Page:Science vol. 5.djvu/261

 March 20, 1665.]

��THE MOUNTAINEERS OF TONKIN.

FATuenPisABRi/s" (Cotes lurquelqucspcuplnJes Muvages il^peDdant du Tong King " is Uinelj. He <le- loribes Die mounialaecra ot Ihe valleys of the Mna »iii1 Chou riven, who are called Phou-Taye or Tays, but are commonly known to Uie Annamltes as ' bov- agcs.' They reside In villages, are divided Into Irlltes, each having a chief to whom great respect and obedi- ence are accorded. Although, since 1:^1, Aiinainlte maitdarins have been appointed to each tribe, yel the Tays refer all disputes among themselves to thelrown chiefs, whose authority they recognize as superipr to that of the mandarins. Medicine as an art Is un- kaown : each family, however, has some recipe whose preparation is a jealously guarded secrel.

The bouKS are made of bamboo, with roofs covered with palm-leaves; the whole raised upon piles to four iMt above the ground, lielow Is the poultry-yard, where, if the owner is rich, pigs, oxen, and buffalo are kept with the fowl. The square fireplace la laiule ot boards covered with earth. There ie no cUmoey. Upon the hearth are three large stones, MTWiged as a tripod, on which, if nearly meal-time, rwM ft pot of boiling water, which supports a bamboo Into Cw&tftiDing rice. This tube Is pierced so as to pflrint the steam to pass through the rice, by which it la ddtcalely cooked. The women sUy about the cooking- lire, while the men resort to another tire- place at a lower level. If any one wishes to build a bouH. all the inhabitants of the vill.ige come to help, tor no other remuneration than the customary (east when the house is finished. To celebrate this event, the head ut the family kills a pig or a beef, and offers wine. The wine Is made from rice and bmn, and left to fcnuent for about ii moiitli in a jar Uerinctically sealed. When it is opened, water is added, nnd Ihe gUMts seat themselves around it, and suck np the liquor through long reeds. The wine, whicit is sour bat agreeable, contains so little alcohol that it is ex- tremely rare to sec a person stupidly drunk. After taking the wine, they gather i[i groups of four about little tables, and cat. This is followed by drinking tea and smoking.

Although amiable nnd conciliatory, these |«np1e are Bomcwhal careless and ipatbetic, without solici- tude for the morrow. Rising with the dawii, they smoke, fritter away some time in the house, start out fasting, and work until ten or twelve, wlien they re- turn to dine. This repast over, Uiey ml, take a siesta in summer, and in the afternoon return to the mountain fields (or a few hours, or flsh, buni, or look for bamboos to make palisades about the 6elds lest the buffalo eat the newly planted rice. The evening is pa«sed quietly In the comer of the hearth, and about eight o'clock lupper is served. There are but Iwo meals a day. The women's duties are more ar- duous than the men's, since, besides those within the house, it is (heirs to pick, transport, and store the rice, and to fetch firewood from the mountains.

After death, they Imthe the body, clothe it, and en- velop it in a coverlid and a mat. .Sugar-cane, rice, and salt are put Into the month, ~ the sugar-cane to

��request the inuiirs of the dead to be favorable, the salt to beg the deceased to preserve a good beurt to- wards liis parents. A rude coffin is made by felling a tree, cutting out of the trunk a piece of sufficient length, which is split and each half hollowed OuU The day and hour of placing the body in the coffin are carefully chosen, for fear of evil consequences to the survivors l( au unfortunate choice should be made, licfore closing the coffin, the body is nucov- ered, the eyes opened that he may see the heavens. and then the coffin carefully closed. I( the means are not at tiand to defray the expense of burial, the coffin is preserved in the house, in some cases even tor inonilis.

On the day of the final ceremony, if the family is rich, a buffalo is killed, which is offered to the parents and inhabitants of the village, so that they may make charcoal. This charcoal is intended to put into the grave to preserve the coffin from dampness. Another buffalo is killed, so that the assistants may prepare a little hut to be placed over the tomb. A third buffalo is killed for those who inter the body. The site of the tomb is chosen in the forest, where it is forbidden to cut trees, or whatever may grow there, for fear the manes of the dead may avenge the outrage. At the end of the ceremony the parents seek the mountain stream. There a diviner has set up two reeds to form a pointed arch, beneath which each parent should pass. They are sprinkled with the water in which the rice was washed, and, after washing their garments, return to the bouse. At the foot of the ladder, before entering, they tear their hair. The bereaved eat rice from a sort of basket, and leave every thing in the house hn disorder to witness to their grief. To the diviner, who reproaches them, they answer, "Our father is dead, and we no more know what to say or do." The diviner then restores the house to order, and sprinkles it with various herbs to chase away evil spirits, that in the future the house may enjoy peace and happiness.

��TiiK recent examination by the joint commission of General Hozen and other witnesses, as to the effi- ciency and economy of the present administration of the signal-office, is said to have brought out several statements as to the character of the work done by the weather-bureau, and the progress made by it dur- ing the last few years. The following is a brief sum- mary of these, and especially of Professor Abbe's atalcraent showing the status, and work being pur- sued, during the present flacai year: —

The signal-service employs one chief, fourteen second lieutenants, and five hundred enlisted men, of whom one hundred and fifty are sergeants, thirty are corporals, and two hundred and twenty are privates, but all generally known as signal-service observers. These live hundred and fifteen persons conatUute the signal-corps proper: but six officers detailed from Uic

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