Flores Island, due south of Celebes, is inha bited by a race speaking six different languages or dialects, known as the Ends, Mangarai, Kio, Rolm, and Galeleng. The stature is short and squab like Malays. Tho complexion is a good deal darker than that of the Malay ; the nose flatter, the mouth wider, and the lips thicker, and the hair buckles without frizzling. The coast is occupied by the Malay or brown race, but in the interior is a people with frizzled hair, and a similar frizzled-hair people live in the moun tainous parts of Soler, Pintar, Lombatta, and Ombay.
The people of the neighbouring island of Semao are like those of Timor, with frizzly or wavy hair, and a copPet-brown colour.
The people, of Bo Island are a mixed race of Papuans and the brown-skinned race.
The Papuans for the most part exist only in a savage state, deriving a scanty subsistence from the producticing of ,nature, living in conical shaped huts or whete they appear as occupants of the sea-coast, roaming about in small canoes in search of foOd. Some of the more independent tribes, by which is meant thoSe who have exclu sive possession of the country they inhabit, have, however, adopted many improvements. In several parts of the north and of the south coasts Of New Guinea, the villages consist of one large house, erected on piles, and occupied by all the married people, with a smaller one adjacent for the bachelors. These houses bear a very close resem blance to those of the Dyaks of Borneo, but are smaller and of more rough construction. Here the Papuans also cultivate fruits, yams, and sweet potatoes, and keep hogs and poultry to kill for food,—in fact, are almost on a level, as far as regards agriculture, with the • more uncivilised tribes of the Malaya-Polynesians, from whom, indeed, if we may judge from the names em ployed to designate their agricultural productions, they have derived the slight but important advance they have Made in civilisation. The weapons of the Papuans are heavy wooden clubs, spears or lances of nibong or other hard wood, and darts formed of a small kind of bamboo, provided with points of hard Wood or of sharp ened bone. The lances are projected generally by means of a becket of sennit about a foot and a half long, one end of which is provided with a toggle. This is held between the fingers, while the other end is fastened to the lance with what sailors Call a half-hitch' knot, which flies off when the lance is projected, thus allowing it to go free. The becket gives a greatly increased purchase to the thrower, but is much inferior in this respect to the womeroo or throwing stick of the Australians. The darts are projected by means of a powerful bow, often 6 feet in length, with a bowstring of rattan. Mr. Earl suspects that this instrument was not originally Papuan, but has been adopted from the Polynesians. Stone axes and knives of quartz are now super seded among all those tribes who have either direct or indirect communication with the traders of the Archipelago, by parangs, or chopping: knives of iron. Their agricultural instruments are mere stakes of Wood, sharpened at one end, which prove sufficient to effect the rude inter ference with nature required 14- their mode of cultivation.
The art Of navigation appears never to have been in a very advanced state among the Papuans, since their navigation has only extended to those countries which could be reached froni the continent of Asia without entailing the neces sity of going out Of sight of laud ; nor are they yet sufficiently 'advanced in the science of navi gation to venture on any other than voyages. Towards the eastern limits of the Papuan race, where they come in close contact, and are often mixed with the Polynesians, navi gation is in a more advanced state than elsewhere, but is evidently the result of contact with strangers, by whom, indeed, the navigation is personally conducted. The highest state of the art among the Papuans, without foreign assistance, is met with in Torres Strait, and upon the south coast of New Guinea. Hero they possess large canoes of such construction, and propelled iu so peculiar a manner, that we must consider them purely Papuan. Sorhe very excellent sketches of these canoes, with a full description, are given in Flinder's Voyage. These canoes or boats are from 30 to 40 feet long, and the planks with which they are constructed are sewed together with the fibres of the cocoanut. Each is pro vided with an outrigger, and a platform of bamboo occupies the centre of the boat on a level with the gunwale. They are propelled in calm weather by paddles with long handles, the rowers all standing, as is generally the case among the Papuans. But the most striking peculiarity of these vessels consists in the sail, which is an oblong piece of matting set up in the foreparts of the vessel by means of two poles or masts, to which the upper corners of the sail are fastened. These masts are moveable, and the sail is trimmed by shifting the head of one of the masts aft. According to Mr. Earl's experience, these boats sail very indifferently, except before the wind ; but Captain Flinders, who had good opportunities of judging, maintains a more favourable opinion. They are often to be met with about the month of March 300 or 400 miles down the north-east coast of Australia, the islanders being in the habit of making an annual voyage in this direc tion. The stopping-places are usually the islands lying off the coast, where they obtained tortoise shell and trepang, the chief objects of their voyages. The natives of the south coast of New Guinea have very large canoes of a similar but more unwieldy construction, and propelled by a similar description of sail. These have never been seen far from the coast, and iu fact are almost unmanageable from the difficulty experi enced in steering such unwieldy masses with Paddles alone. It is therefore difficult to conceive for what purpose they have been constructed, unless . it should be for war, in which case their large size would give them an imposing appearance. The New Guinea canoes generally arc of light construction, and are provided with an Outrigger. The larger ones have an attap roof, and are capable of 'containing an entire family, with house hold furniture and domestic animals.