66 THE MANOBOS OF MINDANAO— GAR VAN 



equally distributed, the guests are bidden to take their places on the floor, each one at his 

 appointed plate, for where visitors other than relatives are present, no precaution is omitted to 

 safeguard the guests against trouble. Experience has proved that the festive board may be 

 tinged with blood before the end. This even distribution of the food and the collocation of the 

 guests often occupies the better part of an hour. If these duties are not properly performed 

 envious feelings and a quarrel might ensue before the end of the meal. The guest of honor is 

 always given preference and the host may also especially favor others whom he may have reason 

 to honor but he always makes public the reason for his partiality. 



All being seated the meal begins with a goodly quaff of homemade brew. Then all begin 

 to eat. As the feasters warm under the kindling influence of the drink, they express their good 

 will by giving material tokens, each one to his friend or to one whose friendship he desires to gain. 

 These tokens consist of handfuls of meat — lean, fat, bone, gristle, or anything — smeared with salt 

 and pepper, and bestowed by one friend into the mouth of another without any consideration of 

 the proportion existing between the size of the mouth and the size of the gift. It is not good 

 etiquette to refuse this gift or to remove it from the mouth. This offering is followed probably 

 by a bamboo jointful of beverage which must be received in the same friendly spirit and is gulped 

 down with a mumbled expression corresponding to our "Here goes." The recipient of these 

 favors returns the courtesy in kind, and so the meal goes on in mutual goodfellowship and con- 

 geniality till the food has completely disappeared, for it is against the conventionalities of Man- 

 obodom to leave a scrap on the plate. Indeed the Manobo loves a good eater and drinker. It 

 is an honor to gorge and a glory to get drunk. Now it happens at times at a Manobo banquet, 

 as it does in all drinking bouts the world over, that a quarrel ensues and recourse is had to the 

 ever present bolo to settle an argument that wild shouts and frantic gestures can not decide. For 

 this reason the Manobo eats with his left hand and rolls his eyes from side to side in constant 

 vigilance. 



These remarks do not apply to the women and children, who sit apart in little groups of 

 their own, and, while feasting one another in their own gentle way, attend to the shouts for more 

 food when they are heard above the din of the revellers. 



During the course of a feast of this kind an observer is struck with the hearty appetite 

 exhibited by these primitive people. Man vies with man in holding out. Friend honors friend 

 with plenteous bestowals of food and drink and the host strives to induce his guests to eat to 

 their utmost capacity. Rarely does one see a Manobo troubled with nausea but, if he is, he 

 returns later to the feast, to finish his appointed portion. I have seen this happen on occasions. 



