THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND 



have been found capable of stealing iron when they 

 thought that they had the chance of doing so and 

 evading detection. Messrs. Carey and Tuck (to whose 

 valuable work we have already alluded) say that a Siyin 

 can creep into a British "post" on his stomach, and 

 carry off cooking-pots under the very nose of a sentry! 

 He can even enter a house inside the posts, and carry 

 off property without disturbing the inmates! 



The Northern Chins, apparently, do not believe 

 in a Supreme Being. The Southern Chins, while 

 believing in a god (Kozin) to whom they sacrifice, 

 do not worship him, never looking to him for any 

 grace or mercy, except that of withholding plagues 

 and misfortunes. Besides this Kozin the southern 

 people believe in many spirits. There are the spirit 

 of the village (genius loci of the Romans); the 

 spirit of the family, or clan, residing in trees, or in 

 particular tracts which the clan inhabit; the spirit 

 of the cultivations, living in the fields; the spirit of 

 the air; the spirit of the stream, or the jungle, 

 or the hills. The Chins say there is no Supreme 

 God, and no other world save this, which is full 

 of evil spirits, who inhabit the fields, infest the 

 houses, and haunt the jungles. These spirits must 

 be propitiated, otherwise they may do grievous harm, 

 such as destroying the crops or making women barren. 

 When a man dies, his soul joins the spirit-world of 

 the forests; if he die a natural death, his spirit is 

 content; but if he has been slain, it will haunt his 

 relations until his death is avenged in blood. The 

 slain, however, becomes the slave of the slayer in the 

 spirit-world; so that if a man has killed many people 

 in this life, he will have many slaves to attend him 

 in the next. One can hardly expect people who cherish 

 such beliefs to live at peace with one another. 



"When a man falls sick, he attributes his illness 

 to some evil spirit, and accordingly sacrifices a young 

 fowl or a small dog. If he gets well, it is a sign 

 that the spirit is appeased. ' In all villages there 

 is a wise man or woman, who is believed to under- 

 stand what the spirits require, and who is accordingly 

 consulted as to what should be sacrificed. 

 The wise man does not hesitate to ask many prying questions with regard to the 

 unfortunate suppliant's recent conduct. These inquiries concluded, he will probably announce 

 that the spirit of some stream has been insulted! Such a dire offence can only be atoned 

 for by the sacrifice of a red cock on the bank of the stream whose spirit claims redress. 

 Sometimes a pig is sacrificed; the animal is slain by the wise man himself, who mutters to 

 the spirit, "You have wanted a pig, and so one has been killed; now be satisfied, and remove 

 the sickness which you have put upon the man." It need hardly be added that the wise 

 man always helps to eat the flesh which he has ordered for the spirit; and generally he 

 chooses pig, because he is fond of pork himself, and therefore perhaps the spirit also prefers 

 it! So much eating and drinking accompanies all ceremonies that one cannot tell without 



Photo by tiignor Beato] [Mandalay. 



A BURMESE PRINCESS. 



