CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME 
 OF THE SAGE ENDOWMENT 
 FUND GIVEN IN 1891 BY 
 
 HENRY WILLIAMS SAGE 
 
ivr ai^SSL mU u, "™™lty Library 
 Ul D 15.178 
 
 Tailed head-hunters of Nigeria: 
 
 3 1924 028 649 170 
 
The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
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THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 OF NIGERIA 
 
Nigerian Natives with Tails 
 
 A Kagoro woman from Tuku Tozo and an Attakka woman. See p. 104. 
 
THE 
 
 TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 OF NIGERIA 
 
 AN ACCOUNT OF AN OFFICIAL'S SEVEN YEARS' 
 
 EXPERIENCES IN THE NORTHERN NIGERIAN 
 
 PAGAN BELT, AND A DESCRIPTION OF THE 
 
 MANNERS, HABITS, AND CUSTOMS , 
 
 OF THE NATIVE TRIBES 
 
 BY 
 
 MAJOR A. J. N. TREMEARNE 
 
 B.A. (Cantab.), F.R.G.S., F.R.A.I. 
 
 Sometime Scholar and Prizeman, Christ's College 
 
 Hausa Lecturer, and First Diplome in Anthropology, Cambridge 
 
 Author of "The Niger St the West Sudan" 
 "Fables and Fairy Tales," &c. 
 
 With 38 Illustrations {sf a Map 
 
 LONDON 
 SEELEY, SERVICE & CO. LIMITED 
 
 38 GREAT RUSSELL STREET 
 IQI2 
 
TO 
 
 MY WIFE 
 
PREFACE 
 
 One of my aims in writing this book has been to show how 
 much the uncivilised natives of Northern Nigeria resemble some 
 other aboriginal races, possibly even our own remote ancestors, 
 and, incidentally, to prove that they are by no means as black in 
 many ways as they are painted. Having served in different parts 
 of West Africa for the greater part of ten years, first as a 
 Military then as a Police Officer, and subsequently in a Political 
 and a Judicial capacity, I have possibly a wider view of West 
 African things in general than many writers on the country. 
 The native is certainly not the equal of the European, but he is 
 still worthy of consideration. 
 
 If in discussing African life and characteristics I have occa- 
 sionally introduced examples drawn from other lands, it has not 
 been done with any intention of forcing them into an artificial 
 resemblance, but solely for the sake of comparison, for a custom, 
 which at first may seem strange to the average reader, becomes 
 more easily intelligible through the light thus thrown upon it 
 from other sources. I hope, therefore, that the general observa- 
 tions on customs and ideas will be useful to those commencing the 
 " study of man," and that the notes on the head-hunting tribes, 
 being quite new, will interest even those who are more advanced. 
 A description of certain subjects, with which it has been im- 
 possible to deal here, will be found in the Journal of the Royal 
 Anthropological Institute to be published shortly. 
 
 Life in West Africa is a medley of sensations. There are 
 many intensely exciting moments, there are days when one is 
 absolutely in the depths of despair, but even at these times some- 
 thing may happen, with the light-hearted natives about one, 
 which will divert one's thoughts into a totally different channel. 
 Perhaps when under fire, the black soldier — as gallant in many 
 
 xi 
 
PREFACE 
 
 ways as his white comrade— will provoke a smile by some quaint 
 remark concerning the enemy; or the cook will prepare meals 
 quite unconcernedly within arrow range, singing all the time as 
 if there were no danger to be feared more serious than the burning 
 of the pudding. 
 
 One is liable after an absence of a couple of years to forget " the 
 madding crowd " of insects, the annoyances of official correspond- 
 ence, the irritating revenue returns, the noise, the dust, and the 
 dirt, and to remember only the excitement and the beauty of 
 West Africa; and if he sits down to write in this mood he is 
 likely to see everything tinted couleur de rose. It is only by re- 
 ferring to brief entries in note books, and by being thus reminded 
 of the circumstances connected therewith, that I can recall the 
 worries which, though negligible now, seemed serious enough at 
 the time. And, as I do not wish to describe only one aspect, I 
 have in places purposely "laid a complaint," not on account of 
 any grudge against Northern Nigeria, or its people, white or 
 black, but because I wish the book to be a true and living picture 
 of life in that country. The officials of the Colonial Office and of 
 the local Government have done splendid work, but there is no 
 need to expect them to be more than human. 
 
 The native is a humorist, sometimes consciously, more often 
 unconsciously, and I have usually been able to understand his 
 joke when with him. And though, when sitting in a comfortable 
 arm-chair, the amusing incidents stand out clearly, while the 
 accompanying pin-pricks gradually fade into the dim distance, 
 it is safe to say that there is plenty of laughter in the air of the 
 West Coast for every one if he can only see it. 
 
 A. J. N. T. 
 
 Blackheath, 
 October 1911. 
 
 xu 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 I. Impressions of West Africa 
 II. Arrival 
 
 III. Up Country 
 
 IV. Headquarters 
 V. A Benue Province 
 
 VI. Mohammedans v. Pagans 
 
 VII. A Boundary Commission 
 
 VIII. The Tailed Head-hunters 
 
 IX. "Heads and Tails" . 
 
 X. Tribute Troubles 
 
 XL Habitations 
 
 XII. Some Exciting Arrests 
 
 Xni. Customs and Superstitions 
 
 XIV. Customs and Superstitions {continued) 
 
 XV. Customs and Superstitions {continued) 
 
 XVI. A Mutiny ..... 
 
 XVII. Courtship, Marriage, Divorce, and Child-birth 
 
 XVIII. Food and Drink . 
 
 XIX. Music and Dancing 
 
 XX. A Punitive Patrol 
 
 XXI. Occupations . 
 
 XXII. Modes of Travelling 
 
 XXIII. Hausa Folklore . 
 
 xiii 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 Nigerian Natives with Tails ..... Frontispiece 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The " Great North Road " to Kumasi 20 
 
 The River Niger — A Sandbank ...... 26 
 
 The River Niger— On It 26 
 
 Dusky Beauties . 32 
 
 Yoruba People of Igbaja ........ 34 
 
 A New Force .......... 40 
 
 A Distinguished Visitor . . . . .50 
 
 A Filani Chief 64 
 
 Kajji Women of Mersa ........ 76 
 
 Kagoro Women of Tuku Tozo ....... 92 
 
 Kajji Chiefs 104 
 
 Hairdressing Extraordinary . . . . . . .108 
 
 Lip Ornaments . . . . . . . . .110 
 
 Kajji Youths of Mersa . . . . . . .116 
 
 A Goat-house .......... 122 
 
 A Head-hunter's Habitation . . . . . . .132 
 
 A Kajji Compound ......... 136. 
 
 Yoruba Houses 138 
 
 A Corduroy Road 146 
 
 A Kajji Granary 146 
 
 Ugly but Revered 162 
 
 Some Kajji Dandies 178 
 
 Ashanti Men 214 
 
 Ashanti Houses 214 
 
 XV 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Beans ........... 242 
 
 Music Hath Charms 250 
 
 A Kajji Dance 252 
 
 A High Stepper 262 
 
 A Ceremonial Dance 264 
 
 Basket-making .......■•• 288 
 
 Bull-baiting ... 297 
 
 The Biter Bit 2g7 
 
 Wet Travelling 306 
 
 A Native Canoe 316 
 
 A Kajji Joint-family Residence . . . . .316 
 
 Home Industries ......... 322 
 
 Good-bye to Jemaa ......... 330 
 
 XVI 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 OE NIGERIA 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 IMPRESSIONS OF WEST AFRICA 
 
 I HAD always wanted to go to West Africa, and when given 
 the choice to proceed as a Special Service Officer to join the 
 Expedition in Ashanti in 1900 instead of going back to 
 South Africa to join the Australian Regiment, which was due to 
 return home, I eagerly seized the opportunity of visiting that 
 fascinating country. Kumasi, or as it used to be spelt, 
 Coomassie, had always attracted me strongly, and so had Segu, 
 though I should have found it difficult to say why (unless it had 
 a faint connection in my mind with something to eat), and I can 
 remember even now that when about the age of eight I marked 
 the routes on a map. 
 
 My first stay in West Africa was not a long one, but I had 
 had a taste of the country, and in less than two years afterwards 
 I was back to the Coast again, this time to Northern Nigeria, 
 glad to feel the warmth once more, glad to hear the cries of the 
 natives, and to watch their interesting ways. I suppose those 
 excellent books of the late G. A. Henty played some part in 
 arousing within me the longing for strange countries, and 
 perhaps the attraction of the Australian bush already born and 
 bred in my blood had prepared me for the call of the mysterious 
 African forests. Or perhaps " spell " would be a better name, for 
 it is more than a " call," it is a summons, a command, and one 
 which I should think must be quite unconquerable, though it is 
 rather early to judge yet in my own case, for I have left Nigeria 
 too recently, and have been studying West African anthropology 
 ever since, so I am, at any rate in thought, living to a great extent 
 
 17 " B 
 
IMPRESSIONS OF WEST AFRICA 
 
 in West Africa still. The victim once fallen must obey though 
 it be against his better understanding, or perhaps his inclination, ; 
 even against his will, and, whatever kind of a wreck the Coast has 
 made of his body, I doubt if his mind ever frees itself of the 
 charm of the old associations. 
 
