ROTH] DEATH AND MOURNING 663 
next surrounded the grave and each one jumped over it in the direc- 
tion whence he had come. Even the barely 12-week-old orphan was 
taken in the arms and made to jump over it. [Compare remarks 
re jumping over a recumbent person in WER, v1, sec. 220.] All 
this time the widower had been silently seated in the hut without 
taking any active part in the proceedings. He now suddenly arose, 
and, taking a calabash filled with red paint, emptied its contents 
over the corpse, and then broke it into fragments over it, only 
retaining that bit which he had clenched in his hand, and this he 
threw out at the door. [Is this procedure a relic of the Carib, etc., 
custom of painting the corpse?] During this ceremony the relatives 
had withdrawn, but they now returned with little bits of bone, fruits, 
and bread, ete., that they strewed on the dead body, which was 
finally carefully laid over, and covered in, with split stems of the 
manicol palm. This done, the piai came back with a bundle of 
hair, and, bending down, exposed the deceased’s face from among 
the laths, spat on it, and then plugged the hair into the ears and 
mouth while he continued spitting. He then addressed the dead 
in a harsh and rough tone and went away. The laths were next put 
back in place and covered over with palm leaves. In the meantime 
several women, continuing their lamentations, brought some water 
which they handed to the widower and the dead woman’s sister, who 
poured it onto the excavated earth, with which they mixed it, and, 
still wailing, this they turned over on the palm leaves to a height of 
about a foot, the moistened earth being intended to prevent encroach- 
ments by ants. Immediately on top of this compact mass were placed 
several of the deceased’s household effects and the grave closed in. 
The hut was now emptied of its weeping inmates, and most care- 
fully cleaned up, whereupon all the things that had been previously 
taken out were now put back. Before this was done, however, they 
sorted out the things belonging to the deceased, and these, together 
with her hammock, were then burned outside the hut, and the ashes 
strewn around by the widower, who next lighted a fire on the grave, 
and this he left burning for some hours. The unburned faggots and 
ashes were suffered to remain. The burial ceremony was now ended. 
The deceased’s sister, who occupied the same house, kept up the 
mourning and lamentation for three weeks, both by day (especially 
upon her return from the field) as well as by night. During this 
period she had to put aside her string beads and discard all deco- 
rations. ... In addition to leaving off all ornaments, the Makusi 
paint themselves strongly with annatto, cut off their long hair, and 
the cheerful countenance is not observed until the hair has grown 
again to a certain length. By the following morning the nearest 
relatives had painted themselves from head to foot with annatto; 
