Figure 5.

Figure 5.Household Objects.Household Objects.

Household Objects.

House Furnishings.—The average house has only one room. Inside the door, at the left, one usually finds the stove, three stones sunk in a box of ashes or dirt, or a similar device of clay (Fig 5,Page 365No. 1). Above the fire is suspended a hanger on which are placed dishes and food, in order that they may not be disturbed by insects. Along the wall stands a small caldron, jars for water and rice, and the large Chinese jars, tke latter as a general rule heirlooms or marriage gifts. These are sometimes used forbasi, but more often they contain broken rice, cotton, or small articles. Above the jars is a rack or hangar on which dishes or coconut shells are placed. At one end of the room a set of pegs, deer horns, or a cord supports a variety of clothes, blankets, a woman's switch, and perhaps a man's belt. The sleeping-mats either hang here or occupy a rack of their own. Below the cord stand chests secured in early years through trade with the Chinese. In these are the family treasures, valuable beads, coins, blankets, ceremonial objects, and the like. Piled on the boxes is a variety of pillows, for no Tinguian house is complete without a number of these (PlateLXVI). The other house furnishings, consisting of a spinning wheel, loom, coconut rasp, and clothes beater (Fig. 5, No. 10) find space along the other wall. Behind the door, except in the valley towns, stand the man's spear and shield; above or near the door will be the spirit offering in the form of a small hanger or a miniature shield fastened against the wall. The center of the floor affords a place for working, eating, and sleeping. If there are small children in the family a cradle or jumper will be found suspended from a beam or a bamboo pole placed across one corner of the room (cf. p. 272).

The type of jars made by the Tinguian is shown inFig. 5, No. 7, while those of foreign introduction have been fully described in a previous publication.7

The native jars are used both for cooking and as water containers. With them will be found pot rings and lifters. The first is a simple ring of plaited bamboo, which fits on the head or sets on the floor, and forms a support for the rounded bottom of the jar. The second (Figure 5, No. 3) consists of a large rattan loop, which is placed over the neck of the jar. The hands are drawn apart, and the weight closes the loop, causing it to grip the jar. Long bamboo tubes with sections removed are used as water containers, while smaller sections often serve as cups or dippers. Gourds are also used in this manner (Fig. 5, Nos. 8–9).

Food is removed from the jars with spoons and ladles (Fig. 6) made of wood or coconut shells, but they are never put to the mouth.Page 366Meat is cut up into small pieces, and is served in its own juice. The diner takes a little cooked rice in his fingers, and with this dips or scoops the meat and broth into his mouth. Greens are eaten in the same manner.

Halved coconut shells serve both as cups and as dishes (Fig. 5, No. 6). Wooden dishes are likewise used, but they are employed chiefly in ceremonies for the feeding of the spirits or to hold the rice from which a bride and groom receive the augury of the future (Fig. 5, Nos. 4–5).

Figure 6.Spoons and Ladles.Spoons and Ladles.

Spoons and Ladles.

Baskets, varying considerably in material, size and type, are much used, and are often scattered about the dwelling or, as in the case of the men's carrying baskets, are hung on pegs set into the walls. Somewhere about the house will be found a coconut rasp (Fig. 5, No. 11). When this is used, the operator kneels on the wooden standard, and draws the half coconut toward her over the teeth of the blade. The inside of the shell is thus cleaned and prepared for use as an eating or drinking dish. Torches or bamboo lamps formerly supplied the dwellings with light. Lamps consisting of a section of bamboo filled with oil and fitted with a cord wick are still in use, but for the most part they have been superseded by tin lamps of ChinesePage 367manufacture. Oil for them is extracted from crushed seeds of thetau-tau(Jatropha granduliferaRoxb.)

A very necessary article of house furnishing is the fire-making device. In many instances, the housewife will go to a neighboring dwelling and borrow a light rather than go to the trouble of building a fire, but if that is not convenient, a light may be secured by one or two methods. The first is by flint and steel, a method which is probably of comparatively recent introduction. The second and older is one which the Tinguian shares with all the neighboring tribes. Two notches are cut through a section of bamboo, and tree cotton is placed below them. A second section of bamboo is cut to a sharp edge, and this is rubbed rapidly back and forth in the notches until the friction produces a spark, which when caught on tinder can be blown into a flame.8At the door of the house will be found a foot wiper (Fig. 5, No. 12) made of rice-straw drawn through an opening cut in a stick, or it may consist of coconut husks fastened together to make a crude mat, while near by is the broom made of rice-straw or grass. Rice-mortars, pestles, and similar objects are found beneath the dwellings.