 The bush and the forest attract in different ways. The 
 Australian bush somehow makes one feel a tinge of sadness even 
 on the brightest days; there is often a sigh amidst the smiles; 
 one wants to drowse, to think of what might have been, though 
 the reminiscences are not necessarily gloomy ; whereas the African 
 forest makes a man active— difficulties are always cropping up, and 
 he must be ready for them — and although one becomes at times 
 more dismally depressed on the Coast than anywhere else, the 
 usual tendency is to look ahead. This is strange considering the 
 fact that the Australian bush is very healthy indeed, at any rate 
 where the gum-tree abounds, while the African forest is quite the 
 reverse, and I think the sole reason is that whereas in the land 
 of the Southern Cross all is peaceful, on the Coast of the Dark 
 Continent danger may lurk anywhere, and the traveller must be 
 on the alert to face it. To even the ordinary man, like myself, 
 adventure has a strong fascination, and every one, however little 
 he possesses of the stuff of which heroes are made, hopes to find 
 himself in danger some day, he wants to test himself at some time 
 or other. To those more fortunate persons who have never known 
 fear — and there are many such people, of course — the unknown 
 must call with even greater force, for there is always risk, there is 
 always adventure for him who looks for it, and usually for him 
 also who does not look for it. 
 
 Why should men all over the world want to face danger ? why 
 should they wish to undergo hardships when they might be so 
 very much more comfortable at home ? Some, of course, go to 
 make money, some to get out of a scrape at home, some because 
 they command in West Africa though they serve in England. 
 But even then, what is the moving principle which makes .men 
 listen with bated breath to the tales of danger, to discount the 
 hardships, and to look with eager eyes on the hideous mangrove 
 swamps ? It is the old pagan instinct that will not be killed in 
 
 18 
 
IMPRESSIONS OF WEST AFRICA 
 
 spite of our civilisation, in spite of our peace societies; it is a 
 pride in that superiority of personal strength and skill which 
 compels the homage of others less fortunately endowed, or less 
 willing to make the necessary sacrifices to raise themselves above 
 their fellows; it is the old fighting spirit which has made the 
 British Nation what it is. The rush of volunteers, eager for ' 
 service, during the South African War must have been a shock to 
 many of the well-meaning folk, who imagined and, apparently, 
 still continue to imagine, that a few benevolent old gentlemen 
 would be able to settle all the future quarrels of the world, and 
 that modern weapons were so terrible that no nations would dare 
 to go to war. Austria and Italy did not hesitate even with but 
 slender excuse. Would the protests of a few small boys at school 
 prevent two bigger boys fighting? Would strong men in a 
 matter vital to their existence or their honour be ruled by the 
 weak and timorous? Would two powerful nations roused to 
 frenzy on account of some national insult, or a country in the 
 throes of civil war, take the slightest notice of an arbitration 
 award which was unpopular and appeared unfair ? Not until we 
 have killed the old fighting spirit, and have civilised ourselves 
 into becoming mere automatons, not until we have crushed out all 
 that is good in us, shall we consent to barter our honour or to 
 give up our rights at the bidding of others whom in our hearts, 
 perhaps, we really know to be our inferiors. 
 
 There is another point! Many men will do things for the 
 sake of their party which they would regard almost in the light of 
 crimes if committed for their own advantage. Will arbitrators 
 give an award which would damage their own country? would 
 they not do more for their country than for their party ? A man 
 has been known to send his own brother to death, but he would 
 not ruin his fatherland. 
 
 The political history of Northern Nigeria has been a short, 
 
 though brilliant, record of a contest of pluck and initiative against 
 
 hardships and dangers on the spot, and against discouragement 
 
 from home, and it has been only of late years that the British 
 
 Government has really done its duty towards that possession. 
 
 I have- elsewhere (in The Niger and the West Sudani) given an 
 II 19 
 
IMPRESSIONS OF WEST AFRICA 
 
 account of the river Niger, the search for which led to the occu- 
 pation of the present territory of Northern Nigeria, and I need 
 not repeat myself, but a short outline of the progress of the 
 country itself may be acceptable. 
 
 Some of the outlets of the river Niger were discovered in the 
 fifteenth century by the Portuguese and others, ?but up to 1830 
 it had never been recognised that these comparatively small 
 streams had any connection with the great body of water known 
 to be flowing past Timbuktu (or Timbuctoo, as it used to be 
 spelt) ; and it was only after the expeditions in 1795 and 1805 of 
 Mungo Park, the first white man to reach the Niger, and also 
 Northern Nigeria, that it was recognised that the Niger came 
 further south than had been supposed. The river was now thought 
 to flow into Lake Chad (the old idea was that it was an affluent 
 of the Nile), or else that it and the Congo were one, and in 1816 
 two parties were sent out, one to start from the Senegal, another 
 from the Congo, which were to meet somewhere in what is now 
 Northern Nigeria. However, both parties came to grief, and the 
 next attempt, made five years later, was from Tripoli, Major 
 Denham, Clapperton, Oudney, and others arriving at Lake Chad 
 more than twelve months after their departure from England, 
 being the second party of white men to reach Northern Nigeria. 
 Denham explored the country around Bornu while Clapperton 
 visited Kano and Sokoto, and both returned safely to England 
 in 1825, though they lost all their European companions, they 
 having fallen victims to the country. 
 
 Clapperton took out another expedition a couple of years later, 
 but it ended disastrously, and it was not until 1830 that the two 
 Landers (one of whom, Richard, had been with Clapperton) sailed 
 in canoes from Yelwa to the Brass mouth of the Niger. 
 
 The petty little adventures and limited wanderings related 4n 
 this book seem tame indeed compared to the great dangers and 
 magnificent journeys of these early explorers, yet they were not 
 without their hardships nor their charm. There is still a good 
 deal of country in West Africa as yet untrodden by white feet, 
 and the satisfaction of having been in even a small portion of 
 "new country" helps one to appreciate all the more the joy 
 
The "Great North Road" to Kumasi 
 
 Most West African roads are but a foot or two in width, and very crooked, but this was widened 
 and straightened by order of the Government. It is not easy to describe the feelings of the 
 traveller who for the first time sets foot on a path which leads perhaps right into the heart of this 
 wonderful continent. 
 
IMPRESSIONS OF WEST AFRICA 
 
 of these great men when success crowned their efforts. How 
 elated must Mungo Park have been to know that no white man 
 but himself had ever seen the Niger ? ' Imagine Major Laing's 
 feelings of pride at being the first to enter the city of Timbuktu 
 which had such a mysterious and wonderful reputation! How 
 can one describe the joy of the Landers, after having been swept 
 along in unknown streams, at seeing British ships at the mouth 
 of the river ahead of them ? 
 
 Alas, these men, and others like them, who added so much to 
 the prestige of the nation, had usually but scanty rewards. Park 
 and Laing lost their lives in the country of their fame, and the 
 Landers had great difficulty in even securing a passage to Eng- 
 land on a British ship ! But their names are as fresh as ever, 
 and as long as there is an opening for an explorer, so long will 
 that explorer be found, and others to take his place should he 
 lose his life in the attempt ; and while that spirit is encouraged 
 and recognised by the nation, the British Empire will hold its 
 own. There is plenty of work to be done among us yet ; in addition 
 to Africa there are Central Australia, New Guinea, the frontiers 
 of India, and even the polar regions calling for explorers and 
 pioneers : let the Government enable men to go there — there is no 
 need to persuade men to do so — it will be well worth the cost even 
 for the geographical and ethnographical results alone. But there 
 would be a much greater gain, for the dormant spirit of adventure 
 would be reawakened in every breast, the old self-reliance of the 
 nation would be re-established, and we should not have a night- 
 mare every time a Continental Power added a ship to its fleet. 
 
 After the explorers came the traders, two ships ascending the 
 Niger nearly to Jebba in 1832, and though four out of every five 
 Europeans died, another and a larger party went out a few years 
 afterwards with even more disastrous results. Later ventures 
 under Baikie, however, were fairly successful, the use of quinine 
 having been introduced, and no doubt contributing to the great 
 decrease in the death-rate. In 1850 another mission started from 
 Tripoli, consisting of Richardson, Overweg, and Barth, the latter 
 being the only one to return, and with an enormous amount of infor- 
 mation, after having visited the Hausa States and even Timbuktu. 
 
 21 
 
IMPRESSIONS OF WEST AFRICA 
 
 Trading companies now began to spring up, and though many 
 of the English firms indulged for a time in a cut-throat competi- 
 tion, most of them amalgamated in 1879, to form what was later 
 the National Africa Company, and later still (1886) the Royal 
 Niger Company, with a charter from the Crown to govern what 
 is now Northern Nigeria. 
 
