o my notice in Raliang that crops cannot be cut
until the _lyngdoh_ has seem them, in other words, until the _lyngdoh_
has claimed and obtained his share of the produce. In many places,
however, in the Khasi Hills the _lyngdoh_ is much discredited, owing,
no doubt, to the advance of Christianity and education.

Ceremonies and Customs Attending Birth and Naming of Children.

The Khasi birth ceremonies and customs are as follows:--When a child
is born the umbilical cord is cut by a sharp splinter of bamboo;
no knife can be used on this occasion. The Mundas of Chota Nagpur
similarly taboo a metal instrument for this purpose. The child is then
bathed in hot water from a red earthen pot. The placenta is carefully
preserved in an earthen vessel in the house till after the naming
ceremony has taken place. When the umbilical cord, after being tied,
falls off, a puja is performed with eggs to certain water deities
(_ka blei sam-um_ and _ka niangriang_), [31] also to a forest spirit
(_u'suid bri_ or _u'suid khlaw_). The naming ceremony of the child
is performed the next morning after the birth. Certain females are
invited to come and pound rice in a mortar into flour. The flour when
ready is placed on a bamboo winnower (_u prah_). Fermented rice is
mixed with water and is placed in a gourd. Some powdered turmeric
is also provided, and is kept ready in a plantain leaf, also five
pieces of _'kha piah_, or dried fish. The earthen pot containing the
placenta is then placed in the _nongpei_, or centre room of the house,
If the child is a male, they place near him a bow and three arrows
(the implements of a Khasi warrior); if a female, a _da_ and _u star_,
or cane head-strap for carrying burdens. An elderly man, who knows how
to perform the naming puja, which is called by the Khasis "_kaba jer
khun_," places a plantain-leaf on the floor and sprinkles some water
on it. He takes the gourd in his hand and calls a god to witness. The
people assembled then mention a number of names for the child, and
ask the man who is performing the puja to repeat them. This he does,
and at the same time pours a little liquor from the gourd on to the
ground. As he goes on pouring, the liquor by degrees becomes exhausted,
and finally only a few drops remain. The name at the repeating of
which the hot drop of liquor remains adhering to the spout of the
gourd is the name selected for the child. Then the puja performer
invokes the god to grant good luck to