Cannibalism

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 412, 21 July 1928, Page 10

Cannibalism

GRIM DISCOVERY BOUGANVILLE RELICS Trailing wisps of South Sea romance in her wake, the tiny Burns Philp inter-island trading steamer Maiwara entered Sydney Heads last week for the first time to go into dock. With her came many strange and interesting stories of happenings in the lesser known islands, and not the least, interesting was the tale of discovery of cannibalistic relics on Bouganville Island. This discovery was made recently in a cave where, as far as can be ascertained, no white man has ever been before. There the explorers found ample evidence of human sacrifice, in the piles of bones that littered the place, and in other grisly tokens c tribal rites. It was said that when the missionaries came to the larger islands, the natives were forced to go to the smaller islands in the group where they could carry on their practices without interference. Under the pretext of holding a “rain-making feast,” they would sail to their secret haunts, such as the Bouganville Island cave—haunts permanently decked with the appurtenances of cannibalism—and hold there the inhuman orgies prescribed by their age-old tradition. Besides the litter of human bones, tli explorers found sharpened clam shells, the improvised table knives of these primitive people. When the Maiwara berthed the native boys, who have never been away from the islands before, were almost speechless with astonishment at the strange sights and sounds about them. Everything excited their attention at once, and they provided an amuse ing sight for the onlookers. One boy stood looking at a stationary tram in the distance for some time. When it moved off he shrieked out to liis companions, and in pidgin-English exclaimed: “Housey run away too much.”