CHAPTER V

THE MANÓBO HOME

IN GENERAL

The Manóbo, as a rule builds a house of no great pretensions, because he always remembers that an evil combination of omens or a death in the house or an attack by his enemies, may deprive him in the near future of his home. His best structure is better than the low wall-less Mañgguáñgan home but can not compare with the comparatively solid structure of the Mandáyas of Kati'il and the Debabáons of the Sálug country.

He has no tribal halls, no assembly houses. In fact, with the exception of a rude shack[1] on his farm, built to shelter those who are guarding the crops against marauders (monkeys and birds), he builds only one house, where he and usually several of his relatives dwell until such time (usually after a year) as he finds it convenient or necessary to abandon it.

[1] _Pin-ái-ag_.

MOTIVES THAT DETERMINE THE SELECTION OF THE SITE

The motives that determine the selection of the site are twofold.

RELIGIOUS MOTIVES

It is obvious that in such an important undertaking the Manóbo must be guided by the omens and oracles that manifest to him the will of the supernal powers. Hence, as he sallies forth to seek the site, he keeps his ear alert for the turtledove's[2] prophetic cry. If this is unfavorable, he returns home and resumes his search the following day. It frequently happens that this omen may be unfavorable for two or three successive days, but, however urgent the case may be, this bird's sacred warning must on no account be disregarded, for it would mean failure, disaster, or death, as the Manóbo can prove to you by a host of instances that happened within his memory, or that of his relatives. Once satisfied, however, with this first omen, he proceeds upon his journey and selects, from material motives that will be mentioned later on, a site for the new house, and returns to his people to inform them of the outcome of his journey.

[2] _Li-mo-kon_.

Now, the selection of the site is of such serious import to the Manóbo that he must assure himself, by every means in his power, that it is approved by the unseen powers, and for this purpose he has recourse to the egg omen and the suspension oracle. The former I witnessed on several occasions and in every case it proved auspicious. The _bu-dá-kan_ or vine omen is sometimes consulted in selecting a house site, and the significance of the various configurations is the same as that described under "Divination or Omens." I was told that this latter omen is also taken _in the forest_ before the final decision as to the selection of the site is made.

The occurrence of ominous dreams at this juncture, as also the passing of a snake across the trail, are considered of evil import, but the evil is neutralized by the fowl-waving ceremony that will be described later.

MATERIAL MOTIVES

When no further objection is shown by the "powers above" to the selection of the home site, the Manóbo is guided by such motives as fertility of soil, proximity of water, and fishing facilities, and, if he is in a state of vigilance against his enemies, as in remote regions he nearly always is, by desirability of the site for defense. In this latter case he selects a high place difficult of access, frequently a lofty mountain, and chooses the most strategic point upon it.

RELIGIOUS CEREMONIES CONNECTED WITH THE ERECTION OF A HOUSE

An invocation to the special deities of the family is made by a priest, usually a relative. After an offering of a betel nut has been made to the local deities of this particular part of the forest, the head of the family, assisted by such of his numerous relatives as are able to help him, proceeds to clear the ground for the new building. When a more influential Manóbo begins to erect a capacious house, usually everyone in the vicinity--men, women, and children--attracted by the prospective conviviality that is sure to accompany the work, throng to lend a helping hand, so that in a few days the clearing is made, cleaned and planted, and the frame of the house with the roof completed.

People belonging to the less influential class may take months to complete the house, depending on the number of relatives who help them and on the leisure that they have. It is of importance to note here that the house must not be completed at once.[3]

[3] It is believed that the thatch must be allowed to turn yellow before the house is completed.

When the first post is put into the ground, a sacrifice is frequently made and a part of the victim's blood is poured upon the base of the post. As soon as the roof and floor have been constructed, a formal sacrifice of a chicken is made to the special divinities under whose protection the family is thought to be. The chicken must be of the color that is pleasing to these deities. An interesting feature of this ceremony is that the center of the floor, the place intended for the doorway, and one or more of the posts, are lustrated with the blood of the victim.

STRUCTURE OF THE HOUSE

THE MATERIALS

The materials for the house are taken from the surrounding forest and are generally of a light character. It is only in the erection of a house[4] for defense that more substantial materials are employed.

[4] _I-li-hán_.

