Note 28 — Letters from Father Mateo Gisbert to the Reverend Fathers and Brothers of Veruela

They live in humble houses of nipa, bamboo, and even of wood, which are quite luxurious among the most powerful. The animals that they use for their work, conveyance, and travel are the carabao, the ox, and the horse. Their implements for farming are reduced to the plow and the bolo. Their domestic animals are the dog, cat, cock, and swine. Their games are cockfighting, cards, and sipa, a hollow ball of split bamboo, which they move with the feet. They also use dancing as a means of diversion, especially the moro-moro dance and the tapáiron. During their principal feasts, they adorn their houses with hangings and hold modest banquets. They are very fond of excitement and noise, especially that caused by fireworks. Their usual cutting weapons are the hatchet, súndan, lígdao, kris, campilan, tabas, and the badí for the women. The missile weapons are the spear which may be of four kinds, namely, púyus, búdiac, lináyas, and pinuipui; arrows of bamboo, palma brava,28 iron, and steel. Those weapons used both for cutting and thrusting are balaraos or two edged daggers, whose hilts and scabbards are usually adorned with various designs in silver engraved by themselves. The boats used by them are vintas, barotos, bancas, bilus, pancos, falúas, paraos, and lancanes. For fishing they make use of the harpoon, arrows, bolos, corrals, and nets. For the same object they also use the bark of the tree called tuble and the fruits of the tuba-tuba, and lagtan.29 There trade is, as a rule, reduced to the articles of prime necessity in food, drink, clothing, and work utensils. Among the old Christians of Mindanao, tulisanes by profession are not known, and if there are any in the south, they are deported.