Religion and Magic 307 



fisher (salaksak) flies from in front toward the place just left, it is* a 

 command to return at once ; else illness in the village or family will com- 

 pel a later return. 1 Should the koling cry awit, awlt ("to carry, to 

 carry"), an immediate return is necessary, or a member of the party 

 will die, and will be carried home. When a snake crawls across the 

 trail, and goes into a hole, it is a certain warning that, unless the trip 

 is given up, some of the party will die, and be buried in the ground. 



The falling of a tree across the trail, when the groom is on his 

 way to the home of his bride, threatens death for the couple, while 

 the breaking or falling of an object during the marriage ceremony 

 presages misfortune. 



Not all the signs are evil ; for, if a man is starting to hunt, or trade, 

 and he sees a hawk fly in front of him and catch a bird or chicken, 

 he may on that day secure all the game he can carry, or can trade 

 on his own terms. 



All the foregoing are important, but the most constantly employed 

 method of foretelling the future is to examine the gall and liver of 

 slain pigs. Thes-e animals are killed in all great ceremonies, at the 

 conclusion of a medium's probation period, at birth, death, and funeral 

 observances, and for other important events. If a head-hunt is to be 

 attempted, the gall sack is removed, and is carefully examined, for 

 if it is large and full, and the liquor in it is bitter, the enemy will be 

 powerless; but if the sack is small, and only partially filled with a 

 weak liquor, it will fare ill with the warriors who go into battle. For 

 all other events, the liver itself gives the signs. When it is full and 

 smooth, the omens are favorable; but if it is pitted, has black specks 

 on it, is wrinkled, or has cross lines on it, the spirits are ill-disposed, 

 and the project should be delayed. If, however, the matter is very 

 urgent, another pig or a fowl may be offered in the hope that the at- 

 titude of the spirits may be changed. If the liver of the new sacrifice 

 is good, the ceremony or raid may continue. The blood of these animals 

 is always mixed with rice, and is scattered about for the superior 

 beings, but the flesh is cooked, and is consumed by the mortals*. 2 



'The salaksak was also the omen bird of the Zambales (Blair and Robert- 

 son, Philippine Islands, Vol. XLVII, p. 307). 



1 Predicting of the future through the flight of birds, or by means of the 

 entrails of slain animals, is widespread, not only in the Philippines and Malaysia 

 generally, but was equally important in ancient Babylonia and Rome. The 

 resemblances are so many that certain writers, namely, Hose and McDougall, 

 Kroeber, and Laufer are inclined to credit them to common historical influences. 

 See Hose and McDougall, Pagan Tribes of Borneo, Vol. II, p. 255 (London, 

 1912) ; Kroeber, Peoples of the Philippines (American Museum of Natural 

 History, Handbook Series, No. 8, p. 192, New York, 1919) ; Laufer, Toung 

 Pao, 1914, pp. 1 -5 1. 



