Chapter 44

DOMESTIC LIFE AND MARITAL RELATIONS

ARRANGING THE MARRIAGE

Manóbo marriages, in general, may be said to be unions of convenience sought with a view to extending the circle of relatives in such directions as may result in an increase of power, prestige, protection, and sundry other material advantages. An instance passed under my notice in 1909 in which the daughter of a Mañgguáñgan warrior chief was captured in marriage for the purpose of securing his aid against the captor's enemies. The captor was a Manóbo-Mañgguáñgan of the upper Agúsan.

SELECTION OF THE BRIDE

In the selection of his future wife, the Manóbo consults his own tastes as far as he can, but he is influenced to a great extent by the opinion of his parents and near relatives, all of whom ordinarily look to the advantages to be derived from connection with powerful members of the tribe. Hence rank and birth are nearly always a determining factor, and where the wishes of the man's elders are in opposition to his own natural choice, he yields and is contented to take the helpmate chosen for him.

COURTSHIP AND ANTENUPTIAL RELATIONS

Sometimes the young man is bidden to take up his residence in the girl's house, observe her general character and especially her diligence, find out if she has been bespoken, gain the good will of her father and relatives, and report to his people.

No communication of any kind takes place between him and his prospective wife. When the subject is broached to the girl, she simply bids him see her relatives. I have known of cases among the upper Agúsan Manóbos where improper suggestions to the girl were at once reported by her to her parents, and the author of them was at once brought to order with a fine, the equivalent of P15 or P30. One white man is reported to have met his death at the hand of a Manóbo for a mistake of this kind many years ago. In deepest Manóboland, when the offense passes, however slightly, the boundaries of suggestion, it becomes the source of many a deadly feud. Happily, however, such cases are extremely rare.

BEGGING FOR THE HAND OF THE GIRL

Three, four, or five of the nearest male relatives of the man, after procuring a little beverage, repair early some evening to the house of the nearest relative of the girl. After they have partaken of the inevitable betel-nut quid, and have offered a drink of sugarcane brew or other beverage to the household, and have discussed a few topics of daily life--it may be about the last wild boar killed, or the capture of a polecat in the snares[1]--the prologue begins. This lasts from one to two days, including often the better part of the nights. Each of the visitors comes in his turn and rattles off, with many a significant haw and cough, in good Manóbo style a series of periphrastic platitudes and examples that apparently give no clue to the object of their visit. The owner of the house and father, let us say, of the girl quickly understands the situation and then assumes a most indifferent air. The visitor who has taken up the discourse continues, with never a care for the various household sounds, such as the chopping of wood, or the yelping of dogs; and not even the announcement of supper, and the partaking thereof, can stay his eloquence. The householder at times emits a sleepy grunt of approval, relapses apparently into a drowse, and after several hours, rolls into his mat and feigns sleep. At this juncture one of the visitors hastens down the notched pole and gets the silver-ferruled lance or silver-sheathed knife that has been left concealed near the house. The spokesman of the visitors then offers it to the father of the hoped-for bride on condition that he rise and listen, for they have come with an object in view--to beg for the hand of his daughter. It is then his turn to begin a painfully drawn-out discourse, to which the visitors assent periodically with many an humble and submissive "_ho_" and "_ha_," "_bai da man_" (yes, indeed), and so forth. He strains and racks his brains to think of every imaginable reason against the marriage, and finally, after he has exhausted every resource, he bids his visitors go home and come back on such a day, because he has to consult his relatives; but he can not get them to stir until he gives them a counterpresent, which he claims is of much more value than their present to him.

[1] _Lítag_.

On the appointed day the young man's relatives again proceed to the same house, but in this case reinforced by all the relatives within reach, each one carrying his present.

Upon the arrival the same performance is repeated and the same tactics pursued as before, except that this time the visitors kill their fatted pig and set it out, inviting the householder and all his relatives to partake, but, lo and behold! no one will eat. No amount of persuasion will induce them--they have eaten already--they are all sick--they do not like to be invited to eat by their visitors, it being against all the rules of hospitality, etc. To all of these objections the visitors by turn answer, offsetting one reason by another and all the while trying to put the other people into good humor and soften their hearts. But no, the owner of the house and his party refuse, and all this while the fatted pig lies in big black chunks on the floor, surrounded by rice in platters, baskets, and leaves. At this point a few of the visitors again hasten down the notched pole, and gather up out of the grass or underbrush in the adjacent jungle the concealed presents. The arrival of the presents is a grand moment for the father and relatives of the young man. Even the future bride, who up to this time has coyly hidden away in a corner, can not help stealing a few peeps at the display of spears, bolos, daggers, plates, and jars.

Picking them up one by one the owner descants on their beauty, their value (naming an outrageous sum), and his relatives express their sorrow at parting with them. "But," he goes on to say, "it matters not, provided that you see our good will and will join us in this banquet." Whereupon he distributes among his guests according to the order of their standing the array of presents, after which all squat down and begin to eat, the visitors giving an extra dose of wassail to their friends in order that under its warming influence they may soften and yield.