The Village Spring.—Each village is situated near to a spring or on the banks of a stream. In the latter case deep holes are dug in the sands, and the water that seeps in is used for household purposes. In the morning, a number of women and girls gather at the springs, carrying with them the plates and dishes used in the meals, also garments which need to be laundered. The pots and dishes are thoroughly scoured with sand and water, applied with a bundle of rice-straw or grass. The garments to be washed are laid in the water, generally in a little pool near to the main spring or beside the stream. Ashes from rice-straw are then mixed with water and, after being strained through a bunch of grass, are applied to the cloth in place of soap. After being thoroughly soaked, the cloth is laid on a clean stone, and is beaten with a stick or wooden paddle. The garment is again rinsed, and later is hung up on the fence near the dwelling to dry.

Before returning to her home, the woman fills her pots with water, and then takes her bath in a pool below the main spring (PlateXLII). All garments are removed except the girdle and clout, and then water, dipped up in a coconut shell, is poured on to the face, shoulders, and body. In some cases sand is applied to the body, and is rubbed in with the hand or a stone; rinsing water is applied and the garmentsPage 368are put back on without drying the body. Every one, men, women, and children, takes a daily bath, and visitors will always stop to bathe at the spring or river before entering a village. Promiscuous bathing is common, and is accepted as a matter of course, but there is no indication of embarrassment or self-consciousness. When she returns to the village, the woman will often be seen carrying one or two jars of water on her head, her washing under her arm, while a child sets astride her hip or lies against her back (PlateXLIII).Page 369

1Each with its dormitory for bachelors, and usually for unmarried girls. SeeJenks, The Bontoc Igorot, p. 49 (Manila, 1905).

2Combes, Historia de las islas de Mindanao (Madrid, 1667), translated byBlairandRobertson, Vol. XL, p. 160; Vol. XLVII, p. 300.Ling Roth, Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo, Vol. II, p. 270,et seq.(London, 1896).

3For description of these villages, seeCole, Distribution of the Non-Christian Tribes of Northwestern Luzon (Am. Anthropologist, Vol. XI, p. 329).

4SeeJenks, The Bontoc Igorot (Manila, 1906).

5Twenty years in the Philippines, p. 109 (London, 1853).

6See Traditions of the Tinguian, this volume, No. 1, p. 8.

7SeeColeandLaufer, Chinese Pottery in the Philippines (Field Museum of Natural History, Vol. XII, No. 1).

8Despite frequent assertions to the contrary, the fire syringe is not used by the Tinguian. It is found among the Tiagan Igorot, the similarity of whose name has doubtless given rise to the error.

Head-hunting and warfare are practically synonymous. To-day both are suffering a rapid decline, and a head is seldom taken in the valley of the Abra. In the mountain district old feuds are still maintained, and sometimes lead to a killing, and here too the ancient funerary rites are still carried out in their entirety on rare occasions. However, this peaceful condition is not of long standing. In every village the older men tell with pride of their youthful exploits, of the raids they indulged in, the heads they captured; and they are still held in high esteem as men “who fought in the villages of their enemies.”

During the time of our stay in Abra, the villages of the Buklok valley were on bad terms with the people of the neighboring Ikmin valley, and were openly hostile to the Igorot on the eastern side of the mountain range. Manabo and Abang were likewise hostile to their Igorot neighbors, and the latter village was surrounded with a double bamboo stockade, to guard against a surprise attack. Manabo at this time anticipated trouble with the warriors of Balatok and Besao, as a result of their having killed six men from those towns. The victims had ostensibly come down to the Abra river to fish, but, judging by previous experience, the Tinguian believed them to be in search of heads, and acted accordingly. This feud is of old standing and appears to have grown out of a dispute over the hunting grounds on Mt. Posoey, the great peak which rises only a few miles from Manabo. There have been many clashes between the rival hunters, the most serious of which occurred in 1889, when the Tinguian had twenty-nine of their number killed, and lost twenty-five heads to the Igorot of Besao.

