Chapter 34

A SURVEY OF THE MATERIAL AND SOCIOLOGICAL CULTURE OF THE MANÓBOS OF EASTERN MINDANÁO

GENERAL MATERIAL CULTURE

DWELLINGS

For a home the Manóbo selects a site that is clearly approved by supernatural agencies, and that is especially suitable for agricultural purposes by reason of its fertility, and for defense, because of its strategic position. Hereon he builds an unpretentious, square, one-roomed building at a height of from 1.50 meters to 8 meters from the ground. The house measures ordinarily about 3 meters by 5 meters. Posts, usually light, and varying in number between 4 and 16, support the floor, roof, and intervening parts. The materials are all rattan lashed and seldom consist of anything but light materials taken from the immediate vicinity. The floor is made of slats of palm or bamboo, the roof is thatched with palm leaves, and the walls are light, horizontal, superimposed poles laid to about the height of the shoulders of a person sitting on the floor. The space between the top of the walls and the roof constitutes a continuous window. This open space above the low house wall permits the inmates during a fight to shoot their arrows at the enemy in any direction.

The one ceilingless room serves for kitchen, bedroom, and reception room. There is no decoration nor furniture. Scattered around or hung up, especially in the vicinity of the fireplace, are the simple household utensils, and the objects that constitute the property of the owner--weapons, baskets, and sleeping mats. On the floor farthest away from the door are the hearth frames, one or more, and the stones that serve as support for the cooking pots. A round log with more or less equidistant notches, leading from the ground up to the narrow doorway, admits the visitor into the house.

Under the house is the pigpen. Here the family pigs and the chickens make a living off such refuse or remnants as fall from above. The sanitary condition of this part of the establishment is in no wise praiseworthy. The only redeeming point is that the bad odors do not reach the house, being carried away by the current of air that is nearly always passing.

The house itself is far from being perfectly clean. The low, cockroach-infested thatch, the smoke-begrimed rafters, the unswept, dirt-bestrewn floor, the bug-infested slats, the smoke-laden atmosphere, the betel-nut-tinged walls and floor, these and other features of a small over-populated house make cleanliness almost impossible. The order and quietude of the home is no more satisfactory. The crying of the babies, the romping and shouting of the boys, the loud talking of the elders, the grunting of the pigs below, the whining and growling of the dogs above, and the noise of the various household occupations produce in an average house containing a few families a din that baffles description. But this does not disturb the serenity of the primitive inmates, who laugh, chew, talk, and work, and enjoy themselves all the more for the animation of which they form a great part.

ALIMENTATION

In the absence of such a luxury as matches, the fire-saw or friction method of producing fire is resorted to, although the old steel and flint method is sometimes employed.

The cooking outfit consists of a few homemade earthen pots, supplemented by green bamboo joints, bamboo ladles, wooden rice paddles, and nearly always a coconut shell for receiving water from the long bamboo water tube.

The various articles of food may be divided into two classes, one of which we will call the staple part of the meal and the other the concomitant. It must be remembered that for the Manóbo, as well as for so many other peoples of the Philippine Islands, rice or _camotes_ or some other bulky food is the essential part of the meal, whereas fish, meat, and other things are merely complements to aid in the consumption of the main food. Under the heading, then, of staples we may classify in the order of their importance or abundance the following: _Camotes_, rice, taro, sago, cores of wild palm trees, maize, tubers and roots (frequently poisonous). Among the concomitant or supplementary foods are the following, their order being indicative of the average esteem in which they are held: Fish (especially if salted), domestic pork, wild boar meat (even though putrefied), venison, iguana, larvae from rotted palm trees, python, monkey, domestic chicken, wild chicken, birds, frogs, crocodile, edible fungi, edible fern, and bamboo shoots. As condiments, salt, _if on hand_, and red pepper are always used, but it is not at all exceptional that the latter alone is available.

Sweetpotatoes, taro, tubers, and rice are cooked by steaming. Maize and the cores of palm trees are roasted over the fire.

There are only two orthodox methods of cooking fish, pork, venison, iguana and chicken: (1) In water without lard; (2) by broiling. Python, monkey, crocodile, wild chicken, and birds must be prepared by the latter method.

When the meal is prepared, it is set out on plates, banana leaves, or bark platters, with the water in glasses or in the coconut-shell dipper. On ordinary occasions the husband, wife, children and female relatives of a family eat together, the unmarried men, widowers, and visitors partaking of their meals alone, but on festive occasions, all the male members, visitors included, gather in the center of the floor.

