hearing this, dropped the axe, and with a small American knife, kept for husking coconuts, attempted to kill both Ali and Yusuf They, however, got beneath the floor of the hut and made their escape, the former with a slight wound.

Sam-tat-yon then fell upon old Osman and slew him with the

knife.

He next went up to some Burmans who were gambling, and dispersed them, after doing one of them some slight injury. Samtat-yon then ran off to the village of Perka.

At Perka, there were sleeping in a house his brother—a man named Kichyeti,-one Chestu Chulia, and some women and children.

Sam-tat-yon entered, closed the door, and stabbing his brother first in the chest and then in the abdomen, killed him. At the first cry of Kichyeti, Chestu Chulia and the others got up, and giving the alarm, tried to snatch away the knife. Some women from a neighbouring house then came and helped to arrest the murderer, whose own wife - one of those arriving to rescue Chestu Chulia-was wounded in the struggle.

The populace not unnaturally wanted to kill Sam-tat-yon on the spot, but they were prevailed upon to keep him for trial. Not being accustomed to guarding prisoners, and not liking to keep him in any of their houses, lest they should become polluted, they prepared a strong wooden cage, similar to those made for pigs that are to be slaughtered, and left the man in it with his hands tied.

(The Nicobarese fear the presence of a desperado, and are too ignorant to know how to guard him, and for these reasons they always kill the men of whom they entertain fear.)

After three or four days of the cage, Sam-tat-yon became quite subdued, and answered any inquiries about the occurrence. He fully admitted his behaviour, but attributed no cause to it. He simply said that he had been unwell for the last month, and could not take his meals properly, that he was unable to drink coconut milk, but lived upon warm water, and that he had not slept for several nights. In such a state of health he lost his

senses, and therefore committed the crime. He stated that the Mussulman who was killed by him was not an enemy, but on the other hand, he and all the traders were his friends. Regarding his brother, he said that he had been kind to him.

The proceedings of a man who wishes to obtain a name as a wizard are rather curious. He will, for instance, frequent pig wallows, and, sitting in the mud, collect the bristles left there by the pigs when cooling themselves; or again, he visits the graveyard at night and disturbs the graves. He generally lives by himself in the jungle, doing no work, but stealing pigs, chickens, and coconuts from others. Having made a reputation for witchcraft, he is held in much fear by the community, but to balance this advantage, if they consider themselves injured by his practices, it is not impossible that they may some day combine and murder him.

Besides ridding themselves of an unpleasant neighbour, it would seem that they also hope by such an action to cause the destruction of an evilly-disposed spirit.

I. "Tham Koi, son of Katha, having beaten a countryman to death in Chaura, made the following statement: Kanunla, a menluana (medicine man) and sorcerer, is addicted to sodomy and theft. He bewitched my father, who became very ill. I sent for Kanunla to come and shampoo my father, who gradually got worse. I became enraged with the menluana, and waited until he got on the ladder of my hut, when I struck him on the left side of the neck, so that he fell down. I went down and struck him again thrice, and he died. I then went and told my neighbours Kamrang Piko, Okio, Cher, and Tachoi what I had done, and asked them to help me remove the corpse, which we took in a canoe and threw into the sea. Kanunla did not make a noise. No one knew of this at the time because it was in the evening, and very dark. The villagers knew of it on the following morning."" -Diary of Mr Obed Elias.

2. Tekwa was the adopted son of Iskoi's father, and was always living in Iskol's house. Eventually he became a thief,

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and robbed the people of their fowls and pigs, and he was supposed to be a "devil-man" or wizard.

It happened that a man named Sutro died after suffering a long time from dysentery and consumption, and it was supposed by Iskol and his friends that Tekwa was the cause of this death. Tekwa perceived this, and hid himself in a place called Hat-Own; but three days later, Iskol and his friends, Natla, Sundran, and Nawi, after consulting together, brought him thence to a place called Ranai, where, after giving him toddy, they killed him by strangling him with a rope, subsequent to breaking his joints at the knees and elbows.

The same night they buried the corpse in Kofenté (the place of pollution), near the graveyard, and a day or two later, killed a couple of pigs as a ransom or sacrifice.

The reason for these murders-or popular sentences,-when not because of witchcraft, seems to be somewhat obscure, but can possibly be found in a general dislike for the victim, or for some act or event with which he is associated.

