JELEBU CUSTOM ABY SONGS AND SAYINGS. 31 



The cord of arrest is the prerogative of the tribal head- 

 man, 

 The creese of execution the prerogative of the chief, 

 The headman's sword the prerogative of the king. 



The extent of a raja's jurisdiction is — 



Cents sixty and six. 



Seven taels, one palia, 



One kendi, one candareen, 



The contents of a tiny mortar, 



As much as a joint of giant bamboo can hold, 



As much as will fill the sleeve of a coat. 



Lese-majeste and disorder, 



Irregular marriage and wenching. 



Stealing by force and snatching, 



Arson and burning, 



Privy theft and open pilfering, 



Swindling and cheating, 



Drugging and poisoning, 



Stabbing and slaying, 



Robbery with violence, robbery with wounding, — 



These are forbidden by custom. 



To test drugs or poison, give the remnants of the dish 

 to the suspect. 



For wounding smart-money is the penalty, 



For slaying the substitution of a person to the dead 



person's tribe. 

 The children of the murderer are invited to the feast 



of atonement, 

 And one of his tribal kin given to the tribe of the 



murdered man. 



7 Eestitution was in ratio to the amount of blood shed. If 

 the man wounded lost little blood, a fowl was given by his 

 assailant, if much a goat: it was thought that no man could 

 lose more than a goat 's measure of blood and live. The animal 

 was cooked and the flesh presented to the aggrieved party. 

 The offender took half a cupful of blood of the animal slain, 

 a handful of rice and three limes. He took the injured party 

 to a stream or well and anointed his head first with blood, then 

 with rice and finally with juice of the limes to cleanse away 

 the unsavoury chrism of blood and rice! — A.C. 



8 "The nephew is offered as a substitute," Eembau, p. 112. 

 This rendering is not clear. It could never be the child of 

 the murderer's wife's sister or of the murderer's brother: but 

 always the child of -one of his female blood relations. The point 

 is that the substitute must be of the murderer's own tribe. 



R. A. Soc, No. 78. 



