Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1907-10-31
HUMAN HEAD HUNTERS.
rhs savagss OF Polynesia sim Ply
This Horrible Trade.


The savagss OF Polynesia stiu Ply
This Horrible Trade.
In the scarce known islands OF the
Pacific sea - New Guinea, Borneo.
Ceram, Gilolo and others too numer-
GUS to mention-men still exists In the
primeval state, and that most horrible
OF practices. head hunting. Is still in
dulged In in spite OF all efforts of vari-
Gus governments and missions as well
as philanthropic societies who have
come in contact with the people.
Just as the scalp lock on the belt OF
the young buck Indian was a token Of
manhood, so the CORY head impaled on
tall pole over the hut OF the would be
young warrior, Papuan or Dayak, pro-
claims to all the prowess Of the youth,
henceforth a man and eligible for the
council and the wooing of the maidens.
1t is immaterial how the trophy be OBJ
tanned, whether by ambuscade or In
fair battle. Generally 1t 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 incessaht 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 1t often happens that numerous
raiding parties in their great war en-
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 to Thursday island and the
gunboat starts away in pursuit 1t is
generally too late. and the marauders
have vanished
The writer was present once ut the
capture Of n war party, and forty
eight heads were taken from the ca
noes Hanging and deportation to pc
nal servitude seem to be but n slight
deterrent. for the terror recurs almost
as regularly as a plague OF locusts.
These Papuans are n hardy. warlike
people and expert bowmen, and they
rely on their skill with this potent
weapon solely, using 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 "sumpi
tan" has often a spear head attached
to the outer end, like bayonet on a
musket. For close fighting they rely
on the dreaded ''parang." a heavy, hoI-
low ground broadsword about two feet
long, with the handle often curved of
ivory and ornamented with gold and
pearls, the wooden scabbard covered
with human skin and hair.
They count him a poor warrior who
cannot sever a head clean with one
blow delivered backhanded. Even I'm a
mountainous part of the Malay PENN
sula. north OF Malacca. In the Dind-
ings and Hegri Sembilan. there is to
this day remnant tribe of head hunt
ers called the Sa-Ki.