friends with a prolonged and impressive sniff. They touch noses and sniff, and then smell the hand and the garment of the superior.

"Children by adoption " is strangely expressive in isles where every family has adopted children. The term "brothers" includes nephews and cousins in Samoa as in Judea. "Endless genealogies," and reverence for ancestry, are equally marked features in both races.

"Take up thy bed and walk" is easily understood, where a pile of soft mats is the bed of the highest chief.

"They cast off their clothes, and threw dust in the air" is a Samoan expression of great anger. The expressions descriptive of mourning for the dead in Syria might have been written in the South Seas. "They rent their clothes and cut themselves." "They disfigure their faces." Even so, those strange islanders deliberately cut their faces with sharks' teeth and other sharp instruments, and bruised their heads with stones in token of grief. "Cut off thine hair and take up a lamentation;" "Make great wailing for the dead;" "They mourned for him thirty days; "They ate the offerings of the dead;" They fast "till the sun be down," all exactly describe Samoan custom. Further, "They made a very great burning for him." (Here they made great bonfires in honour of the dead and also burned their own flesh with firebrands.)

The custom alluded to by the man of Mount Ephraim, who spoke to his mother of "the shekels of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou cursedst," had its counterpart in heathen Samoa, where a man would sit down and deliberately invoke curses on an unknown thief, praying that rats might eat his fine mats and cloth; that fire might blast his eyes and those of his god; that the shark might devour him, or the thunder slay him; or that at least he might be afflicted with sores and ulcers. Even to this day you may sometimes observe a tiny square of matting, with strips of white tappa, hanging from a fruit-tree, or a few reeds stuck into the ground and tied together at the top (clam-shells being buried beneath them), or some similar mark which appeals to the

superstitious fear of the possible thief, warning him of the curses that will attach to whoever breaks the taboo. I have seen this identical custom in many lands, from Ceylon eastward.

A suspected thief was put upon oath in presence of the chiefs. Some venerated object was brought from the temple-a sacred stone, a trumpet-shell, or a cocoa-nut shell, which ranked as a divining-cup—and the accused, laying his hand on this object, had to pray that the gods would slay him if he spoke falsely. If he swore by a holy stone, a handful of grass was laid upon it, to signify that the doom of the false swearer would include his household, and that all his kindred would perish, and the grass grow on the site of their dwelling.

With reference to war customs. "The Philistine cursed David by his gods." "Curse ye Meroz, "Curse ye Meroz, . . . because they came not to the help of the Lord." So would a company of Samoan chiefs sit in conclave, and pray that the gods would curse those who refused to help in war. "Let his house be made a dunghill." "They shall bring out the bones out of their graves." "Fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water." All these were literal features in Samoan warfare. "Lay ye the heads in two heaps at the entering in of the gate," was also quite a natural direction. The description of the songs of the Jewish women in honour of the victor, when "the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands,

And David his ten thousands,"

might have been written of Samoan women describing the deeds of their warriors, and thereby often stirring up bitter anger and jealousies.

With regard to weapons, the "sling and stone," the "smooth stone of the brook," the " arrows, . the poison whereof drinketh up my spirit," exactly describe those of the Pacific; while the description of Saul encamped under a tree, "having his spear in his hand," is a true picture of any fine old South Sea chief. Further, it is said, "The trumpeters stood by the king;" and though the trumpets of the Pacific are only perforated shells, the blast blown through them in honour of a chief, or to

rally warriors in time of war, is sufficiently piercing to rouse the dead.

The crown and the bracelet worn by King Saul in battle seem most natural adornments to these chiefs, whose bracelets and crowns of nautilus shell attracted our admiration at their council of war. As our Lord spoke of unclean spirits walking through dry places, seeking rest, so these islanders believe that unquiet spirits roam at large in the forest, and they propitiate them by offerings of food.

In the New Hebrides, Dr Turner met with a curious illustration of that strange history of Elisha giving his staff to Gehazi, and bidding him lay it on the face of the sick child. The staff of the New Hebrides was a polished stick of black iron-wood, which was the representative of a god, whose ministering priest was one of the disease-makers. When summoned to attend a case of sickness, this sacred staff was carried to the sick man's room, and the priest, leaning upon it, pronounced certain charmed words, after which recovery was considered certain.

