e ex-cabezas, in order of seniority. If any ex-captain from another
village is present, he takes a seat among those of his class, and
is given the first place, out of courtesy. When the lieutenants and
officials leave their posts, they are not called principales, as are
the others, but titulados." (Mas, pp. 83, 84.)

[170] D. reads "petty sextons."

[171] Delgado says (p. 311): "It is a fact that nature always inclines
rather to evil than to good. But in order to correct their vices
there are fervent and zealous ministers in all parts, who preach to
and teach them."

Mas says (pp. 85-89): "In fact some Indians practice ceremonies in
their marriages which date from before the conquest.

"On the birth of an infant, the newborn child is sometimes taken to
another house in order to free it from the Patianac; and, when the
child is taken out for baptism, aromatic substances and incense are
burned for the same reason.

"When a person dies, they celebrate a novena in his house at night,
where the relatives (and sometimes those who are not relatives)
assemble. After praying, it is not seldom that they sit down to
gamble. On the last day there is a great banquet, and sometimes a
dance. These mortuary feasts are practiced even yet, in all their
purity, in the mountains, as we have already seen.

"If possible, both men and women bathe daily in the river. The women
enter the water wrapped in their tapices, taking care that the bosom is
covered. When they are in the water they take that garment off to wash
themselves. The men enter the water with wide pantaloons and the body
bare. They enter the river at any hour and before everybody; but one
must confess that they do it with great decency and modesty.... When I
was in Santa Cruz de la Laguna, the cura published an edict ordering
men and women not to bathe in the same place. That gave rise to
many jokes and jests, and it is to be supposed that they continued
their old-time customs. They consider us as not overcleanly, because
they see us make less use than they of the bath.... It is also the
custom for the families of the country and many Europeans to bathe
together. During the outdoor sports of Manila, at the summer houses
of Mariquina, or other neighboring towns, the chief diversion is the
bath. The women generally enter the water wearing a kind of blouse,
and the men with wide pantaloons and the body uncovered. Newcomers
from Europa do not consider this amusement at all de