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[Page 477]

Manners & Customs of the South Sea Isles

is repeated at the interval of 2 or 3 days as long as the women chuse or can keep it up the nearest relation thinking it her duty to Continue it longer than any one else. besides the blood which they beleive to be an acceptable present to the deceasd, whose soule they beleive to exist & hover about the place where the body lays observing the actions of the survivors they throw in Cloths wet with tears of which all that are shed are carefully preservd for that purpose & the younger people cut off their hair either all or in part & throw that also under the Bier

When these ceremonies have been performd for two or three days the men who till now seemd to be intirely insensible of their loss begin their part which the Nearest relations take in turns They dress themselves in a dress so extrordinary that I question whether words can give a tolerable Idea of it I therefore refer intirely to the annexd figure in this dress they patrole the woods early in the morn & late at night preceeded by 2 or 3 boys who have nothing upon them but a small peice of

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