During the course of the meal, the discussion is continued and every appeal made to motives of friendship and self-interest, but in vain--the other side shows no signs of yielding; they say that they can not yet make a fixed contract, that the girl is too young, or that she does not want the suitor; and so the hosts are bade to have patience and to go their way. But now that they have spent an amount varying from P30 to P50 they are not minded to lose it, but will persist in their suit for years. I have heard of marriage transactions that covered 10 years and have personal knowledge of numerous cases that have extended over 6.

The case of a Manóbo in Pilar, upper Agúsan, will illustrate the point. His father, during the interregnum of 1898, first made the proposal for the hand of the girl. It was refused until toward the end of 1904 the parents finally yielded, but on condition that 10 slaves be paid. A few months subsequently, after a course of hard haggling and cunning bargaining, the contract was modified to four slaves plus the equivalent of the value of six. Three slaves were delivered after a raid on a Mañgguáñgan settlement on the middle Sálug (about April, 1905). The 6 "thirties,"[2] or P180, were paid in lances, knives, and other things before the demise of the father toward the latter part of 1905, so that one slave still remained to be delivered. On my last visit to Pilar (February, 1910) the poor fiancé was still doing chores around his mother-in-law's house, and the slave was still unpaid. If he can not procure that slave it will probably cost him, in other effects, several times the value of the slave.

[2] _Kat-lo-án_, meaning 30, is a monetary unit, representing the value of a good slave.

Proceedings of the kind described before are repeated at frequent intervals for a number of years, but with this exception, that on the ensuing visits presents of no great value are bestowed on the father of the expected bride--a bunch of bananas, a piece of venison, or a few chickens, or some such offering are made, with a reiteration of the petition. A capacious porker with a bounteous supply of sugar-cane brew in big bamboo internodes is brought along occasionally to break down the obdurateness of the householder's heart, until one fine day, under the benign influence of "the cup that cheers," he yields, but intimating that his petitioners can never afford the marriage payments.[3] He will then probably recount the purchase price of this own wife, always with exaggerations; descant on the qualities of his daughter, her strength, her beauty, her diligence, her probable fecundity; and deplore the grievous loss to be sustained by her departure from her parents' side. Whereupon the visitors respond that they are willing to substitute a number of slaves to make up for the loss of the daughter, but that in any case she will not leave the paternal home and that the bridegroom will take up his residence there and help his father-in-law in all things; and so the matter is discussed and the payment of a certain number of slaves is determined in the following manner:

DETERMINATION OF THE MARRIAGE PAYMENT

Determination of the marriage payment is the very soul of the whole marriage proceeding. Years and years of service on the part of the would-be husband, presents innumerable on the part of his relatives, and feigned indifference or opposition on the other side have led up to this moment. For the sake of clearness, let us call the father or nearest male relative of the future bride A and the father or nearest male relative of the bridegroom, B.

A, aided by all the cunning of his relatives, lays down as a condition, let us say, seven slaves and one female relative of B, who is to be a substitute for his daughter. To this B rejoins that it is a high price and impossible of fulfillment, that he is not a warrior chief, nor a _datu_, nor such a wealthy person as A, and that he can never satisfy such a demand, giving a thousand and one reasons, such as sickness or debt. A responds and belittles him for being so deficient in resources, asks if B wants to get a wife for his son gratuitously, and tells him to go home and buy a slave girl for him. He yells indignation at the top of his voice, probably with his hand on his bolo, in a very menacing way.

B and his party, seeing that it is unavailing, go home, consult over the matter, and during the course of a year or two take every possible means to procure the necessary slaves. They may be successful in securing one or more, let us say two, and at the same time may manage to get together, say, 5 lances, 6 bolos, 2 jars, 30 plates, and 5 pigs; and so one fine day they start off to A's for another trial.

B proceeds to make A feel merry before he reports his failure to comply with the demand. This report is usually a tissue of the most atrocious "oriental diplomacies" that the human mind can concoct. A listens to this prologue, interlarded as it always is with ejaculations of corroboration from B's party. Then A begins: It is an outrage, he will have none of the pigs; the idea of selling his daughter for a bunch of pigs! He gets up and says he will first kill the pigs and then the owner, but his relatives make a pretense at restraining him. After a few hours of this simulation, by which he has induced B to make many gifts, he softens, but as the demand was not complied with to the letter, the payment must be increased, he says, by 4 more pigs, a piece of Chinese cloth, 8 Mandáya skirts, and 2 jars. At this point his relatives interfere. His sister wants three pigs and four skirts. She was midwife at the birth of the girl in question and, due to her contact with the unclean blood, was approached by a foul spirit and fell sick. Surely she deserves a big payment--1 female slave, 2 pigs, 2 shell bracelets, and a piece of turkey red cloth. And the third cousin claims that she nursed the child, the future bride, two months during the illness of its mother, and demands two Mandáya skirts. And so the haggling is continued, A and his party doling out the marriage effects as sparingly as possible, taking care to make presents to the more vehement and unyielding parties on the other side.

