e proposal is
accepted, the father of the young man kills a pig, and gives a feast
to the people of the village of his father-in-law elect; also to the
go-between and the _borang_ (brother of the bride). The father of the
bride then gives a similar feast. A sum of Rs. 1 each is given as a
present to the go-between by the fathers of the bride and bridegroom,
and the father of the bride pays from Rs. 5 to Rs. 15 to the father of
the bridegroom. Further feasting ensues at the house of the father of
the bride. The go-betweens then sacrifice a pig and two fowls at the
house of the bridegroom, and afterwards perform the same sacrifice at
the house of the bride. At the house of the bride, after the fowls and
the pig have been sacrificed, the go-between, after drinking liquor
himself, pours out some on the floor of the house and then gives some
to the bride and bridegroom to drink. The killing of the fowls, the
sacrifice of the pig, and the libation of liquor are essentials at
a Lynngam marriage. The sacrifice of the fowls is also an essential
feature of a Garo marriage. The Lynngams, unlike the Garos, do not
observe which way the beaks of the fowls turn when they are thrown
on the ground after being sacrificed. The Lynngams, like the Khasis,
take auguries from the entrails of the fowls and the pig. After these
ceremonies are over, the Lynngam pair are allowed to cohabit. The
cost of an ordinary Lynngam marriage is from Rs. 30 to Rs. 40. The
marriage system in vogue among the Lynngams may be described as a
mixture of the Khasi and Garo customs. As has already been stated,
the Lynngams are a mongrel breed of Khasis and Garos.

Ceremonies Attending Death.

The death customs of the Khasis are not only very elaborate, but
possess a significance of their own, it is; therefore, necessary to
describe them in detail; they are as follows:--

A member of the family bends down towards the ear of the apparently
deceased person and calls him or her by name three times, to make
sure that death has occurred. If no answer comes, the family laments,
for it is then concluded that the person is really dead. The body is
then bathed in warm water from three earthen pots and is reverently
laid on a mat (_japung_), where it is dressed in white cloth,
a peculiar feature of the dressing being that the waist-cloth and
turban are folded from left to right, and not from right to left, as
in the case of the living. An egg called _u'leng kpoh_ is place