[Note: this transcription was produced by an automatic OCR engine]

50 MALEKULA
or threaten them, and in this way they are able to wield power
beyond the reach of men of lesser means.
Summing up then, We may say that the fear of ancestral
Wrath, of public contumely, of social isolation, of death and
sickness magic, and, it may be added, of an arrow or spear-thrust
from an injured man, serves to maintain a certain degree of
social order and harmony and to prevent individuals from openly
flouting the standards traditionally approved by the community
of which they are members.
What these standards are can only be mentioned here in a
very general way. One informant summed them up when, speaking
of his childhood, he said that his father told him that he must
not ï¬Åght, must not steal, must not do injury to anyone nor
interfere with other men’s wives, but that on the contrary he
must be generous with his goods and services. It is frankly
recognized that no one is expected to live up to the standard
implied in such teaching ; indeed (as in our own society) a man
who followed it in the spirit and letter would almost certainly
be rather despised, especially were he to be too modest in_his
conduct towards women, but it expresses the ideal by which
he should in general guide his life.
As regards doing an injury to another man, it is interesting
that cursing him is included in this category. The mere use of
bad language is not considered reprehensible. Thus one man
may say in anger to another : " mm taamn himm " (“ Go, eat
your mother's excrement â€ù), or “ immgk taam/m imbwu ! "
(“Thy excrement stinks l â€ù), and though the person to whom
such words are addressed will resent them he will not take very
serious offence, even if they are spoken in public. But quite
different from these are certain curses which are held to be
serious insults and for which the compensation of a pig may
rightfully be demanded. To curse in this way is called havar,
and the most offensive of such curses are those which stigmatize
the victim as a participant in the “uncleanness â€ù of women,
as, for instance : " Guam lmzmb tiga â€ù (“ Go, eat at the igah ï¬Åre,"
that is, at the unhallowed ï¬Åre used by women), or “ Urop hm’
nimomo ar bï¬Åmbmautl â€ù (“ Run with the women to their
latrine â€ù). Less serious, but still demanding the compensation
of a pig, are such sentences as: " Games kas â€ù (“ You are as