 France and Germany, who had been busy acquiring colonies on 
 the coast, now began to take a great interest in West Africa, and 
 tried to force us out of some of our possessions by creating com- 
 plications amongst the natives under us, but our representatives 
 usually proved the smarter and more capable, and Britain managed 
 to keep what she had got — I wonder would she have done so if every 
 case had been submitted to arbitration ? Still, British Ministers 
 found it difficult to protect a chartered company as such against 
 the Governments of foreign nations, and mainly to prevent fresh 
 international disagreements the Company's charter was revoked, 
 and the territories were added to those of the Oil Rivers to form 
 Northern and Southern Nigeria, Lagos being amalgamated with 
 the latter six years later, the Northern Protectorate being almost 
 as large as Great Britain and France combined. This put an end 
 to most of the external complications, but internal troubles arose 
 soon after the transfer, and there has been an expedition or a 
 patrol operating every few months ever since, the most important 
 being those against Yola in 1901, Bornu the following year, 
 Sokoto, Kano, and Burmi the year after that, and Sokoto and 
 Katagum in 1906, while the Munchi country south of the Benue, 
 and a great part of the pagan belt in Zaria, Bauchi, and Nassarawa 
 has still to be thoroughly subdued. 
 
 So much for the geographical history. The ethnographical 
 outline of some of the tribes has been touched upon elsewhere, 
 and that of a few more in this book, but I have here tried to 
 confine myself merely to some of the main points of the political 
 history, and then only so far as our dealings with the natives are 
 concerned. We are unfortunately educating the natives upon 
 European lines, and the results are disastrous. A Filani chief 
 who is proud of his rank is a man no one can help admiring; 
 the ex-canoe boy with a smattering of Latin inspires one only 
 
 22 
 
IMPRESSIONS OF WEST AFRICA 
 
 with contempt. Our cantonments, too, are built according to 
 English ideas, and we have spoiled the beauty of many a spot 
 noted before for its loveliness. I suppose West Africa will some 
 day be as safe as Ireland. A very desirable state of affairs for 
 the Government, perhaps, but — heavens ! — how dreary ! 
 
 The adventures of the explorers and pioneers can be learned 
 from their own writings, and I venture to state that there is 
 hardly any one who has read them who has not yearned for 
 chances of similar glories. But apart from the joy of entering 
 new districts, there is the mystery and the fascination of the 
 country to attract a man, and in a London fog his thoughts will 
 turn almost involuntarily to the feverish yet sunny, luring yet 
 repulsive, unhealthy yet beautiful and wonderful, West Coast 
 of Africa. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 ARRIVAL 
 
 FORCADOS and Burutu, the ports on the Niger for Northern 
 Nigerian passengers, are dreary-looking places, set on 
 dismal and unhealthy mud-banks and surrounded by 
 hideous mangrove swamps ; but once those have been left behind 
 by the noisy stern-paddled river-boat, to which we have transferred 
 ourselves and our baggage, the real beauty of the country begins 
 to unfold itself. 
 
 The time taken between Burutu and Lokoja (three hundred 
 and thirty miles) depends upon whether one is going up or down 
 stream, upon the size of the steamer, and the amount of cargo on 
 board. A little over two days is enough for the biggest boats 
 when going down, but I have been ten days going up, and that 
 was in the Kapelli, which is supposed to be the flyer of the 
 fleet. We were towing a couple of barges loaded with railway 
 material, or rather they were lashed one on each side, and so the 
 progress was exceedingly slow. There were nine of us on board, 
 and there was some room to move about, but what the boat 
 would be like with twenty, the official number, I should not like 
 to think, especially as each man makes his own arrangements for 
 messing, though, usually, parties of half-a-dozen or so are formed 
 for convenience. As there is only one cooking-place, the respective 
 cooks have to take turns, and there are often some very fine 
 quarrels amongst them, and also amongst the other boys, who are 
 continually stealing each other's things — or those of their masters. 
 Usually, I think, the native is fairly honest, but at times he 
 absolutely runs amuck, and the journey up river (and a fortiori 
 that down river) seems to be one of these occasions. When I 
 went up the first time, in May 1903, shooting was allowed from 
 the boat, and we had numerous pot-shots at hippo in the lower 
 
ARRIVAL 
 
 reaches, and at crocs in the upper, though I doubt if we hit many. 
 One funny old man with us had a pistol with which he used to 
 blaze at everything showing, and he managed to amuse himself 
 immensely — and us too. But hippo are not often seen nowa- 
 days, and in any case the shooting, except from barges, has been 
 made illegal, as there is much more traffic, and thus as time goes 
 on, and every one becomes fearfully respectable, many other little 
 amusements will be prohibited, and, consequently, the country 
 will lose one of its attractions, its unconventionality. 
 
 The passenger will find that any empty tins or bottles are 
 capable of creating some amusement, for while passing the villages 
 on the banks — especially those of the tattoo-nosed Ijo — numerous 
 canoes will put out and surround the steamer, the inmates, who 
 are usually small girls or even smaller boys, calling out lustily for 
 these articles. These children are fine swimmers, and although 
 the canoes are often upset by the wash of the steamer, or by the 
 fighting of the paddlers themselves over the booty, one knows 
 there is no danger, and that all will be as happy as ever five 
 minutes afterwards. 
 
 When coming out on the Elder-Dempster boats, a somewhat 
 similar excitement may be caused amongst the crowds of natives 
 on the fore-hatch — who come aboard all the way down from 
 Freetown — by throwing down pennies, lumps of sugar, or fruit, 
 and the people usually know what is wanted, and pretend to 
 really fight and quarrel so as to induce the onlookers to give 
 them more and more. I do not think a native ever objects to a 
 quarrel, either real or imaginary, so long as there is a chance of 
 making something out of it. There is not always this inducement, 
 though, and at times it would appear as if they indulged in 
 these little pleasures merely for the satisfaction of hearing them- 
 selves speak. I have sometimes seen two natives git down close to 
 each other and pour out strings of angry abuse and bad language 
 at the top of their voices, and as fast as possible, neither taking 
 the slightest notice of what the other was saying, and after fiercely 
 accusing each other of every imaginable crime under the sun, 
 suddenly both would burst out laughing, and forget all that had 
 been said — if, indeed, they ever heard anything except their own 
 
 25 
 
ARRIVAL 
 
 voices — and be as good friends as before. There is but little 
 lasting resentment in the native's nature, and for that reason our 
 punishments ought to be sharp, sudden, and done with at once. 
 I do not believe in fining, for the real punishment is then felt long 
 after the offence has been committed. He understands being caned, 
 and Sir Sidney Olivier, an experienced Governor, recommends 
 it, and however severe we were, we should not hurt him anything 
 like as much as his own chiefs would. European boys at school are 
 also acquainted with the rod, and there are many old Etonians 
 who consider that the birch was most beneficial to them ; is a 
 native more sensitive than they were ? It is the long drawn-out 
 punishment which awakens resentment ; it is only human nature 
 to dread everlasting trouble, that is why we undergo the very sharp 
 pain of having teeth drawn rather than suffer a gnawing ache for 
 an indefinite period, however mild it may be. But there is a very 
 great difference between caning and flogging, for the punishment 
 can be sufficient without being brutal, and a caning need not 
 necessarily become a flogging, any more than a modern school 
 develops into an " Uncle Tom's Cabin." 
 
 In the dry season, especially in April and May, the rivers are 
 very low, and the boats are often delayed by running on sand- 
 banks. The shock when on the larger craft is nothing to speak 
 of, but when a " swine " (see Chapter XXII.) digs its snout into 
 the ground all one's precious crockery may be knocked over, 
 and — awful thought — even one's own sacred person may suffer. 
 Sometimes, particularly when going down stream, the boat may 
 get so far on the bank that many hours elapse before she is floated 
 again, and in 1903 we nearly lost the mail steamer at Burutu 
 through being thus delayed. Luckily we were far enough down 
 stream to feel the rise of the tide, and with the flow we managed 
 to get off and catch the boat for home. To have been stuck at 
 Burutu for a week would have been anything but pleasant. A 
 certain Governor and his staff managed to accomplish the feat on 
 one occasion, and the number of official " snorters " sent off during 
 those seven days is said to be easily a record. 
 
 If the steamer cannot back herself off, a small boat is sent 
 out with an anchor which is fixed in the bank on the other 
 
 26 
 
The River Niger — Nearing a Sandbank 
 
 Owing to the nature of the banks and bed, the river is continually changing its channel, and 
 navigation is consequently difficult. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 r-- ■ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 i , * 
 
 
 - . 
 
 
 
 
 b-. "" 
 
 M 
 
 
 - ' 
 
 
 . '■ 
 
 ■':■:; 
 
 £ "" 
 
 
 ' 
 
 
 ■■- 
 
 The River Niger — On It 
 The " Kampala " (now a " submarine ") gets stuck. 
 
ARRIVAL 
 
 side of the channel, and back-paddling and straining on the 
 cable usually bring the steamer into deeper water again. The 
 channels change so much each year, owing to the great difference 
 in the summer and winter levels of the river, and the sandy 
 nature of its banks and bed, that it is impossible to buoy them to 
 any great extent, but now that a dredger is working there should 
 be a great improvement in this direction. By the way, there is 
 a story about this queer-looking craft. 
 
