ghbors, whom we have
previously described. It may be that an investigation, carried on in
peaceful times, far back in the mountains, will show that more radical
differences exist in the great body of the tribe.

V. ATA.

The people classed under this name are the least known of any of the
wild inhabitants of Mindanao. They probably receive their name from the
word _atas_ which signifies "those up above" or "the dwellers in the
uplands." It does not appear that they form a single tribe, or that they
are even of uniform type.

The writer did no intensive work with them, and the following notes make
no pretense of being first-hand knowledge. I have drawn on all possible
sources for this scanty information, but am mostly indebted to the
letters and reports of the late Governor Bolton, who, without doubt,
knew more of this people than any other white man.

I am thus compelled to make my descriptions vague; indeed, my one excuse
for dealing with the Ata is to bring together such information as we
possess in the hope that it may be of value to some other worker who may
later take up the task of studying this little known people.

According to Governor Bolton, the Ata inhabit the regions west and
northwest of Mt. Apo, the headwaters of the Davao river--north and west
of the Guianga--as well as the headwaters of the Lasan, Tuganay, and
Libagawan rivers. In all these regions they extend over the watershed,
converging toward the center of the island at the headwaters of the
Pulangi river.

It should be noted at the outset that the Eto or Ata, living between the
Guianga and Bagobo, should not be included in this division.

In the region about Mt. Apo they are closely allied to the Obo and
Tigdapaya,[95] while in the region adjoining the Guianga they have
intermarried with that people and have adopted many of their customs as
well as dress. On the headwaters of the Lasan river we are told that
they are known as Dugbatang or Dugbatung; that they are a timid
degenerate branch having no fixed habitations and very little clothing;
they are small, with crispy hair, and often decorate their bodies with
tattooed designs. About twenty miles up the Tuganay river Governor
Bolton encountered a similar group of Ata whom he describes as being
very wild. From the headwaters of this river he crossed over near to the
source of the river Libagawan where he discovered a hitherto unknown
people--the Tugauanum. These he believed were mixed