If the death revels continue more than one day, the second day is a repetition of the first with the exception that only the betel-nut offering is made to the dead. As the celebration of this mortuary feast is the termination of the anxious period of mourning, and the release from the subtle secret importunateness of the dead, everybody with his wife and children flocks to the scene. No relative of the departed one may be absent for that would leave him still exposed to the strange waywardness of the envious dead.
CHAPTER XVI
SOCIAL ENJOYMENTS
INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
THE DRUM
The drum is the instrument of universal use in Manóboland. Wherever one travels, by day or by night, its measured booming may be heard. It is made out of a piece of a palm tree, by removing the core and bark. It is ordinarily about 25 centimeters high by 20 centimeters in diameter. The top and bottom consist, in nearly every case, of a piece of deerskin,1 from which the fur has been scraped, a little fringe of it, however, being left around the edges to prevent the hide from slipping when stretched. The stretching is effected by means of rattan rings or girdles, very often covered with cloth, and just large enough to fit the cylindrical body of the drum. A few blows with a piece of wood forces these girdles down the sides of the drum, thereby stretching the heads perfectly tight so as to give the drum the proper tone. After a certain amount of heating over the fire the drum is ready for use. No attempts at ornamentation are made, the heavy ends of the hide being left protruding in an ungainly way.
1Monkey and lizard skins are made use of in rare instances, and I have heard it said that the skin of a dog makes a very fine drumhead.
The drum is played at either end, and in certain tunes at both ends. The left hand serves to bring out the notes corresponding to our bass. The drum is tapped, with more or less force and rapidity, on an upturned head with the left hand, while the right hand with a piece of wood, preferably a little slat of bamboo, raps out the after beat. Manóbo men, women, and children can play the drum and mention the names of from 20 to 50 rhythms, each one of which is to their trained ears so different that it can be recognized at once. The rhythms are varied by the number of beats of the right hand to one of the left, and by the different degrees of speed with which the tune is played. The general beat may be compared to the dactyl of ancient Greek and Roman versification. The left hand plays the long syllable, if we may so speak, while the right plays the two short ones. The combinations, however, are as intricate as the versification just referred to.
As the nomenclature2 used in speaking of the tunes indicates, the various forms of drum music are based on imitations of animals and birds, or are adapted to certain occasions, such as the war roll signaling for help.