MORE VIEWS FROM LIVINGSTONE.
Situated a few miles from the edge of a steep descent, Livingstone found a West African village provided with travelers' houses, on the principle of the inns of the East. These were built of twigs and plaster and had benches made of rods, on which the wayfarer could make his bed; a few chairs, a table, and a large jar of water completed the furnishings.
A little farther on lay a village of the Basongo, a tribe subject to the Portuguese, and as the route of Livingstone's expedition lay through a fine, fertile, well-peopled country, luxuriant fields of wheat were seen growing without irrigation. Gradually the country became more open, but remained still abundantly fertile, with a heavy crop of grass growing to a height of two or three feet. The whole section was well wooded and watered.
The landscape was dotted with Basongo villages, while frequently a square house built of twigs and plaster, belonging to some native Portuguese, stood beside them and was used for purposes of trade.
The different sleeping places on the pathway were from eight to ten miles apart, and were marked by a cluster of sheds made of sticks and grass.
There was a constant stream of people going and returning to and from the coast. Goods were carried upon the head, or upon one shoulder, in a kind of basket fastened to the ends of two poles between five and six feet long.
When the basket was placed upon the head, the poles projected forward horizontally; and if the carrier wished to rest himself, he planted these poles on the ground, and rested his burden against a tree. In this way he was not obliged to lift it from the ground to the level of his head, when he wished to take up his load again. Frequently with the poles planted in the ground a carrier could be seen holding his burden until he had recovered his breath, thus avoiding the exertion of lowering and lifting his load.
Upon the arrival of strangers at any of the sleeping stations, women were seen emerging from the villages bearing baskets filled with manioc meal, roots, groundnuts, yams, bird's eye pepper, and garlic, which they offered for sale. Calico was usually taken in exchange for these goods.
In Angola the markets, or sleeping places, were well supplied with provisions by the native women. These women congregated in great numbers, each spinning cotton with a spindle and distaff, which were precisely like those in use among the ancient Egyptians.
It was not uncommon to see one of them passing through the fields with a jar on her head, a child on her back, and a hoe over her shoulder, while her fingers were busily employed in spinning. The cotton was brought to market and commanded a penny a pound.
Frequently the cotton seeds, dropped accidentally around the market places, sprouted, and grew luxuriantly in various spots.
Along the roads natives were seen passing with spindles full of cotton thread. These they were carrying to other parts to have woven into cloth. The women did the spinning and the men the weaving.
The loom was of very simple construction. It consisted of two beams placed one over the other, on which the web stood perpendicularly. The threads of the web were separated by means of a thin wooden lath, while the woof passed through by means of the same spindle on which it had been wound in spinning. Each web was about five feet long, and fifteen or eighteen inches wide.
This mode of spinning and weaving in Angola and throughout South Central Africa was very similar to the same pursuits as practiced by the ancient Egyptians.
At the sleeping stations the native smiths carried on their trade, and various articles, as good table knives, and the like, made of country iron, were offered for sale.
Livingstone found the banks of the Lucalla very pretty, and well planted with orange trees, bananas, and the oil palm, and wrote: "Large plantations of maize, manioc, and tobacco are seen along both banks, which are enlivened by the frequent appearance of native houses imbosomed in dense shady groves, with little boys and girls playing about them.
"The banks are steep, the water having cut its bed in dark red, alluvial soil. Before every cottage a small stage is erected to which the inhabitants may descend to draw water without danger from the alligators. Some have a little palisade made in the water for safety from these reptiles, and others use the shell of the fruit of the baobab tree attached to a pole about ten feet long, with which, standing on the high bank, they may draw water without fear of accident."
The whole of the colored population of Angola was sunk in superstition. When a death occurred, the people busied themselves in beating drums and firing guns. The funeral rites were half festive, half mourning. Nothing could have been more heartrending than the death wails.
When these natives turned their eyes to the future world, they had the most cheerless view of their own utter helplessness. They fancied themselves completely in the power of disembodied spirits, and the prospect of following them was looked upon as the worst of misfortunes. Hence, they were found constantly deprecating the wrath of departed spirits, in the belief that if they could appease them, only one cause of death, witchcraft, could remain, and that they could avert by charms.
The pleasures of a mere animal existence were ever present in their minds as the highest good, and but for these innumerable invisible agents, they believed they might enjoy to the fullest extent the bounties of their luxuriant climate as much as would be possible for man to do.
Another curious custom prevailed among some of the tribes encountered by Livingstone. This ceremony was for the purpose of cementing friendship. The hands of the parties were joined, and incisions were made on the clasped hands, and on the right cheeks and foreheads. A small quantity of blood was taken from these points in both parties, put into pots of beer, and each then drank the other's blood; and they were supposed thus to become perpetual friends or relations.
During the drinking, some of the party beat the ground with clubs, and uttered sentences to ratify the treaty. The men belonging to each tribe then finished the beer. The principals in the performance were henceforth considered blood relations, and were bound to disclose to each other any impending evil.
Among the Batoka tribes the ancient custom of knocking out the upper front teeth of the young men and women prevailed. In the absence of the upper teeth the lower ones grew long and somewhat bent out, which caused the under lip to protrude in a most unsightly fashion. When asked as to the origin of this custom, the Batoka replied that their object was to look like oxen and that those who retained their incisors were thought to resemble zebras.
A person who possessed his front teeth was considered ugly; and when any of the Batoka borrowed Livingstone's mirror, the disparaging remark would be made of boys and girls who still retained their incisors, "Look at the great teeth!"
The manner of dressing the hair is a peculiar feature among the different African tribes. Livingstone describes one of the modes as follows:—"A circle of hair at the top of the head, eight inches or more in diameter, is woven into a cone eight or ten inches high, with an obtuse apex, bent, in some cases, a little forward, giving it somewhat the appearance of a helmet.
"Some have only a cone, four or five inches in diameter at the base. It is said that the hair of animals is added; but the sides of the cone are woven somewhat like basket work. The head man of this village, instead of having his brought to a point, had it prolonged into a wand, which extended a full yard from the crown of the head.
"The hair on the forehead, above the ears, and behind, is all shaven off, so the people appear somewhat as if a cap of liberty were perched upon the top of the head. After this weaving is performed, it is said to be painful, as the scalp is drawn tightly up; but they become used to it."
Many other curious customs prevail among the native tribes. Among the different Bechuana tribes it is the custom to select the name of some animal to distinguish one tribe from another. This would seem to indicate that in former times they were addicted to the worship of animals, like the old Egyptians. We find one tribe bearing a name signifying "they of the monkey;" another, "they of the alligator;" or, "they of the fish."
Each tribe holds the animal from which it derived its name in superstitious fear; nor will a man eat the animal for which his tribe was named, and frequently uses a term signifying hate or dread in referring to it.
Each tribe has its favorite and characteristic dance, and many tribes adopt the custom of naming themselves from the national dance. Hence, it is no uncommon thing to hear the question, "What do you dance?" when the wish is to ascertain to what tribe a man belongs. This custom would seem to indicate that the national dance was a part of the ancient worship in certain sections of Africa.