From the material now at our disposal certain general conclusions can be
drawn.
A comparison of the physical measurements indicates that no group is of
pure race. There are significant variations between members of different
tribes, but these occur also between individuals of the same village.
The average person in each group is short-headed, yet long-headed
individuals are found in every tribe and variations just as great as
this appear in the other measurements and observations.
We have previously noted the evidences of an aboriginal pygmy
population, that has been partially absorbed by intermarriage with the
later comers.[140] In all the groups, except the Bila-an, the percentage
of individuals showing evidences of Negrito blood increases as we go
from the coasts toward the interior, until in such divisions as the Obo
and Tigdapaya of the Bagobo, and the Tugauanum of the Ata, practically
all the people show traces of this admixture.
[140] Negrito are reported from the Samal Islands in the Gulf of Davao.
In addition to the types already described there are found in each tribe
individuals who in all but color might readily pass as white men. These
persons freely intermarry with the rest of the population, and it is no
uncommon thing to find in one family children of this sort as well as
those showing Negrito characteristics or those conforming to the average
type.[141]
[141] This will be discussed in a forthcoming publication on Physical
Types. That paper will present a full series of measurements accompanied
by photographs, including the Bukidnon of North Central Mindanao in
which tribe this type is more frequently seen than in Davao District.
The facts indicate that the tribes now found in Davao District did not
reach the coasts of Mindanao at the same time, but rather that they
represent several periods of migration, of which the Kulaman is the
last. This tribe, which only a few generations ago seems to have been
made up of seafarers, has not yet entirely adapted itself to a settled
existence and it is only within the lifetime of the present generation
that its members have taken seriously to agriculture.
It appears that the Bila-an once inhabited the district about Lake
Buluan, but the pressure of the Moro has forced most of them from that
region toward the mountains to the south and east. They have taken
possession of both sides of this mountain range, except for the lower
eastern slopes where they have encountered the Tagakaolo.
The other tribes probably landed on the southern or southeastern coast
of the Island, from whence they have gradually moved to their present
habitats.
Intermarriage between the tribes, Moro raids, warfare with the
accompanying capture of slaves, and the possible influence of boat-loads
of castaways, all have to be considered in dealing with the types found
in Davao District. We have already seen that the physical measurements
indicate a complex racial history.
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.