courtyard (and in certain clans on a mud platform known as 'marōa' erected in the courtyard for the purpose). The bridegroom stands on one of these plates with his face to the east, and the bride stands on the other with her face to the west. Two women hold up a cloth as a screen between them. The bride and bridegroom pelt each other with unboiled rice three times across this screen. Then they change places. The sinar' or blood-stained rag of the bridegroom is now put into his hand and the bride's sinai is put into her hand. They first bring their respective sināis in contact with the earth, then in contact with their own necks, and finally the bridegroom touches the neck of the bride with his sinai and the bride touches his neck with hers. This process is repeated three times. Then they again change places, and exchange their garlands of mango leaves.

(xix)—Sindūri-rākāb or Anointing with Vermilion,

Now comes the essential and binding part of the marriage ceremony-the mutual application of vermilion which makes the pair man and wife. The bride at first has her face fully veiled. On the bridegroom's father or some other relative putting on a brass bracelet on her left arm, the bride unveils her forehead thus permitting it to be marked with vermilion. The bridegroom first puts three marks of oil on the ground and over each of these marks puts a mark of vermilion. Then the bridegroom and the bride change places. The bridegroom now with the finger of his right-hand besmears the bride's forehead with vermilion. Then the bride similarly puts three marks of oil, and over them of vermilion, on the ground, changes places with the bridegroom, and with her right-hand fingers besmears the bridegroom's forehead with vermilion. In some tandas, where the people have come in contact with Hindus or Hinduized aborigines, the spectators give lusty shouts of "Haribōl-Hari" while bride and bridegroom are putting vermilion marks on each other's forehead. Until this anointing with vermilion the mother of the bride, like the mother of the bridegroom at her tanda, observes a fast although she may drink liquor.

After this sinduri-rākāb ceremony, the bride, the bridegroom and his Lūkūṇḍi are taken to the thhāns or spirit-seats of the ṭāndā, and at each of these thhans, they bow down before the wooden and clay representations of the spirits.

(xx)-Barring the Door against the Bridegroom.

The bride and bridegroom are now conducted from the courtyard towards the bride's hut. A few girl-friends of the bride take their stand at the door and prevent their entrance into the hut. To make them desist from obstructing their way, the bridegroom's father pays them a solatium of an anna or so. Then the pair enter the hut and are seated on a palm-leaf mat. The bride's younger sister now places before the bridegroom a high brimmed plate filled with water. The bridegroom places his feet in the water and a young sister-in-law washes them and then firmly clasps his legs with her hands, and will not let go until the bridegroom's father makes her a present of an anna or so. The bride's mother now places a dish of either boiled or parched rice, together with molasses, before the bridegroom. But the bridegroom will not eat this food unless some present-either a brass vessel or a goat or other animal-is given to him. When he is thus satisfied he eats the food. The girl is at the same time. treated to the same delicacies at another part of the house.

(xxi)-The Marriage Feast and Touching the Lōṭā
of Water.

The people of the bridegroom's party now go and bathe in a stream or spring. On their return to the bride's parents' place, one or two of the bride's relatives wash their feet. Two pots of rice-beer are then brought out, one man on each side offers a libation to the ancestor-spirits as we have seen done on the occasion of the 'jōm-māṇḍi', after which the liquor is passed round. The Agia or representative of the bride's people now comes forward with a brass bowl (lōṭā) placed on a sāl-leaf-plate in his hands. The bridegroom's father or other relative asks, "What is this lōta for?" The Agia replies, "Our tribe-fellows

are assembled to-day. Will they take broken rice-grains (khūdimarkhu) wet (boiled) or dry (unboiled)? I am awaiting your orders". If there is any social offence on the part of the bride's father's family remaining to be expiated by a fine or feast or both, no one will touch the lōṭā until the fine or feast demanded is paid or promised. If there is no such offence to be expiated or when the required fine is paid or feast promised, the bridegroom's father touches the lota, and says, "I have lost my lōṭā,· how can I eat dry rice?" Then there is an exchange of salutations between the parties. The Agia again holds up the lōta with extended hands and asks, "Shall we arrange for broken grains 1 of rice alone, or should we look out for some pot-herb (meaning an animal) too?" Then the bridegroom's father again touches the lōta and says, "Gather rot-herbs as well". A goat or other animal is thereupon brought out and slain. Its head is roasted and eaten by the male guests as a relish for the liquor. One of the haunches of the animal is set apart as a present for the bridegroom's party to take to their tanda with them. In the evening dinner is served in the same manner as in the jōmmandi feast (vide p. 69 ante); and the same ceremonies are observed as in the jōm-māṇḍi-of offering some rice to the ancestor-spirits of bride and bridegroom, the two headmen of the two parties eating two morsels of rice before the other guests begin. After this marriage-feast, the guests wash their hands and mouths, chew powdered tobacco mixed with lime, and retire to bed for the night.