The hands and mouth are washed both before and after the meal. All begin to eat together on the floor. The men eat with their left hands and, on occasions, when the remotest suspicion of trouble exists, keep their right hand on their ever-present weapons. It is customary not to leave one's place after the meal without giving due notice.

NARCOTIC AND STIMULATING ENJOYMENTS

The most common and indispensable source of everyday enjoyment is the betel-nut quid, It would be an inexcusable breach of propriety to neglect to offer betel nut to a fellow tribesman. Not to partake of it when offered would be considered a severance of friendship. The essential ingredients of the quid are betel leaf, betel nut, and lime, but it is common to add tobacco, cinnamon, lemon rind, and several other aromatic elements. At times substitutes may be used for the betel leaf and the betel nut, if there is a lack of either.

Another important masticatory is the tobacco quid with its ingredients of lime and _máu-mau_ juice. This is carried constantly between the lips. Occasionally, however, the men like to smoke a little mixed tobacco in small pipes or in little leaf cones.

The greatest and the most cherished enjoyment of all is drinking: Men, women, and children indulge, the last two sparingly. In Manóboland the fame of a banquet is in direct proportion to the number of those who became drunk, sobriety being considered effeminate, and a refusal to drink an affront to the host.

The main drinks are of four kinds: _Cabo negro_ toddy, sugarcane brew, _bahi_ toddy, and mead. The first and third are nothing but the sap of the palms that bear their respective names, the sap being gathered in the same manner as the ordinary coconut _tuba_. The second or sugarcane brew is a fermented drink made from the juice of the sugarcane boiled with a variety of the ginger plant. It is the choice drink of Manóbo deities. The fourth drink mentioned above is mead. It is similar to the last mentioned except that instead of sugar-cane juice, honey is used in its preparation.

One feature of the drinking is that it is seldom unaccompanied by meat or fish. Hence, on every occasion that a supply of these may be obtained, there is a drinking bout. Religious sacrifices, too, afford abundant opportunity for indulgence.

Quarrels sometimes ensue as a result of the flowing bowl, and war expeditions are proposed, but on the whole it may be said that the Manóbo is a peaceful and a merry drinker.

MEANS OF SUBSISTENCE

The Manóbo makes his living by farming, fishing, hunting, and trapping. He clears a patch of the primeval forest, and his womenfolk clean off the brush, sow broadcast a little rice, plant _camotes_, some taro, maize, and sugarcane. As the rice crop seldom is sufficient for the sustenance of his household, the Manóbo must rely also on the _camote_ for his maintenance.

He obtains his supply of fish from the streams and rivers. When the water is deep and the current is not strong, he shoots the fish with a special bow and arrow. When the water is shallow and swift, he makes use of bamboo traps and at times poisons the whole stream.

To provide himself with meat, he occasionally starts off into the forest with dogs and seldom returns without a deer or a wild boar. He keeps several spring traps set somewhere in the forest but it is only during the rainy season that he may be said to be successful with these. He has a trap for monkeys, a snare for birds, a decoy for wild chickens, and uses his bow and arrow on monkeys and birds.

With the meat that he procures from the above sources, together with lizards and pythons which he sometimes catches, and fungi, larvae, and palm trees, which he finds in the forest, he manages to fill in the intervals between the ceremonial and the secular celebrations that recur so frequently during the year, and to keep himself fairly well supplied.

WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS

The bolo and, in some districts, the dagger, is the inseparable companion of the Manóbo. On the trails he always carries a lance and frequently a shield. For war he has an _abaká_ coat of mail and a bow and arrow. In time of alarm he sets out bamboo caltrops, makes an abatis of fallen trees, and places human spring traps around his lofty house.

For work he has a bolo and a primitive adze[sic]. These, with a rice header, a small knife, a hunting spear, a special arrow for hunting, a fish spear, and perhaps a few fishhooks, serve all the purposes of his primitive life. With one or the other of these he fells the mighty trees of the primordial forest, performs all the operations of agriculture, of hunting and fishing, builds himself a house, in certain districts hews out shapely canoes, whittles out handsome bolo sheaths, and makes a variety of other necessary and often artistic articles. They are the sum total of his tools and serve him instead of all the implements of modern civilization.

INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITIES

The burden of toil falls on the woman. The man fells the heavy timber once a year, builds the house, hunts, fishes, traps, and fights. Practically all the rest of the daily labor is the woman's share. The man is the master, and as such he attends to all matters that may arise between his family and that of others.

Besides the occupations mentioned above, the man may engage, usually under the stress of a contract or of a debt, in canoe making, mining, and basket making.

