i76 AFRICAN POLITICAL SYSTEMS
The councillors of the Kuta number five ranks, three of which correspond to more or less specialized offices: the administration of Muregi town, the guardianship of the sacred relics of Tsoede, and—in pre-British times—the leadership of military expeditions. In modern Kede, the District Alkali, the Mohammedan judge appointed by the Bida Native Administration for the District, is virtually a member of the chiefs council in the same capacity of a 'departmental' official. With the exception of this last office, the ranks of the chief's councillors are hereditary and 'belong' to the various families which have held the ranks from times immemorial. The succession to a vacant office is not, however, automatic, but admits of a certain latitude, as for every vacancy there are bound to be several candidates of approximately equal seniority and equal claim. In the appointment of a new rank-holder by the chief and his councillors, due weight is given to the reputation of the candidate, his experience, intelligence, and economic success (as canoeman or river-trader). The position of a councillor appears to have carried no regular emoluments with it, except in the case of the official in charge of the town administration and thus the collection of taxes in Muregi. Occasional gifts from the chief and a share in the booty made on raids and warlike expeditions constituted their official income.
The rank list of the 'delegates' is both larger and more flexible than that of the councillors. It is frequently altered, increased, or decreased, according to the demands of administration. The members of this order of ranks are all recruited from the family of the Kuta. Their ranks are graded, and follow a strict system of precedence and promotion. Every promotion means a larger measure of power and influence, for it goes hand in hand with transfer to another, more important, and also more lucrative post. A new as yet untitled member of the chief's kin will as a rule be appointed to one of the lower ranks; the higher ranks and more responsible offices can only be reached by gradual promotion. Promotion and first appointment are, again, decided by the chief in consultation with the other tribal notables; here, however, the personal preferences of the electors count more than rigorous qualifications: in this system of ranks based on promotion, long experience is not regarded as a condition for a lower appointment, nor already achieved economic success for a rise in rank which carries with it increased economic benefits.