_Throwing the spear_ was also common. The young men of one street or village matched against those of another; and, after fixing a mark in the distance, threw a small wooden javelin so that it might first strike the ground, and then spring upwards and onwards in the direction of the mark. They who threw farthest won the game, and had a repast of food at the expense of those who lost it. In more direct spear-throwing they set up the stem of a young cocoa-nut tree, with the base upwards, which is soft and spongy. One party threw at it, and filled it with spears. The other party threw, and tried to knock them down. If any remained after all had thrown they were counted until they reached the number fixed for the game. In another of these amusements a man stood in the distance and allowed another to throw spears at him. He had no shield, but merely a club; and with this he showed surprising dexterity in hitting off spear after spear as it approached him. _Fishing matches_ were in vogue at particular seasons. The party who took the most fish won, and were treated with cooked pigs and other viands by those who lost. _Pigeon-catching_ was another amusement, and one, like our English falconry of other days, in which the chiefs especially delighted. The principal season set in about June. Great preparations were made for it; all the pigs of a settlement were sometimes slaughtered and baked for the occasion; and, laden with all kinds of food, the whole population of the place went off to certain pigeon-grounds in the bush. There they put up huts, and remained sometimes for months at the sport. The ground being cleared, the chiefs stationed themselves at distances all round a large circular space, each concealed under a low shed or covering of brushwood, having by his side a net attached to a long bamboo, and in his hand a stick with a tame pigeon on a crook at the end of it. This pigeon was trained to fly round and round, as directed by its owner, with a string at its foot thirty feet long, attached to the end of his stick. Every man flew his pigeon, and then the whole circle looked like a place where pigeons were flocking round food or water. The scene soon attracted some wild pigeon; and, as it approached the spot, whoever was next to it raised his net and tried to entangle it. He who got the greatest number of pigeons was the hero of the day, and honoured by his friends with various kinds of food, with which he treated his less successful competitors. Some of the pigeons were baked, others were distributed about and tamed for further use. Taming and exercising them for the sporting season was a common pastime.