The women weave all the clothes of the family except when imported cloth has been obtained. Most of the Manóbos' clothes, both for men and women, are made of native-woven cloth. The woman does all the sewing. A needle of brass wire in the absence of an imported needle, and a thread of _abaká_ fiber, constitute her sewing outfit.

Almost all the material employed in weaving is _abaká_ fiber. The dyes are vegetable, their fastness depending upon the duration of the boiling. The Manóbo woman, unlike the Mandáya women, and women of most other tribes in Mindanáo, has never developed the art of inweaving ornamental figures. The best she can do is to produce warp and weft stripes.

The making of simple earthen pots is also one of the industries of the woman. Pots are not, however, made in great quantities, the demand being, I think, a little greater than the supply.

Bed mats and rice bags are made out of various materials such as _pandanus_ and _buri_ in the ordinary Philippine style. The work is done principally by the woman and the supply is not equal, as a rule, to the family needs.

GENERAL SOCIOLOGICAL CULTURE

DOMESTIC LIFE

_Marital relations_.--In his choice of a wife the man is guided to a great extent by the wishes of his relatives, but the woman is given no option. There are no antenuptial relations between the pair, the marriage contract and all arrangements being made by their respective relatives. The transactions usually cover years. The woman's relatives demand for her an amount of worldly goods--slaves, pigs, bolos, and spears--that is almost impossible of payment. The man's relatives, on the other hand, strive to comply, but make use of every means to gain the friendship of the other side and thereby bring about a more considerate demand.

When, perhaps after years of effort, an agreement is reached, a great feast is prepared by the two parties. The final payment is made by the man's relatives, and the following day a reciprocal banquet is given by the girl's relatives, in the course of which one-half of the value of the payment made by the man's relatives is returned by the girl's relatives as an indication that "she has not been sold like a slave."

The marriage ceremony consists in the exchange of rice between the bride and the bridegroom. This is followed by a religious rite that consists mainly in determining by divination the fate of the couple.

Marriage is sometimes effected by capture, usually, I think, with the connivance of the woman. But the procedure involves a heavier payment to the throng of armed relatives that invariably set out in pursuit of the captors.

Prenatal marriage contracts are rare, but child marriage without cohabitation is practiced to a certain extent, especially among the more influential members of the tribe.

The age for marriage is about the age of puberty for the women and about the age of 18 for the men. Polygamy is a recognized institution, but is comparatively rare except among those who have the means to pay for the luxury of a second, third, or fourth wife. It presupposes the consent of the first wife, who always retains and maintains her position, there being no jealously, as far as my observation goes, and few domestic broils. Polyandry is considered swinish, and concubinage is unknown. Divorce is not in accord with tribal customs. The same holds true of prostitution.

There is no evidence of the practice of endogamy which is so widespread among the Oceanic peoples. As a rule, however, the Manóbo marries within his own tribe. This is due to his environment, to the hostile relations he ever holds with surrounding tribes, and to differences of religious beliefs. The only impediment to marriage is consanguinity, but even this impediment may be removed in the case of cousins by appropriate religious ceremonies. Consanguineous marriages are rare.

Upon the death of the husband, the wife is considered to belong to his relatives. Upon the presentation of a second suitor, she is remarried in the same manner as on her first marriage, but the payments demanded are not so high.

Marriages seem to result in reciprocal good understanding and happiness. The wife goes about her manifold duties day after day without a murmur, while her master keeps his weapons in good condition, fishes and hunts occasionally, goes on a trading trip at times, takes part in social gatherings, lends his voice in time of trouble, and goes off to fight if there should be occasion for it.

Faithfulness to the marriage tie is one of the most striking features of Manóboland. Adultery is extremely rare. The husband lives, at least during the first part of the married life, with his father-in-law, and displays toward his parents-in-law the same feelings that he entertains for his own parents. His wife is always under the eyes of her own parents, so that he is restrained from indulging in any marital bickerings.

_Pregnancy, birth, and childhood_.--The desire for children is strong. Hence voluntary abortion and infanticide are unknown. In case of involuntary abortion, which is comparatively frequent, the fetus is hung or buried under the house. When the child begins to quicken in the womb, the mother undergoes a process of massage at the beginning of every lunar month.

Parturition is effected almost invariably without any difficulty, the umbilical cord is cut usually with a bamboo sliver, the mother sits up to prevent a reflux of the afterbirth into the womb, the child is washed, and the operation is over. If the mother can not suckle her child it is nourished with rice water, sugar cane juice, and other light food, but is not given to another to be suckled. In a few days after her delivery the mother is up and back at her work. A little birth party takes place soon after the birth in which the midwife receives a slight guerdon for her services.

