The uncivilized races of men in all countries of the world; vol. 1 of 2 / Being a comprehensive account of their manners and customs, and of their physical, social, mental, moral and religious characteristics

by J. G. Wood

A [portrait] of Goza in his full war-dress is given in the chapter that treats of Kaffir warfare.

CHAPTER V.

ORNAMENTS WORN BY KAFFIR MEN — BEADS, BUTTONS, AND STRINGS — FASHIONABLE COLORS OF BEADS — GOOD TASTE OF THE KAFFIRS — CAPRICES OF FASHION — GOZA’S YOUNG WARRIORS — CURIOUS BEAD ORNAMENT — A SEMI-NECKLACE — A BEAD BRACELET, AND MODE OF CONSTRUCTION — A CHEAP NECKLACE — TWO REMARKABLE NECKLACES — ORNAMENTS MADE OF LEATHERN THONGS — OX-TAILS USED AS ORNAMENTS, AND INDICATIONS OF THE WEALTH OF THEIR OWNER — THE SKULL USED FOR A SIMILAR PURPOSE — A YOUNG KAFFIR IN FULL DRESS — CURIOUS DECORATIONS OF THE HEAD — THE ISSIKOKO, OR HEAD-RING — KAFFIR CHIVALRY — PICTURESQUE ASPECT OF THE KAFFIR — THE EYE AND THE NOSTRIL — THE KAFFIR PERFUME, AND ITS TENACITY — CLEANLY HABITS OF THE KAFFIR — CONDITIONS ALTER CIRCUMSTANCES — ANOTHER METHOD OF DRESSING SKINS — THE BLANKET AND THE KAROSS — ARMLETS, ANKLETS, AND BRACELETS — A SIMPLE GRASS BRACELET — IVORY ARMLETS, AND METHOD OF CONSTRUCTION — BEAD ARMLETS — METALLIC ARMLETS — AN ANCIENT ROYAL ARMLET OF BRASS — IRON ARMLETS — A NEW METAL — ITS ADOPTION BY THE CHIEFS — SINGULAR SUPERSTITION, AND ABANDONMENT OF THE METAL — DEATH OF THE DISCOVERER.

As to the ornaments which a Kaffir man wears, they may be summed up in three words—beads, buttons, and strings, all three being often employed in the manufacture of one ornament. All the beads come from Europe, and there is as much fashion in them as in jewelry among civilized nations. The Kaffirs will have nothing to do with beads that do not form a good contrast with the dark skin of the wearer, so that beads which would be thought valuable, even in England, would be utterly contemned by the poorest Kaffir. Dark blue, for example, are extremely unfashionable, while light azure blue are in great favor. Those beads which contain white and red are the most valued; and if it were possible to make beads which would have the dazzling whiteness of snow, or the fiery hue of the scarlet verbena, almost any price might be obtained for them in Kaffirland.

The capriciousness of fashion is quite as great among the Kaffirs as among Europeans, and the bead trade is, therefore, very precarious, beads which would have been purchased at a very high price one year being scarcely worth their freight in the next. Still, there is one rule which may always guide those who take beads as a medium of barter among savages. The beads should always contrast boldly with the color of the skin. Now, the average color of a Kaffir is a very dark chocolate; and if the intended trader among these tribes wishes to make a successful speculation, he cannot do better than have a lay figure painted of a Kaffir’s color, and try the effect of the beads upon the image. Beads cannot be too brilliant for a savage, and almost any small articles which will take a high polish and flash well in the sunshine will find a market.

Having procured his beads, either by exchange of goods or by labor, the Kaffir proceeds to adorn himself with them. In a photograph before me, representing a group of young warriors belonging to Goza’s army, three of the men have round their necks strings of beads which must weigh several pounds, while another has a broad belt of beads passing over the shoulder just like the sash of a light infantry officer. The ordinary mode of wearing them is in strings round the neck, but a Kaffir of ingenuity devises various other fashions. If he has some very large and very white beads, he will tie them round his forehead, just over his eyebrows, allowing some of them to dangle over his nose, and others on either side of the eyes. In “Kaffir ornaments” on page 33, [fig. 1], is shown a sash somewhat similar to that which has just been mentioned, though it is not made wholly of beads. Its groundwork is a vast number of small strings laid side by side, and bound at intervals by bands of different colored beads, those toward the ends being white, and the others scarlet, pink, or green. Its length is about eight feet. A small portion is given on an enlarged scale, to show the mode of structure. The other articles belong to female costume, and will be described presently.

The [group of ornaments] illustrated upon page 33 is very interesting, and is taken from specimens kindly lent me by the late H. Jackson, Esq. The round article with dark centre ([fig. 3]) is the first which we will notice. In form it resembles a hollow cone, or rather a Malay’s hat, and is made of leather, ingeniously moulded and sewed while wet, and then kept in its shape until dry. The whole of the interior is so thickly covered with beads that the leather is quite concealed. The beads in the centre are red, and the others are white. This ornament is worn on the breast, and to all appearance must be a very awkward article of decoration. If the outside had been covered with beads, it is easy to understand that it would have rested very comfortably on the breast with its bead-covered apex projecting like a huge sugar-loaf button. But, as the peak has to rest on the breast, the ornament must sway about in a most uncomfortable manner.

The ornament at the bottom of the [illustration] is a semi-necklace, much in request among the Kaffirs. A string is fastened to each upper corner and then tied behind the neck, so that none of the beads are wasted upon a back view of the person. The groundwork of this semi-necklace is white, and the marks upon it are differently colored. Some of them are red in the interior and edged with yellow, while in others these colors are reversed. A narrow line of scarlet beads runs along the lower edge. The necklace is formed of a sort of network, of which the meshes are beads, so that as it is moved by the action of the body, the light shines through the interstices, and has a very pretty effect.

A bracelet, also made of beads, is shown in the same illustration at [fig. 2]. The beads are strung on threads, and then twisted together so as to form a loose rope, very similar in construction to the rope ring used so much by sailors, and known technically as a “grummet.” The strings of beads are variously colored, and are arranged with considerable taste, so that when they are twisted together the general effect is very good.

There is a more common kind of beads which are called “chalk-white.” Their only value is that they contrast well with the dark skin of the wearer. Still, there are many young men who would be only too glad to have even so simple a set of beads, for beads are money in Kaffirland, and are not to be obtained without labor. However, ornament of some kind the young men will have, and if they cannot obtain beads they will wear some other ornament as a succedaneum for them.