Convivility In The Chin Hills

Among the natives of the Chin Hill district of Rangoon no pr;text for a feast is allowed to pass unused, whether it be a birth, a deaíh, a marriage, a sacriflce, the payment of a debt, the making of an agreement, the slaughter of an enemy, the s;ooting of a deer; and a feast impiies a drinking bout, sometimes of many days' duration. They drink a liquid named zu, which is made from rice, millet, or Indian corn. It is descrlbed as a most refreshing drink after a hot maren, and. is said to pull one together more quickly than any other stimulant in times of great fatigue. lts effects do not appear to be very deleterious, for the Chin usually lives to a good age, though an habitual drunkard from childhood. Men, women, and even bables, at their mothers' breasts all drink; and a state of intoxication is considered as creditable as it is pleaaant. No event is csmplete without liquor, and nothing is an offence when committed under the influence of 11quor. Not to ply a vlsitor with liquor is considered the height of discourtesy, and the warmth of a man's reception is gauged by the number of pots of liquor broached for him. Consequently, as may be lmagined, a feast is not a very edifying spectacle. On the arrival of the guests, pigs and oxen are slanghtered, and thelr flesh hacked off and boiled. During this process drinking begins. The guests sit In long rows, with their liquor pots between thelr knees, sucking hard at Jhe tube, and talklng very little. When the food is ready, all fall to, still slently, until, hunger satlgfied, they revert.to drink. Then their spirits begin to rise, gongs and ho:-ns are produced, and dancing and siDging begin. As the night wears on the revellers become hopelessly drunk; some sit moodily in corners, some lie with their faces in the dirt, and others quarrel and flght with fists.