The child is named, without any ceremony, after some ancestor or famous Manóbo, or occasionally receives a name indicative of something which happened at the time of the birth. He is treated with the greatest tenderness and lack of restraint. As he grows up he learns the ways of the forest, and about the age of 14 he is a full-fledged little man. If the child is a girl, she helps her mother from the first moment that she is able to be of service.

Birth anomalies are rare. I have seen several albinos and several people who might be called in a loose sense hermaphrodites.

_Medicine, sickness, and death_.--The Manóbo attributes some twelve bodily ailments to natural causes, and for the cure of such he believes in the efficacy of about as many herbs and roots. For wounds, tobacco juice and the black residue of the smoking pipe are considered a good remedy. Betel nut and betel leaf are a very common cure for pains in the stomach. The gall of snakes has a potency of its own for the same trouble.

As a rule, all natural remedies are applied externally until such time as they prove unavailing, and the symptoms assume a more serious aspect.

Whenever an ailment is of a lingering character, especially if accompanied by increasing emaciation and not classifiable as one of the familiar maladies, it is attributed to magic causes. Certain individuals may have the reputation of being able to compound various noxious substances, the taking of which, it is believed, may superinduce lingering ailments. The pulverized bone from a corpse or the blood of a woman, dried in the sun and exposed to the light of the moon and then mixed with finely cut human hair, are example of such compounds. Other magic medicines exist such as aphrodisiacs, and bezoar stones. When it is decided that the ailment is due to any of these magic causes, neutralizing methods must be resorted to, the nature and application of which are very secret.

Epidemics are attributed to the malignancy of sea demons, and by way of propitiation, and inducement to these plague spirits to hurry off with their epidemic, offerings placed on raftlets are launched in the nearest rivers.

As soon as it is realized that the malady is beyond the power of natural or of magic resources, recourse is had to the deities or good spirits, as will be explained under the resume of religion. Upon the occurrence of a death, wild scenes frequently take place, the relatives being unable to restrain their grief. Signals, by bamboo horns, are often boomed out to neighboring settlements to warn them to be on their guard. War raids to settle old feuds are sometimes decided upon on these occasions, so all trails leading to the house are closed.

The corpse is washed and laid out on its back in its best apparel. The coffin is a hexagonal piece of wood made out of a log with a three-faced lid also hewn out of a log. The body is often wrapped in a grass mat before being laid in the coffin.

Before decomposition sets in, the coffin is borne away by men amidst great grief and loud shouts. A high piece of ground is selected in a remote part of the forest for the last resting place of the deceased. A shallow grave is dug, a roof of thatch is erected, a potful of boiled rice is placed over the grave as a last collation for the departed one, and the burial party hurry back in fear to the settlement. As soon as they can provide themselves with temporary huts they almost always abandon the settlement.

_Social and Family enjoyments_.--Music, instrumental and vocal, and dancing are the two great sources of domestic enjoyment. There are several kinds of instruments, which I will mention in the order of their importance and frequency of use. The drum, the gong, four varieties of flutes, four species of guitars, a violin, and a jew's-harp. With the exception of the first two, the instruments are made of bamboo and are, in every sense of the word, of the most primitive kind. The strings are of vine, bamboo, or _abaká_ fiber.

The drum is the instrument of most frequent use. It is played during all dancing and at other times when a tribesman feels inclined. It is used as a signal to give alarm or to call an absent one. During the dance, religious or secular, it is nearly always accompanied by the gong. The use of the other instruments seems to depend upon the caprice of the individuals, though two of them appear to have a religious character.

With the exception of the gong and the Jew's-harp, all of these instruments can be made to produce varied and pleasing rhythms or music, according to the knowledge and skill of the performer. Each strain has its appropriate name, taken frequently from the name of the animal that it is supposed to imitate.

Instrumental music, in general, is of minor tonality, melancholy, weird, and suggestive in some ways of Chinese music.

Bamboo stampers are sometimes used to give more animation to a dancing celebration, and bamboo sounders are attached to looms to draw attention to the industry of the weaver.

Songs are always sung as solos. They are all extemporaneous and for the most part legendary. The language is archaic and difficult for an outsider to understand. The singing is a kind of declamation, with long slurs, frequent staccatos, and abrupt endings. Of course, there are war songs that demand loudness and rapidity, but on the whole the song music is as weird and melancholy as the instrumental. Ceremonial chants do not differ from secular songs, except that they treat of the doings of a supernatural world, and are the medium through which supplications are made to supernatural beings.

