September, 19 13 Wild Tribes of Davao District — Cole. 99 



Prohibitions exist against the wearing of the clothing which dis- 

 tinguishes warriors and priestesses, and there are rules governing the 

 conduct of individuals while near shrines or during ceremonies, but 

 punishment for the breaking of these rules is meted out by the spirits 

 rather than by the datu. 



Each settlement is recognized as having property rights to all 

 adjacent lands. Within these recognized limits, its members may 

 take up as much land as they need, provided it is not already in use, 

 but when a field is, for any reason, abandoned it again becomes the 

 property of the community. Individual ownership extends to houses, 

 furnishings, and all articles of clothing, as well as to weapons, traps, 

 animals, and slaves. Although bought with a price the wife is still 

 very independent and has undisputed rights to her baskets, cooking 

 utensils, looms, and to the finery with which she adorns her person. 



Since all the people assist in the support of the datu they consider 

 his home to be, to a certain extent, their own and make use of it and its 

 furnishings without question. 



Probably at no place in the world has borrowing gone to greater 

 extremes than here. When attempting to purchase clothing, or 

 articles in daily use, the writer frequently found that not a single garment 

 worn by an individual was his own; and it was usually necessary to 

 consult several persons in order to secure a complete outfit. 



Upon the death of a man, his property is taken in charge by his first 

 wife, or by the old men, and is divided equally among his wives and 

 children, with perhaps a little extra added to the share of the first mate. 

 The belongings of a free-born woman go to her children, or, in case she 

 is barren, are given to her relatives. In cases where both the parents 

 are dead, the children pass into the care of the father's family. 



Despite the fact that property is owned by individuals, a large part 

 of the labor, especially in house-building and in the fields, is done in 

 common. When a man desires to clear or plant a field or to build a 

 house, he summons his friends to aid him and they respond with no 

 idea of payment other than their food and drink, and the return of like 

 services when they are in similar need. 



BIRTH. 



For about six months before and after the birth of a child the mother 

 is relieved from hard labor; she is not allowed to taste of anything sour, 

 neither may she eat dried fish or flesh, lest her child be thin and weak. 

 The father is under no restrictions other than that he is expected to 

 remain near to his home for a few days following the birth of a child. 



