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Some Curious African Customs

Some Curious African Customs image
Parent Issue
Day
27
Month
November
Year
1874
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

There are other curious tbings about these people, besides their dreas. Their houses have walla of clay or reeds, and sharp-pointed roofe of straw. The furniture consista mainly of wooden platters and stools, which are colored black by long burial in the mud, and their only iight is a burning pine-knot. Before the house is usually a post, on which are hung the trophies of the hunt, auch as horns of antelopes, skulls of animáis and men, and, horrible to say, dried hands and feet. TheBe proclaim to the world how great a wamor is the owner, and, in part, answer the purposes that fine houses and clothes do with us. When a Niaui Niam pays a visit to his neighbor he carriea his own stool to sit on, and when he goes into mourniug for a iriend he shaves his head, and scatters his precious braids, twiats and puffs to the wind, which certainly shows sincere grief on his part. When two friends meet they do not abake hands, but they join their middle tingers in such a way that the joints crack, while they nod at each other, more as if in disgust - as it looks to a white man - than in friendly greeting. If they fiud a hollow tree in which wild bees have laid up honey, they at once smoke the bees stupid, and eat honey, wax, bees, and all. Indeed they eat several things that we would not like. The children in sotue parts of África eat rats and field-mice, which they catch by means of baskets woven in the f orín of long tubes. They are laid flat on the ground, near the mouse-holes, and theu the little savages begin a great noise of stamping, shouting and slapping of hands. The poor little animáis are frightened, and run into the traps for 8afety, and are easily taken. They are then ticd by the tails in bunches of a dozen or so, as you have seen children tie cherries, and barterod with each other as choice morsels. Sometimes they use them as baits to catch cats, - roast-cat beiug a favorite dish. They build smail huts of twisted reeds, put the mice in, and oats attructed to the trap, of course. The grown people feast on still Btranger diet, - such as the bodiesof their enemies killed in battle, elephant-meat dried till it looks like a log of wood, dog8 and the termites, or white ants, of whieh you may have read, and whose imuienae cone-shaped houses are so oominon in África. No important thing ia begun without Consulting certain signs to see if it will be successful. Same of these are very ourioua. Oue is to put a few drops of water on a smooth-topped stool, then take a smooth blook and rub it across the stool as though to plana it off. If the block moves easily the sign is good ; if hard, the sign is bad. Auother trial is to dose some unfortunate hen with a certain greasy liquid. If she dies the sign is bad ; if gets well it is good. But the hens are not the only sufferers. Another way to try one'g luok is to eeize a wretched cock, duck him under water uiany times till he is stiff and senseless, and then leave him alone. The fate is deoided by his recovering or dying. The guilt of any one acoused or suspected of crime is tried in tbe same way, and no oue dreams of suspecting one whoso signs have showu favorably. To protect themselves from the danger and loss of fiiea, they provide no fireengines and insurance companies, as we do, but hang an amulet made - for those who are Mohammedans- of a few verses of the Khoran, or Mohauimdan bible, wrapped in skin, over the door, which must be admitted is a niuch simpler and cheaper way than ours. If a horse or donkey is ill he is dosed with raw pork, but a human being has for medicine a few verses of the Khoran,

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Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus