or why some valuable object is given to a specialist, they would say: “This is the mapula for what he has done.” Another interesting identification contained in linguistic usage is the calling of both magical payments and payments to specialists: a ‘restorative,’ or, literally, a ‘poultice.’ Certain extra fees given to a magician are described as ‘ katuwarina kaykela ’ or ‘poultice for his leg’; as the magician, especially he of the garden or the sorcerer, has to take long walks in connection with his magic. The expression ‘poultice of my back,’ will be used by a canoe-builder who has been bending over his work, or ‘poultice of my hand’ by a carver or stone-polisher. But the identity of these gifts is not in any way expressed in the detailed terminology. In fact, there is a list of words describing the various payments for magic, the gifts given to specialists, love payments, and the numerous types of gifts distinguished at the sagali . Thus a magical payment, of which a small part would be offered to ancestral spirits, is called ula’ula ; a substantial magical gift is called sousula ; a gift to a sorcerer is described by the verb ibudipeta , and there are many more special names. The gifts to the specialists are called vewoulo —the initial gift; yomelu —a gift of food given after the object has been ceremonially handed over to the owner; karibudaboda —a substantial gift of yams given at the next harvest. The gifts of food, made while the work is in progress are called vakapula ; but this latter term has much wider application, as it covers all the presents of cooked or raw food given to workers by the man, for whom they work. The sexual gifts are called buwana or sebuwana . I shall not enumerate the various terminological distinctions of sagali gifts, as this would be impossible to do, without entering upon the enormous subject of mortuary duties and distributions.
The classification of love gifts and sagali gifts in the same category with gifts to magicians and specialists, is a generalisation in which the natives would not be able to follow us. For them, the gifts given at sagali form a class in themselves and so do the love gifts. We may say that, from the economic point of view, we were correct in classing all these gifts together, because they all represent a definite type of equivalence; also they correspond to the native idea that every service has to be paid for, an idea documented by the linguistic use of the word mapula. But within this class, the sub-divisions corresponding to native terminology represent important distinctions made by the natives between the three sub-classes; love gifts, sagali gifts, and gifts for magical and professional services.
- Gifts returned in economically equivalent form.—We are enumerating the various types of exchange, as they gradually assume the appearance of trade. In this fourth class have been put such gifts as must be re-paid with almost strict equivalence. But it must be stressed that strict equivalence of two gifts does not assimilate them to trade altogether. There can be no more perfect equivalence between gift and counter-gift, than when A gives to B an object, and B on the same day returns the very same object