A Trip to the South Seas.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume IX, Issue 13, 26 March 1892, Page 292

A Trip to the South Seas.

BY

BERTHA V. GORING.

(ILLUSTRATED BY MARY B. DOBIE.)

SI OK three or four days we had a thunderstorm L with heavy rain regularly every afternoon. ’ By-the-bye, the sponge cake that Mrs Lind- . berg made for us lasted some days. It had a J? man told off to carry it alone, until it grew 3 too small, and was tended as an object of great “ value. If rain threatened it was wrapped in banana leaves. By smoking them over a fire their brittleness goes, and they become quite flexible, and make useful waterproof covers. These are studies of the A.N.C., or as M. called them the * First South Sea Highlanders.’ With the tappa about them and twisted into high turbans, they were not unlike the real thing. On Monday, the 10th November, we started on an expedition down the Singatoka river. About a dozen men carried the baggage by land, and we four with Sitiveni (for we could not travel without our chaplain) went in the punt. We started early, meaning to land for breakfast in an hour or so, but we got so interested in Mr Marriott s wild duck shooting that we didn’t do so till near noon. We passed fine ranges of hills along our route, with bits of forest nestling in the ravines. The chief of a town we passed sent us down a present of cocoa-nuts. We reached the village of Tonga in the evening. It was very prettily situated at the foot of some jagged hills partially covered with trees, one of them, Matanavatu, having a sheer precipice of many hundred feet. We climbed to the top of it next day, and a very hot steep scramble it was. Mr Arthur Gordon had described it to us. He besieged a town that was perched on its summit when there was fighting going on there some four years before our visit. He told us how the evening before they took it there was such a curious effect from a thick mist gathered round the foot of the hill, with the light of the camp-fires gleaming here and there through it, and how, suddenly, a voice from the top, following a dead silence, cried, ‘To-morrow. Pool things, when it came it was not the ‘ To morrow ’ they had intended, for they were defeated and their town taken. e

didn't leave Tonga till the cool of the evening, only having a mile or two to walk to Nasautambu. Passing through a village on our way to it, a flag was Hying, which they very politely ‘ dipped ’ to uh as we went by. Next day we walked about ten miles to Beimana, the chief town of the district. The Mbuli belonging to it had met us at Tonga, and escorted us since. He regaled us with cocoanuts and sugar-cane upon our arrival, and afterwaids gave ns luncheon. He honoured M. and me by letting us have his own house, a very perfect little one. To sli >w how meek Fijian wives are, Mrs Mbuli was sitting with us when her lord entered. She at once got up and

went out in a crouching attitude to show her respect—out of her own house, too.

This is a party of old women bringing mangiti, and stooping to show respect. Beimana is a beautifully situated and fine town. It had had over seventy houses in it, but some

fifteen had been burnt by accident shortly before. We walked to camp next day, being a rather tiring tramp up hill and down of about ten miles, with many streams to cross, over which M. and I were carried. It poured with rain for the last hour, so we were glad to get in, but had been most fortunate in having fine weather till then. Next day I felt tired, so remained for the day in Dobie-town. I dressed and then lay inside my screen, where I could read in comfort safe from mosquitoes, flies, etc. The idea of being quiet, though, proved rather a fallacy, for our friend Sitiveni was giving a large breakfast party, about twenty teachers having come with a present of pigs, fruit, etc., for Mr Le Hunte and Mr Woodruffe. I came out from my screen to have prayers with them, after which they were most anxious I should partake of their dainties. They gave me two vakalolo (puddings wrapped up in banana leaves), one of taro, cocoanut, and sugar cane, the other of bananas stuffed with cocoanut. Both were very good. About noon they went into the camp, when I got a refreshing sleep before their return for another feast at thiee. It was rather a delicious idea for an invalid to have about twenty savages spending the day in her room and feeding her upon strange dishes. About four Mr Marriott sent me a suluka, and Mr Le Hunte a tumbler of egg-flip, so my prescriptions were varied, and at any rate did no harm, for I went to the camp for dinner. We were fortunate in having milk, there being several goats about the place. As a rule, we had none when away from civilized parts. Next day the others went for a pig-hunt, including Mr Woodruffe, so I was left in camp alone, and had serious thoughts of liberating a poor prisoner, who went clanking about with gyves, not like Eugene Aram, upon his wrists, but upon his ankles. He had, I believe, once tried to escape, which was the reason for his wearing them. I was not idle, however, for I ironed ten starched shirts of Mr Marriott’s. He came in about three, and the others followed an hour or two later in great spirits, having had fine sport, and speared some twenty pigs. We had some wet aftei noons, so put off starting on a fresh expedition until Wednesday, November 19th, when M., Mr Le Hunte, and our chaplain made up the party, leaving Mr Marriott, to our sorrow, in charge of the camp.

