56 THE MANOBOS OF MINDANAO— GAR VAN [MEMO fvo? f xxm 



[Vol. XXIII, 



The opening is considered of sufficient size and beauty when it is about 2% centimeters 

 in diameter. In addition to this large aperture, which is located on the lower part of the lobulus, 

 there may be two other small perforations about IK centimeters further up. These latter serve 

 both in men and women for the attachment of small buttons, while the former is confined 

 exclusively to women and serves for the insertion of ornamental ear disks. 



DEPILATION 



A beardless face is considered a thing of beauty, so that a systematic and constant eradica- 

 tion of the face hair is carried on by the Manobo from the first moment that hair begins to appear 

 upon his face. For this purpose he often has a pair of tweezers, 14 "ordinarily made out of beaten 

 brass wire, with which he systematically plucks out such straggling hairs as he may find upon 

 his upper lip and on the chin, as well as the axillary hair. The pubic hair is not always eradi- 

 cated. A small knife 16 is frequently employed as a razor, not only on the chin and upper lip 

 but also for shaving the eyebrows. The removal of the last mentioned is a universal practice, 

 for hair on the eyebrows is considered very ungraceful. Hence both sexes shave the eyebrows, 

 leaving only a pencil line, or, in some districts, not even a trace of hair. 



The hair on other parts of the body is not abundant and it is not customary to remove it. 



After making an infinity of inquiries, I learned that tattooing is merely for the purpose of 

 ornamentation. By a few I was given to understand that under the Spanish regime^, when 

 killing and capturing was rife, the tattooing was for the purpose of the identification of a captive. 

 It was customary to change the name of a captive, and as he was sold and resold, the only way 

 to identify him was by his tattoo marks. 



Be that as it may, the practice seems to have at present no further significance than that of 

 ornamentation. No therapeutic nor magical nor ceremonial effects are associated with it. 

 Neither is it symbolic of prowess, nor distinctive of family, place, nor person, for two persons 

 from different localities and groups may have the same designs. 



No particular age is required for the inception of the process, but from my observation, 

 corroborated by general testimony, I believe it is performed usually from the age of puberty 

 onwards. 



The operator is nearly always a woman, or a so-called hermaphrodite, 17 who has acquired a 

 certain amount of skill in embroidering. These professionals are not numerous, due, possibly, 

 to the natural aversion felt by women for the sight of blood, as also to the fact that no remuner- 

 ation is made for their services, though this last reason alone would not explain the paucity. 



The process is very simple. A pigment is prepared by holding a plate or an oUa over a 

 burning torch 18 made of resin until enough soot has collected. Then without any previous 

 drawing, the operator punctures, to a depth of approximately 2 millimeters, the part of the body 

 that is to be tattooed. The blood that flows from these punctures is wiped off, usually with a 

 bunch of leaves, and a portion of the soot from the resin is rubbed vigorously into the wounds 

 with the hand of the operator. 



The process occupies a variable length of time, depending on the skill of the operator and on 

 the endurance and patience of the subject. It is painful, but no such manifestations of pain 

 are made as in teeth grinding. The portion tattooed is sensitive for about 24 hours, but no 

 other evil consequences, such as festering, etc., follow as far as my observations go. 



11 Pan-tim-pa'. 



>■ Called ba-di' or kim-pit. 



ifl Pang-o-tHb. 



17 One meets occasionally among the peoples of eastern Mindanao certain individuals who are known by a special name and who are reputed to 

 be incapable of sexual intercourse. The individuals whom I saw were most feminine in their ways, preferring to keep the company of women and 

 to indulge in womanly work rather than to associate with men. 



it Sul-yuug (Canarium viUotum). 





