CHAPTER XVIII 



POLITICAL ORGANIZATION: WAR, ITS ORIGIN, INCEPTION, COURSE, 



AND TERMINATION 



MILITARY AFFAIRS IN GENERAL 



There exists no military organization in Manoboland, no standing army, no reviews, no 

 conscription. The whole male circle of relatives and such others as desire to take part, either 

 for friendship's sake or for the glory and spoil, form the war party. There is no punishment 

 for failure to join an expedition but as blood is thicker than water, the nearer male relatives 

 always take part and there are never wanting others who either bear a grudge against the author 

 of the grievance or go for the emolument that they may receive or even for the sport and the 

 spoil of it. It is customary to bring along such male slaves as may be depended upon to render 

 faithful and efficient work. It is only fear of incurring enmity that holds back the majority 

 of those who do not take part. I here desire to impress upon my readers one important point 

 in the Manobo's idea of war, and it is this: That no blame is laid upon nor resentment harbored 

 toward anyone who joins an expedition as a paid warrior. 1 I have ascertained beyond reason- 

 able doubt, after continual questioning on my part and open unsolicited avowals on the part 

 of others, that warrior chiefs are frequently paid to redress a wrong in which they have no 

 personal concern. 



In the case of ordinary tribesmen, I know that where personal feelings and the hope of mate- 

 rial advantages are not an inducement to partake in the expedition, they are frequently tempted 

 with an offer of some such thing as a fine bolo or a lance, to lend their services to the leader 

 of the war party. It is needless to say that only close ties of friendship or relationship to the 

 enemy prevent the offer from being accepted, especially as the acceptance of it relieves the 

 Manobo from all responsibility for such deaths as may accrue to his credit during the pros- 

 pective encounter. When, however, previous feuds, or other unfriendly antecedents existed 

 between the warrior and his opponent, the acceptance of a remuneration for his participation 

 in the fray would not shield him from the dire vengeance that would, sooner or later, surely 

 follow. 



For a description of the weapons used and of the manner of using them, the reader is referred 

 to Chapter XI. 



In the description of the Manobo house (Chapter V), reference was made to the high houses 

 erected for defense when an unusual attack is expected. Tree houses, at the time I left the 

 valley, were very few and far between, even in the eastern Cordillera and at the headwaters 

 of the Tago River. 



Besides building high houses and resorting to devices referred to in Chapter V, the Man6bos 

 occasionally slash down the surrounding forest in such a way as to form a veritable abatis of 

 timber. 



In one place I saw a very unique and effective form of defense. A fence surrounded the house. 

 To gain access to the latter it was necessary to ascend a notched pole about 2 meters high and 

 then to pass along two horizontal bamboo poles about 10 meters long. Numerous deadly bamboo 

 caltrops bristled out of the ground underneath the precarious bamboo bridge that led to a plat- 

 form whence the house could be reached only by climbing the usual notched pole. Whosoever 

 ventured to cross this perilous bridge, would certainly meet death from one source or another, 

 either from the hurtling shower of arrows from above or from the bristling caltrops below. 



' Sin-6-ho. 



145 



