What is the thing you are after? You had best watch out; I demand an explanation; and a few hundred other things.Call a native out of his house in the middle of the night, and he is likely to demand, "What name you sing out along me?"Imagine the predicament of the Germans on the plantations of Bougainville Island, who are compelled to learn beche de mer English in order to handle the native labourers.It is to them an unscientific polyglot, and there are no text-books by which to study it.It is a source of unholy delight to the other white planters and traders to hear the German wrestling stolidly with the circumlocutions and short-cuts of a language that has no grammar and no dictionary.
Some years ago large numbers of Solomon islanders were recruited to labour on the sugar plantations of Queensland.A missionary urged one of the labourers, who was a convert, to get up and preach a sermon to a shipload of Solomon islanders who had just arrived.He chose for his subject the Fall of Man, and the address he gave became a classic in all Australasia.It proceeded somewhat in the following manner:
"Altogether you boy belong Solomons you no savvee white man.Me fella me savvee him.Me fella me savvee talk along white man.
"Before long time altogether no place he stop.God big fella marster belong white man, him fella He make 'm altogether.God big fella marster belong white man, He make 'm big fella garden.He good fella too much.Along garden plenty yam he stop, plenty cocoanut, plenty taro, plenty kumara (sweet potatoes), altogether good fella kai-kai too much.
"Bimeby God big fella marster belong white man He make 'm one fella man and put 'm along garden belong Him.He call 'm this fella man Adam.He name belong him.He put him this fella man Adam along garden, and He speak, 'This fella garden he belong you.' And He look 'm this fella Adam he walk about too much.Him fella Adam all the same sick; he no savvee kai-kai; he walk about all the time.
And God He no savvee.God big fella marster belong white man, He scratch 'm head belong Him.God say: 'What name? Me no savvee what name this fella Adam he want.'
"Bimeby God He scratch 'm head belong Him too much, and speak: 'Me fella me savvee, him fella Adam him want 'm Mary.' So He make Adam he go asleep, He take one fella bone belong him, and He make 'm one fella Mary along bone.He call him this fella Mary, Eve.He give 'm this fella Eve along Adam, and He speak along him fella Adam:
'Close up altogether along this fella garden belong you two fella.
One fella tree he tambo (taboo) along you altogether.This fella tree belong apple.'
"So Adam Eve two fella stop along garden, and they two fella have 'm good time too much.Bimeby, one day, Eve she come along Adam, and she speak, 'More good you me two fella we eat 'm this fella apple.'
Adam he speak, 'No,' and Eve she speak, 'What name you no like 'm me?' And Adam he speak, 'Me like 'm you too much, but me fright along God.' And Eve she speak, 'Gammon! What name? God He no savvee look along us two fella all 'm time.God big fella marster, He gammon along you.' But Adam he speak, 'No.' But Eve she talk, talk, talk, allee time--allee same Mary she talk along boy along Queensland and make 'm trouble along boy.And bimeby Adam he tired too much, and he speak, 'All right.' So these two fella they go eat 'm.When they finish eat 'm, my word, they fright like hell, and they go hide along scrub.
"And God He come walk about along garden, and He sing out, 'Adam!'
Adam he no speak.He too much fright.My word! And God He sing out, 'Adam!' And Adam he speak, 'You call 'm me?' God He speak, 'Me call 'm you too much.' Adam he speak, 'Me sleep strong fella too much.' And God He speak, 'You been eat 'm this fella apple.'
Adam he speak, 'No, me no been eat 'm.' God He speak.'What name you gammon along me? You been eat 'm.' And Adam he speak, 'Yes, me been eat 'm.'
"And God big fella marster He cross along Adam Eve two fella too much, and He speak, 'You two fella finish along me altogether.You go catch 'm bokkis (box) belong you, and get to hell along scrub.'
"So Adam Eve these two fella go along scrub.And God He make 'm one big fennis (fence) all around garden and He put 'm one fella marster belong God along fennis.And He give this fella marster belong God one big fella musket, and He speak, 'S'pose you look 'm these two fella Adam Eve, you shoot 'm plenty too much.'"