[3] _Ábat_.

This operation always lasts a few days, during which B keeps his prospective relatives in high glee with pork and potations, until A consents.

THE MARRIAGE FEAST AND PAYMENT

The marriage feast almost invariably takes place during the harvest, for the simple reason that food is more abundant and also because the harvest days are the gladdest of all the year. When the time for the marriage is close at hand the father-in-law makes an announcement to friends and neighbors, sending out messengers and leaving at each house a rattan strip[4] to indicate the number of days to elapse before the marriage. If his own house is not sufficiently large for the expected attendance, he changes to another and awaits the eventful day.

[4] _Ba-lén-tus_.

The whole country flocks to the house at the appointed time, the relatives of the bridegroom being loaded down with the marriage presents, which are all carefully concealed in baskets, leaf wraps, etc., and are deposited secretly in the woods adjoining the house. Of course the omen bird must be consulted. On this occasion above all others it is essential that the omens be favorable, as there are no means, so I have been informed, to counteract an inauspicious marriage omen. While preparations are being made for the banquet by the bridegroom's party, the interminable parley[5] is continued. The bride's father and relatives make their last efforts for securing all they can in worldly effects. They almost repent of the bargain--it was too cheap--think of the price paid for the bride's mother--the expenses incurred during a long illness of the bride in her infancy--and compare the modicum demanded for her marriage; it is outrageous! no, the marriage can not go on, the girl is not in good health, and the ordeal might increase her ailment. Every sort of trick is resorted to in order that the other side may be more generous in the bestowal of gifts. The discussion is thus one big tissue of simulation, and is carried on in succession by the elders on each side. The bridegroom's father keeps offering betel nut and brew to his new "cofather-in-law"[6] and selects a favorable moment to make him a big present, possibly of an old heirloom, a jar, or a venerable old spear, the value of which he estimates at P50, although it may be worth only P8.

[5] _Bi-sä_.

[6] _Bá'-i_.

The meal is finally spread out on the floor. The roasted part of the pig has been hacked into small chunks and is piled up on plates, leaves, bark platters, and shallow baskets. The boiled portion remains in charred bamboo internodes placed close at hand. The rice is loaded on plates, or placed in large baskets lined with leaves, and the beverage is put in the ancient family jars, or is left in long bamboos: The host, in this case the bridegroom's father or nearest male relative, assisted by a few others, distributes the meat, carefully selecting the pieces according to weight, size, and quality, so that no one can complain of not having had as good a share as his neighbor. Such toothsome parts as the brains, heart, and liver are divided among the relatives who enjoy greater prestige, the tougher and more gizzly[sic] pieces falling to the lot of the people of lesser importance. This operation takes up the better part of an hour. It is needless to say that a hubbub of voices helps to give animation to the occasion. The Manóbo speaks in no angelic whisper on ordinary occasions, but at a solemn time like this his vocal chords twang with all the intensity of which they are capable.

Finally all squat down on the floor, armed with the inseparable bolo if suspicious visitors are present. Hands are washed by pouring a little water out of a bowl, tumbler, or bamboo joint; the mouth is rinsed, and the meal is begun. With their right hands on their bolos, if they have not ungirded[sic] them, they lay their left hands over their portions of rice, knead handfuls of it into a compact mass, and raising their hands to their mouths ram it in with the palms.

The two "cofathers-in-law" pay special attention to each other, each trying to get the other intoxicated, and each feeding the other with chunks of fat and other things. This custom is called _daiyápan_ and is universal among the non-Christian tribes of the Agúsan Valley. It is a mark of esteem and the highest token of hospitality. A few pieces of fat and bone are scooped up, dipped in a mixture of red pepper, salt, and water and thrust, nolens volens, into the mouth of the good fellow whom it is desired to honor. And it is not good etiquette to remove it. It must be gorged at once and the fortunate man must proceed to reciprocate in the same way. The brew is distributed in tumblerfuls or in bamboo joints holding about a tumblerful each. To refuse the allotted portion would degrade one in the eyes of everyone, for here it is a sin to be sober and a virtue to get drunk. Gluttony finds no place in a Manóbo dictionary--one is merely full,[7] but always ready to go on; friend divides his rice with friend, when he sees that the latter's supply is getting low, and his own is immediately replenished by one of the womenfolk, or slaves that attend to the culinary work. Nor must one finish before anybody else. It is not polite. Nothing must be left on the plate, a fact that each one makes clear by washing the plate clean with water.

[7] _Mahántoi_.

The pandemonium increases in direct proportion as the brew diminishes. One's neighbor may be yelling to somebody else at the other end of the house while the latter is trying at the top of his voice to reach the fellow that sits far away from him. Goodnatured, though rather inelegant, jokes and jests are howled at the bride, who coyly conceals herself behind a neighbor, and at the bridegroom, who does not seem at all abashed. The women, who eat all together near the hearth, carry on the same operations but in their own more gentle way, never falling under the influence of the liquor. The meal is usually finished in about three hours, when the pig and rice are exhausted.

