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RETREAT FROM ASHANGO-LAND.
ap A JOURNEY
TO
ASHANGO- LAND:
AND FURTHER PENETRATION - INTO
RQUATORIAL AFRICA.
~y
ge
By PAUL B; DU CHAILLU,
AUTHOR OF EXPLORATIONS IN EQUATORIAL AFRICA.
ay
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Potamogale Velox, Mythomys of Gray.
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WITH MAP AND ILLUSTRATIONS.
NEW YORK:
D, APPLETON AND CO. BROADWAY.
1867.
Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the Year 1867, by D. APPLETON & Co,,
im the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the
Southern District of New York.
PREFACKHE.
THE position of an explorer of unknown countries
in England is peculiar, and very difficult. If he
returns home with nothing new or striking to relate
he is voted a bore, and his book has no chance of
being read; if he has some wonders to unfold, con-
nected with Geography, the Natives, or Natural
History, the fate of Abyssinian Bruce too often awaits
him : his narrative being held up to scorn and ridi-
cule, as a tissue of figments.
It was my lot, on the publication of my first
volume of travels in Equatorial Africa, to meet with
a reception of that sort from many persons in England
and Germany. In fact I had visited a country pre-
viously unexplored by Huropeans—the wooded region
bordering the Equator, in the interior of Western
Africa—and thus it was my good fortune to observe
the habits of several remarkable species of animals
found nowhere else. Hence my narrative describing
unknown animals was condemned. The novelty of
the subject was too striking for some of my critics;
and not only were the accounts I gave of the animals
and native tribes stigmatized as false, but my journey
into the interior itself was pronounced a fiction.
vi PREFACE.
Although hurt to the quick by these unfair and
ungenerous criticisms, I cherished no malice towards
my detractors, for I knew the time would come when
the truth of all that was essential in the statements
which had been disputed would be made clear; I
was consoled, besides, by the support of many emi-
nent men, who refused to believe that my narrative
and observations were deliberate falsehoods. Making
no pretensions to infallibility, any more than. other
travellers, I was ready to acknowledge any mistake
that I might have fallen into, in the course of com-
pilmg my book from my rough notes. The only
revenge I cherished was that of better preparing
myself for another journey into the same region,
providing myself with instruments and apparatus
which I did not possess on my first exploration,
-and thus being enabled to vindicate my former
accounts by facts not to be controverted.
It is necessary, however, to inform my English
readers that most of the principal statements in my
former book which were sneered at by my critics, have
been already amply confirmed by other travellers in
the same part of Africa, or by evidence which has
reached England.
I may first mention the geographical part of my
work. No portion of my book was more discredited
than the journeys into the interior, and it will be
recollected by many persons that the learned geo-
grapher, Dr. Barth, a man whose great attainments
and services as an African traveller I esteemed most
PREFACE. vii
highly, published his disbelief in these interior explo-
rations altogether. A map is in existence, showing
the probable extent of my journeys according to Dr.
Barth, and it marks my various excursions as not
being in any case more than a few miles from the
coast. My visit to Ashira-land, and discovery of the
Ngouyai River, were thus considered pure inventions.
Dr. Petermann, the well-known geographer, in con-
structing his map. of my journeys, published in the
‘Geographische Mittheilungen’ in 1862, took into
consideration the doubts of Dr. Barth and others,
and though not so extreme a sceptic himself, believed
it necessary to move all the positions I had given of
places visited, much nearer the coast, so as to reduce
greatly the length of my routes.
It must be recollected that I made no pretension
to close accuracy in my own map. I had no insiru-
ments, and projected my route only by an estimate,
necessarily rough, of the distances travelled. The
circumstance of having been the first to explore the
region was, besides, a disadvantage to me, for I had
_ ho previous map, however rough, to guide me; and
in travelling with negroes day after day, under the
shade of forests, often by circuitous routes, I was
misled as to the length of the marches I made towards.
the east. I was therefore inclined to accept the correc-
tions of Dr. Petermann, who had studied well the sub-
ject, and adopted his map in the French edition of my
‘Equatorial Africa.’ It was not long, however, before
fresh evidence arrived, which proved that Dr. Peter-
Vill PREFACE.
mann had gone too far in his corrections. In 1862 a
French Government expedition, under Messrs. Serval
and Griffon Du Bellay, explored the Ogobai river,
and not only proved the general truth of my account
of that great stream, but showed that the country of
the Ashira, visited by me, had not been placed far
wrong. Dr. Petermann, on the receipt of the French
map, published in the ‘Revue Maritime et Coloniale,’
reconstructed his own map, and again moved my
principal positions nearly to the same longitude in
which I had originally placed them. The text
accompanying the map (‘ Geographische Mittheil-
ungen, 1863, p. 446 et seq.), contains an explana-
tion, couched in terms which I cannot but consider
as highly flattering to me.
Similar confirmation of the accounts I gave of
the cannibal Fans have been published by Captain
Burton, the distinguished African traveller, and by
others. The fact of the native harp possessing
strings made of vegetable fibre—my statement of
which roused a violent outburst of animosity against
me—has been satisfactorily confirmed by the arrival
of several such harps in England, and the examina-
tion of their strings. Other disputed facts I have
discussed in the body of the present volume;
such for instance as the structure and affinities of
that curious animal the Potamogale velox, concerning
which an eminent zoologist, Professor Allman, has
published a memoir, in which he shows that my
-eritic was wrong, and I was right. With regard
- PREFACE. ~ ix
to the accounts I gave of the existence of several
distinct varieties, if not species, of chimpanzee, in
the present absence amongst naturalists of a definite
criterion of what constitutes a species, I must con-
tent myself by repeating that the negroes always
distinguish these different kinds, and zoologists
have published scientific descriptions of more than
one species, considered distinct, from other parts of
Western Tropical Africa.
Concerning the gorilla, the greatest of all the
wonders of Western Equatorial Africa, I must refer
my readers to the body of the present volume for the
additional information I have been able to gather,
during my last journey, concerning this formidable
ape. It was not my object on the present journey
to slaughter unnecessarily these animals, as the prin-
cipal museums in civilized countries were already
well supplied with skins and skeletons, but I devoted
myself, when in the district inhabited by the gorilla,
to the further study of its habits, and the effort to
obtain the animal alive and send it to England ; hop-
ing that the observation of its actions in life would
enable persons in England to judge of the accuracy
of the description I gave of its disposition and habits ;
at least to some extent, as the actions of most animals
differ much in confinement from what they are in
the wild state. I had the good fortune again to see
the gorilla several times in its native wilds, and ob-
tained several living specimens through the natives.
Some of the statements relating to its habits, such
x PREFACE.
as its association only in very small bands, I have
found reason, on further observation, to modify; but
with regard to its beating its breast when enraged,
and the savage nature of the young animals, as
compared with young chimpanzees, fresh observa-
tions have confirmed my former statements. I suc-
ceeded in shipping one live gorilla for London, but,
to my regret, it died during the passage.
The principal object I had in view in my last
journey, was to make known with more accuracy
than I had been able to do in my former one, the
geographical features of the country, believing this
to be the first duty of a traveller in exploring new
regions. To enable me to do this I went through a
course of instruction in the use of instruments, to
enable me to fix positions by astronomidal observa-
tions and compass bearings, and to ascertain the alti-
tudes of places. I learnt also how to compute my
observations, and test myself their correctness. It is
for others to judge of the results of my endeavours
in this important department of a traveller’s work;
I can only say that I laboured hard to make my
work as accurate as possible, and although I was
compelled, much to my sorrow, to abandon photo-
graphy and meteorological observations, through the
loss of my apparatus and instruments, I was fortu-
nately able to continue astronomical observations
nearly to the end of my route.
In camp at night, after my work with the sextant
was done, I spent the still hours in noting down the
PREFACE. xi
observations, making three copies In as many dif-
ferent books, entrusted to different negro porters, so
as to lessen the risk of loss of the whole. In our
disastrous retreat from Ashango-land one. only of
these copies escaped being thrown into the bush, and
this was the original one in my journal, where the
entries were made from day to day; but it is not
quite complete, as one volume out of five of my
journal was lost with nearly all the rest of my outfit.
On my return to England, the whole of these obser-
vations were submitted by the Council of the Royal
Geographical Society to Mr. Edwin Dunkin, the
Superintendent of the Altazimuth Department at
Greenwich Observatory, who computed them, and
furnished the results which are printed at the end of
this volume, and which form the basis of the map of
my routes now given to the public. I have thought
it best to print also, without alteration, the original
observations for latitude, longitude, and heights in
the order in which they occur in my journal, and in-
cluding a few that were incorrect. By this means
cartographers will be able to see on how many sepa-
rate observations a result for latitude or longitude is
founded, and judge what degree of reliance may be
placed upon them. I think it would be better if
all travellers in new countries published in the
same way, at the end of their narratives, their ori-
ginal observations, instead of the computed results
solely, as is generally done. Adopted positions are
generally the mean of the results of several obser-
xii PREFACE.
vations, and unless the original data are published,
geographers and future travellers are unable to judge
to what degree the separate observations differed, or
what reliance is to be placed on the observing powers
of the earlier traveller.
In giving to the public a much-improved map of
the field of my African explorations south of the
Equator, Iam glad to have been able to correct the
errors of my former one. Most of the principal posi-
tions were there placed much too far to the east and
north; and even those given by Dr. Petermann in
his second map, already mentioned, prove to be a few
miles too far in the same direction. Mr. Dunkin has
stated, at a meeting of the Royal Geographical Society,
that he considers the position of Mayolo as perfectly
well determined by my observations : this may there-
fore be considered a fixed point by cartographers in
reviewing my geographical work. But I must men-
tion that two places, to the west of Mayolo, namely,
Niembai and Obindji, have been placed on my map
according to a calculation of distances travelled, as I
had taken only one observation at each place. By
the position of Mayolo, and that of the Samba Na-
goshi Falls, visited by me in the last journey, I have
been able to correct greatly the course given in my
former map, and adopted by Dr. Petermann, of the
great River Ngouyai. Unfortunately, my longitudes
of these places render it difficult to connect my map
with that given by Lieutenant Serval, of the Ogobai .
between Lake Anengue and the junction of the’
PREFACE. — xiii
Okanda. It would appear that M. Serval has ex-
tended the Ogobai much too far east. The second
French expedition under Messrs. Labigot and
Touchard, which carried the exploration of the
Ogobai as far as the junction of the Ngouyai and
Okanda, has probably made observations which would
enable us to settle this doubtful part of the geography
of the region; but I have been informed by my
friend M. Malte-Brun, that the results of the expe-
dition are not yet published.
Next to geography, I paid most attention, during
my last expedition, to the study of the natives. My
long experience amongst the tribes of the Fernand
Vaz, and knowledge of the Commi and Ashira lan-
guages, gave me some facilities in investigating the
political state of the tribes, and comprehending their
customs, the meaning of their legends, and. so forth.
There is no part of Africa hitherto visited by tra-
vellers: where the negro exists in a more primitive
condition; for in the regions of the Niger and the
Nile he has been much modified by the influences of
Mahommedanism, in the interior of South Africa
by the incursions of the Boers, and in Eastern Africa
by contact with Arab traders. The descriptions I
have given in the present volume ought therefore to
be of some interest, as representing the negro as he
is, undisturbed by the slave-dealing practices, the
proselytism or the trading enterprise of other races.
The irreparable loss of the collection of photo-
graphs which I made myself on the earlier part of
XIV PREFACE.
the journey, as related in the narrative, compelled
me to have recourse to some rough pen-and-ink
sketches in my journal, which have served as guides
for the engravings in this volume, which have been
drawn by competent artists under my own direction.
The pleasing duty now remains of thanking those
gentlemen who have encouraged me by their sym-
pathy and aid throughout my African explorations,
or assisted me in the preparation of the present
volume. To the Council of the Royal Geographical
Society my first thanks are due, who have adhered
to me in spite of adverse criticism from other quar-
ters, and who were pleased to express their satisfac- —
tion with the geographical work I have performed,
by presenting me with a testimonial at the last -
Annual Meeting of the Society. But I feel that
I ought especially to thank the noble-hearted Pre-
sident of the Society, Sir Roderick Murchison, who
sped me on my mission with hopeful words, and
wrote frequently to me whilst I was in Africa,
encouraging me when I stood sorely in need of it.
To my honoured friend, Professor Owen, I am also
indebted, for his steadfast support, and for the
valuable Essay on my collection of African skulls
which enriches this volume. Other friends who
have assisted me I have mentioned in the course
of my narrative, amongst them Commander George,
my kind instructor in the use of astronomical and
surveying instruments, and M. Claudet, my master
in photography. I ought also to-express my thanks
PREFACE. #+
to Mr. Dunkin, for the great labour and care he
has shown in personally computing my observations,
and to Mr. J. R. Hind, the distinguished astronomer,
for many acts of kindness. To Mr. Glaisher I am
indebted for the benefit of his great experience
in the testing of my aneroids. It was my good —
fortune, when preparing for my last expedition, to
receive tokens of good-will from many persons, some
of whom were personally unknown to me. I have
mentioned in the body of the work the names of
some of these friends; and I must not omit to add to
the list those of Messrs. Howard and Co., who pre-
sented me with an ample stock of quinine, which
' proved of great service to me. |
Lastly, I have to acknowledge my great obligation
to my friend Mr. H. W. Baies, the well-known author
of the ‘ Naturalist on the River Amazons,’ who has
given me his advice and assistance in the preparation
of my journals for publication ; and to another valued
friend, Mr. George Bishop, under whose hospitable
roof, on the banks of the Thames at Twickenham,
the greater part of the eee: volume has been
prepared for the press,
P .
TON Sa te Ti he
aca ha
= ~
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
THE VOYAGE.
- Objects of the Journey—Preparatory studies—Difficulties in obtaining a
passage—Departure from England—Arrival off the Coast—Miss the
mouth of the Fernand Vaz—Return up the Coast—Hxcitement of the
Natives—Old acquaintances—Changes in the bar of the River—Choice.
of a settlement near Djombouai’s Village—-Bonfires and rejoicings on
the river banks—Commencement of disembarkation—Dangerous state
of the shore—The boat upset in the breakers—Saved by the Negroes—
Hess Of mshriuments aud SUOTES - 2.66 | ss, ss) seu? oe, s we Lage 1
CHAPTER II.
THE FERNAND VAZ.
Outlines of the Coast region—The Ogobai—Pyrairies of the Fernand Vaz—
‘The Commi nation—Distribution of the Clans—Chief Ranpano and
his Spells—News of arrival sent to Quengueza, King of the Rembo—
Arrival of Quengueza—His alarm at the great wealth I had brought
him—A pet Chimpanzee, and his departure for England—Visit to
Elindé and the mouth of the river—My illness—Tenderness of Ran-
pano—King Olenga-Yombi—Grand palaver of Commi chiefs—Permis-
sion granted me to ascend the river into the interior—Visit to my old
place and to Rinkimongani’s grave—Superstition of the natives—The
Bola Ivoga—Rabolo’s fetich—Departure of the Mentor for England 13
- CHAPTER ITI.
EXCURSIONS IN SEARCH OF THE GORILLA AND THE IPI.
Visit to King Olenga-Yombi—Storm on the Fernand Vaz—Land journey
to Aniambié—First traces of Gorilla—Form of its tracks—Drunken
orgies of the King— Magic island of Nengué Ncoma — Village of
Nkongon a of the Ipi, or great Pangolin—Its habits—
XVill CONTENTS.
Village of Mburu Shara—Nkengo Nschiego variety of Chimpanzee—
Bowers of the Chimpanzee—Group of Gorillas in a plantain-grove—
Their mode of walking—Horrid form of monomania—Akondogo brings
a live Gorilla—Return to the Fernand Vaz—Three more live Gorillas
—Account of their capture—Modification of opinions concerning the
Gorilla {oe} ws sek ‘de! ioe dd’ E> fee | ee
CHAPTER IV.
START FOR THE INTERIOR.
Arrival of a fresh supply of Scientific Instruments—The first Steamer on
the Fernand Vaz—Preliminary trip to Goumbi—Astonishment of the
Natives at the fire-vessel—Despatch Collections to England—Live
Gorilla embarked for London—His habits in confinement—Narrow
escape of drowning when embarked—Preparations completed—Last
look at the sea—Outfit—Body-guard of Commi men—Affecting part-
ing scenes—I am deceived by Olenga-Yombi—The renowned ‘doctor,
Oune-jiou-e-niaré—Arrival at Goumbi—Observations to fix latitude and
altitude of Goumbi—Quengueza’s invocation of his Forefathers—Dis-
obedient Wives—Excessive Drought—Obindji—Opposition of Bakalai
—Arrival of Ashira Porters—Passage of the hills to Olenda.. ..; 60
CHAPTER V.
VISIT TO THE SAMBA NAGOSHI FALLS.
King Olenda, his great age—Preparations for the journey to the Falls—
We cross the Ovigui—Opangano Prairie—Ndgewho Mountains—Bakalai
Villace—A flock of Gorillas in the Forest—The Louvendji River—
Dibaou and the Ashira Kambas—Navigate the Ngouyai River—The
Aviia Tribe—Village of Mandji—River Scenery—Nkoumou Nabouali
Mountains—Nami Gemba—Village of Luba—The Spirit of the Falls—
Village Deity—Arrival at Fougamou, the principal Fall—Legend of
Fougamou—Night Encampment—Return to Dihaou—We sup on a
poisonous serpent—Forced March through flooded forest to Olenda 88
-
CHAPTER VI. /
ASHIRA-LAND.
Grand Palaver to discuss the route into the interior—I am forbidden to pass
through the Apingi country—Messengers sent to the Chief of Otando— ~
Changes i in Ashira Customs—Decrease of Population—The Potamogale
CONTENTS. ~~ xix
veloc—Its habits—My former description of this Animal—Visit to
Angouka—Immense Plantation of Plantain-trees—Quarrel with Mpoto,
nephew of Olenda—Difficulties and anxieties—First rumours of the
ea POM es.) <5 Rae beleM dee MNO Mees ves, Ove to, 2 Page 114
CHAPTER VII.
THE PLAGUE IN ASHIRA-LAND.
Breaking out of the Small-pox Epidemic—Noble Conduct of Quengueza—
Departure of Quengueza’s People—IlIness of the Portersr—My Commi
Body-guard refuse to leave me—Departure of part of the baggage to
Otando-land—Quengueza returns to Goumbi—Letters from Europe—
Death of Mpoto—Death of King Olenda—His burial—Cemetery of the
Ademba Chiefs—Wailing for the Dead—Death of Retonda—Arrival
of Messengers from Mayolo—Distrust of the Natives—Trickery of
Arangui—I am robbed by the Ashira People—Diminution of the
Pestilence—Quengueza’s message to the people of Olenda .. .. 124
CHAPTER VIII.
#y
FROM OLENDA TO MAYOLO,
Departure from Ashira-~land—Passage of the Ovigui—Slave Village of
King Olenda—A Slave Chief—Difficulties with the Porters—More
Robberies—IIness of Macondai—Leave him behind—The Otando Range
of Hills—Picturesque Cascade in the Forest—Cross the Louvendji—
More difficulties with the Porters—Hunger in the Forest—Men sent to
Mayolo for Relief—A Night in the Forest—Myth of Atungulu Shimba
—Koola Nut-trees—Search for Food—Meet with a Gorilla—A Hungry
Night—Unselfish act of the Ashira—Help arrives from Mayolo—
Mpegui Nuts—Arrival in Otando-land .. .. 2. o « o- 189
CHAPTER IX.
MAYOLO.
Arrival at M&yolo—Reception by the Chief—Discovery of more Losses—
I accuse the Ashira—Their Flight—Seizure of a Hostage—Gathering of
the Head men of Otando—Mayolo falls ill—I am attacked by Fever—
Great Heat and Thunderstorm—Arrival of Macondai and Igalo—Their
Iil-treatment by the Ashira — Loss of Photographic Camera .and
Chemicals — Surgical Practice of the Otando—A Female Doctor—
_ Matrimonial Squabbles—Mayolo’s health improves—Witchcraft Ordeal
©.
CONTENTS.
—My Speech to the People—Speech of Myolo—Curiosity of the
Otando—A Female Duel—The Bashikouay Ants—A Precocious Thief
—MAyolo again falls ill—Good news from the Apono country—Asto-
nishment of the Natives at the Musical-box and Magnets—Climate of
Miyolo—Deposit of Dew—The Ofolicnus—Recovery of Macondai—
The Alumbi Fetich—Departure from Mayolo .. .. .. Page 156
CHAPTER X.
THE OTANDO AND APONO REGION.
Geographical Position of Mayolo—Splendour of the Constellations as seen
from the Equatorial Regions—The Zodiacal Light—Twinkling of the
Stars—Meteoric Showers—The Otando and Apono Plains, or Prairies
—The Otando People a branch of the Ashira Nation—Their Customs—
Filing the Teeth—Tattooing—Native Dogs ... .. .« « .- 208
CHAPTER XI.
ANTS.
The White Ants of the Prairies—The Mushroom-hived Termes—Interior
of their Hives—Three classes in each Community : Soldiers, Workers,
and Chiefs—Their mode of building—The Tree Ants—Curious struc-
ture of their Hives—Their process of constructing them—The Bark
Ants—Curious tunnels formed by them—The Forest Ants—Large size
of their Shelters or Hives—The stinging Black Ant .. .. . 2138
CHAPTER XII.
MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND.
Leave Mayolo—Cross the Nomba Obana Hill—River Dooya—Arrival at
Mouendi—Timidity of the Inhabitants—The Chief Nchiengain—Ar-
- rival of Apingi Men—Loss and Recovery of a Thermometer—Nocturnal
Reflections—African Story of the Sun and Moon—Smelling the White
Man’s Presents—Passage of the Ngouyai—Hippopotami and Crocodiles;
seasons of their scarcity and abundance—Arrival at Dilolo—Opposition
of the Inhabitants to our entering the Village—Pluck of my Commi
Boys—Arrival at Mokaba—My system of a Medicine Parade for my
Men .. On aa (eeu. Yen come Ce ee Ye Ye | wo 230
CONTENTS. X51
CHAPTER XIII.
THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND.
Fs re i
{
Mokaba—Curiosity of the People—Renewed illness of Mayolo—His return \
to Otando—Nchiengain’s Speech—The Apono agree to take me to the
Ishogo country— Description of the Apono Tribe—Their sprightly
character —Arts —Weapons — Population— Description of Mokaba—
Palm wine—Drunkenness—Ocuya Performances—Leave Mokaba—
River Dougoundo—Arrival at Igoumbié—Invitation from the elders :
of the village to remain there—Manners of the Ishogos—Description of
Igoumbié — The Ishogo huts— Arrival at Yengué, in Ishogo-land
Page 250
CHAPTER XIV.
JOURNEY THROUGH ISHOGO-LAND.
Village of the Obongos or Dwarf Negroes—Their Dwellings—Absence of
the Inhabitants—The Elders and People of Yengué—Arrival of the
Chief of Yengué—War Dance of the Aponos—Ceremony of the Mpaza
—An uproarious Night—Good conduct of the Apono Porters—The |
River Ogoulou—Geographical Position and Altitude of Yengué—Pass-
age of the Ogoulou—March to the Plateau of Mokenga—Hastern Limits
of Ishogo-land—Quembila, King of Mokenga—Palavers—Contention
between Chiefs for the possession of the “ Ibamba”—Panic in Mokenga
—Re-adjustment of Baggage—Ishogo Porters.. .. 2. o «» 269
CHAPTER XV.
FROM ISHOGO TO ASHANGO-LAND.
The Ishogos—Their Modes of dressing the Hair—JIshogo Villages —
Picturesque Scenery—Granitic Boulders— Grooved Rocks— Leave
Mokenga—Cross the Dongon— Continued Ascent— Mount Migoma
—The River Odiganga—Boundaries of Ishogo and Ashango-lands—
Arrival at Magonga—Plateau of Madombo—Mutiny of Ishogo Porters
—An unfriendly Village—Elevated Country—Arrival and friendly
Reception at Niembouai—The King’s Wives—Prejudices of the Commi
Men—Hear of a large River towards the East—The Ashaneui Tribe—
The Obongos eo 8600888 a? wee aon
Xx CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XVI.
ASHANGO-LAND.
Cloudy Skies of Ashango-land—Grand Palaver—Ishogo Porters dismissed
—The Village Tdol—Religious Rites—Visit to an Obongo Village—
Abodes and Habits of the Dwarf Race—Measurements of ‘their Height
—River Ouano—Singular Ferry—Mount Mogiama—lIts Altitude —
Village of Mongon, its Latitude, Longitude, and Height above the
Sea-level—Villace of Niembouai Olomba—lIts picturesque Site—Ba-
shikouay Ants—Ascend Mount Birogou Bouanga—lIts Altitude—More
Troubles—Robbed by the Ashango Porters—Summary Measures—
Resume our March—Arrive at Mobana—Departure of a Bride—Arrival
at Mouaou Kombo:, 9... 1.) ise ee a Se ee eles eee
CHAPTER XVII.
FATAL DISASTERS AT MOUAOU KOMBO.
Unpromising state of affairs on arriving at Mouaou Kombo—Rakombo is
threatened—Obstacles raised by the Villagers—Fair promises of the
Chief—A Secret Meeting of the Villagers—Demands of the People—
We leave the Village—Night Encampment in the Forest—Threats and
Promises from the next Village—Invited to return to Mouaou—Re-
conciliation—Arrival of a hostile Deputation from the next Village—
A. Man accidentally Shotq 24) { sisclied iciuw\ hooey pe weivew’y leauge
CHAPTER XVIII.
RETREAT FROM ASHANGO-LAND.
A Palaver proposed to settle the Death of the Man—A Woman killed—
The War. Cry !—Retreat. commenced—Igala and myself wounded with
Poisoned Arrows—Narrow Escape of Macondai and Rebouka—We are
closely pursued by the Natives—Collections and Note-books thrown
into the Bush—We make a Stand—Two Men Shot—Pursuit continued
—I am wounded a second time—Igalo shoots the Bowman—We make
another Stand—Cross the Bembo—Pass Mobana—Still pursued—Make
a final Stand—The Pursuers driven off at last—A Halt—The Party
all collected together—Sleep in the Forest~—Night-March through
Niembouai — Friendly conduct of the Head Chief —We are well
received at a Plantation—Arrival of Magouga—We continue the March
to Uisbopo-latid ..<-46' be oe len fe . 854
CONTENTS. Xxiil
CHAPTER XIX.
JOURNEY TO THE COAST.
Arrival at Mongon—Magouga recounts the Story of our Adventures to the
Villagers—Reach Niembouai—Mistrust of the People—Restitution of
Stolen Property—Magouga consents to guide us to Mokenga—Reach
the last of the Ashango Villages—Passage into Ishogo-land, and out of
danger of Pursuit— Magouga’s Diplomacy—Arrival at Mokenga—
Friendly Reception—Magouga delivers us safely into the hands of the
Villagers—My Men exaggerate the Deeds of Valour they had performed
—Arrival at Yengué—Project of descending the Ogoulou in a Canoe—
Lose our Way— Distant View of the Apono Prairie—Igoumbié —
Reach Mokaba—The Ngouyai—March to Nehiengain’s—Cross the River
—Nchiengain’s Village—Reception at Mayolo—Operation of the African
Law of Inheritance—March to Ashira-land—Alarm of the Ashira
People—Avoid Olenda—Sojourn at Angouka’s—Cross the Ofoubou—
Quengueza’s Encampment—Sorrows of the old King—Devastations of
the Plague at Goumbi—Quengueza wants to go to the White Man’s
Country—Descend the River—Arrival at “ Plateau "Gratitude of the
Commi People—Departure for England... .. .. .. «. Page 3871
CHAPTER XX.
PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE.
Great Forest of Equatorial Africa—Scanty Population—Scarcity or absence
of large African Animals—Hilly Ranges—River Systems—The Ogobai
—French exploring expeditions — Amount of rain—Seasons—Rainy
climate of Central Equatorial Africa—Temperature—Heat of the sun’s
rays—Coolness of the forest shades .. «2. -- «5 oe = ee See 406
CHAPTER XXI.
ETHNOLOGY.
Isolation of the tribes in the interior of Western Equatorial Africa—Scan-
tiness of the Population—Divisions of tribes and clans—Patriarchal
form of Government—Comparison of Customs between Western Equa-
torial tribes and Eastern—Laws of inheritance—Cannibalism—Migra-
‘tions always towards the West—Decrease of Population—Its Causes—
The African race doomed to extinction .. .. 8 «8 « « 424
xxiv | CONTENTS.
APPENDIX I.
Descriptions of Three Skulls of Western Equatorial Africans—Fan, Ashira,
and Fernand Vaz—with some Admeasurements of the rest of the Col-
lection of Skulls, transmitted to the British Museum from the Fernand
Vaz, by P. B. Du Caaitiv. By Professor Ownn, F.R.S., &. Page 439
APPENDIX II.
Instruments used in the Expedition to Ashango-land—Observations for
Latitude—Observations for Lunar Distances—Heights of Stations—
Synopsis of Results | 2.) s+) as \ 0+ jas ee ee ee
APPENDIX III.
Comparative Table of Words in several Languages of Western Equatorial
PTCA ies tater seihd Binet soc tee uae” Cue Seer wid ee
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
Retreat from Ashango-land .. .. .. « « « « MYvoniispnece.
at ATTOA ALS WII Tea! Nein (ioe «leet tiew|, | “ele Neaew Sderot Title.
tei or Sealy Ant-Hater .. 2. se ve les ee Se, oe LO RRC
Otaitai-or Porter's Basket “ec ue es a AE 84
Group of Bakalai .. .. Bis peers at alka ae Ps OL.
Gorillas surprised in the Forest ete dee ate Le Manee, «ven 43 92
‘Prisoner in Nchogo .._.. ate see si Lots on ene
Nests of Mushroom Ants and Ree aint Hears alee 0? ag 8 yy
Nest of Forest Ants Ge ale ital", ate tara tee Aa ee » 224
Mokaba—Apono Village... .. ari Pat eds ees
Ishogo Houses, with ornamented Doors ee? Uae Te foe) ae » 264
Ishogo Fashions—Oblique Chignon .. .. 6. we we » - aoe
Tshogo Fashions—Horizontal Chignon AMEN bec ahaa ts Fs
Ishogo Fashions—Vertical Chignon .. ww ww we >. eo
Tshogo Fashions—Male Head-Dress .. .. 2. we oe » | ae
Tshogo Loom and Shuttle : > ae
Approach to the Camp of the Obongo Dwarfs ee 3 wae
An African Group .. .. Bee Shes ot 5p oni eee
Fan Warriors. From a French Photograph... eS » 424
Fan Woman and Child. From a French ah ae Be 5 BR » 401
Skull, Male, Fernand Vaz... ww abot es » 441
De aie, Pan Pee 0): se | Thay | Nea eae tees », 445
skull, aged Wemale, Wan 'Ttibe i. a0) (hat we eG 448
Map ee oe oo oo oo ee eo eo ee eo eo eo At ie end.
JOURNEY IN ASHANGO-LAND,
CHAPTER IL
THE VOYAGE.
Objects of the Journey—Preparatory studies—Difficulties in obtaining a
passage—Departure from England—Arrival off the Coast—Miss the
mouth of the Fernand Vaz—Return up the Coast—Excitement of the
Natives—Old acquaintances—Changes in the bar of the River—Choice
* ofasettlement near Djombouai’s Village—Bonfires and rejoicings on
the river banks—Commencement of disembarkation—Dangerous state
of the shore—The boat upset in the breakers—Saved by the Negroes—
Loss of instruments and stores.
’
Harty in 1863, after three years’ recreation in the
civilized countries of Hurope and North America, I
began to entertain the idea of undertaking a new
journey into Western Equatorial Africa. My main
object in this journey was to attempt to penetrate still
further into the interior than I had done hitherto,
taking the route of the Fernand Vaz River, the starting
point of my principal expedition in the former journey.
I had also a strong desire to fix with scientific
accuracy the geographical positions of the places I
had already discovered, and to vindicate by fresh
observations, and the acquisition of further specimens,
the truth of the remarks I had published on the eth-
nology and natural history of the country. Beyond
2 THE VOYAGE. Cuap. I.
this, there was the vague hope of being able to reach,
in the far interior, some unknown western tributary
of the Nile, and to descend by it to the great river,
- and thence to the Mediterranean.
To qualify myself for such a task, I went through
a course of instruction* in the use of instruments, to
enable me. to project my route by dead-reckoning
and astronomical observations, and supplied, myself
with a complete outfit for this purpose, as well as for
taking the altitudes of places above the sea-level. I
also learnt practical photography,y and laid in a store
of materials necessary to make 2,000 pictures, having
felt the importance of obtaining faithful representa-
tions of the scenery, natives, and animals of these
remote countries. In natural history I did not expect
to find many novelties, near the coast, at least in the
larger animals, but I took pains to learn what was
most likely to be interesting to zoologists, and hoped
to be able to make many discoveries in the far
interior. Besides materials for preserving large
animals, I provided myself with a stock of boxes,
olass tubes, &c., in order to collect insects, worms,
and the like classes of animals, which I had neglected
in my former journey. I also took fifty pounds of
arsenic for the preservation of stuffed specimens.
My hope of traversing the whole of Equatorial Africa
to the head of the Nile, although acting as a strong
incitement to me, was kept secret, except from a few
* Under Staff-Commander C. George, Map Curator, Royal Geographical
Society ; to whom 1 am, besides, much indebted for the trouble he took in
selecting instruments for me, and for his care in testing them.
+ Under M. Ciaudet, and his son M. Henri Claudet.
CHap.I. DIFFICULTY IN OBTAINING A PASSAGE. 3
intimate friends. I was resolved, however, that if
the achievement of this splendid feat should be denied
me, I would spare no effort in advancing as far to-
wards the east as was practicable, and in obtaining —
accurate information regarding those portions of the
country which I might be able to explore.
There is no direct trade between England—or,
indeed, between any part of Europe or America—and
the Fernand Vaz, and this gave rise to the chief
difficulty I had to encounter at the outset. How was
I to get there? My outfit was too large to think of
transhipping it from one port to another. I must
here remind my readers that the mouth of the Fer-
nand Vaz lies about 110 miles to the south of the
Gaboon, which is the principal centre of trade in
Western Equatorial Africa. What little trade there
is is carried on by native boats, which pass from the
Gaboon to the negro villages on the banks of the
Fernand Vaz, by way of the narrow channels of the
delta of the Ogobai River, thus avoiding the detour
round Cape Lopez. The negro tribes of the Fernand
Vaz have never had much communication with the
white man; there is no permanent trading settlement
there, although sometimes the captain of a ship may
come with his vessel and put up a factory for a short
- time; indeed, I must add that I was the first to ascend
the river and make known its geography, its in-
habitants, and its productions. I chose this river as
the starting-point of my new exploration because I
was already well known to the inhabitants of its
banks, through my long previous residence amongst
them ; they loved me, and my life was safe in their
4 THE VOYAGE. Cuap. I.’
hands, and having acquired some influence over them,
I could depend upon obtaining an escort to enable.
me to advance into the interior. I do not know any
other point of the West African coast, between the
Congo and the Niger, where I, or indeed any white
man, could have any chance of penetrating more
than a short distance into the interior. After making
some inquiries, I found my best course would be to
freight a vessel specially to take me to the Fernand
Vaz. I therefore engaged with the owners of the
schooner Mentor, Captain Vardon, a little vessel of
less than 100 tons measurement, and all preparations
being complete, embarked on board of her at Graves-
end on the 6th of August, 1863. |
Although I looked forward with great pleasure to
my new journey of exploration, I left old England
with a heavy heart. The land where I had received
so much kindness and sympathy, so much genuine
hospitality, and where I had made so many true
friends, had become to me a second home. I could
not repress the feeling of sadness which came over.
me, and the pang I felt at parting was the greater: ©
from the thought that I might never return from
an undertaking beset with such various perils.
We were detained with a crowd of other vessels off
Deal, for several days, by a strong wind from the
south-west. I was much struck, part of the time, by
the strong contrast between the weather we had at ©
sea and that which prevailed on shore. With us the
wind was blowing strong and the sea rough, whilst —
on land the sun was shining beautifully on the golden
eorn-fields, and the reapers were at work gathering
Cuap. I. ARRIVAL OFF THE COAST. D
in the bountiful harvest. My ardent longing to be
on shore with them and have a last look at the happy
land of England was one day gratified, for Mr. Don-
brain, the ship-missionary of Deal, kindly took the
captain and myself to the town, and we had a charm-
ing drive through the country lanes. I never enjoyed
the country so much. Every face we met seemed so
pleasant, and Nature seemed so tranquil; I felt that
England was more than ever dear to me.
I will not weary my readers by a description of
our voyage to the West Coast. As far as the weather
and the captain were concerned, it was a pleasant one.
We arrived at Accra, a British settlement, east of
Sierra Leone, in the Gulf of Guinea, on the 20th of
September. According to my agreement with the
owners of the vessel, the Mentor ought to have sailed
direct from this place to the Fernand Vaz, but I now
made the discovery that she was ordered to call at
Lagos. At this unhealthy spot I declined the invita- —
tion to go ashore. We left it on the 2nd of October,
and after a few days pleasant sailing came in sight of
the Commi Coast on the 8th of the same month.
The part of the African coast in the neighbourhood
of the mouth of the Fernand Vaz has a monotonous
aspect as viewed from the sea. A long line of
- country, elevated only a few feet above the sea-level,
stretches away towards the south, diversified here and
there by groups of trees, and enlivened only at inter-
vals of a few miles by a cluster of palm-clad huts of
the natives, amongst which is always conspicuous the
big house which the villagers construct for the “ fac-
tory” that they are always expecting to be established
6 THE VOYAGE. Cuap. I.
at their village. The mouth of the river itself is very
difficult to discover. In my former journey it was
recognisable only by the white surf which foamed
over its bar, and by the flocks of fish-eating birds
hovering in the air above it. The bar, however,
seemed now to have shifted, for we ies by it with-
out perceiving it.
We sailed along the coast the same evening, and,
after anchoring for the night, still continued the same
course, under light sail, the next morning, looking
out for some native canoe to come to us, and tell us
our whereabouts. At length a canoe put off from the
shore and came alongside, and we then discovered that
we were several miles to the south of the Fernand
Vaz. The head man of the boat recognised me, and
thinking at first that I had come to establish a
trading post at his village, could not contain his
delight. He knew a few words of English, and
shouted out: “ Put down the anchor; plenty ivory ;
load the ship in a fortnight!” It was a wretched
take-down for the poor fellow to learn that I intended
to establish my head-quarters in a rival village on
the banks of the river. He wanted to make me
believe that Ranpano, the chief of my former place,
was dead, and that his village was seattered—this
was the old African trick, which I knew too well to
be deceived by. The fellow, in his spite and dis-
appointment, on leaving us went out of his way to
prevent other canoes from coming to us, and so we
were unable to get a pilot.
As we returned up the coast, we saw the natives
running about from house to house along the beach
Ouap. I. - OLD ACQUAINTANCES. 7
in great excitement. In every village the big flag
kept by the chiefs for this purpose was hoisted on
the top of a long pole to attract the white man ashore.
to trade, and at night a line of bonfires shone along
the coast.
At length, on the morning of the 10th, I recog
- nised the country near the mouth of the river. We
shortened sail, and two canoes soon put off and made
for the vessel. In the first, as it approached, I recog-
nised my old friend Adjouatonga, a chief of one of the
villages belonging to the clan Adjiena, which occupies
the mouth of the river. He climbed up the vessel’s side,
and after shaking hands with the captain, advanced
towards me to do the same. On my turning round to
him, he stepped back in astonishment, and exclaimed—
“ Are you Chaillie, or are you his spirit? Have you
come from the dead? Tell me quick, for I don’t know
whether I am to believe my own eyes; perhaps I am
getting a kendé (fool).” The good fellow hugged
me in a transport of joy, but so tightly and so long
that I wished his friendship had been a little less
enthusiastic, especially as his skin was dripping with
a strong mixture of oil and perspiration. In the
second canoe came another old friend, Sholomba,
- nephew of the chief, Ranpano, of my own village
of former days. In short, I was surrounded by a
crowd of old acquaintances, and had to listen to
a confused account of the chief events that had
happened since my departure, related by half-a-dozen
eager informants. |
The next subject to be considered was how we were
to get ashore. Sholomba assured me that. the mouth
SS ae: ae
8 THE VOYAGE. | Cuap. 1.
of the Fernand Vaz had changed much for the worse
since I had left, and that it would be less dangerous
to run a canoe through the surf to the beach than to
attempt an entry into the mouth of the river. It
was now the beginning of the rainy season, when the
winds are less rough than in the dry season, but the
surf, under the influence of the steady south-west
winds, was still frightful. However, the first landing,
in Adjouatonga’s boat, which was much steadier than
the rest, was made with safety. The frail canoe was
skilfully directed towards a promising roller at the
right moment, and we were carried on its back with
lightening speed to the beach, where we were snatched
up by the natives assembled to meet us. After this
hazardous landing, I was hurried along amidst a crowd
of several hundred savages, all dancing and shouting
with frantic joy, across the sandy tongue of land to
the banks of the Fernand Vaz, where canoes were
ready to take us up the river to the village of
Ranpano.
Although I had been absent only four years—
years so full of events to me!—time had wrought
great changes in the scene of my. former adventures.
The mouth of the river had altered so much that I
scarcely knew it again. The long, sandy, reed-
covered spit, which formerly projected three miles
from the southern point of the river’s mouth, had
disappeared, and the sea had washed up the sand so
much on the northern side that the village of Hlindé,
whose chief, Sangala, had given me so much trouble in
former times, had become untenantable, and the people
had removed. Many little islands had also been sub-
Guar. L CHOICE OF A SETTLEMENT. 9
merged or washed. away, and I no longer saw those
flocks of sea birds which formerly frequented the
locality. Paddling up the stream we came to my old
settlement, which I had called Washington; it was
deserted and in ruins, a few loose bamboos and rotting
poles alone remained to show me where it stood. The
house of my honest old friend, Rinkimongani, was
there, looking like a wreck, for this excellent fellow
had gone to his rest and his family was scattered.
After a brief survey of the altered state of
the country, I resolved to fix my new quarters
at a little village near the residence of Djom-
bouai, two miles above my last place: the situ-
ation was a good one, and, besides, it would con-
. ciliate the prejudices of the Commi, who opposed
my settlement at the old spot on account of the
suspicion of witchcraft which attached to it, and
which had increased since the death of Rinkimongani.
Meantime, the news spread that I had arrived in the
country, and for several days people came trooping
in by land and water to see their old friend, and the
stores of good things he had brought with him. Ran-
pano was away from home, on the Ogobai River, but
messengers were sent to him to hasten his return. I
soon felt that I had returned to-wild life. At night
bonfires were lit, and the crowd of half-dressed and
rude, but good-humoured, savages danced around
them, and dinned my ears with their monotonous
drumming and songs.
It was now necessary to return on board the
schooner, and arrange the mode of disembarkation of
my extensive outfit and stock of goods. As the
| 3
10 THE VOYAGE. GEaarae
mouth of the river had become so unsafe, from the
breaking up of the sandy spit, and as no one knew
the direction of the deep channels—for the whole
breadth of the mouth of the river was one unin-
terrupted line of breakers—we resolved to land
everything on the beach through the surf. But on
some days the breakers were so bad, continuing all
day long without a single lull, that it was impossible
to do anything.
On the 15th of October we made a commencement.
Three native canoes were brought alongside, and
I began by loading them with my most valuable
articles. In one of them I placed all my scientific
instruments, sextants, chronometers, prismatic com-
passes, barometers, &c., besides five large Geneva
musical boxes (intended as presents to the native
chiefs), and five barrels of salt meat, a case containing
1,500 rifle bullets, a box of medicines, and many other
things. | Captain Vardon and myself embarked in
this boat on account of the value of its cargo, and
away we went amidst the cheers of the dusky
paddlers.
The two other canoes took the surf first. The
rollers were terrific, and the boats seemed buried in-
the seething spray without a chance of coming out of
it safely, but they reached the shore without up-
setting. The captain himself had misgivings as to
the result of our venture. I advised him to put on
his life-belt, but in the excitement of the moment
he neglected the precaution. We now came near the
ranges of breakers, and our only chance of safety was
to ride on the back of one of those smoother rollers
Cuap. 1. BOAT UPSET BY THE BREAKERS. . 11
which from time to time swelled up and arched
- gently over, but with headlong speed, towards the
shore. We had not, however, the good fortune to be
borne by it in safety; our boatmen, in their great
anxiety to avoid a mishap, were not venturesome
enough, they waited a few moments too long. In-
stead of carrying us onward, the huge wave broke
over our canoe, upsetting it and hurling us to a
distance away from it. Heavy, short breakers now
succeeded each other with awful rapidity; the sea all
around became one mass of foaming billows; and in
a few moments we were almost exhausted with the
buffetings we received. The negroes who had formed
the crew of the canoe, most of whom were my own
“boys,” companions of my former expedition, swam
towards me, and with great exertions kept me from
sinking. They assisted me to divest myself of my
shoes and my coat, the pockets of which were filled
with small weighty articles, and as I became weaker,
through the effects of drinking so much salt water,
they swam under me and buoyed me up with their
own bodies. I caught a glimpse of poor Captain
Vardon at a distance from me, struggling with the
waves; the men had devoted all their attentions to
me, so I shouted to some of them to go and help him.
Meantime, several unsuccessful attempts were made
by the negroes ashore to launch canoes to the rescue,
but they were all swamped one after the other. No-
thing could be done until the tumult of the waves
subsided ; for after the breakers have spent their fury
there is usually a lull, and it is during these lulls,
which are, however, very uncertain and: limited in
12 , THE VOYAGE. Cuap. J.
their duration, that the only chances occur of reaching
this difficult shore. When the sea is rough, in the
height of the dry season, these lulls do not occur for
days together. A favourable moment at length
arrived ; a canoe reached us, and we were delivered
from our perilous situation.
This was the fifth time during my experience of
this coast that I had been upset in the breakers, and
saved by the exertions of these faithful negroes.
After landing, the magnitude of the loss which I had
sustained presented itself with full force to my mind.
All my astronomical instruments were spoilt by the
salt water, and with them the power of carrying out
the principal object of my journey. There was no
help for it but to submit to a weary delay, whilst a
second set was sent for from England.
As soon as I reached the shore, I found myself
surrounded by the blacks; the women being con-
spicuous by their sympathies. A general shout arose
—‘‘ Who are the people who are jealous of us, de-
siring the death of our white man?” |
In this country all misfortunes are attributed to
some evil influence, bewitching the sufferer ; and
they referred to the jealousy of some neighbouring
village, the catastrophe from which I had so narrowly
escaped.
CHAPTER II.
THE FERNAND VAZ,
Outlines of the Coast region—The Ogobai—Prairies of the Fernaud Vaz—
The Commi nation—Distribution of the Clans—Chief Ranpano and
his Spells—News of arrival sent to Quengueza, King of the Rembo—
Arrival of Quengueza—-His alarm at the great wealth I had brought
him—A pet Chimpanzee, and his departure for England—Visit to
Elindé and the mouth of the river—My illness—Tenderness of Ran-
pano—King Olenga-Yombi—Grand palaver of Commi chiefs—Permis-
sion granted me to ascend the river into the interior—Visit to my old
place and to Rinkimongani’s grave—Superstition of the natives—The
Bola Ivoga—Rahbolo’s fetich—Departure of the Mentor for England.
In my former work on Equatorial Africa, I gave
my readers a short account of the neighbourhood of
the Fernand Vaz and of the natives who inhabit this
part of the West African coast. The country on
both sides the river, which flows for some forty miles
nearly parallel to the sea-shore, is for the most part
level and of little elevation. Between the river and -
the sea the plain is sandy, and covered with a grassy
and shrubby vegetation, with here and there a cluster
of trees, and often a fringe of palm-trees by the river
side. Travelling southward from the mouth of the
river the “islands” of trees become larger, and unite
to form a considerable forest, which contains many
timber-trees of great size and beauty. (This is to- |
wards Cape St. Catherine, where, between the river |
and the sea, lies the inhospitable jungle which forms
:
14 THE FERNAND VAZ. Cuap. II.
the principal home of the gorilla, of which I shall
have more to say presently.
Towards the north stretches the delta of the great
Ogobai River, a much larger stream than the Fernand
Vaz, with its network of channels densely fringed
with mangrove-trees. The country on the right
bank of the Fernand Vaz is thickly wooded, and
consists principally of mangrove swamps. Thus, on
one side of the broad sluggish stream, lies a tract
of dense woodland, and, on the other, an expanse of
open prairie. The Ogobai is the only West African
river at present known, between the Niger and the
Cofgo, which rises far in the interior and breaks
through the great coast range of mountains. One
of the channels from the Ogobai combines with the
Fernand. Vaz a few miles from its mouth. About
forty miles up stream the bed of the Fernand Vaz
becomes contracted; higher up, wooded hills hem
it in on both sides—the portals of the mountainous
and picturesque African interior, and the river
changes its name to Rembo, meaning the River ‘par
excellence.
The prairies of the Fernand Vaz are not unhealthy.
During the dry season, from June to September, a
steady, strong, and cool sea-breeze blows over the
land, without, however, raising dunes or sandy hil-
locks of the beautiful white sand which forms the
soil of the prairie. All the pools and marshes dry
up; and, before the continued dryness has parched
up the herbage, the aspect is that of an extensive
English park, especially when in the cool hours of
early morning a herd of wild cattle (Bos brachy-
Cuap. II. THE COMMI TRIBE. 15
ceros) or a troop of antelopes, grazing by a wood-
side in the distance, remind one, for the moment,
of the cattle and deer of more cultivated scenes. But
as the dry season continues, the grass dries up or
becomes burnt, and the country then wears a more
desolate aspect: the sky is generally overcast. In-
numerable flocks of marabouts come to lay their eggs
on the prairies; the prodigious number of these birds
and their sudden appearance are quite astounding.