A woman of Kenuaka had been shot to death with arrows by her fellow-villagers. She was suffering badly from secondary syphilis, and was very poorly off, but the reason given as the immediate cause of her death was the untimely delivery of a still-born child. The body was buried in the usual manner, and everybody contributed cloth to wrap the corpse in, cording to

custom.

A double murder took place in the village of Perka, whose headman was named Kan-nyána. The victims, who were detested by the village, were put to death because of their misconduct. Six men participated in the affair, but as there was no idea among the natives that they should be punished, no one could be brought to point them out to the Agent. The testimony of witnesses showed the light in which they were regarded. Tamikal, wife of one of the deceased, stated:-"On a certain night, while I was sitting at the entrance of my house, my husband was angry with me, and attempted to thrash me. I cried aloud. Then, suddenly, a lot of men, armed with sticks, came into the house and com

menced to beat the dead man. I was afraid and ran away, and cannot say what happened further, nor could I recognise any of the assailants. I am glad, however, that the two men were killed, for they were wicked men."

Kokali, son of one of the deceased, seconded the statements of his mother, and said, “I am glad that they were killed; they were very bad men; the village now enjoys peace."

The culprits were finally apprehended, and one of them, Ringangmareng, grasping a stick, cried in great anger, "Why do you call me here? I am the man who killed those wicked villains with the very stick I have now in my hand. Do you wish to handcuff me and carry me to Port Blair? Do so if you like, but you must not take mah"-pointing to the chief Kan-nyána.

(The Nicobarese possess much affection for their chiefs, and also value their tamiluanas highly. When one of the latter was being taken to Port Blair because of misconduct, the headman of his village entreated that two other men might be substituted for the "doctor.")

Suicide is not recognised as an institution of Nicobarese life, but cases of it do occur somewhat occasionally.

Pin-re-ta was a good man, very rich, and had no wife nor any enemies, and therefore his fellow-villagers could show no cause for the occurrence. One day, his servant-boy, who was sleeping in the cookhouse, was aroused by a noise as of a pig being beaten. Going down the ladder to see what was happening, he noticed that the pig-sty was in flames, and that a pig had been killed, and then he saw Pin-re-ta, who, standing below the cookhouse, axe in hand, threatened to murder him. The boy ran off to the jungle, where people were making a garden ; and they, returning with him, found that Pin-re-ta, after setting fire to both his houses, had thrown himself into the flames, and was burnt to death.

While the negotiations were going on for the plot of land on which the Schoolhouse and Agent's bungalow stand, it was

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found that in buying land in Kar Nicobar, the bargain must be made with the chief, as overlord of all the land in the village, but that he, on his part, is bound to share the proceeds with all who are interested in it.

The price fixed on for the piece in question (about 81 acres) was :-twelve black suits, one piece of red cloth, six bags rice, twenty packets Chinese tobacco, and twelve bottles rum.

These things were distributed amongst the people of the village by the headman, Offandi, who retained nothing for himself; but for some time subsequently he was in bad odour for having given up the land to the Government, and for a long period the Agency was looked on with much disfavour.

The Kar Nicobarese have a deeply rooted aversion to the settlement of strangers in their midst, and more than once have expelled from their island intruding missionaries. Nowadays, great discontent is caused by the traders leaving agents to carry on business during the south-west monsoon, when the weather is not suitable for vessels to remain amongst these islands.

The habit the natives have of using their crossbows in the immediate neighbourhood of the villages is sometimes productive of fatal accidents. Two men were shooting at Sáwi, and one of them having shot at a bird and missed, the arrow in falling pierced the chest of his friend, who had run forward to recover it. Several similar mischances have occurred recently in Mūs; in the latest, a lad named Sinkin shot at a bird, and his arrow, glancing from a tree, struck a man, Ka Noe, and entered his side, causing a serious, but not fatal, wound.

The not infrequent mishaps that occur on the annual canoe voyages undertaken by the Kar Nicobarese to Chaura have much to do with the stationary condition of the population of the island. Canoes containing thirty to forty men are regularly sent out by the villages of the island, and when they meet with bad weather a total loss is not an uncommon occur

rence.

During the months of October, November, and December-