The Melanesians Of British New Guinea Classic Reprint

Excerpt from The Melanesians of British New Guinea It is difficult to express my gratitude to a number of friends who in one way and another have assisted in the pro duction of this volume. Foremost among these are Captain F. R. Barton, late Administrator of the Possession, Dr A. C. Haddon, and Dr H. O. Forbes. All these gentlemen have placed their collections of New Guinea photographs unreservedly at my disposal and they have been equally generous with the contents of their notebooks. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Charles Gabriel Seligman (1873-1940) was a British ethnographer who conducted field research in New Guinea, Sarawak, Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka), and Sudan. Trained as a medical doctor, in 1898 he joined an expedition organized by Cambridge University to the Torres Strait, the body of water that separates the island of New Guinea from Australia. The purpose of the expedition was to document the cultures of the Torres Strait islanders, which were rapidly disappearing under the influence of colonization. In 1904, Seligman was one of three members of the Cooke Daniels Ethnographic Expedition to British New Guinea, funded by Denver, Colorado department store owner William Cooke Daniels. The Melanesians of British New Guinea contains a detailed record of much of Seligman's anthropological research conducted during the expedition. Seligman's findings demonstrated the striking physical and cultural differences between the western Papuans and his main preoccupation, their eastern neighbors, who had been more influenced by Melanesian immigration. The book established Seligman's reputation as an anthropologist, and remains an important source for the study of the traditional culture of the peoples of present-day Papua New Guinea. The book includes photographs, drawings, maps, and a glossary of indigenous terms.

Excerpt from Melanesians and Polynesians: Their Life-Histories Described and Compared MY acquaintance with the natives of the East and West Pacific extends over a term of forty eight years. During that time I resided in Samoa for fourteen years continuously, from 1860 to 1874, and I have often visited the group in later years. In 1875 I landed in New Britain, now named the Bismarck Archipel. At that time there was no white man living in the group, and practically nothing was known of those islands or of the people living there. I resided there until the end of 1880, with the exception of the time occupied by two visits to Australia, and I have revisited that group on several occasions since that time. My acquaintance with the great Solomon Islands group began in the year 1879, and since then I have visited the group on several occasions. During these many voyages I have visited Tonga, Fiji, New Hebrides, Santa Cruz, New Ireland, New Hanover, New Guinea, the large atolls of the Ontong Java and the Tasman groups, and many others of the smaller islands in the Pacific. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from Papua or British New Guinea There have been many books published of late years about Papua, and my only excuse for adding to the number is that none of the authors deal with the subject from the same point of view as I have done, nor do any of them cover exactly the same ground. Miss Grimshaw's fascinating work, "The New New Guinea," treats, as its name implies, only of the recent development of the territory; Dr. Seligmann's learned "Melanesians of New Guinea" is occupied with the ethnology of a few tribes; and the Rev. Mr. Chignell's admirable "Outpost in Papua" is almost entirely confined to a description of life in a single village; and in the same way the older books, valuable and interesting as they are, generally deal with some particular aspect of Papuan life rather than with Papua as a whole. It seemed to me, therefore, that there might be room for my book in spite of the number that had already been written. I am fully conscious of my numerous disqualifications for the work that I have undertaken. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from Papua or British New Guinea The actual hoisting of the flag was performed, appropriately enough, by an Australian, Lieutenant Gaunt, who was flag-lieutenant of the Nelson at the time. The day before an assembly was held on board the Nelson, which was attended by Boe Vagi, described by Mr. Musgrave, deputy-assistant Commissioner, as a mild-mannered but wholly use less elderly native, who for want, apparently, of a more suitable man, was recognised as head chief of the Port Moresby tribe, and an address was de livered by the Commodore, in which he explained the meaning of the ceremony which was to take place next day. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from British New Guinea: Country and People Part of this memoir was read at the Royal Geographical Society, February 25, 1895. Map, p. 100. Netherlands; the Germans possess some square miles of it on the north-east; and the remainder, the south-east portion, amounting to nearly square miles, is British territory. The colony now called British New Guinea was formally annexed to the Queen's dominions by the first administrator on September 4, 1888. This deliberate act of her Majesty's government was the Official consummation Of the efforts and wishes Of many Officers and subjects Of the empire, who had seen clearly that it was desirable and necessary that at least part of that country should be added to the realm. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from The Sexual Life of Savages in North-Western Melanesia: An Ethnographic Account of Courtship, Marriage and Family Life Among the Natives of the Trobriand Islands, British New Guinea In the nineteenth century the more sombre View pre vailed. The explorers were now mainly English, and they carried with them the anglo-saxon Puritanism for which all sexual customs that are unfamiliar are either Shocking or disgusting. Obscene was the word com monly used, and it was left to the reader's imagination to picture what that might mean. The sexual behaviour of savages seemed mostly unspeakable. The urethral sub incision practised by some Australian tribes was mysteri ously named the terrible rite. A similar mutilation Of the nose or ear, or anywhere a little higher up or a little lower down, would not have seemed terrible; but at that particular spot it aroused a shuddering and Shame faced awe. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.