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

SANTO I 3 7

frequent artificial sterility. The primitive population
has disappeared completely in some places, and is only
to be found in any numbers far inland among the
western mountains. The situation is a little better
in the north, where we find a number of flourishing
villages along the coast around Cape Cumberland.

The nearest village to Talamacco was Tapapa.
Sanitary conditions there were most disheartening, as
at least half of the inhabitants were leprous, and most
of them suffered from tuberculosis or elephantiasis. I
saw hardly any children, so that the village will
shortly disappear, like so many others.

Native customs along the coast are much the same
as at Port Olry, but less primitive, and the houses are
better built. There is wood-carving, or was. I found
the doorposts of old gamals beautifully carved, and
plates prettily decorated; but these were all antiques,
and nothing of the kind is made at the present day.

The race, however, is quite different from that
around Port Olry. There are two distinct types : one,
Melanesian, dark, tall or short, thin, curly-haired,
with a broad nose and a brutal expression; and one
that shows distinct traces of Polynesian blood in its
finer face, a larger body, which is sometimes fat,
light skin and frequently straight hair. Just where
this Polynesian element comes from it is hard to say,
but the islands in general are very favourable to race-
mixture along the coasts. As I said before, the
Melanesian type shows two distinct varieties, a tall
dark one, and a short light one. At first I did not
' realize the significance of the latter until I became