After a chew of betel nut, comes the supreme moment for payment,[8] ushered in by many a "_ho_" and "_ha_" with another discussion. The tenor of this is that the father of the bridegroom is not as well provided with goods[9] as he had desired to be, owing, let us say, to a failure to obtain certain effects he had ordered from so-and-so, together with numerous other pretexts and excuses that on the face of them are untrue. Pointing out his slaves, he descants on them; and goes on to explain how much trouble he had to get them; he could not value them for less than P80 apiece. Or, if they are captives, he describes the fatigues of his march and the imminent danger to which he was exposed during the attack, together with such other reasons, mostly fictitious, as would tend to enhance their value and thereby avoid subsequent haggling. He then delivers the other goods demanded.[10] Where two slaves had been asked he gives two kinds of goods,[11] say a lance and a bolo, whereupon there is invariably a howl of dissatisfaction, according to custom. But things are settled nicely either by granting a few plates or some such thing for a solace, or by playing on the good will or simplicity of the person who objected. The distribution is not completed in one day. Usually about one-third of the entire amount of goods is held over with a view to observing if there is anyone who is not quite pleased with his portion, and also for the purpose of keeping up their hopes.

[8] _Á-bat_.

[9] _Máng-gad_.

[10] By his cofather-in-law and relatives.

[11] _Da-dú-a no baíyo no máng-gad_.

THE RECIPROCATORY PAYMENT AND BANQUET

The following day, or whenever the payment has been completed, begins the reciprocatory payment[12] in which the bride's relatives return to those of the bridegroom a certain amount of goods varying in value, but approximately one-half of what has been paid as the marriage portion. As a soother, they also kill a pig and right earnestly set about putting their new circle of relatives in good humor. It may be noted that the duration of these feasts depends on the rapidity with which the pig is dispatched. I have known a marriage feast to cover a period of seven days, though it may be said that it is generally terminated the second day, at least in the case of less well-to-do Manóbos.

[12] _Sú-bak_.

The reciprocatory payment being successfully carried through, it now remains for the bridegroom's relatives to give the farewell feast and carry off the bride. But it often happens that the girl's relatives have ascertained that there are still a number of goods in the possession of their new relatives and it is considered proper to secure them.

A few hours before departure the bride is decked out with all available ornaments. Bead necklaces, with pendants of crocodile teeth and strips of mother-of-pearl; bracelets of seashell,[13] large, white and heavy; bracelets of vegetable fiber and of sea wood; a comb inlaid with mother-of-pearl, and adorned with beads and tassels of cotton; leglets of plaited jungle fiber--all these constitute her finery. During the process of dressing, the bride's female relatives usually weep, while the more distant ones set up a howl, often, I think, of ficticious[sic] grief, in which the children, babies, and dogs may join. At this juncture the female relatives of the bridegroom intercede and endeavor to assuage their grief. It is only after numerous presents have been given them that they become resigned, but at the last moment, when the bride is about to be led away, they surround her and hold her and perhaps repeat the wail till they receive more material consolation. This necessitates another supply of presents. Then the children have to be appeased. Finally the girl is led down the pole, but as her father may have espied, let us say, a fine dagger, or a lance that struck his fancy, nothing will satisfy him except to order them all back and tell his cofather-in-law that he must needs have the lance or dagger, giving some sly reason, as, for instance, that his wife had an ominous dream last night. In one marriage feast that I witnessed, after all the bridegroom's people had left the house, the bride's father told his son to beat the dog. Whereupon he ordered the party back and told his cofather-in-law that it was passing strange that the dog should have howled just as they left the house and that he should leave his lance and bolo as an offering to one of the family deities. It was done accordingly and in all good nature. Then they started off again, but were recalled because the old fox happened to remember that his cofather-in-law had on several occasions during the early marriage proceedings displeased him, and so it became necessary to atone for the sin[14] by another gift. Finally they got a start, filched of all they had. It happens frequently that the marriage suitors are deprived even of their personal weapons and of part of their clothes. It may be remarked that the bestowal of a person's upper garment is considered an act of deep friendship, and is of fairly frequent occurrence.

[13] _Tak-ló-bo_ (_Tridacna gigas_).

[14] _Húgad to saí-ya_. This is another instance of that peculiar belief in an atonement rite of which I can give no details.

The above is a description of the upper class marriage feast, but that of the poorer class is carried on in much the same style, except that the proceedings are much briefer. The bride's father and people on the one hand strive by might and main to get the highest payment obtainable, while the bridegroom's folk exert themselves to hold the price down. Whatever is given in payment is overvalued--it is a keepsake, an heirloom, would never be given away under any other circumstances--in fact, may result in evil to the giver. On the other hand everything that is received is depreciated--it is old, or of no use to the receiver. An old trick is to return it, whereupon a little additional gift is made for a consolation. But even then it is never admitted that the gift is received for its intrinsic value, but rather out of good will.