In the wet season the numerous pools and marshy
places afford another attraction, for they teem with
life; and I used to notice, especially, the quantity of
eel-like fishes which appeared in a mysterious manner
almost as soon as the pools began to form, they
having no doubt buried themselves in the mud and
passed the dry season in a dormant state. Flocks of
sand-pipers trot along the sandy margins of the rivers
and pools, and numbers of gulls, terns, shear-waters,
and pelicans enliven the scene with their movements
and their cries. The plain along the banks of the
river is dotted with villages of the great Commi tribe
of negroes, whose plantations, however, are on the
opposite wooded side of the Fernand Vaz, and also
along the banks of the Npoulounay channel, as the
sandy soil of the plain is unfitted for bananas, sugar-
cane, and other cultivated plants and trees. Hach
village is under the patriarchal government of its
hereditary chief, and all are nominally subject to the
king of the tribe residing at Aniambié, formerly a
large village on the sea-shore near Cape St. Cathe-
rine, but now reduced to a few dilapidated huts.
The king lives on his plantation.
16 THE FERNAND VAZ. Cuap. II.
The clan of the Commi to which I was attached
(Abogo) had several villages occupying the banks of
the river for a few miles near its mouth. Its present
chief—at least the chief of the river-side villagers—
was my old friend Ranpano, a slow, phlegmatic negro,
with a pleasant expression of countenance and good
honest intentions. The quality in Ranpano for which
he was most lauded by the negroes was his habit of
going to sleep when he was drunk, instead of quar-
relling. His authority in the clan was less, how-
ever, than that of Olenga-Yombi, the superior. chief
or king of the Commi’ tribe, which inhabits the
Eliva, or Fernand Vaz district.
The distribution of the population comprised in a
clan of these African tribes presents some curious
features; for instance, the people under the imme-
diate authority of Olenga-Yombi live near the sea-
coast, about thirty miles to the south of the villages
of Ranpano; thus they are. separated, by numerous
villages belonging to other clafis, from the rest of
their clan-relations. The head chiefship had _ be-
longed to the family of Olenga-Yombi for many
generations, and it shows the respect these primitive
negroes entertain for hereditary, rank that they con-
tinue to acknowledge the sovereignty of the present
representative of the title, although the villages
under his immediate authority have declined greatly
in population and influence. |
If could succeed in preserving the friendship of
these two men and that of Quengueza, the powerful
chief of Goumbi, eighty miles further up the river,
my objects in coming to the country would most
Guar. Il § CHIEF RANPANO AND HIS SPELLS. 13
likely be attained, and I should not only meet with
no political obstacle, but have all the assistance the
coast tribes could give me to enable me to penetrate
‘into the interior. I had brought goods for the trade-
loving Commi, to exchange with them for the produce
of their country, in order to secure their good will.
The people of the West Coast have no consideration
for any one but a trader, and even amongst them-
selves a man is more respected for his trading goods
than for the territory or land that he possesses. My
first object, therefore, was to settle myself for a few
weeks amongst them, and cultivate the friendship ot
the people and their chiefs. I sent Sholomba up the
river to apprise Quengueza of my arrival, and mean-
time went to pay my court to Ranpano, who had just
arrived from the Ogobai.
I knew that Ranpano had arrived during my
absence on board the schooner, and I felt vexed that
he was not amongst the number of those who waited
for me on the beach when the accident occurred. I
now learnt that he was in a hut at no great distance.
Thither I went, and found the fat, grey-headed old
fellow sitting motionless, with grave countenance,
over a bundle of -fetiches or mondahs, muttering his
spells. I drew myself up, tryme to look haughty, and
- reproached him for his indifference to the fate of his
old friend, knowing, as he did, the dangers of passing
the surf at this season.’ To“all this he remained
immoyeable as a stone, and replied, pointing +6 his
fetiches, ‘My white man die in the water? never,
whilst Iam alive! How could it be?” and, looking
round at his people, he repeated, “‘ How could it be?”
La i iis of .
ey
~—6«A8 THE FERNAND VAZ. Cuap. II,
I let, the old man welcome me in his own way. Even
his gloomy superstition could not in the end destroy
the natural benevolence of his disposition.
One night shortly after my arrival, after I had
retired to bed in the hut lent to me by the negroes,
I heard the sound of the native bugle on the river,
and the songs of a multitude of paddlers. It was
King Quengueza, who had arrived for the purpose of
welcoming me back to his country. I got up at
once, and found at the door the venerable chief;
who received me with open arms, declaring that he
could not go to sleep until he had embraced me, and
~ had assured me of his enduring affection. When
I despatched Sholomba with a canoe to fetch him,
to prevent any doubt on his part, and having nothing
else to send him at the time, I sent him a bottle of
brandy, the sight of which convinced him at once
that it was I and no other. I was truly glad to see -
this noble old chief, the King of the Rembo, or
Upper River. He was a man of great and wide
influence, not only on account of his hereditary rank,
e but also from the energy and dignity of his character.”
He was fond of Europeans, but I could never induce:
him to wear in public the fine European clothes I
gave him; he had a firm idea that he should die if he
put on any dress, as he was still in mourning for his
brother, who had died several years before I made ~
the old chief’s acquaintance. I felt and still feel the -
warmest friendship towards this stern, hard-featured_
old man; and, in recalling his many good qualities, —
cannot bring myself to think of him as an untutored
savage. |
’ Ouap. II. ARRIVAL OF QUENGUEZA. 19
Next day Quengueza brought me as a present a
very fine goat, the largest I had ever seen in Africa.
Goats are regal presents in this part of the continent,
and Quengueza had reared the one he brought with
the express intention of giving it to me, if I should
fulfil my promise of returning from the white man’s
country. Our formal meeting next day was an im-
portant one; and I chose the opportunity to renew
our pact of friendship.
After the first cordial greetings were over, I told
him, in a set speech, how I had been received in
America and Europe, and how his name, and the
great service he had rendered me in enabling me to
penetrate into the far interior, had become widely
known among the nations of white men. I also told
him, in a low whisper, that I had brought from one
of his well-wishers in England a present of a chest-
full of fine things.* The old man rose in his turn,
and made an eloquent reply. With the figurative
politeness of a negro chief, he assured me that his
town, his forests, his slaves, and his wives were mine
(he was quite sincere with regard to the last), that
henceforth he should have no will of his own, but
that I might do whatever I chose, that “my belly
should be full every day,” meaning that I should
never be hungry, and, what was of more importance,
he would assist me with all his influence, and even
accompany me, in my proposed journey towards the
interior, quietly adding, in a tone not to be heard
* My friend, Mr. John Murray, of Albemarle Street, gave me £50 for
the purpose of purchasing suitable presents for Quengueza and other
chiefs,
20 THE FERNAND VAZ, Cuap. If,
by the bystanders, “If you love me, do not say a
word to any one that you have brought me any
presents.”
During the interview I showed Quengueza, amongst
other things, a copy of my book ‘ Adventures in
Equatorial Africa,’ and pointed out to him the plate
which represents him and myself seated in the palaver
house of Goumbi. It delighted him amazingly: he
shouted, “Am I then known so well in the white
man’s country that they make my picture?” Then
turning with an air of ineffable contempt to the
crowd around us, and pointing to the engraving, he
said, “Pigs, look here! what do you know about the
white man? Quengueza is the white man’s friend;
what would you be without me?” He asked me
who made the book. I told him ‘it was the same
good friend who had sent him such beautiful presents.
He did not forget this; and the next day he put into
my hands a handsome leopard’s skin, with the request
that I would send it to the ntangani (white man)
who had put him in a book and sent him so many
things to do him good.
Conforming to his wish for strict secresy regarding
the presents, I appointed a day on which to receive
him alone. He chose an hour in the afternoon when
most of his people were asleep, enjoying the usual
siesta. He came accompanied by a select party of
relatives and wives, for kings in these parts must
always be accompanied by some retinue or escort.
But his Majesty was determined not to let his people
see what I was going to give him. Touching me
gently with his elbow, he told me, in a whisper, to
Caar, II. ‘QUENGUEZA AND HIS PRESENTS. 21
send them all away, and not to let any of them come
in. Entering my hut alone, he closed the door, and,
sitting down, told me that he was ready to see the
presents I isd brought him.
The first thing that I displayed before his as
eyes was the coat of a London beadle, made expressly
to fit his tall figure, and, to please his taste, it was of
the most glaring colours, blue, with yellow fringe,
lined with red. There was also a splendid plush
waistcoat. As his Majesty does not wear trowsers
those articles did not form’ part of the suit, any more
than did a shirt.
“Let us try them on,” said the king, in a ei:
but, before doing so, he went to the door to make
sure that no one was peeping in. Having put on
the robes, and taking in his hand the beadle’s staff,
which I had not omitted to bring also, he asked for a
looking-glass, in which he admired himself vastly ;
whilst I completed the costume by placing on his
head my opera-hat, which, to his utter astonishment,
I had caused to spring up from: its flattened state.
After surveying himself for some time in the glass,
with evident satisfaction, he drew himself up to his
full height, and strutted up and down the room, “as
happy as a king.” Having indulged his vanity for
a few minutes, he replaced in the chest the various
articles of this imperial costume, and proceeded to
inspect the other presents. |
I had myself brought a large amount of presents
and goods for the old chief, and besides these I had
many valuable articles of European workmanship,
some of which were purchased with money given mc
22 , THE FERNAND VAZ. Cuap. IL
by another friend* in England to lay out in presents
for African. chiefs, which I thought I could not better
bestow than on the King of the Rembo. Amongst
them were a quantity of silks and fine cotton goods,
silver knives, forks, and spoons, gunpowder, trade
guns, kettles, and beads for his numerous wives. All
were packed in chests secured with lock and key;
the chests being an important part of the donation, ©
for the propert of an African chief, in this part, is
estimated in slaves, wives, and chests. The sight of
all this wealth almost dumbfoundered the old man.
When I commenced showing the contents of the
chests to him he stopped me, and said—“ Do you
love me, Chaillie? Then do not tell the people what
you have given me, or they will bewitch me.” There
was an internal struggle between avarice and fear
expressed in his countenance. His fear of witcheraft
was a great defect in his character as a chief, for it
had led to the depopulation of Goumbi, his capital on
the Rembo. Going to the door, he looked out to
see that no one was listening; then he knelt down,
and clasped my feet with his hands, and, with the stern
lineaments of his face distorted by fear, begged me
again to keep secret the account of the wealth I had
given him. No sooner had he left me than I heard
him declaring to his people that the white man had
brought him nothing. As I approached, instead of
being disconcerted by my appearance on the scene,
he repeated the same statement, in a louder voice,
but looked towards me at the same time with an
expression of countenance that was clearly meant to
* Henry Johnson, Esq., of 89, Crutched Friars.
Cap. II, A PET CHIMPANZEE. 93
implore me not to say a word to the contrary. The
people were smiling all the while, for they knew
better, and were well acquainted with the ways of
their beloved old chief. He would not remove the
chests to his canoe in the day-time, but came at night,
on the eve of his departure, when every one was
asleep, and stealthily took them himself, with the aid
of two slaves, down to the water-side.
In a few days the vessel was unloaded, and my
goods stored in several huts which were secured only
by a door tied with a rope of lianas to the bamboo wall.
My property, however, was respected, and the honest
Commi people did not rob me of a single article.
Quengueza returned to Goumbi, and I gradually
inured myself again to the climate and ways of the
country. I made short excursions in various direc-
tions, visited numerous petty chiefs, besides receiving
- visits from others, and stimulated them and their
people to the collection of produce, that Captain
Vardon might reload his vessel and return to Eng-
land. As I have described the coast country at length ©
in my former book, a few incidents only of my stay
need be recorded here, together with some stray
notes on the natural history, before I commence the
- narrative of my expedition into the interior.
On the lst of November a negro from a neighbour-
ing village brought me a young male chimpanzee
about three years old, which had been caught in the
woods on the banks of the Npoulounay about three
months previously. ‘Thomas, for so I christened my
little protégé, was a tricky little rascal, and afforded
24. THE FERNAND VAZ. Onap. II.
me no end of amusement; he was, however, very
tame, like all young chimpanzees. Unfortunately
Thomas was lame in one hand, several of the fingers
having been broken and healed up in a distorted —
position. This was caused by his having been mal-
treated by the village dogs, who were sent in chase
of him one day when he escaped from his captors and
ran into the neighbouring woods. I had Tom tied
by a cord to a pole in the verandah of my hut, and
fed him with cooked plantains and other food from
my own table. He soon got to prefer cooked to raw
food, and rejected raw plantains whenever they were
offered to him. The difference in tameability between
the young chimpanzee and the young gorilla is a fact
which I- have confirmed by numerous observations,
and I must repeat it here as it was one of those points
which were disputed in my former work. A young
chimpanzee becomes tame and apparently reconciled
to captivity in two or three days after he is brought
from the woods. The young gorilla I have never
yet seen tame in confinement, although I have had
four of them in custody, while still of very early age.
One day I witnessed an act of Master Thomas
which seemed to me to illustrate the habits of his
species in the wild state. A few days after he came’
into my possession I bought a domestic cat for my
house; as soon as the young chimpanzee saw it he
flew in alarm to His pole and clambered up it, the
hair of his body becoming erect and his eyes bright
with excitement. In a moment recovering himself
he came down, and rushing on the cat, with one of
his feet seized the nape of the animal, and with the
Csap. Il. THE CHIMPANZEE SENT TO ENGLAND. 25
other pressed on its back, as if trying to break its
neck. Not wishing to lose my cat, I interfered and
saved its life. The negroes say that the chimpanzee
attacks the leopard in this way, and I have no doubt,
from what I saw, that their statement is correct.
My pet preserved his good health and increased
in intelligence and gentleness until the departure
of Captain Vardon for England. I then sent him
home, and on his arrival he was deposited by my
friend in the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, where, I
dare say, very many of my readers have seen him, and
have laughed at his amusing tricks. I am credibly
informed that his education at the Palace has become
so far advanced that he understands what is going on
when his own “cartes de visite” are sold. A feint is
sometimes made of carrying off one without paying
for it, but Thomas rushes forward, screaming, to the
length of his tether, to prevent the irregular trans-
action, and does not cease his noisy expressions of
dissatisfaction until the money is paid down.
Whilst waiting for the erection of a new house and
store-rooms, I made several little trips down the river,
visiting the Commi settlements and examining the
altered state of the river banks. The alterations in
the mouth of the Fernand Vaz I found had arisen
from the currents of the river and the sea having
broken through the long sandy spit, making the
embouchure broader but more dangerous, becaiise
portions of the spit had been converted into sand-
banks with but a small depth of water over them;
and, the sand having shifted, no one knew the situa-
4 se ae
26 THE FERNAND VAZ. | Cuap. II.
tion of the deep channel. Old Sangala, the chief of
Elindé at the mouth of the river, was dead; and his
heir, the present chief, who had taken the name of his
predecessor, was a drunkard, and was held in very
little estimation. I missed, near the river's mouth,
_ the beautiful little island on which I used to shoot so
many water birds, and where, as also on the sandy
spit, the grotesque and large crane MMycteria senegal-
ensis used to be found, together with thousands of sea-
birds of many species. The widows of old Sangala
had all married again; but they gave me a warm
welcome, especially the old kondé (head wife or
Queen) who cooked my food for me whilst I stayed,
and became eloquent in recalling the events of the
good old times when Sangala was’ alive. Her hus-
band showed no jealousy at this discourse, for here
widows are allowed freely to praise their former
husbands. ;
Death had been busy in other places besides Elindé.
At the village of Makombé I found that the chief
was dead, and that Ilougou, his heir, who had helped
me to build my former settlement of Washington, had
been accused of having caused his death by witch-
craft, and forced to drink the poison ordeal, which
ended in his own life being sacrificed. Similar scenes
had been enacted in other villages. It is dangerous
in this unhappy country to be the heir of any man
who sickens and dies.
The day after my return from visiting the mouth
of the river, I was seized with a severe fit of fever,
which laid me prostrate for four days. I was-obliged
to send on board the Mentor for a supply of calomel
Cuap. II, P MY ILLNESS. Py
and jalap, as my medicine chest had been lost in the
upsetting of the canoe, a box of quinine only having
been saved. I was touched during my illness by the
great sympathy shown to me by the natives. The
most perfect silence was observed round the hut
where I lay, day and night; tam-tamming, singing and
dancing were forbidden, lest they should disturb me;
and the old chief, Ranpano, came and sat every day
for hours together by my bed-side. He very seldom
spoke, but his countenance manifested the anxiety
which the good old fellow felt. He would sometimes
say “Chaillie! Chaillie! you must not be ill while
you stay in my village. None among my people are
glad to see you ill. I love you, for you came to me,
and I have no better friend in the world.” When he
went out he used to mutter words which I did not
understand, but which were probably invocations to
some spirit to watch over me. Old Ranpano had
some strange notions about spirits good and _ bad,
which I think were peculiar to him. One day he
took it into his head that he should die if he entered
my hut, for he had been told that some one having
an aniemba (a witch) had made a mondah, and had
put it under the threshold of my door, so that, should .
he enter my hut, the witch would go into him and he.
~ would die.
No persuasion of mine could induce the old chief
to come into my hut, and after a time I got angry
_ with him, and told him that he ought not to refuse to
come and see me. The good old chief immediately
sent for some doctors, who, of course, at once declared
that it was true that some one wanted to bewitch him,
28 THE FERNAND VAZ. ° Cuap. II,
and had. put a mondah at my door to kill him. But
_ they said that it could be removed now that the
people knew that there was one.
Immediately the ceremonies for banishing the
witch began. For three consecutive days they danced
almost incessantly, and invoked the good spirits; and
one fine morning, whilst I was occupied in writing
inside the hut, unaware that any one was approaching,
Ranpano came to my door, fired a gun, and entered
the hut in a great hurry, muttermg invocations and
curses ; he then became easier in his manners, having
as he thought, thus cleared the moral atmosphere.
An event of great importance in relation to my
expedition occurred on the 22nd of November and
following ‘days. During my absence in Europe the
assembled chiefs of the Commi clans under the pre-
sidency of King Olenga-Yombi (who had now taken
the name of Rigoundo) had passed a law to the effect
that no Mpongwé (the trading tribe of the Gaboon)
or white man should be allowed to ascend the river
Fernand Vaz or the Ogobai. It is the universal rule
among the coast tribes of West Africa to prevent, if
possible, all strangers from penetrating into the inte-
rior, even if it be only to the next tribe, through fear
that they should lose the exclusive privilege of trading
with these tribes. Indeed every tribe tries to pre-
vent all strangers from communicating with the tribe
next inadvance of them. The spirit of commercial and
political monopoly, so natural to the heart of uncivi-
lized as well as semi-civilized man, is the cause of
this; and the rule had only been broken through in
Cup. II. KING OLENGA-YOMBI. oe
_ my own case, on my former journey, owing to my
popularity among the chiefs and the powerful. friend-
ship of Quengueza. It was now my aim to get this
new law repealed, at least as far as I was concerned ;
and on the 22nd of November King Olenga-Yombi
came in person to my village on the Fernand Vaz, to
hold a palaver thereupon.
Kine Olenga-Yombi still retamed his old habits
of drunkenness, which I have described in ‘ Equatorial
Africa ;’ and although it was early in the morn-
ing when he came to see me, he was already fuddled
with palm wine. I made him a present of a very
long blue coat, the tails of which dangled about his
ankles when he walked, and a light yellow waistcoat
with gilt buttons; with these he strutted about with
the true pride of an African king, and they seemed
to please him quite as much as the muskets and many
other more useful articles which I added to the gift.
A single word from Olenga-Yombi might have hin-
dered me from passing up the river; for, although in
- council the head chiefs of these tribes have no more
influence than the other speakers, they have the
power of veto in many things. There is a certain
spirit of loyalty amongst these Africans which leads
them not to disobey a positive prohibition by the
superior chief, although he may not have the physical
power to enforce obedience. It was important there-
fore for me to conciliate this drunken negro chief.
The palaver was held in the council-house of the
village, a large open shed, chairs being placed for
the principal speakers. There was a Mpongwé man
present who had recently come from the Gaboon, en-
5 ee THE FERNAND VAZ. Cudp. IL
trusted by one of the traders there with about eight
hundred pounds worth of goods. When the palaver
began, I took care that my own case and that of the
Mponegwé should be treated of separately. The result
was most satisfactory. I was allowed the right of
the river, whilst the Mpongwé was refused. Long
speeches. were made, and the king finally issued his
decree that whatever village allowed the Mpongwé
trader to pass up the river should be burnt and the
plantations destroyed. The speakers argued that I
did not go into the interior to trade, but to shoot
animals and bring away the skins and _ bones.
“Truly,” they said, “we do not know what our
Chaillie has in his stomach to want such things, but
we must let him go.” Orders were given to the ©
Makaga to see that the law was executed; and the
king concluded by assuring me that not only would
no resistance be offered to my progress, but that, when
I was ready to depart, he would send some of his own
slaves to accompany me. He told me, when we were
alone afterwards, that I was his “big white man.”
“What you say,” he continued, “ we do, for we know
it is for our good.” He wished me to go and esta-
blish a factory at his village near Cape St. Catherine,
saying that he had made a law that whoever robbed
a white man should have his ears cut off, and that
his people, who were formerly great thieves, did not
now steal any longer. On the 25th he departed,
after having made me promise to visit him at his
village. |
On the 27th of November I paid a visit to th
ruins of my old establishment, “ Washington,” and
Cuar.IL _ VISIT TO RINKIMONGANTS GRAVE. ie
to the burial-place of my. faithful guardian Rinki-
mongani, which were a mile distant from my new
settlement. I felt the loss of the honest old fellow
‘more than ever, for the man who now filled the same
office, Malonga, the brother of Ranpano, was a tricky
knave, whom I disliked thoroughly. The natives
told me that Rinkimongani was continually talking
of me during my absence, counting the seasons as
they rolled past, and carefully guarding the house
and gardens, in the firm hope that I should soon
return. It was universally believed, of course, that
he had been bewitched through jealousy of my
friendship for him, and that foul play had been used
to cause his death.
I was accompanied by one of my boys to the
burial-ground. The road to it from my place led
across the prairie and through a few groves of trees
to the margins of one of those pretty islands of wood,
which diversify the sandy grass-land of the Fernand
Vaz. The cemetery was recognisable from a distance
by the numerous poles fixed in the ground. Rinki-
mongani’s body had been placed in a box or coffin,
for the Commi people are now so far advanced in
civilisation that they have adopted the white man’s
customs in this respect; it is only, however, the head
men who are laid in boxes, and they are not interred
in the earth, but laid according to the old native
habit on the surface, or inserted a small depth into
the ground. The wood of my poor old friend’s coffin
was decayed, and I could see his mouldering bones
inside, together with the remains of his valuables
that were buried with him, consisting of jugs and
BO. THE FERNAND VAZ. Cuap. II.
pots, a quantity of brass buttons, the remains of a
eoat, and an old umbrella-stick, which was all that
was left of this article, a present from me, and which
he always carried about with him. All around were
skeletons and bones crumbling to powder, the frag-
ments of mats and cloth which had served the
corpses as their winding-sheets, and broken relics
which had been reverently buried with the dead.
It was a place that one might moralise in—the
humble, fragile grave-yard of a tribe of poor negroes,
which ee ee in their eyes quite as much ag our
proud monuments of stone that will also in their
turn disappear.
Returning to the old settlement I saw the house
in which Tunleenongia died. It was still standing
close to my own place, which had been partly de-
stroyed by fire in the burning of the prairie. All
the out-buildings and huts of my men were com-
plete ruins, but the old man’s house was in tolerable ’
preservation. The faith of Rinkimongani in my
return had overcome his superstitious scruples; for
every negro believed the settlement had been be- —
witched, and wondered at the old man’s folly and
obstinacy in remaining there after so many had
died. It will be remembered that the place was once
abandoned on account of its evil reputation during
my former residence. As I wandered about the
ruins I thought of the many happy hours I had
spent here in the days of my Natural History en-
thusiasm, when I was amassing my collections, and
the addition of a new species was the coveted reward
of a long day’s hunt. The birds which used to build
ee ee
Cuap. IT. THE BOLA IVOGA. 33
their nests by hundreds in the surrounding trees had
forsaken the place; and in the rank grass near the
river I saw a huge python coiled up, like an evil
‘spirit on the watch. When I told my companion
that I regretted not having returned to the old spot,
he looked at me with horror expressed in his coun-
tenance. The place was thought to be bewitched
and accursed. |
All the fixtures and household property of Rin-
kimongani remained intact, for the bola ivoga, or
breaking up of the mourning-time and division of
his effects,* had not yet been celebrated. Contrary
to African custom, the wives of the deceased had
deserted the place before the bola ivoga, on account
of its bad reputation. They ought to have remained
here in chaste widowhood until the proper time had
arrived for the ceremony (generally a year or two
after the death of the husband), when the wives,
slaves, and other property of the deceased, are
divided amongst his rightful heirs, and the house
burnt to the ground.
Soon after this the building of my new palm-
wood house approached completion, in the little
village which I had chosen for my residence, and
which I had bought of Rabolo, a petty chief. Nothing
remained to be put up except the verandah, but an
obstacle existed to its erection which my men dared
not remove. This was a formidable mondah or fetich,
which my friend Rabolo had made in his village
before I purchased it, and which I now found was
* See, for a description of this custom, ‘ Adventures in Equatorial
Africa,’ p. 239.
34 THE FERNAND VAZ. Cuap. II,
close to the site of my house, at what was formerly —
the entrance to the single street of the village.
Almost all the villages in this country have some-
thing of this kind at their entrance, constructed to
prevent the entry of witcheraft and death, or to -
bring good luck to the inhabitants. Rabolo’s talis-
man was considered to be a very effective one, for
since the village was established, twelve dry seasons
ago, no one had died there. This was no great
wonder, since there were only fifteen inhabitants
in the place.
My builders came to me to say they dared not
remove Rabolo’s fetich, and prayed me not to touch
it until Rabolo came, otherwise there would be a big
palaver. It seemed likely I should have some diffi-
culty, for Rabolo had already spent the purchase-
money of his village, distributing the goods amongst
his wives and numerous fathers-in-law. However,
I was firm, and when Rabolo came I was peremptory
in demanding that the rubbish should be cleared
away. He submitted at last, and commenced to cut
down the bushes which covered the talisman, and
dig up the mysterious relics. The first thing that I
saw turned up was the skull of a chimpanzee buried
in the sand; then came the skull of a man, probably
an ancestor of Rabolo, and a mass of broken plates,
glasses, and crockery of all sorts, which had been
placed there to keep company with the mondah. He
then removed the two upright poles with cross-bar
and talismanic creeper growing’ at their foot, which
constituted the protecting portal of the village, the
negroes all the while standing around with looks of
Cuap. II. RABOLO’S FETICH. 35
blank amazement. It is the belief of the negioes
that, as long as the creeping-plant keeps alive, so
long will the fetich retain its efficacy. , RS
SS
| f js
U7
g
IPI, OR SCALY ANT-EATER.
(Pholidotus Africanus.)
Cap. III. THE PANGOLIN OR IPI. 43
minent abdomen, retreating foreheads and projecting
muzzles—they were more like animals than men and
women. A Portuguese slave-schooner had just left
the coast for the Island of St.Thomas with seventy-
eight slaves on board. The king, as well as the chiefs
and people, never sell the slaves they have inherited,
and I saw some in this village who had lived there
fifty years. The children of slaves, also, are not sold.
The sale of inherited slaves is contrary to the customs
of the country, and, to’ use their own expression,
would bring shame upon them.
The next morning I went with a number of men
in search of the ipi.. From the description given
nd
me by the natives I was sure that I had never before
met with this species, and had some hope of its being
new to science. The pangolin. genus (Manis of
zoologists) to which: it belongs is a very singular
group of animals. They are ant-eaters, like the
Myrmecophaga of South America, being like them
quite destitute of teeth, and having a long extensile
tongue, the extremity of which is covered with a
glutinous secretion, by means of which they catch
their prey. But, whilst the South American ant-
eaters are clothed with hair, like ordinary mammalian
animals, the pangolins have an armour of large scales,
implanted in the skin of the upper surface of the body
from the head to the tip of the tail, and imbricated or
overlapping, like the slates on the roof of a house.
The animals look, at first sight, like curious heavy-
bodied lizards, but they have warm blood, and nourish
their young like the rest of the mammalia.
The ipi lives in burrows-in the earth, or sometimes
44. SEARCH FOR THE GORILLA AND THE IPI. Cuap. ID.
in the large hollows of colossal trunks of trees which
have fallen to the ground. The burrows that I saw
were in light soil on the slope of a hill. There are
two holes to each gallery, one for entrance and the
other for exit. This is necessary, on account of the
animal being quite incapable of curving its body
sideways, so that it cannot turn itself in its burrow.
The bodies of pangolins are very flexible vertically,
that is, they can roll themselves up into a ball, and
coil and uncoil themselves very readily, but they
cannot turn round within the confined limits of
their burrows. In hunting them we had first to
ascertain, by the footmarks, or more readily by the
marks left by the trail of the tail, which was the
entrance and which the exit of the burrow, and then,
making a trap at the one end, drive them out by the
smoke of a fire at the other; afterwards securing
them with ropes. The freshness of the tracks told
us that the animal had entered its burrow the pre-
vious evening; for I must add shill the ipi is
nocturnal in its habits, sleeping in its burrow
throughout the day. When it wanders at night the
natives say that they can hear the rattling of its
large scales.
A long and wearisome day’s hunt produced no
fruit. We wandered over hill and dale through the
forest and streams, leaving the beaten paths, and
struggling for hours through the tangled maze, with
no other result than to tear our clothes to rags, and
cover ourselves with scratches from the thorns and
cutting edges of sword-like grasses which grew in
many places. I nevertheless persevered, searching
Cuap. III. RESULT OF THE IPI HUNT. 45
the whole country for many miles round, and had, at
any rate, the melancholy satisfaction of feeling that
I was hardening myself for any amount of endurance
that might be required in my future explorations.
At length, on the 5th of March, I was rewarded
by finding two specimens, an adult female and a
young one; the skins and skeletons of both I pre-
served and afterwards sent to the British Museum.
The adult measured about four feet and a half from
the head to the tip of the tail. The flesh of the ipi
is good eating. Those that I captured were very
lean, but I was informed by the natives that they
are sometimes very fat. I found, on dissection, no-
thing but the remains of ants in their stomachs. The
tail is very thick, and makes a large track on the
ground in walking.
On my return to England I found, as I had
expected, that my ipl was a new species; but it
appears that, some time after the arrival of my
two specimens, another was bought from a dealer,
who said that it had come from Dr. Baikie, having
been found by him in the neighbourhood of the
River Niger. It has been described by Dr. Gray
in the ‘ Proceedings of the Zoological Society, April,
1865, under the name of Pholidotus Africanus, so
that it belongs to a different genus from the rest
of the African species of these curious animals, -
which are ranged under Manis. It is interesting
to find that the animal is more nearly allied to an
Indian form than to the other African pangolins.
My adult skeleton fortunately turned out a fine and
perfect specimen, the largest yet known, and it may
:
46 SEARCH FOR THE GORILLA AND THE IPI. Cuap. II.
now be seen mounted in the collection of the British
Museum.*
My first journey to the gorilla district having been
unsuccessful in its main object, namely, the capture
of a gorilla (although I obtained several skins and
skeletons), I resolved to pay it a second visit. The
16th of June saw me again on my way thither.
On the 17th I diverged from my route to visit
my friend Mburu Shara, a negro chief, whose vil-
lage was situated on the right or eastern bank of
the Fernand Vaz, just opposite to the landing-place
of Aniambié. Mburu Shara was a younger man
than African chiefs usually are, but he was one of
the finest fellows in the country, and well-disposed
towards the white man. I spent three most delightful
days at his place, which I had never before visited.
Soon after I landed, the villagers came forth, laid
mats at my feet, and piled up their presents -of
plantains; a fat goat was given to me, and my
* The specimen of Pholidotus Africanus on which the deseriber of the
species founds his measurements, and the skull of which he figured, I have
ascertained, by my own examination in the British Museum, is not the
one said to be received from the Niger, but the specimen which I sent.
The Niger specimen is very much smaller. I mention this, because
Dr. Gray, doubtless through inadvertency, has omitted to mention my
name at all in connection with the species. This omission is important
only from the circumstance that the locality of the animal, “ Fernand
Vaz,” is also left out; the localities and ranges of species being always
considered, and very rightly, important facts in zoological science. I
presume there is a possibility of a mistake in the locality of the Niger
specimen ; however, I may as well mention that I know that a third speci-
men of the ipi was taken by the natives whilst I was at the Fernand Vaz,
exactly the size of the one described as coming from the Niger: but the
natives asking too high a price for it, I would not purchase it, and it came
into the possession of Captain Holder, the master of the Cambria, a vessel
trading to Bristol; where the specimen is at present I do not know, but it
may possibly be the one Dr. Gray purchased for the British Museum.
Cuap. Ii. NEW VARIETY OF CHIMPANZEE. 47
reception altogether was most hearty. I hunted in
the neighbourhood during my stay. The country
was varied in its surface, prairie land and scattered
woods. The woods were inhabited by a good many
chimpanzees, but the gorilla was not known in the
district. We succeeded in killing an adult female
chimpanzee of a variety new to me, and called by
the natives Nkengo Nschiego. It is distinguished
from the common form of the chimpanzee by its face
being yellow. All the specimens of the old bald-
headed chimpanzee (Nschiego Mbouvé) that I have
found had black faces, except when quite young,
when the face is white and not yellow, as I have de-
scribed in ‘ Equatorial Africa ;’ and the common chim-
panzee, although yellow-faced when young, becomes
eradually black as it grows old. There are, there-
fore, three varieties of the chimpanzee distinguished
by the negroes of Equatorial Africa. I do not here
include the Kooloo Kamba.* I was extremely sorry
at not being able to obtain further specimens of this
last-mentioned ape on my present journey; it appears
to be very rare. I was told that the Nschiego
Mbouvé was also found in these woods.
I found here also several of the bowers made by
the Nkengo Nschiego of branches of trees, and they
were somewhat different in form from those I found
in my former journey. I had two of them cut
down, and sent them to the British Museum.
They are formed at a height of twenty or thirty feet
in the trees by the animals bending over and inter-
twining a number of the weaker boughs, so as to
* Ficured in ‘Adventures in Equatorial Africa,’ pp. 270 and 360.
48 SEARCH FOR THE GORILLA AND THE IPI. Cuap. Ill.
form bower, under which they can sit, protected from
the rains by the masses of foliage thus entangled
together, some of the boughs being so bent that they
form convenient seats; on them were found remains
of nuts and berries.
I found Olenga-Yombi at his slave-plantation,
drunk as usual. His head wife, thinking to appease
. my wrath at the vile habits of her husband, told me
the following curious story of the origin of the vice.
_ When he was quite a child his father used to put him
in a big bag which he had made for the purpose, and
carry him to the top of a high tree, where he plied
him with the intoxicating palm wine. Every day he
repeated the dose until the child came to like palm
wine better than its mother’s milk, whereat the father
was greatly delighted, because he wished him to be
renowned, when he was grown up, for the quantity
of palm wine he could drink. “So you see, Chaillie,”
she said, “ you must not be angry with him, for it is
not his own fault.” The wife, however, promised he
should keep sober whilst I was with him, and the
slaves, amusingly enough, in the presence of the king,
declared they would throw away every calabash of
wine that should be brought to his Majesty. —
I had not been at the village long before news came
that gorillas had been recently seen in the neighbour-
hood of a plantation only half a mile distant. Harly
in the morning of the 25th of June I wended my
way thither, accompanied by one of my boys, named -
Odanga. The plantation was a large one, and
situated on very broken ground, surrounded by the
virgin forest. It was a lovely morning; the sky was
Onap. III. GROUP OF GORILLAS. 49
I aindst cloudless, and all around was still as death,
except the slight rustling of the tree-tops moved by
the gentle land breeze. When I reached the place, I
had first to pick my way through the maze of tree-
stumps and half-burnt logs by the side of a field of
cassada. I was going quietly along the borders of
this, when I heard, in the grove of plantain-trees
towards which I was walking, a great crashing noise,
like the breaking of trees. I immediately hid myself
behind a bush, and was soon gratified with the sight
of a female gorilla; but before I had time to notice
its movements, a second and third emerged from the
masses of colossal foliage ; at length no less than four
came into view.
They were all busily engaged in tearing down the
larger trees. One of the females had a young one
following her. I had an excellent opportunity of
watching the movements of the impish-looking band.
The shaggy hides, the protuberant abdomens, the
hideous features of these strange creatures, whose
forms so nearly resemble man, made up a picture like
a vision in some morbid dream. In destroying a tree,
they first grasped the base of the stem with one of
their feet and then with their powerful arms pulled it
down, a matter of not much difficulty with so loosely-
formed a stem as that of the plantain. They then set
upon the juicy heart of the tree at the bases of the
leaves, and devoured it with great voracity. While
eating they made a kind of clucking noise, ex-
pressive of contentment. Many trees they destroyed
apparently out of pure mischief. Now and then they
stood still and looked around. Once or twice they
50 SEARCH FOR THE GORILLA AND THE IPI. Cuap. IL
seemed on the point of starting off in alarm, but re
covered themselves and continued their work. Gra-
dually they got nearer to the edge of the dark forest,
and finally disappeared. I was so intent on watching
them, that I let go the last chance of Bhootinsy one
almost before I became aware of it.
The next day I went again with Odanga to the
same spot. I had no expectation of seeing gorillas in
the same plantation, and was carrying a light shot
gun, having given my heavy double-barrelled rifle to
the boy to carry. The plantation extended over two
hills, with a deep hollow between, planted with sugar
cane. Before I had crossed the hollow I saw on the
opposite slope a monstrous gorilla, standing erect
and looking directly towards me. Without turning
my face I beckoned to the boy to bring me my rifle, .
but no rifle came,—the little coward had bolted, and
I lost my chance. The huge beast stared at me for
about two minutes, and then, without uttering any
ery, moved off to the shade oe the forest, running
nimbly on his hands and feet.
As my readers may easily imagine, I had excellent
opportunity of observing, during these two days,
the manner in which the gorillas walked when in
open ground, They move along with great rapidity
- and on all fours, that is, with the knuckles of their
hands touching the ground. Artists, in representing
the gorilla walking, generally make the arms too
much bowed outwards, and the elbows too much —
bent ; this gives the figures an appearance of heaviness —
and awkwardness. When the gorillas that I watched
left the plantain-trees, they moved off at a great pace
Cua. IIL. A LIVE GORILLA CAUGHT. 51
over the ground, with their arms extended straight
forwards towards the ground, and moving rapidly.
I may mention also. that having now opened the
stomachs of several freshly-killed gorillas I have
never found anything but vegetable matter in them.
When I returned to Nkongon Mboumba I found
there my old friend Akondogo, chief of one of the
Commi villages, who had just returned from the Ngobi
country, a little further south. To my great surprise
and pleasure, he had brought for me a living gorilla,
a young one, but the largest I had ever seen captured
alive. Like Joe, the young male whose habits in
confinement I described: in ‘Equatorial Africa,’ this
one showed the most violent and ungovernable dis-
position. He tried to bite every one who came near
him, and was obliged to-be secured by a forked stick
closely applied to the back of his-neck. This mode of
imprisoning these animals is a very improper one if
the object be to keep them alive and to tame them,
but, unfortunately, in this barbarous country, we had
not the materials requisite to build a strong cage.
The injury caused to this one by the forked stick
eventually caused his death. As I had some more
hunting to do, I left the animal in charge of Akon-
dogo until he should have an opportunity of sending
it to me on the Fernand Vaz.
I cannot avoid relating in this place a very curious
instance of a strange and horrid form of monomania
which is sometimes displayed by these primitive
negroes. It was related to me so circumstantially by
Akondogo, and so well confirmed by others, that I
52 | SEARCH FOR THE GORILLA AND THE IPI. Cuap. IIL.
cannot help fully pee in all the principal facts
of the case.
Poor Akondogo said that he had had plenty of
trouble in his day; that a leopard had killed two of
his men, and that he had a great many palavers to
settle on account of these deaths. |
Not knowing exactly what he meant, I said’ to
him, “ Why did you not make a trap to catch the
leopard?” ‘To my astonishment, he replied, “The
leopard was not of the kind you mean. It was a
man who had changed himself into a leopard, and
then became a man again.” I said, “ Akondogo, I
will never believe your story. How can a man be
turned into a leopard?” He again asserted that it
was true, and gave me the following history :—
Whilst: he was in the woods with his people, gather-
ing india-rubber, one of his men disappeared, and,
notwithstanding all their endeavours, nothing coil
be found of him but a quantity of blood. The next
day another man disappeared, and in searching for’
him more blood was found. * All the people got
alarmed, and Akondogo sent for a great Doctor to
drink the mboundou, and solve the mystery of these
two deaths. To the horror and astonishment of the
old chief, the doctor declared it was Akondogo’s own
child (his nephew and heir), Akosho, who had killed
the two men. Akosho was sent for, and, when asked
by the chief, answered that it was truly he who had
committed the murders; that he could not help it, for
he had turned into a leopard, and his heart longed
for blood; and that after each deed he had turned into
aman again. Akondogo loved his boy so much that
_ Cuap. IIT. HORRID FORM OF MONOMANTA. ay)
he would not believe his own confession, until the boy
took him to a place in the forest where lay the two
bodies, one with the head cut off, and the other with
the belly torn open. Upon this, Akondogo gave
orders to seize the lad. He was bound with ropes,
taken to the village, and there tied in a horizontal -
position to a post, and burnt slowly to death, all the
people standing by until he expired.
I must say, the end of the story seemed to me too
_ horrid to listen to. I shuddered, and was ready to
curse the race that was capable of committing such
acts. But on careful inquiry, I found it was a case
of monomania in the boy Akosho, and that he really
was the murderer of the two men. It is probable
that the superstitious belief of these morbidly imagi-
native Africans in the transformation of men into
leopards, being early instilled into the minds of their
children, is the direct cause of murders being com-
mitted under the influence of it. The boy himself, as
well as Akondogo and all the people, believed he had
really turned into a leopard, and the cruel punish-
ment was partly in vengeance for witchcraft, and
partly to prevent the committal of more crimes by
the boy in a similar way, for, said they, the man has Y
a spirit of witchcraft. | yi
The natives of all the neighbouring country were \
now so well aware that I wanted live gorillas, and
was willing to give a high price for them, that many
were stimulated to search with great perseverance ;
the good effects of this were soon made evident.
One day as I was quietly dinmg with Captain
54 SEARCH FOR THE GORILLA AND THE IPI. Cuap. III.
Holder, of the Cambria (a vessel just arrived
from England), one of my men came in with
the startling news that three live gorillas had been
brought, one of them full grown. I had not long
to wait; in they came. First, a very large adult
female, bound hand and foot; then her female
child, screaming terribly ; ad lastly, a vigorous
young male, also tightly bound. The female had
been ine ananshe secured by the negroes to a strong
stick, the wrists bound to the upper part and the
ankles to the lower, so that she could not reach to
tear the cords with her teeth. It was dark, and
the scene was one so wild and strange that I shall
never forget it. The fiendish countenances of the
Calibanish trio, one of them distorted by pain, for
the mother gorilla was severely wounded, were lit up
by the ruddy glare of native torches. The thought
struck me, what would I not give to have the Satie
in itanaek for a few days! |
The, young male I secured by a chain which I had
in readiness, and gave him henceforth the name of
Tom. We untied his hands and feet; to show his
eratitude for this act of kindness he immediately
made a rush at me, screaming with all his might;
happily the chain was made fast, and I took care
afterwards to keep out of his way. The old mother
gorilla was in an unfortunate plight. She had an
arm broken and a wound in the chest, besides being
dreadfully beaten on the head. She groaned and
roared many times during the night, probably from
pain.
I noticed next day, and on many occasions, that ithe
Cuap. III. THREE MORE LIVE GORILLAS. do
vigorous young male whenever he made a. rush at
any one and missed his aim, immediately ran back.
This corresponds with what is known of the habits of
the large males in their native woods ; when attacked
they make a furious rush at their enemy, break an
arm or tear his bowels open, and then beat ‘a retreat,
leaving their victim to shift for himself.
The wounded female died in the course of the
next day; her moanings were more frequent in the
morning, and they gradually became weaker as her
life ebbed out. Her death was like that of a human
_ being, and aftlicted me more than I could have
thought possible. Her child clung to her to the last,
and tried to obtain milk from her breast after she
was dead. I photographed them both when the
young one was resting in its dead mother’s lap. I
kept the young one alive for three days after its
mother’s death. It moaned at night most piteously.
I fed it on goat's milk, for it was too young
to eat berries. It died the fourth day, having
taken an unconquerable dislike to the milk. It
had, I think, begun to know me a little. As
to the male, I made at least a dozen attempts to
photograph the irascible little demon, but all in vain.
The pointing of the camera towards him threw him
into a perfect rage, and I was almost provoked to
give him a sound thrashing. The day after, how-
ever, I succeeded with him, taking two views, not
very perfect, but sufficient for my object.
I must now relate how these three animals were
caught, premising that the capture of the female was
_ the first instance that had come to my knowledge of
56 SEARCH FOR THE GORILLA AND THE IPI. Cnap. II.
an adult gorilla being taken alive. The place where
they were found was on the left bank of the Fernand
Vaz, about thirty miles above my village. At this
part a narrow promontory projects into the river.
It was the place where I had intended to take the
distinguished traveller, Captain Burton, to show him
a live gorilla, if he had paid me a visit, as I had
expected, for I had written to invite him whilst he
was on a tour from his consulate at Fernando Po
to several points on the West African coast. A
woman, belonging to a neighbouring village, had
told her people that she had seen two squads of
female gorillas, some of them accompanied by their
young ones, in her plantain field. The men resolved.
to go in chase of them, so they armed themselves
with guns, axes, and spears, and sallied forth. The
situation was very favourable for the hunters; they
formed a line across the narrow strip of land and
pressed forward, driving the animals to the edge of
the water. When they came in sight of them,
they made all the noise in their power, and thus
bewildered the gorillas, who were shot or beaten
down in’ their endeavours to escape. There were
eight adult females altogether, but not a single male.
The negroes thought the males were in conceal-
ment in the adjoming woods, ne probably been
frightened away by the noise.
This incident led me to modify somewhat. the
opinions I had expressed, in ‘ Adventures in Equa-
torial Africa, regarding some of the habits of the
gorilla. I there said that I believed it impossible to
capture an adult female alive, but I ought, to have
Cuap. III. MODIFICATION OF OPINIONS. 57
added, unless wounded. I have also satisfied myself
that the gorilla is more gregarious than I formerly
considered it to be; at least it is now clear that, at
certain times of the year, it goes in bands more
numerous than those I saw in my former journey.
Then I never saw more than five together. I
have myself seen, on my present expedition, two
of these bands of gorillas, numbering eight or ten,
and have had authentic accounts from the natives of
other similar bands. It is true that, when gorillas
become aged, they seem to be more solitary, and to
live in pairs, or, as in the case of old males, quite
alone. I have been assured by the negroes that
solitary and aged gorillas are sometimes seen almost
white; the hair becomes grizzled with age, and I
have no doubt that the statement of their becoming
occasionally. white with extreme old age is quite
correct. 7
After reconsidering the whole subject, I am com-
pelled also to state that I think it highly probable
that gorillas, and not chimpanzees, as I was formerly
inclined to think, were the animals seen and captured
by the Carthaginians under Hanno, as related in the
‘Periplus.’ Many circumstances combine in favour
of this conclusion. One of the results of my late
journey has been to prove that gorillas are nowhere
more common than on the tract of land between the
bend of the Fernand Vaz and the sea-shore; and, as
this land is chiefly of alluvial formation, and the
bed of the river constantly shifting, it is extremely
probable that there were islands here in the time of
Hanno. The southerly part of the land is rather
6
58 SEARCH FOR THE GORILLA AND THE IPI. Caap. WI.
hilly, and, even if it were not then an island, the
Carthaginians in rambling a short distance from the
beach would see a broad water (the Fernand Vaz)
beyond them, and would conclude that the land was
an island.
Gorillas are attracted to this district by the quan-
tity of a little yellow berry, called mimo, growing
there on a tree resembling the African teak, and
by the abundance of two other kinds of fruits, of
which they are very fond, and which grow on the
sandy soil of this part of the coast-land; one of these
fruits is called nionien, about the size of a nectarine,
and of the colour of the peach, but not having the
rich bloom of this fruit; it is produced by a shrub
that creeps over the sandy soil; the other resembles
in size and colour the wild plum, and is a fruit of
which I am myself very fond.
The passage in the ‘ Periplus’ which I mentioned
in ‘ Equatorial Africa’ is to the following effect :-—
“On the third day, having sailed from thence,
passing the streams of fire, we came to a bay
called the Horn of the South. In the recess was an
island like the first, having a lake, and in this there
was another island full of wild men. But much the
greater part of them were women with hairy bodies, ~
whom the interpreters called gorillas. . . . But,
pursuing them, we were not able to take the men;
they all escaped from us by their great agility, being
cremnobates (that is to say, climbing precipitous rocks
and trees), and defending themselves by throwing
stones at us. We took three women, who bit and
tore those who caught them, and were unwilling to
ee a ee
Se a ee. ee, ee
Cuap. III. THE CARTHAGINIANS AND THE GORILLA. 09
follow. We were obliged, therefore, to kill them,
and took their skins off, which skins were brought
to Carthage, for we did not navigate farther, pro-
visions becoming scarce.”