The people of Agsimo and Balantai suffered defeat in a raid carried on against Dagara in 1907, and at the time of our visit a number of the warriors still bore open wounds received in that fight. In the same year at least three unsuccessful attacks, probably by lone warriors, were made against individuals of Lagangilang, Likuan, and Lakub.

Accounts of earlier travelers offer undoubted proof that head-hunting was rampant a generation ago; while the folk-tales feature the taking of heads as one of the most important events in Tinguian life.Page 370

The first incentive for head-taking is in connection with funeral rites. According to ancient custom it was necessary, following the death of an adult, for the men of the village to go out on a headhunt, and until they had done so, the relatives of the deceased were barred from wearing good clothing, from taking part in any pastimes or festivals, and their food was of the poorest and meanest quality. To remove this ban, the warriors would don white head-bands, arm themselves, and sally forth either to attack a hostile village or to ambush an unsuspecting foe. Neighboring villages were, out of necessity, usually on good terms, but friendly relations seldom extended beyond the second or third settlement, a distance of ten or fifteen miles. Beyond these limits most of the people were considered enemies and subject to attack.

While such a raid was both justifiable and necessary to the village in which a death had occurred, it was considered an unprovoked attack by the raided settlement; a challenge and an insult which had to be avenged. Thus feuds were established, some of which ran through many years, and resulted in considerable loss of life. A town, which had lost to another a greater number of heads than they had secured, was in honor bound to even the score, and thus another cause for battle was furnished. The man who actually succeeded in taking a head was received with great acclaim upon his return to the village; he was the hero in the festival which followed, and thereafter was held in high esteem, and so another motive was furnished.1

There is an indication in theSalokoceremony that heads may have been taken to cure headache and similar ills (cf. p. 319); while the presence of the head-basket, of the same name, in the fields suggests a possible connection between head-hunting and the rice culture, such as still exists among the neighboring Kalinga.2

The Tinguian do not now, and apparently never have practised human sacrifice, but this custom and head-hunting seem to be closely related, and to have as a primary cause the desire to furnish slaves or companions for the dead. This idea was found among the ancient Tagalog, Visayan, and Zambal, and still exists among the Apayao of Northern Luzon; the Bagobo, Mandaya, Bila-an, and Tagakaola ofPage 371Mindanao; as well as in Borneo and the islands to the south.3That it once had a strong hold on the Ilocano of the coast is made evident by the mysterious cult known asaxibrong, which at times terrifies whole communities. In 1907 the region about Bangui, in Ilocos Norte, was greatly excited over several attempts to kill people of that settlement, and it was whispered that when a leading man, who had recently died, was placed in his coffin, his right hand had suddenly raised up with four fingers extended. This, it was said, was a demand on the part of the dead for four companions, and the subsequent attacks on the villagers were thought to be due to the activities of the bereaved family in complying with the wishes of the deceased.

The raids following a death were usually carried out as a village affair, and many warriors participated, but it seems that by far the greater number of heads were secured by individuals or couples, who would lie in ambush near to the trails, or to the places, where the women had to pass in carrying water from the streams to the village.

While the Tinguian always chose to attack from ambush, yet he did not hesitate to fight in the open when occasion demanded it. For a distance of fifteen or twenty feet he depended on his spear, but for close quarters he relied on his shield and head-axe. An examination of PlateXLIVwill show that the shield has three prongs at the top. These the warrior seeks to slip between the legs of his enemy to trip him up, then one stroke downward with the axe, and the opponent is put out of the fight. The two lower prongs are meant to be slipped about the neck. One more stroke of the head-axe, and the victor takes his trophy and starts for home, while the relatives of the dead man seek to secure the remains to carry them back to their village. As the loss of a head reflects on the whole party, and in a like manner its acquisition adds distinction to the victors, a hot fight usually develops over a man who is stricken down, and only ceases when the enemy is beaten off, or has been successful in getting away with the trophy.

If a war party finds it necessary to make a night camp, or if they are hard pressed by the foe, they plant long, thin strips of bamboo orpalma brava4in the grass. The ends of these are cut to sharp points, and they are so cleverly concealed that pursuers must use great care,Page 372and consequently lose much time, or they will have their legs and feet pierced with these needle-like blades.