vv e nau a very nor ciiniu mr an hour or two, when we got into bush, but still ha<l to tramp up hill chiefly. This was the way we went up the steep bits — the luggage train we called it. Sitiveni brought up the rear, carrying his own baggage, which consisted of a tin cannister and his pillow slung on a bamboo. The Fiji pillow or kali is a piece of bamboo with two feet fixed on it. Fijian’s hair is too still' and frizzed out to permit of his using the ordinary down or feather pillow, and these are much cooler. We suffered a good deal from thirst on this day’s march, having only crossed one stream since our halt at a small town for luncheon. Our resting-place for the night was 2,000 feet

above the sea in the bush. There being no town, Mr Le Hu ite had sent a party of men on ahead to build a restinghouse for us and another for our dozen carriers. Fortunately they bad brought ip some large bamboos filled with water (the bucket of these regions), so we quickly made a billy-full of lemonade, which we drank with avidity. Our hotel for the night was a charming little hut made of banana leaves, a delicate little fringe of tight curls made from the centre leaf of the wild banana hanging over the doorway. We had, too, the most aesthetic illuminations here as well. A firefly first paid us a visit, and later we found some tiny phosphorescent toad stools, which we brought in as night lights. We had some good games at chess, I remember, both going and returning, at this place, Narata by name. Water being an article of value, we were only allowed ahont a pint for our toilette next morning, a banana leaf being the basin. At the first stream we came to the bamboos were filled for our refreshment by the way. At our halt for Inncheon we were joined by a young chief and one of his men from the town which we were to spend the night at. The last part of the journey was a long and precipitous descent. < >ur destination was the pretty little town of Naveiyaraki, on the banks of the Singatoka, the same river we had gone

down the week before, and which we were now going up. We were quite in amongst the. mountains. Here is the study of an old man we saw. We sat in a mbure in this village while the customary offering was being presented—yanggona root first, then pigs and yams for the

men, boiled chickens, bananas, and vakalolos for us. They always gave us the broth the chickens were boiled in, and it was very refreshing. It would be served in a bowl by itself, out of which we drank it. I must have eaten more chickens, I think, in two months than in all my life before. We were given the teacher’s house, as usual, but as lie had to wife to look after us Sitiveni was left in charge. He always hung our screen up for us, lighted our lamp and put it out at night, helped do up our bundles, etc., and took the greatest caie of us, the old dear ! We started

about noon next day, and had an hour’s scramble up the river, clambering over rocks, jumping from boulder to boulder, and often wading up to our knees in the water. We teached a charming little town called Dombui for luncheon. We first had cocoanuts, then the usual chicken, etc. It began to rain, so we sheltered till four, amusing ourselves with chess. When it cleared up we again began a scrambling journey up the river. While waiting in one place while Sitiveni and Mr