These statements appear to me, with the fresh
knowledge I have gained on the present expedition,
to agree very well with the supposition that*the bold
Carthaginians reached the country near the mouth
of the Fernand Vaz in their celebrated voyage, and
that the hairy men and women met with were males
and females of the Trolodytes gorilla. Hven the name
“gorilla,” given to the animal in the ‘ Periplus,’ is
not very greatly different from its native name at
the present day, “ngina” or “ngilla,” especially in
the indistinct way in which it is sometimes pro-
nounced. I now think it far more likely that the
gorilla was the animal seen and not the chimpanzee,
which is generally less gregarious, and is not often
found near the sea-coast. As to the theory that
Hanno’s hairy men and women were some species of
baboon, I think that very unlikely; for why would
the Carthaginians hang the skins in the temple
of Juno on their return to Carthage, and preserve
them for so many generations, as related by Pliny,
if they were simply the skins of baboons, animals so
~ common in Africa that they could scarcely have been
considered as anything extraordinary by a nation of
traders and travellers like the Carthaginians.
The gorilla is of migratory habits at some seasons
of the year. He is then not found in the districts
usually resorted to by him when the berries, fruits,
and nuts are in season. i Se
CHAPTER IV.
START FOR THE INTERIOR.
Arrival of a fresh supply of Scientific Instruments—The first Steamer on
the Fernand Vaz—Preliminary trip to Goumbi—Astonishment of the
Natives at the fire-vessel—Despatch Collections to Engiand—Live
Gorilla embarked for London—His habits in confinement—Narrow
escape of drowning when embarked—Preparations completed—Last
look at the sea—Outfit—Body guard of Commi men—Affecting part-
ing scenes—I am deceived by Olenga-Yombi—The renowned doctor,
Oune-jiou-e-niaré—Arrival at Goumbi—Observations to fix latitude
and altitude of Goumbi—Quengueza’s invocation of his Forefathers—
Disobedient Wives—Hxcessive Drought—Obindji—Opposition of
Bakalai—Arrival of Ashira Porters—Passage of the hills to Olenda,
On the 30th of June, I bade adieu to my friend
Olenga-Yombi, and started for Plateau. I hardly
left the ebando, when I espied the sail of a canoe that
was coming towards us from the direction of the
mouth of the river. On our meeting, the men in
the canoe shouted out, “ Your vessel has arrived.”
How glad I was—no news could have been more
welcome! My men pulled with renewed vigour, and
we reached Plateau that night. There I found
awaiting me a letter from Messrs. Baring of London,
who had kindly sent a vessel with goods and stores
for which I had written, and also with a fresh supply
of scientific instruments, to replace those spoilt in
the surf. My sets were not, however, completed
until a month afterwards, when other instruments
reached me by way of the Gaboon; my best chro-
Cuap. IV. ARRIVAL OF FRESH STORES. dy ek
nometer was brought me by Captain Vardon on his
return voyage from London in September. I had
then three sets and was prepared for accidents which
might occur in crossing rivers and so forth. I had
sent the damaged chronometers and sextants to Hng-
land through the Rev. W. Walker of the Gaboon ;
this being the only way I could send them at that
time. They went to the Gaboon in a native boat,
and were sent by Mr. Walker to the English consul
at Fernando Po, who kindly shipped them in the
mail steamer for Liverpool. I must here record my
thanks to Mr. Graves, now M.P. for Liverpool, who
took the trouble to receive the instruments and trans-
mit them to London, where my friends had them
repaired or replaced by new ones. Not the least
welcome was a box of medicines sent to me by
my good friend, Robert Cooke. My kind friends,
the American missionaries at the Gaboon, also sent
me a supply of medicines and other things. But
their letters were not of a kind to bring me much
consolation : they were not so hopeful as I was of
success in my undertaking, and although they did
not so express themselves, I could see they thought I
should never return.
An interesting event occurred in July, which is
worth recording here. It was the arrival ofa French
steamer, the first steam vessel ever seen in the waters
of the Fernand Vaz. Some of my negroes came
into my hut one morning in great consternation, and
breathless with running, to say that a great, smoking
ship of war had come down the Npoulounay river.
I asked how many guns it had. “Ten,” they replied
62 START FOR THE INTERIOR. Cuap. IV.
without hesitation. The vessel turned out to be a
small flat-bottomed river boat forty feet in length,
belonging to an old friend of mine, Dr. Touchard
_(Chirurgien de Marine, 1" classe), which he had
bought with the intention of exploring in it the
rivers of Equatorial Africa, and which he had lent
to the French authorities at the Gaboon; it was now
commanded by Lieutenant ‘Labigot of the French
Navy. I need hardly say that the ten guns were
only products of the imagination of my excited
negroes, the vessel had no guns at all. It was
ironically named the Leviathan, and had been built,
originally, as a pleasure boat, for the navigation of
the Seine near Paris. It entered the Fernand Vaz by
way of the Npoulounay river, having first explored,
in company with a larger vessel, the river Ogobai.
The present trip was planned simply from a desire to
pay me a visit.
The service on which Lieut. Lapieot and Dr.
Touchard were employed was the completion of the
survey of the Ogobai river, which had been com- -
menced three years previously by Messrs. Serval and
Griffon du Bellay, the French Government having
shown recently great enterprise in the exploration of —
this region. On neither expedition were the larger
vessels able to ascend the Ogobai, on account of the
shallowness of the water, the season chosen not being
favourable. Lieut. Labigot and Dr. Touchard had,
however, the perseverance to ascend in boats, or in
the little steamer, as far as the junction of the
Okanda and Ngouyai rivers; they were the first
Europeans who had reached this point, and it is to
Guar. IV. TRIP TO GOUMBI. 63
be hoped, in the interests of science, that the result
of their voyage will soon be made public.
The Leviathan afterwards foundered in a squall
at the Gaboon, and I was extremely sorry to hear
that the loss was not madé good to my friend Dr.
Touchard by the French Government, but I hope
that it has been by this time.
On July 12th we started in the steamer for an
excursion to Goumbi, about seventy miles up the
river, setting at defiance the law of the Commi that
no white man (except myself) should ascend the
stream. For the first twenty miles we had a stiff
breeze; we had then reached a small village on the
left bank where a Portuguese trader, agent for an
English house of business, was settled; there we
passed the night. On the 13th we started early and
reached Goumbi at half-past five p.m.
The apparition of a steam vessel in these solitary
waters put the whole country into a state of excite-
ment. The natives came forth in troops from the
villages and crowded the banks. Some were stupified ;
others, recognising me on the deck as we passed, put
out in their canoes and paddled might and main in
their attempts to catch us. At the point where the
river, in descending from the interior, bends from
its westerly course, the banks are high and wooded ;
here the steamer puffed its way right up to the villages
before it was seen, and the frightened natives peeped
from the top of the banks and ran away again.
Old Quengueza was proud of this visit of the white
men in their fire-vessel, and turned towards his
attendant Bakalai and Ashira with looks of supreme
64. START FOR THE INTERIOR. Cuap. IV.»
contempt. We remained in Goumbi all day on the
14th, and, on the 15th, ascended the river to three or
four illo beyond the junction of the Niembai. The
vain old African chieftain accompanied us unat-
tended, and he seemed thoroughly to enjoy his trip.
I made him put on a Huropean coat and cap for the
occasion, although nothing would induce him to wear
a shirt, and had a chair placed on deck for him to sit
upon. Here he remained the whole time, with a self-
complacent smile on his grim features which was
almost laughable to look at. He took care to let the
people of the villages we passed see him, and caleu-
lated no doubt on increasing his influence on the
river by this important event. At this point we
were obliged to stop in our upward progress, on
account of the numerous fallen trees obstructing the
navigation, and on the 16th we returned to Plateau.
A few days after this excursion with Lieut.
Labigot and Dr. Touchard, I was honoured by an
intended visit from the British Commodore Com-
manding the West African squadron, Commodore
A. P. Eardley-Wilmot. He called on his way along
the coast, in his flag ship, off the mouth of the river,
and learning from the master of the trading vessel
anchored there that the bar was unsafe for the ship’s
boats, he left a message for me expressing his regret
that he was unable to come up the river and see me.
He inquired regarding the preparations for my expe-
dition into the interior. I much regretted being
unable to see Commodore Wilmot, who I knew took
a warm interest in all scientific enterprises in the
countries of Western Africa, and would, I am sure,
Cuap. IV. COLLECTIONS DESPATCHED TO ENGLAND 65
have done anything in his power to have helped me
in my undertaking.
On the 18th of August I despatched by Captain
Berridge to England, all the collections in Natural
History that I had made up to that date. They in-
cluded a second collection of skulls of various tribes
of negroes, fifty-four in number, in illustration of the
Anthropology of this part of Africa; six skins and
seven skeletons of the gorilla; one skin and two
skeletons of the chimpanzee, two skins and skeletons
of the large scaly ant-eater (the Ipi), three skeletons
of the manatee, one skeleton of Genetta Fieldiana,
besides other mammals, and 4500 insects as specimens
of the entomology of the Fernand Vaz region. The
collection I am glad to say arrived in London safely,
and a great part of 1t was afterwards deposited in the
British Museum. I also sent a living specimen of
the singular wild hog of this region (Potamocherus
albifrons), and two live fishing eagles. The hog I
presented to the Zoological Society of London, and I
believe it is still living in their gardens in Regent’s
Park.
The whole of the mammals, including the skins and
skeletons of the gorilla, I sent to the British Museum,
with a request to my honoured friend, Professor
Owen, the Superintendent of the Zoological Depart-
ment, to select any specimens from the collection
that the Museum required, and present them in my
name to the national collection. I was much pleased
to learn afterwards that several of the specimens
were accepted. I felt that I had done something to
repay the debt of gratitude which I owed to the large-
66 START FOR THE INTERIOR. ® . Crip.
hearted British nation who had so generously wel-
ecomed me when I arrived in England, an unknown
traveller, from my former arduous journey. One of
the male gorillas proved to be a much larger and
finer specimen than the former one, which many must
have seen at the end of the Zoological Gallery in the
museum; it has therefore been mounted and set up
in its place, where I would recommend all who wish
to see'a really fine specimen of this most wonderful
animal to go and see it.
The large collection of skulls made in so short a
time will surprise many people, especially travellers
in other wild countries who find skulls of natives
generally very difficult to obtain. But with the
money and trade-loving negro many strange things
are possible. It was necessary first to overcome the
scruples of the Commi people, and this I did by
explaining to them why I wanted the skulls; so I
told them that there was a strong party among the
doctors or magic-men in my country who believed
that negroes were apes almost the same.as the
gorilla, and that I wished to send them a number
of skulls to show how much they were mistaken.
When I backed up this statement by the offer of
three dollars’ worth of goods for each skull they
might bring, I soon obtained a plentiful supply; in
fact, I was obliged afterwards to reduce the price. -
The skulls brought me were almost always those of
slaves from the far interior, who had died in the
coast country; and, as corpses are laid simply on
the ground in the native cemeteries, the transaction
was much simplified. Nevertheless, the sale of a
Cuar.IV. °* TRAFFIC IN SKULLS. 67
skull was always treated as a secret matter. The
negroes would bring them only at night and by
stealth, carefully wrapped up in a parcel, and dis-
guising the shape of the contents, or covering the
top with a few sweet potatoes, to mislead any one
whom they might meet.
Sometimes two negroes engaged in this sort of
contraband traffic would meet, by accident, in my
house, each with a suspicious-looking bundle under
his arm. They would look at each other in a shy,
half-ashamed manner, and then burst out laughing,
but finally swearing to keep one another’s secret.
Skull-selling, however, never became an open, public
business. One day old Rabolo came to me, his
countenance beaming with satisfaction, and said, in
a half whisper:—
“ Chaillie, I shall have something for you to-night
which will make your heart glad.”
“What is that?” I inquired.
“Rogala, my little Ishogo slave, is sick, and will
die to-night: I knowit. You have often asked for
an Ishogo head, and now you shall have one.”
I was horrified at the old chief’s coolness in thus
dispensing skulls before their owners were dead, and
insisted upon his showing me the sick boy. He led
me to the dark shed where the poor slave lay ill.
‘The child was dreadfully emaciated with dysentery,
the disease of which a great many slaves die when
brought from the interior. He thought himself
he was going to die; but I undertook to prescribe
for him. I ordered one of Rabolo’s wives to give
him warm food. I sent them chickens to make broth
68 START FOR THE INTERIOR. Cuap. IV.
with, and myself administered quinine and a little
wine. In a few days he was much better, and finally
recovered. Thus Rabolo was disappointed in his
little skull-dealing transaction, but in compensation
saved. his slave.
Besides these collections | embarked a live gorilla,
our little friend Tom, and had full hopes that he
would arrive safely and gratify the world of London
with a sight of this rare and wonderful ape in the
living state; unfortunately, he died on the passage.
He did very well for a few weeks, I am told, as long
as the supply of bananas lasted which I placed on
board for his sustenance. The repugnance of the
gorilla to cooked food, or any sort of food except the
fruits and juicy plants he obtains in his own wilds,
will always be a difficulty mn the way of bringing
him to Europe alive. I had sent him consigned to
Messrs. Baring, who, I am sure, never had any such
consignment before. I promised the Captain that he
should receive one hundred pounds if he succeeded in
taking the animal alive to London.
During the few days Tom was in my possession
he remained, like all the others of his species that I
had seen, utterly untractable. The food that was
offered to him he would come and snatch from the
hand, and then bolt with it to the length of his
tether. IfI looked at him he would make a feint of
darting at me, and in giving him water I had to
push the bowl towards him with a stick, for fear of
his biting me. When he was angry I saw him often
beat the ground and his legs with his fists, thus
showing a similar habit to that of-the adult gorillas
—_— ——- - > 9 ee ee
— ee ee ee ee ee a ae eee
Crap. IV. LIVE GORILLA EMBARKED FOR LONDON. 69
which I described as beating their breasts with their
fists when confronting an enemy. Before laying —
down to rest he used to pack his straw very care-
fully as a bed to lie on. Tom used to wake me in
the night by screaming suddenly, and in the morn-
ing I more than once detected him in the attempt to
strangle himself with his chain, no doubt through
rage at being kept prisoner. He used to twist the
chain round and. round the post to which it was
- attached until 1t became quite short and then pressed -
with his feet the lower part of the post until he had
nearly done the business. aie
As I have before related, I took photographs of
Tom, and succeeded very eal These photographs
I was unwilling to send home, and kept them
until I should have completed my whole series of
photographs of African subjects. They are now,
unfortunately, lost for ever; for they were left
behind in the bush during my hurried retreat from
Ashango-land, as will be related in the sequel.
When the last boat which took on board the Captain
‘and the live animals left the shore for the vessel, I
trembled for the safety of the cargo, for the surf was
very rough. The negroes, however, could have ma- .
naged to get her safely through if they had not been too
careful. They were nervous at having a white man
on board, and did not seize the proper moment to pass
the breakers; their hesitation was very near proving
fatal, for a huge billow broke over them and filled
the boat. It did not, happily, upset, but they had
to return. Captain Berridge thus escaped with
a wetting, and the Potamocherus and eagles were
70 START FOR THE INTERIOR. Cuapr. IV.
half drowned. As to poor Tom, the bath, instead
of cooling his courage, made him more violent than
ever. He shouted furiously, and as soon as I
opened the door of his cage he pounced on the
bystanders, clinging to them and screaming. ~— \ % * 9 . .
fe yg ee ee Oe es ee, ee ee we. ha, . ee, Ae ae are
80 START FOR THE INTERIOR. Cuap. IV.
negroes have a special name for a season of this sort,
calling it enomo onguéro; it lasts five months, and
they assure me that it always comes after a long
series of dry seasons of the usual length. We have
had a few showers, but they have produced no im-
pression. The effect of the tide is perceived as far
as the junction of the Niembai, at least at this time
of the year (the dry season); above this point the
current of the Ovenga is too strong to allow it to
pass further. I took here only one meridian alti-
tude of Fomalhaut, and have. fixed the latitude by
computation of my dead reckoning.
Next day we proceeded up stream. The Ovenga
was very low, about twenty feet below the high-water
mark of the rainy season; the current was generally
three miles an hour, but, in some places, four miles ;
it was encumbered with fallen trees, and our journey
was difficult and slow.
A little before reaching the village of Obindji we
found an obstacle in the way of our further progress.
The Bakalai had made a fence across the river to
bar the passage, leaving only a gap near the shore
for small canoes to pass. This had been done on
account of some petty trade-quarrel which the people
of this tribe had had with their neighbours. Nothing
could have happened more offensive to the pride of
Quengueza than the erection of this bar without his
having been consulted—he, the king of the Rembo
(river), travelling in company with his ntangani!
It made him appear as though he had no authority.
As soon as he saw the obstacle his face changed
colour, and, getting up in a violent rage, he called
SL Se ae ee ee ee ee
Cuap. IV. OBINDJI. 81
for axes and cutlasses. The fence was demolished in
a few seconds, a number of Bakalai looking on from
the bank armed with guns and spears.
From the 30th October to the 5th November we
were detained at Obindji, waiting for porters from
the Ashira country to carry my baggage overland.
Our camp was pitched on a wooded point of land
opposite to the village, and below the junction of the
Ofoubou with the Ovenga.
The town of Obindji has been erroneously placed
in maps, published since my first exploration of this
country, on the eastern bank of the Ofoubou; it is
in reality situated on the western side. It is built
at the foot of a fine wocded hill; indeed, the whole
country around is clothed with forest of great luxu-
riance and beauty. From the northern bank of the
Ovenga, on which our camp was placed, stretches
a long point of beautiful white sand; this sand, in
the dry season, connects the point with the mainland
of the right bank of the Ovenga. The sand is then
most delightful to walk on, especially in the early
morning, when the natives ramble about to dig up
the eges of a species of fresh-water turtle laid during
the night. The turtle was the species that I dis-
covered in my former journey, Aspidonectes Aspilus.
I was glad to find my old acquaintance Obindji,
one of the chiefs of the Bakalai of the Ovenga, look-
ing as well as ever. He was a faithful ally and
friend of Quengueza, who was his superior chief, in
the sense of his being king of the river, and having
the right of road and trade both up and down. This
section of the Bakalai tribe had been led to abandon
82 START FOR THE INTERIOR. Cuap. IV.
the migratory and warlike habits which distinguish
their brethren, chiefly through the civilizing in-
fluences of trade. Their settlement in one of the
richest districts of the river, where ebony abounded
in the forests, almost necessitated their becoming
traders, and they now collect large quantities of
this valuable wood, which is getting scarce here.
They have adhered loyally to. the treaties made
many years ago with Quengueza, who allows them
to trade on the river on condition that they abstain
from war. Their women have, besides, become wives
of the Commi in many cases. One of the privileges
of Quengueza, attached to his acknowledged sove-
reignty, is the choice of the wives of the Bakalai
chiefs whenever he sleeps at a village. He has the
same right over the Ashira; the chief is obliged to
give up even his kondé, or head wife, if Quengueza
takes a fancy to her, and his host considers it a great
honour so to provide for the entertainment of his
liege lord.
When the porters arrived, and, on the eve of
our departure into new countries, old Quengueza
made a speech to my men. “ You are going into
the bush,” said he; ‘you will find there no one of
your tribe; look up to Chaillie as your chief, and
obey him. Now, listen to what I say. You will
visit many strange tribes. If you see on the road,
or in the street of a village, a fine bunch of plantains
with ground-nuts lying by its side, do not touch
them, leave the village at once; this is a tricky
village, for the people are on the watch to see what
you do with them. Ifthe people. of any village tell
Cuap. IV. ARRIVAL OF ASHIRA PORTERS. 83
you to go and catch fowls or goats, or cut plantains
for yourselves, say to them, ‘Strangers do not help
themselves ; it is the duty of a host to catch the goat
or fowl, and cut the plantains, and bring the present
to the house which has been given to the guest.’
When a house is given to you in any village, keep
to that house, and go into no other; and, if you see
a seat, do not sit upon it, for there are seats which
none but the owners can sit upon. But, above all,
beware of the women! [I tell you these things that
you may journey in safety.” The speech of the old
sage was listened to with great attention. Like most
other good advice, it was not followed; if it had
been, many of my subsequent troubles would have
been avoided.
Twelve more days were occupied in getting ready
to start for Olenda. Messengers were sent to
Olenda for more porters. Supplies of food had to be
fetched from a distance, as there was great scarcity
in the neighbourhood of Obindji; otaitais, or baskets
of a peculiar shape, had to be made for each porter
to carry his load on his back; and there were, be-
sides, all the usual delays which are encountered
when one has to deal with a body of negroes.
Olenda only sent fifty men in all, whilst my bag-
gage required at least a hundred porters. We were
obliged, therefore, to send half of it on, and wait for
the return of the men to carry the other half. I was
quite frightened at the amount of my outfit, although
I left behind everything that seemed not absolutely
necessary. It was impossible to preserve any sort
of discipline amongst these vivacious savages; they
84 START FOR THE INTERIOR. Cuar. IV.
struggled and quarrelled over their loads—the
strongest anxious to carry the lightest burdens,
and loading the youngest with the heaviest; and,
when the provisions for the journey had to be di-
vided, there was a perfect scramble for the lots, the
Pcest and strongest getting the lion’s share. The
presence of two of King Olenda’s nephews, Arangui
and Mpoto, who were sent to command the unruly
body, was of no avail.
The otaitai, or porter’ s basket, as manufactured by
these Africans, is an ingenious contrivance for the
carriage of loads in safety on the back. It is long
and narrow, being formed of a piece of strong cane-
work (serving as the bottom) two and a hale feet in
length and nine inches in width, with sides of more
open cane-work, capable of being expanded or drawn
in, so as to admit of a larger or smaller load. Cords
of bast are attached to the sides for the purpose of
making fast the contents, and the bottom of the
basket is closed in by a continuation of the sides,
leaving the top-end (the part nearest the head when
carried on the back) open, so as to allow of the aug-
mentation of the load at the top. Straps made of
strong plaited rushes secure the basket to the head
and arms of the carrier. The wicker-work is made of
strips of a very tqugh climbing plant, or rotang, and
is always a neat specimen of workmanship.
The first party started on the 8th, going up the
Ofoubou river, a southern affluent of the Ovenga, in
canoes, to the landing-place on the Olenda road.
We had about this time several heavy showers, and
the Ovenga rose so much that I was obliged twice
Yi
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i
PH
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OTAITAI, OR lORTER’S BASKET.
te
Car. IV. PASSAGE OF THE HILLS TO OLENDA. 85
to shift my hut to a higher position, and the point
of land on which I was encamped, with its beach
of white sand, became an island. By a series of
observations I found the river-level at Obindji to be
fifty-four feet above the sea-level. I made many
additions to my collections during my stay here.
Insects were not numerous, but some of the lepidop-
tera, attracted to the moist sand at the edge of the
water, and floating about the flowering. bushes on
the skirts of the forest, were very beautiful. Some
of the butterflies (Romaleosoma) were magnificent,
with their green and black wings ornamented be-
neath with patches of crimson and yellow. These
flew very swiftly, and were difficult to capture.
Birds were scarce. I hunted in vain for the Musci-
peta Duchaillui, of which I had only shot one speci-
men in my former journey.
The porters at length returned, and the remaining
loads having been cleared off, Quengueza and I
departed from Obindji on the 17th November.
‘Paddling up the Ofoubou, we saw a very young cro-
codile sunning’ itself on a log. One of our boys im-
mediately swam off to seize it, but, just as he was
about to grasp it by the neck, the reptile slid off and
disappeared. It took us three hours and a half to
reach the landing-place, Djali Coudié. Here we
slept, and commenced our march the next morning
(18th) at day-break. At a quarter-past eight we
reached a steep hill, Nomba Rigoubou (369 feet), at
the summit of which we stopped for breakfast. Then,
resuming our march, we arrived at four p.m. at the
base of a hill, called Hcourou, where we stopped for
86 START FOR THE INTERIOR. Cuap, IV.
the night. There was here nothing to shelter us but
an old shed, loosely covered with pieces of bark. I
wanted to roof it with fresh leaves, but we were
guaranteed against rain by an Ashira doctor who
was with us, and who blew his magic horn to drive
it away. In the middle of the night a shower fell
and almost drenched us. This did not, however,
discompose the doctor and his believers, for he said
if he had not blown his horn the rain —_ have
been much heavier.
Quengueza was an amusing companion on a march,
for the oddities of his character seemed to be endless.
He never travelled without his fetich, which was an
ugly little pot-bellied image of wood, with a row
of four cowries embedded in its abdomen. As he
generally wore an old coat when he travelled with
me, he used to keep this dirty little thing im one of
the pockets. Waking or sleeping the fetich was
never suffered te be away from him. Whenever he
ate or drank he used to take the image and gravely
pass its belly with the row of projecting cowries over
his lips, and when I gave him liquor of any sort
he would always take it out and pour a libation over
its feet before drinking himself. Libations are great
features: in the religious rites of these Western
Africans, as they were amongst the Ancient Greeks.
It used to puzzle me where the four sacred cowries
came from; they are unknown on the Fernand Vaz,
and I Hohege came across the continent from Masters
Africa.
Next morning (November 19th) we marched over
a wild, hilly, and wooded country until eleven
—*
:
Cuar. IV. ARRIVAL AT OLENDA. 87
o'clock, when we emerged on the pleasant undu-
lating grass-land of Ashira. An extensive prospect
here lay before us; to the south extended the
TIgoumbi Andele and Ofoubou Orere ranges of hills,
and to the north the lofty ridges of the Nkoumou
Nabouali, near which lie the Falls of Samba Nagoshi.
At two p.m. we entered, in the midst of the firing
of guns and great hubbub, the village of Olenda.
CHAPTER V.
VISIT TO THE SAMBA NAGOSHI FALLS.
King Olenda, his great age—Preparations for the journey to the Falls—We
cross the Ovigui—Opangano Prairie—Ndgewho Mountains—Bakalai
Village—A flock of Gorillas in the Forest—The Louvendji River—
Dihaou and the Ashira-Kambas—Navigate the Ngouyai River—The
Aviia Tribe—Village of Mandji—River Scenery—Nkoumou Nabouali
Mountains—Nami Gemba—Village of Luba—The Spirit of the Falls—
Village Deity—Arrival at Fougamou, the principal Fall—Legend of
Fougamou—Night Encampment—Return to Dihaou—We sup on a
poisonous serpent—Forced March through flooded forest to Olenda.
My old friend, King Olenda, gave me a warm wel-
come. He had changed but little since I saw him
last. His age must have been very great; his cheeks
were sunken, his lees and arms excessively thin and
_ bony, and covered with wrinkled skin. He seemed
to have hardly strength enough to support his own
weight. The negroes say he has a powerful fetigh
to guard him against death. I believe he was the
oldest man I ever saw, and to me he was quite a
curiosity. Olenda came constantly to see me during
the few days I remained in his village. He was
never tired of tellmg me that he loved me like a
sweetheart ; but, when I called him to give him his
present, he became rather too exacting. I said to
him, “I thought you only loved me as a sweetheart,
but I am afraid you love me for my goods.” “Qh,
.
Hi ti , :
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Cuap. V. PREPARATIONS FOR THE JOURNEY. 89
no!” said the old man, smiling, “I love you like a
sweetheart for yourself, but I love your goods also.”
I have already, in the narrative of my former
journey,* given a description of Ashira-land, and the
customs of its people; it will be unnecessary, there-
fore, to recur to the subject in this place. It was not
my intention to make any lengthened stay here on
my present expedition; but unforeseen obstacles, and
an appalling calamity, as will presently be related,
kept me here for several months. I had intended to
stop in the country only a short time, sufficient to
enable me to visit the Falls of Samba Nagoshi, to the
north of Olenda. The preparations for this excur-
sion, out of the line of my eastward march, com-
menced soon after I had paid our. porters, and gone
through the ceremony of making a suitable present
to the king and the principal chiefs.
It will be recollected by some of my readers that
I made an abortive attempt to reach these Falls from
the Apingi country on my former expedition. I now
learnt that my guides in that journey never intended
to take me there; orders having been received from
the Commi country to that effect, my good friends
there being afraid that some disaster might happen
tome. No obstacle being now placed in my way,
and having the powerful support of my friend
Quengueza, Olenda showed tolerable readiness in
furnishing me with porters and guides and we set
off on the Ist December.
We started in light marching ar the only
heavy baggage being my photographic camera,
* « Adventures in Equatorial Africa,’ chap. xxiv,
8
$0 VISIT TO THE SAMBA NAGOSHI FALLS. Cnap. V.
which I was determined to take in order to bring
away accurate views of the splendid scenery which
I expected to behold. Besides three Ashira guides,
Arangui, Oyagui, and Ayagui, and two boys to
carry the cooking-pots and ammunition, I took with
me two Ashira Kambas, natives of an outlying district
of Ashira-land lying along the banks of the Ovigu
river near its junction with the Ngouyai. These,
with four of my faithful Commi boys, formed my
party. I left my guns behind, taking only my
revolvers. My boys carried their guns, but left
behind their woollen-shirts and blankets, and every-
thing that was not indispensible.
We left Olenda at nine a.m., and pursued a N.-H.
direction until we struck the Ovigwi river. We
had to cross this on a bridge formed of a single
tree-trunk lying about fifteen feet above the water.
We passed it with some difficulty, nearly losing my
camera, owing to the timidity of the carrier when
‘half-way across. From the eastern bank of the river
the path led to the foot of a high range of hills,
which bounds the Ashira plain on this side. At
four p.m. we encamped for the night on the banks
of a small stream. In the evening we had a frightful
thunder-storm, and had to he down-for the night in
wet clothes.
December 2nd. Resumed our march at six a.m.
The path lay along the western foot of the hilly
range, through a dense forest, the rich and varied
foliage of which was dripping with moisture. Not
a sound was heard, as we trudged steadily along in
Indian file. At nine o'clock we came upon a beau-
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Cua. V. OPANGANO PRAIRIE. 91
tiful prairie encircled by a wall of forest. This
prairie was called Opangano. From it I had a clear
view of the Ndgewho mountains. At ten o’clock
we arrived at a Bakalai village. Like many of the
primitive villages of this. warlike tribe, it was art-
fully constructed for purposes of defence. The single
street was narrow, barred at each end by a gate, and
the houses had ‘no doors in their outer walls. This
would effectually guard the place against nocturnal
surprise by other Bakalai with whom the villagers
might be at war. This mode of construction had also
another object, namely, to allow the people to kill
and plunder any party of traders whom they might
entice into the village and prevent from escaping
by closing the two gates. The neighbouring tribes,
especially the Ashiras, dread the power and treachery
of the Bakalai. The chief of the village was absent.
I bought, for a few beads, a quantity of smoke-dried
wild hog of one of the inhabitants.
_ Leaving this place at one p.m., we pursued a etth:
easterly direction, and passing bevel other Bakalai
villages, two of which were abandoned on account of
some one having died there, reached at five o’clock
the Lambengue prairie. It rained nearly the whole
afternoon, and we had a disagreeable walk through
the mire and over the slippery stones of the forest
paths. We built sheds, and passed the night i in the
prairie.
8rd. At six a.m. again on the march. My men were
tired with the exertions of yesterday, for we had been
wet all day, so, to keep them up to the speed, I led the
column myself. We were soon buried again in the
92 VISIT TO THE SAMBA NAGOSHI FALLS. Cuap. V.
shades of the forest. It was a wild; desolate district,
and I marched along in anything buta cheerful mood,.
thinking of the hard task I had imposed upon myself
in attempting to cross Africa. I was going along,
a little ahead of my party, when my reverie was
‘suddenly disturbed by a loud crashing and rustling
in the trees just before me. Thinking it might bea
flock of monkeys feeding on some wild fruit-tree, I
looked up, peered through the thick foliage, and was
thoroughly roused by seeing on a large tree a whole
group of gorillas. I had nothing but a walking-stick
in-my hand, but was so struck at the sight that I
was rivetted to the spot. Meantime the animals had
seen me, and began to hurry down the tree, making ~
the thinner boughs bend with their weight. An old
- male, apparently the guardian of the flock, alone
made a bold stand, and stared at me through an
opening in the foliage. I could see his hideous
black face, ferocious eyes, and projecting eye-brows,
as he glared defiance at me. In my unarmed condi-
tion I began to think of retracing my steps, but the
rest of my party coming up at the moment, with
clatter of voices, altered the state of things. The
shagey monster raised a cry of alarm, scrambled to
the ground through the entangled hanas that were
around the tree-trunk, and soon disappeared into the
jungle in the same direction as his mates. :
How I regretted to have left my double rifle
behind me at Olenda! I had this morning even
divested myself of,my revolvers, having given them
to my man Rebouka to carry, as I wished to be in
light trim for leading the day’s march. We were all ) | |
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GORILLAS SURPRISED IN THE FOREST.
Cuap. V. THE LOUVENDJI RIVER. 93
tired, and more or less unwell from the constant wet-
ting we had had, and from sleeping in damp clothes.
The gorillas were ten in number, and of different
ages and sizes, but apparently all females except the
one male. My men rushed after the beasts with
their guns, but the chase was useless; the forest had
resumed its usual stillness, and we continued our
march.
At noon we arrived on the banks of the Louvendji
‘Tiver, a stream similar to the Ovigui, and flowing
from the south towards the great Ngouyai river, in
which were the Falls of Samba Nagoshi. We break-
fasted on the brink of this pleasant stream flowing
through the silent forest; our breakfast, as usual,
consisting of boiled plantains, poor fare for the
weary traveller whose bones were aching with the
effects of overwork and exposure. The altitude of
the river-level above the sea, according to my ane-
roids, was 490 feet.
Resuming our journey about one p.m. we soon got
into a district of swamps, and had to wade at times”
up to the waist. In places where the water was
only ankle-deep the. mud had a fetid smell. I found
that my Ashira companions were taking me by a
very roundabout way, and our journey was long and
fatiguing, although we accomplished but a very
moderate distance in a straight line. Their object
was to avoid some of the Bakalai villages, with the
inhabitants of which they had. trade-palavers remain-
ing unsettled. At half-past five p.m. we came again
upon the Ovigui, where we had resolved to pass the
night. As we emerged from the jungle, we were
94. VISIT TO THE SAMBA NAGOSHI FALLS. (Cauap. V.
not a little surprised to-see an encampment of
natives. My =
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.
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_
170 MAYOLO. Curr. IX,
\
was administering. her cures, and remained, an in-
terested spectator, to watch her operations. Méyolo
was seated on a mat, submitting to all that was done
with the utmost gravity and patience. Before him
was extended the skin of a wild animal (enetta).
The woman was engaged in rubbing his body all
over with her hands, muttering all the while, in
a low voice, words which I could not understand.
Having continued this wholesome friction for some
time, she took a piece of alumbi chalk and made with
it a broad stripe along the middle of his chest and
down each arm. This done, she chewed a quantity
of some kind of roots and seeds, and, having well
charged her mouth with saliva, spat upon him in >
different places, but aiming her heaviest shots at the
parts most affected. Finally, she took a bunch of a
particular kind of grass, which had been gathered
when in bloom and was now dry, and, lighting it,
touched with the flame the body of her patient in
various places, beginning at the foot and gradually
ascending to the head. I could perceive that Mayolo
smarted with the pain of the burns, when the torch
remained too long. When the flame was extinguished
the woman applied the burnt end of the torch to
her patient’s body, and so the operations ended.
It seemed to me that there was some superstition
of deep significance connected with the application of
fire in these Otando cures. They appeared to have
great faith in the virtues of fire, and this is perhaps
not far removed from fire-worship. I asked the old
woman why she used this kind of remedy, and what
power she attributed to fire, but her only answer was
Cuap. IX. MATRIMONIAL SQUABBLES. 171
that it prevented the illness with which Mayolo had
been afflicted from coming again. The female doctor,
I need scarcely add, had come from a distance ; for it
is always so in primitive Africa—the further off a
doctor or witchfinder lives, the greater his reputation.
The wives of West African chiefs are almost as
independent as their lords and masters. They have
their own plantations, and have their own little
property. When quarrels arise between them and
their husbands, I don’t think the latter always get
the best of it, for wife-flogging is but very seldom
resorted to by the men here. The following is a
sample of the matrimonial disputes which I witnessed
during my stay at Mayolo —
Mayolo was greatly enraged one day because his
head wife—a young woman about twenty years of
age, and remarkable for her light-coloured skin and
hazel eyes—had mislaid or wasted his tobacco, a very
precious drug here. He threatened to take away
the pipe or condoquai, which is common property
to man and wife, and so prevent her smoking any
more. Instead of being frightened, the young wife
retorted that the plantain-stem of the pipe was her
own property, and that she would take it away, and
what was he to do then ?—for he had not plantain-
_ trees of his own, they were all hers. The dispute
soon waxed fierce, and she then threatened to set fire
to his house. At this the old man laughed heartily,
and dared her to do it. It was the most serious
squabble I had witnessed; if Mayolo had been well
in health at the time, and more seriously angry, the
worst that would have happened would have been
| ma)
172 MAYOLO. Cuap, IX.
a flogging for the beloved wife. She might have
then run away; but any great act of cruelty does
not enter the heads of these mild-tempered people, —
except as the punishment of witcheraft.
Towards the end of April I was glad to find a
decided change for the better in Mayolo’s health.
Macondai was also much improved, and I now saw
some prospect of moving forwards towards the east.
Unfortunately my hopes were soon after again cast
down, by Mayolo’s favourite wife and one of his
nephews falling ill of small-pox. Mayolo, who was
as anxious as I was to be off before the dry season
set in, on account of the plantations he had to make, |
was now in great trouble. He rose the next day
before daylight, and proclaimed aloud in the street- 7
of his village, before the people had gone out of
| their houses, that some one had bewitched the place,
| and that the mboundow (poison ordeal) must be tried.
Notwithstanding the love he seemed to have for his —
young wife, fear of the disease had the upper hand ;
he sent her away to the village of her own people, _
where the plague was now raging, there to remain
till she either died or became well; the nephew was
ordered into the woods, and people sent to build him
an olako, or shed; his own wife, who was to attend
on him, was to be prohibited from entering the vil-
lage. These were strong sanitary measures. I was
racked with anxiety and vexation. This abominable
plague seemed to follow me everywhere. I had learnt
from Macondai that the chiefs of Ashira Kamba, and —
especially Mbana and his wife, who had cooked for .
us when in the Kamba country, had died of the
(
Cuap, IX. ‘ WITCHCRAFT ORDEAL. 173
disease after I had left. I had succeeded in prevent-
ing the news from spreading in Mayolo, for my men
had. the good sense never to say a word about any-
a thing that might retard my progress; but it filled
me with grief to think that I should be thought to
bring nothing but death to so many poor, kind-
hearted people.
The ‘finding out” or trial in the witchcraft case
came off on the 27th of April;* Mayolo being con-
vinced that neither himself, his wife, nor his nephew,
would have been ill if some one were not bewitching
them, and seeking to cause their death. A cele-
brated doctor had been sent for from a distance, and
appeared in the morning decked out in the most fan-
tastic manner. Half his body was painted red and
the other half white, his face was daubed with streaks
of black, white, and red, and of course he wore around
his neck a great quantity of fetiches. The villagers
were assembled and the doctor had commenced his
divinations when I arrived at the place, a witness
once again of this gloomy ceremony, which was dif-
ferent from that of the Commi people seen formerly
by me, as related in ‘Adventures in Equatorial
Africa. The doctor counterfeited his voice when
speaking, in. order to impress on the people a due
sense of his supernatural powers of divination; all
the painting, dressing and mummery have the same
object in view, namely to strike awe into the minds
of the people. A black earthenware vessel filled
with water, and surrounded by charmed ochre and
* This ordeal—the pona oganga of the Commi—is here called oyambé,
or oyambé.
174 MAYOLO. Cuapr. IX,
fetiches, served the purpose of the looking-glass used
by the coast tribes. The doctor, seated on his stool,
looked intently and mysteriously into the water, shook
his head, then looked into a lighted torch which he
waved over it, made contortions with his body, trying
to look as ugly as he could, then smoked the condo-
quai (pipe), repeated the mummeries over again, and
concluded by pronouncing that the persons who
were bewitching the village were people belonging
to the place. This oracular saying put the people
into great consternation ; they all began to appear
afraid of each other; the nearest relatives were
made miserable by mutual suspicions. Mayolo then
rose and exclaimed in an excited manner that the
mboundou must be drunk, appointing the following
morning for the ceremony, as the people had eaten
to-day, and the poison must be drunk on an empty
stomach.
At sunrise the next morning the village was empty.
All had gone to a little meadow encircled by woods,
a short distance away, to take part in the ceremony.
Who were the suspected persons was kept secret,
partly because they were afraid I would interfere. I
thought it, however, better policy not to do so, but
attended to witness the proceedings and to ascertain
whether they differed from those followed on similar
occasions near the coast. On entering the assembly
I gave them the usual salutation, and shook hands
with Mayolo. It soon appeared that the suspicions
of the people fell upon three of Mdyolo’s nephews,
his consecutive heirs, it being thought natural that
they should wish to get rid of him. I noticed that
Cuap, IX. _ DRINKING THE MBOUNDOU. 175
the whole body of the people took an active part
in the affair; the doctor not openly naming anybody ~
as the guilty parties. It was the people themselves
who originated the suspicions, and they showed by
their clamour how they thirsted for victims. Mayolo
and the doctor remained silent.
The nephews in vain protested that they were
innocent, and declared that the accusation was a lie;
but they added that. there were others who wanted to
bewitch their uncle. They became enraged at the
pertinacity of their accusers, and swore that the
people should pay dearly for making them drink the
mboundou. They said they were not afraid to drink
it, for they were not wizards and would not die.
Some of the relatives of the nephews and some of
the people of the village now retired to a short dis-
tance to prepare the poison. Roots of the mboundou
were then scraped, and a vessel filled with the frag-
ments, on which water was poured ; a kind of effer-
vescence then took place, and the water became of a
red colour, like the root itself. Sufficient was made
to serve as a good draught to each of the accused.
When the water becomes red, it is considered good
mboundou, and ready to kill any wizards. The
drinkers of the mboundou are not allowed to wit-
ness the preparation, but their representatives may,
to see that fair play is used. When at length the
poor fellows were brought into the middle of the
circle of excited spectators, it was horrid to see the
ferocity expressed in the countenances of the people ;
it seemed as though their nature had entirely changed.
Knives, axes, and spears were held ready to be used
\
176 MAYOLO. Cray.)
on the bodies of the victims if they should succumb
under the ordeal; if the accused should become un- ~
steady under the influence of the poison and stumble,
the now quiet crowd would become suddenly frenzied
and unmanageable. All seemed eager for the sacrifice
of victims to their superstitious fears. It is chiefly
through the immunity with which they can drink the
poison that the doctors obtain such power over the
people; and no wonder, when so many people die
under it. The mboundou is a most violent poison.
This was proved by the analysis of its roots which I
caused to be made after my former journey.
A breathless silence prevailed whilst the young
men took the much-dreaded cups of liquid and boldly
swallowed the contents; the whispering of the wind
could be heard through the leaves of the surrounding
trees. But it was only of short duration. As soon
as the poison was drunk, the crowd began to beat their
sticks on the ground, and shout, “If they are wizards,
let the mboundou kill them; if innocent, let it go
out!” repeating the words as long as the suspense
lasted. The struggle was a severe one; the eyes of
- the young men became bloodshot, their limbs trembled
convulsively, and every muscle in their bodies was
visibly working under the potent irritation. The
more acute their sufferings became, the louder vocife-
rated the excited assembly. I was horror-stricken, and,
although I would gladly have fled from the place, |
felt transfixed to the spot. I knew that if they fell
I should have no power to save them, but should
be forced to see them torn limb from limb. At
length, however, the crisis came—a sudden shiver of
s
we
4
Be
‘Vat
Cuap. IX. RESULT OF THE ORDEAL. 177
the body and involuntary discharge—and the first
intended victim had escaped. The same soon after
happened to the second and to the third. They
gradually came back to their former state, but ap-
peared very much exhausted. Some people never get
over the effects of drinking the mboundou, although
they pass the ordeal without giving way. They linger
for a long time in a sickly condition, and then die;
The trial was over, and the doctor closed the cere-
mony by himself drinking an enormous quantity of
the poison, with a similar result to that which we had
witnessed in the young men, only that he appeared
quite tipsy; in his wild and incoherent sayings,
whilst under the influence of the drink, he stated
that the bewitchers of Mayolo and the bringers of
the plague did not belong to the village, a deci-
sion which was received with great acclamation.
Mayolo was rejoiced that the wizards or witches
did not belong to his own people, and the whole
people were wild with joy: guns were fired, and the
evening passed with beating of drums, singing, and
dancing.
To protect the village from the wizards who might
enter it from the neighbouring villages, and who had
been accused as the cause of Mayolo’s troubles, the —
doctor, accompanied by the whole of the people, went
to the paths leading to Mdyolo from other villages,
and planted sticks at intervals across them, connecting
the sticks by strong woody creepers, and hanging on
the ropes leaves from the core of the crowns of palm-
trees, It is a recognised law among these people
that no stranger can come within these lines When
178 MAYOLO. Crap. IX.
I asked Mayolo what he would do if any one was to
force the lines, he said that there would then be a
grand palaver, but that there was no fear of such an
event, for it never happened. Another reason for
planting the lines was of a sanitary nature: small-
pox was prevalent in several neighbouring villages,
and Mayolo wished to prevent the relatives of the
wives of his villagers (for people generally marry
girls of distant places) from coming on a visit to
them. I learnt to-day that the Otando man, who had
accompanied me from Olenda, had since died of the
plague, and the people of other villages had natu-
rally come to the conclusion that his being in con-
tact with me was the cause. He was one of Mayolo’s
fathers-in-law. It is marvellous how firm Méyolo
adheres to the faith that I have nothing at all to do
with the introduction of the plague. His influence
is so great amongst his people that many have now
come round to his opinion, and others dare not
openly declare the contrary.
Two days after the pona oganga I calletl my
people, and Mayolo and his people, together, and —
made a formal and resolute demand to be furnished
with guides and porters to the Apono country. —
The speech which I made on this occasion was, as -
nearly as I can translate it, in the following words; I
spoke in similitudes, adic fashion, and used eg
expressions :—
* Mayolo, I have called you and your pegple
together, in order that you may hear my mouth.
When one of your people goes to the Ashira country
to make trade, his heart is not glad until his friends
Cuap. IX. MY SPEECH TO THE PEOPLE. 179
there have given him trade, although he may have
been well treated in the meantime, had plenty given
him to eat, and a fine woman lent him as a wife.
When you go to the Apono country in order to get
a slave on trust from your friend the chief, or some
large tusk of ivory from an elephant he has killed,
you are not satished until he has sent you back to
your village with the slave or the ivory ; and your
friend never fails to send you back with your desire
sranted. It is the same if you go to a man whose
daughter you are very fond of, and who has promised
to give her to you asawife. For if, when you go to
his house to get his daughter, instead of her he gives
you plenty of food, your heart is not glad, though
you have plenty to eat. The food will taste bitter,
for it is not what you came for !
“So it is with me: I am not happy. I have not
come to you, Mayolo, to make trade, to get slaves
and ivory, or to marry your daughters. If I had
come for these things, I am sure they would have
been given to me long ago. (The assembly here all
shouted ‘ Yes! they would have been given to you
long ago!’) |
“ But you all know that I have not come for these
things. I told you when I came, and you knew it
before, that I wanted to go further away. I love you
and your people. (Interruptions of ‘We know you
love us.) You have been kind to me and to my men.
Though some of them have slept with your women,
you have done nothing to them. You have given us
plenty to eat ; you have stolen nothing from my men
or from me; I have been here as if in my own
*
eee Re line Y a a, ae — ee
180 MAYOLO. Cuap. IX. -
village. (Here they cried out, ‘It is your own
village; you are our king, Mayolo leading the
chorus.) If I wanted to get angry with you, I could
not find a single cause for it. (At this Mayolo
stiffened himself up and looked around, quite proud.)
A few days after my arrival you, Mayolo, fell ill.
You have a good head; you know that I did not
make you ill. J was very sorry to see you ill, forI —
have a heart like yourself. How could I like to see .
Mayolo, my only friend, ill? (Here Mayolo smiled,
and looked prouder than ever.) I love you, and I
love your people for your sake. (Shouts of ‘ We are
all your friends.’) J am not an evil Spirit; I do not
delight in making people ill; I do not bring the
plague, for it was in your country before I came.
(Loud shouts of ‘Rovano!’—it is so.) My own
people have also been ill; how could I make them
ill? Macondai, my beloved boy, who has been with
me from a little child, has been more ill than any
other of my men; how could I wish to make him ill?
I sit by spreading death and disease before me that
I can go into the interior? If you wanted to go
amongst other tribes, would you spread illness before —
you? So it is with me; to go into the interior I
must make friends. The plague goes where it likes
and asks nobody. The people are afraid of me; they
do not see that I bring them fine things: beads,
looking-glasses, cloth, and red caps for their heads.
These are things that I wish to leave with the peopl? ;
Bherover I go.
‘ Now, Mayolo, you are getting better. on have
a, i among yourselves that a-man does not stand
Cuap, IX. SPEECH OF CHIEF MAYOLO. 181
alone in the world; he has friends, and there are no
people who are without friends. You Otando have
friends among the Apono and Ishogo people, where
I want to go. If you ask trade of these friends, they
give it to you. I come to you to ask you the road.
Come and show me the road through the Apono
country ; it is the one I like the best, for it is the
shortest. J will make your heart glad, if you make-
my heart glad. I have things to give you all, and ]
want the news to spread that Mdyolo and I are two |
great friends, so that after I am gone people may
say, ‘ Mayolo was the friend of the Oguizi.’” |
The last part of the speech was received with tre-
mendous shouts of applause, and cries of “ Rovano!
Rovano!” Mayolo joining in with the rest. When I
had finished I sat down on my footstool.