MARRIAGE AND MARRIAGE CONTRACTS

THE MARRIAGE RITE

We will now follow the bride to her father-in-law's house and witness the religious ceremony by which the hymeneal tie is indissolubly knitted. It is essential that the omen bird should be favorable on the trip to the bridegroom's house, otherwise the party must return. Usually the parting injunction of the bride's father to his cofather-in-law warns him to watch for the omen bird.

A pig is killed as soon as possible and set out in the usual style at the house of the bridegroom. The bride and bridegroom sit side by side on an ordinary grass mat. No special decorations have been made; no bridal chamber has been prepared, except sometimes a rude stall of slatted bamboo or of bark.

When the meal is ready, the bridegroom takes a handful of rice from his plate and offers it to the bride while she also gives a similar portion to him. Then he passes his rice from hand to hand behind his back seven times, after which he says in a loud voice: "We are now married; let our fame ascend."[15] The bride imitates him. Whereupon loud howls of assent proclaim the consummation of the marriage contract.

[15] _Kanámi no miño nakalíbto ang bántug námi_.

The meal goes on in the same riotous style as described before. I seldom witnessed a marriage during which the bridegroom did not become rather hilarious toward the end of the meal, but never displayed anything but feelings of delicacy and respect toward the bride. Instructions of a kind that would be considered highly indecent, according to our standards of morality, are howled out in the most candid way, so that this ordeal proves embarrassing for the bride. She eats hastily and retires to her female friends in the cooking portion of the house. I have seen several cases where the girl, being a mere child, continued to weep during the whole proceeding.

The feast being concluded a female priest takes the betel-nut omen. Seven quids of betel nuts are placed by one of the family priestesses upon a sacred dish.[16] She then sets it upon the head of the bridegroom and falls into an ecstatic condition, steadying the plate with her hand. Should one of the betel-nut slices become separated from its betel leaf, the omen is considered unpropitious and is followed immediately by the prophylactic rite--the fowl-waving ceremony.

[16] _A-púg'-an_.

The matter of overcoming the delicacy of the newly married maiden is not infrequently attended with considerable difficulty. It is accomplished, however, by means of an elderly relative of the girl, who occupies night after night the mat between the newly married couple, until such time as she thinks that her ward has become well enough acquainted with her husband so that she will not run away. The go-between returns the following day and claims her guerdon. Several cases passed under my observation, in which the husband was unable to use his marital rights for weeks owing to the timorousness and bashfulness of his youthful spouse. In no case was anything but patience and gentleness displayed by the husband.

MARRIAGE BY CAPTURE

The custom of wife capture is fairly frequent, especially in the upper Agúsan where the Manóbo is within the Mandáya culture area. During my last visit to the upper Agúsan (September, 1909, to February, 1910) three cases occurred, and I had the pleasure of taking part in the settlement of one of them.

The capture is effected by a band of some four to eight friends of the party interested. They repair to the vicinity of the _camote_ patch, which is almost invariably situated at some distance from the house of its owner. Here a watch is kept until the intended captive, in company probably with a few of her own tribe, appears upon the scene. Probably it has been already ascertained that the male relatives have gone on a hunting or fishing expedition, but to make assurance doubly sure one or two of the party advance toward the women unarmed and make inquiries hi an offhand way. If the absence of the male relatives is confirmed, they thereupon seize the girl, and their companions rush out in full panoply from their hiding places and carry off the fair prize. By the time the girl's relatives become aware of the occurrence, the captors have eluded all chance of discovery and the captive has probably resigned herself to her fate, if she had not already consented by connivance.

With regard to wife capture it may be remarked that it is generally resorted to under the advice and protection of some more powerful and affluent personage. If undertaken on one's own initiative it might be risky, and certainly always is a highly expensive affair. Even when carried out with the connivance of a _datu_ or a warrior chief, it has on occasions proved fatal, so I was assured.

The case referred to was that of the son of an influential Manóbo of the Nábuk River, in the upper Agúsan Valley. His son had a few months before my arrival lost his first wife in a raid made by a neighboring settlement. He determined to avoid the prolixities and delay of the ordinary matrimonial course, and, accordingly, captured the daughter of a Mañgguáñgan warrior chief who lived near Pilar. I was in Compostela at the time and on hearing that an expedition[17] to recapture the girl or to collect the marriage payment would take place, I asked that I might be allowed to accompany the party.

[17] _Duk-i-ús_. (Mandáya, _dúk-lus_).

We arrived at the house of the _datu_ and found everything and everybody prepared for war. This _datu_ informed me that he anticipated trouble, as the Mañgguáñgan was of a different breed, being at times altogether unamenable to reason. During the rest of that day nothing occurred, but no one ventured out of the clearing without a strong guard, and during the night the strictest watch was maintained. The _datu_ said that among Manóbos and Mandáyas a wife capture was easy of arrangement and was never attended with any trouble, provided they had the wherewithal to pay the marriage price, but that the Mañgguáñgan was an unruly character and in a fit of rage or drunkenness was liable to commit acts of atrocity even against his nearest relatives. He cited the case of a Mañgguáñgan from Sálug who discovered the whereabouts of his son-in-law and of the captured bride and killed them without further ado.

