Note 110 — P (Continued) (continued 3)

In another account of the marriage customs of the Nanga Porojas, it is stated that pits are dug in the ground, in which, during the cold season, the children are put at night, to keep them warm. The pit is about nine feet in diameter. In the spring, all the marriageable girls of a settlement are put into one pit, and a young man, who has really selected his bride with the consent of his parents, comes and proposes to her. If she refuses him, he tries one after another till he is accepted. On one occasion, a leopard jumped into the pit, and killed some of the maidens. In a note on Bhonda marriage, Mr. May writes110 that “a number of youths, candidates for matrimony, start off to a village, where they hope to find a corresponding number of young women, and make known their wishes to the elders, who receive them with all due ceremony. The juice of the salop (sago palm) in a fermented state is in great requisition, as nothing can be done without the exhilarating effects of their favourite beverage. They then proceed to excavate an underground chamber (if one is not already prepared), having an aperture at the top, admitting of the entrance of one at a time. Into this the young gentlemen, with a corresponding number of young girls, are introduced, when they grope about and make their selection, after which they ascend out of it, each holding the young lady of his choice by the forefinger of one of her hands. Bracelets (the equivalent of the wedding ring) are now put on her arms by the elders, and two of the young men stand as sponsors for each bridegroom. The couples are then led to their respective parents, who approve and give their consent. After another application of salop and sundry greetings, the bridegroom is permitted to take his bride home, where she lives with him for a week, and then, returning to her parents, is not allowed to see her husband for a period of one year, at the expiration of which she is finally made over to him.” In a still further account of marriage among the Bondas, I am informed that a young man and a maid retire to the jungle, and light a fire. Then the maid, taking a burning stick, applies it to the man’s gluteal region. If he cries out Am! Am! Am! he is unworthy of her, and she remains a maid. If he does not, the marriage is at once consummated. The application of the brand is probably light or severe according to the girl’s feelings towards the young man. According to another version, the girl goes off to the jungle with several men, and the scene has been described as being like a figure in the cotillion, as they come up to be switched with the brand.