 A newly arrived missionary lady was standing on deck, watch- 
 ing the dredger working, and after a time she was joined by a 
 trader who had had many an argument with her on the way out 
 about the laziness of the natives. 
 
 " There, you can see for yourself," said he ; " look at those 
 black men squatting about on that dredger; not one of them is 
 doing a hand's turn." 
 
 " They must be tired, poor things," said she, and then, as a 
 brilliant thought struck her, she added, beaming, " you should 
 not judge only by what you can see ; just think how hard the 
 poor men underneath must be working to be able to fill those 
 buckets so quickly ! " 
 She won. 
 
 There is one employment which must be an ideal one for a 
 native, and it would suit even an unemployed park-loafer. Every 
 barge has a headman (from the permanent establishment of the 
 Marine Department) to look after the polemen, but not to help 
 them. All he has to do is to sit in a camp chair and give orders ; 
 he usually has a small boy to cook his food and call him 
 "captain" when thexe is no European about, he has a wife in 
 every port (even a Mohammedan is allowed four), and he gets a 
 shilling a day ! How popular such posts would be on the local 
 penny tin boats ! Alas, white men never have any luck like that, 
 not" even in West Africa. 
 
 After some days on the river Niger, the boat passes Idda, the 
 last town of Southern Nigeria, and soon afterwards arrives at 
 Lokoja, the oldest white settlement in the country though not 
 now the soonest reached, for Egori, almost opposite Idda, has 
 that doubtful honour. 
 
 27 
 
ARRIVAL 
 
 I arrived in 1903, with three others, to raise a police force. 
 Somehow or other the High Commissioner's instructions had 
 gone astray; he was on leave, and no one seemed to know 
 anything about us, although we had already had three days at 
 Idda on a sandbank, so we were left for several hours on board the 
 boat at the wharf, and we had plenty of time to admire its 
 beauties. Lokoja is anything but pretty from the river, but 
 from the top of Patti, the mountain looming up behind, it is 
 beautiful, the clash of the brilliant colours being very barbaric 
 and splendid. For on two sides are the silver ribbons of the 
 Niger, and its affluent the Benue, which joins it here, winding 
 away to the horizon; opposite are the blue Okpoto Hills, 
 and underneath gleam the ruby-roofed bungalows set in the 
 emerald-hued foliage, the whole making up a gloriously-coloured 
 picture of the Impressionist school. The soil here, too, is wonder- 
 fully fertile ; almost anything will grow, and many men are glad 
 indeed to be told that this will be their headquarters. 
 
 But Lokoja is more (beautiful than healthy ; the heat is damp 
 and stifling, the river becomes exceedingly unpleasant when 
 falling and leaving the banks uncovered, and altogether it is a 
 good place to be out of, except for the man who prefers office 
 work to travel, who wishes for comparatively comfortable quarters 
 rather than excitement. Mails are more regular, and they come 
 more quickly ; food is plentiful, for there are several good 
 canteens ; and if each man could have a bungalow to himself, 
 he would not have so much to complain about. Unfortunately, 
 he seldom has more room on land than he had on the river-boat, 
 four or even more men being sometimes crowded into a three- 
 roomed wooden bungalow ; and as each European must have at 
 least two servants, and, in addition, one extra for each horse, the 
 state of pandemonium which one has to endure may be better 
 imagined than described. 
 
 I have pointed out elsewhere that the discomfort and the 
 amount of filth a man eats are responsible for many more 
 deaths and invalidings than is the infamous mosquito, and 
 were it possible to give each man a two-roomed brick house 
 to himself (something like those which are allotted to black 
 
 28 
 
ARRIVAL 
 
 clerks), and to encourage him to bring out wife or sister to 
 look after it, there would not be the same necessity to work 
 out wonderful schemes of soaking the ground — or himself, I 
 forget which — in kerosene. Doubtless much can be done in 
 cantonments by following rules laid down by the medical 
 authorities, but it is quite impossible to keep a grass-roofed 
 and windowless mud hut mosquito-proof for very long, and I 
 have yet to meet the official who can afford to fill up the holes 
 in his compound with kerosene when it costs perhaps £2 a tin ! 
 Nor has any one in Northern Nigeria the chance to retire under 
 mosquito curtains at sundown every night — the only time 
 available for recreation is between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., and 
 even were one never to go out to dinner, he would often 
 have work of some kind to do in the evening. Still, the local 
 Government does its best for the officials, and the medical staff 
 is a body composed of able and conscientious men (and having 
 once been a medical student myself, I can sympathise with their 
 aims, even though I may think their recommendations in some 
 cases impracticable), for on the whole the doctors and nurses 
 have worked wonders in West Africa. The Colonial Office, too, 
 is quite as anxious to improve the conditions, and, after all, most 
 who go to West Africa expect a certain amount of discomfort 
 and hardship. 
 
 Tho§e men who serve in cantonments are very much better 
 off as regards quarters and food, but their expenses are consider- 
 ably heavier than those which the " bush-whackers " have to bear, 
 so things even out fairly well on the whole. And there is no 
 doubt that when a man is back home again, his knowledge of the 
 interior may stand him in good stead if he has taken the trouble 
 to study, while those who have had experience only of the office- 
 chairs in cantonments cannot be said to have any knowledge of 
 true West African conditions. A man can read reports or add 
 up figures in England, it is only the traveller in little-known 
 villages who can enter into the underlying charm, it is only he 
 who can get to know the real West Africa. 
 
 29 
 
CHAPTER III 
 UP COUNTRY 
 
 I WAS not longer than a month in Lokoja, though I managed 
 to get fever twice during that time, and I was then ordered 
 to the Ilorin Province, a Yoruba country which had been 
 conquered by the Filani. 
 
 From Lokoja, where the Benue meets the Niger, it is usually 
 necessary to change to a smaller boat except in the wet season, for 
 the volume of water is naturally very much less above the con- 
 fluence, but as there were only two of us now on board it did not 
 matter. It took some three days to reach Mureji where the 
 Kaduna flows in, and there I disembarked, as the rest of the 
 journey was to be by land. An old hulk served as quarters for 
 the Marine Superintendent there, and I did not envy him his lot, 
 for the tin roof made the place like an oven, while the sandflies 
 were absolutely awful. His only exercise consisted in walking up 
 and down a sandbank, his only excitement the passing up or down 
 of passengers like myself, who caused him trouble in that he had 
 to arrange for their transport. 
 
 I found on arrival that no arrangements had been made from 
 Lokoja for my journey, for all the Marine men being ill, the 
 department was run for the time by the Cantonment Magistrate, 
 and he did not know much about it. But the Superintendent at 
 Mureji, being a decent sort, lent me his native interpreter, and I 
 went over to the other side to bargain for carriers and a horse, 
 and at last I managed to complete my arrangements and get off, 
 though not without trouble, for the chief (a Mohammedan) was 
 usually too drunk to understand. I knew nothing of any of the 
 native languages, my boys were both from Southern Nigeria and 
 were as ignorant as I, no interpreter had been provided, I had no 
 escort nor guard of any kind to look after the carriers, and we had 
 
 30 
 
UP COUNTRY 
 
 to pass first through Nupe and then through Yoruba towns. 
 The result was that I seldom got oft' before eleven in the morning 
 instead of at daylight, and so had all the heat of the day to travel 
 in, and I seldom managed to cover more than ten miles before 
 dark, and about half the carriers would run away each day, and I 
 had to get others as best I could. Yet I enjoyed it, for it was an 
 experience, and I used to ride with the Hausa Grammar in my 
 hand, so that by the end of the fifth day, when I reached Ilorin, I 
 had begun to understand a little here and there. In fact by this 
 means I learned the language much faster than my boys did, and 
 this rather surprised me, because the native's good ear and memory, 
 and the greater necessity for knowing what to ask for directly, 
 usually make him a great linguist. Probably it was on account 
 of the fact that the boys could converse with each other in their 
 own language, and so were not so ready to learn a new one ; had 
 there been only one Ijo amongst them he would quickly have 
 mastered the local tongues in order to converse with his fellows, 
 for a native must talk to some one. 
 
 While at Ilorin I saw in the Government Gazette a notice of 
 the Hausa Scholarship at Cambridge, and made up my mind to 
 work for it, and luckily, I managed afterwards to be ready just 
 when it became vacant — and that really led to the commencement 
 of my anthropological work. It is rather a pity that the Scholar- 
 ship has been allowed to lapse, for it is more imperative than 
 ever that a Political or a Police Officer should have a knowledge 
 of the language, but the Hausa Association came to an end, 
 and with it the i?80 per annum at Christ's College, though 
 a prize is to be given there every five years for an Essay on West 
 African work. 
 