Perhaps the greatest of all social enjoyments, both for men and deities, is the dance. It is performed by one person at a time. Men, women and children take part. Dressed in a woman's skirt and decked out in all obtainable finery, the dancer keeps perfect time to the rhythm of the drum and the clang of the gong.

POLITICAL ORGANIZATION

_System of government and social control_.--Manóboland is divided into districts, more or less extensive, which are the property of the different clans. Each district is under the nominal leadership of the warrior chiefs and of the more influential men. In time of peace these districts are open to everybody, but in time of war--and wars were formerly very frequent--only persons of tried friendship are permitted to enter.

A clan consists of a chief whose authority is merely nominal, and of a number of his relatives varying from 20 to perhaps 200 souls. The whole system is patriarchal, no coercion being used unless it is sanctioned by the more influential members, approved by the consensus of opinion of the people, and in accord with traditional custom.

The authority of the elder people is respected as long as they are physically and mentally able to participate in public gatherings. Those who have distinguished themselves by personal prowess always command a following, but they have a greater influence in time of trouble than in time of peace.

Perfect equality reigns among the members of the clan, except in the one respect that the recognized warriors are entitled to the use of a red headkerchief, jacket, and pantaloons, each of these articles, beginning with the first, being added as the number of people whom the warrior has killed is increased.

The chieftainship naturally falls to one who has attained the rank of _bagáni_--that is, to one who has killed a certain number of persons--provided he is otherwise sufficiently influential to attract a following. His duties consist in lending his influence to settle disputes and in redressing the wrongs of those who care to appeal to him. As a priest he is thought to be under the protection of a war god whose desire for blood he must satisfy.

The _bagáni_ also acts as a medicine man, for he is reputed to have certain magic powers both for good and for evil. The natural secretiveness of the _bagáni_ made it difficult for me to secure much information on this point, but his power of harming at a distance and of making himself invisible are matters of general belief. In his character as a priest, he performs ceremonies for the cure of diseases in which fluxes of blood occur.

_Methods of warfare_.--There is no military organization in Manóboland. The greater part of those who form a war party are relatives of the aggrieved one, though it is usual to induce some others of acknowledged prowess to take part. No resentment is harbored by the opposing party toward paid warriors.

Vendettas and debts are the most usual cause of war, and not, as has been reported, glory and the capture of slaves. There is never wanting on the part of those who originate the war a reasonable motive. The vendetta system is not only recognized, but vengeance is considered incumbent on the relatives of one who has been killed, and, as a reminder, a piece of green rattan is sometimes strung up in the house. The rattan suggests that until it rots the wrong will not be forgotten. If the father is unable to avenge the wrong, he bequeathes[sic] the revenge to his son as a sacred legacy. Sometimes another person is deputed to take vengeance, in which case no blame is attached to him.

The peculiar custom prevails of killing a third party who may be neutral, or of seizing his property, but I have known such an act to be resented. As a result of this custom a war party returning from an unsuccessful raid is dangerous.

There is usually no formal declaration of war. In fact, the greatest secrecy is generally observed, and in urgent cases a body of ambushers proceed at once to kill the first one of the enemy that happens to pass their lurking place. As a rule, the enemy's house and his actions are watched for weeks, perhaps for years, until a favorable opportunity for attack presents itself.

The usual times for undertaking an expedition are during the rice harvest and after a death. The preparation consists in acquiring a thorough knowledge of the enemy's house and of its environment. Everything being ready, the warriors assemble, a sacrifice is made, omens are taken, and the band starts out at such an hour as will enable them to reach the vicinity of the enemy about nightfall. From the last stopping point a few warriors make a final reconnaissance in the gloom of the night, release the enemy's traps, and return. The whole band, numbering anywhere from 10 to 100, advance and, surrounding the house, await the dawn, for it is at the first blush of the morning that sleep is supposed to be heaviest. Moreover, there is then sufficient light to enable the party to make the attack. Hence the peep of dawn is almost always the hour of attack.

If the enemy's house is within spear reach, it is usually an easy matter to put the inmates to death, but if it is a high house, and, especially, if the inmates are well prepared, a warrior climbs up silently under the house and spears one of them. This, followed by the killing of pigs and by the battle cry, usually causes consternation. A battle of arrows then takes place; there is a bandying of fierce threats, taunts, and challenges, and the attacking party endeavors to set the roof on fire with burning arrows. If they succeed the inmates flee from the flames, but only the children, as a rule, escape the bolo and the spear.

It is seldom that the attack is prolonged more than a few hours, and it is seldom that the attack is unsuccessful, for if other means fail, hunger and thirst will drive the besieged ones to flight, in which case they become the victims of the besieging warriors. If one of the latter is wounded or killed, the attack is abandoned at once, such an occurrence being considered extremely inauspicious.