Mayolo deferred his answer to the next day, as all
his people were not present, and we then had another
palaver, which I hoped would be a final one. The
men were seated round in a semi-circle, the women
forming a cluster by themselves, and in front was
stationed a boy holding a goat, by the side of which
were two bunches of plantains; my own people were
also present. Mayolo began his speech, and, as is
- customary, addressed a third person, Igala, saying :—
“When a hunter goes into the forest in search
of game, he is not glad until he returns home with
meat. So Chaillie’s heart will not be glad, until
he finishes what he wishes to do. I have heard what
Chaillie has told me. I am a man. Chaillie, the
Oguizi (Spirit) has come to Méyolo; I am Mayolo;_
there is no other Mayolo but me. Iam ashamed at
ee
182 : MAYOLO. Cuap. IX,
this long delay ; I have a heart, and Chaillie shall go
on. I know that some people, jealous of me, have
told you that I have palaver in the upper country ;
that I have taken their slaves on trust, and am in
debt to them; but itisa lie. The people are afraid
of Chaillie ; we all know that he is a Spirit; from the
time our fathers were born, his like has never been
seen. The news has spread that he brings disease
and death wherever he goes; and so the people are
afraid of him. I have been ill, but it is not he that
has caused it, but other people who want to bewitch
me, because of the good things that he has given me.
I will go myself, in three or four days, to visit an
Apono chief, a friend of mine, and will tell him that
Chaillie eats like ourselves, drinks like ourselves,
that he plays with our children, talks to our women
and men, and does us good. I am Mayolo, and
Chaillie shail go on his way, and then his heart will
be glad.” —
Then turning to me, he said: “ During the days
you have to wait, take this goat and these two
bunches of plantains, and eat them. We shall soon ~
be on the long road, but I must feel the way first ;-
we must do things little by little. -You cannot Be ,
a monkey, unless you are very careful in coms to
it.”
i answered one of their sayings. “If you had
said ‘ Wait, wait, and I saw that you were not telling
me the truth, the goat you have just given me could
not be good, and I would have returned it to you,
for it would taste bitter ; but I believe you.”
Thus I had to content myself, whilst Méyolo was
Cuar. IX. REJOICING AT MAYOLO’S RECOVERY. 183
exerting himself to open the way for me into Apono-
land, In the afternoon I made Igala cut, with a lancet,
into the abscess on Mayolo’s shoulder, which gave him
great relief after the discharge of the matter. The
good fellow thanked me very much, and we became
better friends than ever. Next day he was so much
elated with the improvement in his health, that he
got tipsy on a fermented beverage which he had
prepared two days before he had fallen ill, and which
was made by mixing honey and water, and adding
to it pieces of bark of a certain tree. The long
standing had improved the liquor in his eyes, for the
older the beverage, the more intoxicating it becomes.
All the people of the village had a jollification in the
evening to celebrate the recovery of their chief;
Mayolo being’ the most uproarious of all, dancing,
slapping his chest, and shouting “ Here I am alive;
they said I should die because the Spirit had come,
but here I am.” |
During all the time he was ill he had been con-
_tinually looking forward to this “jolly treat.” He
had several of the jars of the country full of the fer-
mented beverage. Fortunately, he was very inoffen-
sive when under the influence of drink. Scarcely
able to stand steady, he came up to me, crying out,
“Here I am, Chaillie, well at last. I tell you I am
well, Oguizi!” and, in order to prove it to me, he
began to leap about and to strike the ground with
his feet, saying, “Don’t you see that I am well?
The Otando people said, the Apono said—as soon as
they heard that you had arrived in my village—
‘Mayolo is a dead man!’ As soon as I fell ill, they
184. MAYOLO. i Cuan ia
| said, ‘ Mdyolo will never get up again!’ But here
| I am, alive and well! Give me some powder, that
| I may fire off the guns, to let the surrounding people
} know that I am well!”
| I quietly said, “ Not to-day, Méyolo, for your head
is still weak.”
He laughed, and went away shouting, “I knew
the Oguizi did not like to see me ill. Tam massa
I will take him further on!”
Throughout the month of April I frequently re-
galed myself with what I used to consider. a very
good dinner : that is, a haunch of monkey cooked on
the grille. Roriéely I had always had a great aver-
sion to cating monkeys (not, however, from any ideas
about their relationship to man), but hunger and the
scarcity of other animal food had compelled me lately
to make many a meal on these animals. This is the
height of the monkey season in Otando-land, the
season lasting through March, April and May, during
which months they are so fat that their flesh is really
exquisite eating. I know of no game better or more _
relishing ; the joints must be either roasted or grilled,
to bring out the flavour of the meat to perfection. At
all other times of the year except these three months
monkeys are lean, tough, and tasteless. It is the
same with the wild hog of these regions; from
February to the beginning of May, when the fatten-
ing Koola nut is ripe and falls in abundance from the
trees, the wild hog gets something like an overfed
pig at home, and the meat is delicious eating. I felt
to-night that I had dined well, and did not envy
Sardanapalus his dainties, for I doubted whether this
Cuap. IX. CURIOSITY OF THE OTANDO. 185
luxurious monarch ever had fat monkey for dinner.
I recommend all future travellers to cast aside their
prejudices and try grilled monkey, at least during the
months I have mentioned. They will thank me for
the advice. Many wild fruit trees are now in full
bearing and the monkeys have splendid feed. I
finished my dinner with pine-apple as dessert; the
season, however, is now past for pine-apples, it began
when I entered the Ashira country and lasted during
the whole of the time of my stay there.
Mayolo after his recovery became more friendly
than ever. He was naturally of an inquisitive turn
of mind, and in his frequent conversations with me
occupied all my time in answering his questions.
One day he came with all his people and all the
women of the village, to ask me a number of
questions. He first asked how the women worked
our plantations? I told him women did no field-
work with us. They were astonished to hear this,
and still more to hear that plantains and cassava
were almost unknown in my country. They all
shouted, “Then what do you eat?” I explained
to them that we had always plenty to eat. I
told them that we had bullocks like their wild
cattle, which remained tame in our villages like
their goats, and that we taught them to carry
things. They would hardly believe me, when I
added that in their own country there were
tribes of black men who owned tame oxen. Con-
tinuing the subject, I said that there were countries.
in which even elephants were tamed, and taught to
carry people on their backs. At this a wild shout of
) 14
186 MAYOLO. Cuap. IX.
astonishment arose from the assembly, and remember-
ing that I had a copy of the “ Illustrated London
News” containing an Indian scene with elephants, I
went and fetched it to prove that I told them the
truth. There was a rush forward to look at the
picture over Mayolo’s shoulders. They all recog-
nised the animals as elephants, and expressed their
astonishment at the men on their backs; above all,
they wondered to see the animals represented as tied
by the feet and kept quiet. ‘ Punch,’ the travellers’
friend, excited their wonder greatly. They all ex-
claimed, “‘ What a fine cap he wears!” and asked me
if I had any like it. They were quite disappointed
when I told them I had not. | |
Then came numerous questions about white men.
How they stared when I told them that our houses
were made of stone, the same material as was found
on their mountains. The last question was a delicate
one; it was, “ Do white men die?” I wished them
to remain in their present belief that we did not die,
for their superstitious feeling towards me was my
best safeguard ; so I feigned not to hear the question,
and turned their attention to another subject. »
The people generally, and especially the women,
became emboldened after this long chat; and I could
see some of the buxom matrons laughingly conferring
with one another, as if on some important business.
At last one of them, bolder than the rest, said: “ We
have seen your head and your hands since you have
been among us, but we have never seen what the ~
rest of your body is like; it would make our hearts
glad, if you would take off your clothes and Ict us see.”
Cap. IX. ' A FEMALE DUEL. 187
This polite request I of course flatly refused to comply
with, and they did not press it. Another request
they made I was able to grant: this was to talk the
Oguizi language. I gave them a few samples of
French and English, but I very much doubt if they
could perceive the difference. They believe that
all white men belong to one people, and of course,
beyond the fact that they land on their shores from
the great sea, know nothing of the different nations
of the world or where they are situated. When I
asked them where they thought the Ngouyai river
ended, they answered, ‘“ Somewhere in the sand.”
After our long conversation I felt tired and went
for a walk over the prairie. This pleasant day was
ruffled in the evening by a violent quarrel between
two Ashira married women, one of them being a
stranger who had come to Mayolo on a visit to her
friends, It appeared that one of the men of the
village called this woman towards him; and his wife,
on hearing of it, asked her husband what business he
had to call the woman, and, getting jealous, told him
she must be his sweetheart. The husband’s reply
being, I suppose, not altogether satisfactory, the en-
raged wife rushed out to seek her supposed rival,
and a battle ensued. Women’s fights in this country
always begin by their throwing off their dengui,
that is, stripping themselves entirely naked. The
challenger having thus denuded herself, her enemy
showed pluck and answered the challenge by promptly
doing the same; so that the two elegant figures im-
mediately went at it, literally tooth and nail, for they
fought like cats, and between the rounds reviled each
188 MAYOLO. Cuap. IX.
other in language the most filthy that could possibly
be uttered. Mdyolo being asleep in his house, and
no one seeming ready to interfere, I went myself and
separated the two furies.
In the meantime Oshoumouna and the men sent
by Mayolo to open the way for me into Apono-land,
returned last night, frightened away by the recep-
tion they had met with from the people of the
Apono village to which they had gone, and which is
situated on the right bank of the Rembo Negouyai.
As soon as they said who they were, and that they
had beads with which to buy some salt—for the
Apono trade a good deal in salt, paying for it in
slaves—the villagers shouted out, “Go away! go
away! We don’t want to have anything to do
with the Oguizi, or with the people who have
come in contact with him! We do not want
your beads! We want nothing that came with the
Oguizi!”
This news filled me with sorrow. Mayolo tried to
comfort me; but my prospects were indeed dark and
gloomy. i
May 6th. After taking several lunar distances to-
night between the moon and Jupiter, and feeling
tired, as I generally do after night observations, I
went into a little shed behind my house and took a
cold shower-bath—at least, an imitation of one—by
splashing water over me; I find this very refreshing
and cooling before retiring to rest. I then went into
my chamber; but I came out of it again faster than
I entered, for I had stepped into a band of Bashi-
kouay ants, and was quickly covered with the nimble
Crap. IX. THE BASHIKOUAY ANTS. 189
and savage little creatures, who bit me dreadfully.
I was driven almost mad with pain. I did not dare
to light paper or apply fire to the invading horde of
ants, inside the place, on account of the quantity of
gunpowder stored in my chamber; thus I had to
abandon my house to the irresistible ants, who had
become perfect masters of it. I at once called my
men, and we succeeded in finding the line of the
invading host outside of the house; to this we applied
fire, and burnt many thousands of them; but it was
not until half-past two in the morning that the house
was cleared. 7
When I rose, feverish and unrefreshed, the next
morning, I found the Bashikouays again in the house.
This time they emerged from a number of holes
which had newly made their appearance in the
ground near my house, and which were the mouths
of the tunnels or galleries leading from their sub-
terranean abodes. I was thankful that it was day-
time, for if it had been night they would not have
been long before paying me another visit. An in-
vasion of a sleeping-chamber by these ants at night
is @ Very serious matter, for an army of Bashikouays
swarming over the body during sleep would wake
a person up rather disagreeably. There can be no
_ doubt that if a man were firmly tied to a bed so that
he could not escape, he would be entirely eaten up by
these ants in a short space of time. I have heard
that men have been put to death for witchcraft in this
way. Happily their bite is not venomous. We
poured boiling water down the newly-made galleries
and over the columns of ants that were issuing from
190 MAYOLO. Cuap. IX,
them, so that they were again driven away, and we
were saved from another invasion.
May 10th. I witnessed to-day a striking instance of —
the inborn cunning and deceit of the native African.
My people had spread out on mats in front of my
hut a quantity of ground-nuts, which we had bought,
when I observed from the inside of the hut a little
urchin about four years old slily regaling himself with
them, keeping his eyes on me, and believing himself
unnoticed. I suddenly came out, but the little rascal,
as quick as thought, seated himself on a piece of wood,
and dexterously concealed the nuts he had in his hand
under the joints of his legs and in the folds of his
abdominal skin; then looked up to me with an air of
perfect innocence. This, thought I, is a bright ex-
ample of the unsophisticated children of nature, whom
some writers love to describe, to the disadvantage of
the corrupted children of civilization! Thieving, in
these savage countries, 1s not considered an offence
against the community ; for no one complains but he
who has been robbed. My precocious little pilferer
would therefore have no teaching to prevent him
from becoming an accomplished thief as he aie!
older.
In the evening, as I was computing the lunar dis-
tances I had taken, I was startled by the sudden
screech of a woman. I went out immediately, and
found that it was the mbuiri woman, who had been
suddenly seized with the spirit of divination—the
mbuiri having entered into her. She raved on for
some time, the theme of her discourse being the evva
or plague. |
Cuap. IX. GOOD NEWS FROM APONO-LAND. 191
May 14th, My misfortunes will never terminate!
Mayolo has another abscess forming. I begin to
- think I shall never get beyond this Otando country.
Mayolo, however, assures me that he will send his
nephew onward to Apono to prepare the way for us.
He told me our great difficulty would be to get ferried
across the river, which could only be done by the aid
of the chief of Mouendi, a village near thebanks of
the Ngouyai. I went to my hut and selected a pre-
sent for the Apono chief, a bright red cap, a string
of beads, and some powder; and in giving them to
Mayolo to send by his messenger, I told him to say
I should bring him many other fine things when I
came myself. It was necessary to overcome the
scruples of the Apono, who dreaded a visit from me
lest I should bring evil on their village.
May 15th. Mayolo’s messenger returned to-day with
the joyful news that the Apono chief would receive
us. The chief had sent a kendo as a return present
to Mayolo, with the words “ Médyolo has given me
birth, how can I refuse him what he asks? Tell
him to come with his zhamba. Méayolo has not died
through receiving the Spirit; why should I die?”
Many people of Mayolo’s clan came to-day to see,
before I left their country, the many wonderful things
[ had brought with me; and Méyolo himself, though
not very well, could not resist the temptation to leave
his hut and join the sightseers. I first brought out
a large Geneva musical box, and having wound it up
inside my house, set it down on a stool in the street.
On hearing the mysterious sounds they all got up,
looked at each other, then at me and the box, to see
192 MAYOLO. ee
whether I had any communication with it, and
worked themselves into such a state of fright that
when a little drum inside beat, they all took to their
heels and ran away as fast as they could to the other end
of the village, Mayolo leading the van. I went after
them, and tried to allay their fears, but their belief -
was not to be shaken that a devil was inside the box.
They came back, but would not sit down, holding
themselves ready to run again, if anything startling
occurred. They were completely mystified when they
heard the music still going on although | was walk-
ing about at a distance from the box, holding no com-
munication with it. I remained away from it a long
time walking about in the prairie, and the music was
still going on when I returned, to the great perplexity
of the simple villagers. I offered to open the box to
show them that there was no devil inside ; but as soon
as I touched the lid with that intention, they all
started for another run; so I did not open it. |
I showed them an accordion ; and, being no player
myself, made simply a noise with it, which pleased
them amazingly. They were more pleased with it
than with the musical box, for there was no mystery
about the cause of the noise to alarm them. ‘Then I
got out a galvanic battery, and experimented on such
of them as I could persuade to touch the handles.
When they felt the shock they cried out “ Hninda!” |
this being the name of a species of electric fish found
in the neighbouring streams. They all cried, “ Why
did you not show us these things before?” F inally,
after showing them pictures and other objects—the
_ portraits of the Movers of the Address in the ‘ Illus-
Cuar. IX. ASTONISHMENT OF THE NATIVES. 193
trated London News’ attracting their notice more
than anything else—I exhibited my large magnet,
which I knew would astonish them. I. asked one
man to come near with his Apono sword, and stag-
gered him by taking it out of his hand with the
magnet, I asked for other swords, and knives.
All were handed to me at arm’s length, for they were
afraid of approaching the magical instrument, to
which the red paint gave additional terrors. When
they saw their knives and swords sticking to the
magnet without dropping, sometimes by the edges
and sometimes sideways, they all shouted out: “He
is surely an Oguizi (Spirit) to do these things.” I
invited them to take the instrument in their hands,
but they dared not; Mayolo’s curiosity eventually
overcame his fears, and he handled the magnet with
the air of a man who is doing something very
courageous. At the conclusion of the exhibition the
old chief exclaimed that I was immensely rich, and
that if I was not a king I must be next in rank to
the king in my country. He was astonished when I
told him that the kings of the white men had pro-
bably never heard of me. He thought I was telling
him a very wicked story, and did not believe me.
The day previous to this I had a good laugh at the
alarm of one of these simple Otando people, when
using my boiling-point apparatus to ascertain the
height of the place. I was engaged in taking the
observation, when a native, attracted by curiosity,
came to see what I was doing. He looked earnestly
at the aneroids, then at the bull’s-eye lantern on the
top of which was the little kettle where water was to —
194 MAYOLO. Cuap. IX,
be boiled, and then at the thermometer screwed into
the kettle: when he had finished his inspection he
withdrew to a distance, in a state of bewilderment and
fear that was comical to behold; but I pretended to
be taking no notice of him. These people fancy that
I travel with all sorts of fetiches and am possessed
of supernatural power—a belief which I did not try
to upset, as it stood me in good stead. I now lighted
the lamp and proceeded to boil the water; as soon as
the negro saw the steam ascending, and heard the
bubbling: of the water, his courage finally gave way.
and he fled with the utmost precipitation, =
My photographic apparatus, or at least what re-
mained of it, was much admired by friend Mayolo.
He was the most inquisitive man of his tribe, none of
whom were wanting in curiosity, and he was never
weary of asking me questions and inspecting my
wonderful stores. When I first took out the photo-
graphic tent from its box, he was amazed, after seeing —
it fixed, to discover what a bulky affair could come
out of so small a box. After fixing the tent I with-
drew the slide and exposed the orange-coloured glass,
and invited the mystified chief to look through it at
the prairie. At first he was afraid and declined to
come into the tent; but on my telling him that he
knew I should never do anything to harm him, he
consented. He could not comprehend it. He looked
at me, at my hands, then at the glass, and believed
there was witchcraft at the bottom of it. After
Mayolo had come out of the tent unharmed, the rest
of the negroes took courage, and my tent was made a
peep-show for the remainder of the day.
~
Cuap. IX. CLIMATE OF MAYOLO. 195
The climate of Mayolo seems very variable and
uncertain; and night after night I was disappointed
when preparing to take lunar distances or meridian
altitudes of stars, by the sudden clouding of the
heavens. The sky would often be very clear and
settled, inducing me to get my sextant in order,
prepare a quicksilver artificial horizon, and note
the index error; but a thick mist would suddenly
arise and put an end to all operations. But now
and then I had magnificent nights, so that I suc-
ceeded in taking a pretty long series of obser-
vations for latitude and longitude before I left
Mayolo; so complete are they, that the position of
the town may be considered as well fixed; but I
should fail were I to attempt to describe the diff-
culties and disappointments I had to contend with in
completing them. There was something rather
remarkable also about the deposit of dew. I re-
marked that at Mayolo and Ashira the grass was
often very damp before sunset, when the sun had dis-
appeared behind the mountains. It was so damp
that it wetted my shoes in walking through ; and, at
ten minutes after sunset, dew drops were plentiful
along the edges of the plantain leaves, even on those
trees which the sun had shone upon just before dis-
appearing below the horizon. The dew drops
elittering on the margins of these beautiful leaves
looked like crystal drops or gems, appearing the
brighter from the contrast with the velvety green hue
of the magnificent foliage. One evening I watched
closely the first appearance of these dew drops.
At a quarter past five, before the sun had quite
196 | MAYOLO. Onap. IX,
disappeared behind the hill-tops, I counted thirty-six |
drops of dew on the leaves of one tree; but three
quarters of an hour later the edges of the leaves were
quite surrounded with water. The sky at the same
time was very clear, only a few clouds near the
horizon could be seen. At six o’clock the grass was
not sufficiently damp to leave water-marks on my
boots; so that it is to be concluded that the leaves
of the plantain are the first to condense the invisible
vapour of the atmosphere. Up to the present time
(May 18th) I have only twice seen the sky entirely
free from cloud since my arrival at Fernand Vaz
from England.
On the 16th of May, whilst I was in the prairie at
a short distance from Mayolo, studying the habits of
the white ants, I was aroused from my meditations by
sudden screams from the town. Iwas afraid some-
thing tragical was taking place, and made haste for
the village. I found the place in an uproar; all
caused by an influx of poor relations. It appeared
that the news of the vast wealth Mayolo had obtained
from the Oguizi had spread far and wide over the
neighbouring country, and, getting to the ears of the
old chief’s numerous fathers-in-law and brothers-in-
law, some of them had journeyed to his village with
a view to getting a share of the spoils, their greediness
overcoming their fear of me. The people of the
village had been plagued to death with these
avaricious guests, for they were all thought to have
become rich since I am living amongst them. As
time is of no importance to the African, and during
their stay they were living at the expense of the
Cuap. IX. DOMESTIC QUARREL. 197
villagers, it was no easy matter to get rid of them.
The fathers-in-law praised the beauty and all the
good qualities of their daughters married to the chief,
hinted that he had got a cheap bargain in this one
and had not paid enough for the other; and some
of them actually threatened to take away their
daughters unless something more was given. Poor
Mayolo, sick of the worry, had asked me for various
things to give them in order to get rid of them, but
they were insatiable.
The row this morning was between Oshoumouna,
Mayolo’s nephew, and his father-in-law, arising out
of these unsatisfied demands for more pay. The old
man was very discontented, saying, that though he
had given him his daughter, he had not had a single
thing given him by the Oguizi. It was in vain
that Oshoumouna assured him that I never gave
presents for nothing. Whilst I was absent, the
father-in-law had ventured to use force to take away
his daughter. It is a very common thing in Africa
for a father-in-law to take ‘away his daughter, if he
is not satisfied with the husband’s conduct. Oshou-
mouna took no notice of the abduction, and the row
was caused by the father-in-law, enraged at this cool-
ness, proceeding to demolish his son-in-law’s house.
A general mélée ensued; old Mayolo rushed out and
belaboured the aggressor with a club; the women
screamed, and a fearful uproar took place. As usual,
the object was to see who could make the most noise,
and in this contest the father-in-law was no match
for the villagers.
The discomfited father-in-law left the village, and
198 MAYOLO. Cuap, IX.
took his daughter with him, saying that her husband
should never see her again; but the damsel gave her
father the slip before night and returned to her hus-
band. There was general rejoicing in the village,
and Oshoumouna bragged greatly of the love and
fidelity of his wife, although she accounted for her
return by saying that she loved the place where the
Oguizi was, for there she could get beads.
During the latter part of my stay at Mayolo, I had
in my possession a beautiful little nocturnal animal,
of the Lemur family, an Otolicnus, called by the
negroes Jbola. It is nocturnal in its habits, and has
immensely large eyes, and a fur so soft that it re-
minded me of the Chinchilla. I had it about a fort-
night. The species lives in the forests, retiring in
the day time to the hollows of trees, where it sleeps
till the hour of its activity returns; but it sometimes
also conceals itself in the midst of masses of dead
boughs of trees, where daylight cannot penetrate.
In broad daylight you could see by the twinkling of
its eyes and its efforts to conceal itself, that light
was painful to it. At first I had no means of pro-
tecting it during the day, and the delicate little
creature used. to cover its eyes with its tail to keep
out the light. Nothing but ripe plantains would it
accept for food. JI was much grieved one morning
to find the poor Ibola dead, for it had become quite
tame, and liked to be caressed.
My boy Macondai was now entirely recovered,
with the exception of sore eyes, from which many
negroes suffer after the small-pox has disappeared ;
some lose their sight from the effects of the disease ;
OE — a, Te ee ee
:
q
Cuap. IX. THE ALUMBI FERTICH. 133
one only of my men was afflicted in this way, Mouitchi,
who became blind of one eye. One of Mayolo’s
fathers-in-law was quite blind from this disease. All
my Commi companions having thus got over the
danger, with the exception of Rapelina, who had not.
had the disease, I was anxious only for Mayolo, whose
abscess was still slowly progressing and confined him
to his house. As the time approached for our de-
parture, a marked increase of attention and kindness
was noticeable on his part. Hvery day a present of
eatables came to my hut cooked by his head wife;
one day a plateful of yams, another day a dish of cas-
sava,and so forth. But I suspected a trick was being
played upon me, having recently become acquainted
with an African custom, of which I had not pre-
viously heard, and which consisted in serving, in
dishes given to a guest, powder from the skull ofa
deceased ancestor, with a view to soften his heart in
the matter of parting presents. This custom is called
the alumli.
I had long known of the practice of preserving
in a separate hut the skulls of ancestors, but did
not know of this particular use of the relics. In
fact, a person might travel in Africa for years
without becoming aware of this singular custom,
as no negro will divulge to you the whole details
of such a matter, even should he be one of your best
friends.
Most travellers in this part of the continent are
puzzled to know the meaning of certain miniature
huts which are seen standing behind or between the
dwelling-houses, and which are held sacred. No one
200 , MAYOLO. Crap! aie
but the owner himself is allowed to enter these little
huts; but Quengueza’s great friendship for me over-
came his African scruples in my case; and I was
permitted, on my return from the interior, to examine
his alumbi-house. These erections are spoken of
by travellers as fetich-houses; and if, perchance, a
stranger is allowed to peep into one, he sees
a few boxes containing chalk or ochre, and upon a
kind of little table a cake of the same, with
which the owner rubs his body every time he
goes on a fishing, hunting, or trading expedition.
The chalk is considered sacred, and to be smeared
with it serves as a protection from danger. If
you are a great friend, the chalk of the alumbi
will be marked upon you on your departure from
.the residence of your host. But the boxes generally
contain also the skylls of the ancestors of the owner,
at least those relatives who were alive during his
own life-time; for, on the death of such a relative,
his or her head is cut off and placed in a box
full of white clay, looking like chalk, where it is
left to rot and saturate the chalk; both skull and
saturated chalk being then held sacred. The skulls
of twin children are almost always used for the
alumbi. }
When a guest is entertained of whom presents are
expected, the host, in a quiet way, goes from time to
time into the fetich-house and scrapes a little bone-
powder from a favourite skull, and puts it into the
food which is being cooked as a present to the guest.
The idea is, that, by consuming the scrapings of the
skull, the blood of their ancestors enters into your
Crap, IX. PREPARATIONS FOR DEPARTURE. 201
body, and thus, becoming of one blood, you are
naturally led to love them, and grant them what
they wish. It is not a pleasant subject of reflection,
but I have no doubt been operated upon on pre-
vious journeys; being now, however, aware of the
custom, I refused the food, and told Mayolo I cared
very little to eat of the scraped skull of his grand-
father. Of course, Mdyolo indignantly denied it;
he said he had offered me food out of pure love .
for me. |
The last days of May were employed in re-packing
my large stores of baggage. It was a most laborious
task; everything had to be sorted, and all that was
not absolutely necessary secured in packages to be
left behind. How I wished it were possible to travel
through Africa with a lighter load! Amongst the
things to be left behind were the remains of my
photographical outfit; I packed them up with a
heavy heart, so much did I regret being unable to
continue taking photographs. Notwithstanding the
lightening of my loads, I still required forty-five
porters to carry them.
A few days before my departure we held a grand ©
palaver, and I made my request for the requisite
number of porters. All wished to go, and, to the
credit of Mayolo, I must say that I never had less
trouble in arranging the terms of payment. To
Mayolo himself I gave all the goods that I had set
apart to leave behind, owing to the necessity of
lightening my baggage, including all that remained
of my photographic apparatus. I had given to him
more presents than to any other chief, with the
15
5 ll “sa
i i
abil ay?
W aa
hess! i
(i St
1 a
Nhl ve
| r.
; i ‘ye
) | 2%
it) g
202 MAYOLO. Car. IX.
( exception of my staunch friend, King Quengueza. _
ii He was overjoyed at the splendour of the presents,
ik : but said, “Truly, goods and money are like hunger ;
you are filled to-day, but to-morrow you are hungry
again |” |
_ * oa f, _ = q
? f% - Sar i ; ee tapes
ee ees Fe ae dae ee 1 it oak eet: ale
Aa Sar — a ay h TTS Ce Bee VE MD hoe hte Oe “a. 1g Ceo a de
CHAPTER X.
THE OTANDO AND APONO REGION.
Geographical Position of Mayolo—Splendour of the Constellations as seen
from the Equatorial Regions—The Zodiacal Light—Twinkling of the —
Stars—Meteoric Showers—The Otando and Apono Plains, or Prairies
—The Otando People a branch of the Ashira Nation—Their Customs—
Filing the Teeth—Tattooing—Native Dogs.
From Olenda eastwards, as attentive readers of my
former and present narratives will be aware, the
countries I traversed were new ground, not only to
myself, but to any European; it is, therefore, neces-
sary that I should give such details as I am able, in
the course of my journey, about the various portions
of the country, their inhabitants and productions.
Unfortunately, the volume of my journal, which
contained the diary of my march from Olenda to
Mayolo, and of more than two months of the latter
part of my stay in this place, was lost, with nearly
the whole of the rest of my property, in my hurried
flight from Ashango-land. It was the only volume
out of five that was missing. It contained the obser-
vations which I took for altitudes of the range of
highlands separating the Ashira from the Otando
districts; and I am, therefore, unable to give a full
account of this range, which is an important feature
in this part of Africa, as separating, together with
204 THE OTANDO AND APONO REGION. Onap, X.
the lower hilly range west of Olenda, the coast-lands
from the great interior of the continent. I remember,
however, that some part of the country was more
than 1,200 feet above the level of the sea, as shown
by the aneroids.
The town of Mayolo I determined, by a long series
of observations, to lhe in 1° 51’ 14" §. lat., and
11° 0’ 37” K. long., and 496 feet above the sea-
level. ¥ ,
At Mayolo, the jontone len of the neat af-
forded me a degree of enjoyment difficult to describe.
When every one else had gone to sleep, I often stood
alone on the prairie, with a gun by my side, watching
the stars. I looked at some with fond love, for they
had been my guides, and consequently my friends,
in the lonely country I travelled; and it was always
with a feeling of sadness that I looked at them for
the last time, before they disappeared below the
horizon for a few months, and always welcomed them
back with a feeling of pleasure which, no doubt, those
who have been in a situation similar to mine can
understand. I studied also how high they twinkled,
and tried to see how many bright meteors travelled
through the sky, until the morning twilight came
and reminded me that my work was ‘done, by the
then visible world becoming invisible.
I shall always remember the matchless beauty of
these Equatorial nights, for they have left an no
impression upon my memory.
‘The period of the year I spent at Mayolo (April |
and May) were the months when the atmosphere is
the purest, for after the storms the azure of the sky
-Cuar. X. SPLENDOUR OF THE CONSTELLATIONS. 205
was so intensely deep, that it made the stars doubly
bright in the vault of heaven.
At that time the finest constellations of the Southern
Hemisphere were within view at the same time. The
constellation of the Ship, of the Cross, of the Centaur,
of the Scorpion, and the Belt of Orion, which include
the three brightest stars in the heavens, Sirius, Ca-
nopus, and a Centauri.
The planets Venus, Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter were
in sight. |
The Magellanic clouds—white-looking patches,
especially the larger one—brightly illuminated as
they revolved round the starless South Pole, con-
trasting with the well-known “ coal-sack” adjoining
the Southern Cross.
The part of the Milky Way, between the 50° and
80° parallel, so beautiful and rich in crowded nebule
and stars, seemed to be in a perfect blaze between
Sirius and the Centaur; the heavens there appeared
brilliantly illuminated.
Then looking northward, I could see the beautiful
constellation of the Great Bear, which was about the
same altitude above the horizon as the constellations
of the Cross and of the Centaur; some of the stars in
the two constellations passing the meridian within a
short time of each other; y Urse Majoris half an
hour before a Crucis, and Benetnasch eleven minutes
before 6 Centauri.
Where and when could any one have a grander
view of the heavens at one glance? From a Urse
Majoris to a Crucis, there was an are of 125°. Then,
as if to give a still grander view to the almost en-
206 THE OTANDO AND APONO REGION. — Ouar. X.
chanting scene, the zodiacal light rose after the sun
had set, increasing in brilliancy, of a bright yellow
colour, and rising in a pyramidal shape high into
the sky, often so bright that it overshadowed the
brightness of the milky way and the rays of the
moon, the beautiful yellow light gradually diminish-
ing towards the apex. It cast a gentle radiance on the
clouds round it, and sometimes formed almost a ring,
but never perfect, having a break near the meridian ;
at times being reflected in the east with nearly as
much brilliancy, if not as much, as in the west, and
making me almost imagine a second sunrise.
I had noticed this yellow glow before at Olenda
in March, where it was sometimes very bright; but
it was only at Mayolo I began to write down obser-
vations upon it. April and May were the months
when the light showed itself in its greatest brilliancy.
It often became visible half an hour after the sun had
disappeared, and was very brilliant, like a second
sunset. It still increased in brilliancy, and attained
often a very bright orange colour at the base. Ii
rose in a very distinct pyramidal shape, which some-
times, if I remember well, must have extended about
40°, the bright yellow gradually becoming fainter and
fainter at the top. The brilliancy and duration varied
considerably on different days, and also the breadth
and height. It could be seen most every day when
the sky was clear; and as it faded away, it left behind
it a white light, which also showed itself in the east.
It was generally the brightest from a quarter to
seven to half-past seven, but there were exceptions ;
sometimes it would be later, and at times the glow
Cuap. X. THE ZODIACAL LIGHT, 207
would fade and then reappear with fresh strength; but
generally the increase and decrease of brilliancy was
uniform. It was seldom discernible after ten o'clock.
Unfortunately the book containing these observa-
tions on the light has been lost, but a few notes on
it are scattered here and there in my journal.
April 13th, The weather has been cloudy, with a
few showers. . . . . To-night the sky presents
a magnificent appearance after sunset. The glow
coming from the west was so bright that it over-
shadowed the brightness of the Milky Way. I could
only distinguish it above the Sword of Orion; the
glow was the brightest below the planet Mars, and
the base of the pyramid reached, on the south, the
part of the Milky Way at the foot of the Cross. At
the north point of the horizon its extent was about
the same.
April 15th. The weather has been cloudy until
past noon, and to-night the sky is clear though a
little hazy. The glow of light coming from the west
is beautiful, and is quite white; at seven o’clock it
was still of great intensity, though it had dimin-
ished. Ido not remember to have seen it so bright
before.
May 5th. Yesterday the bright yellow hght which
appears after sunset was magnificent, and could be
seen above the trapezium in Orion notwithstanding
the strong moonlight, the moon being then nearly
at the full. Indeed, I have never seen the zodiacal
light shine so brightly; one might fancy, if it was
not towards the west, the dawn of morning coming.
May 14th, After sunset I observed a phenomenon
208 THE OTANDO AND APONO REGION. Cuap, X.
that much surprised me; the zodiacal light had its
counterpart in the east. |
Now I will make a few observations on the
twinkling of stars. Some persons have believed
that, in our northern latitudes, the stars twinkle
more than within the tropics. I spent this last
summer at Twickenham at Mr. Bishop’s observatory,
and have watched the scintillation of the stars, and
I doubt much if this conclusion is right; unfortu-
nately, I have also lost the notes I had made on this
subject. I remember distinctly that one of the stars
of the Belt of Orion twinkled until it reached the
zenith; others twinkled to a considerable altitude.
There were nights when they seemed to twinkle
more than at other times.
While watching the stars, in the southern heavens,
it appeared to me that a Centauri was changing to
a ruddy colour. It was certainly not so white as B
Centauri, and often, through a light mist so common
there, I could recognise it through its reddishness.
I should say, that it was only with the naked eye
that these observations were made.
The most southern star of the constellation of the
Ship (ce Argis), distant from Canopus about 17° 43',
was quite red to the eyes.
In regard to the April shower of meteors, I only
saw them few in number; there was nothing to com-
pare with the number of those I observed this year
at Twickenham, in company with the distinguished
astronomer, Mr. Hind; but many were far brighter.
Almost every night, ite observing at Maéyolo, I
could see brilliant meteors, many: of which seemed to
Crap, X. PLAINS OR PRAIRIES, 209
emanate from the direction of Leo, though its altitude
was very high.
All the inquiries I made concerning the fall of aer-
olites have been fruitless; the negroes never saw any,
though I suppose that, as in every other country,
some may have fallen, but they are buried in these
impenetrable forests.
Mayolo lies on the western edge of an undulating
plain about twenty miles broad, stretching between
the Ashira ranges of hills and the higher ridges of
Ashango in the interior; this plain averaging about
400 feet above the sea-level, and the hilly ranges
running nearly north-west and south-east. The plain
is covered in many places with a clayey soil, but in
other parts with masses of fragments of ferruginous
sandstone. It is watered by the Ngouyai and its
affluents, which river flows in a_north-westerly
direction, and, cutting through the hilly range
north of Ashira-land, forms a junction some thirty .
miles further down with the Okanda (apparently
a still more important stream); both together then
form the great River Ogobai, which pursues a south-
westerly direction through the coast-plains to the
Atlantic.
The plains east of Mdyolo are inhabited, as will
presently be seen, by the Otando and the Apono
tribes. These plains consist chiefly of undulating
grass-land, diversified by groups of trees, or small
circumscribed tracts of forest, in which are many
magnificent timber-trees; the banks of the river are
almost everywhere lined with trees for a hundred
——— a
OS SS
Se ga eS ar Ud
210 THE OTANDO AND APONO REGION. Cuap. X.
yards or more from the water’s edge. Now and
then the prairie reaches to the water-side. The
grass-lands extend in a north-west and south-east
direction, and the numerous negro-villages are gene-
rally built in the prairie. Some of the wooded
islands or isolated patches of forest are many miles
in length ; the prairies are covered with tall grasses
and shrubs, without any mixture of bushes or trees.
The soil of the forest tracts is generally more fertile
than that of the prairies, and it is within their
shades that the plantations of the people are situ-
ated. The Otando villages round Mayolo are sur-
rounded by groves of plaintain-trees; and the broad
magnificent leaves of these trees form a striking
contrast with the grass that surrounds them.
I have little to remark respecting the Otando
people. They are a branch of the Ashira nation,
speaking the Ashira language, and having a similar
physical conformation to the people of that tribe,
together with the same superstitions, customs, arts,
warlike implements, and dress; but they do not
seem to be so industrious in the manufacture of the
orass cloth.
I found many of the people not very dark-skinned.
They had various fashions as regards their teeth.
Many file the two upper indo, in the shape of
a’ sharp cone, and the four lower ones are also
filed to a sharp point. Others file the four upper
incisors to a point. A few among them have the
two upper incisors pulled out. They tattoo them-
selves on the chest and stomach, but keep the face
Cap. X. NATIVE DOGS. 211
smooth. Among the young people very few have
their teeth filed: the custom is dying out.
One day, in my rambles near Mdyolo, two of my“ *
native dogs had a severe fight with a very large
white-nosed monkey (cercopithecus), and came back
to me in a dreadful state, especially my dog An-
deko, who, being always the first in a fray, generally
came off worse than his comrade. In this encounter
with the white-nosed monkey, he had the flesh of his
fore-leg bitten through to the bone, and his upper
lip was cut in two by a terrible gash. Andeko was
famous for his courage. He had at different times
taken alive young gorillas, young chimpanzees, and
young boars.
These native dogs are keen, active animals; they
are seen in the interior of purer blood than in the
Commi country, where they have become much
changed by crossing with European dogs of various
breeds, brought by trading vessels. The pure bred
native dog is small, has long straight ears, long
muzzle, and long, curly tail—very curly when the
breed is pure. The hair is short and the colour
yellowish, the pure breed being known by the clear- s
ness of this colour. They are always lean, and are
kept very short of food by their owners; in fact,
they get no food except what they can steal. Al-
though they have a quick ear, I do not think highly
of their scent. My head man, Igala, keeps a large
number of dogs for hunting at his plantations in the
Fernand Vaz. They are good watch-dogs, but are
often destroyed by leopards in the night. As I have
e?
* 6
212 THE OTANDO AND APONO REGION. Cuar.X,
stated in ‘Equatorial Africa,’ hydrophobia is un-
known in this part of the continent. I have only —
now to confirm that statement; it appears, therefore,
conclusive that heat is not the cause of this terrible _
disease. | cetty | a
CHAPTER XL
ANTS.
The White Ants of the Prairies—The Mushroom-hived Termes—Interior
of their Hives—Three classes in each Community: Soldiers, Workers,
and Chiefs—Their mode of building—The Tree Ants—Curious structure
of their Hives—Their process of constructing them—The Bark Ants—
Curious tunnels formed by them—The Forest Ants—Large size of their
Shelters or Hives—The stinging Black Ant.
Durine my stay at Mayolo, I occupied a great part
of my leisure hours in studying the habits of the
many different species of white ants (Termites), the
nests of which are very conspicuous objects in the
prairie. The study of these curious creatures was.
most fascinating, and it was a source of great enjoy-
ment to me in the midst of so many cares and
anxieties. The ants are of wonderful diversity,
both in form of body, head, and so forth, and in
architectural tastes. I began to form a collection
of them, putting specimens of the different kinds,
in their various stages, in little glass tubes filled
with spirits, having brought an assortment of
these tubes for the purpose of preserving minute
insects. The loss of this collection in my retreat
from Mouaou Kombo I felt most keenly, as I had
hoped the specimens would have explained much that
still remains obscure in the history of these curious
insects. It prevents me also from giving the proper
214 ANTS. Cuap ae
scientific names to the different varieties, each of
which builds a different kind of nest; the natives
have only a general name for all the species.
Mushroom-hived Termes.—Let us begin with the
species which builds the mushroom-shaped edifice.
These singular hives, shaped like gigantic mush-
rooms, are scattered by tens of thousands over the
Otando prairie. The top is from twelve to eighteen
inches in-diameter, and the column about five inches;
the total height is from ten inches to fifteen inches.
After the grass has been burnt they present a most
extraordinary appearance; near Mayolo they are
met with almost at every step. They are not all
uniformly built, as they appear at a distance, but
differ in the roundness or sharpness of their summits.
I opened a great number of these, and followed up
my researches day after day into the habits of their
inhabitants. These and all similar edifices are built
to protect the white ants against the inclemencies of
the weather, and against their enemies,. which are
very numerous, and include many predaceous —
of fellow ants.
The mushroom-shaped hive is not so firmly built
in the ground but that it can be knocked down by a
well-planted kick. It is built of a kind of mortar
after being digested in the stomachs of the ants,
When felled, the base of the pillar is found to have
rested on the ground, leaving a circular hollow, in
4 the middle of which is a ball of earth full of cells,
ia) _ which enters the centre of the base of the pillar, and
Q the cells are eagerly defended by a multitude of the
= ve. ———-
:
q
|
NESTS
OF MUSHROOM-ANTS AND TREE-ANTS.
(Otando Prairie.)
Cup. XI. MUSHROOM-HIVED TERMES. 215
soldier class of the ants, which I took to be males,
all striving to bite the intruder with their pincer-like
jaws. On breaking open the ball—which, when
handled, divided itself into three parts—I always
found it full of young white ants in different stages
of growth, and also of eggs. The young were of a .
milky-white colour, while the adults were yellowish,
with a tinge of grey when the abdomen is full of
earth. Besides these young ants, there were a great
many full-grown individuals, whom I took to be
females, and who appeared to be the workers or
labourers described by entomologists. These have
not elongated nippers like the soldiers, but have very
bulky abdomens, and they are inoffensive. We shall
see presently what their distended abdomens are used
for. Besides these soldiers and workers, I always
saw, whenever I broke a hive, a very much larger
specimen than the other two, which came in from
the inner galleries, looked round, and went away
again. ‘These large ants were very few in number.
There were, therefore, three distinct sets of indi-
viduals. To these large ones I shall give the name
of head men or chiefs. |
In order to examine the rest of the structure I
often took an axe and broke the nest into several
pieces ; but the material was so hard that it required
several blows before I succeeded. I tried then to
make out the structure of the chambers and galleries
of which the interior was composed. But before I
could do this, I was somewhat perplexed at dis-
covering that there was another distinct species of
white ant mixed up with the proper architects of the
216 ANTS. Crap. XI.
edifice. The soldiers of this other species were much
smaller and more slender, and, as I broke the pieces,
these two kinds fell to fighting one another. On
close inspection I found that these slender fellows
came out of cells composed of a yellow earth, whilst
the others inhabited cells of black earth. The yellow
colour was due to a coating of some foreign substance
on the walls of the cell. The chambers inhabited by
the slender species did not communicate with those
peopled by the lords of the manor; they seemed
rather to be inserted into the vacant spaces or par-
tition walls between the other cells. No doubt they
had intruded themselves, after the building had been
finished, from under the ground. In the fight the
larger kind showed no mercy to the smaller. It was
quite marvellous to witness the fury with which the
soldiers of the one kind seized the bodies of the others
with their powerful pincer-jaws, and’ carried them
away into their own chambers. The soldiers of the
slender kind also possessed long pincer-like jaws, and
I noticed in one instance, when a worker of the larger
kind had seized a small worker, who was in her last
struggle for life, that one of these slender soldiers flew
to the rescue, and snapping into the soft abdomen of
the assailant, twice its size, let out its contents; the
slender one then fell from the pincers that had
gripped her, but life was extinct. The rescuer came,
examined the body, and seeing that she was dead,
went away and disappeared; if she had been only
wounded she would probably have been carried away, —
as they do the young. I may here remark that,
with the exception of the head, the body of the ter-
— eta ete ee a
ibaa tele. oe al I cit pence ee a ne |
Cuap. XI. MUSHROOM NESTS. 2h
mites is exceedingly soft. On examining the struc-
ture of the soldiers, it is evident that their powerful
pincer-jaws are made for wounding and piercing,
while the structure of the workers shows that their
pincers are made for the purposes of labour. Nothing
astonished me more than this impetuous attack ; my
attention was intense on this deadly combat; the
weaker species knew the vulnerable point of his for-
midable enemy, who was too busy. to protect himself.
A further examination showed me that the mush-
room-like cap of the whole edifice was composed of
both black and yellow cells. This curious mixture
of two species, each building its own cells and yet
contributing to form an entire and symmetrical
edifice, filled me with astonishment. The wonder did
not cease here, for in some of the mushroom-like
heads there was still a third kind quite distinct from
the other two, and not a white ant.
The mushroom nests are built very rapidly, but
when finished they last, in all probability, many
years. The ants work at them only at night, and
shut out all the apertures from the external air when
daylight comes, for the white ant abhors daylight;
and when they migrate from an old building to
commence the erection of a new one, they come
from under the ground. Sometimes they add to
their structures by building one mushroom-head
above another; I have seen as many as four, one on
the top of the other. The new structures are built
when the colony increases; new cells must be found
for the new comers. The shelter is quite rain-proof.
I passed hours in watching the tiny builders at
16
218 ANTS. Cuapr. XI.
their daily labours in the cells, which I was enabled
to do by laying open some of their cells, and then
observing what went on after all was quiet. So soon ©
as the cells are broken, a few head men or chiefs are
seen ; each one moves his head all round the aperture, —
and then disappears into the dark galleries, appa-
rently without leaving anything. Then the soldiers
come; these do no work, but there must be some
intention in these movements; they no doubt were
on guard to protect the workers. I was never able,
even with my magnifying glass, to see them do any-
thing. The workers then come forward, and each of
them turns round and ejects from behind a quantity
of liquid mud into the aperture, and finally walls it
up. They come one after the other, and all of
them leave their contributions; this is done first
in a row from one end of the aperture to another,
then each ejection is put on the top of the other
with a precision that would do honour to a brick-
layer or stonemason. The question to me was to
know if the same ants went away to eat more
earth and came again. How much would I. have
given to be able to see into the dark recesses of the
chambers! but I do not see how this will ever be
done. The apertures of the cells were only closed
during the day, and during the following night the
part of the structure which I had demolished was
rebuilt to its original shape. Some of them brought
very small grains of sand or minute pebbles, and
deposited them in the mud; when demolishing their
shelter, I saw several cells filled with these little
pebbles, which I had also collected and preserved.
Cuap. XI. MODE OF BUILDING. 219
Soon after others came and closed up the cell. The
earth which they eat can be seen shining through the
thin skins of their bodies, but I was unable to see
where it was stored in the interior of the edifice.
The mud is mixed with gluey matter, through the
digestion, when it is ejected, and with this material
the little creatures are enabled to build up the thin
_ tough walls which form their cells, and, in course of
time, the firm and solid structure of the entire nest.
Sun and rain are equally fatal to the white ants;
thus it is necessary that they should build a hive
impervious to light, heat, and rain. I have put
white ants in the sun, and they were shortly after-
wards killed by its heat. I thought each cell was,
perhaps, inhabited only by one ant, but the great
number I saw in each mushroom-like edifice made it
quite improbable that it should be so.
I believe these white ants of the prairie are quite a
different species from those which live in subterranean,
dwellings, and which make their appearance suddenly
through the floor of one’s hut and devour all sub-
stances made of cotton or paper; these are very fond
of eating wood, and are often found in dead trees.
In these species, the sense of smell, or some other
_ sense equivalent to it, must be very acute. One may
retire to bed in fancied security, with no sign of
white ants about, and in the morning wake to find
little covered ways overspreading the floor and chests
of clothing and stores, and the contents of the chest
entirely destroyed, with thousands of the busy ants
engaged in cutting the things with their sharp jaw-
blades. KHverything made of wool or silk is, how-
220 ANTS. Cuap. XI.
ever, invariably spared. At Mayolo this kind of ant
was very abundant, and was a cause of much anxiety
to me.
Tree Ant.—Now that I have tried to the best of
my abilities to give an account of what I call the
mushroom-building white ant, I will speak of another
species which lives in the forest, and which is often a
near neighbour of the other. In the forest there is
a species which makes its hives or nests between the
ribs of the trunks of trees. The nests are from four
to seven feet long, and six to eight inches broad, and
are formed externally of several slanting roofs, one
above the other. The ants that make these struc-
tures have long black bodies and white heads, and
are unlike the ~aithstotidbaiididie ants.
The structure begins from the ground in a some- .
what irregular cylindrical piece of walling or build-
ing about a foot high, but varying to as much as
eighteen inches, and full of cells and galleries ; then
occurs the first slanting roof. The larger the struc-
ture, the more of these slanting roof-lke projections
it possesses, and they become smaller towards the
top, the middle roof being the broadest; sometimes
a few inches will separate one roof from the other;
the roofs communicate with each other through the
cells by the same cylindrical piece of masonry; the —
material of which the whole ‘is built is very thick,
hard, and impermeable to rain. The structure of
this ant is not common in the: forest; but having
found a nest in the prairie near hs Pas I had not to
go far to study them.
