The nobbled savage

I have a Polynesian friend who, like most Samoans and Tongans, is on the big side, which he credits to the double Darwinian pressures of cannibalism in the islands where animal protein and fats were once scarce. Historically, being large was an advantage to islanders - it often meant the difference between being a diner or dinner. In the islands, the higher your rank, the skimpier your clothes. My friend recounts a tale of Samoan independence that is too good to be untrue: The British sent