Note 3 — Wild Tribes and Pagans

The Gaddanes occupy the extreme N.W. corner of Luzon Island, and are entirely out of the pale of civilization. I have never heard that any attempt has been made to subdue them. They have a fine physical bearing; wear the hair down to the shoulders; are of a very dark colour, and feed chiefly on roots, mountain rice, game, fruits, and fish. They are considered the only really warlike and aggressively savage tribe of the north, and it is the custom of the young men about to marry to vie with each other in presenting to the sires of their future brides all the scalps they are able to take from their enemies, as proof of their manly courage. This practice prevails at the season of the year when the tree, commonly called by the Spaniards “the fire-tree,” is in bloom. The flowers of this tree are of a fire-red hue, and their appearance is the signal for this race to collect their trophies of war and celebrate certain religious rites. When I was in the extreme north, in the country of the Ibanacs,3 preparing my expedition to the Gaddanes tribe, I was cautioned not to remain in the Gaddanes country until the fire-tree blossomed. The arms used by the Gaddanes are frightful weapons—long lances with tridented tips, and arrows pointed with two rows of teeth, made out of flint or sea-shells. These weapons are used to kill both fish and foe.