About 2 a. m. we were disturbed from our slumbers by one of the watchers who had heard a distinct crackling in the adjoining forest. This report brought everybody to his feet and provoked a chorus of yells of intimidation, that never ceased till sunrise.

About 6 a. m. we espied forms in the forest, approaching from all sides. When they, some 60 altogether, had taken up their positions on the edge of the clearing wherein stood the house, they sounded their weird and wild war whoop,[18] and four warriors, headed by the warrior chief referred to, and armed with all the accouterments of war, rushed forward toward the house, yelling, prancing around, defying, challenging, and cursing. The warrior chief speared one of the two large pigs under the house and proceeded, aided by his three companions to cut down the house posts, never ceasing to yell in the most stentorian voice I ever heard. At this juncture the _datu_ let down with a long strip of rattan a silver-banded lance, a silver-sheathed war knife, and a silver-sheathed Mandáya dagger. As everybody was howling, it was difficult to follow the tenor of conversation, but I observed that the warrior chief accepted the gift though he did not apparently relax his fury. He jumped around, menacing, and animating his companions to fire the house. The _datu_ kept letting down presents of lances, Mandáya cloth, pigs, and other things until everyone of the assailants had received a token of his good will. Their fury very visibly diminished, and the _datu_ was finally able to hold a colloquy with his new cofather-in-law, in which he persuaded him to come up into the house and hold a conference[19] over the matter. The latter, after numerous reiterations that he would never enter the house except to chop heads off, finally ascended the notched pole, followed by his braves. We of the house retired to the further half, all armed, while the newcomers squatted in that portion of the house near the ladder. Then began the conference which lasted till breakfast was ready. It resembled in all respects the usual marriage haggling, except that the warrior chief asseverated persistently that the act of the _datu's_ son was deception and robbery, and that only blood would atone for it. His companions howled assent and clutching their bolos, half rose as if to begin a massacre. They were invited to sit down and regale themselves, but that only made them howl all the more. Finally the _datu_ ordered out a stack of weapons and other presents, and made another allotment to the visitors, in due proportion to relationship. This had a soothing effect and induced them to drink copious draughts of sugarcane brew, which kept on soothing them more and more as the end of the meal approached. During all this time special attention was paid to the warrior chief, so that before long he was feeling so happy that he ordered his followers to remove all weapons from their persons, and began to feed huge chunks of half-raw hog meat into the mouth of the _datu_ according to the immemorial custom.

[18] _Pa-nad-jáu-an_.

[19] _Bisa_.

After the feast I returned to the Agúsan but learned later that everything had been settled amicably, the _datu_ having provided a superabundance of wordly[sic] effects, in payment for the captured woman. Among them were two slaves valued at P30 apiece.

PRENATAL MARRIAGE CONTRACTS AND CHILD MARRIAGE

Prenatal marriage contracts have been made in the upper Agúsan, especially when it was desired to secure the friendship of some more powerful chieftain. I was informed by a _bagáni_ of the upper Sálug that it is not an uncommon thing for two warrior chiefs or other powerful men to make such contracts in order to cement the friendship between themselves and between their respective clans. He cited several instances, in some of which the sex of the child proved an impediment to the carrying out of the prenatal marriage contract. Child marriages, however, are not uncommon. I know of two cases in Compostela, in one of which the boy husband was minor, the girl having already attained the age of puberty at the time of the marriage. In the other case both were mere children. It is needless to say that cohabitation was not permitted in the latter case. The marriage payment had been made in the usual way and the bride delivered over to her father-in-law.

According to my observation, the young man is married somewhere between the ages of 17 and 20, and the woman from 13 to 16. The effect of these early marriages is very apparent in the physical appearance of the wife after a few years of married life. On account of the onerous duties that fall to the lot of the woman, only a staunch constitution can maintain unblemished the bloom of youthful beauty. I am of the opinion that the average woman reaches her prime at about 25 years of age.

POLYGAMY AND KINDRED INSTITUTIONS

It may be said that the Manóbo is in practice a monogamist, but polygamy is permitted with the consent of the first wife and, in cases that I have known, by her direction and even according to her selection. She finds her work too burdensome and directs her husband to get another helpmate. As a rule, however, it is only a warrior chief who has more than one wife, as he is in a better position to procure the wherewithal to pay the purchase price, namely, slaves. I am acquainted with a number of warrior chiefs, both Manóbo and Mandáya, who have as many as four wives, all dwelling in the same house, each having her little stall[20] and living in perfect peace and happiness with her sister wives. There appear to be no jealousy and no family broils, the wish of the first wife being paramount in all things.

[20] _Sin-á-bung_.

I found the abhorrence to polyandry so great and so universal that all tribes that I came in contact with throughout eastern Mindanáo branded the practice as swinish.

Concubinage is unknown. In a country where a woman is worth a small fortune to her relatives, and where she can not offer her love according to her own choice, but must follow her relatives' desires,[21] it is not likely that she would be delivered over temporarily to even a warrior chief, nor is she likely to be repudiated except for strong reasons. Hence divorce is never allowed, as far as my observation and knowledge go, being considered an infringement of tribal customs that would provoke divine wrath and bring disaster on the settlement.

