“‘Well, I have divorced a good many wives; they get old, you know; and now I have only ten and five.’ But when he began to count his children, he was obliged to have recourse to a reed, and, breaking it up into small pieces, said, ‘I take no notice of babies, as they often die, you know; women are so foolish about children that I never care for them until they are able to lay a snare.’
“Like all negroes, not being able to count beyond ten, he called over as many names, which he marked by placing a piece of reed on the deck before him; a similar mark denoted another ten, and so on until he had named and marked the number of his children. The sum total, with the exception, as he had explained, of babies and children unable to protect themselves, was fifty-three boys and twenty girls—viz. seventy-three!
“After the above explanation I could no longer withhold presents to the host on the shore; and, pleased with my donations, he invited me to his house, where I partook of merissa and broiled fowl, in which, as a substitute for fat, the entrails had been left. Expressing a desire to see his wives, he willingly conducted me from hut to hut, where my skin, hair, and clothes underwent a most scrutinizing examination. Each wife was located in a separate batch of huts; and, after having distributed my pocketfuls of loose beads to the lady chieftains and their young families, in whose good graces I had installed myself, I took leave of the still sturdy village chief.”
The code of government among the Shillooks is simple enough. There is a sultan or superior officer, who is called the “Meck,” and who possesses and exercises powers that are almost irresponsible. The Meck seems to appreciate the proverb that “familiarity breeds contempt,” and keeps himself aloof from his own subjects, seldom venturing beyond the limits of his own homestead. He will not even address his subjects directly, but forces them to communicate with him through the medium of an official. Any one who approaches him must do so on his knees, and no one may either stand erect or carry arms in his presence. He executes justice firmly and severely, and especially punishes murder and theft among his subjects, the culprit being sentenced to death, and his family sold as slaves.
Theft and murder, however, when committed against other tribes, are considered meritorious, and, when a marauding party returns, the Meck takes one-third of the plunder. He also has a right to the tusks of all elephants killed by them, and he also expects a present from every trader who passes through his territory. The Meck will not allow strangers to settle within the Shillook territories, but permits them to reside at Kaka, a large town on their extreme north. Here many trading Arabs live while they are making their fortune in exchanging beads, cattle bells, and other articles for cattle, slaves, and ivory. The trade in the latter article is entirely carried on by the Meck, who has the monopoly of it, and makes the most of his privilege. The traffic at Kaka is by no means a free trade, for the Meck not only takes all the ivory, but his officials watch the proceedings in the market, and exercise a supervision over every bargain.
Probably on account of the presence of strangers, the Meck does not live at Kaka, but takes up his residence out in a village some ten miles up the river.
I have in my collection a curious musical instrument, which we may call a flute, in lieu of a better word. It is made of some hard wood, and is rudely covered with a spiral belt of iron and leather. An iron ring is also fastened through it, through which passes the leathern strap by which it is carried. The top hole is very small, and the sound produced by the instrument is of a wailing and lugubrious character. Inside the flute is fitted an odd implement which we may call the cleaner. It is composed of an ostrich feather with the vanes cut short, and in order to render it long enough to reach to the bottom of the flute, it is lengthened by a wooden handle, to the end of which is attached a tuft of hairs from a cow’s tail, by way of ornament. In length the flute measures rather more than eighteen inches, and, in consequence of the amount of iron upon it, the weight is more than might be supposed.
CHAPTER XLV.
THE ISHOGO, ASHANGO, AND OBONGO TRIBES.
WESTERN AFRICA — THE ISHOGO TRIBE AND ITS LOCALITY — DRESS AND ASPECT OF THE PEOPLE — THE SINGULAR HEADDRESS OF THE WOMEN — THEIR SKILL IN WEAVING — THE OUANDJAS, OR NATIVE FACTORIES — THE LOOM AND SHUTTLE — ARCHITECTURE OF THE ISHOGOS — CURIOUS DOORS — THE VILLAGE TREE — THE M’PAZA OR TWIN CEREMONY — GENERAL CHARACTER OF THE ISHOGOS — THE ASHANGO TRIBE — CHARACTER OF THE PEOPLE — AN UNLUCKY SHOT AND ITS CONSEQUENCES — WAR CEREMONIES — THE TEMPLE, OR M’BUITI HOUSE, AND THE RELIGIOUS RITES PERFORMED IN IT — SUPERSTITIONS OF THE ASHANGOS — THE KENDO, OR BELL OF ROYALTY — RECEPTION OF A VISITOR — THE OBONGO TRIBE, OR BUSHMEN OF WEST AFRICA — THEIR SHORT AND STUNTED LOOK — KINDNESS OF THE ASHANGOS TOWARD THEM — THE OBONGO MARKET — DOMESTIC CUSTOMS AND FUNERAL CEREMONIES.
We are now coming among some of the negro tribes, and shall see them as they are in their normal state before their customs and mode of life have been altered by the influence of Europeans.