All at once the circle divided just in front of the arch; two persons on opposite sides joined bands overhead. The bride now stood up, immediately her father-in-law caught her in his arms, ran under the human arch, and deposited her gently in the house of his son. When the husband, from where he was squatting under the arch, saw his bride safely laid in his house his joy knew no bounds. With a yell he leaped up, swinging his unsheathed bolo over his head, and in a frenzy jumped over the fire, passed through the human arch, and with a final yell threw his arms around his wife in a long embrace.
The ceremony as above described contains many details which I did not meet with in Zambales, but the main feature, the sitting down of the bride to receive her gifts, is the same.
Polygamy and Divorce
As might be expected among the Negritos, a man may marry as many wives as he can buy. His inability to provide the necessary things for her purchase argues against his ability to provide food for her. Hence it is only the well-to-do that can afford the luxury of more than one wife. Visually this practice is confined to the capitán or head man of the tribe, and even he seldom has more than two wives, but one case was noticed in the village of Tagiltil, where one man had seven. At Cabayan the capitán had two wives, a curly-haired one, and a straight-haired one, the latter the daughter of Filipinos who had taken up their abode with the Negritos. (See [Pl. LV].) Polygamy is allowed throughout the Negrito territory. It is not uncommon for a man to marry sisters or a widow and her daughter. Marriage between blood relatives is prohibited.
Divorce is not very common with the Negritos in Zambales. There seems to be a sentiment against it. If a man is powerful enough he may divorce his wife, but if he does so for any other reason than desertion or unfaithfulness her relatives are likely to make a personal matter of it and cause trouble. A man and his wife may separate by mutual agreement and that of their families. In such a case whatever property they may have is divided equally, but the mother takes the children.
A more frequent occurrence than that, however, is the desertion of her husband by a woman who has found some one of greater attractions elsewhere, probably in another rancheria, but even these cases are rare. If it is possible to reach the offender the new husband will have to pay up, otherwise it is necessary for the woman’s parents to pay back to the injured husband all that he has paid for her. But if the offender is caught and is found to be unable to pay the necessary price the penalty is death. In any event the husband’s interests are guarded. Ile can either recover on his investment or get revenge.
Burial
Notwithstanding the repeated statements of travelers that Negritos bury their dead under their houses, which are then abandoned, nothing of this kind was met in Zambales, and Mr. Cooke did not see it in Bataan. He says that in the latter province the body is placed in a coffin made by hollowing out a tree, and is buried in some high spot, but there is no regular burying ground. A rude shed and a fence are built to protect the grave.
In Zambales any spot may be selected. The body is wrapped up in a mat and buried at a depth of 3 or 4 feet to protect it from dogs and wild boars. With their few tools such interment constitutes an arduous labor.
I was unable to learn of any special ceremony performed at a burial. Montano says they have one, and Mr. Cooke states that all the relatives of the deceased kneel in a circle around the coffin and sing a mournful monotone. The Negritos of Zambales repeatedly affirmed that they had no burial ceremony.