Page 4
Of the three left, one was used almost entirely by the Churchman ,
which meant that during that summer only two canoes were available
Reports from these men indicated that one
for some 32 fishermen.
the eastern part of the village, was used
in
canoe, Andru's, kept
mainly by men in that district
(where it was convenient}
but also
by a group of men living in the extreme western section of the village.
The other canoe, Betwel's, located in the western district
but fairly central in the community, was used by the remainder of
fishermen in that district, together with a few adjacent in the
east. Analysis of this situation kin-wise revealed that lineage
ties between classificatory siblings provided a most important
basis for use of these scarce properties.
The two canoes were regarded as the principal property of the two men whos had been
instrumental in building them.
Where a man had need of a cance
other than the one he usually used, he asked permission on the basis
of some other kinship link, often through his spouse. Use of a canoe
by other than the
owner required that half the fish catch be left
in the canoe when it was returned.
Livestock consisted of nearly 300 chickens, about 30 ducks,
and a like number of pigs.
The pattern of ownership tended to be
more individualistic here, although cooking and eating an animal
was easily accomplished among kinsmen. Most animals roamed freely
day and night, foraging for food, but pens and coops had beén built,
about 15 of each.
Even these structures seemed to possess fewer
family associations than noticed above for cook huts and copra
driers. A nuclear family in one cooking group might have its own
chicken coop separate from that of another nuclear family in the
same group.
Prior to 1956 the village Council had opposed the establish-
ment of retail
stores on Kili other than one sponsored by the Council
as a community venture. However, toward the close of that year the
policy was changed, and at least one other retail store was in
operation.
The first of these was a
cooperative enterprise by a
group of ambitious young men in their 30's, belonging principally to
two of the largest lineages on Kili.
I believe in this case the
lineage relationship was not a significant one; rather it appears
to have been an organization based on compatibility and like
interests. Later, however, other retails developed on the scene in
which the lineage emphasis was paramount.
The occasion for this
blossoming of retail activity was the payment in December 1956 of
g25,000 in cash to the ex-Bikini people as part of the compensation
made to them by the U. S. government for loss of their rights in
Bikini Atoll.
The combination of ready cash and a limited supply
of store goods on the island (a condition, in the latter case, which
was usual for xili because of difficulties of shipping) appears to
have created a concern among the villagers about the equitable distribution of food stores and other goods. A kind of rationing was
put into operation by the manager of the Council Store, the only
source of trade goods on the island, with so-called "wholesale"
prices charged to owners of so-called retails. Licenses were issued
to some 15 men to operate these retails, and in 1957 thirteen were
still active. Of these, 6 were based primarily on lineage representation as seen in the pattern of investment of dollars by lineage