In Samoa and other groups, all disease was supposed to be the work of malignant wizards, therefore to them the friends of the sick applied for healing, or at least for counsel, even as Ahaziah sent his messengers to the priests of the god of Ekron to learn whether he would recover of his sickness.

For the healing of the sick, as well as conferring honour and personal comfort, "anointing with oil" was as familiar in Judea as in Samoa, "Thou anointest my head with oil," might be said by any honoured guest in these isles; while "oil to make him of a cheerful countenance" was equally requisite. St James's directions for the healing of the sick by the prayers of the Church elders, and anointing with oil, literally describe the course pursued in various parts of the Pacific-as, for instance, in the Tokelau isles, where the friends of a sick man send for the priest of the disease-making god, who comes, and dipping his hand in oil, passes it gently over the sufferer, offering prayers for his recovery. An important part of the ceremony, however, not prescribed by St James, is the offering of fine mats to the priest.

These are but a few of the multitude of illustrations collected

MARRIAGE SPECULATIONS.

105

by Dr Turner.1 There are many more, such as the occasional custom of embalming the dead, the compulsory observance of the rite of circumcision, contempt for nations who neglect it, marriage customs, the punishment of death for adultery, the law of divorce; the singularly patriarchal law which obliged each bride to be accompanied by one or more handmaids, taken from among her near relations, and who filled the place of secondary wives-so that a chief who owned three or four wives, possessed such a large and troublesome harem, that the majority were generally allowed to return to their parents; and lastly, the custom that a widow must become the wife of her deceased husband's brother, or, failing him, of his nearest male relative.

The plurality of wives appears, singularly enough, to have been little more than a business transaction, in which the principal had very small interest. The marriages of a high chief were simply so many speculations in fine mats, which the bride brought as her dower, and which the bridegroom was expected to hand over to his principal supporters, or head-men, who had arranged the match, and provided the feast. These men were the bankers of the tribe in whose hands its property accumulated; and of course they lost no means of adding to it, as well as of strengthening clan connections by multiplying marriages. Hence this question formed one of the chief difficulties of the early missionaries.

It

This very practical reason for polygamy also accounted in a great measure for the curious custom of adopting the children of living parents, which prevailed to so extraordinary an extent. appears that the child was really little more than an excuse for a constant exchange of property, its true parents constantly sending gifts of tonga-that is, native property-to the adoptive parents; while these as often sent back goodwill-offerings of oloa-i.e., foreign goods.

When the students are considered sufficiently advanced, they are occasionally sent to help the teacher of one of the neighbouring villages, and practise the art of preaching, ere being appointed

1 Nineteen Years in Polynesia. By the Rev. George Turner, London Missionary Society.

to the sole charge of a congregation.

Of course only the well

tried men are promoted to the rank of native minister.

The scale of ecclesiastical pay is certainly not such as to induce men to enter the service of the Church for filthy lucre's sake. A house, a certain amount of food, and a small annual contribution in kind, the value of which in no case exceeds £10, and is generally much less, is certainly not an undue share of loaves and fishes, especially as no agent of the mission is allowed to engage in any manner of trade, or other secular occupation, beyond the cultivation of his own garden. The annual contribution of his parishioners consists probably of half-a-dozen mats, value from 2s. to 6s.; 30 to 40 yards of calico, value 6d. a yard; some pieces of native cloth, worth 1s. each; a larger piece of tappa, for a curtain; a shirt, a fowl, a duck, two pigs, and a few nondescript coins of various nations and small value.

I have heard so many unfair and untrue insinuations made by white traders, and quoted without further inquiry by many travellers, to the effect that many missionaries are in reality grasping and avaricious traders, that it may be as well to mention that such false accusations are invariably made by men who find their unjust gains somewhat lessened by the presence of men whose standard of barter is more honourable. If a native comes to work for a missionary, or brings him vegetables or fish for sale, and receives in payment a larger piece of cloth, or a knife-both of better quality than he would receive from the trader-he naturally learns something of the fair value of his work, or his goods.

Moreover, one of the first proofs of vitality given by these island churches (as in every healthy branch of the Christian Church) has always been a readiness to contribute, not only to the general expenses of the mission in their own country, but also to sending forth teachers to the isles which are still steeped in heathenism. As it has been most convenient to make these payments in kind, each district has collected its own offerings, chiefly in the form of measures of cocoa-nut oil; and these contributions have been annually conveyed to the home market by the mission ship on her return cruise. Hence the nickname of "Palm-oil