Image from the Biodiversity Heritage Library.
Contributed by American Museum of Natural History.
| www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Transcription
As we were an hour ahead of time walked across to N. side of island,
collecting a number of dragonflies of various colors - blue, red-brown, green,
and brown, as well as small ones breeding in the central marsh.
Returned to village as the drums announced the hour for morning worship.
The church building is a large wood structure, higher on the slope than
the rest of the village, - the most pretentious church seen thus far in Lau.
A pew on each side of the pulpit is used by the chief and old men. The rest
of the congregation sit on the floor in front of the pulpit. Upon entering,
each person kneels, bends forward and says a short prayer. The children, in
imitation of their elders flop on all fours, bump their foreheads on the floor
and call it enough.
The chanting begins as soon as two or three have arrived, punctuated with
a few words. As soon as the flock has gathered the main service begins, the
minister announcing a hymn - the numbers of which are listed on the wall.
The Fijian song book is called "Ai Vala Ni Sera ni Lotu Weselel e Viti.
Singing very good, in parts, the men and women singing phrases following each
other as well as together. It is accompanied by the beating of a triangle.
The prayer was long and bombastic, the congregation saying an enthus-
iastic A-men! at the end. This was followed by another hymn, scriptures,
hymn, sermon, and baptism of five babies. In the latter the father and
mother seated themselves in front of the pulpit, the mother holding the
child, and remaining seated during the service.
Order among the numerous children was maintained by an old native with
a switch, which he used several times on the backs of the restless children.
Most of the women wore loose "mother-hubbard"-like or smocks of white,
black or colored material. A few, in mourning for dead relatives were in
black with old, worn, mats tied about their waists. The little girls had on
nice fitting hand made dresses of various colors. Many of them have the
first half of their heads close clipped, while the hind half bears a tuft or