nto a flame. [175] At the door of the house will be found a foot
wiper (Fig. 5, No. 12) made of rice-straw drawn through an opening
cut in a stick, or it may consist of coconut husks fastened together
to make a crude mat, while near by is the broom made of rice-straw or
grass. Rice-mortars, pestles, and similar objects are found beneath
the dwellings.

_The Village Spring_.--Each village is situated near to a spring or
on the banks of a stream. In the latter case deep holes are dug in the
sands, and the water that seeps in is used for household purposes. In
the morning, a number of women and girls gather at the springs,
carrying with them the plates and dishes used in the meals, also
garments which need to be laundered. The pots and dishes are thoroughly
scoured with sand and water, applied with a bundle of rice-straw or
grass. The garments to be washed are laid in the water, generally in
a little pool near to the main spring or beside the stream. Ashes from
rice-straw are then mixed with water and, after being strained through
a bunch of grass, are applied to the cloth in place of soap. After
being thoroughly soaked, the cloth is laid on a clean stone, and is
beaten with a stick or wooden paddle. The garment is again rinsed,
and later is hung up on the fence near the dwelling to dry.

Before returning to her home, the woman fills her pots with water, and
then takes her bath in a pool below the main spring (Plate XLII). All
garments are removed except the girdle and clout, and then water,
dipped up in a coconut shell, is poured on to the face, shoulders,
and body. In some cases sand is applied to the body, and is rubbed in
with the hand or a stone; rinsing water is applied and the garments
are put back on without drying the body. Every one, men, women,
and children, takes a daily bath, and visitors will always stop to
bathe at the spring or river before entering a village. Promiscuous
bathing is common, and is accepted as a matter of course, but there
is no indication of embarrassment or self-consciousness. When she
returns to the village, the woman will often be seen carrying one
or two jars of water on her head, her washing under her arm, while
a child sets astride her hip or lies against her back (Plate XLIII).

CHAPTER VII

WARFARE, HUNTING, AND FISHING

Head-hunting and warfare are practically synonymous. To-day both are
suffering a rapid decline, and a head is seldom taken in the valley of
the Abra. In t