Description
Excerpt from The Hill Tribes of Fiji: A Record of Forty Years'' Intimate Connection With the Tribes of the Mountainous Interior of Fiji With a Description of Their Habits in War Peace, Methods of Living, Characteristics Mental Physical, From the Days of Cannibalism to the Present Time
Tambua are the teeth of the cachalot or sperm whale. They are pure ivory, intrinsically weight for weight as valuable as elephant tusks. With constant oiling and polishing they assume a very hand some appearance and in the eyes of the F ijians, unacquainted with gold and precious stones, they seemed the most beautiful things in the world. When Great Britain assumed the reins of government, the native officials were paid regular salaries in sterling coin of the realm. One of them, an old-time gentleman, the Roko Tui, or lieutenant-governor of the Island Of Kandavu, requested that his recompense might be made in Tambua or whales'' teeth, as in his estimation they were much more chief-like than mere money. He added that in the days of his unregenerate youth he had assisted in the capture of a trading brig, which had a certain amount of gold coin on board. Not understanding its value then, he and his com panions utilised the coins in matches at ducks and drakes, which the Fijians play in the same way as we do, thus dissipating their fortune according to our own homely proverb.
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.
Tambua are the teeth of the cachalot or sperm whale. They are pure ivory, intrinsically weight for weight as valuable as elephant tusks. With constant oiling and polishing they assume a very hand some appearance and in the eyes of the F ijians, unacquainted with gold and precious stones, they seemed the most beautiful things in the world. When Great Britain assumed the reins of government, the native officials were paid regular salaries in sterling coin of the realm. One of them, an old-time gentleman, the Roko Tui, or lieutenant-governor of the Island Of Kandavu, requested that his recompense might be made in Tambua or whales'' teeth, as in his estimation they were much more chief-like than mere money. He added that in the days of his unregenerate youth he had assisted in the capture of a trading brig, which had a certain amount of gold coin on board. Not understanding its value then, he and his com panions utilised the coins in matches at ducks and drakes, which the Fijians play in the same way as we do, thus dissipating their fortune according to our own homely proverb.
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.
Details
Publisher - Forgotten Books
Language - English
Hardback
Contributors
Author
A. B. Brewster
Published Date -
ISBN - 9780266810001
Dimensions - 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.8 cm
Page Count - 334
Paperback
Contributors
Author
A. B. Brewster
Published Date -
ISBN - 9781333954208
Dimensions - 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.8 cm
Page Count - 336
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