 Ilorin is now an important station on the Lagos-Jebba Railway, 
 but there were no bungalows when I was there, and we lived in a 
 street of square mud houses, some having two, some three rooms, 
 with verandahs in front and behind. It was a pretty station, and 
 was supposed to be fairly healthy, but it did not suit me at all as 
 I had fever every few weeks, though perhaps the place was not 
 wholly responsible, for I had never really got rid of the malaria 
 which I had contracted in Ashanti. The two kinds were quite 
 
 31 
 
UP COUNTRY 
 
 different in my case, for the Ashanti fever was like ague in that i 
 made me shiver violently, my teeth being almost driven throug] 
 my jaws, and exhaustion coming afterwards; whereas the kin. 
 which I had in Northern Nigeria (and still have each month) mad 
 me feel tired and bruised all over to start with, and there were in 
 shivering fits, but, on the contrary, a feeling of being boiled, 
 do not mean to say that these cases are typical, for there ar 
 many kinds in both countries ; I merely mention my own persona 
 experience. 
 
 Work now commenced in earnest, as our role had been dis 
 covered at last, and I began enlisting men for the police as fast a 
 I could get them. I had no stationery, and was driven t 
 making up enlistment and other forms mainly from my privat 
 supplies of notepaper, and I remember my disgust one morninj 
 when, after having been hard at it all the previous day, one o 
 my kittens ruined a pile of completed papers, and the whole lo 
 had to be done again. By the way, I forgot to mention thes 
 kittens. I brought out three of them in a large parrot-cage, am 
 also a fox-terrier, and now and then on the march I used to pu 
 the dog in the cage too when she got tired. In addition to th 
 kittens and the dog, there were often in the cage a couple c 
 fowls for food during the day, that being the number usuall 
 presented by the chief of each town at which I halted. At firs 
 the occupants were slightly distrustful of each other, but the 
 soon made friends, and the dog and the cats always used to slee 
 together in my camp chair afterwards. The fowls, I fear, nevt 
 lived long enough to become really intimate with their fellow 
 lodgers. 
 
 I am not at all sure that it is kind to take out English dog 
 Certainly it is not unless you are prepared to pay a special boy 1 
 look after them. On my next trip I brought two, and the misei 
 they were in when going up river made me determine never 1 
 bring another. Even when kept under mosquito curtains the 
 are continually being bitten, a large stinging mangrove fly beiii 
 their particular enemy by day, and they seldom have much spir 
 left after a few months in country near a river. But I cou 
 never understand any one keeping monkeys. I had a very sms 
 
 32 
 
Dusky Beauties 
 
 At least their own men think them so. The girl on the left, Isa, was from Bornu, the 
 other three were pagan slaves freed from Filani owners at Ilorin. The broad Hausa hats 
 worn by Nos. i and 3 are a good protection against the sun. Three of these women are 
 wearing English blouses in addition to their Hausa cloths. 
 
UP COUNTRY 
 
 one and also a sloth at Prahsu in Ashanti, but the monkey was 
 too young and died, and the other pet disappeared during a 
 temporary absence. I found out afterwards that the monkey had 
 been eaten by my boys, and no doubt the sloth also found a 
 human grave. 
 
 I had hired a mare at one of the towns en route to ride to 
 Ilorin, none of the horses being available apparently, and seeing 
 another farther on I bought it, and also the one I was riding. 
 This I soon found out was a mistake, as I could never go out 
 riding with any one else. One lives and learns in West Africa. 
 
 After the submission of Kano and Sokoto in 1903, there was 
 an idea that Northern Nigeria had become so peaceful that police 
 could be substituted for Waffs (as the West African Frontier 
 Force is called), and as the civil force would cost less than a 
 quarter of the military one the idea was gladly (and of course 
 rightly) fostered by those having an interest in keeping down the 
 expenditure of the country. It seems strange that such a mistake 
 could have been made, but it was made, and by people who had 
 had much experience of the country, and so firmly fixed had the 
 idea become that when I applied for money to build mud huts for 
 the men I was enlisting, I was told that we were to have the 
 Waffs 1 barracks, and that no Government money was therefore 
 to be spent on new ones for the police. It was in vain that I 
 pointed out that the Waffs had not yet left, and that the men 
 I was enlisting could not live up trees meanwhile. The reply was 
 always to the same effect, and in the end I had to put my hand 
 in my own pocket and buy tie-tie — native rope or bark — &c, and 
 set the men at making grass shelters. This was in July 1903 ; 
 the Waffs actually did leave in 1905, if I remember rightly, and 
 were recalled a few months afterwards owing to threatened trouble 
 with some of the surrounding natives, who, as soon as they saw 
 that the soldiers had gone, commenced playing up. Ilorin was 
 supposed, and I believe still is supposed, to be the most peaceful 
 province in the country; if it is impossible to do without a 
 garrison there, it will be very many years before police can take 
 the place of soldiers elsewhere. Later on, the police were trans- 
 formed into constabulary with second-hand carbines, guns, and 
 
 33 c 
 
UP COUNTRY * 
 
 Maxims, but they were reconverted in 1907, and they exist now 
 mostly for the purpose of providing escorts for Residents and 
 prisoners (with rather different duties, of course), and for the 
 suppression of the slave trade. They are useful arid necessary, 
 but it seems a pity to confuse the functions of the two 'branches 
 of the service, and if the police officers have to be responsible for 
 legal and judicial work, and must act as sheriffs in addition to 
 performing the purely police duties, they will not have much time 
 to train their men to learn what to do in time of war. To send 
 untrained men into action with unreliable weapons and insufficient 
 ammunition seems to me little short of murder, and if it is unfair 
 to the Europeans who go out knowing the danger, it is even more 
 unfair to the recruits under them who have had no experience, 
 and place a blind trust in their white leaders. 
 
 Soon after my arrival I went on a little tour with the object 
 of picking up some recruits, and on my return some eight or ten 
 days afterwards with about a dozen found that as many more had 
 come in from other parts, and so I quickly made up the sixty or 
 so required. 
 
 On tour I passed through the Yoruba towns of Oke Ode and 
 Igbaja, at the former managing to buy a queer head-dress in the 
 shape of a helmet surmounted by a man riding a horse, all in 
 leather, covered with cowrie shells, and said to be worn by priests. 
 The name of this man was Dada, I was told, and he drove the evil 
 spirits from the town once a year; I suppose the object was a 
 representation of some deity, but I am not sure. Another interest- 
 ing object was a wooden figure of a girl kneeling down with a 
 calabash on her head. This my informant told me was the god- 
 dess of hunting, though if so I do not quite see why she should be 
 carrying grain ; but it may be so, for the Hausawa, or Hausas, as 
 we call them, have a similar goddess called " Corn-mother." I 
 secured also some small figures which were said to represent dead 
 children, the images being made to prevent the surviving brothers 
 and sisters feeling lonely. Whether this was done only in the case 
 of the death of a twin or in every case I do not know ; in fact, I 
 understood nothing of the Yoruba speech and so little of the 
 Hausa tongue at the time that the few particulars I remember of 
 
 34 
 
UP COUNTRY 
 
 what I was told about the above figures are quite valueless scientifi- 
 cally, though some readers may be able to recognise them from 
 the photograph, or may see them in the Cambridge Ethnological 
 Museum, and may be able to confirm or contradict what I have 
 here written. I was full of fever even then, 'and after less than 
 four months in Ilorin was invalided to England, so I had no 
 further opportunity of inquiring into the subject, being posted to 
 another district on my return. This system — or lack of system — 
 seems a most unfortunate one, as just when a man has begun to 
 know something of the people under him (and that takes time), he 
 is moved off to another part of the country where he has not only 
 to begin again, but usually to be careful to forget all he has 
 learned before, lest his reading of the ideas of the new tribe 
 should be influenced by those formed in the atmosphere of the 
 old one. There may be certain resemblances if both the peoples 
 have been ruled by the Filani for a long time ; there will be very 
 few if the tribes are still unconquered and are not friendly towards 
 each other. 
 
 I found in October that I had been lucky enough to raise the 
 first complete detachment in the country — I usually could attract 
 natives to my service when once I had become known — and within 
 a couple of months my little force was over strength, and soon 
 afterwards I was asked to send spare men to other provinces ; and 
 this happened in spite of the fact that we had no uniform. Gaudy 
 clothes are, of course, a great attraction to natives, and they are 
 usually responsible for the enlistment of at least one-half of the 
 recruits. And why not? Although we smile at the native for 
 this, even in England we love a brilliant uniform (think of our 
 country brass bands), and it is my opinion that the falling-off of 
 recruits for the army is due in a great measure to the fact that 
 kharki is worn so much. Why should kharki be seen in the 
 streets ? It is excellent for work, but it should be kept for those 
 times only. An engine-driver does not pretend to look clean in 
 his oily " untearables " ; why should the soldier have to wear his 
 filthy kharki, except when at work ? A man can never look well 
 in it except when it is absolutely new, and even then he looks 
 hardly more respectable than the borough watering-cart man, and 
 
