NATIVE CUSTOMS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23276, 20 February 1939, Page 11

NATIVE CUSTOMS

TONGAN VILLAGE LIFE NEW ZEALANDER'S STUDY IMPACT OF CIVILISATION -r" After spending two months living in a hut at the village of Pangai, at Vavau, in the Tongan Group,, and studying closely the habits and customs of the natives, Dr. E. Beaglehole, lecturer in psychology at Victoria University College, Wellington, and his wife returned to New Zealand by the Matua yesterday. •Dr. Beaglehole said that previous accounts of Tongan society had been written chiefly about the principal families. His wife and he felt that these writings presented only a half of the life of the Tongans and that there was still much to be learned about the common people as a whole. They were also interested in studying how much change had gone on in Tongan society because of the impact of European civilisation. " We found many departures from the old type of life," continued Dr. Beaglehole. "The people at present are suffering severely from economic troubles. They have been taught to desire certain things that money can buy—clothing, tobacco and European foods —but with tho very low price of copra to'-dav they are finding difficulty in purchasing these. But by and large they have worked out a pretty happy adjustment to the impact of modern civilisation.

"They are a Polynesian people, and there is a similarity with the Maoris in racial stock, language and customs. I feel, however, that the Tongan is in a much happier position to-day than the Maori. The Tongan social life has not been broken down to the same extent as has that of the Maori. There are few landless Tongans and so there is no problem of starvation." Dr. Beaglehole said his wife and he had a hut built for them, and their food consisted of kumaras, bananas, coconuts, yams, and sometimes pork and chicken. Taken all round, it was a fairly good diet. Their chief concern was during a hurricane when they expected at any moment to have their hut blown to pieces. Accompanied by his wife, Dr. Beaglehole left for "Wellington by train last night.