88 THE MANOBOS OF MINDANAO— GAR VAN fMEM °tvoL N xxn" 



In Figure 1 d we have the best conformation possible. The fact that the short section falls, 

 as it were, inside, indicates that a short fight and speedy death may be expected. The owner of a 

 weapon that passes this test is reluctant to part with it unless very advantageous offers are made 

 to him. 



A form of divination in which a suspended bolo, especially a consecrated one, takes the part 

 of the deus ex machina is described in the chapter on divination. 



THE LANCE 



The lance, like the bolo, is imported. It is of two kinds: (1) The Mandaya lance, which is 

 found everywhere except on the lower Agusan and on the upper reaches of the Umaiam, Argawan, 

 and Kasilaf an, and in the eastern Cordillera ; (2) a lance, probably of Moro production, which is 

 said to come from the Pulangi River, and which is used in the regions just mentioned where the 

 Mandaya lance is not considered lucky or effective. In general, lances consist of a steel head and 

 a long shaft, usually of palma brava, but rarely of some other species. 16 The head is firmly 

 attached to the shaft with a viscous substance. 



The lance is the inseparable companion of the Man6bo in his travels through dangerous 

 places, of which there are not a few in remote regions. When he arrives at a house he sticks the 

 lance in the ground, head up, near the ladder. In traveling he carries it upon his right shoulder, 

 head forward, in a horizontal position and is ever ready to throw it if he fears an ambush. I 

 have frequently startled my Manobo friends while they were engaged in some occupation, such 

 as fishing, just to study their demeanoi. The result was always the same — a quick turn and an 

 attitude of offense, with lance poised and defiant eye. 



The lance is held during the poise in the upturned right hand under the thumb and over 

 the first and second fingers. The arm is extended in a slight curve just in front of the line of 

 the shoulders. In making a thrust, the lance is darted parallel to the line of the shoulders 

 and on a level with them, the left side of the person being presented to the adversary. The 

 lance is not thrown, but is nearly always retained in the hand. 



The Mandaya lance merits most attention, as it is more generally used, and is usually of 

 better mechanical and ornamental workmanship. The shaft is a piece of either palma brava 

 or of Jculipdpa palm, varying from 1.8 to 2.4 meters in length. It has a uniform diameter of 

 about 16 millimeters for a distance equal to one-half of its length from the head; the other 

 half tapers very gradually to about one-half of its original thickness, ending in a fairly sharp 

 point, which may be capped with a conical piece of tin or of steel to protect the wood against 

 injury from stones. 



The head is a long, slender, pointed blade. From the shoulders, which are from 4 to 7 centi- 

 meters apart, it may taper uniformly to a point; much more commonly, however, it tapers 

 gradually to within about 25 millimeters of the extremity. Here its width is about 25 milli- 

 meters. At this point the edges converge at an angle of 45° to the axis, until they meet, 

 forming the point of the lance. From the shoulders of the blade the edges likewise slant inward 

 to the neck at an angle of 45°. The neck is a solid cylindrical piece, about 3 centimeters in 

 length, nearly always ornamented with embossed work, and ends in a rod or in a conical socket 

 about 7 centimeters long. It is very common to see ornamental chisel work along the axis near 

 the neck. The general outline of the engraving is that of the spearhead in miniature, within 

 which there are often little leaflike puncturings. 



When the lance head has a socket it is attached to the shaft with a resinous substance 

 similar to that used for bolos. When the lance head ends in a solid cylindrical piece and must 

 be inserted in the hollow shaft, the end of the shaft is reinforced with a Moro brass ferrule, 

 if the possessor of the lance has been so lucky as to have acquired one, or with coils of abakd 

 fiber over which has been wound abakd cloth stuck with the above mentioned resin. 



Lances of the better style have ornamental rings of beaten silver, sometimes amounting 

 to as many as 1 5, placed at equal distances along the shaft for a distance of as much as 30 centi- 

 meters from the juncture of the head and the shaft. 



" Wood of the tree ku-li-pd-pa is used occasionally. 



