Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-08-12
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

ttoHdL ACADEMY OF Scsences
by THOMAS Il. HENRY.
In Manoboland the wife Is the slave
of her husband. She tends the farm,
gets the wood and draws the water. toll
| ing up the steep mountainsides with
heavy burdens on her shoulders. New
ertheless, Caravan relates, her lot Is
q comparatively happy one.
"It Is" he relates, the custom OF the
tribe. and the institution Of the great
men OF bygone days, that the woman
should toll and slave. Married life APP
pears to be one of mutual good under
standing and kindliness. / have known
of very few domestic broils and have
never known of q case Of ill-treatment,
except when in a drunken Mt the hus-
band wreaked his wrath on his wife.
Moments of anger are not frequent.
FaithfulneSs to the marriage tie Is a
remarkable trait in Manoboland, due
to the stringent code OF morals upheld
by spear and bolo."
Marriages, he says, nearly always are
unions of convenience, arranged, or at
least approved by the parents. Sometimes
tbs young man Is directed to take up
his residence in the girls house, observe
| her general character and especially
her diligence, gain the good will Of her
father and relatives, and then report
back to his own people. No communi-
cation Of any kind takes place between
him and his prospective wife. When
the subject is preached to the girl she
simply tells him to see her relatives.
Visit 10 Girls Home.
Then, continues 0arvan, flour or five
of the nearest male relatives of the
man, after procuring q little beverage,
repair early some evening TO the house
Of the nearest relative Of the girl. After
they have partaken of the betel nut
quid and have offered drink Of sugar
cane brew, the prologue begins. This
lasts from one to two days, often in
GLIDING the better part of the nights
Each OF the visitors rattles of q series
Of periphraStic platitudes that appar-
entity give no clue as TO the object OF
their visit. The father Of the girl quick
" understands the situation and as
sumes a most Indifferent air He emits
a sleepy grunt and. after several hours,
rolls in his mat and feigns sleep"
Finally the visitors announce their real
purpose The father strains his brains
to think of every imaginable reason
against the marriage and finally tells
the visitors to come back on such and
such q day, after he has consulted his
relatives. Sometimes this bargaining
will continue for years. Meantime the
suitor continues to live IN his proSpec-
tive father-in-law's house, doing the
chores. Payment Is generally demanded
In slaves.
An essential part Of the agreement is
the marriage feast, given by the SuitorS
father. Says Garvan: 1.-The whole cotln-
try hocks to the house at the appointed
time. The meal finally is spread on the
floor. The host distributes the meat,
carefully selecting the pieces IS to
weight, size and quality, 50 that nobody
can complain Such toothSome parts as
the brains, heart and liver are divided
among the relatives who enjoy greatest
prestige. This takes up the better part
of an hour. Finally all squat on the floor,
armed with the inSeparable bolo The
two prospective fathers-in-law pay Spe-
cial attention TO each other, each trying
to get the other intoxicated and each
feeding the other with chunks Of fat. A
few pieces of fat and bone are Scoopeu
up. dipped in a mixture OF red pepper,
salt and water, and thrust into the
mouth Of the good fellow wnom 1t Is de-
sired to honor. To refuse the portion
would degrade one In the eyes OF every
one. The women, who all eat together
near the hearth, carry on the same
operations, but in their more gentle
about three hours.
Bride in Ornaments.
"a few hours before her departure
the bride is decked out with all available
ornaments During the process OF dress
ing her female relatives usually weep,
while the more distant ones set up
howl, in which the children, babies
and dogs may join. At this Juncture the
- 1,rfI 1F1far-
vene and try to aSsuage their grief. IL Is
only after numerous presents have been
given them that they become resigned.
At the last moment, when the bride Is
about to be led away, they surround heI
hold her and perhaps repeat the wall
, This necesSitates another supply OF
presents. 1t happens frequently that
the marriage suitors are deprived even
of their personal weapons ana part OF
their clothes"
After the bride arrives IN her father
in-laws house pig is killed. Bride ana
BRIDEGROOM sit side by side on grass
mat. When the meal Is ready the BRIDE
groom takes handful of rice from MS
plate and offers il to the bride, while
she gives a similar portion TO him. Ihen
he passes hts rice from hand to hano
behind his back several times and says
in loud voice We are now married.
The bride does the same. Then LOUD
howls Of assent proclaim the compile
ton of the union. =,
II seldom witnessed Q marriage,
says Gsrvan, during which the BRIDE
groom did not become somewhat hIari-
Gus toward the end OF the meal, but
he never displays anything but feel
ings OF delicacy and respect toward his
bride The feast being concluded, seven
guilds Of betelnuts are placed by one OF
the family priesteSses upon sacred
dish. She then sets 1t on the head OF
the bridegroom and falls into an &c
static condition, steadying the plate
with her hand. II one OF the nuts
should drop of, the omen is considered
diately by q Mck-bringing rite"
Wife capture, Garvan relates, Is fairly
| frequent. The capture Is effected by .
band of from four to eight friends OF
the party interested. They lay IN hid
ing near the garden patch Of the girls
father. When she appears they drag
her away. Reprisals follow, but the
matter usually can be settled by agree
ment. This is generally resorted to
under the advice and protection Of some
powerful and rich parsonage" says Gar
van. eff undertaken on ones own initi-
alive, it might be risky, and certainly
always is a highly expensive affair.
Even when carried out with the con-
nivance of q warrior chief it has some
times proved fatal"
Poligamy Is Permitted.
"The Manobo," Garvan continues, Gin
practice is monogamiSt, but polygamy
| is permitted with the consent Of the
| first wife, and in cases that have
known, by her direction. and even ac-