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OCTOBER, 1921)
FOLK-TALES OF THE CAR NICOBAREBE
287
It was about midnight when he arrived and beached his boat, and went up into his house. He found that his parents were keeping the ossuary feast on his behalf,37 for the people all concluded that he was dead.
He went up to the place and watched the dancing. Then he went to the pens where the pigs were, and he felt their ears, and he said to himself: "These pigs are marked with any own mark."
Then, as he was beginning to get thirsty, he went to cut down some nuts from his own cocoanut trees. Some people who were passing by the foot of the tree where he was cutting, said: "Ho ! there who are you that outs down nuts that are tabu for the dead?" "What dead man?” asked he. And the people replied, "Kilfeūt." "Why, am I not myself Kil. feūt," said he. And as soon as the people heard this, they rejoiced ; and all were glad that he had come back home again.
XIX.--THE PANIC-STRICKEN MAN There was once a man of Lapati38 who got into a terrible fright. His name was Chit-tät-röt. The people of Lapati had gone, as they do every year in the hot weather, tc Chowra, in their canoes; and Chit-tot-röt had gone along with his neighbours.
It was only after they reached Chowra that this man became beside himself for fear; for then he heard that the people of Chowra would sometimes kill their guests (or companions and friends). In his panic, he got up in the middle of the night and dragged out a little Canoe into the sea ; and himself alone in it, he began to paddle his way for the “Little One." 39 Fortunately, the weather was very calm or he would have perisherl.
When he got there, he left the canoe and went up into the island, and managed to get some food for himself by killing birds with stones. These birds he cut open and gutted, and then put them on the stones out in the sun to dry; and when they were thoroughly dried, he ate them; for he was not able to make a fire.
After a few days, his friends came that way on their return journey hoine. Fortunately, they came quite close to the island in their course. The man beckoned to them, and they Came in ; and he got into the boat with his friends, and so came back safely to this land.
XX. STORY OF THE MEN WHO WENT TO A DISTANT LAND. Long long ago, some men of Car Nicobar went to the other Nicobar Islands to cut and gather nuts.40
They were for a few months in Camorta ; ti and when they wanted to come back here, they were not able to do so on account of the strong winds and rain. They attempted it, however, and were drifted to a small island. 42
* They were there for a considerable time and had a great deal of sickness. As some got better, others sickened and died; and eventually there were only three survivors.
When they got back here to their own country, they told the friends of their dead comrades, their parents and their children, that the others had died.
So all the people of the place made offerings as propitiations, and their children, parents and wives were very sad. The people too, chopped up their racing canoes; and the whole village killed pigs, by spearing them, as a propitiation to the dead. They invited the people of other villages also ; and they all ate of the offerings of the dead.
37 Literally, “were eating his pigs." See ante, note 21, on p. 239. 39 A large village on the east coast of Car Nicobar, regarded as the first settlement in the island. 30 Batti-Malv, see ante, note 11, on p. 236.
40 This story is probably historic. The men were most likely induced to leave Car Nicobar by Burme or Indian tradors; if so, the incident must have happened within the last fifty years. It is, howover, established in the minds of the people a story of old time.
11 The fairly large island lying to the north of Nankauri harbour. 43 Probably Tillanchong.