[21] I heard of a case in Guadalupe in which the girl, not being allowed to marry the man of her choice, took _tuble_ poison and ended her life.

Among the non-Christianized Manóbos I never heard of a case of prostitution. The mere suggestion of it would probably result in a fine. Fornication, however, probably takes place, but only very rarely and under very abnormal circumstances, as when the sexual temperament of the girl and a very favorable opportunity encourage the transgression. I know of cases where Manóbo maidens actually recounted to their relatives improper suggestions on the part of Bisáyas, and in every case these relatives, with wild yells, and with menacing movements of bolo and spear, collected a sufficient compensation to atone for the imprudence. In one instance I paid the fine imposed upon a half-blind paddler of mine for a very innocent joke that was not appreciated by the relatives of a certain woman.

When, however, the Manóbo is removed from the stern influences of his pagan institutions he goes the way of all flesh, as may be observed by a study of conditions in _conquista_ towns.

I heard of a few cases of adultery among Christianized Manóbos but, though the guilty wife was reported to have received a heavy punishment in the form of a good beating, she was not divorced.

ENDOGAMY AND CONSANGUINEOUS MARRIAGES

I found no vestige of endogamy nor of the totem system that is such a remarkable and widespread feature of Polynesian, Melanesian, and cognate peoples in Oceania. Neither is there any theoretical endogamic institution which obliges a Manóbo to marry within his tribe, but, in practice, such is his custom.

The only impediment to marriage is consanguinity. Consanguineous marriages are everywhere regarded as baneful. It is a universal belief that unless such marriages are consummated under the special auspices of the goddesses Ináyao and Tagabáyao, they result in physical evil to both the parents and the children.

The following are the persons between whom marriage is forbidden:

(1) All carnal relatives closer than first cousin.

(2) First, second, and third cousins, unless the proper ceremonies to Tagabáyao and Ináyao have been performed, various omens very carefully taken, and, after marriage, the yearly offering of a pig or chicken made in order to avoid the ill effects that might follow the marriage.

(3) Stepmothers and stepfathers.

(4) Mothers-in-law and fathers-in-law.

(5) Daughters-in-law and sons-in-law.

(6) Captives and their captors. This marriage is believed to bar the way to warriorship and to otherwise result in evil.[22] Captives may, however, be married by others than those who captured them.

[22] _Ma-lí-hi_.

(7) Slaves; marriages among them are not tabooed absolutely, but they are regarded as something unbecoming, and the person who marries a slave girl is spoken of as _áyo-áyo_ (no good).

Marriage with a sister-in-law is fairly common, and may take place during the wife's lifetime, usually at her instigation, but never without her consent.

INTERTRIBAL AND OTHER MARRIAGES

It may be remarked that in the case of marriages between cousins within the forbidden degrees, the actual marriage payment is much less, as the matter is considered a family affair, but on the whole such a marriage is a most expensive affair. In the first place, before the marriage, the priest instructs the prospective husband to dedicate a number of objects to Tagabáyao, the goddess of consanguineous love. This presupposes a sacrificial ceremony in which, as in one case which I witnessed, a white pig was killed, and a lance valued at P15, a bolo valued at P10, a dagger valued at P10, and sundry other objects were formally consecrated to Tagabáyao. The consecration was followed by a sacrifice to Tagabáyao, after which the marriage payment was made. Then came a similar series of offerings to Ináyao, goddess of the thunderbolt, that she might not harm the newly married. I was told that year after year the newly married cousins had to repeat this ceremony, and thereby keep in Ináyao's good graces.

Intermarriage with a member of another tribe occurs occasionally but is not looked upon with favor owing to the differences of religious belief as also to the fact that it might not be possible for the husband to take away his wife. In the cases that have come under my notice of marriages between Manóbos and Mañgguáñgans, Mañgguáñgans and Mandáyas, and Mandáyas and Manóbos, the man almost invariably married a girl belonging to what was considered a higher tribe; for instance, Manóbo man to a Mandáya girl, or a Mañgguáñgan man to a Mandáya girl. The reason assigned was in nearly every case the assurance that the girl would not be taken from the paternal roof, and that a bigger marriage price would be forthcoming.

Gratuitous marriages occur rarely. In the few cases that passed under my observation, all the expenses of the wedding feast were borne by the bride's relatives, and the bridegroom took up his residence with his father-in-law, and virtually entered a state of slavery. His children also become the property of the father-in-law.

It is not intended to give the impression that the recipient of a gratuitous wife has to perform the duties of an ordinary slave. On the contrary, he is treated as one of his wife's family and is expected, in view of the favor that he has received and the debt that he has incurred, to help his father-in-law when called upon. If he should happen on a definite occasion to prove recalcitrant, he is gently reminded of his debt and of the sacredness with which a good Manóbo pays it, and so he goes off on his errand and the matter is concluded.