Upon their return to the village, the warriors were formerly met at the gate by their relatives, who held two ladders in A shape, thus forming a pathway over which each had to climb. Once inside the town, the heads were placed on a bamboo spike known assagang(cf. p. 310), or in thesaloko(cf. p. 310), and for three days were exhibited beside the gate. In the meantime messages were sent to friendly villages to invite the people to the celebration.

On the morning of the last day, the heads were carried up to the center of the village, where, amid great rejoicing, the men sang the praises of the victors or examined the skulls of the victims. Sometime during the morning, the men who had taken the heads split them open with their axes and removed the brains. To these they added the lobes of the ears and joints of the little fingers, and they placed the whole in the liquor which was afterwards served to the dancers. There seems to be no idea here of eating the brains of the slain as food. They are consumed solely to secure a part of their valor, an idea widespread among the tribes of Mindanao.5The writer does not believe that any people of the Philippines indulges in cannibalism, if that term is used to signify the eating of human flesh as food. Several, like the Tinguian, have or still do eat a portion of the brain, the heart or liver of brave warriors, but always, it appears, with the idea of gaining the valor, or other desirable qualities of the victims.

The balance of the head festival consisted in the drinking of sugar cane rum, of songs of praise by the headmen, and finally all joined in dancingda-eng. Just before the guests were ready to depart, the skulls were broken into small bits, and the fragments were distributed to the guests so that they might taken them to their homes, and thus be reminded of the valor of the takers.6This disposition of the skull agrees with that of many Apayao towns,7but it does not conform with the description of ancient times afforded us in the tales,8norPage 373with the practices of the Kalinga and Igorot people, both of whom preserve the trophy.

The weapons of the warriors consists of a spear, head-axe, and shield, and the small bamboo spikes known assoga. They do not make use of the bow and arrow, although they have been credited as possessing them.9The old men claim it has not been used in their lifetime, nor is mention made of it in the folk-tales. The only time it appears is in the crude weapons used in shooting fish in the rice-fields, and in the miniature bow and arrow, which hang above the heads of a newborn child.

Figure 7.Types of Knives.Types of Knives.

Types of Knives.

Bolos, or long knives, are carried at the side suspended from the belt, and upon occasion may be used as weapons. However, they are generally considered as tools (Fig. 7).

The Head-Axe,aliwaorgaman(seeFig. 8).—The axes made by the Tinguian and Kalinga are identical, probably due to the fact that the center of distribution, as well as the best iron work of this region, is found in Balbalasang—a town of mixed Tinguian and Kalinga blood. The blade is long and slender with a crescent-shape cuttingPage 374edge on one end, and a long projecting spine on the other. This projection is strictly utilitarian. It is driven into the ground so as to support the blade upright, when it is desired to have both hands free to draw meat or other articles over the cutting edge. It is also driven into the soil, and acts as a support when its owner is climbing steep or slippery banks.

Figure 8.Head-Axes.Head-Axes.

Head-Axes.

The blade fits into a long steel ferrule which, in turn, slips onto a wooden handle. The latter may be straight or plain, but commonlyPage 375it has a short projection midway of its length, which serves as a finger-hold and as a hook for attachment to the belt. Quite frequently the handle is decorated with thin circles or bands of brass, while ornamental designs sometimes appear on the blade.

While the axe is primarily a weapon, its use is by no means confined to warfare. It is used in house and fence building, in cutting up game and forest products, and in many other ways.Fig. 8shows three types of head-axes, the first two, the Tinguian-Kalinga axe; third, the Igorot; fourth, the Apayao. There is a noticeable difference between the slender blades of the first group and the short, thick blade of the Igorot, yet they are of the same general type. The Apayao weapon, on the other hand, presents a radical difference in form. Despite these variations, the axes of these three tribes present an interesting problem. So far as it known, these are the only tribes in the Philippines which make use of a head-axe, and it is believed that no similar weapon is found in the Malayan Islands. However, blades of striking resemblance do occur among the Naga of Assam.10It is possible that the weapons of these far separated regions may hark back to a common source, from which they received their instruction in iron working.

Figure 9.Spears.Spears.

Spears.

The Spear,pīka.—The various types of spears used by the Tinguian are shown inFig. 9.