THE DIMENSIONS AND PLAN OF CONSTRUCTION

In height from the ground to the floor the house may vary from 1.50 to 8 meters, though a structure of the latter height is infrequent. In size it may be between 2 by 3 meters and 5 by 8 meters, but as a rule it is nearer to the former than to the latter figures. Rectangular in form, it is built upon light posts varying in number from 4 to 16, the 4 corner ones being larger and extending up to support the roof. Four horizontal pieces attached to these corner posts and, supported by several of the small posts, form, together with a few joints, the support for the floor. In order to give more rigidity to the building and to render the floor stronger, the joints are supported by several posts, these last being propped by braces set at an angle of about 45°. In the case of a house built for defense, the number of supports and crosspieces is such that the enemy would find it impossible to hack it down.

Houses built on trees were rare at the time of my stay among the Manóbos of the Agúsan Valley. In the few cases which I saw, the tree was cut off at a point about 2 meters above the divergence of the main branches from the trunk. Then the house was built in the ordinary way by erecting long auxiliary posts, the trunk of the tree and its main branches forming the principal support. In Baglásan, upper Sálug River, I saw a Debabáon house, belonging to Bagáni pinamailan Lantayúna, built on a tree but without any auxiliary posts.

No nails, and pegs only very occasionally are employed in fastening together the various parts of the structure. Either rattan strips or pieces of a peculiar vine[5] are used in lashing the beams and crosspieces to the posts, whereas for the other fastenings, rattan strips are universally employed.

[5] Hag-nái-a (_Stenochlena_ spp.).

THE FLOOR

The floor consists of laths of bamboo, or of a variety of palm[6] laid parallel and running along the length of the house with more or less regular interstices. Almost universally one or both sides of the floor, for a width of 50 centimeters to 1.5 meters, are raised to a height varying from 10 to 50 centimeters above the main floor. This raised portion serves for a sleeping place, but in the poorer classes of houses the height of this platform is so slight that I think that there exists or has existed some superstitious belief connected with it, though I have been unable to elicit any positive information on the point. In houses of the better class one occasionally finds roughhewn boards used for the floor of these platforms, as also for the walls.

[6] A-ná-nau. Palma brava. (_Livistonia_ sp.).

THE ROOF AND THE THATCH

The roof is of the gable style, but is four-sided, with two smoke vents, as may be seen in Plates 4b and 6a. The four beams that form the main support for the rafters are lashed to the posts of the house at a height varying from 1.5 meters to 2 meters above the floor. Four substantial rafters, resting upon the four beams just mentioned, run up at an angle of 45° from the corner posts. Upon these rafters rests the ridgepole. Numerous light rafters of wood or of bamboo extend from the ridgepole in parallel rows at intervals of 30 to 40 centimeters. They project about 50 centimeters beyond the side beams upon which they rest and serve to support the roofing material.

The thatch consists almost invariably of fronds of rattan gathered in the adjoining forest. This thatch is made by bending back on the midrib every alternate spike till all the spikes lie parallel. Another way is to cut the midrib in the center at the small end and tear the frond into two pieces. These half-fronds are neither so durable nor so serviceable as if the midrib is left entire. Two, three, or four of these fronds, or double that number of half-fronds, are then superimposed, and fastened to the rafters with rattan in shingle fashion.

In localities where sago palm is available an excellent thatch is made in the ordinary Philippine fashion by sewing the spikes of the frond to a slat of bamboo. It is claimed that this thatch will not last much more than a year, as it is a breeding place for a multitude of small cockroaches that seem to thrive upon it.

In the mountainous districts, where up to a few years ago feuds were rife, it was not uncommon to find houses roofed with big strips of bark, or with shingles of flattened bamboo. This style of roofing was employed as a precaution against the burning arrows used by the enemy during an attack.

There is always an extra layer of leaves over the ridgepole as a protection against the rain. Occasionally a long strip or two of bark is placed as a hood on the ridgepole to help prevent the entrance of the rain during the northwest monsoon, when it comes down in indescribable torrents.

A glance at the illustrations will show better than words can describe the peculiar smoke outlets invariably found in Manóbo houses. They not only afford an exit for the smoke, and admit light, but also permit, during storms, the entrance of an amount of rain that does not conduce to comfort.

