The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao | Page 6

while well nourished, are inclined to be of slight build,
with very narrow waists. In color they are a light reddish brown with a
slight olive tinge which is more pronounced in the women than in the
men.

In a brief summary, we can say that they are a short, slightly built,
metsati-cephalic people, with wavy hair, long faces, and broad, full
noses and lips. Individuals are met with who exhibit many of the
physical characteristics of the Negrito;[2] while still others, both in
color and facial lines, are comparable to the Chinese.
[2] Pygmy blacks of the Philippines.
DRESS--PERSONAL ADORNMENT.
No wild tribe in the Islands gives more attention to dress than does the
Bagobo. By an intricate process hemp is colored and woven into
excellent garments, which, in turn, are decorated with embroidery,
applique, or designs in shell disks and beads. The men wear their hair
long and after twisting it around the head hold it in place with kerchiefs,
the edges of which are decorated with beads and tassels.
A close fitting undershirt is often worn, and above this is an elaborately
beaded or embroidered coat which generally opens in front. The hemp
cloth trousers scarcely reach to the knee, and the bottom of each leg is
decorated with a beaded or embroidered band. Two belts are worn, one
to hold the trousers, the other to support the fighting or working knives
which each man carries. In lieu of pockets he has on his back an
elaborately beaded hemp cloth bag bordered with tassels and bells of
native casting. Highly prized shell bracelets, worn as cuffs by some
men, are made of a large, conical sea-shell (Fig. 1) the base and interior
spirals of which have been cut away. Necklaces made of rattan strips
decorated or overlaid with alternating layers of fern and orchid cuticle
(Fig. 2) are frequently seen, while many strands of beads and carved
seeds surround the necks of both men and women. Both sexes also
wear, above the calf of the leg, plaited or beaded leglets to some of
which magical properties are ascribed.
FIG. 1. SHELL BRACELET.
FIG. 2. NECKLACE OF RATTAN OVERLAID WITH FERN AND
ORCHID CUTICLE.

The woman wears a jacket which is close fitting about the neck and
reaches to the skirt, so that no portion of the upper part of the body is
exposed. The cloth now used in this garment is generally secured in
trade, and in recent years decoration in applique has begun to succeed
the excellent embroidery seen on older garments. Frequently the two
types of decoration are seen on the same jacket, and to these are added
complicated designs in shell or metal disks, or beads. The narrow tube
skirt is of hemp cloth and is made like a sack with both ends open. At
the waist it is held in place by means of a cloth or beaded belt.
In addition to the many strands of beads which encircle the neck and
fall over the chest, a broad bead band is often worn over one shoulder,
passing under the opposite arm near the waist. Scarfs of colored cloth
are also worn in this manner when the ladies are on dress parade.
Leglets and brass anklets, made like tubes so as to enclose metal balls
(Fig. 3) or with bells and rattles attached, are commonly worn. The
women are fond of loading their arms with ornaments of shell or brass
(Fig. 4) and one forearm is covered with separate rings of incised brass
wire which increase in size from the centre towards the ends, forming
an ornament in the shape of an hour-glass. Their hair is generally cut so
as to leave a narrow band in front; this is brushed back, but often falls
forward on the face or in front of the ears. Back of this the hair is kept
well oiled and is combed straight to the back of the head, where it is
tied in a knot. Into this knot is pushed a wooden comb decorated with
incised lines filled with lime, or inlaid with beads. On festive occasions
more elaborate combs, with plumes or other decorations attached, are
worn. Aside from these ornaments the head is uncovered.
FIG. 3. BRASS ANKLETS WORN BY THE WOMEN.
FIG. 4. TYPES OF BRASS BRACELETS.
Men and women are seen who have their eyebrows shaved to thin lines.
This is a matter of individual taste and is done only for beauty.
Neither sex makes use of tattooing, nor do they mutilate the lips or nose,
but what they lack in these respects they make up for in ear ornaments.

When a child is very young a small hole is pierced in the ear lobes, and
into this opening a piece of twisted banana or hemp leaf is