A considerable part of these are made in the villages along the upper reaches of the Buklok river and in Balbalasang, but many come into Abra through trade with the Igorot and Kalinga. They are usedPage 376for hunting and fighting, and are intended both as thrusting and throwing weapons. In the lowlands the older type of spear-head is a modified leaf shape, attached to a ferrule which slips over the shaft. In the mountains, heads with two or more barbs are set into the handles, and are held in place by means of wooden wedges and by metal rings which surround the ends of the shafts. A metal end or shoe covers the butt end of the weapon, thus converting it into an excellent staff for mountain climbing.

Occasionally a hunting spear is fitted with a detachable head, which will pull out of the socket when an animal is struck. The shaft is attached to the point by means of a heavy line, and as this drags through the undergrowth, it becomes entangled and thus delays the flight of the game.

Shields,kalásag.—Mention has already been made of the typical Tinguian-Kalinga shield (cf. p. 373). While this is the common type of the region (Fig. 10, Nos. 1–1a), others, which approach those of the Bontoc Igorot, are frequently used (Fig. 10, No. 2). As a rule, these come from Balatok, Lubuagan, Guinaan and the villages along the Malokbot river, all of which are strongly influenced in blood and culture by the Igorot. In the latter shields we find the prongs at the top and bottom, but they are no longer of sufficient size and opening to be of practical value. The clue to their origin is probably afforded us in their use by the Tinguian.

Across the top and bottom of each shield, near to the prongs, are two or three braided bands which appear to be ornamental, or to strengthen the weapon. Their real use, however, is to hold thesoga, the pointed bamboo sticks which are planted in the grass to delay pursuers. A half dozen or more of these are usually to be found under the braiding at the back of the shield.

All shields are of very light wood, and can easily be pierced by a spear. They are intended to be used in deflecting missels rather than actually to stop them. To aid in this purpose, there is a hand grip cut into the center of the back. This is large enough to admit the first three fingers, while the thumb and little finger are left outside to tilt the shield to the proper angle.

Figure 10.Shields.Shields.

Shields.

Hunting(PlatesXLV–XLVI).—Hunting must be considered more in the nature of a sport than as a necessity, for, while a considerable amount of game is taken each year, it is not enough to furnish an important part of the food supply. As we have already noted, a great part of the country occupied by this tribe is devoid of forests. Dense growths do occur in some valleys and ravines, and a few ofPage 377the mountains, like Posoey, are heavily forested, but for the most part the western slopes of the Cordillera Central are covered with rankcogongrass. In the ravines and on the wooded slopes are deer, pig, wild carabao, and wild chickens, and during the dry season of the year it is no uncommon thing to see a considerable number of men leaving the village at daybreak with their dogs, spears, and nets. The customary method of hunting the larger animals is to stretch long nets across the runway of the game. A number of the hunters, armed with spears, conceal themselves near by, while the balance of the party take the dogs to a distance and then, spreading out fan-shape, will converge on the net, beating the brush and shouting in order to stir up the game. The dogs, sullen, half-starved brutes, take little interestPage 378in the chase until an animal is started, then they begin to bay, and the whole pack is in pursuit. As the quarry rushes into the net, the concealed hunters fall upon it and spear it to death, at the same time fighting back the hungry dogs which would quickly devour it. Sometimes an animal escapes from the net, but if wounded, it is almost certain to fall a prey to the pack. Many deer are taken by this method in the course of a year. Sometimes a wild pig is netted, and on exceedingly rare occasions a carabao. However, the wild carabao is a dangerous animal, and hunters will not attack it unless it is so entangled in the nets that it is practically helpless. Still hunting for deer, near to the feeding grounds, yields a few animals each year, and during the period when thelumboy(Eugenia jambolanaLam.) are in fruit, the hunters often hide themselves in the trees at night, and spear the pigs which come below them to feed.

Figure 11.Chicken Snare.Chicken Snare.

Chicken Snare.

Wild hogs are also secured by placing a close fence about a field. One or two small entrances are left open and inside of these, deep pits are dug, and are covered with brush. As the animal pushes in, it steps on the frail covering, and is hurled to the bottom of the pit, where it is easily dispatched with the spear.

Among the smaller game, the wild chicken is the most important. These fowls seldom fly, but seek safety by running through the underbrush. The Tinguian takes advantage of this trait, and stretches nets loosely in the probable runway of the birds, and then drives them toward it in the same manner, as he does the deer. As the fowl runs full speed into the loose net, it folds about him, and he is easily taken.

