Trade Winds

Myths and Misunder standings

MOST people in the Temperate Zone think the Trade Winds, within the tropics, blow all the time. Their idea is that all the old mariners had to do was to chivvy their ships down to the region of the Trade Winds, set a course to the west, and then every one but the man at the wheel could throw dice, dance the horn-pipe or sleep until the vessel arrived at its destination.

On this assumption are based some of the weightiest arguments against an Asiatic or Indonesian origin of the Poly nesian race.

The myth of the Trade Winds, like the myth of uncultivated abundance in equatorial lands and the myth of “night comes quickly in the tropics,” is a stan dard feature of all travellers’ tales.

Were these savants to observe the winds and weather from tossing inter island schooners, rather than from the decks of luxury liners, or take the trouble to read the reports of observant explorers, our South Sea literature might be less cluttered up with things which are not so.

“In the account of the sojourn of La Perouse at the Samoan Isles (to quote from Mr. Elsdon Best), the following re marks occur:—‘We know by the relations of preceding navigators that the trade winds are very uncertain in these seas, and that it is almost as easy to sail- east as west—a circumstance which favours

the natives In their long excursions to leeward.’ ‘When leaving the group this voyager encountered strong winds from the west and north-north-west. Cook also stated that in December and January the winds are variable, but frequently blow from west-north-west and north-north-west.

This wind is called the to’erau. The wind from the south-west and west-south west is still more frequent.

“The Polynesians were keen observers and recorders of natural phenomena They well knew how to take advantage of wind-changes and when to expect such changes. In fact, after he had once ex plored the Pacific, the Polynesian knew perfectly well how and when to reach any part of it.”

HOW the Polynesian of olden time navigated the Pacific at will, is in dicated in the record of the assemblies, at Opoa, on Ra’iatea, of re presentatives from islands near and far during the period of the Ao Uri—Ao Tea Confederation.

“These allied island kingdoms formed a convention for their priests, scholars and warriors, to meet periodically at Opoa for great religious observances and inter national deliberations. The appointed time was exactly reckoned by numbering the year and naming the season, the lunar month and the day of the month. So it became the custom, from a remote time until about the year 1350, to send re presentatives, with offerings to ’Oro, in great double canoes, distinguished as Te- Va’a-Roa-o-te-Mata’i (the long canoes in the wind). Each had one or two great, deep-toned drums, called Ta’i-Moana (sounding at sea), and a great conch shell trumpet, called Pu-Ta’i-i-te-Aeha (trumpet sounding over the sea from horizon to horizon), with which they kept track of each other at sea and signalled, and when approaching the sacred goal triumphantly announced themselves.” (“Ancient Tahiti”: Teuira Henry.) INASMUCH as many of the canoes came from New Zealand, and from islands far to the west, the trade-winds did not prevent them from arriving at their destination on the day appointed.

A description of such craft, as seen by modern eyes, is found in a work entitled, “Rovings in the Pacific from 1837 to 1849.” The author of this book sojourned for some time on the island of Rotuma, north of Fiji.

“They were double canoes, the larger of which was from 80 feet to 90 feet in length, and the smaller one 50 ft. to 60 ft. The two hulls were about 6 feet apart, and were connected by cross beams, on which planks were secured so as to form a platform deck some 14 ft. to 16 ft. in width. The fact that both hulls were covered supports the statement that the crew lived in a house built on the plat form deck, and that the hulls accom modated sea stores only. The sails used were of the common Polynesian form, triangular, and set with apex downward.”

Mr. Elsdon Best pithily remarks: —“The trade-winds have had a greater effect on our writers than they ever had on the Polynesian voyager, we opine. One solu tion of the puzzle lies in the simple fact that the prevailing winds do not always prevail,”

Anyone who has lived long in the islands can bear witness to the truth of that statement. —A.C.R.

Sergeant-Major A. W. Ousey, son of Mr.

Andrew Ousey, of Sigatoka, Fiji, who has been serving with the New Zealand forces in the Eighth Army in the North African campaign, has returned to Fiji on leave.