NO, 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA — GRAHAM ^^ 



ing wild animals, which are fairly abundant. Nearly every Lolo man 

 is a hunter at least on occasion. The women weave cloth and make 

 felt clothing, carry water, work in the fields, cook the food, and do 

 many other kinds of hard work. 



Their main food consists of the grains and vegetables listed above 

 and the meat of wild and domestic animals, including horse meat. 

 All kinds of meat are often eaten raw or half raw. Their implements 

 are the usual plows, hoes, sickles, hammers, saws, and others. For 

 fighting purposes they use knives, swords, and guns. In former times 

 they wore leather armor and used poison arrows when fighting and 

 were noted for the use of spears with long handles, which enabled 

 them to injure an enemy while they themselves were out of reach 

 of the enemy's weapons. They now use modern rifles which were 

 traded to them for opium and other commodities. 



The art of the Lolos is simple and sometimes crude. There are 

 no images of the gods, but sometimes pictures of the gods are drawn 

 or carved on pieces of wood used as charms or in sacred books. One 

 has to use his imagination to see the resemblance to a human being. 

 Designs in black, red, and yellow are painted on wooden food bowls 

 and on wine jugs, and in former times they were drawn on leather 

 armor, shields, and quivers. Women's clothes are sometimes decorated 

 with embroidery. 



Society is strictly divided into the aforementioned castes, black- 

 bones and whitebones, and the caste distinctions are very strictly en- 

 forced. If a blackbone woman marries a whitebone man or has sexual 

 relations with him, the penalty is death. If a blackbone man marries 

 or has sexual relations with a whitebone woman, he must pay a heavy 

 fine. This is to protect the purity of Lolo blood. There are about 

 nine whitebones to one blackbone, so that the latter are comparatively 

 few. Society is also divided into tribes, clans, and families, always 

 in accordance with heredity from some common ancestor and blood 

 relationship. Those living in the same district may all have the same 

 family name. In the Liang Shan region some live at least tem- 

 porarily in natural caves. There are chiefs or heads of tribes, clans, 

 and families. 



Among the Lolos the family and blood relationships are looked upon 

 as very important. Generally the families are patrilineal, but some- 

 times descent is reckoned through the mothers rather than the 

 fathers. Marriage is commonly arranged by go-betweens, and a large 

 gift or bride-price is paid the parents of the bride. Marriage by cap- 

 ture is often practiced, but it is by prearrangement. The relatives 