The most common method of securing wild roosters is by means of a series of slip nooses attached to a main cord or band (Fig. 11).Page 379This is set up so as to enclose a square or triangular space, and a tame rooster is put inside. The crowing of this bird attracts the attention of the wild fowl who comes in to fight. Soon, in the excitement of the combat, one is caught in a noose, and the harder it pulls, the more securely it is held. At times the trap is baited with worms or grain. The snare is carried in a basket-like case, which is often fitted with a compartment for the decoy rooster.11

Another type of chicken snare consists of a single noose, which rests on two elevated strips of bamboo. The other end of the cord is attached to a bent limb, held down by means of a small trigger, which slips under a cross strip. The game is led onto the trap by scattering grain. The weight of the bird releases the trigger, the bent twig flies up, and the noose is drawn tightly.

Small birds are captured in considerable numbers by the boys who, for this purpose, make use of three types of snares. The first and most common is a simple slip noose made of human or horse hair attached to a stick. Several of these are driven into the ground close together, and grain is scattered between them. A second type of noose trap is shown inFig. 12, No. 1. A Bamboo poleawith sharpened end has a springbof the same material attached to its side. A cord from this passes through a small hole in the top ofa, and then forms a slip noose. A small stick or triggercis forced into the hole until firm enough to keep the line held taut, and the noose is spread on it. Bait is placed on the point ofain such a manner that the bird has to alight oncto secure it. Its weight releases the trigger, and the noose is drawn tightly around its legs. Another trap of this nature is illustrated byFig. 12, No. 2. Here a branch is bent down and a line is attached. The trigger stickaslips outsideb, and the pressure holds the free stickcin place against the crotch. Bait is so placed ondthat a bird coming to secure it must stand inside the slip noose which is spread onc. The weight and movement of the victim releases the trigger, draws the line taut, and closes the noose about its legs.

Figure 12.Bird Snares.Bird Snares.

Bird Snares.

In the lowland villages, blowguns (salbalana) are used to a limited extent in hunting birds. Two long strips of palm wood are grooved and fitted together. Over these the intestines of a carabao are drawn, and the whole is wrapped tightly with cord and covered with beeswax. The guns vary from 12 to 16 feet in length, and are often excellently made, yet they are little better than toys, for the missels used are only clay balls. Poison darts are unknown in this region, and thePage 381weapon is confined to the villages near to the coast. This, together with the fact that the blowgun does not appear in the lore or ceremonies, suggests that it of recent introduction (PlateXLVII).

Locusts are considered excellent food, and when they are flying in great numbers, are taken by means of small nets. These are attached to poles, and are swung into the swarm. Sometimes nearly the whole village will unite in such a hunt, the catch being stored in large bottle-shaped baskets until needed.

Bats and rats are not eaten, but the latter are trapped and killed because of the grain they destroy and the injury they do to the houses and their contents. The most common trap is made from a section of bamboo in one side of which a spring is inserted. A line attached to this leads to a slip noose which fits inside the tube. Bait is attached to a trigger which, when disturbed, releases the spring and closes the loop around the intruder.

Fishing.—Mention has already been made of the capture of fish by the children. Older people likewise devote some time to fishing, but not to the extent of making it an occupation. Nearly every family has a collection of traps and lines, and at times quite a number of fish and eels are secured.

The common trap is shown inFig. 13, No. 1. The entrance is made of sharp bamboo splints, which converge toward a small hole opening into the trap proper. The device is then placed in the water in such a way that fish coming downstream will be diverted into the opening. The current and the natural inclination of the fish to go into a dark hiding-place causes them to force their way into the trap, and once in they cannot emerge. The water escapes through the bamboo slits, but the fish can only be released by opening the small end of the trap.

Many of the women carry baskets attached to the belt at the hip. The tops of these baskets have funnel-shaped openings, and are immediately available for use as traps, if a good catch is in prospect (Fig. 13, No. 2). These are usually employed for shrimps and minnows. Eels are caught in long, round traps of rattan and bamboo. A frog is fastened in the far end of the tube, usually with a fish-hook. This is attached to a rattan spring, which is connected with the door of the trap. The eel enters and seizes the frog, but as it starts to back out, it releases the bent rattan, and the door is pulled shut.