Remarriage takes place frequently, owing to the fact that a widow does not command so high a price as a maiden and that she has something to say in the selection of her new husband. She can not, however, be married if a funeral feast[23] for a near relative of the family is still unfulfilled.

[23] _Ka-ta-pú-san_.

There is absolutely no trace of a levirate system by which the nearest male kinsman must marry his deceased brother's widow. On the contrary, a marriage with any relative's widow is absolutely tabooed, and this taboo, as far as my observations warrant the assertion, is never violated.

MARRIED LIFE AND THE POSITION OF THE WIFE

Married life appears to be one of mutual good understanding and kindliness. The husband addresses his wife as _búdyag_ (wife) and leaves to her the management of the establishment in everything except such little business transactions as may have to be carried on. The wife gets the wood and water every day, toiling up and down the steep mountain sides. She goes off to the farm once or twice a day and returns with her basket of _camotes_. In the meantime the husband whittles out his bolo sheath or his lance shaft, or occasionally goes off on a fishing expedition or a hunt, if the omens are good. Every once in awhile, especially during the winter months, he sets up his wild boar traps, and they may keep him busy about two days a week. Then comes the news of a wedding feast, two days' journey hence, and off he goes for perhaps a week, or there may be a big question to settle in another part of the country and he must attend the discussion because there is a relative of his involved; anyhow, it will end up with a big pig and plenty of brew. So he goes away and has a roaring time, and comes back after a week with a nice piece of pork and some betel nuts for his wife and tells her all about the doings. She bears it all, makes her comments on it, and then goes to get the _camotes_ for dinner, with never a complaint as to her hard work. It is the custom of the tribe, and the institution of the great men of bygone days, that the woman should toil and slave.

I have known of very few domestic broils and have never known of a case of ill treatment, except when in a drunken fit the husband wreaked his wrath on his wife.

Faithfulness to the marriage tie is a remarkable trait in Manóboland, due to the stringent code of morals upheld by the spear and the bolo. The few cases of adultery related to me among the non-Christian Manóbos were mere memories. I heard of one case of fornication just before leaving the upper Agúsan. It was narrated to me by a warrior chief of the upper Kati'il. His fourth wife, a relative of the _datu_ who figured in the case of wife capture described in this chapter, had in the days of her maidenhood secretly fallen from grace, which fact she revealed to her warrior husband, together with the name of the offender. The warrior chief thereupon made a two-day march to Compostela and located the house of his enemy, publicly vowing speedy vengeance. I visited the latter's house a few days after and found it in a state of defense, a large clearing having been made, with a mass of felled trees, underbrush, and bamboo pegs all around. This man was a Manóbo of the Debabáon group who had spent many years under the tuition of the older Christians of the Agúsan Valley.

Rape, incest, and other such abominations are practically unheard of.

From what has been stated frequently throughout this monograph, it may be seen that the position of the woman is merely that of a chattel. In moments of anger, which are not frequent, the husband or the father-in-law addresses the object of his wrath as _binótuñg_, that is, purchased one, chattel. A woman, the Manóbo will tell you, has no _tribunal_, or _tilibuná_;[24] she was born to be the bearer of children and the planter of _camotes_. She can not carry a shield nor thrust a spear.

[24] The meaning is that she has not enough brains to take part in the discussions held in the town halls, called in Spanish "tribunal," and erected by the Spaniards in the various Christianized settlements for the arbitration of judicial and administrative matters pertaining to the settlement.

Following out these views to their legitimate conclusions, and both experience and observation verify them, it is obvious that there is no evidence of the matriarchate system in Manóbo-land. The husband is the lord of his household, of his wife, and of his children, and I do not hesitate to say, probably would abandon or kill either, if the urgency of a definite occasion required it.[25]

[25] Maliñgáan of the upper Simúlau, to prevent his wife and children from falling into the hands of the Spanish forces, slew them and himself in full view of the soldiery. I found this incident related in one of the Jesuit letters, to which reference has been made already.

RESIDENCE OF THE SON-IN-LAW AND THE BROTHER-IN-LAW SYSTEM

After a few months, dependent on the term determined upon in the marriage contract, the young husband returns to his father-in-law's house, to whose family he is now considered to belong, and takes up his permanent residence there. His respect for both his father-in-law and mother-in-law is such that he will not mention them by name. He always addresses them as father-in-law and mother-in-law, respectively. He aids his father-in-law in everything as a son. Every year for 12 years during the harvest time he is expected to kill a pig for him. Of course, occasions arise on which he is called upon by his own relatives and has to leave his father-in-law. Sometimes it happens that he does not return, but in such cases he is expected to act in a diplomatic way, and leave something, say a big pig, as a substitute for his person.

Brothers-in-law, and their name is legion, for the term includes all who have married any relative however distant, are expected to aid the relatives of their wives, especially in warfare. And it is my observation that at least such of them as are married to nearer relatives of a given individual, do effectively help him when he really needs either financial or other assistance.

The brothers-in-law of a warrior chief nearly always live with him or in his immediate vicinity. This custom is maintained, no doubt, both for the protection and for the prestige thereby acquired.