The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1944-04-27
Describes
New Guinea Natives
Continued from Page ID

Inc clOtnlng problem is simple
because the men wear nothing more
than a loin cloth or skirt; the wom-
en- wear just a skirt, and the chill
dren let mother nature care for
their needs. These loin cloths and
skirts are made of brightly col
ored calico, generally red, and grass
skirts are seldom seen except dur
ing cepmonies.
Generally speaking, the women
are we'll developed, and reach ma
turity at about IA, but age rapidly
The average life of the native is
approximately IS years. At Ia or
Is, the girls are married to some
eligible man, of the same age, and
it is customary for the groom to
give pigs, produce, or other articles
of value to the girls father or
brothers, in payment for her.
To any native. a pig is the most
valuable possession in the world
and the first thing to remember
when around a village, is to leave
pigs and women strictly alone, I'M
less some satisfactory arrangement
has been made with the owners. The
traffic of women is rare, especially
between the blacks and whites.
Their gardens of paw paws, ba-
nanas. sweet potatoes, melons, and
the like, are also off limits to ev-
eryone except the owners. They will
cheerfully "sell' YOU whatever you
desire, though, and if you take any
thing. when the owner is gone it is
customary to leave payment tied to
stick, where tire produce was TAX
en- from. Otherwise he will follow
you and exact payment in his own
way. No other native will touch
what you left, because they are abb
.solutely honest and trustworthy, es-
pecially among themselves.
Upon entering village, you
might find bunch of grass tied
to a tree, or any number of odd
things of the same nature, but they
are taboos of some sort, and laugh
ing at them, or touching them, will
lead to trouble, frequently Of a
serious nature.
The secret of popularity and ap-
proval is to 60 straight to the head
man when you enter village, pay
ing no attention to anyone else.
State your business to him, and
while waiting for his decision, talk
to the old men and notice the chill
dren. That really makes a hit, if you
are careful not to overdo it. FaWn-
ing is froWned upon. Shortly. the
head man will conduct you all over
the village, if he approves of you.
show you everything about it. and
bring out the women and children
for your approval. You may even
watch games, dances, household ac-
tivities, and anything else that &C.
ours, SO long as you don't butt in.
The women like to be noticed and
really put on show, demonstrating
their ability to do manv things, but
becoming too engrossed in them is
not good etiquette. To see the en-
tire village sketchily is the usual
procedure, to begin with, and then
you are on your own for as long as
you wish to remain. You may help
yourself to whatever is offered, pro-
vided you pay for it.. An invitation
to eat, however, requires no pay
ment unless you take an uneaten
portion of it with you when you
leave The bill of fare is often a
bit difficult to stomach, but the
fruits are wonderful and just
taste of the cooked conglomeration
is sufficient to satisfy the hosts.
To sing to them, applaud their
singing and dancing, and ask for
more, sets you on top of the heap
and you are adopted so to speak.
Some Of the men have voices that
would put Lawrence Tibbets and
Paul Robson to shame, but the wom-
en- are comparatively poor singers,
even though their enthusiasm and
efforts are equal to the men.
Peculiar to most primitive peo-
Piles is the fact that the women do
the heavy work. The village up
keep is their responsibility, and
when moving they carry everything,
including their babies, in a net bag
hung from a strap over the head
The men lead the procession, and
few bring up the rear to act as
guards against marauding raids Of
other tribes.
An amusing sight, which indicates
the Importance of the pig to the
natives. was young mother, who
frequently walked along the road
from the village with little
striped pig nursing right along with
her own baby
Whenever possible the natives go
to the missionary schools where they
learn to read, write, and speak
English. Until recently just the men
and boys went but now the young
girls and women also attend. Most
Of them learn very quickly and a
great percentage of the Papuan ma
tives can speag English passably
well. Some of the more adaptable
ones are given course in first aid
and are highly respected by their
charges. A first aid man means as
much to the natives as our most
accomplished physicians and sur
geons do to us, and they delight
in being called Doc
In the privacy of their villages,
the natives are very affectionate
and demonstrative Of their fond
ness for each other, but white man
will seldom see ii unless he is adopt
ed by the tribe Kindness and COM
plete understanding Of their habits,