 35 
 
UP COUNTRY 
 
 is usually outshone by a chauffeur, and even more by a hotel hall- 
 porter. The knowledge of this makes him ashamed of his uniform, 
 and to some extent the service it represents suffers in consequence. 
 Let him show off the red or the blue which he is proud of wearing, 
 and he will indicate the fact in his carriage and his manner 
 generally, and other men will want to wear it too. Everybody, 
 white or black, likes show, everybody likes glitter ; it is useless 
 to deny the fact, it is human nature. Thousands will admire a 
 monarch in uniform, while a president in mufti in the same pro- 
 cession will pass unnoticed, and those men who decry this failing 
 have usually a particularly gaudy dress which even they them- 
 selves graciously consent to wear occasionally — and are strangely 
 anxious for decorations on it too — or else they don some extra- 
 ordinary attire that will secure their being noticed at all times. 
 Even in our churches the apostles are never depicted in the clothes 
 which they probably wore, but in most brilliant garments which, 
 being but poor men, they could not possibly have afforded. We 
 like to have those we honour worth looking at, and the higher 
 they are the better we expect them to appear. There is this 
 difference between the tastes of white men and women, namely, 
 that women (and native men) love glitter simply for the sake of 
 the glitter, European men value it for what it means, though* the 
 greater the amount of gold lace the higher the rank, usually, at 
 any rate in olden times. Women long for a diamond necklace or 
 pendant "because it is so pretty"; men prize a star because it 
 signifies good service in some capacity or other. We see in the 
 streets messenger-boys covered with more medals than a Crimean 
 veteran, hall-porters wearing field-officers 1 caps and sleeves, and 
 tramwaymen (in Bournemouth at any rate) wearing corporal's 
 rank-badges. In fact, in that same southern city the men who 
 look after the chairs on the beach are known as "authorised 
 officers. 11 It is a great pity to cheapen the uniform and the grades 
 of rank, and to make them look ridiculous in this manner, and a 
 Uniform Proclamation seems as badly wanted in England as in 
 Nigeria, especially since medals are but seldom given for active 
 service in West Africa nowadays. 
 
 In a new country such as Northern Nigeria one cannot expect 
 
 36 
 
UP COUNTRY 
 
 too much in the way of organisation ; and though there were many 
 glowing reports about the substitution of the police for the soldiers, 
 the sums for the provision of uniforms, accoutrements, &c, were 
 not so easy to get at. I borrowed some carbines from the officer 
 commanding the Waff Company, and after a time I even managed 
 to get some military capes from headquarters (the buttons being, 
 however, forgotten), and it was a strange sight to see a guard turn- 
 ing out with great solemnity in capes (hooked only at the neck, 
 and showing an expanse of bare black tummy beneath), and Yoruba 
 caps and loin-cloths, the men quite believing that they were a very 
 important part of the forces of the Empire ! I can hardly look at 
 the photograph now without smiling, but it would never have done 
 to have shown my amusement then, for they would have been hurt 
 and discouraged, and I do not think that I wanted to smile then 
 either, for honest endeavour is always worthy of respect, and, also, 
 I was perhaps as keen as they were. 
 
 The Yoruba has been given very different characters by different 
 men; some say that he is very brave, and certainly in the last 
 Ashanti Expedition Yoruba soldiers did splendidly ; others hold 
 that he is not, and point to regrettable incidents. There is no 
 doubt that the Yoruba is much cleaner and smarter in every way 
 than the Hausa or Nupe, and in a company containing, say fifty 
 Hausas, fifty Nupes, and ten Yorubas, at least five of the latter 
 would be N.C.O.'s. Perhaps this is due to some extent to the fact 
 that the Yoruba is a much merrier soul than the others, he catches 
 the eye sooner, he is more careful about his appearance, he salutes 
 smartly (and that always goes a great way towards promotion), and 
 he is a good drill. Whether he is braver, or is even as brave 
 as the Hausa, and whether he is as good under continued hard- 
 ships, is not so certain ; I think on the whole the latter is to be 
 preferred, but it is a strange fact that the Hausas have never been 
 able to do much unless led by strangers (the Filani, or us), whereas 
 most other tribes have done well under their own commanders. 
 
 I had several old soldiers amongst the police recruits, they 
 being usually appointed to act as N.C.O.'s to instruct their more 
 ignorant comrades, and it was amusing at times to hear them 
 showing off their knowledge of English, in which language the 
 
 37 
 
UP COUNTRY 
 
 executive words of command are always given. Some of these 
 instructors pronounced the usual orders in very good English, but 
 if explanations were required afterwards, there was usually rather 
 a hash. For instance : — 
 
 " Company will move to the ri— t in fours ; form fours, ri — t." 
 And then, if a mistake was made, " Wass matta, you, Ojo, you no 
 sabby um proppa, you fool-man too much." 
 
 Others had to give all the embellishments in their native 
 tongue, which might be Hausa, Nupe, or Yoruba, such as, taking 
 the first tongue : — 
 
 " Company will advance — berri, berri, sai na gaya ma-ku. By 
 the left — Kai Momo, ba ka iya berri ba ? Quick march. Han- 
 kalli, hankalli, duba hagunku." 
 
 But I think one of the funniest was a Yoruba corporal whose 
 little knowledge of English proved a very dangerous thing to him, 
 for while really shamefully abusing himself, he quite thought that 
 he was venting his justifiable anger and contempt upon the recruit. 
 As the latter believed it also, perhaps no harm was done, but it 
 was difficult to keep a straight face when this sort of thing 
 went on : — 
 
 " Wass matta me-you no sabby ri — t turn ? Me-you no sabby 
 nofing ; me-you damn fool too much ! " 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 HEADQUARTERS 
 
 I ARRIVED back from sick leave in June 1904, and as I had 
 been promoted during my absence to be Staff Officer of 
 Police — which, strangely enough, was a rank, not merely an 
 appointment — I now proceeded to headquarters at Zungeru. The 
 Police soon afterwards became Constabulary, and though the new 
 name was, no doubt, an improvement on the old one, the pay and 
 duties remained the same, so there was no real advantage. 
 
 Lokoja was the first and the most natural capital, as every one 
 coming to Northern Nigeria in the old days had to pass through 
 this town. But later on it was considered to be too far to the 
 south, and that a site nearer the great Filani Empire of Sokoto 
 ought to be chosen, and so Jebba was fixed upon as the head- 
 quarters when the Government took over the control from the 
 Niger Company in 1900, and it remained so for some three years, 
 except during a temporary period of aberration at Kwendon, 
 which is not now known to fame except for the amount of 
 cement wasted there. Jebba, however, became unsuitable in many 
 respects, especially after Kano and Bornu had come under control, 
 and Dungeru (altered to Zungeru because Z looked "more 
 native") was the next, a small village in a poor country, hard 
 to get at, and always short of food. It was an unhappy selection, 
 and ever since envious eyes have been cast on Zaria, an ideal 
 situation in my opinion, and it is quite possible that headquarters 
 may be established there later. 
 
 In case the above remarks appear to be too severe, let me add 
 that these changes were not at all merely at the whims and fancies 
 of the High Commissioner. Although unsuitable as far as health 
 was concerned, political and military reasons made a move to the 
 north necessary, and the High Commissioner could not possibly 
 
HEADQUARTERS 
 
 know everything about the country ; besides, Jebba was the old 
 Waff headquarters, and Sir Frederick Lugard could afford to make 
 some mistakes in his choice of a capital, for his administration 
 otherwise was magnificent. His knowledge of the details of every 
 department was astonishing; and although he expected every 
 official to do two men's work on half-a-man's pay, he set the 
 example himself by covering an amount of ground that would 
 keep six ordinary persons occupied even in a healthy country. 
 A [very dark, intense-looking man, one felt that he knew his 
 business — and yet, I think, he was sometimes imposed upon by 
 persons who understood the art of talking quite as well as (or 
 even better than) the art of working. I suppose every one has. 
 a weak spot which can be found by an expert, and no doubt 
 I have often been taken in myself when least expecting it. I 
 remember, at Sierra Leone receiving presents of bananas from 
 a private of the West African Regiment who was always on 
 the spot asking if he could not do something or other for me. 
 I wanted to pay him for the fruit, but he refused to accept 
 anything, saying that I was his father and mother and a few 
 other people, and that his gifts were made solely on account of 
 his natural love and affection for me. I was very much pleased 
 to find a contradiction to the arguments of some of the officers 
 who (having had more experience of the Coast) said that there 
 was no such thing as gratftude in the negro's nature, but after 
 a few days the man asked me when he was going to get his 
 stripe, and I remembered that there was a vacancy for a lance- 
 corporal. He did not get it, poor fellow — such disinterested 
 concern for my wants seemed worthy of a better reward — but 
 I paid him the full market price for what he had given me, 
 and, strange to say, my relationship as father, mother, protector 
 and a few other people seemed before long to have entirely faded 
 from his mind. 
 
 I did not remain in Zungeru very long, but went to Lokoja, 
 and was soon afterwards appointed to act as Assistant-Commis- 
 sioner; but I paid a visit to the capital at Christmas time in 
 order to be examined in the Lower Standard in Hausa, being 
 fortunate enough to be placed first on the list. I had passed 
 
 40 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 SHjKik, 
 
 4§S^^^V N> -v/'jrifc* r _^J&p8i 
 
 1&3K 
 
 ^SSSiS^Ss^A^^il^ 
 
 PB^^^rw'^- ."1 
 
 \i*? : ' v 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Hnp 
 
 V 
 
 
 Ml m 
 
 
 
 ■ - ' ■ ° . • 
 
 
 
 • 
 
 ■ ■; . 
 