Cuap. XI. THE TREE ANT. 221
I frequently broke open portions of this singular
structure, and tried to observe the movements of the
inhabitants in the interior of their dark chambers.
As in the mushroom hives of the prairie, I found
numbers of little pale young ants in the cells; there
were also a few head men or chiefs, soldiers, and
workers, the soldiers doing no work, whilst the
workers were full of activity ; the immature indivi-
duals moved but slowly, and seemed very delicate ;
the very young ones did not move at all. Whenever
I broke into the cells, the first care of the adults was
always to place the young progeny out of danger;
this they did by taking them up in their mouths and
carrying them into the inner chambers. Those, how-
ever, who could walk unaided were driven in. As
soon as the young ones had been taken into the cells,
the soldiers came to the apertures of all the cells that
had been broken, to defend the breach from any
enemies that might come: and then the workers
began to work with great rapidity. In breaking
the structure I killed a few of the young ones—the
adults came to them, and seeing them dead, left them
on the field.
I observed the soldiers engaged in an occupation
which was at first incomprehensible to me, but I after-
wards came to the conclusion that it was the act of
_ tracing with their mouths the outline of the work of
closing up the cells, which was to be completed by
their fellow ants the workers. The soldiers came and
stood at the opening of every broken cell in a row,
quiet for a little while, then they disappeared. By
the movement of their heads I thought they might be
222 | ANTS. Cuar. XI.
taking some earth away, but I was not able to see
this with my magnifying glass. I thought also that
they might be throwing some moisture in order to
dampen the soil where the walls were to be built,
there again my magnifying glass failed me. The
worker ants would then come in and apply their
mouths intently to the bottom of the cells in the
places where the mud had been ejected by the others,
and this was done so frequently that it appeared a
regular occurrence. It was interesting to watch the
regularity with which the ants worked, in compact
rows, side by side, until the chambers were covered
in. Before building, they carried away the little
pieces of clay which had been broken off, and which
were. in their way. The material they used for
building seemed to me almost the same as that of the
mushroom-building ants.. After having disposed of
their loads, the ants disappeared, and others took
their places; what I wanted to find out was whether
the same ants came again, but, as in the case of the
mushroom-building ants, I was not able to settle this
point.’ The head men were far less numerous in pro-
portion to the total population of the community
than in the mushroom hives. The ants of this
species only once rebuilt their hive in its original
shape, after I had broken it. When I again de-
stroyed part of it they only closed the open cells.
In this kind of building the slanting roof pre-
vented the rain from getting in; but in the mush-
room hives, if the damage had not been entirely
repaired, the rain would have penetrated the struc-
ture.
Cuap. XI. THE BARK ANT. 223
Bark Ant.—Another much smaller species of white
ant is found under pieces of loose dry bark on the
forest trees, on which they feed. The colonies were
composed of a very scanty number of individuals,
and the ants were so small and obscure that it was
not easy to detect them. They always choose trees
that are old and have these scales of loose bark on
their trunks from place to place. It is under these
small patches or scales that the ants live. They feed
on the wood, and build covered “ways, or rather
tunnels, which start from the ground and communi-
cate to the different places where the colony has
scattered itself. Now and then, scraping under the
bark, I found that the settlement had moved some-
where else as soon as they had come to the green of
the tree. The material which this ant uses to build
its tunnels is not earth, but wood-dust. This proves
clearly that these white ants, with, perhaps, the ex-
ception of one species, build their nests of the same
material as they eat, but not till after it has passed
through their stomachs, and received an admixture
of glutinous fluid. The quantity thrown by this
little species was so minute that I could hardly have
seen it with the naked eye. They worked exactly
like the others I have just described. I was unable
to recognise the three distinct classes of individuals.
- There seemed to be only two sets—soldiers and
workers. They worked very slowly when joining
the broken portions of the tunnels I had demolished.
This was accounted for by the extreme smallness of
the particles of material ejected by them, and also by
the fact that, in consequence of the tunnel being.
224 ANTS. Crap; 3)
very narrow, only one or two ants could work at the
same time.
Forest Termes.—Now I come to another species of
white ants much larger than those I have described
before, and building far larger structures.
The shelters of this ant are found in the forest, and
are rather uncommon ; they are always found single,
their light yellow colour makes them quite con-
spicuous in the midst of the dark foliage by which
they are surrounded ; this yellow colour comes from
the soil which the ants use in building, and. whee
they get from below the black loam. . __ Mig a
The height of the structure I examined was Poni
feet and a half, and the diameter at the broadest
part two feet: and a half; after breaking one sinuo-
sity I found the cells to be about one. inch and a
half in length and about half an inch’in height,
each cell corresponding with the others by corridors
or round tunnels varying from half an inch to one
inch in length, and about a panies of an. inch in
- diameter. .
In demolishing the ee found that the thielestes
of the wall was only one inch before the cells were
found; but I found the earth at the top much harder
than on the sides, as though the builders had put a
much larger quantity of glutinous matter in this
part of the structure.
After demolishing three inches at this yellow top
of the nest I came suddenly to another layer, half an
inch thick, full of little holes or cells, so small that
they had no doubt been built on purpose for the ants
NEST OF FOREST ANTS.
Ni Hite
AH
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\\nets ANY
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SG Dp
Susp XT, FOREST TERMES. 225
to remain there alone, but for what reason they re-
quired to remain alone I was unable to discover ;
at that time there were no ants there. .
Then with the axe I gave a powerful blow, and
demolished another part of the structure, which dis-
turbed the ants from their dark chambers. J saw
there the three different classes of ants: the head
men, very large, with whitish body and black head
(these were but few in number); the workers, with
short and thick body and broad head, but not so
large as the chiefs; and, thirdly, the soldiers, not
so large as the workers, more slender, and possessing
longer nippers. These three distinct classes were the
inhabitants of this curious structure.
As I was looking at these ants, my attention was
‘suddenly called to watch their movements. The sol-
diers came and, ranging themselves round the broken
cells, took their stand and remained immovable.
Then the workers came; each carried between its
pinchers a small particle of yellow clay, which some -
of them collected from the broken pieces, and which
stood in my sight, while others came with their loads
from the cells; there were sometimes two or three
busy together at the same time and in the same cells.
Each ant came and put down its particle of wet clay
with the utmost precision, and then with its head
moved it right and left, and by so doing succeeded
in making the bits stick together, and so finished the
wall. Each bit was put by the side of the one left
by the previous worker, who had gone to fetch more,
for here I saw the same ant go and fetch fresh pieces
of the same clay, which came from the structure I
226 ANTS, Coxe, RE
had broken. I observed that they never went out-
side the cells to get their materials. No masons
could have worked more systematically.
But how could the clay which I saw them take dry
become suddenly wet? I took a small reed and ad-
vanced it quietly towards some; they made a spring
at it (for these ants’ bites are far worse than the others)
and seized it with their nippers, and then threw upon
it a little whitish thickish matter, the same stuff that.
made the clay wet and ready for building purposes.
During the working time not one of the largest
class was in sight. The soldiers kept watch, and
it was only just before the wall was closed that they
retired.
As in the other species, only a single class out of
the three worked. This ant is not the Termes belli-
cosus of Smeathman; which erects far larger build-
ings, and is rather well known on the coast of
Africa. It has been described by several travellers ;
but I have never met with a single specimen. M.
Serval, in his ‘Exploration of the Ogobai,’ mentions
having seen an ant-hive four metres high. This
would correspond with the height of the sheltered
hives built by the Termes bellicosus. In them
Smeathman found only labourers and soldiers—
fighting ants, as he calls them. Smeathman gives
a most graphic and interesting account of this
species. From his account it would appear that the
Termes bellicosus builds the sheltered hives in the ~
same way as the forest ants do. Professor Owen
kindly lent me Smeathman’s paper, which was
published in 1781. abs
Cuap. XI. THE MOGOKORA ANT. 227
I have never been able to find a single winged
specimen of any white ants whatever, but I found
unwinged queens in the mushroom hives.
The Mogbkora Ant.—Often, while I was walking in
the Otando prairie, another ant attracted my attention ;
it was called by the natives Mégdékora; it isa ground
ant. Many hours I have spent in studying its habits.
These ants are of a black colour; many of them are an
inch in length, and they are the largest species of ants
I met with. They possess long and powerful nippers,
and, when once they have seized an insect, they never
relinquish their hold; and they have often to struggle
very hard before overpowering their victim. Con-
sidering the large size of the insects which I have
seen them master, I judge that their strength must be
enormous. They wander solitarily over the prairie,
and it was only after the grass had been burnt, that
I could study them thoroughly. They seem to scour
it in search of prey; insects and caterpillars being
their food. They inhabit holes or subterranean cham-
bers, and seem never to move very far from their
abodes; as soon as they have captured an insect
they make for their galleries, and enter them with
their victim, which they devour at leisure. I never
saw them eat their prey out of their dens. These
holes or subterranean chambers are scattered over
the prairie, and each ant seems to know the one
that belongs to it. When they find an individual of
their own species dead, they carry it off to their den.
These dens are found almost always on the decli-
vity of hills, so that the water may not enter them
228 . ANTS. Cnap. XI,
so easily when it rains; in despite of this, many are
found drowned after a heavy storm, so that the spe-
cies is not very abundant; besides, the burning of
the prairie must also destroy many. Their bite is
very painful, and is felt for a long time afterwards.
When trodden upon they emit a strong smell. I
have never been able to find out the nest of these
ants, and have never seen a wingedione. —
The Ozhont Ant——This is a much smaller species
than the Mogékora; it is found in the prairie and on
the borders of the forest. Like: the former it is
essentially a ground ant. It seems more voracious
than its powerful neighbour, for they capture their
own species alive and devour them. I have often _
assisted at these fights. The attacking party is sure
always to be larger than the attacked, which, though ©
much weaker, offers great a knowing what
will be its fate if it cannot escape. The ants wrestled
together, and sometimes the attacked succeeded in
escaping, but generally they are recaptured.
If one of the ants is not strong enough to over-
power its victim or drag it along, then two or three —
will unite to help it.
The sting of this species reminded me ales of
the sting a a bee, and I have myself suffered in-
tensely from it—once for more than two hours, in
despite of the ammonia which I applied to the sting.
The Stinging Black Ant.—I have only noticed this
species in the Otando country; it is very scarce and
only found in the forest, climbing along trunks of
Cuap. XI. THE STINGING BLACK ANT. 229
trees. These ants are almost as large as the Mégé-
kora, and they are also of a dark black colour, and
shaped more like a bee than any other ant I have
seen. Their sting is quite of the size of that of a
bee, they are very quick in their motions, and are
very difficult to capture if they have once been
missed. Their sting is the most painful I ever felt
but happily the pain does not last long.
“*, las
CHAPTER XIL
MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND.
Leave Mayolo—Cross the Nomba Obana Hill—River Dooya—Arrival at
Mouendi—Timidity of the Inhabitants—The Chief Nchiengain—Arrival
of Apingi Men—Loss and Recovery of a Thermometer—Nocturnal
Reflections—African Story of the Sun and Moon—Smelling the White
Man’s Presents—Passage of the Ngouyai—Hippopotami and Crocodiles ;
seasons of their scarcity and abundance—Arrival at Dilolo—Opposition
of the Inhabitants to our entering the Village—Pluck of my Commi
Boys—Arrival at Mokaba—My system of a Medicine Parade for my
Men.
Ovr preparations being finished, we left Mayolo on
the 30th of May, at half-past eight in the morning.
The good chief accompanied us, and our party con-
sisted of about thirty men, including twenty porters,
all heavily laden with my baggage. My own load
was, besides a double-barrelled gun and two revol-
vers, fifty ball cartridges, thirty bullets, six pounds
of shot, and a quantity of powder and caps; alto-
gether about forty pounds weight.
The whole of the villagers came to bid me good-
bye—the women were especially demonstrative in
their adieux. I gave them a parting present of
beads. As we left the village, they all shouted,
“The Oguizi is going! the Oguizi is going! we shall
never see him more!” It was with a heavy heart
that I bade adieu to these good-natured people.
For three hours we followed a course nearly due
Cuap. XII. RIVER DOOYA. Zak
east over the open grass-land of Otando. ‘About
seven miles from Mayolo we ascended a high hill,
part of an elevated ridge, called Nomba Obana; from
its summit a beautiful view is obtained towards the
west, as far as the dividing range between Otando
and Ashira; on the eastern side an equally exten-
sive prospect opens out towards the higher ranges,
amongst which dwell the Ishogo, the Ashango, and
other tribes; but directly east there was a gap in
the range, for north and south the mountains were
higher. The continuous forest which clothed the
hills, green on the nearer ranges and shading off to
misty blue on the distant ones, gave an air of solitude
to the scene. The eastern slope of Nomba Obana
was precipitous, and red sandstone rocks lay about in
wild confusion.
In the valley were the ruins of a village that had
been abandoned by Mayolo. This was the second
village he had abandoned within less than two years.
If any.one dies, Mayolo immediately moves off, say-
ing that the place is bewitched.
About three miles east of Nomba Obana we crossed
a small river called Dooya. It was fordable at this
season, but during the rains it must be a considerable
stream. Marching onwards, always in an easterly
direction, we arrived, at half-past four, at the vil-
lage of the Apono chief Nchiengain, which is called
Mouendi. The territory of the Apono tribe lies chiefly
to the south-east of this place.
We halted before entering the village, at the re-
quest of Mayolo, to arrange the order of going in, for
it was necessary to avoid anything that might give
232 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cuap. XII.
alarm to the timid savages, who had never before
received a similar visitor. The passage of inhabited
places would henceforward be the most difficult part
of our journey; as long as we had nothing but™
forests, rivers, and mountains to traverse, provided
we could get plenty of food, all would go well ;-but to
contend with the superstitious fears, restless curidsity,
and greedy avarice of the chiefs and villagers was a
serious matter. It was settled that Mayolo, who was
the friend and nkaga (born the same day).of Nehien-
gain, should go first, and that the rest should follow
at intervals one by one. We marched towards the
entrance of the village in dead silence. )
As we approached, the people who first caught
sight of us, began to flee. The women cried out as
they ran with their babes in their arms, “ The Oguizi!
(Spirit) the Oguizi! He has come and we shall
die!” They wept and shrieked ;,.I heard their cries
with dismay, but did not know till afterwards that
the small-pox had already swept through this village.
When we reached the middle of the village, there
was not a soul remaining except Nchiengain himself —
and two men, who stood with fear depicted in their
countenances near the ouandja (a kind of house open
in front) of the chief. Nchiengain, however, had
given his consent to our coming, and seemed to have
inwardly resolved to brave it out. He had fortified
himself against evil by besmearing his body with
great streaks of the alumbi chalk, and hanging all
his fetiches around him. |
The persuasive tongue of Mdyolo soon calmed his
fears. He gathered courage to look me steadily in
Cuap. XII. CHIEF NCHIENGAIN. 233
the face. I then addressed him in the Ashira lan-
guage, and recounted the treasures in beads, caps for
the head, coats, and cotton prints that I had brought
‘for him; finally he began to smile and took my
proffered hand. Beads were promised to the women,
and gradually the people came back to their houses.
Mayolo finished up with a lengthy speech in the
African manner, proving to him that I did not bring
the plague. Towards evening I went round the
village, looked into the huts, laughed with the people,
and distributed beads. Good humour was restored,
and the remark became general that the Oguizi was
a good Spirit after all.
I took meridian altitudes of Arcturus and a Crucis
before retiring to bed, although exceedingly fatigued
after our long march and the great load I had carried.
I found, by these observations, that my course had
been due east. |
31st May. Nchiengain is a tall, slender old negro,
with a mild and timid expression of features. He is
the leading chief of the Apono tribe in these parts ;
but his clan is now, I hear, almost extinguished. His
village is one of the finest and cleanest I have yet
seen, the houses being neat, built chiefly of bamboo, or
strips of the leaf-stalks of palm-trees, and arranged in
symmetrical lines. I have measured the street, and
find it to be 447 yards long and 18 broad. The houses
are small and quite separate from one another; the
height of the roof is about seven feet; and each
house has its little verandah in front, under which
the inhabitants take their meals and sit to smoke
and saaee The soil on which the village stands is
234 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cuap. XII.
clayey. I notice that many of the men have their
two middle upper incisor teeth pulled out, and the
two next to them filed to a point. Some of the
women beautify themselves in a similar way; they
also endeavour to improve their looks by tattooing
themselves in long scars on their foreheads, between
their eyebrows, and on their cheeks in a line with
the middle of the ear.
The people of Nechiengain’s village are all Bam-
bais or Bambas—that is, the children of slaves,
born in the country. The women are the prettiest
I have seen in Africa; and many of them had
very small feet and hands, which I have remarked
is the case with many of the negroes of Hquatorial
Africa.
Although the chief seems to be of a good disposition, —
I found him no better inclined to forward my journey
than any of the others I had had dealings with.
Like the Olenda people, he wanted the chief who
had brought me to his place to leave me in his
hands; this being the first step necessary to enable
the rapacious negroes to get all they could out
of me at their leisure. Mayolo was firm in his
demand to have me forwarded across the Rembo
in two days, and I supported his arguments by —
feigning anger at the chief’s proposal, and refusing
to eat the presents of food he had made me. Our
palavers lasted all this day and the next. I gave him.
a quantity of goods, but, as was to be expected, he
expressed his dissatisfaction, with a view to get more
out of me. I left Mayolo with him, and by some
means or other he persuaded him to be contented.
Cuap, XII. ARRIVAL OF APINGI MEN. 239
What could I do with a man who believed that I
made all these things myself, by some conjuring
process? for itis thus that Nchiengain argued with
Mayolo: “The cloth and beads and guns cost him no
trouble to make; why does he not give me more of
these things which do meso much good?” “ Mayolo,”
he would continue in course of his many palavers with
him, “ you eat me with jealousy. Why do you want
yourself to take the Oguizi to the Ashango country?
why not go back and leave him to me? I want it to
go far and wide that the Oguizi and Nchiengain are
big friends.” At length he offered himself to accom-
pany me across the Rembo, and to give me some
porters, for our loads were too heavy for our present
numbers. It was the passage of this river (the upper
Ngouyai) that offered our next difficulty ; it was too
wide and deep to ford or swim across, and we needed
a good canoe to ferry the party over.
June Ist. A number of Apingi men came up the
river: to-day from their villages, which are situated
a few miles lower down, on the river banks, to-
wards the north or north-west, but belonging to
a different clan from Remandji’s, which I visited
in my former journey. They fraternised with the
Apono, and we had great noise, tam-tamming, and
confusion. They brought about 100 bunches of
plantains for sale, which my men purchased. I find
the Apingi are generally lighter and redder in colour
than the Apono, and they are not so well-made a
people or so handsome (or less ugly) in features. But
there are no sharp lines of distinction between these
African tribes. They intermarry a good deal with
a a pr
236 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cuap. XII.
each other, and, besides, the chiefs have children with
their slaves who are brought from various tribes, far
and near. The Apingi were not so much accustomed
to me as the Apono were, and whenever they caught
sight of me they fled. The noise made by these
fellows was quite unbearable.
I took a walk into the neighbouring woods ; and
on my return, going to look at the thermometer hung
under the verandah of my hut, I found it had been
stolen. This was too much to be borne, as it was the
only thermometer remaining to me after the plun-
- dering of the Ashira. I felt that I must use energetic —
measures to recover the instrument, so I seized two men
who were running away from the heap of plantains
in front of my hut, and calling on my Commi boys to
cock their guns, I sent for Nehiengain and said that
I would shoot a man if the instrument was not re-
turned to me. Nchiengain and the Apono declared
that the Apingi were the thieves. Two chiefs who
were with the Apingi protested that the theft was
committed by none of their men, that they did not
come to steal, &., &. My strong measures, how-
ever, had the desired effect ; the thermometer, for-
tunately unbroken, was found shortly after lying on
the ground near a neighbouring hut. Many of the
Apingi were armed with spears, but they are not so
warlike as the Apono. They are more accustomed
to the water, and build large canoes, which they sell
to the Apono.
June 1st. I paid the new Apono porters to-day.
We were obliged to have seven more men than
before, as the loads were so heavy that the former
Crap. XII. NOCTURNAL REFLECTIONS. 237
number was insufficient, and three of my people had
the skin worn off their backs on the march from
Mayolo. To-night the air was colder than I ever
recollect to have found it in Western Africa. The
sky was cloudless but hazy—as, indeed, it often is
in the interior, in the clearest weather during the
dry season—a reddish halo surrounded the moon. I
sat up as usual to take lunar distances and altitudes
of stars. Indeed, I seldom retire before one a.m.,
and enjoy the silent nights, when the hubbub and
torment of a crowd of whimsical, restless savages
are stilled by sleep. I sometimes stretched myself on
the ground after the work was done, and enjoyed
the contemplation of the starry heavens, thinking of
the far-off northern land, lying under constellations
so different from these of the southern hemisphere.
My thoughts would wander to my distant friends
in Kurope and North America, and my eyes would
fill with tears when I dwelt on the many acts of
kindness I had received from them. Did they now
think of the poor lonely traveller working out his
mission amidst savages in the heart of Africa !
I was not always so solitary in taking my nightly
observations, for sometimes one or other of my men
or Mayolo would stand by me. Of course I could
never make them comprehend what I was doing.
Sometimes I used to be amused by their ideas about
the heavenly bodies. Like all other remarkable
natural objects, they are the subjects of whimsical
myths amongst them. According to them, the sun
and moon are of the same age, but the sun brings
daylight and gladness and the moon brings darkness,
.
238 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cuap. XII.
witchcraft and death—for death comes from sleep, and
sleep commences in darkness. The sun and moon,
they say, once got angry with each other, each one
claiming to be the eldest. The moon said: “ Who
are you, to dare to speak to me? you are alone, you
have no people; what, are you to consider yourself
equal to me? Look at me,” she continued, showing
the stars shining around her, “these are my people ;
IT am not alone in the world like you.” The sun
answered, “ Oh, moon, you bring witchcraft, and it is
you who have killed all my people, or I should have
as many attendants as you.” According to the ne-
groes, people are more liable to die when the moon
first makes her appearance and when she is last
visible. They say that she calls the people her in-
sects, and devours them. The moon with them is the
emblem of time and of death.
I was much amused to-day. Some of the inha-
bitants of a neighbouring Apono village, who had
been most hostile to my coming to their country,
having since heard that I had brought no evil or
sickness with me here, now came to see me. As soon
as my friend Nchiengain saw them, he went up to
them in great anger, crying out, “Go away, go
away! Now that you have smelt niva (my goods
or presents), you are no longer afraid, but want to
come!” So the men went away without my speaking _
to them.
June 2nd. Towards evening both Nchiengain and
Mayolo got drunk with palm wine, and their ardour
to. go forward with me was something astonishing.
They say they are going with me far beyond the
Cuap. XII. AN APONO IDOL. 239
Ashango; they are men; they will even travel by
night, as there will be the moon with us.
I wanted to obtain one of the idols of the Apono,
so to-day, on asking Nchiengain, he took me out of
the village along a path which led to a grove of
trees, and thence he sent his head wife to a mbuiri
house to fetch an idol. When it came, I found it so
large (it was, in fact,a load for one man) and so
disgustingly indecent, that I was obliged to refuse it.
[felt that if I accepted it I should be like the worthy
mayor in the well-known story, who received the
present of a white elephant. Like other idols which
I had seen, it was a female.
The villagers have the largest ngoma, or tam-tam,
[ have ever seen. It measures very nearly nine feet
in length, and the hollowing of the log must have
cost the Apono a great deal of labour. Many of the
people are drunk to-night, following the example of
the two chiefs. I had always heard from the slaves
near the coast that the Apono were a merry race,
and I now find it so with a vengeance. Since my
arrival here there has been nothing but dancing and
singing every night. I distributed beads among the
women, and this has had a great effect. So we are
all good friends together.
June 3rd. We left Mouendi with a great deal of
trouble this morning. Nchiengain and Mayolo
wanted to renew the libations of the previous even-
ing’, and, in fact, were hali-drunk soon after daylight ;
but I went to the hut where the symposium was
going on, and, kicking over the calabashes of palm
wine, sent the chiefs and their attendants to the
240 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cuap. XII.
right-about. I could not, however, get Nchiengain
away, and we started without him. I wondered
afterwards at the good-nature of these people, who
saw with composure \a stranger knocking over so
large a quantity of their cherished beverage. They
did not resent my act, but only grumbled that so
much good liquor was spilt instead of going down ©
their throats.
We reached the banks of the river, distant. about
three miles from the village, at two p.m. The
Neouyai was here a fine stream, nearly as wide as
the Thames at London Bridge, and from ten to fifteen
feet deep, flowing from the 8.8.W.
It was now the dry season, when the water is
about ten feet below the level of the rainy season.
The yellow waters formed a curious contrast to the
dark green vegetation of its banks. I could not but
admire the magnificent trees which towered above
the masses of lower trees and bushes growing from —
the rich soil; some of them grew on the very brink
of the stream, and their trunks were supported by
erect roots, looking like May-poles, eight or ten feet
high, and projecting in places over the water. Open-
ings in the wall of foliage revealed to us the interior
of the jungle, where the trees were interlaced with
creepers of all kinds, especially the india-rubber vine,
which is here very abundant. | |
I was surprised to find Nchiengain’s flat-bottomed
canoe, or ferry-boat, large and well-made. It carried
my party and baggage across in seven journeys.
We finished at half-past four p.m., and encamped
for the night on the opposite side. Nchiengain
Cuap. XII. HIPPOPOTAMI AND CROCODILES. © 241
arrived at the river-side, reeling drunk, just as we
were shoving off with the last load, and I told the
men to pretend not to hear his shouts for the return
of the canoe to embark him, so he had to come over
alone when we had all landed on the other side.
I was struck with the scarcity of animal life on and
near the river. But the rich and open valley through
which it flows must teem with Natural History wealth
in its varied woods; we could not expect to see
much amid the noise of our crossing, and in the short
time we remained in the district. There were no
aquatic birds in sight, not even pelicans. The water
was too deep and there were too few sand and mud
banks for hippopotami; for I have always noticed
that these animals are found only in rivers which
abound in shallows. If the rivers have shallows in
the dry season only, then hippopotami are to be seen
there only in the dry season. It is the same with
crocodiles. In the seasons of flood one may travel
for weeks without seeing a single individual of either
species in rivers and lakes which nevertheless swarm
with them in the dry season, Thus it is with the
lake Anengue of the Ogobai, which I described in
my former work as full of crocodiles, although when
Messrs. Serval and Griffon Du Bellay visited it, after
me, in 1862, they were unable to see any of these
reptiles. Indeed, I myself found none on my first
visit to the lake, as related in ‘ Adventures in Equa-
torial Africa ;’ on my second visit I was surprised to
find them.so abundant. Even a month or a fort-
night makes a great difference, and one wonders
where all the crocodiles come from. It is well known
Ee ee eee Re ge ges OS ee aE Se
———i ee
242 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cuap. XII.
to travellers that fishes are very scarce in seasons of
flood, and abundant in the dry season, in the same
rivers. The scarcity and abundance, of course, are
only apparent; the total population of the water
must remain pretty nearly the same all the year
round, but we are apt to lose sight of the fact that
the area of the waters of any river with many arms
and lakes must be immensely greater in the flood
season than in the dry, and thus the population 1 1s
more scattered and hidden from view.
Ath, We left the banks of the river at a quarter-
past six am. Shortly afterwards we passed through
an Apono village, and at half-past eight a.m. came to
three Ishogo villages close together. All three pro-
bably belonged to the same clan, and they contained
a considerable population. It was no new feature to
find a settlement of a tribe living in the middle of a
district belonging to another ite: The Ishogos
had been driven by war from their own territory,
and have thus intruded on unoccupied lands oo
the territory of their neighbours.
The Ishogos of these ili ots knew that I was to
pass through the places. They had heard of the
untold wealth I brought with me, and were annoyed
when they perceived my intention to pass on without
stopping. ‘The villages are built in an open grassy
space; and as soon as the caravan came in sight the
excitement was intense. Women, children, and
armed men came around, shouting and entreating ;
some running along the line of march, with goats in —
tow, offering them as presents if I would stay with
them, even if it was only for a night. It is the
Cuar. XII. ISHOGO VILLAGES. <8
custom in all these villages to offer a present of food
to a stranger if the inhabitants wish him to stay with
them; and the acceptance of the present by the
stranger is a token of his intention to remain in the
place for a time. They offered also ivory, and slaves,
and the more I refused the offers, the more pertina-
cious they became. Their sole wish, of course, in
asking me to stay, was to get as much as they could
of the coveted goods I brought with me. It was
droll to see, when I stopped in my walk, how they
fled in alarm to a distance, and then stood still to
gaze at me. Two of the chiefs followed us for
miles, with their proffered present of a goat each
trotting along by their sides. They finally gave in
and went back, saying to Mayolo and Nchiengain
that it was their fault that I did not stop. Our
Apono companions mourned over the goats that I
might have had: they thought only of their share of
the meat, as the animals, when killed, would have
been cut up and distributed amongst them.
About mid-day we halted in a beautiful wooded
hollow, through which ran a picturesque rivulet.
There we stopped about an hour and breakfasted.
The direct easterly path from here led to a number
of Apono villages; these we wished to avoid in
order to escape a similar annoyance to that which we
had undergone in the morning from the Ishogos, and
so struck a little more southerly, or 8.8.E. by compass.
Our road lay for three hours over undulating prairie
land, with occasional woods; one of the open spaces
was a prairie called Matimbié irimba (the prairie of
stones) stretching S.H. and N.W.
244 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cap, XII.
At the 8.E. end of the prairie we came to a village —
called Dilolo. Our reception here was anything but
friendly. We found the entrance to the one street of
the village barricaded and guarded by all the fighting
men, armed with spears, bows and arrows, and sabres.
When within earshot, they vented bitter curses
against Nchiengain for wanting to bring the Oguizi,
who carries with him the ewiva (plague), into their
village, and prohibited us from entering if we did
not want war. The war drums beat, and the men
advanced and retired before us, spear in hand. We |
marched forward nevertheless, and the determined
fellows then set fire to the grass of the open space
leading to the village barricade. Wishing to avoid
an encounter, and also the fire which was spread-
ing at a great rate over the prairie, we turned by
a path leading round the village; but when we had
reached the rear of the place, we found a body of
the villagers moving in the same direction, to stop
our further progress. Most of them appeared half
intoxicated with palm wine, and I now felt that we
were going to have a fight. Presently two poisoned
arrows were shot at us, but they fell short. Nchien-
gain then came up and walked between my men and
the irritated warriors, begging me not to fire unless
some of us were hit. The villagers, seeing that we
made no display of force, became bolder, and one of
them came right up and with his bow bent threat-
ened to shoot Rapelina. My plucky lad faced the
fellow boldly, and, showing him the muzzle of his
gun, told him he would be a dead man if he did not
instantly put down his bow. All my Commi boys
Oar. XII. PLUCK OF MY COMMI BOYS. 245
came up, and ranging themselves on the flanks of
our caravan with their guns pointed at the enemy,
protected the train of porters as they filed past. I
was glad to see also our Apono companions taking
our part; they got enraged with the villagers, and
some of them laid down their loads, and rushed to the
front waving their swords. Strange to say, not one
of the villagers came near me, or threatened me in
any way. I watched the scene calmly, and surveyed
the field where war might at any moment break out.
Behind us the country was all in a blaze, for the fire
had spread with great rapidity. The Apono porters
being so resolutely on our side, I had no fear as to how
the conflict would end. If we had been travelling
alone, without guides and porters, we should have
had a serious fight, and it is probable my journey
would have come to a termination here in a similar
way to that which afterwards happened in Ashango-
land; but it is a point of honour with these primitive
Africans that they are bound to defend the strangers
whom they have undertaken to convey from one
tribe to another. Had I not been deserted by my
guides in the village where I was finally driven
back, as will be hereafter narrated, I should have
been enabled to continue my journey. We went on
our way, Nchiengain shouting from the rear to the
discomfited warriors that there would be a palaver
to settle for this, when he came back.
I was prouder then ever of my boys after this, and
profited by the occasion to strengthen them in their
determination to go forward. There was no going
back after this, I told them; they all shouted, “ We
246 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cuap. XII.
must go forward; we are going to the white man’s
country ; we are going to London!”
We continued our march till half-past fot p-m.,
when we encamped for the night in the middle of a
wood, where there wasa cool spring of water, close to
a cluster of Apono villages. It appeared that these
people also dreaded our approach on account of the
eviva. In the evening we heard the cries of the
people, the weeping of the women, and the beating
of the war drums. The burthen of their lamentations
was “O Nchiengain, why have you brought this curse
upon us? We do not want the Oguizi, who brings |
the plague with him. The Ishogo are all dead, the
Ashango have left; it is of no use your taking the
white man to them; go back, go back!” We slept
with our loaded guns by our side; the war drums
ceased beating about 10 o’clock. My men were tired
and foot-sore, on account of the sharp stones and
pebbles of the prairie paths.
June 5th. At daylight this morning I got up and
looked out over the broad prairie, quite expecting
to see a war-party watching us through the long
grass ; but to my agreeable surprise, I saw no signs of
war. Shortly afterwards a deputation of three men
came from the village to try to persuade Nchiengain
not to pass through, on account of my bringing death
wherever I went. But the trusty and sensible old
chief, in a long speech, showed them that it was a
foolish alarm about my bringing the eviva, and that
the plague came quite independent of me, for it had
passed through his village long before the Oguizi
had come near it. The argument seemed to have a
Cuap, XII. ASSEMBLY OF APONOS. 247
good effect; they retired, and shortly afterwards both
Nchiengain and Mayolo were sent for to the village ;
this was followed by a messenger arriving for me.
When I came into the open space chosen for the
meeting, at some distance from the village, I was not
a little surprised to see about 200 of the villagers
assembled, all gravely seated on the grass, in a group
of asemi-circular form. As I advanced towards them,
I was amused to see the front row getting uneasy
and wriggling off into the rear, followed by the next
row, and so on. They put me in mind of a flock of
sheep or a herd of deer in a park, when confronted
by a man walking slowly up to them. Nchiengain,
who appeared to have great influence here, and to be
acknowledged as a superior chief among the Aponos,
succeeded at last in arresting their laughable rear
movement. He then addressed me, saying that he
had sent for me to tell me that the villagers wished
me to leave the wood in which I was encamped, and
to move to the top of a grassy hill a little further off.
If I did that all the people would come and see me,
and brmg me food, and on the following day would
be willing that I should continue my journey.
I declined this proposal, as the top of the hill was
too much exposed to the heat of the sun, and I pre-
ferred the cool shade of the wood. They finally let
me have my own way, and my encampment for several
hours afterwards was thronged with people. They
all said that the report of my bringing the eviva had
been spread abroad amongst the tribes for a long
distance in the interior by the Ashira people.
Late in the afternoon, three head men of neigh-
248 MAYOLO TO APONO-LAND. Cuap, XII.
bouring villages came to invite us to their respective
villages. One of the elders was from a large place
not far distant, called Mokaba, and Méyolo recom-
mended me to go to this village in preference to
the others, because its representative had offered
us the greatest number of goats, namely, three.
When I gave my decision, the other two chiefs were
greatly annoyed, and we were very near having a
serious row amongst them. Nchiengain was too far
gone in intoxication, having had a drinking bout
with the chiefs of the village where we now were, to
accompany us. As we moved off, the two disap-
pointed elders followed, and continued to pester us. ‘
One of them had the boldness to come up to me and
try to lead me off to his village ; it was droll to witness
his fright when I turned sharply on him: he stepped
backwards trembling with fear, and waved his leather
fan before him, crying, “ Oh, don’t, Oguizi!” After
a short march we entered the more friendly town of
Mokaba, amidst the shouts of the whole population.
I was alarmed at night in finding Mayolo very
feverish and unwell. I had noticed the first symp-
toms when at Mouendi.
I am happy to say that my own men now enjoy
much better health than they did at the commence-
ment of our expedition; for, strange to say, these
negroes cannot bear as much fatigue and hardship as
I do, and generally after a long march or a hunt they
fell ill. But I could never make them come and tell
me as soon as they felt the first symptoms of being un-
well, so, at fixed periods—once a fortnight, or once a
month, according to the season—they were summoned
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Cuap. XII. THE “MEDICINE PARADE.” 249
to my “dispensary” to be dosed all round. I had
fixed days for the different medicines: one day was
castor-oil day, another was blue-pill or calomel day,
a third was the “feast of Epsom salts.” They all
- had to come up in single file, and, one after the other,
were ordered to swallow their dose. Now and then
one or two of them tried to escape the medicine
parade; and, when I called them up, each had some
ready excuse for his non-attendance, but in vain.
This was generally on castor-oil day, for they said
that they did not mind the other medicines, but that
this was “so bad;” and many were the wry faces
that were made before the dose was swallowed by
the entire company. However, I found that my
plan had very good results, as my men had much
better health than they had before I adopted it.
18
-
CHAPTER XIIL
THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND.
Mokaba—Curiosity of the People—Renewed illness of M4yolo—His return
to Otando-——Nchiengain’s Speech—The Apono agree to take me to the
Ishogo country — Description of the Apono Tribe — Their sprightly
character—Arts— Weapons — Population — Description of Mokaba—
—Palm wine—Drunkenness—Ocuya Performances—Leave Mokaba—
River Dougoundo—Arrival at Igoumbié—Invitation from the elders
of the village to remain there—Manners of the Ishogos—Deseription of
Igoumbié—The Ishogo huts—Azrival at Yengué, in Ishogo-land.
June 6th. Mokaba and most of the other villages of
the Apono tribe aré situated in an open tract of undu-
lating country, partly wooded and partly open prairie.
The distance of the town from Mayolo is not more
than twenty-seven miles in a direct line, and the
altitude above the sea-level is scarcely so great as at
that place, being only 414 feet, whilst Mdyolo is 496
feet ; but Mokaba, as I afterwards found, was within a
short distance of the Ngouyai, and lay in the valley
of the river, whilst Mayolo lies on the lower slope of
the mountain range which separates Otando from
Ashira-land. Close to the village, on its eastern side,
are some fine wooded hills, which give the place a
very picturesque appearance when viewed from the
western side. The successive mountain ranges to-
wards the east are not visible from the Apono plain,
although they formed grand objects from the Otando
aby
Cuar. XII. CURIOSITY OF THE MOKABA PEOPLE. 251
country, rising in three terrace-like ridges one behind
the other. On the other hand, looking towards the
west, I could see the fine hilly range beyond Otando,
stretching in a semi-circle to the Ashira Kamba ter-
ritory, and joining, on the north, the range which
trends eastward from that point towards the Ashango
mountains.
The curiosity of the Mokaba people is most trou-
blesome, so that, although the villagers have been so
much more friendly than those we passed yesterday,
I have not been much more comfortable. The place
swarms with people, and I have been haunted, at my
encampment, by numbers of sight-seers. The way
they come upon me is sometimes quite startling; they
sidle up behind trees, or crawl up amongst the long
grass until they are near enough, and then, from be-
hind the tree trunks, or above the herbage, a number
of soot-black faces suddenly bob out, staring at me,
with eyes and mouth wide open. The least thing I
do, elicits shouts of wonder; but if I look directly at
them they take to their legs and run as if for their
lives.
June Tth. I cannot describe how low-spirited I feel
at the condition of poor Mayolo this morning. I fear
his days are numbered. He has a burning fever, and
was too ill to speak to me, or even to recognise me,
when I entered his hut. The Otando men, who are
with us, are to carry him back to his place this after-
noon. I thought it,just possible that he might have
been poisoned by some of these hostile villagers.
But he is a hard drinker and has been intoxicated
almost every day, so that this may have been the
252 THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. (Cuap. XIII.
cause of his illness. His people begin to recollect
that he was first taken ill the day after he had a dis-
pute with his children about beads; and if he dies
there will be a frightful witchcraft palaver in Otando.
I shall feel his loss greatly, for, besides being a
staunch friend, he speaks the Commi language a
little, which I understand better than I do any other |
of these African idioms. He has been therefore a
good guide in every way. Fortunately our long stay
at Olenda and Méyolo has enabled me to acquire the
Ashira language to some extent.
Before the Otando men departed, I went and bid
good-bye to Mayolo, but he was too ill to recognise
me. After his departure I entreated Nchiengain to
hurry me off as quick as he could. He said “ You are
in as great a hurry as if you had killed somebody.”
I gave to each of Mdyolo’s men and to his wife a
parting present, and my Commi boys gave them
their old garments. The Mokaba people took alarm
at night in seeing me look at the stars with my
instruments; and the chief, accompanied by his
people, came and told me they would build a shed
for me at a distance from the houses, as they were
afraid of the mysterious work I was doing. I firmly
refused, saying that they had made me come to the
house where I was staying, and that now I would
not remove. | Fh
June 8th—9th. Still at Mokaba, waiting for port-
ers. Messengers came on the 9th for Nehiengain
to return to his village, as one of his men had ©
died; they brought also the news that Méyolo had
been vomiting blood. This was most. distressing
Cuar. XIII. NCHIENGAIN’S SPEECH. 53
intelligence for me. If Mayolo dies I am afraid his
death will be imputed to me. I made presents to
the chiefs and elders of Mokaba, to keep them in
good humour, and gave a gun to Nchiengain.
It is settled that nineteen Apono porters are to
accompany me to the Ishogo country with their chief
Kombila.* Nechiengain returns to his own place.
Before he left me we assembled all our new men,
and he made a speech to them whilst I distributed
the pay. He told them how Olenda had delivered
me to Mayolo and Mayolo to him, and that now they
must take me safe to the Ishogo people, who would
pass me over to the Ashango, and so on. They
were to see that I had plenty of goats and plan-
tains, and then if their task was well done they
would receive their reward as he and his people had
done. |
These speeches always have a good effect for the
moment, the excitable negroes become enthusiastic
about the journey, and promise even more than they
are required to do. When Nehiengain was about to
leave, he delivered up to me a plate and a kettle
which he had borrowed of me when we first became
acquainted, that he might show the people how great
* As proper names may be of some utility in the study of the native
languages, I subjoin the names of my porters :—
Head man, Kombila. Second in command, Mbouka.
Ipandi, Kassa, Boushoubou,
Foubou, Mondjego, - Djembé,
Batali, Mombon, Boulingué,
Njomba, Badinga, Nchago,
Mozamba, Miyendo, Moueti,
Mousoumbi, Mafoumbi, Momelou.
254 THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. Cuap. XIII.
a man he had become to possess such utensils. When
he came to borrow them, he said, “ Nchiengain must
eat off a plate, and must cook his food with the
Oguizi’s kettle; so that the people may know that
Nehiengain is his friend.” I had quite forgotten the
loan, and felt pleased at this display of the old man’s
honesty. He gave us all his blessing as he started,
and shouted to me, “I have done all I can for you!
I have. not slighted you! my good wishes go wit
99
you. |
As I am about to leave the Apono country, I must
say here a few words about this tribe of negroes.
They are no doubt a branch of the great Ashira
nation, like the Ashira Kamba, the Ashira Ngozai,
and the Otando, all of whom, as well as the Aponos,
speak the Ashira language. The Ashangos also
speak the Ashira language, although they are divided
from the Aponos by the Ishogo, who speak an
entirely different language. But the Aponos are
distinguished from all the other branches of the
Ashira nation by their sprightliness of character ;
and they are clean and well-looking. Their villages
are larger, better arranged, and prettier than those of
the Otando and Ashira Ngozai. Each house is built
separate from its neighbours, and they attend to
cleanliness in their domestic arrangements. Their
country is an undulating plain, varied with open
grassy places covered with a pebbly soil, and rich
and extensive patches of woodland well adapted for
agriculture, in which they make their plantations.
I cannot make an estimate of the total population
Cuap. XIII. DESCRIPTION OF THE APONO TRIBE. 255
of the tribe; their villages were numerous along our
line of march from Mouendi, but we travelled pro-
bably through the most thickly-peopled district.
As I have already said, the Aponos, both men and
women, are distinguished by their habit of taking
out the two middle upper incisors and filing the rest,
as well as the four lower, to a point. The women
have for ornament tattooed scars on their forehead ;
very often these consist of nine rounded prominences
similar in size to peas, and arranged in the form of
a lozenge between their eye-brows, and they have
similar raised marks on their cheeks and a few
irregular marks on the chest and abdomen, varying
in pattern in different individuals. They also rub
themselves with red powder derived from the common
bar-wood of trade. They dress their hair in many
ways, but never form it into a high mass as the
Ashira used formerly to do, as I have described in
‘Equatorial Africa.’ .The Aponos.do not practise
tattooing so much as the Apingi, who decorate their
chests and abdomens with various kinds of raised
patterns. I once asked an Apingi man why his
people covered themselves with such ugly scars; he
replied that they were the same as clothing to
them. “ Why,” retorted he, “do you cover your-
self with so many curious garments?” The Apingi
seem to be a small tribe, and the territory they
occupy is a narrow strip along the banks of the
Ngouyai. They and the Ishogos speak the same
language.
The Aponos are a warlike people, and are rather
looked up to with fear by the Apingi and the Ishogos,
256 THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. Onap. XIII.
whose villages are close to theirs. They are not such
skilful workers in iron as the Fans, or as some other
tribes further to the east. The iron-ore which they
use is found plentifully in some parts of their prairies; ~
it occurs in lumps of various sizes, and is dug from
the soil; the deeper they dig the larger and purer |
are the lumps. ‘They melt it in little thick earthen-
ware pots, holding about a pint each, and use, of
course, charcoal in tempering the metal. Their
anvils are large and well-made, but the construction
of them is apparently beyond their ability, as all
the anvils which I saw came from the Abombo and
Njavi tribes, who live further towards the east. The
Abombos and Njavis manufacture also a superior.
kind of straight sword four feet long, the handle of
which is made of wood and is in the shape of a dice-
box, through the middle of which the handle-end of
the sword passes.
The bows of the Aponos are very different from
those of the Fans, which I described and figured in
‘ Adventures in Equatorial Africa ;’ they are not
nearly so powerful, but, at the same time, not so
clumsy; they are of very tough wood, and bent
nearly in a semi-circle, with the chord measurmg
about two feet, and the string of vegetable fibre.
The arrow is rather heavy; the head is of tempered
iron, triangular in shape, and prolonged in a tubular
form for the insertion of the shaft; the shaft is not.
secured into the head, so that when the arrow enters
into the body of a man or animal, the sharp trian-
gular lance-head, coated with poison, remains im the
wound, whilst the shaft drops out. The arrows are
Cuap. XIII. APONO WEAPONS. ) 257
kept in cylindrical quivers made of the bark of a
tree, and not in bags.
Their spears, also, are different from those of the
Faiis, and are similar to those described by Burton,
Grant, Speke, and other travellers, as used by the
tribes of Eastern Equatorial Africa.* They are
much heavier and clumsier than the spears of the
Fans, and cannot, therefore, like them, be thrown to
a distance. The head is lance-shaped, without barbs,
and a foot in length. In fight they are used for
thrusting, at close quarters. Swords are the most
common weapons with these people; they might,
however, be more properly termed sabres than
swords, being curved, and having wooden handles.
The metal of which the blades are made, although
pretty well tempered, by means of the charcoal used,
is full of flaws. Some of the people use round
shields made of wicker-work. Each of my Apono
porters carried a sabre, besides his bow and quiver
of arrows. ‘The possession of a sword is a mark of
manhood with these people, and all the young men
think it honourable to obtain a sword before they
acquire a wife. In fact, the chief things coveted by
the young dandies of the tribe are a sword, a grass-
web cap of the country, and a handsome dengui, or
garment of striped grass-cloth. The red worsted caps
which I carried, as ‘part of my stores, immediately
drove their native caps out of fashion, and, indeed,
created a perfect furore. It was a sure way of gain-
ing the good will of an Apono man to present him
with one of these. caps.
* * Adventures in Equatorial Africa,’ p. 80,
258 THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. Caap. XIII.
Like the Ashiras, the Aponos are industrious
weavers of grass-cloth, which forms the clothing of
both sexes. The cloth is woven in small pieces with
a fringe, called bongos, and is sometimes beautifully
fine; when several bongos are sewn together, the
garment is called a dengui; the women wear only two
pieces, or bongos, one on each side, secured at the top
over the hips, and meeting in front at the upper edge.
It might be supposed, from the frequency with
which I met with villages on. the march, that the
Apono country was thickly inhabited, especially as
the villages were large, a few of them containing
about a thousand inhabitants. But it must be recol-
lected that the high-roads, or pathways, along which
we. were obliged to march, were the roads leading
from one village to another. I travelled, therefore,
through the peopled part of the country. Away
from these main pathways there were vast tracts of
prairie and some wooded land remaining in their
original desert condition. _
Upon the whole, I liked the Aponos, and got on
very well whilst in their country. They showed
themselves to be honest, and were faithful in carrying
out the engagements they entered into with me, in
spite of the numerous palavers we had. I lost none
of my property by theft whilst I was amongst them.
The village of Mokaba is large and well-arranged ;
its site, as I have before remarked, is picturesque,
and, in short, it was the prettiest village I have ever
seen in Africa. There are upwards of 130 houses or
huts, which, as in other West-African villages, are so
arranged as to form one main street. But, in Mokaba,
Cua. XIII. VILLAGE OF MOKABA. 259
several houses are connected so as to form a square,
with a common yard or garden in the middle, in which
grow magnificent palm-trees. Behind the houses,
too, are very frequently groups of plantain and lime-
trees. The village being thus composed of a series
of small quadrangles and back-gardens containing
trees with beautiful foliage, the whole effect is very
charming. In the rear of the houses, amidst the
plantain-groves, they keep their goats, fowls, and
pigs. This was the only village where I saw tame
pigs. I was struck with the regularity of the main
street ; but, besides this, there was another narrower
street on each side of the village, lying between the
backs of the houses and the plantain-groves, and
kept very neat and closely-weeded. Hach house has
-in front a verandah, or little open space without
wall, occupying half the length of the house; the
other half, in equal portions on each side, forms
apartments in which the owners sleep and keep their
little property. When a man marries, he imme-
diately builds a house for his new wife; and, as the
family creases, other houses are built; the house
of each wife being kept separate. The palm-trees
in the quadrangles are the property. of the chief
man of each group of houses; and, being valuable
property, pass on his death to his heir, the next.
brother or the nephew, as in other tribes. . Some of
these palm-trees tower up to a height of 50 feet, and
have a singular appearance in the palm-wine season
from being hung, beneath the crown, with hollowed
gourds receiving the precious liquor.
