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

674 MALEKULA
charm: " Nimarot an nimomo sat relesve kimmgk or etingk wut
ninggulong nduv eingk I â€ù These leaves he wraps in a leaf of the
plant called indiliep, and then presses the bundle thus made
against his navel and straps it into position there with bands
made from the plant mwa. When he has done this he must
not drink water or urinate until his adulterous adventure is over,
otherwise the charm will be spoiled and he may be found out.
It is interesting that this same magic is also performed by a man
going on a war expedition when he wishes to surprise the enemy
in an ambush. It has the general effect of preventing him from
being seen whether by the enemy or a suspicious husband.
There is one danger, however, against which a man who is
performing love-magic cannot guard himself by ritual means.
This is the danger of being eaten by a. shark. One of the effects
which love-magic has upon the performer is to cause his body to
appear to ï¬Åsh as though it were red like meat. This is said to be
due to some “ real " change in his flesh which is imperceptible to
human beings, but which attracts the murderous creatures of the
sea. For this reason a man who is making or has recently made
love~rnagic must avoid the seashore and the sea, since it is there
that his fate awaits him. If he goes in a canoe with others, the
canoe will founder or be lost in a storm. The informant
volunteered, however, that if such a man went alone in a very
large canoe he might be safe. It is generally supposed that a man
who has been killed by a shark is one who had been performing
mwelnggil and so had attracted the beast. ‘
It must be noticed that though men and women have their
own forms of love-magic and are ignorant of those of the other
sex, yet women are almost always aware of the fact that love-
magic is being set in train towards them. There is some impulsive
gesture on the part of the man which tells the woman that he
desires her. This doubtless accounts to a considerable extent for
the notable effectiveness of this form of magic.
All that has been written above on the subject of love-magic
refers to the practices of the people of Seniang. We cannot doubt
but that elsewhere in Malekula similar rites also exist, but no
traces can be found in the notes of any reference to them. This
makes an unfortunate gap in our knowledge, for the account of
the Seniang practices is; clearly, very incomplete.
The other big group of magical acts, classed as nimesian,
' 7