The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao / The R. F. Cummings Philippine Expedition

by Fay-Cooper Cole

After giving full credit to all these influences, however, it does not appear to the writer that such radical differences exist between the tribes as will justify us in assigning to them different ancestry or places of origin. The summarized description of the Bagobo given on page 56 would, with only, slight modification, apply to all the other tribes, with the exception of certain groups of the Ata in which the Negrito element is very pronounced. In brief, the various influences that have been at work on one group have influenced all the others, since their arrival on the island of Mindanao.

This conclusion is further justified by the language in which a large per cent of the words in daily use are common to all the groups. Even the Bila-an dialect, which differs more from all the others than do any of those from one another, has so many words in common with the coast tongues and is so similar in structure that one of my native boys, who never before had seen a Bila-an, was able freely to carry on a conversation within a few days after his arrival in one of their most isolated settlements.

Similar as are the people and their dialects, the cultural agreements are even more noticeable. Taking the Bagobo as a starting point, we find a highly developed culture which, with a few minor changes, holds good for the tribes immediately surrounding. These in turn differ little from their neighbors, although from time to time some new forms appear. The Cibolan type of dwelling, with its raised platform at one end and box-like enclosures along the side walls, is met with until the Mandaya territory is approached, while, with little variation, the house furnishings and utensils in daily use are the same throughout the District. The same complicated method of overtying, dyeing, and weaving of hemp employed in the manufacture of women's skirts is in use from Cateel in the north to Sarangani Bay in the south, while in the manufacture of weapons the iron worker in Cibolan differs not at all from his fellow-craftsman among the Mandaya. Here we are confronted by the objection that, so far as is known, no iron work is done by the Bila-an and Ata, but this is a condition which is encountered throughout the archipelago. In the interior of Luzon are found isolated villages, the inhabitants of which are expert workers in iron and steel, while their neighbors seem to be ignorant of the process.[142] The writer holds to the opinion that iron working is an ancient art throughout the Philippine archipelago and that its use for various reasons, such as lack of material, has died out in certain sections. Brass workers are found among most of the tribes, but, as was observed earlier in this paper, there is sufficient evidence that the industry is of recent introduction, and the amount and excellence of the work done by the brass casters is governed by the nearness or remoteness of Moro settlements.

[142] The process used in Northern Luzon is very similar to that employed in Southern Mindanao.

Except for the cotton garments recently adopted by the Kagan branch of the Tagakaolo, and the suits worn by the Mandaya men, the clothing seen throughout the District is very similar. A few ornaments, such as the silver rings and breast disks of the Mandaya, have only a limited distribution, but for the most part the decorations worn by the different tribes differ only in the number of beads, bells, and shell disks used in their manufacture.

In the ornamentation of their garments certain groups have specialized until the bead work of the Bagobo excels all such work found in the Philippines. The same can be said of the intricate and beautifully embroidered designs seen in the garments of the Bila-an or the oversewed fabrics of the Kulaman, while the crudely embroidered patterns of the Mandaya are wonderfully effective. Yet, despite apparent dissimilarities, there is such a likeness in many forms of ornamentation, as well as in the technique of the methods of production, that there seems to be ample proof of free borrowing, or of a common origin.

On the non-material side the similarities between the groups are even more marked. In each tribe the warriors gain distinction among their fellows, the protection of certain spirits, and the privilege of wearing red garments, by killing a certain number of persons. Except among the Kulaman, mediums much like the mabalian of the Bagobo make known the wishes of the superior beings and direct the ceremonies. The people are instructed when to plant by the spirits who place certain constellations in the skies. These are the same for all the groups, although often known by different names. The limokon warns or encourages the traveler, while certain acts of the individual, such as sneezing, are looked upon as warnings from unseen beings. Many of these beings having like attributes, although often bearing different names, are known to each group. The idea of one or more spirits dwelling in different parts of a man's body is widespread, while the belief that the right side of the body is under the care of good influences and the left subject to the bad, is well nigh universal in the District.

In conclusion note should be made of oft repeated assertions to the effect that a part of the people of Davao District are white, and that they are also cannibals and headhunters. The first can be dismissed with the statement that so far as the writer has been able to observe or to learn from trustworthy sources, there is no justification for such a story. It can be just as positively stated that neither the Mandaya nor any other tribe here described practice cannabalism[sic]. Warriors do eat a part of the livers and hearts of men who have shown great valor, the eaters thus securing some of the good qualities of the victims. The Kulaman warriors always taste of the liver of the slain "in order to become like Mandalangan," but they expressed the greatest disgust when it was suggested that the balance of the body might make good food.

While it is true that the Kulaman take the heads, and some times the arms,[143] of slain foes, and that the same custom is some times followed by individual warriors of the other tribes, head-hunting for the sake of the trophy is not practiced here, as is the case in Northern Luzon. The skull or other portions of the body are kept only long enough to prove the murder, or until they can be mutilated by the women and children, "who thus become brave."

[143] This is also the custom of the Bukidnon.