634 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



Rice is the principal food, and they obtain a very delicate flavor 

 by steaming it through a bamboo tube. Smoking is indulged in to a 

 considerable extent. 



These people are, generally speaking, somewhat careless, apathetic, 

 and without fear for the morrow. Hence, they live in a sort of 

 hand-to-mouth fashion, confining themselves to the cultivation of the 

 narrow strips of land at the foot of the mountains. The fields are 

 very small, and water is frequently brought to them by means of ca- 

 nals. The men work the fields with a light plow, but often dispense 

 even with that, and use a harrow, the teeth of which are made of 

 bamboo. Ordinarily there are two harvests, excepting in certain dis- 

 tricts, where the winters are too severe. 



The men rise at daybreak at all seasons of the year, smoke their 

 pipes, lounge about the house for a time, then work in the fields until 

 about ten or eleven o'clock, when they return for breakfast. A short 

 sleep is then indulged in. The afternoon is spent in roaming about 

 the mountains, fishing, hunting, or gathering bamboo. The evening 

 is passed at home. At about eight o'clock the only other meal of the 

 day is partaken of. Their dress resembles that of the Annamites. 



The women here, like those of most other wild tribes, are the real 

 laborers. They pound and gather in the rice, bring fire-wood from 

 the mountains, spin cotton, make cloth, prepare the meals, and, in a 

 word, do almost all that is to be done. Each member of the family, 

 however, works at his or her pleasure. The result of this freedom is 

 a lasting friendship between the members of the same family, and 

 frequently the children, even after marriage, will remain under their 

 parents' roof ; thus, three or four families are often found living 

 together in perfect harmony. The women are usually very poorly 

 dressed, and make a less agreeable impression than the men. 



Great affection is shown toward their children, so much so that 

 paternal authority is apt to suffer. "When a child is born, a string is 

 suspended near the mother and the infant to prevent the devil from 

 carrying it away. Bits of rice are also put into the child's mouth with 

 the words : " If thou art of the devil, let the devil slay thee ; if thou 

 art of Heaven, let Heaven protect thee." 



Marriage does not take place until the men have reached the 

 twenty-fifth year, as it is necessary to have a considerable sum of 

 money for the bride's parents before the event can take place. The 

 fathers and mothers manage the affair almost entirely themselves. 

 Three visits are made between the parents of the contracting parties; 

 on the fourth, the bridegroom accompanies his parents, carrying the 

 money, a pot, a pig, and a jug of wine. He invites the parents of 

 his future wife to feast'; they furnish a pig and a jug of wine also, 

 and the two families make their repast in common. A chicken and an 

 egg are now prepared ; each is cut into two equal parts, wishes for 

 their future happiness are expressed, and the couple invited to eat. 



