Page:The Melanesians Studies in their Anthropology and Folklore.djvu/416

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394
Stories.
[ch.

they start on their voyage. And when he reaches the landing-place^ he sees that those people have already dragged down the canoe and set it afloat on the edge of the sea; and he runs and jumps up and climbs right up on board the canoe, and they paddle off. But they all of them had taken pigs with them, but the Little Orphan had not taken one for himself, and he had brought nothing but a cockle-shell in his hand, and that shell-fish was not opened. And when they brought the canoes to shore at Gaua, the people there came down to meet them, and one of them runs over and cries, Friend! and touches his friend's hand, and the two go up the beach together; and some other runs down and cries, This is my friend, and touches his hand, and they two walk up together; and some other runs down and cries, This is my friend, and takes him, and they two walk up ashore; but that poor Little Orphan, they don't want to be friends with him. And they stay and stay, and the wind rises, and they are to start on their voyage; and they set off and paddle, paddle on, and go out at Losalava. And when those people drag up their canoe (at Mota), he runs back, runs and runs, and reaches the house where they three lived, and goes straight inside the house, and sees the heap of yams still remaining as it was; and he says, What have you two been eating? this food still remains untouched. And they two say, We have been eating it to be sure, that food. But he says, No, there is some other man I think has been bringing you wild food of the forest. Now he makes a fool of himself in this, supposing that it was as if his mother were living with a man. But that female Ro Som wept exceedingly because he had been angry with her, and she and her child wept till the sun went down. Then the Little Orphan goes near to them, and lies upon their legs, and tries to console them, but can't succeed; and they cried on, till they heard the nose of the Little Orphan whistling in sleep, and then they removed softly their legs, and put down his head on the ground; and they run to the money-bags, and unloose the pig, and the two run off. And as they went out that village turned into a