Note 135 — Chapter I · TABOOED DAYS AT CRITICAL EPOCHS

As Messrs. Hose and McDougall judiciously observe, the cult of omen-birds found among the Kayan of Borneo, though it hampers their undertakings at almost every turn and might seem to be wholly foolish and detrimental, has really “two great practical advantages: namely, it inspires confidence, and it promotes discipline and a strong sense of collective unity and responsibility. It is not improbable, then, that the advantages of this seemingly senseless cult outweigh its drawbacks, which, in the shape of endless delays and changes of plans, are by no means small” (Pagan Tribes of Borneo, i, 170 n.¹).