THE WALLS

The walls are nearly always in the case of better class houses, light poles of wood or of bamboo, laid horizontally one above the other and tied to upright pieces placed at intervals for their support. In poorer houses palm fronds are tied loosely to a few upright pieces. The eaves project down almost as far as the top of the walls. The latter never extend to the roof, but are usually of such a height that a person sitting on the floor can see between the walls and the eaves the space surrounding the house. It is rare to find boards used for the walls, but, if used, they are roughhewn, and are laid horizontally and edgewise, one above the other. They are held in place with rattan strips.

The space, then, between the top of the walls and the roof is open all around the house and serves as one continuous window that affords more ventilation than light. The purpose of this peculiar arrangement seems to be for defense, for no one can approach the house from any side without being seen, and, in time of attack, it affords the inmates of the house an admirable vantage ground from which to ply their arrows.

THE DOORWAY AND THE LADDER

There is no door in a Manóbo house. In the middle of one end of the house a small opening is left scarcely wide enough for two persons to enter at one time. A notched pole leads up to this opening. If the house is high, a certain amount of maneuvering on the part of one not accustomed to it, may be required in climbing the pole, for there is seldon[sic] any rail to aid one and the notches are not of the deepest. This is another of the Manóbo's devices against enemies, for on occasions of attack the inmates of a house can dislodge by a slight movement of this cylindrical ladder any foolhardy enemy who might attempt, under protection of his shield, to make an ascent during a fight.

In the house of a chief or well-to-do Manóbo, one frequently finds a crude ladder for the convenience of the family dogs.

INTERNAL ARRANGEMENTS

The internal arrangements of the house are very simple. The one ceilingless square area between the roof and the floor constitutes the house. There is no dining room, no kitchen, no bedroom, no toilet. Even the little stalls erected by Mandáyas for the married couples are very seldom to be found. The owner of the house occupies the part farthest from the door, and nearest the fire, while visitors are relegated to the part near the door.

DECORATIONS

No paint is applied to the house and, with the exception of a rude carving of the ridgepole into the suggestion of a human head with a rudimentary body, there is no decoration in the interior. On the outside, one frequently sees at the ends of the ridgepole, and set upright at right angles to each other, two narrow, thin pieces of wood about 1 meter long. Along the sides of these are cuttings which are intended to represent the crested head of a fowl, as the name given to them indicates.[7]

[7] _Min-an-úk_ from _mán-uk_, a fowl.

THE FURNITURE AND EQUIPMENT OF THE HOUSE

The Manóbo house fittings are of the scantiest and most necessary kind. The tenure of the house may be brief, depending, as it does, upon a suspicion of danger or even on a dream. So the Manóbo does not indulge in the luxury of chairs, tables, or similar articles. The upraised portion of the floor, or the floor itself, serves him as a chair and a bench. For a table he uses a small board such as is so universally used throughout Mindanáo by the poorer classes. Yet many are the houses that can not boast of even this simple equipment. He has no bedsteads, for the bamboo floor with a grass mat thrown over it affords him a cool and comfortable resting place. He has a fair abundance of mats, but they are ordinarily short, being made according to the length of the grass he happens to find. By day these mats are rolled up and laid aside on the floor or upon the beams of the house. If left on the floor, they afford the family dogs, who ensconce themselves therein, a convenient refuge from flies.

He dispenses with the use of pillows, unless the handiest piece of wood or of bamboo can be called a pillow. Lacking that, he lays his head upon the mat and enjoys as good a sleep, perhaps, as his more civilized fellowmen.

It is seldom, indeed, that he uses a mosquito bar, though wild _abaká_ is abundant and his wife is a weaver. The mosquito bars which are in use are made out of _abaká_ fiber. As the cloth for them, made on the ordinary loom, is less than a meter wide, and as much as 24 meters long, it must be cut up into strips nearly 2 meters long and sewn together to form the mosquito bar. It must be made of an odd number of pieces of cloth, for an even number is unlucky. A net made of 11 or 13 pieces is considered especially lucky. The use of the mosquito bar is very common among the _conquistas_ of the Lake region.

Pictures and like ornaments are unknown, but in lieu of them may be seen trophies of the chase, such as wild-boar jawbones, deer antlers, and hornbill skulls and beaks. It is not infrequent to see the tail of some large fish fastened to one of the larger beams, under the roof. There is a special significance in the preservation of this trophy.

