No oath is administered; but occasionally, when a statement is questioned, a man will say, "By my father," or "By the chief, it is so." Their truthfulness among each other is quite remarkable; but their system of government is such that Europeans are not in a position to realize it readily.

A poor man will say, in his defense against a rich one, "I am astonished to hear a man so great as he make a false accusation;" as if the offense of falsehood were felt to be one against the society which the individual referred to had the greatest interest in upholding.
If the case is one of no importance, the chief decides it at once; if frivolous, he may give the complainant a scolding, and put a stop to the case in the middle of the complaint, or he may allow it to go on without paying any attention to it whatever.

Family quarrels are often treated in this way, and then a man may be seen stating his case with great fluency, and not a soul listening to him.

But if it is a case between influential men, or brought on by under-chiefs, then the greatest decorum prevails.

If the chief does not see his way clearly to a decision, he remains silent; the elders then rise one by one and give their opinions, often in the way of advice rather than as decisions; and when the chief finds the general sentiment agreeing in one view, he delivers his judgment accordingly.