Each warrior gets credit for the number of people whom he kills, and is entitled to the slaves that he may capture. The warrior chiefs open the breasts of one or more of the headmen of the slain, insert a portion of their charm collars into the openings, and consume the heart and liver in honor of their war spirits.

During the return home the successful warriors make the forest resound with the weird ululation of the battle cry, and adorn their lances with palm fronds. Upon arrival at their settlement they are welcomed with drum and song and loud acclaim. A purificatory bath is followed by a feast in which each one recounts the minutest details of the attack. After the feast some of the captives may be given to warriors who were unlucky or who desire to satisfy their vengeance. The captives are dispatched in the near-by forest.

Ambush is also a very ordinary method of warfare. Several warriors station themselves in a selected position near the trail and await their enemy.

Whenever there is open rupture between two parties, it is customary for each of them to erect a high house in a place remote and difficult of access, and to surround it with such obstacles as will make it more dangerous. In these houses, with their immediate relatives and with such warriors as desire to take their part, they bide their time in a state of constant watch and ward.

When both parties to a feud are tired, either of fighting constantly or of taking refuge in flight, a peacemaking may be brought about through the good services of friendly and influential tribesmen. On the appointed day, the parties meet, balance up their blood debts and other obligations and decide on a term within which to pay them. As an evidence of their sincere desire to preserve peace and to make mutual restitution, a piece of green rattan is cut by the leaders, and a little beeswax is burnt, both operations being symbolic of the fate that will befall the one that breaks his plighted word.

_Intertribal and analogous relations_.--Intertribal relations between pagan Manóbos and Christtianized[sic] Manóbos, and between the former and Bisáyas were comparatively pacific during my residence in the Agúsan Valley. Between Manóbos and other mountain tribes, excepting Mañgguáñgans, the relations were, with casual exceptions, rather friendly, due, no doubt, to the lessons learned by the Manóbos in their long struggles with Mandáyas, Banuáons, and Debabáons up to the advent of the missionaries about 1877. The Manóbos are inferior to the tribes mentioned in tribal cohesion and in intellect. Their dealings, however, with Mañgguáñgans, who are undoubtedly their physical and intellectual inferiors, present a different aspect. With the Mandáyas and Debabáons, they have helped to reduce the once extensive Mañgguáñgan tribe to the remnant that it is to-day.

Manóbos and other mountain tribes have little to do with each other. Only particular individuals of the various tribes, who have the happy faculty of avoiding trouble, travel among other tribes. In general, Manóbos are afraid of the aggressiveness of their neighbors (excluding the Mañgguáñgans), and their neighbors f ear Manóbo instability and hot-headedness; hence both sides pursue the prudent policy of avoidance.

Interclan relations have been comparatively peaceful since the establishment of the special government in the Agúsan Valley. Occasional killings took place formerly and probably still take place in remote regions, notably on the upper Baóbo. It is probable that since my departure from the Agúsan in 1910 these murders take place much less frequently, as the special government organized in 1907 has made great headway in getting in contact with the more warlike people of the interior.

Up to the time of my departure dealings between the various clans were purely commercial and of a sporadic nature. Old enmities were not forgotten, and it was considered more prudent to have as little as possible to do with one another.

On all occasions, when there is any apprehension of danger, arms are worn. During meals, even of festive occasions, the Manóbo eats with his left hand, holding his right in readiness for an attack. The guests at a feast are seated in such a way that an attack may be easily guarded against. Various other laws of intercourse, such as those governing the passing of one person behind another and method of unsheathing a bolo, regulate the dealings of man with man and clan with clan.

Commercial relations between Bisáyas and Manóbos, both pagan and Christianized, constitute, on the part of the first-mentioned, a system of deliberate and nefarious spoliation which has been denounced from the time of the first missionaries and which, by the establishment of trading posts by the Government, eventually will be suppressed. Absolutely inadequate values both in buying and selling commodities, use of false weights and measures, defraudation in accounts, demands of unspeakably high usury, wheedling by the _puának_ or friendship system, advancing of merchandise at exorbitant rates, especially just before the rice harvest, and the system of commutation by which an article not contracted for was accepted in payment though at a paltry price--these were the main features of the system. It may be said that the resultant and final gain amounted to between 500 and 1,000 per cent.

The bartering was carried on in a spirit of dissimulation, the Manóbo being cozened into the idea that the sale was an act of friendship and involved a comparative loss on the part of the Bisáya. A period, more or less extended, was allowed him wherein to complete the payment, with a promise of further liberal advances.