There is one article, however, which the Manóbo prizes as a mark of wealth and as a venerable relic. It is the sacred jar.[8] I have been unable to obtain any information as to the origin of these jars except that they were usually obtained as marriage fees and that they were bought from the Banuáons. Be that as it may, they are a matter of pride in Manóboland, and on every occasion, festive and religious, they are set out, brimful of brew. Not every Manóbo is the proud possessor of one of these, but he who has one is loath to part with it. A glance at Plate 14 _k_, _l_, will give an idea of what these jars look like. They are decorated, as a rule, in alto relievo with figures of birds, snakes, etc., and to judge from their appearance are of Chinese workmanship. When given as marriage payments or for other purposes they are valued at about 4 pesos if they have no ears, but when they have ears they are worth as many pesos minus 1 as they have ears.

[8] _Ba-hán-di_.

Next to jars the Manóbo values plates and bowls, even those of the cheapest kind, and it is with a gleam of satisfaction on his face that the host sets out an array of old-fashioned plates for his guests. The Manóbo of the middle Agúsan, unlike his Mandáya neighbor, is particularly poor in plateware. I found houses that could not boast of a single plate, but as a rule each house has about four plates, a bowl, and a glass.

Depending from the roof are to be seen baskets of various shapes intended for a variety of uses, fish baskets, rice baskets of several kinds, storage baskets, betel-nut baskets, pack baskets, some of wickerwork and some of plaited rattan. Also, hanging from the rafters are to be seen fish traps, wild chicken traps, religious objects such as oblation trays, a guitar, or a bamboo harp, and if it is a priest's house, a drum and gong.

One sees almost invariably a nest or two up in a corner under the roof. They are for the domestic hens and are ungainly things, made ordinarily out of a piece of old matting. In these the hens lay their eggs, after meandering around the rafters and disturbing the inmates of the house with their cackling. After the eggs are laid, it is frequently necessary to drive the hens from the house.

The fireplace is another very important item in the house. It is usually located on the side of the house away from the door and near the wall. It consists of four roughhewn pieces of wood approximately 1 meter long and about 10 centimeters high, set together on the floor and lashed in the form of a rectangle. A piece of bark is placed on the floor within this rectangle, and the inclosed space is filled with earth. A half dozen stones form supports for the earthen jars. Above the fireplace is a rough frame for firewood, of which there is usually a plentiful supply. Here the wood is dried thoroughly before it is used.

In close proximity to the hearth and scattered around without any regard for tidiness may be seen the rice winnow, the bamboo water tube, the coconut-shell watercup, the rice paddles and ladles, leaves of banana and other plants, and the whetstone, while on the fireplace are seen a variety of earthen pots with their covers, and frequently an imported iron pan for cooking.

Tied up under the roof, but within reach, may be seen bows and arrows, probably a fish spear, or it may be, a fish rod. Spears and other weapons of defense which, when not in use, are unsheathed and put into a rude wooden rack made for the purpose, while the sheaths are hung up close by.

It is not exceptional to find a cage with a turtledove[9] or a variety of parrakeet[sic][10] in it. The cage is usually hung from the roof under the eaves outside the wall. The turtledove is kept for religious purposes, whereas the parrakeet[sic] is kept as other people keep a pet bird, though it is occasionally employed by the young folks as a lure to attract its wild fellows to the bird line.

[9] _Li-mó-kon_. (_Phabitreron brevirostris_ Tweedale). Generally called fruit dove.

[10] _ku-li-li-si_.

THE UNDERPART AND THE ENVIRONMENT OF THE HOUSE

The space under the fireplace is usually not occupied because of the water and refuse that fall from the kitchen, but to one side of it is the inevitable pigpen, containing a pig or two. It is only the wealthier Manóbos who can boast of more than a few, for the maintenance of many would be a heavy drain on their limited food supply. These few pigs subsist on such scraps and parings as may be thrown or allowed to fall down to them.

To one side of the pigpen, if there is room, is placed the rice mortar, an article of indispensable necessity in every household. In it is hulled with wooden pestles, and frequently in measured time, the daily supply of rice.

At the time when the house is constructed, the forest adjoining is cleared, and _camotes_,[11] a little sugarcane, and a few other things are planted. The house usually overlooks this clearing at least on one side. On the other sides there is usually the grim, silent forest. When the house is built with a view to defense, trees are felled all around in such a way as to make a regular abatis. Ordinarily there are at least two trails, one, a main trail, so tortuous and difficult, in the generality of cases, that it would lead one to imagine that the owner of the house had deliberately selected it for its difficulties, the other, a trail leading to the watering place. In approaching the house the visitor is obliged to climb over fallen logs, the passing of which requires no little maneuvering on the part of a novice. Without a guide it would be often difficult, if not impossible, to locate the houses, even if one had been shown their location from a distance.

