Human Leopards

by Kenneth James Beatty

The defence of the first accused, the Mahawa of Jong, was that the story of the informer, so far as he was concerned, was absolutely devoid of truth, and that at the time of the alleged murder he was suffering from the effects of boils under his arm so that he was unable to move about; he gave evidence per-porting to show that the possession of the firi, the chewing-stick, the nails and hair was perfectly lawful, and stated that the sebbeh cap was neither his property nor was it found in any of his boxes; whilst he produced official testimony with a view to showing that he was earnestly striving to eradicate cannibal murder from his chiefdom.

Furthermore he alleged that the chief witness had a special ill feeling towards him because of a land dispute between the Kabati and Imperri people, and that he had only mentioned his name in connection with this matter after compulsion on the part of the District Commissioner. He further stated that some time after his election as Mahawa certain villages, including Kabati, which had been a part of Imperri Chiefdom, were transferred to his Chiefdom. He stated that it was well known that cannibal murder was rife in these villages, but that it was unknown in the other parts of his chiefdom. He pointed out that to put a stop to cannibalism he had made certain rules with regard to strangers reporting their presence in villages, as to people not sleeping outside a house, as to proper doors for houses and such like. He had also assisted the Government in the Mochach murder about September, 1910, and in the Sawura murder in 1911, and had done what he could at the request of the District Commissioner to elucidate the facts in this very case. He drew attention to the fact that the second accused had been handed over to him to be dealt with in accordance with country law, and that he was sent for by the Government Authorities to assist in the Imperri case, when he did all he could to elicit information from the very informer who was now giving evidence against him.

The firi, he stated, was an heirloom and appurtenant to his office, and witnesses for the prosecution admitted that big Mahawas do possess firis, which are used as the credentials of important messengers. He explained that the chewing-stick was a present from a Muhammedan to whom he had rendered some service, and that the Arabic text found in the wrapper was nothing more than an invocation that none but seasonable words might drop from the lips of him who used it.

A NATIVE VILLAGE.

As to the hair found in his house, it seemed clear that many persons, even educated persons in Freetown, have a superstition about their hair being left about, and take precautions to have it disposed of in such a way that nobody can get possession of it. Strong “medicines” are supposed to be made with human hair, and with this “medicine” injury can be inflicted on the person from whom the hair was obtained. He said that soon after he arrived at Gbangbama he had his hair cut and that he kept it pending his return to Mattru, where he intended to have it destroyed. Finger and toe-nails also appear to be capable of malevolent use, and should not be left lying about; he said that he had cut his finger-nails just before he left Mattru, and had put the parings carefully in his gown, intending to get rid of them later, but forgot about them, and that was how they came to be in the pocket of his gown when his quarters were searched. As to those found at Mattru, he stated that the wife who assisted him when cutting them must have put them away in the small box in which they were found, that that box used to stand upon his table, and that his wife must have forgotten them, but that they were quite safe, as the box was the one in which he used to keep his pocket cash and was usually locked.

The sebbeh cap he denied the ownership of. He stated that it belonged to an Aku or Yoruba medicine man who came to Gbangbama about the same time as himself, that this man placed the box containing the cap in his house, and that the cap was not found with his things, but in another box altogether. This statement was to some extent supported by the fact that the sebbehs when opened did not, as was expected, contain Arabic texts, but only black powder and tree bark, and he called as his witness the Yoruba man to whom he alleged the cap belonged.

The defence of the second accused, the girl’s uncle, was that Mini was of weak intellect, and that during a period of insanity she had wandered into the bush, and, not being able to find her way out, had died there. He stated that she first became insane after the birth of her second child, and that she became so violent that she had to be put in the stocks. He said that he obtained and had given her some sacred water and a charm which cured her for a time, that she subsequently lost the charm and became insane again, and could not be made to wear any clothes, that he was absent from Kabati at the time she disappeared, and that on his return he had made every effort to find her.

The third accused’s defence was that he had left Kabati about six weeks before the girl’s disappearance and was absent in another chiefdom at the time of her disappearance; that on the 10th June, 1911, he arrived at Yandehun, where he had a “wife,” and then for the first time heard of what had happened in Kabati, whither he immediately returned.

The prisoners were defended by counsel, and forty-five witnesses were examined in the case.