yet remaining invariably so modest, gentle, and friendly, that my
company declared them to be, without exception, the most amiable people
on earth.

Rarik took me to his house, to witness another dramatic representation:
the subject was the war on Mediuro. Women sang, or rather screamed, the
deeds of the warriors; and the men in their dances endeavoured, by angry
gestures and brandishing their lances, to describe the valour of the
combatants. I expressed to Rarik my wish to know more of their method of
warfare; he and Lagediak in consequence assembled two troops, which they
opposed to each other at a short distance, as hostile armies; the first
rank, in both, consisting of men, and the second of women. The former
were armed with sticks instead of lances, the latter had their baskets
filled with pandana seeds for stones, and their hair, instead of being
as usual, tastefully bound up, hung dishevelled and wild about their
heads, giving them the appearance of maniacs. Rarik placed himself at
the head of one troop, and Lagediak of the other: both gave the signal
for attack, by blowing their muscle horns. The adverse forces
approached; but instead of the battle began a comic dance, in which the
two armies emulated each other in grimaces, furious gesticulations, and
a distortion of the eyes, which left only the whites visible, while the
women shrieked a war-song, which, if their opponents had been lovers of
harmony, would assuredly have put them to flight. The leaders on each
side took no share in these violent exertions, but stood still,
animating their troops by the tones of the muscle horn. When exhausted
by these efforts, the horns were silent, and the armies separated by
mutual consent, looking on while some of the most valiant from each side
came forward to challenge with threats and abuse a champion of the enemy
to single combat. This was represented by dancing and songs, and
occasional movements with the hand, as if to throw the lance, which the
antagonist sought to avoid by dexterously springing aside. The
respective armies and their leaders animated the courage of their
warriors by battle-songs, till the horns were blown again; the armies
once more slowly approached each other; the champions retired into
their ranks, and the battle was renewed with a prodigious noise; spears
waved in the air; pandana seed flew from the delicate hands of the
female warriors, over the heads of their husbands, upon the enemy, but
the