It is a very laborious and costly festival, commemorated every third or fourth year, with much ceremony commingled of joy and sorrow. All the islanders cannot observe it at one limited period, nor can the people of one whole village do so conjointly with each other. If a few families of a village commemorate the feast during one year, other families will undertake it at some other convenient year, which will be at a time when their stores are abundant, and after sufficient delay for the bones of their deceased to become denuded of flesh. The festival is conducted with much expenditure and demonstration, and differs slightly in each village. It consists of a course of ceremonies continuing from one full moon to another, and commences as follows:-- About ten months prior to the occasion, all the people of a village consult together to fix the festival month, and then inform the rest of the villages, and obtain their promise of assistance. They next send messengers to give notice to all the villages of the island of their intentions, and bear preliminary invitations (_mahau-karé_). Of these there are two kinds--general and special. The general invitation is given to friends and relatives, that they may join them in the feast and help in various respects. The special invitation is sent by one family of the commemorators of the ceremony to the people of a whole village, that the hosts may give a performance in their house on the occasion. If ten families of a village commemorate the feast, they would invite the people of ten distant villages for this purpose, while those of three adjacent villages would be invited generally. Their first duty, after sending out invitations, is to make a _ñá-kopáh_ (feast for the dead). Some well-carved wooden poles, fifty or sixty feet in height, with cross battens, are prepared and planted in the ground at _Elpanam_, and in the village in front of the houses of the commemorators. On these the people hang up varieties of yams and plantains; bundles of sireh leaf; bunches of coconuts, areca-nuts, pandanus, fruit, cheroots, and other eatables to which they are accustomed; in all, about fifty kinds. Below the posts they place teakwood boxes containing new clothes and jewels; bottles of toddy and earthen pots from Chaura, all fenced in carefully. These arrangements are decorated from top to bottom with flags, etc., until they look like Indian processional cars. This work is the occupation of about thirty men for three months. From the day the _ñá-kopáh_ is commenced, the natives are restricted from killing pigs in the village.