260 THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. Cuaap. XIII.
The large quantity of palm-trees in and around
the village furnish the Aponos of Mokaba with a
ready supply of their favourite drink, palm-wine;
for, as I have said before, they are a merry people,
and make a regular practice of getting drunk every
day as long as the wine is obtainable. I often saw
them climb the trees in early morning, and take deep
draughts from the calabashes suspended there. Like
most drunken people, they become quarrelsome; and
being a lively and excitable race, many frays occur.
Happily the palm-wine season lasts only a few months
in the year: it was the height of the drunken season
when I was at Mokaba. I saw very few men who
had not scars, or the marks of one or more wounds,
received in their merry-making scrimmages. Their
holidays are very frequent. Unlimited drinking is
the chief amusement, together with dancing, tam-tam-
ming, and wild uproar, which last all night. They
are very fond of the ocuya performances. ‘The ocuya
is a man supporting a large framework resembling
a giant, and whimsically dressed and ornamented,
who walks and dances on stilts. In Mokaba, he
appears in a white mask with thick open lips, dis-
closing the rows of teeth minus the middle incisors,
according to the Apono fashion. The long gar-
ment reaches to the ground, covering the stilts. It
struck me asa droll coincidence that his head-dress
resembled exactly a lady’s bonnet, at least the re-
semblance held good before chignons came into
vogue; it was surmounted by feathers and made of
the skin of a monkey. Behind, however, hung the
Cap, XIII. DEPARTURE FROM MOKABA, 261
monkey’s tail, which I cannot say has its parallel in
Kuropean fashions, at least at present.
June 10th. We left Mokaba at a quarter-past ten,
a.m., having been detained since sunrise by the
effects of the palm wine. Every one of my porters
was more or less tipsy ; and after they had drunk all
the wine there was in the village they had not had
enough, but went into the woods to fetch down the
calabashes that had been left on the palm-trees to
catch the liquor. About an hour before starting we
had a heavy shower of rain, which lasted a few
minutes. It was the first rain we had had since we
lett Mayolo.
Leaving Mokaba, we pursued a direction a little
north of east. The ground soon began to rise, and
we entered on a richly-wooded hilly country, in
which were numerous plantations and villages ot
slaves belonging to the head men of Mokaba, At
a plantation called Njavi, my aneroids showed me
that we were 200 feet above Mokaba. This place is
called Njavi probably on account of the plantation
being worked by slaves from the Njavi country.
We halted here a short time, for some of the
_ porters were not very strong on their legs.
From Njavi I could see the mountains where the
Kamba people live. They seemed, after leaving a
gap, to unite with a range on this side. The gap
was a continuation of the valley in which flows the
Rembo Ngouyai.
At twenty minutes to two we came to the dry
bed of a stream with a slaty bottom, which ran from
N.E. to S.W. Shortly afterwards, we crossed
ee en
262. THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. Ouzap. XIIL
another similar stream flowing over slaty rocks,
called Dougoundo; this had running water. We
halted on its banks for about twenty minutes, and
during our rest, I found by observations that we
had descended since leaving the Njavi plantation.
The altitude of the plantation was 610 feet, the rivulet
Dougoundo was only 473 feet above the sea-level.
Near our halting-place were two Ishogo villages, but
we did not go to them.
We continued our journey to the south-east, and
at half-past three arrived at a large Ishogo village
called Igoumbié. We did not intend to stay, and
marched straight through; the people all hiding
themselves in their huts, with the exception of a
few men bolder than the rest, who stood staring
at us, without uttermg a word, as we marched
along. When we had passed through the village,
we stopped near the road or pathway on the other
side, about fifty yards beyond. Then Kombila and
some of our Apono men went back to the village,
and spoke to the people. One of the elders of the
place was a great friend of Kombila’s, and they all
knew the Mokaba people. So one of the elders,
named Boulingué, Kombila’s friend, came back with
him to our encampment, and begged me to come and
stay in the village, saying that they did not wish us
to pass their place without their giving us something —
to eat. As we had no meat in store, and one of my
Commi men wanted rest for his sore leg, lamed by a
kettle having fallen on it, I accepted the invitation,
and we passed the night at this place.
I could not ascertain who was the chief of this
Cuap. XIII. ARRIVAL AT IGOUMBIE. 263
village, if there was any. Since I have left Mouendi
I cannot find out that there are any head men or
chiefs in the villages, but there seemed to be a certain
number of elders, who hold authority over their
respective villages. Here three elders, beating the
kendo, came and presented me, each one, with a goat
and several bunches of plantains—prefacing their
presents with three tremendously long speeches.
At a glance I perceived that I was among quite a
different people from those I had hitherto met with.
The mode of dressing the hair, both with men and
women; the shape of their houses, each with its
door; the men smeared with red powder; all these
points denoted a perfectly different people.
I was glad to remain for a couple of nights at
Igoumbié, for I wanted to take as many observations
as I could.
After I had distributed some beads among the
women in the evening, a few became more fiiendly
—especially as my Apono porters were never tired
of praising me. They seemed also to be much
pleased at seeing that, of the three goats which the
people of their village had presented to me, I had
given two to my porters.
I was very much amused with these Ishogos,
especially with the women. When they thought I
~ was not looking at them, they would partially open
the door of their hut and peep out at me. As soon
as I looked at them, they immediately closed the
door, as if greatly alarmed. When they had to go
from one house to another, and had to pass the hut
in which I was located, and at the door of which I
264 THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. Cuapr. XIII.
was seated, they hurriedly crossed to the other side
of the street, putting their hand up to the side of
their face so that they might not see me—apparently
with a view to avoid or avert the “evil eye.” My
Aponos were very indignant at this, and said, with
an air of evident superiority, and as though they had
been with me all their lives, “ When have these
men of the woods seen an Oguizi before ?”
Though I was very tired, yet I did not go to bed
until I had taken several meridian altitudes of stars,
in order to ascertain my latitude. The process conned
the greatest astonishment to the natives.
June 11th. Igoumbié is the largest village I have.
met with yet, and forms one long and tolerably broad
street. I counted 191 huts; each hut has a wooden
door, and is divided into three compartments or
chambers. The houses are generally placed close to
each other, not wide apart like the houses of the
Aponos. There are many of the curious alumbi
houses scattered about. A large mbuiti or idol house
stands about halfway down the street, with a mon-
strous wooden image inside, which the villagers hold
in great reverence. The village being so large, the
inhabitants seem to have thought it required several
palaver-houses, for I noticed four or five. The.
palaver-house is an open shed, which answers the ~
purpose of a public-house, club-room, or town-hall, to
these people; they meet there daily to smoke and
gossip, hold public trials or palavers, and receive
strangers. What was most remarkable, there was here
an attempt at decorative work on the doors of many of
the houses. The huts, neatly built, with walls formed
ISHOGO. HOUSES, WITH ORNAMENTED DOORS.
a - = — —— Ee eee —
POs ™ - —- at la rien Se ee ee ee > a ee Ll. ee eee
Cuap. XIII. HUTS OF THE ISHOGOS. _ 965
of the bark of trees, had their doors painted red,
white, and black, in complicated and sometimes not
inelegant patterns. These doors were very inge-
niously made; they turned upon pivots above and
below, which worked in the frame instead of hinges.
Each house is of an oblong shape, about twenty-two
feet long by ten or twelve feet broad; the door being
in the middle of the front, three and a half feet high
and two and a half feet broad. The walls are four
and a half feet high and the highest part of the roof
is about nine feet.
I could not sleep last night on account of the noise
made by these Ishogos. They sang their mbuiti
songs until daylight, marching from one end of the
village to the other. When at a distance their
singing did not sound unpleasant, but when close by
it was almost deafening. During the day I made
friends with the Ishogos, and gave them sundry
small presents. Many of the women came and gave
me bunches of plantains, sugar cane, and ground-
nuts, and seemed much pleased when I tasted them.
In the evening the atmosphere was very clear,
and Iwas glad to be able to take some more meridian
altitudes and a good many lunar distances.
By the time I had written down my journal, and
recorded my astronomical observations, it was half-
past two in the morning, and, after a hard day’s
work, I was glad to get to bed, especially as we had
to leave Igoumbié early the next morning.
June 12th. We took leave of Igoumbié a little
before eight am. The people seemed unwilling to
let us go, and the elders begged us to stay another
19
266 THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. Omar. XIII.
day. At nine we passed over a high hill called
Neoondja. A number of Apono people from a vil-
lage a few miles off, including four of their head
men, accompanied us for some distance. Some tam-
pering took place with my Apono porters, and I had
great difficulty in preventing them from throwing
down their loads and going back. It was an awk-
ward position to be placed in; but, by dint of coaxing
and promising extra pay if they would accompany
Kombila to the place to which he and they had
agreed to take me, they resumed their loads, and we |
continued our march.
We passed two Apono villages near together ;
and halted for breakfast by a small stream of water —
near the second one. We were soon surrounded by
villagers bringing fowls and plantains. The noise
and confusion were so great that I went away alone
for a walk in the thick of the forest, leaving my men
to bargain for fowls and eggs. All the villagers
wanted to get some of my beads.
We resumed our march at half-past twelve. Kom-
bila annoyed me much by slinking behind, and
getting drunk with another of my men, named
Mbouka, an elder of Mokaba, who at the last moment
said he would accompany us for a walk. Under one
pretext or another they had remained behind; and
as they had told the villagers to follow them “with
the drink,” when they knew that I was far enough
off, they took their libations. They both made their
appearance after causing a long delay, and Mbouka
had a calabash of palm wine in one of the country
bags, which I detected, the bag being of a great size.
Caap,. XIII. DIFFICULTIES WITH PORTERS. 267
I was resolved to put a stop to this, so forced the
man to give up his bag, and poured the wine out on
the ground, to the great dismay of Kombila, and to
the extreme indignation of Mbouka, who grieved
that the earth should receive the wine that would
have so rejoiced his stomach. He protested that
I ought to pay him back the beads he had paid
for the wine. This palm-wine drinking had been for
some time a great annoyance to me. Our porters
squandered their pay (which consisted chiefly of
beads) in buying wine at the villages, and were thus
spending all their money before we reached the
journeys end. I was glad that at Tgoumbié there
were no palm-trees, so they could get no wine there:
besides, the Ishogos of that place are far more sober
than the Aponos. What with this, and other inter-
ruptions and squabbles, and losing the path for some
time, we made but little progress aie although
we marched till dark..
June 13th. We left our encampment at half-past six
a.m. The Apono porters threatened again to leave
their loads unless I gave them-an increase of pay ; but
I was determined to resist this imposition, and de-
clared I would shoot down the first man that mutinied.
My Commi boys kept close watch over the rascals
_ during our morning’s march.
We travelled in an easterly direction. In the
course of an hour we crossed the Bouloungou, a dry
stream, similar to those we had crossed on the 10th;
its bed was slaty, as was the hill down which it flowed.
We have met with no quartz blocks or granite since
leaving Mokaba. The paths along which we have
268 THE MARCH THROUGH APONO-LAND. Czar. XIII.
marched have been covered with fragments of fer-
ruginous sandstone, the corners and edges of which
hurt the feet of my men very much. Wei passed
over a hill of considerable elevation, but, my aneroids
being packed away, I did not stop to unload and
take the altitude. Hastward, it sloped down rapidly
until we reached a fine valley, with miles of plantations
of ground-nuts. Finally, we came to Yengué, an
Ishogo village, almost as large as Igoumbié, situated
on the banks of a river called Ogoulou, one of the
affluents of the Ngouyai.
Before entering the village, we stopped until all
the porters were collected together. Then Kombila
and I took the lead, followed by my Commi men,
after whom came the Apono porters. We marched
* through the street of the village—the villagers look-
ing at us, open-mouthed—until we reached the large
ouandja, which was almost at the farthest extremity
of the village; Kombila all the time exclaiming to
the dlositied” lee “Do not be afraid; we hae
come to see you as friends!”
Kombila then went and spoke to some of the
elders, who came to me, and presented fowls and
plantains—the presence of my Apono guides, whom
they knew to be on good terms with me, re-assured
them : and, after a short delay, they allotted a house
_ to me and my Commi boys; while my Aponos went
to lodge with their friends.
CHAPTER XIV.
JOURNEY THROUGH ISHOGO-LAND.
Village of the Obongos or Dwarf Negroes — Their Dwellings — Absence of
the Inhabitants — The Elders and People of Yengué— Arrival of the
Chief of Yengué— War Dance of the Aponos — Ceremony of the Mpaza
—An uproarious Night— Good conduct of the Apono Porters — The
‘River Ogoulou — Geographical Position and Altitude of Yengué — Pass-
age of the Ogoulou— March to the Plateau of Mokenga— Eastern
Limits of Ishogo-land—Quembila King of Mokenga — Palavers —
Contention between Chiefs for the possession of the “ Ibamba ”—Panic
in Mokenga — Re-adjustment of Baggage — Ishogo Porters.
On our way to Yengué, in traversing one of the
tracts of wild forest through which runs the high-
way of the country, we came suddenly upon a clus-
ter of most extraordinary diminutive huts, which I
should have passed by, thinking them to be some
kind of fetich-houses, if I had not been told that we
might meet in this district with villages of a tribe of
dwarf negroes, who are scattered about the Ishogo
and Ashango countries and other parts further east.
I had heard of these people during my former
journey in the Apingi country, under the name of
Ashoungas; they are called here, however, Obongos.
From the loose and exaggerated descriptions I had
heard on my former journey, I had given no credence
to the report of the existence of these dwarf tribes,
and had not thought the subject worthy of mention
in my former narrative. The sight of these extra-
270 JOURNEY THROUGH ISHOGO-LAND. Cuap. XIV.
ordinary dwellings filled me with curiosity, for at
was really a village of this curious people. I rushed
forward, hoping to find some at least of their tenants
inside, but they had fled on our approach into the
neighbouring jungle. The huts were of a low oval
shape, like a gipsey tent; the highest part—that
nearest the entrance—was about four feet from the
ground ; the greatest breadth was about four feet also.
On each side were three or four sticks for the man
and woman to sleep upon. The huts were made of
flexible branches of trees, arched over and fixed
into the ground at each end, the longest branches —
being in the middle, and the others successively
shorter, the whole being covered with large leaves.
When I entered the huts, I found in each the remains
of a fire in the middle of the floor.
It was a sore disappointment for me to miss this
opportunity of seeing and examining these people.
We scoured the neighbourhood for some distance, but
could find no traces of them. A few days after-
wards, at Niembouai, as will presently be seen, I was
more fortunate. .
As usual, the king was not in the village.
But one of the elders took great care of me; so
after a while I called him into my house, and
made Kombila tell him that I had not come to do
them harm, but good. Then I put on his head a
bright shining red cap, and round his neck a string
of very showy beads. As he came out of my hut,
the shouts of the people were deafening. I then
distributed a few beads among the women. My
Aponos did the same, and to-night the ice is partly
Cap. XIV. THE CHIEF OF YENGUE. 271
broken, and the people are very friendly with me.
Kombila having told the women that I was very
fond of sugar-cane and ground-nuts, they brought
me some, laying them at my feet. In return I gave
them beads, and chatted with as many as I could get
to talk to me.
June 14th. The man whom I suppose to be
the head chief of Yengué arrived in town this
afternoon. It appears that he had fled through fear
at my approach, and had gained confidence only on
hearing that I was not such a dreadful being as he
had imagined. The news of the red cap I had
given to the elder had reached his ears; for the first
thing he asked me was whether I would give him
one also. He told me that he had also heard that
I had given beads to some of his wives, and to other
women in the village. Last night I heard a man
walking in the streets of the village and saying, in
a tone of voice like that of a town crier: “ We have
an Oguizi amongst us. Beware! There is no mondah
' to prevent us from seeing him during the day, but
let no one try to see him in his house at night, for
whoever does so is sure to die.” It was one of the
elders walking through the village and making this
proclamation in the usual way in which laws are
announced in this country.
After the arrival of the chief, things looked quite
promising. A formal reception palaver took place in
the open street, the Apono people seated in a row
on one side, and the Ishogos on the other. Kom-
bila stated at great length, as usual, the objects of
my journey, and the king answered in a speech of
272 JOURNEY THROUGH ISHOGO-LAND. Cnar. XIV.
greater length still. The chief gave to Kombila, as
presents for me, two goats, ten fowls, nine bunches —
of plantains, and a native anvil. The ceremony
finished in a kind of war-dance, in which the
Aponos took part.
This kind of dance is called by the Aponos M’muirri.
It is a war-dance, performed only by the men, and is
remarkable for the singular noises the donee make,
yelling and beating their breasts with both hands, like
the gorilla, and making a loud vibrating noise with
their lips resembling the word “ muirri.” The men
form a line, and, in dancing, advance and retreat.
The dance waxes furious as it goes on, and the noise
becomes deafening. After it was over, the uproar was
continued by the whole village joming in the fes-
tivities, singing, beating the tam-tam, and rattling
pieces of wood together, until my head reeled again.
The noise was. continued throughout the night;
and, as it was impossible to sleep, I got up at four
o'clock and walked in the fresh morning air. The
people were then parading up and down the street,
singing loud and long enough to make them hanted
for a month after. At daylight I heard the voice of
the chief proclaiming something or other, and imme-
diately afterwards there was dena silence throwstays
the village.
The singing and dancing during this uproarious
night were partly connected with a curious ceremony
of this people, namely, the celebration of the mpaza,
or the release from the long deprivation of liberty
which a woman suffers who has had the misfortune
to bring forth twins.
Cuar. XIV. CEREMONY OF THE MPAZA. 273
The custom altogether is a very strange one, but
itis by no means peculiar to the Ishogos, although
this is the first time I witnessed the doings. The
negroes of this part of Africa have a strange notion
or superstition that when twins (mpaza) are born, one
of them must die early; so, in order, apparently, to
avoid such a calamity, the mother is confined to her
hut, or rather restricted in her intercourse with her
neighbours, until both the children have grown up,
when the danger is supposed to have passed. She is
allowed during this time to go to the forest, but is
not permitted to speak to any one not belonging to
her family. During the long confinement no one
but the father and mother are allowed to enter the
hut, and the woman must remain chaste. If a
stranger goes in by any accident or mistake, he is
seized and sold into slavery. The twins themselves
are excluded from the society of other children, and
the cooking utensils, water vessels, &c., of the family
are tabooed to everybody else. Some of the notions
have a resemblance to the nonsense believed in by
old nurses in more civilized countries; such as, for
instance, the belief that when the mother takes one
of the twins in her arms something dreadful will
happen if the father does not take the other, and so
forth.
The house where the twins were born is always
marked in some way to distinguish it from the
others, in order to prevent mistakes. Here in
Yengué it had two long poles on each side of the |
door, at the top of which was a piece of cloth, and at
the foot of the door were a number of pegs stuck in
\
274 JOURNEY THROUGH ISHOGO-LAND. Cnuap. XIV.
the ground, and painted white. The twins were now |
six years old, and the poor woman was released from —
her six years’ imprisonment on the day of my arrival.
During the day two women were stationed at the
door of the house with their faces and legs painted
white—one was the doctor, the other the mother.
The festivities commenced by their marching down —
the street, one beating a drum with a slow measured
beat, and the other singing. The dancing, singing,
and drinking of all the villagers then set in for the
night. After the ceremony the twins were allowed
to go about like other children. In consequence of
all this trouble and restriction of liberty, the bringing
forth of twins is considered, and no wonder, by the
women as a great calamity. Nothing irritates or
annoys an expectant mother in these countries so
much as to point to her and tell her that she is sure
to have twins.
The tribes here are far milder than those found
near Lagos, or in East Africa, where, as Burton men-
tions, twins are always killed immediately on their
being born.
June 15th. 1 awoke this morning rather unwell
from having had so disturbed a night; and when the
king came to shake hands with me—a custom I had
taught him to adopt—I refused his proffered hand,
saying that I was angry, and annoyed at the dis-
turbances of the past night. Whereupon the mild-
tempered chief promised that the next night they
should sing a long way from my resting-place. We
then became better friends than ever. |
In the evening I gave him his present. He came
/
Guar. XIV. GOOD CONDUCT OF THE APONO PORTERS. 275
alone, haying requested me to give it to him at
night, so that the people might not see what he got.
I also gave a handsome present to his head wife.
As my
village during my stay at Niembouai, I succeeded in
measuring five other women. I could not help laugh-
ing, for all of them covered their faces with their
hands; and it was only in the case of Woman No. 1
that I could get any measurements of the face. Un-
fortunately I could not take the same measurements
for all. I did the best I could under such circum-
stances. In order to allay their fears, I tried to
measure one of my Ashango guides, but he refused,
being as much frightened as the women. The mea-
surements are as follows :—
o
lors
i=}
Woman No. 1, total height : :
vis between the outer angles of the es
>> No. 2, total height of
»» No. 3, considered unusually tall WLS.
a3 round the broadest part of the head
= from the eye to the ear -
»> No.4, total height
hs round the head
a from the eye to the ear
»» No. 5, total height
“3 round the head .. .
Sard from the eye to the ear ..
»» No. 6, total height
a round the head.. i
from the eye tothe ear ..
¥oube man, total height ..
POF ROH eEOHF ROHR aAKORA
a
o
320 ASHANGO-LAND. Cuar. XVI.
The colour of these people was a dirty yellow, much
lighter than the Ashangos who surround them, and
their eyes had an untameable wildness about them
that struck me as very remarkable. In their whole
appearance, physique, and colour, and in their habita-
tions, they are totally unlike the Ashangos, amongst
whom they live. The Ashangos, indeed, are very
anxious to disown kinship with them. They do not
intermarry with them ; but declare that the Obongos
intermarry among themselves, sisters with brothers,
doing this to keep the families together as much as
they can. The smallness of their communities, and
the isolation in which the wretched creatures live,
must necessitate close interbreeding; and I think it
very possible that this circumstance may be the cause
of the physical deterioration of their race. Their
foreheads are exceedingly low and narrow, and they
have prominent cheek bones; but I did not notice
any peculiarity in their hands or feet, or in the posi-
tion of the toes, or in the relative length of their
arms to the rest of their bodies; but their legs ap-
peared to be rather short in proportion to their
trunks ; the palms of their hands seemed quite white.
The hair of their heads grows in very short curly
tufts; this is the more remarkable, as the Ashangos
and neighbouring tribes have rather long bushy
hair on their heads, which enables them to dress it
in various ways; with the Obongos the dressing
of the hair in masses or plaits, as is done by the
other tribes, is impossible. The young man had an
unusual quantity of hair also on his legs and breast,
growing in short curly tufts similar to the hair of the
head, and all the accounts of the Ashangos which I
CHap. XVI. DRESS AND HABITS OF THE OBONGOS. 321
heard agreed in this, that the Obongo men were
thickly covered with hair on these parts of their body ;
besides, I saw myself, during the course of my stay
at Niembouai on my return, male Obongos in the
village, and although they would not allow me to
approach them, I could get near enough to notice
the small tufts of hair: one of the men was black.
The only dress they wear consists of pieces of grass-
cloth which they buy of the Ashangos, or which
these latter give them out of pure kindness, for I
observed that it was quite a custom of the Ash-
angos to give their old worn denguis to these poor
Obongos.
The modes of burial of these savages, as related to
me by my Ashango companions, are curious. The
most common habit is to place the corpse in the
interior of a hollow tree in the forest, filling up the
hole with branches and leaves mixed with earth; but
sometimes they make a hole in the bed of a running
stream, diverting the current for the purpose, and
then, after the grave is covered in, turning back the
rivulet to its former course.
The Ashangos like the presence of this curious
people near their villages because the Obongo men
are very expert and nimble in trapping wild animals
and fish in the streams, the surplus of which, after
. supplying their own wants, they sell to their neigh-
bours in exchange for plaintains, and also for iron
implements, cooking utensils, water-jars, and all
manufactured articles of which they stand in need.
The woods near their villages are so full of traps and
pitfalls that it is dangerous for any but trained woods-
322 ASHANGO-LAND. Cuap. XVI.
men to wander about in them; I always took care
not to walk back from their village to Niembouai
after night-fall; for in the path itself there were
several traps for leopards, wild boars, and antelopes.
From the path, traps for monkeys could be seen
everywhere: and I should not at all have relished
haying my legs caught in one of these traps. I
was surprised at the kindness, almost the tender-
ness, shown by the Ashangos to their diminutive
neighbours. On one of my visits to the village I saw
about a dozen Niembouai women, who had come with
plantains to exchange for game, which they expected
to be brought in by the men. As the little hunters
had not returned from tho forest, they were disap-
pointed in this errand; but seeing that the Obongo
women were suffering from hunger, they left nearly
all the plantains with them as a gift, or, perhaps, on
trust, for outside the hut they were cooking roots of _
some tree, which did not seem to me very nourishing.
The Obongos, as I have said before, never remain
long in one place. They are eminently a migratory
people, moving from place to place whenever game
becomes scarce. But they do not wander very far ;
that is, the Obongos who live within the Ashango
territory do not go out of that territory—they are
called the Obongos of the Ashangos—those who live
among the Njavi are called Obongo-Njavi—and the
same with other tribes. Obongos are said to exist
very far to the east, as far, in fact, as the Ashangos
have any knowledge. They are similar to the gypsies
of Europe—distinct from the people amongst whom
they live, yet living for generations within the con-
Cuap. XVI. SHYNESS OF THE OBONGOS. 323
fines of the same country. They plant nothing, and
depend partly for their vegetable food on roots,
berries, and nuts, which they find in the forest;
indeed, the men spend most of their days and many
of their nights in the woods, and it was partly on
this account, and their excessive shyness, that I was
unable to examine them closely, with the solitary
exception of the young man above described. When
they can no longer find wild animals in the locality
where they have made their temporary. settlements,
they are sometimes apt to steal food from their more
civilized neighbours, and then decamp. Their appe-
tite for animal food is more like that of a carnivo-
rous beast than that of a man. One day I enticed
the old woman, whose heart I had gained by many
presents of beads, to Niembouai, simply by promis-
ing her a joint of goat-flesh. I had asked her if she
was hungry—without answering me, she drew a
long breath, drawing in her stomach, to make me
understand that it was very empty. When she
came, I tried to put her off with a bunch of plan-
tains, but she stuck tenaciously to my hut until I
had fulfilled my promise of giving her some meat,
repeating the word, etava, etava (goat, goat). Through
her and an Ashango interpreter I took down a few
words of the Obongo language, which I add in the
Appendix to this volume; it will be seen that it con-
tains words of Ashango; indeed their dialect is a
mixture of what was their own original language
and the languages of the various tribes among whom
they have resided for many years past. I was told
that now and then one of them will leave his people,
——SS—
324 ASHANGO-LAND ~ Cnap. XVI.
and come and live among the Ashangos. My guides
were kind enough to inform me that, if I wanted to
buy an Obongo, they would be happy to catch one
for me.
July Ath. I find that palavers are common in the
Ashango country. A man of Niembouai had been
put in nehogo by the men of another village, on
account of some palaver; and the people of the
other village now came to Niembouai to see if the
palaver could not be settled, “ For,” said they, “ you
men of Niembouai are rich, now that you have the
Spirit with you.” Several elders spoke on each side,
each one trying to speak louder than the one who
had preceded him. Finally, the chief of Niembouai
gave the complainant a string of the large beads I
had presented to him.
Then another Ashango came, bringing a slave to
his father-in-law in Niembouai, in payment for the’
daughter he had given him in marriage: the speeches
on the occasion of the presentation of the slave lasted
about three hours.
On another occasion, an Ishogo came to get a
slave in repayment of a Neptune he had trusted to a
friend at Niembouai,* and got into a furious rage,
on finding that no slave was forthcoming. He pro-
tested loudly that he was tired of being put off, and
that he was not going to be cheated of his Neptune.
My astronomical observations at this place, un-
fortunately were not all noted down in my journal.
I see by my memoranda, that on the Ist and 4th of
* A Neptune is a brass dish worth 8s. 6d. to 4s.
/
Cuap. XVI. NEW ASHANGO PORTERS. 325
July I took the distances between the Moon and
Jupiter; on the 4th, the weather became cloudy,
and I failed in taking the observations I had hoped
to have obtained. When the moon, the planet
Saturn, and the star Spica were sufficiently low in
the heavens to be taken with the artificial horizon,
the sky was too cloudy to permit of the observation.
July 5th. We were delayed three more days in
Niembouai through the illness of Ngoma, one of my
Commi boys. I paid the new Ashango porters on
the 2nd, and had some difficulty in getting them
away after the two days’ delay without giving them
more.* With them departed Mokounga.
We started at ten a.m., led by Magouga, an in-
fluential man of Niembouai, whose guest I had been
during my stay here. The path gradually descended
into the valley of the OQuano, a river which falls into
the Odiganga. I found on reaching its banks, about
three miles east of Niembouai, that we had descended
more than 600 feet, the altitude being 1285 feet.
* The names of my Ashango porters were as follows :—
Magouga—Head man,
Adoombo, Mayombon (the 2nd), Mokela,
Mayombon, Moushagou, . Madoungou,
Bishelo, Ibalo, Maniaga,
Moquangué, Dibako, Mamagué,
Divangui, ) Dishelo, Badinga,
Moshelekai, Bengouin, Mayoubon.
Besides these we had eight porters to carry the loads of my Commi men ~
and a varying number followed to carry the provisions and kettles; but I
omitted to take their names. We had also generally with us three or four
old fellows who followed us from village to village, expecting to feed well
on the road, and at the end of a few days to get something for speech
making ; for they thought they helped me wonderfully in this way.
326 ASHANGO-LAND. Cuap. XVI.
The Ouano was about 30 or 40 yards wide, and too
deep to be forded.
We crossed this stream by a singular kind of
ferry. The boat or raft was formed of two logs of
light wood, fifteen feet long, and a flooring -of laths,
tied by their ends to the logs, so as to form'a rude
vessel four or five feet broad. The boat was pro-
pelled by the ferrymen across the current, and, to
prevent its being swept down stream, it was attached,
by means of a stout creeper looped at the end, to a
rope stretched between trees across the river. Up-
right sticks were fixed in the side-beams of the raft
for the standing passengers to hold on by. Our
party were transported across the stream by means
of this contrivance in five journeys. In the rainy
season, when the current is very strong, this ferry
must be very useful. I had never before seen a
ferry of this kind in Africa.
About one p.m. we crossed a high hill called Mog-
iama, the summit of which was 2264 feet above the
sea-level. Soon after, we passed a small Ashango
plantation, with a few huts on its borders and
patches of the wild tobacco-plant and of the hemp.
The tenants of the huts had fled at our approach,
and. we cooked our dinner at the forsaken fires of the
settlement. My Ashango porters insisted upon kill-
ing their goat here. When I asked them why they
had not killed and eaten it at Niembouai, they
replied that they were afraid their own people would
have asked them for some of the meat. I then
asked them why they did not wait until we had
reached the village to which we were going. Their
Cuap. XVI. VILLAGE OF MONGON. 327
reply was the same—the people there also would ask
them for some of the meat. They succeeded in eat-
ing the whole of the goat at one meal; after which
they came to me saying, “ You see we have eaten
the whole of it. Ashango people have big stomachs
—we do not want any one to help us to eat the
goats that you will give us. It is a bore that people
cannot be allowed to eat their meals in quiet, without
others coming to ask them for some of the food.” I
could not help laughing; for these very fellows had
been plaguing my men at Niembouai every time we
killed a goat; and they used to make such a terrific
noise, praising the meat, and begging for some of it,
that I often had to come out of my hut, and drive the
whole lot of them away.
The country continued very hilly, and we made
détours to avoid the steep ascents. At length, a little
before the sun set, we reached the village of Mongon.
Many of my porters had relatives here, and we were
received in a friendly manner. We passed the night
in the village, and I was fortunate enough to take
several lunar observations, which gave 12° 3! 37" H.
long., and I found the latitude to be 1° 56’ 45” 8.
I was only able to take one meridian altitude; but it
was a very successful one, and may be relied upon.
The place is the most elevated I have yet found,
being 2488. feet above the sea-level. I was glad to
find we had made a little northing during the day’s
march. .
July 6th. I had great difficulty in getting my men
away this morning. They wanted to spend the day
idling and drinking with their friends, who had
328 ASHANGO-LAND. Cuap. XVI.
given them a fat goat to present to me that I might
consent to the delay; but I made a firm stand
against these manceuvres, and forced the porters to
take up their loads by pointing my revolver at their
heads, while I took old Magouga by the arm, and led
him forward. We left at about eight a.m., and after
two hours’ march arrived at a small village called
Niongo, where we stopped for breakfast.
The importunities of the villagers and their chief
delayed us here nearly three hours. I was getting
annoyed at these repeated delays, for, at this rate of
travel, when should I get to the Nile? It was now
nearly a year since I left the coast. At last, I told
the chief that if he was so fond of me I would tie
him with ropes and carry him with us; we were
allowed, after this, to depart without further trouble.
Of course I refused the proffered goat; for it is an
universal rule with these tribes that, a present being
received by a stranger from the villagers, he is bound
to make some stay in the place. The refusal of the
present of food is a token that you do not wish to
remain, and hence the pertinacity of these people in
trying to force goats and so forth upon us, when we
are passing a village. After an hour’s march we
were again brought to a stand-still, by the porters
laying down their loads and demanding more pay.
This was the Ishogo scene over again, and terminated
in the same manner, by the vigorous measure of bring-
ing my Commi men up with the muzzles of their
guns levelled at the heads of the offenders, followed
by their sudden repentance, and their laughing over
the affair, as usual, saying, “ Let us stop a while and
te seed amatuer ne eT ne
—
|
f : ii Saori
= Wl (wnt
an
| il
AN AFRICAN GROUP, NOW AT WIMBLEDON.
_CHap. XVI. VILLAGE OF NIEMBOUAI OLOMBA. 329
have a smoke. Do you think we would leave you
in the woods? People may be left in a village but
not in the forest.”
About four p.m. we reached the village called
Niembouai Olomba, or “ Further Niembouai,’ to
distinguish it from the other place of the same name
which I will call Niembouai West for the sake of
distinction. We had made but eight miles in a
direct line in four hours’ march; but the road lies
over a succession of hills and narrow valleys, every-
_ where thickly wooded; and travelling is most toil-
some, heavily-laden as we all were.
We were received with great joy by the chief,
who is the “ father,” head chief, or king of this clan
of Ashangos. Houses were allotted to us; presents of
goats and plantains were laid at my feet; and I was
glad to find that the old chief had not run away.
He had one of the mildest expressions of face I ever’
saw ; was tall, and about 60 years old. Of the two
goats he gave me, I gave one to my Ashango porters.
As they went away with it, I heard one say, “ We
did not know that he would give us one!” This
plan of feeding my porters well has a very good
effect on the villagers, and helped me in the difficult —
task of getting fresh porters. —
The people of Niembouai Olomba were shy, but
many of them had seen me at Niembouai West.
Like all the villages in these mountains, it is sur-
rounded with groves of plantain-trees. Goats are
very abundant, and the goat-houses are scattered
here and there throughout the village. Swallows
were flying over the streets, and numerous birds
23
af
330 ASHANGO-LAND. Cuap, XVI.,
were singing, perched on the surrounding tall trees,
behind the plantain-groves. In the street of the
village is seen, now and then, the stump of an old
tree, which time has not been able to destroy: for
here, wherever the people settle or plant, the trees
have to be cut down, and the stump and roots are
left to perish by the action of time. Niembouai
Olomba is a large village containing about 184
houses. Formerly this and Niembouai West con-
stituted one town (i.e. the population all lived in
one place), and it must have been then a very large
village for this part of Africa. Nearly all the houses
have bée-hives fixed to the walls, and the honey is —
beautifully white and well-flavoured. Wax is very
abundant in Ashango-land, and of a fine quality;
as it is not used by the natives, it will probably
become a valuable article of export at some future
day. I was struck with the simplicity of construc-
tion of the bee-hives; they were made simply of the
bark of trees, rolled up so as to form a cylinder, thus
imitating a hollow tree in which bees make their
hives in the wild state. The ends of the cylinder are
closed with pieces of bark, in which holes are made
for the entrance and the exit of the bees; wooden
hoops are fixed at each extremity to keep the cylin-
der in shape. AY Rs i
Although the Ashangos are certainly quite a dis--
tinct tribe from the Ishogos, for they speak a different —
language, I do not notice any striking difference in
‘their appearance or habits. Their language, as I
have said before, is the same as that of the Ashira.
In one particular they contrast advantageously with
_ Cnar. XVI. CUSTOMS OF THE ASHANGOS. 301
the tribes nearer the coast, namely in the amplitude
of their clothing. All are well clothed with the
_ beautiful grass-cloth of the country. I did not even
see any naked children. The denguis or robes of
chiefs are of unusually large size, and are worn gene-
rally very gracefully. They seem to tattoo them-
selves rather more than the Ishogos do; and the
women do not pierce their ears for ear-ornaments;
their head-dress is the same as that of the Ishogo
women, but they do not seem to take so much care
of it. Although the streets of the Ishogo villages
were broader, the houses of the Ashangos are larger
than those of their neighbours. Both tribes adopt
the custom of taking out their two middle upper
incisors, and of filing the other incisors to a point;
but the Ashangos do not adopt the custom of filing
also the upper incisors. Some of the women have
the four upper incisors taken out. They submit to
this process, in order to be considered the leading
belles of the village. All of them, both male and
female, shave off their eyebrows and pluck out their
eyelashes, and both tribes smear themselves with
ntchingo, or red powder.
Beating the women is here of very rare occur-
rence, I am told; and I have not, myself, seen a
single case of woman-beating. In fact, the women
have their own way, in many things. Almost every
Ashango carries a sword, made by the Shimba and
_ Ashangui tribes. When a sword is sold, the business
is always transacted en famille. Their other weapons
are spears and poisoned arrows. They do not make
any iron here, but get it from tribes further east.
Be
_ 002 ASHANGO-LAND. Cuap. XVI.
They have the reputation of being more quarrelsome
than the Ishogos, and of being greater liars. This
sin of lying is, unfortunately, thought of little matter
in this part of the world. They are not drunkards,
like the Aponos, though palm-trees are abundant
throughout the district, and they drink the palm
wine, but in moderation. They know also how’ to
extract oil from the nuts of the oil palm-tree, which
is here very abundant.
July Tth. Niembouai Olomba lies at the foot of a
fine wooded hill, on a ridge between two deep narrow
valleys or gorges, one running east and west and
the other north-east and south-west. The wind from
the south blew cool and refreshing, both last night
and this morning. At six a.m. the thermometer
stood at 68° Fahr., with a clear sky and a bright
sun. Along the deep valley towards the east I had
a magnificent view of the rising sun. It was the
happiest morning I had had for a long time, and I
felt invigorated with the cool breeze, after the close
heat of the forest-paths and crowded villages during
the last few weeks. Towards two p.m. the sky be-
came cloudy again.
July 8th. Last night, as I was quietly lying on my
bed, I was aroused by a rustling and scratching noise
in the hut, and the flying of numerous cockroaches,
some of them alighting on the back of my neck,
which, by the way, produces one of the most un-
pleasant sensations I know of. I knew it must be
an invasion of Bashikouay ants, and started up and
called my men. The active creatures were already
on my bed, and I was lucky in making my escape
Cuap. XVI. BASHIKOUAY ANTS. 300
without being half devoured by them. They were
attracted, no doubt, by a quarter of goat's meat
hanging in the chamber, for, unfortunately, my
sleeping-room is obliged to: be also my store-room.
The men hastened to fetch hot ashes to spread over
the floor, which was black with the shining bodies
of these most destructive ants, who come to their
work in dense masses. Had their progress not been
checked they would have finished our goat-meat in
a very short time, for they were already climbing
_ the walls, and we had to sweep them down on the
hot cinders, not daring to apply a torch to the wall
of such a combustible edifice as an Ashango hut.
After killing thousands in this manner the remainder
were scared away, and I spent the rest of the night
in peace.
I have given an account of this ant in my ‘Adven-
tures in Equatorial Africa,’ and have little to add
regarding it in this place. But one can never cease
to wonder at the marvellous habits and instincts of
these extraordinary creatures, whose natural history
is still but imperfectly known. The individuals
which form the armies of the Bashikouays are only
the worker or neuter caste of the species. It is well
_ known that the males and females of ants, which
alone propagate their kind, are winged, and take no
part in the various kinds of industry which render
ants such remarkable insects. The armies of the
Bashikouays seem for ever on the march, clearing
the ground of every fragment of animal substance,
dead or alive, which they can obtain or overpower ;
and, so furious are their onslaughts on the person of
c a
nt ;
. ¥
)
334 ASHANGO-LAND. Guar. XVI.
any one who steps near their armies, that it is diffi-
cult or impossible to trace the columns to their nests,
if indeed they have any. The Bashikouays are of
several distinct species; and, in each species, the
workers or neuters are of many gradations of size
and bulk, but all are of shining reddish or black
colour, with heads of a square or oblong form.
While on the march, they do not attack insects, only
when they halt and then spread themselves out in
foraging parties.
In the afternoon I ascended one of the hills which
form so grand a feature in the landscape close to Niem-
bouai. An almost perpetual mist shrouds the summit
of this hill, which is called Birogou Bouanga. By
recording observations of the boiling-point and two
aneroid-barometers at the summit, and striking the
mean, I found the altitude to be 2574 feet above the
sea-level. The leaves of the trees and bushes were
quite wet at the summit, whilst below, near the vil-
lage, the herbage was dry, showing the effect of the
cap of mist or cloud which covers the hill-top.
When I first spoke of going up the mountain, the
villagers expressed themselves willing to go with
me, and several promised to accompany me to the
summit; but, when I actually got ready to start, they
- declined to do so—their fellow-villagers telling them
not to go with the Oguizi. I began to fear that I
should not be able to accomplish the ascent. Finally,
two of my porters from Niembouai West offered to go
with me; then two of the villagers agreed to show
us the path to the top. When we all reached the
summit, the two villagers stared to see me bring out
Cuar. XVI. ASCENT OF MOUNT BIROGOU BOUANGA. 999
my policeman’s lantern, and screw my boiling-point
thermometer to the kettle; but their astonishment
was beyond measure when I produced instantaneous
fire with a lucifer-match. They trembled all over,
and became speechless. My two porters looked at
them with evident contempt, saying, “‘ You see now
what kind of spirit we have brought to you.” Gra-
dually they got less frightened, and at last came close
to me and watched my proceedings with manifest
interest.
From the summit of Birogou Bouanga I could see
the country for many miles round. The mountains
appeared to be, for the most part, of nearly equal
height. Here and there, on the declivity of the hill
round Niembouai Olomba, were large tracts of the
forest that had been felled and partly cleared; and,
in the midst of fallen trees and dead branches, the
beautiful leaves of the plantain-trees could be seen,
with now and then a field of cassada or manioc,
though this latter is getting very scarce. The plan-
tain is almost the only staple of food here. Through
the leaves of the plantain-trees peeped out the stem
of the sugar-cane, which is here very abundant. I
could see large tracts of ground-nuts. When meat
igs scarce the people pound the seed of the ground-nut
trees and cook it in leaves, or simply roast it. Near
the village were patches of the tobacco-plant and of
the liamba (hemp). In the places where plantain-
trees had been newly planted I often saw a kind of
squash, the pounded seed of which is considered a
great dainty. :
I had to-day a serious trouble with two of my
>
336 ASHANGO-LAND. Cuap, XVI.
-
Commi men, Mouitchi and Rapelina, slaves lent me
by my friends Djombouai and Sholomba on the Fer-
nand Vaz. ‘They had lately become, I knew not
why, discontented and troublesome, and were detected
to-day in pilfering powder, bullets, and other articles,
with the intention of laying in a store of ammunition
before running away. Mouitchi was a lazy fellow,
and his loss would not have been a very serious
matter to me; but it would not be prudent to lessen
the numbers of my small party, and leave these
Commi men in the interior. I was obliged to have
them both disarmed, and, after considering for some
time, decided that it would be best to tell them they
might go and find their way back to the coast, if they
liked to try. The elders of Niembouai, when they
saw I intended to dismiss the two med, treated the
matter as a very serious one, and came to me to say
that I could not be allowed to leave the men in the
country in that way, but that I must name two of
the elders of the place to be their protectors or
masters. My object, however, was not to get rid
of the men, but to show my displeasure at their
misconduct; and I thought the best way to do this
was to pretend to be utterly indifferent whether they
accompanied us any further or not, for this would
be likely to make them repent and beg to be taken
back again. The event proved that I was not mis-
taken : they left the village, but came back repentant
the next day. i
July 12th. We did not leave Niembouai Olomba
without trouble. First, my porters of Niembouai
West wanted an increase of pay; then the people
Caar. XVI. MORE TROUBLES. 3387
of Niembouai Olomba wanted them to leave me with
them, and to go back to their own country, saying
that they could take care of me. Magouga retorted
that he also could take care of me. On their refer-
ring the matter to me, in order to please both parties,
I said I would take half my porters from Niembouai
West, and the other half from Niembouai Olomba.
I felt very much inclined to take only the men of
Niembouai Olomba, as the others had shown signs
of fear, having come to me two or three times, saying
that they had heard that the people in the villages
before us did not wish to see the Oguizi, and had
sent word to that effect.
When at length we started, Magouga and the chief _
of Niembouai Olomba were both with me; and with
Rebouka we formed the rear-guard of the caravan.
I kept constantly on the alert, and took care always
to make one of these two leading men walk before
me, for, in so wild a country, one cannot be too —
careful.
We were now on our march to the country of
the Njavi tribe, who live to the east of Ashango-
land. My Ashango porters were to convey me to
the principal village of the Njavi, and I had hoped
that all would go smoothly, now that we had left
Niembouai and were again on the road. Unhappily,
further troubles were in store forme. Several of the
porters—taught, I am afraid, by my own mutinous
servants Rapelina and Mouitchi—went on ahead,
and, concealing themselves in the forest, let us pass
them, and then made off to their own village.
When we halted to rest the porters, I discovered
Pry
338 ASHANGO-LAND. Cuar. XVL
that several of them were missing. The absentees
all belonged to Niembouai West. We waited for
them, but in vain. Both they and their loads were
gone.
Being determined to check this new evil at its
commencement, I ordered a halt near Mobana, and,
seizing Magouga, placed three of my Commi men
as guard over him, with orders to shoot him if he
attempted to escape; and I told him that I should
not release him until the lost property was restored
by the Niembouai porters under his leadership. In
the meantime the old chief of Niembouai Olomba,
with his people, came to me, and said, “I have
nothing to do with this—here are all my people,
here are all their loads. Why did you not take my
people only? We do not steal in my village.” Soon
the Mobana people, who had heard that we were
near, and who are related by marriages to the people
of Niembouai Olomba, came out to us, and asked us
to come into their village, saying, “ Why should the
vere remain in the woods, while there is a vil-
lage near?” I accordingly accepted their invitation,
and proceeded to Mobana.
The news of the robbery soon spread to Niem-
bouai, and several of the elders, taking my part, set
_ upon the thieves, who had run back to the village,
hacked them with their swords, and sent back to me
the three boxes they had carried off. This was not,
however, till the following day; meantime, it was a
little reign of terror at Mobana, for none of us slept, —
_ having to keep watch all night with our loaded
muskets over Magouga and the porters, who re-
Cuar. XVI. ROBBED BY THE ASHANGO PORTERS. 339
mained in our hands, On examining next morning
the three boxes which had been plundered, I found
that none of the articles they contained had been
actually stolen; but the contents of several bottles of
medicine had been either drunk or poured away, and
the empty bottles put back into their places. .
— “=
Se a et a Es
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Se
es ee (68 ee eee Serer ee
= ee eee ee = :
a
366 RETREAT FROM ASHANGO-LAND. Ouar, XVII, —
and passed without having alarmed the inmates.
We then came near the end of the street, and were
thinking that all danger was passed, when suddenly a
bright fire blazed up right before us! As we stood
motionless waiting for the next move, a kind voice
spoke out in the darkness— “It is the Oguizi’s
people; go on! go on! there is no harm to you in
my village ; pass on! you will find the path smooth ;
there is no war for you!” It was the voice of the
old king, who was thus, with some of his people,
waiting our passage, with the good intention of
speeding us on with kind words. They had got the
materials for the fire ready beforehand to hight us on
our way. What a load was taken from our minds!
We had expected here a deadly struggle, and found
instead the road made clear for us. But we were
not quite sure that some act of treachery might not
be intended ; so, instead of stopping to talk, we passed
on without saying a word in reply to the kind speech
of the chief.
On we went in the darkness of the night ; through
swamps and water courses, over stony hills and
thorny brakes, often losing the path, and wandering
about for some time before finding it again. At
about three o’clock in the morning we came to a field
of cassava. We halted, made a fire, gathered some
of the roots, and roasted them to eat, for we had had
no food since our flight began the preceding morning,
and were quite worn out with fatigue and hunger.
This renewed our strength, and I offered up a silent
prayer to that gracious Providence who had so mar-
vellously preserved my little band.
Cnap. XVIII. WE RESUME OUR MARCH. 367
July 27th. A little before daylight (as soon as we
could see our way through the forest), we resumed
our march, Igala limping along with his lame leg,
and I marching among the men encouraging them
with hopeful words. pds going a short distance
we came to a place where two paths diverged, and a
dispute arose amongst my men as to which was the
right way. Rebouka, who was now leading us, fixed
upon one way as the right one, and Ngoma declared
the other was the proper path; he knew it, he said,
by a monkey trap by the side of the road, which we
had passed on coming to Niembouai Olomba. The
majority declared in favour of Rebouka, and so we
took his path.
