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by Bernard Narokobi by Lise M Dobrin Yəhələgɨr, Wautogig’s founding father Why Yəhələgɨr had to seek a new home in new lands About Yəhələgɨr's wife's people, on whose lands he settled The places where Yəhələgɨr and his wife made their new home Yəhələgɨr befriends a man from Walanduom and creates lasting ties between their two villages Why Meliawi fled Kwangen How Meliawi and Yəhələgɨr met Meliawi and Yəhələgɨr learn to trust one another The former inhabitants of the lands where Wautogig was founded The clans that make up the village How Wautogig’s tribes are distributed over the land Description of the present-day village site Things that happened during the early colonial period How Anton Narokobi brought the Catholic church to the village The villagers’ earliest forays into schooling outside the village and work in trained occupations Key figures in the first generation of Wautogigem to advance through higher education Further discussion of Wautogig’s many educated, professional, and important men Important women from the earliest generations About women from Narokobi's mother's generation Women of modern times, with special focus on those who married in What the villagers experienced during the Second World War The return home and establishing of a new unified village site How the Wautogigem came to occupy their current village site Reflections on the village churches as both buildings and social institutions How land is owned and passed on Gardening, marketing, and the planting of cash crops Public presentations of wealth to other communities The words, actions, and histories of village song-dance complexes Traditional games and how they were played Expectations about the relations between men and women |
Chapter 21: The Pacific War Comes to Wautogig - Part 2Upon returning to their landss the people were pleasantly surprised. The Məbəm River teemed with prawns, fishes, and eels. The cumwehəs, a type of freshwater fish with smooth skin, was in plentiful supply. Even a crocodile had found its way upstream into the Məbəm. Wild pigs, cassowaries, wildfowls, hornbills, cockatoos, birds of paradise, tree kangaroos of every kind, and the wild tulip greens were abundant. The people decided to make camp at Məbəm River and celebrate the end of the war and also the fish and wildlife in the forest and rivers.1 At this time too, almost every young man had a Japanese-made short gun and no shortage of bullets. When the men went out to hunt they returned with plenty of meat. When men or women went fishing they returned with bags full of fish.2 3 4 At the end of the celebrations, the people returned to the village. The task of rebuilding our nation started.5 It was then decided that a new site for our nation would start. The houses at Dagububu, Worewabɨr, Kunicuaɲ, and Bai, along with the surrounding hamlets at Abegɨrip, Narowehem, Yebik, and Kwajebigem would be abandoned, and the people of Wautogig would come together and live at a new site. It was decided the new village would be called Litali. This was our way of saying “Italy”. One of the priests then was from Italy, so the village was called Litali. My father resumed his work as catechist. The first church at Dagububu was abandoned, but a teak tree planted by Winam beside the church still stands there to this day. The new village of Wautogig was built along a narrow plateau, rather like a saddle between two ridges. At the eastern end was the haus kiap. Whenever the kiap visited the village that was where he lived. But when I grew up in the mid-forties and early fifties I never saw one white kiap there.6 7 The village was built in two rows, with a wide road running between the houses. There were three or four public squares for village meetings, feasts, and debates. In general, the people were living according to their clans, but this was not enforced. You built your house nearest your relatives wherever land was available. The church was on one of the raised parts of the saddle. My father’s house was one level below the church, opposite the luluai’s house. The luluai at the time was Huruwabiə, and the tultul was Korekwasi. |
NOTES 1 Joseph Sallun tells how when the Wautogigem were in Meiwango they learned that the war was over and returned home to their lands and celebrated. They danced Munger. They celebrated their luluai Huruwabiə because he had been such a solid leader through the difficult time. Listen. 2 Julius Yehaipim and others all affirm this story that the rivers were full of fish when the Wautogigem came back to their lands after the war. Listen. 3 Joseph Sallun tells how when they came back the rivers and forests were teeming with wildlife. The animals had gone so long without being hunted that they lost their fear of humans. Listen. 4 Sallun tells how they miraculously recovered seed that enabled them to begin growing food gardens again. Listen. 5 Joseph Sallun tells how when the villagers returned they got rations from the Australians at Dagua and Karowop. Listen. 6 acob explains that the kiaps would come only occasionally to census the village ("take roll call") and check on emerging health problems. Listen. 7 Sallun recalls that the kiap who helped them after the war was called Jim. Listen. |