New-York tribune., 1910-02-27

ACROSS PAPCA- Being an Account of Voyage |
Round. and a March Across. the Territory of
one Kenneth Mackay. With forty plates from
photographs and folding map. Syo. pp. XVI
1S2. Charles SCrihner's Sons
NJ. Walker is apologetic in the preface TO has
book. The latter is based largely upon letters
home and since he took no pains 10 be sci
,ntifc~ IN :hese communications he seems TO
think that he has nothing of great value to
oee- 10 the reader. As a matter Of fact he
has produced = volume Of impressions as inter
,s-5nS a. they are modest. . narrative Of South
-. travel which i the more appealing through
-rs very artlessnoss which the author woa:d
dsr~ecate We gather that he is a wanderer
fa~ Ihe love Of wandering, aud, incidentally, an
enthusiastic bird collector. With the proverbal
Eee6 duck Of such types. he always falls on his
ferc and finds himself in the right company
Wien he visits Fiji he is promptly made ct
Ho~2e hy native prince. who gives him war
cab Il-aj had KILLED great many people" and
mats with him in a charming vein Of intimacy.
Ir lis sketch q the man, Ratu Lala. he gives
rs . Nivid sense of life in the South Seas. Of
IDEAS q royalty throwing q fantastic glamour
over primitive barbarism. His friend once SUI
fered = brief period OF deportation at the hands
81 The British government because he had pun
ished woman who had offended him b. peg
slrE her down ants nest first snearing
~, more readily eat her" But II needed white
-a.u 70 correct him for this little performance.
T-nctee-vod bE- them. he might cheerfUy have
done am Ihing he liked MI Walker has this
l.aessge on Fatu Lalas power:
f~ people were terribly afraid Of him and when
es-r -reF passed him a. he sat cn hIs veTzandah
t.eE would almost 20 down on al fours- he leld
Haw on one occasion when he was sitting on
th4 -IFer veranda of the clubhouse in Suva, with
$50 ~ rs $50 , ans ] - I'm ing near I. sale ~
- hello +er- ~ lr4f
t-r e MS boz was CONSIDERED sacred Gv his
people I'D It-E dared not touch him H de-
.--,5 90 ne that he would have been killed i a
vai-s nan had nor arrived lust in time He was
s.- fond q telling me- this story and alwaEs
servants -rtilieo me with . great ceal OF respect
and Whenever they PASSED me in the house theE
t.,-6~ almost touching TIE ground
80 r--rn Of Bagdad could have had sublfn--
f.-l-- --au tllis obscure ruler Of sayageS.
When -s first TOOK hand in q game Of cricket
and fortune went against him he calmly pulled
-s. -aa S-urn-s and carried them of the ground.
,--=ezet was -henceforrh tabooed in his little
pocket realm Nr. Walker declined q certain
5oarney across country because ms luggage in
p.loeG box TOO large and heavy TO be carried.
Ratu LaIa tool that as an offensive reflection
o- his r-nce-y resources said ne: IF ten Of
ms subjects cannot carry your box I command
,r- hundred % dc so. and i one hundred OF
jay subjects cannot carry your box tell fifteen
Thousand of nv subjects TO do So" This was
s,a n-aeE fcr the EngIishrlan's gravity, and he
".t- <, laugh out Of himself wheFeupon +he
prince sulkiy smut himself up in his room dur
lr= ras -est Of his visitors stay.
3T- Walker had good fishing and hunting IN
FIJI H. collected . number of interesting
li-rl~. and liz had opportunities to observe the
dances and drinking ceremonies OF the natives;
l4, t.s most arreSJing pages are those which
rlea- o+ canuibaIisrn- Though the practice IS
virtually extinct in Fiji he met numbers OF
natives Who had tasted human flesh, and gath
I'd that they would eat more Of II if they
cared. An Interview which he had with three
,z-ear-ilaIs through his Interpreter. Masireva.
he thus reoorts-
f5e f-e- asked them how they liked human flesh.
-r.E all shouted 'Ntua11z- Neraka - tgoodt
Like natives Of New Guinea they said II was
-s- palms OF the hands were the greatest
oaIa9l=- and that women and children tasted best
and especially good They
Ru.-E never . VINO had died . natural
good. though not 50 good as
-. man. one Of them had tasted certain
Ar . and The meat ou las legs was very lat
I.-s c-r---d his feet of above the boots. which
lHe- -rr---- part Of him. and they boiled his
and boots days, they did not like the
-sS-- - boots They often kept some OF their
prisoners and ta--eu-C them Up and when the day
t-l- fU- E-.uE L the women OF NaTlOSl :
.-- -0 -a-e him down 10 the large stone by the
r.-- where they cut him open alive and his
Lastly. ! asked i they would Stlll like
9. ~ = they got the chance and they were
AFRAID - being TunIsled and tlere was no