Since the Manóbo has become aware of the stupendous gain of the Bisáya, he is not so prompt in his payments and in fact often thwarts his creditor by deliberate delays. Hence the frequent bickerings, quarrels, and ill will that are ever a result of these commercial relations.

It is needless to say that throughout the valley there was most undue fluctuation of prices. Moreover, the Manóbo sold a part of his rice in harvest time at 50 centavos a sack, and in time of scarcity repurchased it at as much as 5 pesos.

The internal commerce of the Manóbos presents, on the whole, a very different spectacle. It consists in simple exchanges. There is no circulating medium. The units of exchange are slaves (valued at from 15 to 30 pesos each), pigs, and plates, but with the exception of the first, these units are not constant in value.

The measures used are the _gántang_, a cylindrical wooden vessel with a capacity of from 10 to 15 liters; the _kabán_,[1] which contains 25 gántang; the yard, measured from the end of the thumb to the middle of the sternum; the span, the fathom, the finger, and the finger joint.

[1] Called also _bákid_ and _anéga_. A _kabán_ is measured by counting out 25 _gántang_.

Slavery is a recognized institution, but since the diminution of intertribal and interclan wars the number of slaves has diminished. Slaves were originally obtained by capture and then passed from hand to hand in making marriage payments. It sometimes occurs, in an exigency, that a man delivers a child, even his own, into captivity.

The slave is generally not ill-treated but has to do all the work that is assigned to him. He has no rights of any kind, possesses no property except a threadbare suit, and is usually not allowed to marry. However, he receives a sufficiency of food and seems to be contented with his lot.

ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

_General principles and various laws_.--It is frequently stated by Bisáyas and others that Manóbo justice consists in the oppression of the weak by the strong, but I have not found this to be true. The Manóbo is too independent and too much a lover of revenge to brook coercion. He recognizes a set of customary rules, and any departure from them is resented by himself and by his relatives.

Nearly all violations of rights are considered as civil and not as criminal wrongs, and upon due compensation are condoned. Failure on the part of the offender to make this compensation leads the aggrieved man and his relatives to take justice into their own hands.

The guilty one in nearly every case is allowed a fair and impartial hearing in the presence of his own relatives. The matter is argued out, witnesses are called, and the offender's own relatives generally exert their influence to make him yield with good will. Hence the feast that follows nearly every case of successful arbitration.

One of the fundamental customs of the Manóbos is to regard as a duty the payment of one's debts, and this duty is performed sacredly and often at a sacrifice. Another fundamental custom is the right of revenge. Revenge is a sacred duty that is bequeathed from generation to generation, and from it result the long and terrible feuds that have devastated Manóboland.

Customary law is based on the intense conservation of the Manóbo, fostered by the priests and strengthened by a system of religious injunctions and interdictions. Anyone who violates these taboos or interdictions becomes liable for all evil consequences that may follow.

Property rights are understood and rigidly upheld, so much so that there seems to be no conception of a gift as such. Large tracts of land are considered the property of a clan, but anyone on good terms with the clan may settle on the land and may have all the rights of a clansman except those of fishing. Each individual becomes the temporary owner of the land that he selects and of the crops that he plants thereon. As soon as he abandons the land it becomes the collective property of the clan. Land disputes are unknown.

Property that is the result of one's labor or one's purchase belongs to the individual except in the case of women, children, and slaves. Loss of and damage to property belonging to another must be made good, no excuses being admitted.

The law of contracts is stringent, but a certain amount of consideration is shown in case of a failure to fulfill a contract on time, unless a definite stipulation to the contrary has been previously made. All contracts are made in the presence of witnesses, and frequently a knotted rattan slip, representing the number of items or the number of days to elapse before payment, is delivered by the one who makes the contract.

Nearly all transactions are made on a credit basis, hence frequent disputes arise out of the failure of one party or the other to fulfill the terms of the contract. The failures are sometimes due to the fact that one individual man depends on payment from another in order to satisfy his debt to a third party. Undue delay on the part of a debtor finally gives the creditor the right to seize the property of the debtor, or even the property of a third party. Such an action is not common and is always taken under the stress of exasperation after repeated efforts to collect have proved unavailing. As a rule the relatives of the debtor prefer to settle the obligation rather than to allow matters to become too serious, but it happens at times that they, too, are obstinate and allow things to take their course.

No interest is charged on loans except in the case of paddy. There are few loans made, and no leases or pledges. These last imply a distrust that is not pleasing to the Manóbo.