Figure 13.Fishing Devices.Fishing Devices.

Fishing Devices.

Small hand nets, spread apart by means of sticks held in the hands, are used by women in scooping up small fish. Ordinarily, it is scooped away from the body, but if a fish takes refuge under a rock, the netPage 383is placed under the opposite side, and the stone is turned over with the foot.

The most effective fishing-device is a large throw net made cornucopia shape. The large net is open and weighted with many sinkers of lead. The man throws the net with a full arm sweeping motion, so that it spreads to its full extent, and all the sinkers strike the water at the same time. The splash causes all the fish inside the circle to dart inward, and as it sinks, the net settles over them. The fisherman draws in the cord attached to the small end, causing the sinkers to drag along to the bottom until directly beneath him, when their weight closes the net. It requires much skill and practice to throw this net properly, but once the art is mastered, the fisherman is very successful.

Blanket fishing similar to that in use by the neighboring Igorot is found here. A large blanket is weighed down with stones, and is placed in the river. After one or two hours have elapsed, a number of men form a wide circle around it. Often they drag between them a rope to which many corn husks are attached. As they advance toward the blanket, they turn the larger stones with their feet so that any fish hiding beneath them will be frightened away. The circle of men and corn husks causes the fish to go toward the blanket, and finally to take refuge under the stones piled upon it. When the blanket is reached, the men seize the corners and lift it out of the water on to the bank, where the stones are thrown out and the fish secured. A somewhat similar idea is found in thelama. Quantities of leaf branches are sunk into a still pool, and are left for a few days until the fish have come to use them as a hiding-place. A number of men make a close fence of bamboo sticks about them, then go inside, throw out the branches, and catch the fish with their hands or with the nets. Streams are often diverted from their course, for a time, and then returned, leaving the fish in the artificial channels stranded.

A curious method of fishing was seen in the Ikmin river. A hook was fastened in the end of a bamboo pole, and close to this a minnow was attached to a short line, to act as a lure. When the other fish approached the captive, the pole was jerked sharply, in an attempt to snag them. On one occasion the writer saw fifty fish taken by this method in less than an hour.

Short lines attached to sticks are often baited, and are set along the embankments of the flooded rice-fields. Small fish spears with detachable heads are also used in the rice lands, as well as in the clear pools. The only occasion when the bow and arrow is used in this region is when the rice fields are flooded. At such times a shortPage 384bow and an arrow with fork-shaped head are employed (Fig. 13, Nos. 3–3a). A fish poison or stupifier is occasionally used. A small red berry known asbaiyatinis crushed, and the powder is thrown into or just above quiet pools, where fish abound. Some of the fish become stupified and float on the surface, where they are quickly speared or scooped up. They are eaten without any ill effects.Page 385

1Head-hunting is widespread in this part of the world. It is found in Assam, in the Solomon Islands, in Borneo, Formosa, and, it is said, was formerly practiced in Japan. SeeHodson(Folklore,June, 1909, p. 109);Rivers, History of Melanesian Society, Vol. II, p. 259 (Cambridge, 1914);HoseandMcDougall, Pagan Tribes of Borneo, Vols. I–II (London, 1912);Shinji Ishii(Transactions Japan Soc. of London,Vol. XIV, pp. 7,et seq.).

2SeeWorcester, The Non-Christian Tribes of Northern Luzon (Philippine Journal of Science,Vol. I, p. 824, Manila, 1906).

3SeeBlairandRobertson, The Philippine Islands, Vols. V, p. 137; XXI, p. 140; XXXIV, p. 377; XL, pp. 80–81; XLVII, p. 313; XLVIII, p. 57.Cole, Distribution of the Non-Christian Tribes of Northwestern Luzon(Am. Anth., N. S., Vol. XI, 1909, p. 340);Cole, The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao (pub. Field Museum of Natural History, Vol. XII No. 2, p. 114,et seq.).

4These are calledsoga. Their use is widespread in the Philippines, in Malaysia generally, and even extends into upper Burma. SeeShakespear, History of Upper Assam, Upper Burmah and Northeastern Frontier, pp. 186,et seq.(London, 1914).Marsden, Hist. of Sumatra, p. 310 (London, 1811).

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