atrices were so varied, that I could not connect any particular style
with an individual tribe--at the same time something like uniformity was
noticed among the Katchialaigas, nearly all of whom had, in addition to
the horned breast-mark, two or three long transverse scars on the chest,
which the other tribes did not possess. In the remaining people the
variety of marking was such that it appeared fair to consider it as being
regulated more by individual caprice than by any fixed custom. Many had a
simple two-horned mark on each breast, and we sometimes saw among them a
clumsy imitation of the elaborate shoulder mark of the islanders.

INITIATION TO RIGHTS OF MANHOOD.

The custom of undergoing a certain mysterious ceremony prior to being
admitted to the privileges of manhood, supposed to be an institution
peculiar to the Australians, is found among the Kowraregas, but whether
it extends throughout Torres Strait is uncertain. This initiation is not
at Cape York and Muralug accompanied by the performance either of
circumcision or the knocking out of a tooth, as in many parts of
Australia. The boys, usually three or four in number, are chased about in
the bush during the day by some of the men decked out with feathers and
other ornaments, and at night retire to the men's camp, for, during the
whole time of their novitiate--or about a month--they must on no account
be seen by a woman; in fact, as Giaom informed me, a woman coming upon
these kernele--as they are called--no matter how accidentally, would be
immediately put to death. When all is over the lads return to their
parents, decorated with a profusion of ornaments which are worn until
they drop off, and wearing in front a small triangular piece of shell as
a distinguishing mark.

CANOES OF TORRES STRAIT.

The same kind of canoe which is found throughout Torres Strait has been
seen to extend from Cape York along the eastern coast as far south as
Fitzroy Island,* a distance of 500 miles. It essentially consists of a
hollowed-out log, a central platform, and an outrigger on each side. The
largest canoes which I have seen are those of the Murray and Darnley
Islanders, occasionally as much as sixty feet long; those of the
Australians are small, varying at Cape York between fifteen and thirty
feet in length. Even the Kowraregas have much finer canoes than their
neighbours on the mainland; one which I measured alongside the ship was
forty-five feet long and three and a ha