[11] _Ipomoea batatas_.

ORDER AND CLEANLINESS OF THE HOUSE

As from one to four families may live in a single house, it is needless to say that there is generally a decided appearance of disorder, as well as a tumult that baffles description. In the only room of the house are congregated the married couples, generally a few extra relatives, their children, and their dogs. The Manóbos are naturally very loud talkers, their children, especially the infants, are as noisy as children the world over, and their dogs, which may number from 3 to 15, are so constituted that, when they are not fighting with one another, they may at any moment, without apparent motive or provocation, begin one grand dismal howl which, united to the crying of the babies and to the loud tones of their elders, produces a pandemonium. It is at meal times that the pandemonium waxes loudest, for at that time the half-starved dogs, in their efforts to get a morsel to eat, provoke the inmates to loud yells of "Sida, sida,"[12] and to other more forcible actions.

[12] An exclamation to drive away a dog.

In a large house, with such a conglomeration of human beings, it is obvious that an impression of confusion is made upon the visitor. The performance of the various culinary operations by the women, the various employments in which the men are engaged, making arrows, fish traps, etc., the romping of the children, all these tend to heighten the impression. But the Manóbo goes on with his work, tranquil in the midst of it all, savoring his conversation with incessant quids of betel nut or tobacco.

The Manóbo has not yet come to a knowledge of the various microbes and parasites that are liable to undermine the foundations of health, so that the sanitary condition of his house is not such as would pass a modern inspection. Both men and women are inveterate chewers of betel nut and tobacco, and, instead of using a spittoon, they expectorate the saliva through the interstices of the floor or anywhere that they may find convenient, thereby tinging the floor and walls a bright red. As the Manóbo broom is a most crude affair made out of a few twigs, it does not remove all the remains of the meals as they lie spread over the floor. The peelings of sugarcane, the skin of bananas and of other fruits, the remains of rattan, and such other refuse as may be the result of the various occupations that take place in the house are all strewn around the floor and frequently are not removed for a considerable length of time.

In the preparation and cooking of food a considerable amount of water fails necessairly[sic] under the house which, together with the excreta of the inmates and the other refuse, animal and vegetable, produces a somewhat unfavorable appearance and sometimes an unpleasant odor.

There is no drainage, artificial or natural and no means are provided for the removal of the ordure, unless it be the services of the scavenger pigs, who busy themselves as soon as they become aware of the presence of refuse. The effluvium, however, usually does not reach the inmates unless the house is very low.

As the smoke outlets are comparatively remote from the fireplace, it is obvious that the smoke does not make a rapid exit, but wreathes up among the beams and rafters thereby blackening them out of all semblance to wood. The underside of the thatch, especially those portions above the fire, receives a goodly coating of soot which, mixed with the greasy emanations from the pots, assumes a lustrous black.

Another matter that tends to give the house an air and feeling of uncleanliness is the host of small insects, presumably a species of cockroach, that infest the thatch, and, notwithstanding the volume of smoke that at times almost suffocates the inmates, swarm down into the baskets used for provisions and for other things. These multitudinous insects seem to flourish on the rattan vine especially, and no means are known whereby to exterminate them. Ants, especially the white ant, pay frequent visits to the house, but the worst scourge of all is the ravenous bedbug. This unpleasant insect is found under the joists just beneath the floor laths, but in greatest numbers under those parts of the floor that are continually used as sleeping places, and in the hammocks. Occasionally an effort is made to scrape them out, but they are so cunning in concealing themselves and breed with such rapidity that efforts to get rid of them are unavailing.

The presence of vermin on the bodies of the Manóbos is due to the lack of soap and of washing facilities. But, if questioned, these primitive people will inform you, that the vermin are natural growths or excretions proceeding from the inside.[13] It is for this reason that no shame is exhibited in removing publicly the pests from the clothes or from the hair. Owing to the custom of the people of huddling together during the night these insects are propagated from one individual to another, so that it is seldom that the Manóbo is free from them.

[13] I found this belief to be almost universal in eastern Mindanáo.