The Clarksburg telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1874-1926, 1902-03-14
THE TELEG CIR .
rnInAr. nAacn i, laog.
HUMAN HEAD HUNTERS.

iThs savasss e relynesia stin Ply
Th6 MorFihle Trade.
IN the scarce known Islands Ok the
Pacific sea New Guinea. Boene0.
Ceram. GilOlo and others too nuiher,
Gus to mepHon-m man sim exists In the
prameval STARE, ana that most horrible
81 practices head limiting. is still In
dulged in ilspite OF all efforts of vari.
GUS governments and missions as well
as philanthropic societies who have
come in contact with the people.
Just as tho scalp lock on the belt OF
the young buck Indian was token OF
manhood, 50 the CORY head impaled o
tail pcle. over the hut Of the would be
young warrior, Papnan or Dayak. pro
claims 10 all the prcwess of the youth,
henceforth a man and eligible for the
council and the woolng Of the maidens.
II is immaterIal how the trophy be OBJ
TIMED whether by ambuscade or in
fair battle. Generally it is the former.
The candidate for martial honors sim
ply waits his chance by night in some
neighboring village as craftily and pa
tiently as a leopard on the prowl. the
kris or a poisoned arrow does the work
swiftly and silently. and the severed
head has ample time to cool before the
deed is discovered and calls for retri-
button.
Thus an incessant vendetta and car
mage go on, and only by living in in.
accessible forests and strongly stock
AIDED places is it possible at all for
the tribes to save themselves from an
Initiation. or the vast island CONT
nent of New Guinea the western or
Dutch part is the worst looked after.
and it often happens that numerous
raiding parties in their great war ca
noes come swooping down the coast
before the northwest monsoon and
carry death and desolation into the
comparatively quiet British portion
around the mighty Fly river. opposite
Torres strait BY the time the news
is carried 10 Thursday island and the
gunboat starts away in pursuit 1t is
generally TOO late. and the marauders
have vanished.
The writer was present once mt the
capture of war party, and forty
eight heads were taken from the en-
noes. Hanging and deportation to pc
nal servitudc seem to he but Il slight
deterrent for the terror recnrs almos,
MS regularly us plague of locusts.
These Papuns are IA hardy. warlike
people and expert bowmen. and they
rely on their skill with this potent
weapon solely nsfng their clubs for
the dispatch of wounded foes.
The Dayaks of Borneo and their
neighbors. on the other hand. are in
favor of the "sumpitan" or blowpipe.
shooting little diminutive but very cum
ningly poisoned arrows. The tsumpi-
tan" has often spear head attached
to the outer end. like n bayonet on n
muskct For close fighting they rely
on the dreaded ''parang," a heavy. hol-
low ground broadsword about two feet
long, with the handle often carved OF
ivory and ornamented with gold and
pearls, the wooden scabbard covered
with human skin and hair.
They count him poor warrior who
cannot sever a head clean with one
blow delivered backhanded. Even in n
mountainous part of the Malay PENN
sula, north Of Aalacca. in the Dind-
ings and Hegri Sembilan. there Is to
this day remnant tribe OF head hunt
crs called the Sa- Xxi.