and
blended together with a strict regard
for colors.
The Islanders, particularly in the
vicinity of New Ireland, have no par
ticular love for the whites, and it is not
an infrequent occurrence to find some
settler lying in front Of his door dead.
1t is the work of some native, who,
having become offended at the white
man, has lain in wait and killed him.
The natives do not tolerate polyg-
amy, and after marriage the women
are famous for their fidelity. Asort of
a slave traffic exists throughout the
islands, though, and single women
can be purchased for servants for Il
mere trillc. Clothing is a thing I'M
known in most Of the islands. In and
about New Britain and Ireland, how
ever, the ~breech-cloth is uscd.-San
Francisco Examiner.