Le Hunte were trying to find a suitable ford for crossing, the river rose so rapidly that it became impassable, and we had to retrace our steps and journey to Nandrau, our next stage, by a road over the hills instead. Had we started earlier and crossed the river before the ‘ spate ’ came down (to use a north country term), we should have been in a nice plight, for the next ford was a worse one, and one could only travel by constantly fording the river, the banks being in places so precipitous. It was curious to see the change. As we had gone up we had admired the clearness of the water, which reflected the varied greens of the foliage along the banks. As we returned it was like pea soup, and what had been dry ground before was under water. Owing to all this delay, and the necessity for taking a longer route, we did not reach Nandrau till after seven o’clock. There had been no rain there, and the river was its normal size and colour. This was a large town, the chief one of the district. We were given a noble house belonging to the Mbuli, and all four inhabited it, M. and I having our tents pitched behind a screen of tappa. In this mbure was a splendid yanggona bowl of great size. The Mbuli values it so much that the house was built over it, and the doorways being too narrow to permit of its exit, it cannot be stolen. These bowls, of whatever size, are hollowed out of a solid piece of wood, the feet and all being in one piece. We spent the whole of Saturday and Sunday here. Each afternoon heavy rains and thunderstorms came on, and going out one evening from our house, I saw a newborn wateifall just opposite, of great height, and as fine as many famous ones in Switzerland or elsewhere, but its life was, of course, intermittent and uncertain. Next morning it was gone, only to reappear after the next downpour of some hours’ duration. We were fed like wild beasts here, food being pushed in at the small entrance at stated times. One day we had a tiny boiled sucking pig coiled round in a small bowl. The houses are very dark in these parts on account of Hies and mosquitoes. There was a very lovely bathing place near Nandrau. Mr LeHunte received amailonSnndaynightwhichnecessitated his getting to Mba within a given time, so we had to travel by forced marches. We left at 7 a.m. on Monday, the 23rd November, and reached the place we had lunched at before descending to Naveiyaraki. After that meal we pushed on to Narata, and spent the night in our bananaleaf hotel, passing a splendid view en route. We left Narata at seven, having had a slight repast of cocoa, banana, and biscuits, and reached camp at ten, Mr Marriott meeting us on the river bank and having breakfast ready for us. M. and I were busy finishing sulus for some (who had been kind to us in our travels, and we received as usual, a great many presents of native manufacture. I delighted one woman with a present of a silver thimble. Next day we managed to finish all and be ready to start on our first stage after dinner, thinking it better to make it by night than in the heat of the day ; besides, there was a thunderstorm and heavy rain every afternoon. We had a grand farewell dinner, to which Ratu Rovambokola was invited. Mr Marriott, who seemed to have an unlimited supply of prayer books, gave M. and me each one, with the names,- date, etc., in Fijian as a memento. Mine is still in constant use, and I think the inscription must puzzle any inquisitive person looking into it. After prayers we had a ceremonious yanggona dlinking, a chief bringing it round in a crouching attitude with the cup held straight out at arm’s length with both hands. I thought he looked rather terrific with his air of stern solemnity. At 10 o’clock all were assemblel outside in the moonlight, and we had agreat saying of ‘ gool-bye.’ Mr Marriott, who remained in camp, punted us over the river, and off we trudged, having ten miles before us on a narrow tiark up and down steep places, and with several rivers to ford. The path had become so overgrown since we had come along it a month before, and was so wet from the usual afternoon storm, that we were soon drenched to the skin. We reached Mbukia (the place we slept at in going) about two in the morning, and there had to wait for diy things till the mea wi'h our luggage came up. When they did we had some nice hot tea and scones, and went to bed about 4 o’clock. We only had ten miles again next day to the top of Na Lotu, which we reached by luncheon time, had again a great brew of lemonade, and found some kavikas—a i efreshing fruit like a small pear, with a very yellow and red complexion—and spent a pleasant, lazy afternoon. There only being one hut there, our escort slept in it as well as we, aud if M. and I peeped out from our tent we could see sleeping forms strewn around, we having about sixteen men with us, but not our good Sitiveni, to whom we baile a sad farewell the night before. We reached Nasolo, Mr Stirling’s house, at 2 o’clock next afternoon. There being a boat, we didn't have to peril our lives by another attempt at swimming. M. could have managed it with ease, but I had not made so much progress as she, being weaker in courage as well as body. (TO BE CONTINUED.)