The bridegroom and his best man or Lükünḍi sleep together that night in one kumba or leaf-hut, while the bride with her Lukundi (or bridesmaid) who is a younger female cousin (but not an uterine sister) of hers, sleeps in another kumba.

(xxii)—The Chumān or Symbolical Kissing' Ceremony. Next morning, bridegroom and bride are conducted to the angan or open space before the main hut of the family, and are This is said in humility. In reality 'whole' and not 'broken' grains of rice are meant. This is of a piece with the euphemistic use of 'pot-herbs for 'meat' and 'wet grains' for 'boiled rice.

seated on a palm-leaf mat. To the right of the bridegroom is seated his lukundi. Similarly, to the left of the bride sits her lukundi. The women of the ṭāndā, one after another, come forward to make "chuman" first of the bridegroom and then of the bride in the following manner. Each takes up by turns a bamboo-basket containing some unhusked rice, tender grassshoots, and a lighted earthen oil lamp, waves it three times before the face of the bridegroom or bride, as the case may be, sprinkles a few grains of unhusked rice and a few shoots of grass on the head of the bridegroom or bride and then after warming her hands by holding them one on each side of the lighted lamp, touches the temples of the bridegroom or the bride with the warm hands which she then kisses herself.

(xxiii)-Beginning of the Taboo between a Birhōr and the Elder Sisters and Cousins of his Wife.

As each woman finishes the chumān, she puts down a cash present known as chuman-prisā (the amount varying from an anna upwards according to the circumstances of the woman) on a brass-plate placed before the pair for the purpose, The elder sisters and cousins of the bride are the last to perform the ceremonial chuman of their brother-in-law. And in their case an additional interesting ceremony attends the chumān. After the elder sisters and cousins of the bride have performed the chuman ceremony as described above, each of them by turns asks the bridegroom, what his name is. The bridegroom tells his name, and in his turn asks her, "What is your name, please?" She tells her own name, and then, dipping a leafy mango-twig in a bowl, sprinkles water on the bridegroom. The latter, in his turn, sprinkles water on her with a mangotwig dipped in water on a brass-plate placed before him. As each woman finishes this ceremonial sprinkling of water (da-hipirchi or jhamka-jhimki), she pulls the bridegroom by the ears, deals three blows with her fist on his back, and and tells him, "From to-day regard me as your Jeṭh-sās; listen well with your ears, do not utter my name again with your

lips". After saying this she puts her present on the plate before the bridegroom and goes away. Thenceforth the banhōi' and his 'Jeth-sas' may not utter each other's name nor sit together on the same mat, nor come close to each other, nor talk to each other, except on urgent and unavoidable business, and even then from a respectful distance.

(xxiv)—The Farewell Ceremony.

Now the bridegroom prepares to return to his tända with his bride. The bride stands just outside the threshold of her hut with the palms of her hand joined together by the inner sides. and extended forward. The bridegroom stands behind her on the door-step, clasping with his two hands the two wrists of the bride.

The bride's mother stands just behind the bridegroom and at the inner side of the door-step. Some other woman standing behind the bride's mother holds a cloth stretched out at full length. Another woman with a winnowing-basket, containing some rice, stands by the side of the bride. This woman places a handful of rice on the extended palms of the bride's hands and asks her, "Whose house are you filling with plenty, dear?" The bride replies, "I am filling my brother's hut with plenty", and at the same time throws away the rice over her own head into the cloth stretched out behind her mother. This is repeated twice more. The object of this ceremony is that the girl may not take away plenty and prosperity from her parents' or brothers' family. Now the bride and bridegroom carried on the arms of women and followed by a number of other women and girls, proceed in the direction of the bridegroom's tāndā. Arrived at the outskirts of the bride's father's tanda the women come to a halt and ask for gati-bage or Sangchhaṛāuni paisā, that is to say, a solatium for giving up their companion (the bride). The bridegroom's father gives them an anna or so, and they return to their tāṇḍā leaving the bride. Then the bridegroom and his party proceed towards their tanda with the bride and her Lukundi.