We continued on this road till ied, when it was
necessary to halt and make a search for something
to eat, for we were all ravenous with hunger. Some
of the men dispersed on foraging expeditions, and two
of them soon returned successful, having found a
small grove of plantains from which they gathered
several bunches nearly ripe. We made a fire on
the margins of a pretty rivulet under the shade of
trees, cooked and ate our meal. Soon after, having
resumed our onward march, we arrived at a small
village surrounded by plantations, which we knew
at once we had not seen on our outward journey.
-Ngoma was now triumphant, and Rebouka and his
followers discomfited. I was obliged to interfere to
put an end to their dispute, and we then boldly
walked into the village and spoke to the people. »
The place proved to be a plantation of one of the
head men of Niembouai Olomba, next in influence to
368 RETREAT FROM ASHANGO-LAND. Czar. XVIII.
the king. He was a fine old fellow, with snow-white
hair, and with that genial expression of features
which is often seen in negroes of the better sort. He
received us with great kindness, inviting us to stay
and eat something; and, on our accepting his offer,
ordered. his women to cook us a fowl and some plan-
tains. The women gave my men sugar-cane and
mpegui nuts, and the old ‘man apologized for not
having a goat to offer us.
The people of the village naturally asked us why
we had returned so soon. My men were not behind
hand in satisfying their curiosity; but they took
care to conceal the fact that we were the aggressors,
though through no ill intention on our part. They
said we had been attacked, and had had to fight our
way back. Hach of them boasted of his own feats
and prowess, saying how many of the warriors of
Mouaou Kombo he had beaten off.
Whilst we were thus engaged, our old guide
Magouga came in. The arrival of this faithful old
man was most fortunate for us. He proved himself
to be a real friend in need. He had heard, when he
got up in the morning at Niembouai, that we had
passed in the middle of the night, and had imme-
diately set off to overtake us. He must have walked
very fast. He seemed overjoyed to see us, and
said he had returned to Niembouai Olomba from
Mobana, intending to remain until he had heard of
our safe passage through the Njavi country; for he
had anticipated that we should have great difficulties
with the people of Upper Ashango-land, who were a
bad set. He seemed really grateful for the services
ee ee eT
7 ne > . c
ees ee Te eee ee. ee
Caap. XVIII. ARRIVAL OF MAGOUGA. | 369
I had rendered him at Mobana, in saving him from
the fury of the people when they were excited about
the robbery, and he said that, now we had come
back, he would see us safe to the Ishogo country.
Magouga seemed not to have heard a correct account
of the Mouaou affair. All he knew was that the
people had driven us away, and that we had killed
many of their warriors. He told us that one of the
men shot by Igala was the head warrior of Mobana,
and that this was likely to be made a casus bella
between the Mobana villagers and the people of
Mouaou Kombo, who were held to be the cause of
the death. The Mobanans were already cooking the
“war dish’”* in order to march against the village of
Mouaou Kombo. It was evident from the confused
statements of Magouga, that the country was all in a
ferment behind us. He said the Mouaou people had
abandoned their village and retired to the forest, fear-
ing lest I should return and burn it. They said all the
arrows they had shot at me would not pierce me, but
had rebounded from my flesh; and they were filled
with superstitious fears of the power of so mysterious
a being. I must here add that my men and myself
kept the fact of my having been wounded a secret
from all the negroes on our homeward march; my
men knew as well as myself how important it was
* The “ war-dish ” is the pot of magic herbs and fetiches which is cooked
with a great deal of mystery and ceremony on the eve of going to meet an
enemy. The mess is cooked in a very large vessel, and the affair is pre-
sided over, as a matter of course, by the most renowned fetich doctor of the
tribe. So soon as the cooking is completed, the warriors swallow part of
the contents of the vessel, and smear their bodies over with the rest ; when
they have succeeded in. exciting themselves to the requisite pitch, they
rush forth to attack the village they intend to panda (assault).
370 RETREAT FROM ASHANGO-LAND. OCuap. XVIII
that I should maintain the reputation of being in-
vulnerable; and it was universally believed that the
arrows of ila Ashangos glanced from my body with- —
out hurting me. Magouga said he had heard that
at one time I had turned myself into a leopard,
had hid myself in a tree, and had sprung upon the
Mouaou people as they came to make war on my
men; that at other times I turned myself into a
gorilla, or into an elephant, and struck terror and
death among the Mouaou and Mobana warriors.
Hage finished his story by asking me for a
‘war fetich,” for he said I must possess the art of
making fetiches, or I and my men could not have
escaped so miraculously.
After a good rest and a hearty bal we left the
good old chief of the plantation-village, and con-
tinued our homeward march, now under the guidance
of Magouga. On parting I gave the old chief a
quantity of beads out of our remaining stock, and _
also a red powder flask, which latter present delighted
him beyond measure, and he said he would keep it
in remembrance of me. We were fortunate after
all in taking the wrong path, for besides being led
by it to the plantation of the hospitable old chief,
we were enabled to avoid the village of Niongo, —
where, if we did not meet with obstacles, we should
at least have been delayed in our journey.
— - — ee e-
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ee
ore
CHAPTER XIX.
JOURNEY TO THE COAST.
Arrival at Mongon—Magouga recounts the Story of our Adventures to the
Villagers—Reach Niembouai—Misirust of the People—Restitution of
Stolen Property—Magouga consents to guide us to Mokenga—Reach
the last of the Ashango Villages—Passage into Ishogo-land, and out of
danger of Pursuit— Magouga’s Diplomacy —Arrival at Mokenga—
Friendly Reception—Magouga delivers us safely into the hands of the
Villagers—My Men exaggerate the Deeds of Valour they had performed
—Arrival at Yengué—Project of descending the Ogoulou in a Canoe—
Lose our Way—Distant View of the Apono Prairie—Igoumbié—
Reach Mokaba—The Ngouyai—March to Nchiengain’s—Cross the River
—Nchiengain’s Village—Reception at Mayolo—Operation of the African
Law of Inheritance—March to Ashira-land— Alarm of the Ashira
People—Avoid Olenda—Sojourn at Angouka’s—Cross the Ofoubou
—Quengueza’s Encampment—Sorrows of the old King—Devastations of
the Plague at Goumbi—Quengueza wants to go to the White Man’s
Country—Descend the River—Arrival at ‘“‘ Plateau ”—Gratitude of the
Commi People—Departure for England.
AFTER parting from the Niembouai elder at his
plantation-village we continued our journey towards
the west, accompanied, as I have said, by Magouga.
About half-past three p.m. we reached the village
of Mongon, having taken a short cut by one of the
numerous by-paths of the country, made by the people
from one plantation to another.
On our way to Mongon we were very much amused
by a crowd of chimpanzees in a wooded hollow. We
were marching along the edge of a deep valley, when
372 JOURNEY TO THE COAST. Cuap. XIX,
we were brought to a stand by the loud jabbering of —
what we thought was a multitude of people. Ma-
gouga was puzzled, for he knew there was no village
near; we listened, and found the sounds proceeded
from the dense woods in the valley beneath us.
Through breaks in the foliage we presently saw the
dusky forms of a number of chimpanzees, moving
about, swaying the branches, and making the most
- ludicrous noises. On observing them attentively we
_ found there were two groups, one of them stationed
at some distance from the other, and the two appeared
to be holding a conversation together, or hurling
shouts of defiance backwards and forwards. There
must have been thirty or forty of them together
in the trees below us. I never before observed so
many anthropoid apes together.
It was fortunate that we had Magouga with us, for
the villagers of Mongon were thrown into great con-
sternation at our unexpected arrival, and some of them
were beginning to run away as we entered the village.
I made the old man march at the head of our party,
for I did not know what might happen. He shouted
to the people to allay their fears, saying, “I am .
Magouga, do not be afraid, the Oguizi’s people are
going back.” We made halt at the ouandja and were
soon after surrounded by the people, all asking with
looks of astonishment, “ What does this mean? Why
have you returned?” It appeared that news had
arrived here that Magouga had been killed at Mo-
bana, and his people had mourned for him. }
Magouga was equal to the occasion. He made a
long speech, narrating all the events in which he had
Cuar. XIX. MAGOUGA RECOUNTS OUR ADVENTURES. 373
performed a part, cursing the Niembouai people for
stealing my goods, and describing how the Mobana
villagers wanted to kill him. Then with regard to
our affair at Mouaou Kombo he gave a most
exaggerated account. He said the villagers had
attacked us because they did not want us to pass;
that we had killed eighteen of them, and that all
the arrows shot at me had glanced off without
doing me any harm; and then he again related
the history of my various transformations. So well
did he describe our misfortunes, that the Mongon
people all took our part. “What a shame it is,”
said they, ‘‘that war should be made on such
men, who do no harm, who take nothing by force,
and bring us only good things.” They said they
would resist the Mouaou warriors if they came near
their village. The women after this brought us
fowls, eggs, and ripe plantains, which they exchanged
with us fora few trinkets. We were pressingly in-
vited to remain for the night in the village; but I
thought this would be an imprudent proceeding, so
I made an excuse. We left the place towards the
evening, and, after marching three or four miles,
slept in an abandoned plantation on the Toad to
Niembouai West.
- July 28th. We slept very little during the night,
for neither myself nor my men considered we were
yet quite out of danger of an attack. We lay down
with our loaded weapons by our side, three of my
men lying in the same hut with myself. |
Rising at daylight we resumed our: Sy walking
very rapidly till nearly noon, when we arrived at
374 JOURNEY TO THE COAST. Cuar. XIX.
Niembouai, where our guide resided. The same mis-
trust of our proceedings was shown here as at
Mongon, but on recognising Magouga the villagers
became reassured. Our excellent guide took us down
the street to his own house; but we had little peace
all the remainder of the day, for the people were
eager to learn the particulars of the late events from
the lips of the eloquent Magouga. The story as
related by him waxed more sensational after each
repetition; but what pleased the villagers most was
the way in which he described us as saving his life
when threatened .by the Mobana people. At this
there was tumultuous cheering, with shouts of “You
are men! you are men! How can people make war
on such men?”
@ July 29th. Notwithstanding the gush of popularity
of the preceding evening, the Niembouai villagers
have evidently not yet shaken off their distrust of
‘me. Harly in the morning I saw people casting furtive
glances at me, and little groups of elders were ob-
servable at a distance from my hut, engaged in close
confabulation. The cause of all this was made ap-
parent shortly afterwards. The people were afraid
that I should do something to them in revenge for
the articles that had been stolen between Niem-
bouai Olomba and Mobana, when I passed through
their territory on the eastward journey. At length
one of the negroes, who I suppose had been chosen —
to carry out the perilous mission, came and handed
me a bottle partly filled with arsenic, saying that he
was a stranger to the village, and that the bottle
having been given to him as my property, he had
- Onap. XIX. MAGOUGA STANDS BY US. 375
come to return it. I learnt afterwards that my men
had threatened the people with punishment if they
did not restore the whole of the stolen property.
I had not intended to pass another night at Niem-
bouai, and this distrust on the part of the people con-
firmed me in my determination. Magouga had, how-
ever, given us a goat, and it was necessary to remain
until it was killed and cut up into pieces for con-
venience of carriage. Rumours of armed men being
seén in the bush round the village circulated about
in the course of the day, and the villagers pretended
to be alarmed lest they should be attacked on account
of us. At length we left the place, and after an easy
march reached the village, mentioned in the earlier
part of this narrative, which the Ashango and Njavi
people share together.
We-were again accompanied by our steady friend
Magouga, who, after putting his house at Niembouai
in order, announced his readiness to’ guide us safely
as far as Mokenga. He was the only native who
consented to accompany us out of the district be-
longing to his tribe, during any part of our journey
‘towards the coast. There are very strong reasons
why these people of the interior object to going
far westward; they are liable to be detained and
enslaved, and it never happens that an Ishogo or an
_ Ashango man, who has once left his country for the
sea-board tribes, returns to his native land. Perhaps
they thought we might kidnap them. Besides, we
had lost nearly all our property, and I was no longer
the rich Oguizi that dazzled all people with my
wealth on my outward march; it was therefore a,
‘iat
376 JOURNEY TO THE COAST. Cuap. XIX.
most disinterested act on the part of Magouga to
accompany us; for he could not have been attracted
by the prospect of good pay or plunder.
The villagers here were this time exceedingly
friendly, bringing us plantains, cooking-pots, cala-
bashes of water, and firewood. However, we did
not stay long at their village, but proceeded onward
towards the west. About five o’clock we reached |
Moyego, a large Ashango village which we had
passed on our march eastward. without stopping at
it, in opposition to the entreaties of the inhabitants.
Magouga had friends living here, and as the villagers
pressed us strongly to stay, and gave us many pre-
sents of food, we passed the night here. When they
heard our account of the Mouaou affair they said that
it was no concern of theirs, that the Mouaou people
belonged to a different clan from them, and that they
wished we had killed more of them.
July 30th. Continuing our march this morning,
we reached before noon Magonga, the last, or most
westerly, of the Ashango villages, situated on the
banks of the Odiganga. I did not wish to make any
stay here, so we marched through the village without
stopping, much to the surprise and disappointment
of the inhabitants, who were curious to know what
had happened to cause our return to the coast.
Magouga was very much annoyed because I would
not stay, and said he would not go with us any
further. I told him I did not want him, for we
knew the road as well as he did. We crossed the
Odiganga, and fixed our head-quarters on the other
side of the stream, so that, in case of attack, we
Cuar. XIX. OUT OF DANGER OF PURSUIT. 377
should have the stream between us and the people of
Magonga, whom we had left in rather a bad humour.
The villagers came to us, and we bought a few plan-
tains and some provisions with the few beads that
I had remaining. About two hours afterwards, as
we were eating our dinner by the roadside on the
path to Mokenga, Magouga made his appearance,
making the excuse that he was obliged to pretend to
be vexed with me, otherwise the villagers would
have laid on him the blame of my not staying in
their town; in future I was not to mind what he said
when we were in a village; “ Recollect,” he said,
“ you go out of the country, but I remain in it, and
must take care to keep friends with the people.”
This little anecdote shows how full of deceit and
diplomacy these primitive Africans are, and how
difficult it is to know when they are speaking the
truth.
Since we had crossed the Odiganga we have been
amongst the Ishogo tribe, and I felt for the first time
that we were safe from fighting; we had quitted the
territory of the tribe with whom we had had so deadly
an encounter, and had placed a broad and rapid river
with high banks between them and ourselves. The
villagers on the western side of the Odiganga brought
us a great number of articles for sale, denguis, fowls,
-bongos, fruit, and nuts, and wished us to stay; but
we had resolved not to make any lengthened stay
anywhere. We passed several Ishogo villages in
succession, and in the evening arrived at a small
plantation not far from Ayamba, or Diamba. We
slept at the plantation, and on the following morn-
26
EO ——
378 JOURNEY TO THE COAST. Cua. XE. a
ing, after a march through the forest, reached the
village.
July 31st. The Ishogo chief of Ayamba presented
me with a goat. We were conducted by the villagers
into the strangers’ ouandja, where we cooked our
morning meal. As usual we were much pressed by
the people to remain a day or two with them, but
I was firm in my determination to march on: we did
not need porters, and knew the road, so were inde-
pendent of them all. I had declined to stay at
Ayamba on my outward march, and the people
recalled this to mind, saying that they believed their
place must be bewitched, as I had refused both times
to stay in it. Magouga repeated his old game of —
pretending to be dreadfully angry with me for not
staying, but of course I took no notice of him this
time, except to laugh at the trick.
In the afternoon we reached the good village of
Mokenga. The astonishment of the inhabitants at
our return was unbounded. We were soon sur-
rounded by an eager crowd, all asking questions,
and Magouga became at once a man of great import-
ance. It filled him with pride to be able to say to
the villagers, when order was somewhat restored,
and all were ready to listen to his account of our
journey, “ Here we are, people of Mokenga! Your ©
men gave into my hands the Ibamba and his people
at Niembouai, and now I give you them back in
safety.” In narrating the events of the past few
weeks he repeated the little troubles he had had at
Niembouai and Mobana, and when he came to the
Mouaou Kombo business he got quite eloquent, and
wv
te Se ee re
ee a oe
Cuar. XIX. FRIENDLY RECEPTION AT MOKENGA. 379
made a most exciting story of it. I found that he
had gradually increased the number of the people
we had killed. At the last place where he told his
tale eighteen was the number; he now stated it was
thirty. My Commi men were just the same. Modest
and tolerably accurate at first, before we were quit
of the Ashango territory, they now began to boast
frightfully of the deeds of valour they had enacted.
Like Sir John Falstaff, they gradually augmented the
number they had slain with their own hand. Each
of them declared in turn that he had killed several
of the enemy, and Mouitchi, who had sneaked into
the forest at the commencement, and had taken no
part in the struggle, was more boastful than any of
them. He was firm in his statement that he had
killed five with his own hand. The further we
travelled from the scene of action, the more my
valiant Commi boys exaggerated the number they
had slain; until at Quengueza’s the total had reached
the fearful figure of 150.
The sympathy and hospitality shown to us by the
Mokenga people, after the speech of Magouga, were
quite remarkable. Old Mokounga, our former Ishogo
head guide, took me to his own house, saying I was
his guest and must stay with him, and the villagers
Invited my men to stay with them. Sugar-cane,
plantains, and ground-nuts were brought to us and
given to my people; Mokounga gave me a goat;
kettles and firewood were brought to us to cook our
food; in short, the kind-hearted people seemed to be
sincerely happy to see us back amongst i and I
felt happy myself.
380 JOURNEY TO THE COAST. Cuap. XIX,
August 1st—3rd. We remained at Mokenga three
days, as we all required rest, and I had another
motive for staying in the great pleasure which it
gave to the villagers who had been so kind to us.
Mokounga, I was sorry to find, suffered greatly from
sore legs; they were much swollen, and discharged
a quantity of watery humour. It was fortunate that
the rumour about my causing sickness in every one
who came in contact with me had not reached these
Ishogo people. Mokounga told us that the disease
in his legs made its appearance two or three days
after he left me on the outward journey, and he
attributed it, as usual, to some one having bewitched
him through jealousy of my friendship. On the
night of my arrival there was a slow beating of
drums and mournful singing in one of the houses of
the village—a sign that some one lay dead there. I
was told it was a woman who died three days pre-
viously: the next morning the corpse was carried
away to the cemetery in the woods. I was pleased
to find that the people here were not so much afraid
of death as the tribes nearer the sea; they do not
abandon a village when a death occurs. Indeed, the
villages are so large that this custom would be very
difficult to keep up. Mokenga is, I think, the most
southerly village of the Ishogo tribe, who occupy a
narrow territory extending for about 150 miles from ~
the north-west to the south-east, running nearly
parallel to the large Ngouyai river. The country
of this tribe must begin very near the banks of the
Rembo Okanda.
The Ashango occupy about the same length of ter-
)
_— —L. er,
Cuap, XIX. ARRIVAL AT YENGUE., 381
ritory, but theirs is a much broader tract of land.
Both tribes, and the Aponos also, are bordered on
the south by the Njavi people; these latter being
also found beyond the Ashango.
August 4th. We left the village this morning, fol-
lowed by the best wishes of the Mokenga people, but
none of them accompanied us. As we disappeared
in the forest, they shouted after us, “Come again!
come again, Oguizi, and bring us trade!” Old
Magouga, who, notwithstanding all his tricks and
odd ways, had been a faithful friend to us, remained
here. I made a parting present both to him and
Mokounga. They accompanied us to the woods
through which the path led, and in bidding us
adieu, shouted “‘ Come again! come again!”
After a short march we arrived at the village of
Yengué, charmingly situated on the banks of the
beautiful Eckmiihl, or Ogoulou River. As soon as
we made our appearance, the villagers brought their
canoes to ferry us across, and all of them, like the
inhabitants of other places we had passed, asked the
reasons of our coming back. When we told them
_ our tale, they said they wished we had killed all the
Mouaou warriors. ‘‘ How could such far-away people
know the value of the good things you brought them ?”
said they; “and how could such men of the bush
understand your fashions?” We were surrounded
by such a crowd of people that we were glad to get
out of the village, and cook our morning meal in a —
retired place on the road-side.
I had sone thoughts of purchasing a canoe at
Yengué, and travelling down the Eckmiihl into the
382 JOURNEY TO THE COAST. Cuap. XIX.
Ngouyai, and thence to the Apono country ; but on
stating my intentions to some of the villagers they
told me that there was a waterfall a few miles below
the village, and that 1t would be necessary to pass
our canoe by land round the obstruction. We could
not, however, get any very exact information about
the river; and, fearing there might be other diffi-
culties, I gave up the plan, and decided to travel
back by the same path by which we had come.
We were now travelling without a guide, for no
one was willing to accompany us after Magouga had
left us. As a natural consequence, we had not
gone far before we lost our way. The path we
took led us to an Apono village which we had not
seen before; it was beautifully. situated on the top
of one of the hills which form the last and lowest
range of the mountains we had come from. From
the village we had a wide prospect over the prairie
of the Apono country, the yellow colour of which
contrasted strongly with the dark-green hues of the
forest that clothed the hilly ranges. The view ex-
tended to the other side of the prairie, where we
could see the mountain-range which divides the
Otando from the Ashira Ngozai territories. A
stretch of country, moderately hilly and covered
with forest, extended between our position and the
yellow prairie.
The villagers fled at our approach, but we luckily
found Dibako, a Mokaba man who had been one of
our porters in our eastward journey, and he proved —
a true friend in need to us. After we had rested
a while and refreshed ourselves with a drink of
——s a es
;
Onar. XIX. SORROWFUL PARTING AT IGOUMBIE. 383
limpid water—for we felt the heat severely after
descending from the hilly country—he volunteered
to guide us to the right road, and a little before
sunset we reached with his aid the village of Igo-
umbié.
August 5th. We left Igoumbié to-day, to the great
sorrow of the villagers, who wished me to stay
longer with them. Our Apono guide continued
in our company.
The Ishogos, notwithstanding their many faults,
are the kindest-hearted and the gentlest negroes I
ever met with. As soon as my men. had shouldered
their “ otaitais,” and the people saw that we were
ready to start, the whole population came out. This
time we had to pass through the whole length of the
village. They followed behind us—the women were
the most conspicuous. They all shouted out, “Go
on well, go on well; nothing bad shall happen to
you!” When we reached the end of the village,
and just before turning into the path that would take
us out of their sight, I turned round, and, taking off
the remnant of what was once a good hat, I waved it
in the air. Immediately a dead silence succeeded
the noise, and I shouted, “ Farewell, good Ishogos!”
As I disappeared from their view among: the trees of
the forest we were entering, suddenly a wild and
sorrowful shout of the multitude reached our ears.
They all cried out with one voice, “We shall see
the good Oguizi no more! We shall see the good
~Oguizi no more!” Then all became again silent,
and once more we trod the path of this gigantic
jungle on our way to the sea-shore.
884 | JOURNEY TO THE COAST. Ouap. XIX.
~ On leaving Igoumbié we took a different road from
that which we had followed in our eastward journey.
After about three hours’ walk, we emerged on the
open grassy hills which form the eastern boundary
of the Apono country. After marching past nume-
rous Apono villages on the western side of these
hills, we reached in the afternoon the village of
Mokaba. On the road, in a solitary part of the
prairie, we passed by a tall pole with the head of a
man stuck at the top, to all appearance quite recently
placed there. My men passed the place with a quiver
of horror, for they guessed what this ghastly object
meant. We were told by our guide that it was the
head of one of the chiefs, who had been decapitated
on suspicion of being a wizard—another victim to |
the horrid superstitions of these people.- The head
had been placed on a pole by the road-side as a
warning to all who approached Mokaba.
I was glad to find that the palm-wine season was
now over, and the Mokaba villagers constrained to
be much more sober than they were on my former
visit. The palm-trees had nearly finished blooming,
and the ascending sap, which supplies. the fermentable
liquor, no longer flowed in sufficient quantity. My
old friend Kombila was the only one who had liquor
enough to get drunk upon, and he was so harmless
over his cups that I had no annoyance from him.
Late in the afternoon I took a walk into the prairie,
which extends for a long distance in the neighbour-
hood of Mokaba. I cannot express the pleasure I
felt in being once more in open country. I seemed
to breathe freer ;, the eye wandered far away over a
Caap. XIX. ‘THE RIVER NGOUYAI. 389
vast expanse, and the sensation was delightful after
being confined so long in the dark forests of Ishogo
and Ashango-land. To feel the wind fanning one’s
face was a luxury that had long been denied me.
As I traversed the paths which led over the grassy
expanse, my mind wandered to former scenes, the
fields of my native country, and I longed to be back.
What dangers had I not passed through since I left
England on this mission! Perils by water, fire, pesti-
lence, and war. With a grateful heart I thanked Him -
who had watched over the lonely traveller who had
trusted in Him.
AsI wandered along, occupied with these thoughts,
the day declined and the sun set. It did not, how-
ever, become dark, for a bright moonlight shone over
the landscape, and the evening was most enjoyable.
Gradually I retraced my steps towards Mokaba.
August 6th. The crowd and noise in the village were
so annoying that I was obliged this morning to leave
the place and establish myself on the banks of the
Negouyai, which flows about a mile-and-a-half to the
west of Mokaba. I did not know, when on our east-
ward march, that the town was so near to the river.
At this time of the year the Ngouyai has but a feeble
current ; I was told by the Mokaba people, that fur-
ther up stream, in the Njavi country, the river was
narrower and encumbered with rocks and rapids.
Although it was now towards the end of the dry
season there were no hippopotami to be seen in the
river. It appeared to me now that I might save the
toilsome walk over the stony prairie by navigating
- the stream down to Nchiengain’s village. I tried
2 &XK«>OawCO
414 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE. Cnaap. XX.
Olomba; it then sloped gradually towards the east,
with small streams running in that direction, and
flowing no doubt towards the large river mentioned
by the natives—a river that may be the Congo, or
one of its large tributaries. I should think that it
was about two degrees further eastward, somewhere
about 15° or 16° east longitude.
After I had drawn attention to the great basin of
the Ogobai, the attention of the French Government
was attracted towards it, and two expeditions have been
made; one in the year 1862, and the other in 1864.
Unfortunately the two expeditions chose the worst
time of the year for their errand, the dry season,
when the rivers are shallow and full of banks.
The first expedition. did not reach the junction
of the Okanda and the Ngouyai; but afterwards,
M. Serval, whose enterprise is an honour to the
French navy, from the Upper Gaboon crossed by
land to the Ogobai, and reached a ponds not far from
the junction.*
* The map made by M. Serval appeared after I had started a second
time for Africa, and was sent to me by my friend M. V. A. Malte-Brun,
with a kind letter saying how glad he was that I was vindicated; for
some people had said in England that I had gone nowhere, and Dr. Barth
had done me the honour to map the furthest parts of my exploration as
only a few miles into the interior.
I have not seen Eliva Olanga, called by Serval, Eliva Jonanga. When
at the Falls of Ngouyai, I heard that it was on the other side of the Ashan-
kolo mountains. With regard to latitude, its position would agree with
my map, but my astronomical observations for longitude put it more to the
westward than M. Serval does. I should not trust, perhaps, entirely to my
observations while at Olenda; but at Mayolo I took a great number of
observations of lunar distances, and the longitude of this place may there-
fore be considered as well determincd.
An eliva is not properly a lake, but really a broad extension of a river
between ranges of hills.
Coar. XX. FRENCH EXPLORING EXPEDITIONS. 4195
The second expedition was a like failure; it com-
menced exploring in July instead of waiting until
November. Nevertheless it had a great advantage
over the first; for it had a small steam tender besides
a larger steamer. The expedition went as far as the
Junction of the Okanda and Ngouyai. Unfortunately,
I have never seen any published record of this
interesting exploration, which went a little further
than the first. The exploration of the Okanda will
be a great service rendered to geographical science.
The French having possession of the Gaboon, no
one could do it better than they.
Climate-—Now that I have given a general view
of the configuration of this part of Africa, I will
speak of the climate.
Unfortunately the book in which was recorded all
my observations concerning the amount of rain fall-
ing, the duration of the showers or storms, the heat
of the sun and of the atmosphere, has been lost;
now and then I recorded in my journal a few ob-
servations, so I shall not be able to give to the reader
in this chapter a general résumé of the daily record.
The Ashango mountains seem to be, if I may use
the negro expression, the home of the rain. I doubt
every much whether in any other country in the
world it rains more than in the mountainous regions
of the interior. On the western coast, near the
equator, there are only two seasons, the rainy and
the dry, as described in ‘ Equatorial Africa,’
The rain begins in September and ends in May.
In 1864 a long dry season took place, as I have said
in the course of this narrative, called enomo onguero;
416 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE. Cuap. XX.
this is an exception to the rule. The dry season
lasts from June to August.
As far eastward as Mayolo, or rather, I may say,
as far as the mountains inhabited by the Ishogos, the
seasons keep themselves pretty distinct; but as the
reader may see on perusing my book, the further I
went eastward, the less distinct became the dry season.
The dry season came from the west and the rain
from the east. North of the equator the rain seemed
to come from the north-east. South of the equator
it seemed to come almost direct from the east. The
more I advanced in the Ashango country the higher
the land became, and also the more moist; but there
was no thunder or lightning or heavy rain. At that
time the state of the Eckmiihl river, of the Ngouyai,
and of its affluents showed, as the reader will see,
that they were far below their height of the wet
season. It is a remarkable fact that the higher I
went up these streams, the more they had fallen.
It is clear that it rains more or less in the moun-
tainous regions of the interior throughout the year,
and if it rains there when it is the height of what
is called by them the dry season, what must it be
in their rainy season? The amount of rain must be
far more than in the countries near the sea-shore. I
noticed in my former journey, while among the can- —
nibals (chap. xvi. page 320), the cloudy and rainy
state of the atmosphere in August. ©
The highest fall of rain I noticed before my rain-
gauge disappeared, was 7} in. in twenty-four hours,
and, as far as I can remember, more than 200 inches
fell near the sea-shore during the year.
Caar. XX. THE SEASONS. 417
I have given so lengthy an account of the seasons
in ‘ Equatorial Africa’ that I need not here enlarge
upon this subject.
As I advanced into the interior the prospect be-
came apparent of a continuous rainy season, for the
books of Burton, Speke and Grant, showed me that
I had probably nothing other to expect. The distin-
guished discoverer of Lake Tanganyika says in his
‘Lake Regions of Central Africa, page 287 :—“ As
it will appear, the downfalls of rain begin earlier in
Central Africa than upon the Eastern Coast.”
It has been seen that I made the same observation
in the West. In page 286 of the same volume, this
accurate observer says:—“ The Masika or rains com-
mence, throughout, in Hastern Unyamwezi, the 14th
of November. In the north and western provinces
the wet monsoon begins earlier and lasts longer. At
Msene it precedes Unyanyembe a month; in Uji
two months. Thus the latter countries tek rainy
seasons which last from the middle of September to
the middle of May.”
It will be seen by this, that the rainy season on
the eastern shores of Lake Tanganyika, falls at the
same time as in Western Equatorial Africa, although
the two countries are separated by about twenty de-
grees of longitude.
The lamented Speke says:—‘“ While on the
equator, or rather a trifle north of it, it rains more or
less all the year round. In the dry season it blows
’ go cold, that the heat is not distressing.”
My observations agree with those of Burton in
this, that although we are on the two extreme sides,
418 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE. (Cuar. XX.
east and west, we observe that the rains come from
the interior.
The observations of Speke agree entirely with
mine concerning the weather under the equator. We
must therefore come to the conclusion that the rains’
proceed from some central woody and mountainous
district somewhere between the east and west coasts,
where, no doubt, exist several lakes not yet di
covered.
In reading the account of the ill-fated expedition
of Tuckey on the Congo, we read, page 200 and
201 :—
“ September 1. The rains commence the latter end of
September, and continue to March.
“This day we observed, for the first time, a rise in
the river.
“ September 4. Rain falling.”
‘This sudden rise of the Congo will, no doubt, occur
owing to the rains coming from the northward—that
is, from towards the equator. I must remind the
reader of the cloudy and misty state of the atmo-
sphere, which I have described in the mountains of
the interior ; there were showers, which were becom-
ing heavier every day, in July, and I learned from
the natives that about a month afterwards the heavy
rains would begin. This would account for the rise
of the Congo.
What struck me was, while at Mayolo, the ereat
perturbation of the magnetic needle during torna-
does. As the tornado rose above the horizon there *
seemed to be a dip of the magnetic needle; then, as it
rose higher, the needle took its natural position, and
Cusp. XX. TEMPERATURE. 419
then vibrated sometimes for thirty seconds. This I
observed in the prismatic compass, the only instru-
ment I had.
The temperature of the countries I have ex-
plored, though situated near or under the equator,
is not so high as that of several countries further
removed frosis it, but I must say beforehand that I
am unable to judge of the temperature of the furthest
countries that I visited, for I was not there in the
hot season; and I have no doubt that the heat is
sometimes still greater there than what I have ob-
served, as it was greater at Mdayolo than on the sea-
shore. It has been noticed long ago that the tem-
perature of countries situated under the same degree
of latitude varies considerably. The extent of the
sea, deserts, the prevailing winds, the gulf stream,
the elevation of continents, &c., have a powerful
influence. So Africa, under the equator from west
to east, may have different temperatures, according
to its physical features.
In Western Equatorial Africa, the great moisture
of the country and the vast forests are, no doubt, the
causes of the heat not being so great, the immense
jungle absorbing the heat radiated by the sun. The
hottest months of the year are December, January,
February, March, and April. In May, the tem-
- perature begins to decrease; in June it begins to be
cool, and July and August are the coldest. Then as
the rains commence to make their appearance, the
heat begins to increase.
The same periodical changes of temperature, as far
as I have been able to judge, apply to the coast and
420 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE. Omar. XX.
to the countries of the interior. On the sea-shore
the maximum of heat is from 86° to 88°, very seldom
rising higher. In the interior, at Mayolo, the maxi-
mum, I remember, was 98°; no sea-breeze was felt
there.* | sae
In the interior, the maximum of heat in February,
March and April was at about three o’clock p.m., the
minimum between four and half-past five a.m.; but
after midnight, the thermometer fell very little.
The coldest days experienced on the sea-shore,
as observed by others, have been 64° and 65°; I
myself never saw it lower than 68°. During the
dry season in July and August the maximum is gene-
rally between 75° and 80°. I must here say that
near the shore I took but very little notice of my
observations, besides noting them down; but in the
interior it was different. While in the Ashango
country, the temperature for a few days never rose
* The following is a copy of a portion of my register of temperature at
Mayolo, which was preserved in my Journal. The degrees are of the
centigrade scale.
In the Village of Mdyolo. In the Forest.
A.M, | PM. P.M.
MOOR, ¥)4.00 0
10. | 12 | 1 | 2 |8 1446-6 4 9.70) 1 | 2) et ee
April
oe 55 33 | 334 | 334 ° 29 | 29 F
Sh ee aie 33 | 334 | 334 | -.. 294 see
14 Seal PES ee aie o° 29 30 ee
20 | 333 40 oe 32% a 30 30 30 29%
22 se | oce: AG 333 | 292 30 -. | 30 o- || aOe oe
25 354 aia .. | 804 | 30% ae os | 294
26 34¢ 304 304 | 31 | 31) | 31 | 302 | ae
May
8 ae oe oe [noes ag IP Say VS oe oe ae sie Wa3O 29% | 29%
9 2 33 oe . 32¢ ° = = 29 os ai
10 ee ern ee ee ee 33 27 ee ee ee ee ee ee oe
UG] wet sel we POR sin Cec OL gal! own foohll alae Meare) en an me ee
nS
Cuap. XX. HEAT OF THE SUN’S RAYS. 7 421
higher than 72°, but I saw it as low as 64° at six
oclock a.m. The sky was constantly cloudy. But
it does not follow that, though the heat of the atmo-
sphere is less than in some other countries—the
reasons of which I have given—that the heat of the
sun would be less also; at any rate, I hope that my
few observations may awaken the spirit of inquiry
on the subject, and that simultaneous observations
of the heat of the sun and of the atmosphere may
hereafter be made in different countries.
But it will be necessary first to adopt a uniform
system for ascertaining the power of the sun, and
I will raise my humble voice in favour of the sub-
ject being discussed. Unfortunately, there being no
general system for ascertaining the heat of the sun,
I used the one that appeared to me the most correct;
so I am afraid I cannot compare my observations
with those of others.
I had two thermometers, which I placed at some
distance from each other, sometimes fifty or one
hundred yards apart, sometimes nearer, and I was
surprised at the closeness of their results; a degree
was generally the maximum of difference.
My thermometers were laid on a white board, in
order to avoid the moisture rising from the earth,
which was very great. I began these observations
only in the Ashira country, and was not able to carry
them further, for my sun thermometers were stolen
on my journey between Ashira and Otando-land.
The weather being warmer at Mayolo, I should have
found the thermometer marking higher still than I
a a
422 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE. Caapr. XX.
had at Olenda. The maximum, at Olenda, I found
was 1482, temperature of the air 92° and 94°, The
rays of the sun were of the same power at ten a.m.
and five p.m., varying apes from 118° to 125°;
at noon, ae 130° to 135°.
These observations were taken in February and
March. Towards one o'clock, the maximum of heat
of the sun was attained. So it will be seen that the
sun had passed its maximum at one, while the maxi-
mum of the heat of the atmosphere occurred at three
o'clock. The greatest heat in the shade this year at
Mr. Bishop’s observatory at Twickenham was 89°,
whilst the heat of the sun was 106° only ; this shows
the much less power of the sun in these latitudes
than in Equatorial Africa.
Making these observations in the heat of the sun
were exceedingly exhausting, for I had to go near
my thermometer with only a cap on, so that no
shadow could fall upon it, and I could only carry
them on after intervals of two or three days, for
they generally produced a headache the next day.
I remarked that sometimes a single cloud passing
over the sun, at the time of observation, would send
the thermometer down, in a few seconds, 8° or 10°, and
sometimes more. While at Mayolo, I carried on my
observations, almost at the same time, in an airy
verandah in the village and in the forest. I found
the temperature in the forest not varying more than
1° (cent.) from one to three o’clock, while sometimes
it had increased in an open space in the verandah
to 7° or 8°; the temperature of the forest never
Cuap. XX. COOLNESS OF THE FOREST SHADES, 423
reaching more than 31° centigrade, and then it is
found rather pleasant. And well may the traveller
thank Providence that with such a powerful sun he
can travel under the protection of leafy forests, and
be protected from its rays.
CHAPTER XXL
ETHNOLOGY
Isolation of the tribes in the interior of Western Equatorial Africa—Scan-
tiness of the population—Divisions of tribes and clans—Patriarchal
form of Government—Comparison of customs between Western Equa-
torial tribes and Eastern—Laws of inheritance—Cannibalism—Migra-
tions always towards the West—Decrease of population—Its Causes—
The African race doomed to extinction.
Now I must give a general outline of the numerous
tribes of men that inhabit this vast jungle.
In these mountainous recesses man is what we
may call primitive; he is surrounded by dense
forests; no trading caravan from the east or from
the west, from the north or from the south, has pene-
trated to him; he has been shut up from the world
around him, and in the course of his slow migration
he has taken the place of others who had disappeared
before him. The individuals who leave the interior
country for the sea-shore never come back, to tell
their countrymen of the white man or of the sea.
The path is closed to them, there is a gulf between
the sea and the interior, et not between the interior ©
and the seas”
What struck me in travelling through this great
wooded wilderness was the scantiness of the popula-
tion, and the great number of tribes speaking differ-
ent languages and dialects. Tribes bearing different
names considering themselves different nations, though
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speaking the same language, and tribes speaking the
same language divided from each other by intervening
tribes speaking another language. These tribes were
divided into a great number of clans, each clan inde-
- pendent of the others, and often at war with one or
other of them; in some tribes villages of the same
‘clan were at war with each other.
Part of one tribe in some cases have no knowledge
whatever of the other part; the further I went
towards the east the less the people travelled, the
less they knew of what surrounded them, for they.
had no trade to incite them to travel. I was never-
theless struck by the great affinities these tribes pre-
sented to each other. The patriarchal form of govern-
ment was the only one known; each village had its
chief, and further in the interior the villages seemed
to be governed by elders, each elder, with his people,
having a separate portion of the village to them-
selves. There was in each clan the ifoumou, foumou,
or acknowledged head of the clan (2fowmou meaning
the “source,” the “father ”’).
I have never been able to obtain from the natives
a knowledge concerning the splitting of their tribes
into clans: they seemed not to know how it hap-
pened, but the formation of new clans does not take
place now among them.
Kings never obtain power over large tracts of
country, as we see in Hastern Africa; the house
of a chief or elder is not better than. those of his
neighbours.
The despotic form of government is unknown;
no one can be put to death at the will of the chief,
29
426 _s ETHNOLOGY. (Cente ae
and a council of elders is necessary before one is put
to death. In such cases the palavers are long, and
there must be a good majority for the sentence to be
carried out. The intricacies of the law are unknown
tothem. A tooth for a tooth is their maxim. Wound-
ing and killing by accident are not recognised as
extenuating circumstances. If any one, by accident,
kills another, by the falling of a tree which he
cuts down being the cause of the person’s death,
he is killed. Ifa gun goes off by mishap and kills
any one, the man who held the gun is put to death.
According to their theory, the person causing such
accident has an aniemba (witchcraft), and must be
got rid of. But, though no one has a right to put
to death any free man (for every one may kill his
own slaves), woe to the man or woman who has in-:
curred the displeasure or hatred of the head of the
family, for the latter is sure to bring, at some future
time, some witchcraft palaver, and then oblige him or
her to drink the much-dreaded mboundou, or, by his
influence, excite the superstitious fears of his people,
and get rid of them, either by selling them into
slavery, or by having them killed. Very few cases
occur in which the father of the family is made to
drink the mboundou, for he may compel any of his
people to drink it. Every one is under the protec-
tion of some one. If, by death, a negro is suddenly
left alone, he runs great risk of being sold into
slavery. Pretexts for such a deed are not found
wanting. Every one must have an elder to speak
his palavers for him, hence the young and the friend-
less cling to the elder, who is like a father to them
Cap, XXI. COMPARISON OF CUSTOMS. 427
all; thus they do not become scatiered, and the more
people an elder has, the more potent his voice be-
comes in the councils of the village; besides, any free
man, by a singular custom, called bola banda, which
consists in placing the hands on the head of an elder,
can place himself under the protection of the patri-
arch who is thus chosen, and henceforward become
one of his people. Of course, the man under whose
protection another places himself belongs to a different
clan. South of the equator the tribes were milder
than those I had seen in my former journey north
of the equator. I found no tribes where the villages
were continually fighting with each other, as among
the Bakalai, Shekiani, Mbondemos, Mbisho, and the
Fans. The law of the strongest did not prevail;
no raid for the sake of plunder was committed by
one village upon another; one of the reasons being
that no village was strong enough to do so—hesides,
the people of neighbouring villages intermarry much
with each other, for polygamy, with its many draw-
backs, had in some respects its advantages. -
Tribes and clans intermarry with each other, and
this brings about a friendly feeling among the people.
People of the same clan cannot marry with each
other. The least consanguinity is considered an
abomination ; nevertheless, the nephew has not the
‘slightest objection to take his uncle’s wives, and, as
among the Bakalai, the son to take his father’ S wives,
except his own mother.
The reader will at once see the striking difference
there is between the tribes of East Africa and those
which I have visited. When we read Burton, Speke,
4
498 | ETHNOLOGY. * Cuap, XXI.
Grant, and Livingstone, we see that in the Hast the
chiefs are powerful, often cruel, putting their subjects
to death; villages of neighbouring tribes are con-
tinually sacked, the cattle plundered, and the people
killed or dartied into slavery. Property seems to be
secure nowhere.
Polygamy and slavery exist erste among
the tribes I have visited; the wealth of a man con-
sisting first of wives, next of slaves;. the slaves
always belonging to a different tribe from that of
their owner.
Their religion, if it may be called so, is the same
in all tribes. They all believe in the power of their —
gods (idols), in charms, fetiches or mondahs, and in
evil and good spirits. Mahommedanism has not
penetrated into this vast Jungle. They all believe in
witchcraft—which I think is more prevalent in the
West than in the East—causing an untold amount of
slaughter. Travellers in the Hast have not noticed
it as prevailing so much as I have done. They
behold with superstitious fear the appearance of the
new moon. im
Their laws of inheritance are alike, except among
the Bakalai. |
The Western tribes believe in the alumbi, a custom
which Eastern travellers have not described, but they
speak of chalk, and of little houses containing jaws
or bones of men.
The Western custom of the djembai (see ‘ Hquatorial
Africa’), is known under another name in the Hast.
The doctors of both Hast and West have the same
powers and functions, and are called by nearly the
Cuar. XXI. LAWS OF INHERITANCE. 429
same name, in both regions—Ouganga, Uganga,
Mganga, or Nganga.
The law of inheritance among these Western tribes
is, that the next brother inherits the wealth of the
eldest (women, slaves, &c.), but that if the youngest
dies the eldest inherits his property, and if there are
no brothers, that the nephew inherits it. 'The head-
ship of the clan or family is hereditary, following the |
same law as that of the inheritance of property. In
the case of all the brothers having died, the eldest
son of the eldest sister inherits, and it goes on thus
until the branch is extinguished, for all clans are
considered as descended from the female side. —
- What struck me also was that at each step occa
sioned by death the heir changes his name. The
chief of the Abouya clan of the Commi was formerly
called Oganda, then his next brother was called Quen-
gueza, and another Kombé-Niavi, names which my ~
friend Quengueza has successively borne, being now
called Oganda, and no one would dare to call him
by the name of Quengueza. The title is generally
assumed after the bola ivoga has taken place. |
_ On my second journey, Obindji, the Bakalai chief,
was called Ratenou, having taken the name of his
-father—the Bakalai, as far as I know, being the only
tribe among which the son inherits his father’s pro-
perty.
The only custom I have not found prevalent among
them all was cannibalism, the traces of which and
records of which I have not found amongst any of the
tribes inhabiting south of the equator which I have
visited. In my former work on Equatorial Africa,
430 ETHNOLOGY. : Cuap. XXI.
after the many inquiries I made among the Fans of
the interior, I learned that they and the people in the
north-east direction were the only ones who ate human
flesh, and that they did not know where cannibalism
stopped. . Hence I mentioned that cannibalism had
migrated from north-east to south-west, and not from
south to north; my last journey has entirely demon-
strated to me the truth of that hypothesis; and it
shows how little they travelled, that no one has ever
heard of the Fans in the Southern country I have
visited.
The fables of all the tribes were nearly alike, and
it is wonderful how they are handed down from
generation to generation.
Their languages, though not the same, have great
affinities to one another, but they seem to have been
derived from two distinct sources, namely from tribes
of the north and north-east, and from tribes of the
south-east and east. On this subject I must refer the
reader to the Comparative Vocabulary given in the
Appendix (III.) to this volume.
The question naturally arises, how such a state of
political disintegration as I have described has taken
place.
We must come to the conclusion that Africa has
not escaped many political convulsions followed by
great wars and migrations; that the same natural
laws which govern our race have prevailed in Africa,
and that migration has taken place from east to west.
I could learn nothing from them on these subjects,
the past being a dark sea of which they knew nothing
and about which they did not care. Some of their
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| Coap. XXI. MIGRATION TOWARDS THE WEST. 431
legends seem to imply that there had been great
wars; old men of the Commi tribe even remember
when their clans were continually at war with each
_ other.
The migration of the tribes, as I have already
observed, seems to have followed the same laws as
migrations among ourselves; I did not meet with a
single tribe or clan who said they came from the
west ; they all pointed towards the east as the place
they came from.
The migration of the Fans (people of which I have
given an account in ‘ Equatorial Africa’) has suddenly
burst westward, and I believe that there has never
been a migration with which we are acquainted in
Western Africa, which has made so quick a descent
on the sea-board. Fifteen or twenty years ago the
Fans were only heard of by the sea-shore tribes, a
few villages were said to be found in the mountains
at the head water of the Gaboon; now the people
have come down from their mountains and have
settled everywhere on the banks of the Gaboon;
their villages are numerous between the Moonda and
the Gaboon, and are distant only a few miles from
the sea; indeed, the Fans are now seen often among
the settlements of the traders, I give a represent-
_ ation of a Fan woman, from a French photograph,
which will give the reader a fair idea of a cannibal
belle. Ihave also given a sketch of a group of Fan
warriors, taken from a French photograph.
These warlike people have swept everything before
them. The Bakalai and Shekiani villages have not
been able to withstand their onset; and now Bakalai
A392 ETHNOLOGY. Cuap. XXI.
Shekiani and Fan villages are intermingled with each
other and often fighting with each other, for these
three tribes are the most warlike in this part of Africa.
The Bakalai and Shekiani are decreasing very fast,
and the Fans in the course of time will take their
- place, and also that of the Mpongwé.
What the cause may be of the sudden migration of
these cannibals, I have not been able to discover.
The migration of the Fans towards the western
board is but a repetition. of the former migrations of
other tribes, the remnants of which we now see on or
near the sea-shore.
From the Gaboon to Cape St. Catherine the tribes
bearing different names, and the tribes inhabiting the
Ogobai as far as the Okanda, speak the same lan-
guage, with the exception of the Aviia, who are said to
speak the same language as the Loango people down
the coast. The Mpongwé, Oroungou and Commi
were once interior tribes. |
Quengueza pointed out to me the place where the
people of Goumbi had their village,.and where he
lived when a young man; it was about forty miles
higher up the stream. The Abogo clan of the Commi
of the Fernand Vaz supply the hereditary chief of
the sea-coast tribe, on account of their having settled
there first.
