Adventures in New Guinea James Chalmers

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not stay if they were to be constantly threatening. In the afternoon the
chiefs came up, and I promised to visit them all. My head aches a
little. Had I been killed, I alone should have been to blame, and not
the natives. The Delena natives say: "Well, Tamate, had you not been
here, many of us would have been killed, and the remainder gone to Naara,
never to return." There is some pleasure in being of a little use even
to savages.
The next Sunday we had a splendid service. All the young fellows dressed
for it by painting their faces. It was amusing and interesting to hear
them interpret all I said from Motuan into Loloan; and when I attempted
to use a Lolo word, they corrected me if I wrongly pronounced or
misplaced it. After service we had all the children and young men to
school. A goodly number have got a pretty fair hold of letters. Some
would beat native cloth, and Kone grew very angry, and, because they
would not listen to him, threatened to pull up his recently buried child.
I sent word that he must on no account do that, and must say no more to
the men beating cloth; that by-and-by the people will become enlightened,
and then they will understand the Sabbath. Poor Kone's idea is that now
and at once they should understand.
On June 6th, I once more left Delena to proceed to Maiva, and, although a
heavy sea was running at the time, landed safely about eleven a.m. at
Miria's village, on the Maiva coast. I saw a number of people with
_karevas_ (long fighting sticks), and wondered what was the matter. I
said to my old friend Rua, who met me on the beach, "Are you going to
fight?" "No, no; it is all right now." I gave him a large axe for
Meauri and party to cut wood for a house at their village. Meauri and a
number of followers soon made their appearance: it seemed strange that
they should have come down so soon. Miria, the chief, being away cutting
wood, went to Meauri's village, passing through several seaside villages.