Death In Labor Is Not Unknown, And Twins Are Born Occasionally. The Mother Is Confined For A Week, And She Is Forbidden To Eat Pork, Eggs, New Rice, Cocoanut Oil, Or Any Acid Substance.

She may partake of ordinary rice, lombok (red pepper), as well as sugar, and all kinds of fruit except bananas.

She bathes three times a day, as is her usual custom. In one week, as soon as the navel is healed, two or three fowls are killed, or a pig, and a small feast is held at which rice brandy is served. The child is suckled for one year.

No name is given the infant until it can eat rice, which is about five months after birth. At the age of six years, or when it begins to take part in the work of the paddi fields, fishing, etc., the name is changed. In both cases the father gives the name. The kapala, my informant, changed his name a third time about ten years previously, when he entered the service of the government. Names are altered for the purpose of misleading evil spirits.

Children were few here, one reason being that abortion is a common practice, as is instanced in the case of the kapala's wife who prided herself on her success in this regard on ten occasions. Massage as well as abortifacient herbs are employed for the purpose. The root of a plant in general use is soaked in water before administering. I was also shown a vine which was about two centimetres in diameter and was told that if a portion of this was cut off and the end inserted into a pint bottle the vine would yield sufficient juice to fill it in a night. In case children are not wanted both husband and wife drink of this liquid after the morning meal, and both abstain from water for the remainder of the day. It is believed that afterward it would be possible for the man to have offspring only by marrying a new wife. There are also several specifics to prevent conception, but none for producing fertility. The kapala gave as reasons for this practice scarcity of food and woman's fear of dying. Both seem incongruous to fact and primitive ideas, and perhaps his view would better be accepted only as an indication of his ignorance in the matter. The young people are taught to dance by the blian before they are married, and take lessons for a year or two.

The Murung blian possesses three small wooden statues of human beings which he employs in recovering brua (souls) and bringing them back to persons who are ill, thus making them well. These images are called jurong, two being males, the other female, and carrying a child on its back. While performing his rites over either sex the blian holds the female jurong in his right hand, the other two being inserted under his girdle, one in front, the other at the back, to protect him against his enemies.

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