The Bakalai sae ee were strangers on the bare
of the River Ovenga, and it is only of late years (about
twenty years) that they have settled there by permis-
sion of the predecessor of Quengueza. The Bakalai —
have only of late migrated from the north to the Ashan- -
kolo and hence to the banks of the Ovenga; they have
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Coap. XXI. MIGRATION TOWARDS THE WEST. 433
also migrated to the banks of the Ngouyai, and have
scattered themselves further east than the Ovigui
river.
Old Remandji, the king of the Apingi, whom I
visited in my first journey, remembered well the time
when he could go with the Apingi to the Anenga
tribe. Since then the road has been stopped, the
Bakalai having made their appearance on the way
there.
The Shekiani have come and settled themselves
on the sea-shore from inland, between the Mpongwé
and Cape Lopez people. Three Ishogo villages have
settled among the Apono, about two years before
my arrival; Ishogo and Ashango live in one village,
- and Ashango and Njavi do the same in another, the
Njavi having migrated towards the west. All these
are instances of what I advance, namely, that the
tribes are always moving, and that the movement ‘is
towards the west.
There are tribes that have remained a long time at
the same place, such as the Ashira Ngozai, on account
_ of the beautiful country in which they live : but lately
many have expressed the desire to come and settle on
the banks of the Ovenga, and would do so if it were
not for the warlike Bakalai, who, since the plague,
have dwindled down, and will disappear soon unless
strengthened by migration from the Bakalai of the
north, who may be driven southward by the can-
nibals.
The reader will be able at once to see, by the
description I have just given, how such political dis-
integration has taken place, and how people speaking
]
434 | ETHNOLOGY. Caap, XX
the same language have in the course of time been
separated from one another, and finally come to con-
sider themselves as different nations. We must con-
clude that Africa has never been very thickly inha-
bited; hence the villages on migrating have settled
where they chose.
I have been struck with the steady decrease of the
population, even during the short time I have been
in Africa, on the coast and in the interior ; but before
I account for it, let me raise my voice in defence of
the white man, who is accused of being the cause of it.
Wherever he settles the aborigines are said to dis-
appear. I admit that such is the case ; but the decrease
of the population had: already taken place before the
white man came, the white man noticed it but could
not stop it. Populous tribes whom I saw for a
second time, and who had seen no white man and
his fiery water, have decreased, and this decrease
took place before the terrible plague that desolated -
the land had made its appearance. The negroes
themselves acknowledge the decrease. Clans, in the
lifetime of old men, have entirely disappeared; in
others, only a few individuals remain.
Where the Slave Trade exists the population must —
certainly decrease in a greater ratio; and where the
fiery water is sold to the natives in great quantity,
it must also affect their health. Happily the Slave
Trade will never flourish as it did in times past, and
it may be said now to be almost entirely done away
with. In the country of my late exploration, the
only people who continue the traffic in slaves are
negro agents, from the two Portuguese islands St.
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Cuap. XXI. CAUSES OF DECREASE OF POPULATION. 435
Thomas and Prince’s, who purchase people for their
masters, who are also negroes. They cross to and
from the mainland in small canoes, and thus avoid
the cruisers.
The decrease of the African population is owing to
several causes :—The Slave Trade, polygamy, barren-
ness of women, death among children, plagues, and
witchcraft; the latter taking away more lives than
any Slave Trade ever did. The negro does not seem
to diminish only in the region I have visited; but in
every other part of Africa, travellers, who after the
lapse of a few years have returned a second time in
the same country, have noticed a decrease of popula-
tion. .
Tuckey, in exploring the Congo, noticed it, and
expressed his astonishment at seeing the country so
little inhabited, compared to what he expected from
the accounts he had read of that river in the works
of the Catholic missionaries.
The women of the interior are prolific, and in de-
spite of it shall we assume that the negro race has
run its course, and that in due course of time it will
disappear, like many races of mankind have done
before him? The Southern States of America were,
I believe, the only country in which the ne is
known to have increased.
The reader who has followed me through the
volume of my former exploration and the present
book, will have been able to gather an idea of the
general character and disposition of the negro of this
part of Africa, as he now stands. I have made re-
searches to ascertain if his race had formerly left
436 ETHNOLOGY. Crap, SKE
remains, showing that he had once attained a tole-
rably high state of civilization; my researches have
proved vain, I have found no vestige whatever of
ancient civilization. Other travellers in different
parts of Africa have not been more successful than
I have.
How they came to invent looms to work their grass
cloth, no one could tell. Their loom has been used
from generation to generation without its being im-
proved. To my question— Who taught them. to
smelt and work iron?” their answer was that as long
ago as they knew, the people had worked in the same
way. I think everything tends to show that the
negro is of great antiquity, and has always remained
stationary. The working of iron, considering the
very primitive way they work it, and how easy it is
to find the ore, must have been known to them from
the remotest time, and to them the age of stone and
bronze must have been unknown.
As to his future capabilities, I think extreme views —
have prevailed among us. Some hold the opinion
that the negro will never rise higher than he is;
others think that he is capable of reaching the highest
state of civilization. for my own part, I do not
agree with either of these opinions.
I believe that the negro may become a more
useful member of mankind than he is at present, that
he may be raised to a higher standard; but that, if
left to himself, he will soon fall back into bar-
barism, for we have no example to the contrary. In
his own country the efforts of the missionaries. for
hundreds of years have had no effect ; the missionary
Coar. XXJI. DESTINY OF THE AFRICAN RACE. 437
‘goes away and the people relapse into barbarism.
Though a people may be taught the arts and sciences
known by more gifted nations, unless they have the
power of progression in themselves, they must in-
evitably relapse in the course of time into their
former state.
Of all the uncivilized races of men, the negro has
been found to be the most tractable and the most
docile, and he possesses excellent qualities that com-
pensate in great measure for his bad ones. We
ought therefore to be kind to him and try to elevaté
him. |
That he will disappear in time from his land I have
very little doubt; and that he will follow in the course
of time the inferior races who have preceded him
So let us write his history.
APPENDIX L
eee eet
Descriptions of Three Skulls of Western Equatorial Africans—Fan, Ashira,
and Fernand Vaz— with some Admeasurements of the rest of the
Collection of Skulls, transmitted to the British Museum from the
Fernand Vaz, by P. B. Du Cuariiv. By Professor OwEn, F.R.S., &c.
THE pains and skill which M: Du Chaillu has
devoted, under most difficult and trying circum-
stances, to obtain from the scenes of his explora-
tions in Western Equatorial Africa materials for the
advancement of natural history, have earned for him
the respect and gratitude of every genuine sen
and student of a science for its own sake.
Amongst those specimens which he succeeded in
sending down to the coast for embarkation, before his
furthest expedition into the interior, which ended,
unfortunately for geography, so disastrously, was a
collection of upwards of one hundred skulls of natives
of Western Equatorial Africa, to which class of objects
I had particularly requested his attention before his
departure from England on his second journey to the
-gorilla-country.
Of this collection, the chief part of which is now
in the British Museum, I have taken admeasure-
ments of ninety-three skulls, four of the chief of
these admeasurements being given in a subjoined
table. Of these skulls I have also profile views and
440 SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS. App. I.
outlines of the greatest horizontal circumference of
the cranium; and from the monograph in prepara- ~
tion I have selected three specimens for more par-
ticular description, from photographs of which the
accompanying woodcuts have been taken.
Figures 1, 2, and 3 are of the skull (No. 24) of a
male native & Fernand Vaz between twenty and
thirty years of age.
The cranium is narrow, and so is proportionally
long; the occiput is convex or hemispheroid; the
forehead low and narrow; the parietal bosses scarcely
marked ; the frontal sinuses are slightly protuberant,
the right more so than the left. Viewing, with one
eye, the upper surface of the cranium, held at arm’s —
length, with the foremost part of the face just hidden
by the frontal or supraciliary border of the cranium,
the outer border of the hind half of the zygomata is
visible. Viewed from the base, as in fig. 3, the in-
tervals between the arches and the alisphenoid walls
of the cranium appear of the greater width commonly
characterizing the skulls of low races as compared
with more advanced and bigger-brained people.
The usual sutures of the adult are present, toge-
ther with the outer half of that between the ex- and
super-occipital (on the outside of the skull); the
frontal suture is obliterated, as in most adult skulls.
The lambdoid, or occipito-parietal suture, is moderately
broad and crenulate, with a small “wormian” ossicle
on the left side. The mastoid suture is narrow and
crenate where it joins the ex-occipital, but be-
comes a linear “harmonia” as it extends to the
jugular foramen. The masto-parietal is crenate but
App, I. MALE NATIVE OF FERNAND VAZ. 441
Y 4 (ll 1
SL:
SKULL, Matn—Ferrnanp Vaz. '
: : 1. Side View. 2, Front View. 3. Base View.
30
449 SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS. - App, i
narrow, and sinks anteriorly into a post-squamosal
pit. The sagittal suture is crenulate, but narrower
than the lambdoid, where it leaves that suture; it
then becomes crenate,* again crenulate, but contracts
to a wavy linear condition as it approaches the co-
ronal. This is a minutely wavy line for about an
inch and a half from the sagittal, then becomes finely
crenulate and broader until about an inch from the
alisphenoid, where it is crenate, and then again linear
and wavy. A mere point of the upper and hinder
angle of the alisphenoid joins the parietal, conse-
quently there is no “ spheno-parietal” suture. The
spheno-frontal suture—the left ten lines, the right
eleven lines in length—is linear, almost straight,
sightly squamous. The squamo-parietal suture is,
as usual, squamous; the squamo-sphenoid is a linear
harmonia, such also is the spheno-malar suture. The
fronto-malar is continued forward from the spheno-
frontal suture. The “upper curved ridge” of the
super-occipital is well defined, but without a median
occipital prominence; the more feeble lower curved
ridge terminates above the persistent parts of the
super-ex-occipital sutures. The par-occipital ridges
are moderately developed. The supra-mastoid ridges fF
are well defined through the depth of the supra-mas-
toid groove running from the supra-mastoid or post-
* By “crenate” I mean where the waves, or angles, or “denticulations” of
the sutural margin do not send off secondary waves or angles; in which
case I use the term “crenulate.” The breadth of the suture is the extent
across which the waves or angles interlock.
+ ‘Descriptive Catalogue of the Osteological Series, Museum, Royal
College of Surgeons,’ 4to., 1853, p. 825, et seg. Syn: “backward exten-—
sion of the posterior root of the zygomatic process” in anthropotomy ;
Sharpey’s ‘ Quain’s Anatomy,’ ed. 1864, vol..i., p. 36.
a
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:
}
App. I. MALE NATIVE OF FERNAND VAZ. 443
squamosal fossa towards the meatus auditorius ex-
ternus. Above this the upper and outer. border of
the tympanic projects as a “super-auditory ridge.”
Stylohyals, one inch in length, are anchylozed to the
petrosal. The frontal is slightly protuberant above
the spheno-frontal suture, between it and the begin-
ning or fore-part of the temporal ridge.
The nasals are short, narrow, concave lengthwise,
convex transversely, but with little prominence.
The malars slope outward to their lower margin,
near which they are tuberous lengthwise. The an-
terior alveolar part of the upper jaw slopes forward,
asin fig. 1. The contour of the bony palate (fig. 3),
is that of a full ellipse. The molars (m 1, m 2) are
smaller than in Australians.
The angle of the mandible is well-marked; the
ascending ramus is subquadrate; the incisive alveoli
bend a little forward to their outlets; a mere rough-
_ness takes the place of the “spine mentales,” on the
inner or back part of the symphysis.
The three true molars are present in each side of
the lower jaw; those of the left side, especially the
first and second, are more worn than those of the
right; the third is on the grinding level on the left
side, but has risen only half toward it on the right
side. The age of the individual, as at the prime of
life, may be inferred from this state of dentition ; it
is also plain that the left side, or half, of the jaw had
chiefly been used in mastication. The size of the
three molars is inferior to that in Australian jaws,
but superior to that in most Europeans.
The cranium of this skull, in comparison with that
444 SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS. App. I,
of an European of similar general proportions, as to
length and breadth, shows more of the elliptical, less
of the oval, character of horizontal contour; the
Kuropean skull being wider, as usual, at the parietal
bosses. The larger brain of the European has been —
accompanied also with greater height and breadth
and forward convexity of the forehead, more pro-
tuberant sides of the cranium below the temporal
ridge, and a nearer approach to the horizontal plane
of the part of the occiput between the great foramen -
and the upper curved ridge. The more produced
and longer nasals, the less produced and more vertical
incisive alveoli, the less prominent malars, also dis-’
tinguish the skull compared, as they do the majority
of modern European skulls, from those of Africans.
The next skull which I have selected for the pho-
tographer is that (No. 57) of a male of the Fan, or
cannibal race of Western Equatorial Africa, figs.
4, 5, and 6. It has belonged to a larger and
more powerful individual than the former skull.
The forehead rises higher, the parietal protuberances
are more prominent, as is the sagittal region from
which the parietals more decidedly slope towards the
temporal ridges. The lambdoid, mast-occipital, masto-
parietal, squamous, squamo-sphenoid, spheno-frontal,
and spheno-malar sutures remain; the sagittal,
coronal and frontal, are obliterated; the horizonta.
contour of the cranium is more ova than in the
average European skull compared with the one from
H ernand Vaz, owing to the more lateral contraction — q
of the forehead in the Fan.
The super-occipital is pretty regularly convex, as
App, J. MALE OF THE FAN TRIBE. 445
Fig. 6.
SKULL, Mate—F an,
4, Front View. 5. Side View. 6. Base View.
446 SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS. App, I.
in the former skull; the surface—chiefly ex-occipital—
extending from the foramen magnum to the occipital
protuberance, as in the former skull, forms with the
plane of that foramen a less open angle than in most
Huropean skulls; the vertical extent of brain there
is less, and the occipital surface in question is not
pushed down so nearly to the level of the plane of
the foramen magnum. ‘The occipital protuberance is
stronger in the present skull than in the former, but
the upper curved ridge extended from it sooner sub-
sides, and the lower curved line igs less marked.
The foramen magnum is rather smaller; the right
par-occipital tuber is more produced. The mastoid
processes are larger; the supra-mastoid ridge is more
curved, and extended upwards; there is no post-
squamosal pit; the super-auditory ridges* are more
obtuse than in figs. 1—3.
The lambdoid suture is feebly and irregularly ere-
nate along its upper or medial half, and becomes
crenulate at the lower half, resuming a linear simpli-
city near its junction with the mastoid. A forward
extension of the fore and upper angle of the squa-
mosal shows plainly that it divided the part of the
alisphenoid, which it overlies, from the parietal, on
both sides of the head, and the spheno-frontal suture
is shorter than in No. 24. The frontal sinuses make
no outward prominence, and the glabella is continued
by a gentle concave curve into the nasal part of the
skull’s profile. The nasals are broader, shorter, and
less prominent than in No. 24. The malars are
* These are seldom wanting, and are not to be confounded with the
supra-mastoid ridges.
SS ai
ee ee ee eee
So
os ~
App. I. MALE OF THE FAN TRIBE. 447
deeper, more uniformly convex, and have not the
lower border turned outward. The forward direction
of the upper incisive alveoli is the same in degree as
in No. 24, but they are rather longer. The bony
palate is more contracted anteriorly. The external
pterygoid plates are broader, shorter, aud more everted
than in No, 24. The cranial walls are thicker and
denser; they are 4% lines thick in the parietal and
frontal bones, along a section taken half an inch from
the medial line of the calvarium; the parietal is a
little thinner at the boss, and thins as it descends;
but near the squamosal suture it retains a thickness
of three lines. The diploé is scanty and feebly
marked, and owing to the general density of the
cranial walls the weight of the skull is considerable,
being, without the lower jaw, 2 lbs. 22 oz. avoird.
The molars, as in No. 24, are intermediate in size
between those of Australians and the generality of
those of Europeans.
The third skull (No. 96, figs. 7, 8, and 9) is of an
aged female, also of the Fan tribe, retaining only
the two canines and one molar of the left side of the
upper jaw, and with an edentulous mandible of a
peculiar form, combining, with the usual character-
istics of that condition in aged individuals, an upward
production of the fore-part, through the “stimulus
of necessity” of a biting proximity of the lower to
the upper incisive alveoli between the retained upper
canines, as shown in fig. 7. The atveoli of the lost
molars are absorbed in both jaws, but those of the
lost incisors, though obliterated, have been main-
tained in much of their pristine length, and have
App. T,
Base View
_9.
8.
AGED FremaLE—FAN TRIBE.
Side View.
SKULL
4%. Front View.
’
SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS.
448
App. I. AGED FEMALE OF THE FAN TRIBE. 449
become bevelled off to an edge, after the fashion of
the scalpriform incisors of Rodents.
The cranium, though smaller, resembles in general
form and proportions that of the male Fan. The
usual sutures, however, remain.
The lambdoid is narrow, and the crenation hardly
grows to crenulation toward the lower and outer
end of the suture, where a small “wormian” is
wedged between the mastoid and super-occipita! on
the left side. The occipital condyles are less convex,
more worn down, than in the male skulls, as if from
the practice of carrying weight on the head. The
_ lower curved ridge of the occiput is well defined, and
the surface between it and the foramen magnum
shows the usual characters of muscular attachment,
but there is neither an upper curved ridge nor occi-
pital spine, and the surface above the lower ridge is
convex, and smooth like the rest of the outer part of
the super-occipital. The mastoid processes are small ;
the supra-mastoid ridges low and smooth; the super-
auditory ridges very short. The parietal protuber-
ances are as little defined as in No. 24. The sagittal
suture is “crenate;” the coronal suture is linear at
both ends, crenulate but narrow at the mid-part.
The apex of each alisphenoid joins the parietal;
the extent of the spheno-parietal suture not exceed-
‘ing three lines, that of the spheno-frontal suture is
ten lines. The malars are not protuberant; on the
contrary, the outer surface of each is concave—a rare
WATICLY | |
The deficiency of masticating machinery has pre-
* This character is less truly shown in fig. 7 than in fig. 8,
450 SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS. App. I,
vailed long enough to affect the base of the zygo-
matic process; the chief part of the articular surface
for the mandible is formed by the anterior, shght
convexity (eminentia articularis), the smaller depres-
sion behind being unusually shallow. This approach
to the character of the same articular surface in
“edentate”” mammals is not without interest.
The bony palate is oblong and subquadrate: it is
shallow, through absorption of its lateral walls: its
surface is more than usually hard and irregular,
through pressure against it, probably by tongue and
mandible, of unchewed alimentary subtances, and the
palato-maxillary and intermaxillary * sutures remain :
the maxillo-premaxillary suture is obliterated on the
palate as elsewhere. ‘The internasal suture is partly
obliterated at its upper half: the naso-maxillary
sutures remain; both are linear.
The frontal sinuses are slightly prominent, and are
accordingly more marked, in this old negress’s skull
(fie. 8) than in the strong man’s of the warlike and
cannibal tribe of Fans (fig. 5).
The mandible shows strikingly the senile characters
due to absorption of alveoli; the forward slope of { |
the rami from the condyles; the reduction of the
coronoid processes to a slender pointed form. ‘The
anterior outlets of the dental canals open upon the
fore part of the broad shallow superior border of the
horizontal ramus, which is left by the absorption
of the sockets: anterior to each orifice the border
shows a slight protuberance ofivory hardness against
which the obtusely worn crowns of the upper canines
* The median palatal suture between the two maxillaries is here meant,
ee 4
App. I. DIMENSIONS. 451
had their appulse. The trenchant, or transversely
wedge-like, growth of the socketless incisive border
of the mandible, rising between the upper canines,
when the mouth is shut, has been already noticed as
the peculiar feature of the present mandible.
MEASUREMENTS OF THE THREE SKULLS.
4 ‘ in. lines.} in. lines.| in. Hines.
Horizontal circumference of cranium... ... ... ».|19 4/22 0/18 8
From one auditory meatus to the other over vertex... | 12 8/|13 0/12 2
hau diameter of cranium, outside ... °..: .. | 7° 3 | 7 6) 6 Tt
Greatest transverse diameter, outside pea eseeiee a Ol) Sols, Och, Oak ee
From anterior edge of foramen magnum to that 4 Pa Se Ow age er ba
the premaxillary alveolar border ... mea
Sagan i ee ae sa thes to | Eee ey her Ce ea
Length of skull, from premaxillary aes border ee Pe cer eee Whee 7
line dropped from hindmost part of occiput ..
Breadth of lower jaw, through angles 3 10 a, raves
Longitudinal diameter of cranium, inside... ... aes 6 Pena no
Transverse diameter of cranium, inside ... TO oS - Op eas
Height of cranium, inside ... ... w+ Se too” ob ahaa aD
' Length of foramen magnum... ... ... os 1 43) 1 43] 1 4
Breadth of foramen magnum Cake wbel | Seat omer t iaitms meme oe Me QUE Rae
ee of alisphenoid ina oe line from pease 4 til eg ae
see ae eer Se we Re asain) see
Breadth of ditersiogotlt upper ee Ruan icaie, (iamep tan Ure be ioe Our Ser Une eae
Breadth across zygomatic arches ww we vee ee | 5 3} 4 10) 4 7
Transverse diameter of orbit =... wee eee wee Ph aS Se he Tas
Vertical diameter of orbit ... 16. see eee one Ty, oe be eens Es ee
eae art epet yas) Soot sas ees Nase! wuss ‘seo abet OF) EE OOo TE be On US
Length of nasal bones, in a straightline... ... ../| 0 10; 0 9 | O 10
Transverse diameter, middle Or s38)) Os e419 08 ce
Transverse diameter, lower portion Te) Ne Oe oar OS ar ie Gera
Height of the eter of the lower jaw, Sgt, 1 3 on
of teeth es Saise nae raw dad
App. I.
452
SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS.
The following are three of the dimensions of ninety-
three skulls from Fernand Vaz and the Interior :
Oe eee ee
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Bg lBroMmMmnmoMWonwannnnmMoe ocnomenanmonnonan ©
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Seg 15
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3 min es
gg|ero ear Baocanranmorannmamoansesavanaaca
be 1S .
Ag | aoe Oe Oe Oe eS ee Or he ee See ee
. IN
os SOSOorROHHERSOCORKR SCH SOCMANAHOCNSCHMHMAMOORAXDE ANOS
gor A 5
Salswm orn orn rrornrrrnnnnnnrnnonrrnnonrrnwonwoor
3 HO OPYrP DOD OeAMANDMDHAMD Ue ADOAANwMHNMDOORAODoCAHAN wD HH 0 ©
ay oo C2 02 0 OO OD HOH HOH HH HHH H 1D 10 190 10 190 10 HMMM DCoeOH GH OO
neg EC TOOAAMRDOHMSRSDSOAAMRMDODOHDSOSADASDA
ges |
Bed AP TCMDDHWDANWDOWDAErFHADMDAANDEFHAADAHAAWDAAANDNAKrKAHOANH RH ©
C20 | An AR FB tn Ss a HS ASB SF SS Se a ee Se Se oe ee SS Se
A gl eo oOMmMmnmMtiocDCOMMODOCHHNOMMNHOCNMANASOCMHOHAMON
Sa 814 ;
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ong | &,
& | gO 29 19 © 19 16 19 19 1H 16 16 19 16 16 19 1 1 19 1 1 1 1 1H 1H 1H 1 OO
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Bs |
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eee eee on et Ss ke iy Baths 7 Sap So So ea ol cs Ee Eee Sie
| COOoNHOSOSCSCSCOCHROBEROHOMDODSCC OH SOT Oo MOOS OOM
tro | Lo SP A | ei ri re | =
Sal
=e) :
BS A|/ar rn Oonrrnrnnnrnrnwnnnrrnwnrornonrrorwnwnrnw wo wo
Fe a ae ee ae SN) ee ee ee Se pee See
CS ma NM HIHOOErF DAA CANNAH MO OP AAORDROANMHHMD OR DADOCATHANN®
a SS eS rere retest GL GNE GN) GN kG CN GN Gd, (GUN GS) ares epics)
App. I. DIMENSIONS. 453
Length Length | Breadth | Circum- Length Length | Breadth | Circum-
of of of ference of | No. of of of / ference of
Skull Cranium. | Cranium. | Cranium. | Skull. Cranium. p, Cranini. | Cranium.
zz in. lines. Ae Tinea in. lines.| in. lines. yar lines.| in. lines.| in. i in. lines.
meen) Gi. Gt}. D 18: Ga 81s Syne | ooo On fon G19. O
eng | O46 |. V7. 9 SS he Oe. Oe ua seo.
Pemorer (Or oO 8 | AD 4 OM 8S |) oO ee Olean. ©
wreeoey Or S18 Ss SE Se Orr Gey Gene mom ae: 4. 9
ee ry OP SOLS I) OU-Ba. 1, OU GAL ea Os 3
Seon. 2-4 S) CoP ld. 1G SGc hy Fe dO | ‘oe 0 | Sy, Oc eeoo
mee 7 OF Se 8) 18. 9 87) 8. 8 | ye mers eae te
Behe vo) oO | 29 ON SS) SoZ bh PhO i eal mee
Meera oF ao» OFFS, ON 8989 So 2 PO) a ho ioe
Cee ee St o* GED.» (Gr. 90 2% LON 6 OL) Be OY a 6
eer Geo oo GIs 1OT Oba WW AO Ge 6 oS. Stas. S
CeO Ga Ors Set Ol Tee Or OR ie a TO Fe OO BG EEE sO
Pe Oe OO Sal ee ew Ge i Be a BL | Oddie Ss
SO ho Ol On SR LBs 6
Making allowance for difference of sex—the skulls
not exceeding seven inches eight lines in length,
being most of them plainly female—the range of
diversity is here much less than would be found in
the same number of Huropean skulls from a locality
of the same extent as the ground from which M. Du
Chaillu gathered the above collection.
And this comparative conformity appears to de-
pend on a corresponding uniformity in the manner
of life, in the fewer wants, the less diversified pur-
suits, of the Equatorial Africans. Their food, the
mode of obtaining it, the bodily actions, muscular
exertions, and mental efforts stimulating and govern-
ing such acts, vary comparatively little in the people
visited by M. Du Chaillu. The cannibal habits of
the Fans offer the main difference, and with them
454. SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS, App. I.
are associated the larger cranial dimensions, as a
general rule. But, in all, the prevalent low social
status, the concomitant sameness, and contracted
range, of ideas—the comparatively limited variety
in the whole series of living phenomena, from child-
hood to old age, of human communities of the grade
of the Ashiras and Fans—govern the conformity of
their low cranial organisation.
In my work on the Archetype skeleton I note,
among other characters of the general homology of
bones of the human head, the degrees of variability
to which the several vertebral elements were respec-
tively subject.*
The centrums and neurapophyses of the cranial
vertebree maintain the greatest constancy, the neural
spines the least, in the vertebral column of mammals,
as in the cranial region thereof in the vast series of
the varieties and races of mankind : the hzemal arches
and their diverging appendages are the seats of in-
termediate degrees of variation.
Accordingly, between the lowest forms of African
and Australian skulls and the highest forms of Euro-
pean skulls, the difference in size and shape is least
in the basi-occipito-sphenoids, in the ex-occipitals,
alisphenoids, and orbitosphenoids: it is greatest in
the super-occipital, parietals, frontals, and nasals. The
maxillary and mandible are next in degree of varia-
bility, especially at the terminal anterior part which
represents the hemal spine, and is the seat of the
characters which Ethnology terms “ prognathism,”
* On the Archetype and Homologies of the Vertebrate Skeleton.’ 8vo.
1848, p. 187.
*
App. I. CONDITIONS OF VARIABILITY. 459
“orthognathism,” “ opisthognathism.” As in the
neural, so in the hemal arches, the parts become sub-
ject to variety as they recede from the centrum. The
palatal bones (pleurapophyses) show most constancy,
the maxillaries (hemapophyses) the next degree, the
pre-maxillaries (hzmal spines) the least constancy.*
So, likewise, with regard to the centrums them-
selves, the terminal one or “ vomer” is more variable
than those behind it.
The tympanic (pleurapophysis) offers as few cha-
racteristics to the ethnologist, as does the palatine.
The malar bones and zygomatic arches—diverging,
as appendages, from the maxillary arch—are seats of
variety only inferior to the neural spines. The
pterygoid processes are almost, if not quite, as vari-
able as the malar bones.
Accordingly, the variability or value of ethnolo-
gical admeasurements depends on the vertebral ele-
ments, or general homology, of the parts they may
happen to include. The length of the skull is more
constant than that of the cranium, in the entire
series of human races, because it includes the ver-
tebral centrums, whilst the other includes only neural
spines. Moreover, the parts that chiefly vary the
length of the skull are those behind the foramen
magnum, and those before the palatine bones.
The dimension from the anterior border of the
foramen magnum to the fore part of the pre-sphe-
* The range of variety in this vertebral element may be estimated by
the fact that all the ordinal characters of the class of birds derived from the
“rostrum” are furnished by modifications of the premaxillary and pre-
mandibular bones.
456 ETHNOLOGICAL TERMS OF ART. Appi:
noid, or to the palato-maxillary suture, is, perhaps,
regard being had to sex, as constant as any. The
part behind the cranial centrums is chiefly affected
by the super-occipital; the part in front by the
pre-maxillary. The extreme height, breadth, and
length of the cranium, with the curves and con-
tours of the dome, help the ethnologist with the
range of differences which it has pleased him to
express by the terms: brachycephalic, brassocephalie,
brachistocephalic, subbrachycephalic, mesocephalic,
mecocephalic, mecistocephalic, dolichocephalic, doli-
_ chistocephalic, pyramidocephalic, doidocephalic, cym-
bocephalic, stenocephalic, eurycephalic, cylindroce-
phalic, hypsicephalic, orthocephalic, phoxocephalie,
sphenoeephalic, platycephalic, spheerocephalic, cubi-
cephalic, &c., with the terminal varieties, as in brachy-
cephalous and brachycephaly, played upon each
compound; to which add “ phznozygous,” “ erypto-
zygous,” as the cranial dome may give or hide a view
of the zygomatic arches; also dolichorhinous, brachy-
rhinous, platyrhinous, or platyrhinal, &c., &., for all
the gradations of diversity of the neural spines of
the foremost vertebra.
There is no particular harm in such array or dis-
play of terms of art—save where they are extended
from signifying a gradation, or variety of cranial
form to the constant character of a race, a nation, a
family, or a period—in the absence of that extent
and. amount of observation which is absolutely requi-
site to prove or disprove such constancy. In the ©
extensive series of skulls of the natives of a limited
tract of the northern part of the peninsula of Hin-
Arr. I. SKULLS OF AMERICAN INDIANS. 457
dustan, varieties of shape of the cranium were observed
which might be expressed by at least half a dozen
of the above-cited Greek polysyllabics, and even of
opposite extremes, and this, not only in the general
series of Nepalese skulls, but sometimes in the minor
series of a tribe or village.* Very analogous are the |
results as affecting “ brachycephalic,” dolicocephalic,”
&c., “families,’ “varieties,” or “races,” to which a
correspondingly expanded survey of the skulls of the
aboriginal Indians of America has led the accurate
and painstaking ethnologist, Dr. Aitken Meigs,
In the first place he finds that, in the general
series of aboriginal American crania, there is a
range of diversity of proportions of the cranial
eavity, which would give the ethnologist grounds for
distributing them into three groups: 1, Dolichocephali ;
2, Mesocephali; 3, Brachycephali; but these are not
coincident with areas or periods. Not any of them
is distinctive of a particular family, or race, or nation,
or other group, either according to time or to space.
Thus the skulls of the Creek Indians may be, ina
general way ‘eurycephalic, 7.¢. shorter and more
broadly oval than those of the Assinaboins, and
these, in like manner, than the crania of the Ottawas.
But among the Creeks is a specimen (No. 441) which
is “ brachycephalic,” and a skull of one of the Dacota
Indians “stands between the Assinaboin’s and the
Creek’s” (p. 37). Among the Osages of the Upper
* Report on a series of Skulls of various Tribes of Mankind inhabiting
Nepal,” in ‘ Reports of the British Association for the Advancement of
Science,’ "a 1850,
+ ‘Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Ehiladelpbie,
May, 1866. —
so
458 SKULLS OF AMERICAN INDIANS. App, I,
Missouri is a “ longish head, inclining to the Swedish
form, occupying a position intermediate between the
long and short heads” (p. 20); a third (No. 54) has
“the coronal region almost round, like that of the
true Germanic head” (p. 19). Another specimen
(No. 54) “ belongs to the angularly round or square-
headed Gothic type” (p. 19). Others, again, are
“ brachycephalic.” Among the Blackfoot Indians are
some skulls ‘‘decidedly dolichocephalic”’ (p. 17) ; but
in No, 1227, of a Chief (and probably, therefore, with
a more laterally expanded brain) the skull “ occupies
an intermediate place between the long and short
heads” (p. 17). The skull of a Mohican also occupies
“a position intermediate between the long and short
heads, and approaches the Mongol form” (p. 20).
“The Ottawas of Michigan may be partly referred to
the arched type” (p. 22). But “No. 1007 is brachy-
cephalic” (2b.). Others of this tribe, Nos. 1006,
1008, 1009, “depart from this type ond ‘ape
the Swedish form. I have consequently placed them
in the “dolichocephalic” division” (p. 22). The
State of Michigan, however, was once occupied or
hunted over by other aboriginal tribes, the Meno-
minées, ¢. g., “the eranial specimens of which differ
from each other not a little” (p. 22).
The details of these differences are very instructive
as to the degree of value of the terms of cranial
shapes as denoting ethnological groups. Thus, after
pointing out those approaching or attaining the
“ Brachycephali,” Dr. Meigs writes:—“ Among the
Miamis of Indiana we again encounter the dolicho-
cephalic type” (p. 22). But here also it is added
App. I. CONDITIONS OF VARIABILITY. 459
that the skull of a Chief, No. 542, “is in many
respects like the German heads in the collection,
especially those from Tiibingen, Frankfort, Berlin :
it has the Swedish occiput” (20.). “No. 1055 ap-
proaches the angular Gothic form” (i.). In others
“the outline of the crown forms a more or less
-rounded oval” (2b.). “No. 106 approaches the
arched type.’ “The specimens in the collection
constituting the Seminole group vary not a. little
from each other” (p. 25). After descriptive details,
Dr. Meigs proceeds: “It will thus be seen that in
this group there are at least two, if not three, distinct
types” (p. 26).
How often one feels the desire to ask an author
the meaning in which he uses the word “type”! As
applied to cranial configuration, the grades or shades
of transition are such that the choice of any one step
in the series a a term of comparison must be arbi-
trary.
With regard to the aborigines. of America, the
ethnologist may classify them according to their
tribes, family names, or autonomy, or according to
the districts inhabited by them, or according to their
cranial characters. But, it is abundantly shown by
Dr. Meigs, as, indeed, was to be inferred from the
‘Crania Americana’ of Moreton, that, with the arbi-
trary assumption of certain proportions, dimensions,
&c., as ‘‘type-characters,’ the cranial classification
would differ a the tribal or national, geographical
or epochal one.
What constitutes the eeavalert ‘ dblichoce pale
type,” ethnologically speaking, among the African
460 § -—- SKULLS OF WESTERN AFRICANS. Arp. I.
.
skulls' which have called forth the present remarks, is
not, as the term would imply, a greater length of
cranium than in Indian and European skulls which
would be called “ brachycephalic,” or “ hypsicephalie,”
but merely a want of filling out of the brain-case by
lateral or vertical expansion. The dimension of
“lenoth” is more constant than that of “ breadth”
or “depth” in the cerebral hemispheres of the human
brain.
Were the natives of Western Equatorial Africa, dis-
covered or visited by M. Du Chaillu and represented
by the skulls which he collected and transmitted, as
constant, keen, and clever hunters as the North
Achemieae Indians, there might then be expected to
rise among them here or there an individual with ©
qualities making him superior in his craft, and
enabling him to direct and dominate over the more
common sort. And in proportion as the brain might
have a concomitant increase of size in such “ Chief,”
we should expect the long (‘“dolichocephalic type”)
to merge into the broad (“ brachycephalic”’), or lofty
(“hypsicephalic), or globular (sphcerocephalic) modi-
fications of cranial configuration,
In all the Negro skulls in the present collection,
as in those of Boschismen, Muincopies, Australians,
and every other variety that has come under my
observation, the essential characters of the archence-
phalous subclass and of its sole genus and species
are as definitely marked as in the skulls of the |
highest white races.
AR PEN DUA re
INSTRUMENTS USED IN THE EXPEDITION TO
ASHANGO-LAND.
First Supply. (From Mr. Potter, successor to Cary.)
1 Aneroid, brass, in morocco case, 2 inches in diameter, registering
from 15 to 31 inches.
2 Compasses, prismatic, with stand, shades, aad reflector, 3 inches
diameter (Singer’s patent).
2 Compasses, pocket (Singer’s patent), 14 inches diameter.
Drawing instruments, one set in Girton silver, in case, 6 inches
by 94 inches.
Drawing pins, 2 dozen.
2 Horizons Artificial, folding roof, improved iron trough and
bottle, in sling case.
Hypsometrical Apparatus, viz. :—
Bull’s-eye lantern, copper boiler, 3 reservoirs for spirits, oil,
or candle.
3 Thermometers for heights by boiling water, marked to
215°, in brass case.
2 Mieanmanisiars, thermal or sun, marked to 230°, in brass
case.
2 Thermometers, graduated for Fahrenheit and Centigrade.
1 Thermometer, graduated for Centigrade and Reaumur.
Magnetic-electro machine, with 90 feet of cord or conducting
wire. ;
2 Magnifiers, or Pade glasses, large size.
Mercury, 7 lbs. in stone bottle, as reserve supply.
Parallel-ruler, Acland’s pattern, 18 inches.
462 LIST OF INSTRUMENTS. App. II.
Protractor, circular, with compass rectifier, in mahogany box. |
Protractor, circular, in brass.
Rain gauge and spare glasses (Livingstone’s pattern).
Scale, 18 inches metal, graduated to inches, and subdivided to
tenths and hundredths, in box.
Sextant, 4 inches radius, silver are, cut to 20”.
Tape, 100 feet.
Extras.
Spare glass for rain gauge; spare compass cards; leather skins
to clean glasses; tin foil, &c. |
Most of the above instruments were damaged by the canoe being
upset, in attempting to land through the surf.
Second Supply.
2 Aneroids, brass, 2 inches diameter, registering from 15 to 31
inches. ;
2 Compasses, prismatic, 3 inches diameter, shades and reflector.
1 Compass, pocket.
1 Sextant, 6 inches radius, silver arc, cut to 10".
4 Watches, by Mr. J. Brock (George Street, Portman Square).
1 Watch, by Frodsham (Strand).
BOOKS, &e.
Nautical Almanacks, 1863-4-5-6.
Work books, ruled to form.
Skeleton Map, ruled in squares, 75 sheets.
Memorandum books.
EXTRA INSTRUMENTS.
1 Sextant, 8 inches radius, presented by G. Bishop, Esq..,
Twickenham ; cut to 10”. /
1 Binocular, presented by the Directors of the Night glans
Glasgow, after the lecture I delivered for that institution.
1 Telescope, presented by the same.
Universal Sun Dial, pic by the Royal: Geographical
Society. |
a =
< —
App, ll. REMARKS ON INSTRUMENTS. 463
Remarks on the Instruments used in taking the Astronomical
Observations.
No. 1 Sextant, 4 inches radius, by Cary, was used for the altitude
- No.
No.
All
My
of the stars and planets in connection with a lunar.
2 Sextant, 6 inches radius, by Cary (the best instrument),
always used for time, and in taking the distance in a lunar
and meridian altitude. —
3 Sextant, used for altitude of the moon under 120° (art.
horiz.), and when more than that quantity one of the other
sextants was used.
the above were lost in my retreat, except the watches and
two aneroids.
_—_—_———___
the instruments above enumerated were carefully tested
before leaving England. The aneroids brought back were
again tested after my arrival.
watches proved to have kept very good time; and I ought
to express here my thanks to Mr. Brock, of George Street,
Portman Square, for the care he took in supplying me with
the best watches. They are still in good order; and Iam
greatly indebted to Sir George Back for recommending Mr.
Brock to me. The instruments by Mr. Potter, successor of
Mr. Cary, of 181, Strand, proved to be excellent, and stood
well the rough travelling they had to go through.
OBSERVATIONS FOR LATITUDE.
464
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OL #& 60 0¢ Of TI
08 +8 601 | cL 6@ IL
og OL TT POR OMe oe serene fam tener |e in 1
0 ss 60L 96 93 IT
0 6 uo 0 b 89 | ‘ay topdne | 13 FZ “TL
| fol 10 OG. Gf: 89 =.) 1 SS Gee me te
“HOOT JO "Y Jourt O-LL ts O:-OG 0d mesa es Ae pen Giranaiy
O19 99 =) 4Ty weidaps eo 2 TL
OF 68 GOT ey cL IT
0 OF 6OI quay yson, || St FL IT
st 89 OL oe 0m 1 0 OF Gor. |{ -y ‘cous! OL ZL IL
0S OF GOI | Le 6
5-8-0 Or Le 09 |° ‘Mwseydne |) gg gs IL
\ 0¢ 9 wo Oia edi Gere eee ny
| oF 0 wo 08 Ge ae ae
‘Tv toyidne | Zo FZ OL
“ay > | 12 GF OF
‘TV toytdng ; 9F LI OL
Beit. HIS Gos. 87 0f
Oa 0S FL OL
ee os Si TI
OG FE 6G as ci eae ok
OC S066, ie eee oS. 11
OL. - SE G6 2 Ue gO Te
Oe -& S7 ai Soy) |. ee OL
cs (a4
eco 8 =—eee
Ce
= (08 ef 2 |" “Hvsndne| o¢ 2 6
cf 03 St 93 | | SF 0S 6. .
PL IL
“OF LI uo O-» 06 08+. 2s ** 419: ee ere EL
\ 0 9 wo oO O- Fal | sappy aomdne | ep. It ET a ae
"MOOWL JO "MUI | F-8L pee 02 GG Zl | °* ‘Mvsondne! O OT IT
G2: 80 Bian) "ay Dr Be ye TE
og €€ 8% | ie -¢° = {1
OF ZS 8Z 0. Fiat
0& 86 II | Oe Se. OL Bae Wea Me eG
‘ITV wondne | 68 9¢
‘TV toytdne | Le FG
"et TVs Ute
quit seq}
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ove “4TV ay CT Ch
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| Pe |
IL
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66
OBSERVATIONS FOR LUNAR DISTANCES App. TEs
488
_
"NOOTT jo ‘W Jour 9-89 — ed Or, . ShT
Cy: vr SEL OF g UO
ooo
oS
site
for)
iar)
Ne)
>
OF LT uO os LI 8
0€ € UO
OF LT Wo Oe Sl 0G
"HOOP JO "H POUT G69 ae 06 Fr 801
\
‘OUIL} 10, 08 § wo OL SF S2r
u 1 fo) “IBA u i | u i] fe)
"WG ‘OpNyIsUOT Sur [Nsoy ‘dma y, "1OLIQ XOpuy ‘s0uRysIq, PUY “ITV
0 ZL wo OF SI 60T
‘ITV toytdne
eee 41V »y
soe 66
eve 6¢
eee Ce 2
*** 90UBISIC,
ayy
‘ITV toytdne
‘apy r9yidne
22 oN)
eee e¢
*** 90UvISIC,
eoe 41V ay
‘4aTV qojtdne
eee
6¢
¢é
HV BSOA
ee
¢é
“FLV Sorejay
*yoafqo
OOD 8 OD GD BD
DOOD DB HD OD
ae &
eee
¢é
Ge
Tenoqurer Ny
*2081d
es SS a Ee Se ee
‘SHONVISIC UVNOAT HOT SNOLLVAUASAO
CG
Ce
LI OYS oune
G98T
—=s
‘oye
489
AT NIEMBOUAI.
App, II.
! pal ait Sete |
OE | SLL
"HOOJ JO “W JOULT i Oe 8a. pe [oS SE apy eee
02 9¢ 6zr | ‘* ‘Mw aeHdne | 02 6 OT
| OF GI 9L eS en eee (ptt “Mt, |
eee. S0e a0 | eee ch 9¢ 9 OT
0 0g g wo 06 03 9L Te eae cS” ar
0¢ 61 9L Ae eae Cre AGT
0g oe OL | >" eoUeRIG =e 3 eL
0 8 wo 0 0% Lat |‘ “Mvtondne | Zt 0 OT
OF 9g wo 6 0G 09.0 | OP Sy) eee Mi vi
“UOOY[ JO “HT Wio‘m yous | ( 0.89 on 0% 22 Fer |" ATV aeuidag.4| 0 “1g 6
0. 78 69° abe" = AV D i ee ere
OF LZ OL ee een : ee ae
OL: See ee 6 9F 6
st 4g If 06 & MO 5 gn wenger th PP 6
OF 82 9L | ** “oouRpsIq | 62 SF 6
0 gf uo Op 6F 80. |" “" “ivy | GF The
\ 0 9g wo Or 4G OZL | °* ‘Ww dendne | Es OF 6 be =
"Hoo JO" PUNT | F-89 es Or 9 Osk |“ “Mvtondne | of LE 6
0 08 Th tot een on
0g TE OL pba ed oe OL g& 6 :
6, 8 #8 6 a3
cl Zr IL 0$ g§ uO OL ze on |at a & ee ee
0 e¢ OL | °" “sy@pueisia | 0 3s 6
0 §8f wo OY Mae cla «fe ere Say ae 1) |
‘ o¢ 9 uo | 0% Lh OIL 1° “HV tondne | FF. 83.6 1. oe prea hea as eey ee
ei
Loa
fy
Ay
_
OBSERVATIONS FOR LUNAR DISTANCES
490
\
“MOOT JO "M IBIS 9-TL
0 + GI
(
*OUNT} LOT
7] 4 ° “ATR
“ry ‘apnyisuoT anand “dun y,
Oo ©
0&
7]
[oe
“NG Ca Oo (6d > "Os! 1/00 60 (CO 760 GO) OO “SO “GO.
Oh rein (| ee OF cE
Op ope oe Lb FE
Ce Me 9g GiobO ... see cs». GIOUM ela eeeeee
ogouaili pondadcs. sep SOUNSUL -S cuwie mae
igaigaini yiatédi... ... ».. bouaileli one
c] pinds: Ju: ditt... so.» ‘CISOMMEOU Gee
wa aningo... madiba ..s ». . Wanbaieeene
rain ee aif mboulo ose ove LOUDRNE ect meeee
river mbéné... we Bhoulou .cs! «5. TORU
ACs.) os OZONE Wise sees, coe YERJO: icee, cee - vee, ROMRMMNEE ewe
prairie ... otobi zee soungon ... ... koumou oi
firewood eons Wi: ase YECJO os. ves vo. MISSION ee
warm we mpiou ... mbédjé .. kagaza nike
cold Me MOU ec vos Giyebi 1. ae’ cas, YIOIG yen
I eat pio) WBULE IRDR sic ows!) ae 456 sits eee one
face OUne JIU 2. «=. boshe... +. OZO ("rae mee tite
nose eo MMPOMBOn okies ives? GIOLO. cay crane mbasho! % ssn
mouth ... . ogouana ... ... gouano... MONO soe oes ses
CARS oon. ... arouille swt WHOLE) guy TOATO sce Pe
iréte 75.40) See
irano” 23) ek. ee
samano sa vee
nang ne ake
kambo moshi_ ...
kambo béi ...
igoum ... Ee
mashi ... eae
bouendi: .3:5%: ee
malamou - samba
maloumou-mishi
madomba ...
kami: j.<. -jageuese
COZO™ \ iam thtseaeeane
TAMA, , 600 seaviga ete
COCO "game eae
MAQUE s5 Maen ee
doubandja ...
movega
foumou ise
fendai, ...ckteua’ aaae
digongo
pagaza,
bouya ... «es.
magouendo... «+.
ngouali makali ...
nshishiga ... -+«
dibeti.
Arp. III. IN SEVERAL WESTERN AFRICAN LANGUAGES. 901
Mpovi.
makondo
Njavi.
mako ...
tad’. ask
1010
Diol ss<
bitato ...
bina
bitano ...
esamouna
sanbo ...
pombo...
oua
goumi...
medi
ncho
Ishogo. Obongo,
Ai OCODUOR: » 525 -hpec' CONG,
teta.
TRPOCO wae ees aoe’ MOL
UWA se) tases sees, . DEM
TCHSTO"s ce; cet” vee” , CHRO:
MAL, wes jccee | sae > CPLR DON ZG:
MCAT ova) catia eee 4 G10.
moroba vas keels. SaMOUNE.
nehima,
sole misamouno,
nchouma.
wed ne mbo-ta.
miasadé.
SIDA). “eas, | sae ese, | ROMDOGE
5 one bouendi.
mbolo.
liamba.
ies biels incho.
magueshadi - ma-
doucou.
madoucou-macondo.
mouanengueé.
pai.
mobanga.
ngozho.
niama miagonbei.
nechésho.
magué.
mezago.
movega.
koumou.
mococo.
benda.
ndjoma.
onbon.
oe ae mia kaii.
diko.
ebiti.
eee a
: *
x
= .
cat
pt
|
-
2 .
.
. ~
'
‘
i
j
? i
.
«
&, .
a
‘
“ pe |
.
ri &
eee te
G cedy ae
te i 3
fi / ‘
| ‘
hi , 4 ¥
Fy ¢ fe
j * F ‘
H 1 : r .
&
dl
: en 7
- i] ie’ ,
=)) ;
iP
' re
‘ 7 7 . iy
uy t ay
~ Pat a ii ; Mt Py
i
~
is 1 Be.
Pe I FL
*
; * sg :
A
Shimbo
riage,
ET pt
Pr onaghndai
Nisa
=
fs
A ILLUSTRATING
M.DU CHAILLIYS ROUTES
ILM
EQUATORIAL AFRICA
IN 1864 &-GS5-.
Rnghish Miles
30 De ne =~
Mla Chailluts Route. $<
ee
Yur sure
WESTERN AFRICH j
; : :
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