Original Sources - The History of Melanesian Society

The History of Melanesian Society

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The recipient [in a distribution of blankets] is not at liberty to refuse the gift, although according to what I have said it is nothing but an interest-bearing loan that must be refunded at some future time with 100 per cent interest. This festival is called . . . literally, "flattening something" (for instance, a basket). This means that by the amount of property given the name of the rival is flattened. . . .

When a native has to pay debts and has not a sufficient number of blankets, he borrows them from his friends and has to pay the following rates of interest: For a period of a few months, for 5 borrowed blankets 6 must be returned; for a period of six months, for 5 borrowed blankets 7 must be returned; for a period of twelve months or longer, for 5 borrowed blankets 10 must be returned.

When a person has a poor credit, he may pawn his name for a year. Then the name must not be used during that period, and for 30 blankets which he has borrowed he must pay 100 in order to redeem his name. This is called "selling a slave."

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Chicago: "The History of Melanesian Society," The History of Melanesian Society in Primitive Behavior: An Introduction to the Social Sciences, ed. Thomas, William I. (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1937), Original Sources, accessed July 1, 2025, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=712ETY21A3E7T7I.

MLA: . "The History of Melanesian Society." The History of Melanesian Society, in Primitive Behavior: An Introduction to the Social Sciences, edited by Thomas, William I., New York, McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1937, Original Sources. 1 Jul. 2025. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=712ETY21A3E7T7I.

Harvard: , 'The History of Melanesian Society' in The History of Melanesian Society. cited in 1937, Primitive Behavior: An Introduction to the Social Sciences, ed. , McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., New York. Original Sources, retrieved 1 July 2025, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=712ETY21A3E7T7I.

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