SOLOMON ISLANDS

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLVIII, Issue 291, 6 November 1928, Page 2

SOLOMON ISLANDS

MISSIONARY’S RECOLLECTIONS.

ADDRESS AT LUNCHEON CLUB.

Rev. F. A. Crawshaw, now pastor of tho Baptist Church, Palmerston North, who was for some years a missionary in the Solomon Islands, was tho speaker at tho Citizens’ Luncheon Club to-day., when he told his auditors of life in the islands. Mr J. R. Cunninghame presided over a good attendance. I-II.LLY ISLANDS. In opening, Mr Crawshaw said that the islands were fairly high, and the hills, heavily wooded, ran close to the water’s edge. In the days when traders could buy land for a song it was an understood thing that the land bought extended back from the shore for only about 1000 yards, the ground beyond that distance being too hilly for plantations. The timbers were very heavy and solid, and tho trees grew very thickly, but the speaker did not regard the timber industry as possible ot establishment there on a paying basis, owing to the difficulties of transport and access. * ... The natives were, except near white settlements, almost naked. Clothing was not a good thing for natives as they would wear clothes until they dropped off, not changing them. The garments would get wet through in heavy tropical rain, and allowed to dry while till being wont. This resulted in pneumonia and other diseases, and a consequent decline in population. „„ FOND OF.ORNAMENTS. The natives were very fond of orna,mentation and wore numerous bangles and charms, made from sea shells and tortoise shell. A favourite charm was one made to hang from the lobe of the ear, which was pierced. At an early age a small hole would be made in the lobe, and this would be increased until as time went on there would be quite a large hole. Piercing the nostils was also a practice, in the same manner as we pierced the noses of. bulls and pigs. Having no trousers pockets, the. natives found their fuzzy hair very useful for carrying odds and ends, such as pocket knives, matches, etc. Matches were very scarce, but there were a few to bo had. MEANS OF TRAVEL. Travel along the coast or from island to island in the group was by means of canoes, and very slow, being at the ra e of only two or three mi es an hour. The natives travelled very light taking hardly any luggage—indeed, they had few goods which they could readily transpor . In the Solomons there were_ a numbu of short, rapid rivers, infested with crocodiles These beasts were disliked by tin. natives, but the speaker had never heard of a Solomon Islander being eaten by a crocodile. The creatures preferred dogs and pigs, and, it was said would not attack a man unless in self-defence. From January to March nor west gales blew fairly regularly, and there would bo onlv one safe anchorage on the whole «oa*t. so long sea journeys were dangerous, liclal rips made it difficult for the rowers who would not work too hard. The natives had a sort of trade union understanding, and rowed in shifts. The longer the journey, the more rowers had to be taken. A traveller found it wise to travel at night or in the early mornings to avoid the heat. There was no winter—it was all summer. The nearest approach to the Solomon Islands climate that the speaker had found in New Zealand was in tho Christchurch Winter Gardens, when the heat had been turned on, and the tropical plants ju-t hosed down. ANTHROPOPHAGY COMMON. When the speaker had lived in the Solomons, most of the.natives had been cannibals, and there wore very few- villages on San Christobel where traders would dare to land. If they did land, it was heavily nrmed. When dealing with natives, it was .wise to smile and not show- any- fear. Jhe only meat that the natives had was the pig, worth a considerable amount and not eaten except at feasts. For the most part the stable diet was a vegetarian one-un less some stray trader were added as hor-de-oeuvre. A satisfying pudding was compounded from yams aild almonds. Breadfruit was also obtainable during tho first three months of the year, and had to he baked in an oven of hot stones. Cocoanuts were also plentiful. Shell money-, feather money and the eyeteeth from dogs wero the currency, each eye-tooth being worth sixpence. The animal was buried in tho sand to form a sort of dentist’s chair, and the teeth pulled out by crude dental methods.

Reaching a certain village in Santa Cruz Island one day, Mr Crawshaw had noticed that the natives had their hair bleached white in strips, the alternate black and white giving a very peculiar effect. On enquiring tile reason, the speaker had been told that they had recently lost some relatives who had been drowned at sea while fishing, and the bleaching of the hair waa mark of mourning. Air D. W. Low, voicing the club’s appreciation of Mr Crawshaw’s address, -ail that in the last few weeks club memberhad been treated to interesting talks on Burma, New Zealand and the Solomon Islands, with special reference to native life and customs. Such addresses gaw members, a wider scope for thought, and the speaker looked forward to the lime when better steamer services would bring the islands into closer contact with tlu civilised world.