 ..... -' ' 
 
 
 A New Force 
 
 When I raised the Police in Ilorin there were only four sets of uniform available, and 
 these were worn by the N.C.O.'s. Military capes (minus the buttons) had been provided, 
 however, and the P.C.'s wore these over their ordinary native dress. 
 
HEADQUARTERS 
 
 the army examination in French during my leave, so that made 
 two languages for the year. 
 
 My first patrol (a miniature one) in Northern Nigeria was in 
 March 1905, when I took a small detachment of constabulary to 
 the Kukuruku country inland from Egori, and near the Southern 
 Nigerian border. The chief of a certain town (I forget the name 
 now) had committed a murder according to Our ideas, and he 
 was wanted by us in Lokoja for trial. It appeared that on the 
 anniversary of his father's death he had ordered one of his followers 
 to shoot a stranger with a Dane-gun (to join the late chief in the 
 realms of bliss, I suppose), and had threatened to kill him 
 instead if he did not do so. Of course the wretched follower, 
 in terror of his own life, shot the honoured guest, and then the 
 chief, fearing trouble with us, seized his man and sent him to 
 Lokoja accused of the murder. I sent for the chief, but he hid 
 himself. I again sent for him, and the two police constables 
 who took the message were fired upon, so it was time to do 
 something. I therefore took a dozen men down the river and 
 disembarked at Egori, and a couple of days later we attacked 
 the place, marching from a town called Asseh by moonlight. 
 Luckily for us we were not seriously opposed, as after one shot 
 from them they fled to the bush, and we were unable to pursue 
 them. We burned the town, however, and later on the chief was 
 captured, and the district had a much-needed reminder of the 
 white man's suzerainty. On our side we had a casualty ; my horse, 
 which soon after our return to Lokoja died through having been 
 bitten by tsetse-flies, a great curse south of the Benue, except in 
 the Muri and Yola provinces, where horses can be kept alive with 
 care. I believe I was the first European to keep his horse at 
 Amar during the wet season, my horse-boy smearing the animal 
 with a mixture of tobacco, onions, and grease every morning and 
 evening. 
 
 At one of the towns which I passed when returning to Egori 
 I was called upon to try my first case by native custom. It 
 appeared that one of the parties had given the other a goat 
 to keep for him, and that there had been a dispute about the 
 offspring. Both agreed that in such cases the first kid became 
 
 41 
 
HEADQUARTERS 
 
 the property of the person looking after the goat, and that the 
 second belonged to the real owner of the mother, but whereas 
 the owner said that he was entitled to the third also, the other 
 man contended that the custom in such circumstances was for 
 the people concerned to take the kids alternately. I asked the 
 chiefs of the respective claimants (parties always appear with, and 
 sometimes give their evidence through, theii' chiefs) what the 
 usage was, and on being informed by both that the owner was 
 in the wrong, had no difficulty in giving judgment accordingly. 
 But cases are not always so easily settled, and European travellers 
 are often placed in positions of difficulty, for they are nearly 
 always called upon to judge some case or other, either because 
 the contestants have no faith in the justice of their chief, or 
 because the latter is afraid of incurring the hostility of one 
 party or the other and is only too glad to get out of his awkward 
 position, or again because the white man is regarded by all as a 
 messenger from the gods, or as a resurrected ancestor. 
 
 At Asseh, where I stayed a day and left my horse when going 
 to the Kukuruku town — the road being too rough for him — many 
 of the adult women were stark naked, although the people seemed 
 of quite a good type, and although there was a French mission in 
 the town, and this is the only district where I have noticed this, 
 adult women at any rate wearing some kind of protection or other, 
 even if it consisted only of leaves, though young girls go quite 
 naked in almost every part of Northern Nigeria. 
 
 After the little trip to the Kukuruku country I visited 
 Dekina to inspect the Bassa detachment of Constabulary, and in 
 the April following I was appointed to act as Commissioner in 
 command of the Constabulary, which consisted of 1210 officers 
 and men. 
 
 On this I again returned to Zungeru, travelling up the river in 
 a " swine," with most of my heavy kit in a canoe lashed to the side 
 — a most unfortunate arrangement, as the waterproof sheet caught 
 fire, and the boxes were swamped by the wash of the " swine," so 
 that when I opened them I found pieces of my kodak, soap, papers, 
 &c, floating about anyhow, boots, sword-belt, and other leather 
 articles in a beautiful state of mould, and collars stained in most 
 
 42 
 
HEADQUARTERS 
 
 brilliant tints, and useless then, though quite the height of fashion 
 
 i now, perhaps. 
 
 f I rather enjoyed being head of a department, and did not at 
 all like relinquishing the command four months later. But I do 
 not think that my ideas of the position quite equalled the imagina- 
 tion of the native clerks who sent a petition to the Acting High 
 Commissioner, Mr. (now Sir William) Wallace, asking that he him- 
 self should lay the chief foundation stone of their new church, and 
 that twelve Heads of Departments should lay lesser ones. For 
 obvious reasons this was refused, though we all turned up in force 
 to see our popular chief trying to look serious for the occasion, 
 and to admire the latest fashions worn by the coloured gentlemen 
 and their mammies. 
 
 * Some little time before, sports contests had been arranged 
 between Zungeru and Lokoja, in horse-racing, shooting, polo and 
 lawn tennis, and in the September the Lokoja teams arrived for a 
 week's amusement, the Zungeru representatives having visited 
 them the year previously. I played in the lawn-tennis match, and 
 this was my only appearance in these contests, as I was never in 
 headquarters again on the dates when they took place. It is quite 
 a good idea, for a holiday and change of air during the tour does 
 one a lot of good, but unfortunately military officers are usually 
 the only ones who can take these little jaunts, most of the civilians 
 having no one who can do their special work in their absence. 
 
 I had a trip to Kontagora to inspect the detachment there, and 
 brought back a gun which had been handed over by the Waff 
 detachment. It was, of course, very heavy, and the rivers were 
 full, and crossing in a canoe weighed down to within half an inch 
 of the gunwale made me exceedingly uncomfortable. However, 
 there were no regrettable incidents in connection with the big gun, 
 though there was a nasty accident with the small one. 
 
 I usually started my marches before daybreak, especially if 
 intending to do over a dozen miles, and as there was often a 
 chance of getting a partridge or a guinea-fowl near one of the 
 villages, or near water after dawn, my house-boy, Momo Kano, was 
 given the double-barrelled gun to carry, with orders to keep up 
 close behind me. He had always done so before, but one morning 
 
 43 
 
HEADQUARTERS 
 
 when returning from Kontagora he put it, loaded, on top of the 
 pile of chairs, catching it in the rope so that it should not slip out. 
 While halted for breakfast I saw a brace of birds walking in the 
 grass quite close to where I was sitting, so I called for the gun, 
 and Momo, in a hurry, and not looking what he was doing, caught 
 it by the muzzle. Suddenly there was a report, and something 
 swished by me, and then there was a yell, and I saw poor Momo 
 lying on the ground. I found that about one-half of the charge 
 had passed through his knee, and that he had lost part of the palm 
 of one hand, the hammer having evidently been caught in one of 
 the ropes binding the chairs together. It was a wonder that he 
 escaped with his life. He was, of course, quite unable to 'walk, 
 and was in awful pain, so I constructed a hammock with a water- 
 proof sheet, and had lum carried to the next stage. We had 
 still two days to travel to reach Zungeru, and the agony that 
 poor boy must have suffered can only be imagined (I could 
 sympathise with him, having had a night and a day in an ambu- 
 lance waggon in South Africa, after a bullet had gone through my 
 ankle), and it was a great relief to hand him over to one of the 
 doctors at the native hospital on arrival. The accident was due 
 entirely to his own disobedience, so I had nothing to blame myself 
 with, but no matter what is the cause, one feels just as sorry when 
 the harm is done, especially when one cannot do much to ease 
 the pain. 
 
 By the way, a waterproof sheet is one of the most useful things 
 which one can take to West Africa. When in quarters it acts as 
 a carpet, or as a ceiling, or if the roof of a hut be leaky, the sheet 
 can be tied on outside. When travelling in the rains it is almost 
 indispensable, protecting special loads (particularly stationery or 
 bedding) when on the march, or if large enough, it may be con- 
 verted into a raft or a hammock, and it is an excellent adjunct to 
 a tent, either outside the fly, on the ground, or arranged so as to 
 form a verandah in front. Last of all, if a trench is dug (as for a 
 raft), the sheet can be placed in it and then filled with water, and 
 a very excellent bath is the result. It should be of Willesden 
 canvas, and as large and strong as possible, the cost of the extra 
 weight being well repaid by the gain in the utility of the article. 
 