The law of liability is very strict. For instance, if one should ask another to accompany him on a journey and the latter should fall sick or die, the former would be liable for his death. If one should die in the house, thereby causing the abandonment of it, the relatives of the dead man would have to pay the value of the house. Similar instances are of frequent occurrence and can readily be understood. This liability law extends to evils supposed to be due to the violation of taboos and to the possession of magic powers.

There is a system of fining that serves, harsh though it may seem, to maintain proper deference to the person and the property of another. Thus, spitting on another, rudely grasping another's person, entering another's district without due permission, bathing in river without the owner's leave, are a few of the many cases that might be adduced. The fine varies according to the damage and amount of malice that may be proved in the subsequent arbitration.

_Regulations governing domestic relations and property; customary procedure in settlements of disputes._--The house belongs collectively to the builders. The property in it belongs to the male inmates who have acquired it.

The elder brother takes possession of the property of his deceased brother, unless the eldest son of the deceased is of such an age as to be capable of managing the household. In case the deceased did not have a brother, a brother-in-law or a son-in-law becomes the representative of the household. The eldest son inherits his father's debts and must pay them.

There is so little property in the ordinary Manóbo home that there are no disputes as to the inheritance. After a death the house is abandoned and the grief-stricken relatives scurry off with their baskets, mats, and simple utensils to make another home in a solitary part of the forest.

The relations both prenuptial and postnuptial between the sexes are of the strictest kind. All evil conduct from adultery down to immodest gazing is punished with appropriate fines and even with death. The fines vary from the equivalent of three slaves down to the equivalent of a few pesos.

The marriage contract is very rigid. I know of few cases in which the stipulated price was not paid prior to the delivery of the fiancé. In case of the death of one of the affiancéd parties, the payments made must be refunded. In case of the refusal of the bridegroom to continue his suit even though there has been no fault on the part of the bride or of her relatives, he loses all right to recover. Should the bride's people, however, decide to discontinue the proceedings, they must return the previous payments and make, I believe, compensation for the trouble and expenses incurred during the previous transactions. No case of a discontinuance of the marriage proceedings ever passed under my observation.

The father has theoretically full power over his wife and children, but in practice his domestic jurisdiction is of the most lenient kind. Marital affection and filial devotion reign in the household.

The husband may not marry a second wife during the lifetime of the first without the latter's consent. This rule, as well as the lack of sufficient worldly possessions to purchase another helpmate, makes polygamy comparatively infrequent.

The bridegroom is supposed to live with his father-in-law or with the previous owner of his wife, very often his wife's brother, but nearly always sets up his own establishment a few years after marriage.

With the exception of adultery, fornication, rape, and wanton homicide, all crimes presuppose an appeal to arbitration. The one that is the author of another's death is the one on whom vengeance must be taken, if it is possible.

When an outraged party is unable to obtain redress by arbitration or by the direct reprisal, he avenges himself on a third party, preferably a relative of his enemy, by killing him or by seizing his property. He thus brings matters to a head. It is usual to compound with the relatives of this third party, either for the death or for the seizure, on condition that they will league themselves with the one who is seeking revenge, in opposition to the original wrongdoer or that they themselves will undertake, as his paid agents, to wreak vengeance on his enemy.

Minor offenses are punished by fines that are determined by arbitration. These fines vary in amount, but nearly always include a feast, more or less elaborate, the expenses of which are borne by the party that lost the case.

The arbitration of a question may be made immediately after it has arisen or it may not be brought about for weeks or months. When the discussion has begun it is not considered politic for either side to yield at once. Threats are bandied between the principals until, through the influence of friendly chiefs, they are brought together. Then the relatives discuss the affair, each side exaggerating its own view of the question. It is only after lengthy discussions, and the use of similitudes and allegories, loud shouts, dissimulation, and through the sagacity and influence of the chief men that the opinions of the parties are so molded that an agreement is reached.

It may be necessary to determine the offense. This is done by witnesses who give, as far as I have been able to judge, truthful testimony. Whenever the veracity of a witness is doubted he may be obliged to take a kind of oath which consists in the burning of beeswax. A little beeswax is melted by holding a firebrand over it. While this is being done, the person whose veracity it is desired to test, utters a wish that in case of falsehood his body may be melted like the wax. In the case of suspects, ordeals are employed. They consist of making the parties under suspicion either plunge their hands into boiling water, or undergo the diving test, or take the candle ordeal.

Circumstantial evidence is admissible. By means of it, the authors of hidden crimes are often brought to punishment after years of patient waiting.

It is customary for the guilty one to make at least a partial payment immediately after the arbitration, and to treat the assembly to a banquet in which it is good form for the two opponents to close the breaches of friendship by generous quaffs to each other's health.