 44 
 
HEADQUARTERS 
 
 In the October following I went to Zaria to sit for the Higher 
 Standard in Hausa, and I was very anxious to pass, as no one had 
 up to that time been successful. I got through only one-half, 
 and although the examiner wrote very nice things to Sir Frederick 
 about my industry, this partial failure proved very unfortunate, as I 
 had to wait over three years before being able to go to Zaria again 
 to complete the examination. At that time all the tests were con- 
 ducted by Dr. Miller of the C.M.S., a very fine Hausa scholar, and 
 it was only by going to Zaria, where he was stationed, or by meet- 
 ing him when passing through Zungeru, that candidates could be 
 tested. Needless to say, it was often impossible for an official to 
 leave his work for a period long enough to enable him to visit 
 Zaria (a fortnight from Zungeru), and he might be on leave when 
 Dr. Miller was passing through headquarters, so very few had the 
 opportunity of being examined. Now, Boards composed of any one 
 who has passed, or even single individuals, conduct the tests, so 
 candidates are more likely to be able to arrange, but whereas 
 Dr. Miller maintained a high and a uniform standard, there seems 
 to have been a sad falling off since in both directions. Still, 
 examinations ought not to be too difficult in such a country, for 
 the long hours necessary for the performance of official duties, the 
 heat, and the general discomfort are not conducive to extra brain 
 work, the " stewing " being naturally more bodily than mental. 
 
 Momo started off with me to Zaria, refusing to be left behind, 
 but he fell on a sharp rock en route, and I had to arrange for him 
 to stay at a native village, picking him up on my return. When 
 I went on leave I again placed him in hospital, and he was quite 
 happy this time, winding and rewinding a cuckoo-clock, which 
 lasted exactly two days, I was told afterwards. 
 
 Momo was not the only cripple on the journey, though, for 
 I had erysipelas in both my legs before leaving Zungeru, and 
 I rather dreaded the ride to Zaria ; in fact the doctor attending 
 the "case" wanted to invalid me to England, and it was only 
 after great argument that he consented to certify me as fit to go. 
 And my arguments proved to be correct, for although I started 
 off wearing long Hausa boots of soft leather, not being able to 
 endure the hard English articles, within a week I was quite well, 
 
 45 
 
HEADQUARTERS 
 
 the benefit from the change of air more than counteracting 
 the irritation of the saddle and stirrups. Men stationed in the 
 bush have a great advantage over their comrades in the canton- 
 ments, and those in the political department score over those 
 in the secretariat, in that they have to do a certain amount of 
 touring, and at one time this fact was recognised in the times of 
 service, the former having to do eighteen months in the country, 
 the latter only twelve. There is still a difference, for every one 
 now has to serve for a year actually in his station, unless pre- 
 viously invalided, of course, and so those who have to travel 
 further do not begin to count their tours of duty so soon as those 
 staying at Lokoja or Zungeru. Still, all these arrangements 
 are merely theoretical, for invaliding interferes with them very 
 badly at times, and I remember that while I was acting as 
 Commissioner of Police we had four districts without any officer 
 at all, though one and a half were allowed for each province. 
 
 At Zaria I had my first experience of a real harmattan, which 
 lasts from the end of October to the end of March (correspond- 
 ing, of course, to the dry season), though it varies very much in 
 density. It is a wind from the Sahara, and is in consequence 
 extremely dry — so dry, in fact, that men's lips and skin crack, and 
 their throats and noses become very sore. An extremely fine 
 dust is usually held suspended in the air, which at times is almost 
 motionless, and this may cause such a haze (hazo is the Hausa 
 name, strangely enough) that it is extremely difficult to dis- 
 tinguish objects even at a hundred yards 1 distance. The tempera- 
 ture, too, becomes lowered, a great-coat and perhaps also a 
 sweater being necessary between the hours of 5 p.m. and 9 a.m., 
 though the rest of the day is hot enough to suit most people. 
 The cold nights are extremely refreshing, and this is much the 
 best season of the year for travelling, since one can be certain of 
 keeping dry, and most of even the big rivers will not be very 
 formidable. It is only in the Sudan that the real harmattan 
 is met with, for as one gets nearer to the sea-coast it is not so 
 much pronounced, and on the actual coast-line there seems to be 
 more vapour than dust. I enjoyed the Zaria harmattan very 
 much, a hot day and a cold night being the very height of bliss 
 
 46 
 
HEADQUARTERS 
 
 (as any one who has lived in Australia will agree), but many men 
 dislike it exceedingly, as they — and most natives — suffer more 
 with fever and chest affections at that time than at any other. 
 A bungalow is quite alarming at this time, the rapid change of 
 temperature (perhaps over 40° in twelve hours) causing the tin 
 roofs to bend in and out with loud reports, any empty kerosene 
 tins in the neighbourhood joining in the chorus. 
 
 After the examination I returned to Zungeru, and then to 
 ^England vid Lokoja, as well as I had ever been during the tour 
 of over eighteen months' duration, and the sea air completed the 
 cure. With the return to civilisation one has to bind oneself up 
 , again in tight collars and braces, and very uncomfortable they 
 feel at first. But at the end of a tour one will put up with a good 
 many little inconveniences to get home, for although West Africa 
 is a beautiful and a fascinating land, England is not such a bad 
 country either. 
 
 47 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 I RETURNED to Northern Nigeria in July 1906, and went 
 to Amar, the then headquarters of the Muri province, on 
 the Benue river, a poisonous spot which has since been 
 abandoned. 
 
 During my leave I had put in two terms at Christ's College, 
 Cambridge, under the Hausa Scholarship conditions, and had 
 passed the examinations at Hythe in Musketry (being fortunate 
 enough to be placed second on the list), at Erith in the Maxim 
 gun, at Woolwich in Transport, and at London for an Army 
 Interpreter's certificate in Hausa. And although rather pleased 
 at the time, I feel now that it was a mistake to have done so 
 much, for I had only some twenty-one days' holiday out of the 
 leave of over six months in England, and I went back to West 
 Africa feeling tired before I had recommenced my work there. 
 After a tour in the tropics a man wants a thorough rest, not more 
 worry, and although all who like to take courses of instruction 
 should receive some advantage afterwards in the matter of pay 
 and promotion, there ought to be no compulsion in the matter 
 as there is now, though the work I did was purely voluntary. 
 Unfortunately, it is by no means certain that such courses will 
 advantage one in any way, and until the process of promotion by 
 selection was checked some time ago there was very great dissatis- 
 faction. To some extent the regulations of the Colonial Office, as 
 regards civil officials not yet confirmed in their appointments, are 
 those of the Star Chamber, for a man who has served for less than 
 three years in West Africa can be accused, judged, and punished 
 without being able to say a word in his own defence. It is only 
 fair to state that such powers are but seldom used, but the powers 
 are there, the regulations being quite clear on the subject. 
 
 48 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 However, to return to the Benue. Some six of us left Lokoja 
 on the 8th of August in a stern-wheeler, and a week afterwards 
 arrived at A mar, or rather, Amara, as the natives called it — 
 though they could hardly be expected to know, of course. It is 
 difficult to conceive why such a spot was chosen ; the station was 
 established on a swamp, there was no decent landing-place, and 
 the native village, about two miles off, was not of any size. A 
 little to the south is Ibi, the old Niger Company's headquarters, 
 an important town on the trade routes, much more healthy, 
 accessible, and better in every way, yet it was deliberately aban- 
 doned for Amar, which has in turn been left, Ibi having again 
 come into its own. Somewhat similar errors were made in the 
 sites of Kontagora and (I am told) Yola, Kano, and other places, 
 but I can only write for, certain of those I myself have seen. 
 
 However, in the Year of Grace 1906 we were stationed at 
 Amar, so there I went and had to stay. There were two bungalows 
 in the station at that time, one having two, the other three 
 occupants, and as the new Resident was reported to be accom- 
 panied by his wife there was likely to be a squash, so I deter- 
 mined to build a mud house for myself, utilising some spare 
 galvanised iron for the roof, and covering it with grass mats to 
 keep it cool enough to be bearable. Luckily for me, a bricklayer, 
 trained by the Public Works Department, had just been im- 
 prisoned for assault or some such offence, so he was put to the 
 work of building the walls, having some other convicts to aid 
 him, and on the arrival of a party of carpenters from Yola just 
 about the time that the walls were finished, the roof was put on, 
 the whole being completed in less than a month. 
 
 The new Resident, who was an old acquaintance — we having 
 fought in the same district in South Africa, and having been 
 in the Portland Hospital together — arrived in the October follow- 
 ing, bringing his wife, the first white lady to come up so far. 
 Women are sometimes not too welcome at bush stations for 
 various considerations, but, as I have said before, if every man 
 could bring out wife or sister, the health statistics would show 
 a great improvement, and it is hard on the wives to be always 
 left behind. This lady quickly made herself welcome, and not 
 
 49 d 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 only were the signs of a woman's management soon evident in 
 'the arrangements of the Resident's table, but she used to give 
 our cooks lessons in cookery — an art of which, in spite of their 
 positions, they had been quite innocent up to that time. 
 
 Early in the October following I paid a visit to Wase, a large 
 town near the Bauchi border. It is mainly notable for a high 
 oblong rock, the Dutsm Wase, which can be seen for miles around, 
 being quite detached from the mountain chain a few miles to the 
 north, and standing up in the clear atmosphere like a thick 
 Cleopatra's Needle. It has the appearance of being covered with 
 snow, the white being due to the birds, and is altogether quite a 
 fine sight. It is, or was, of course, sacred, and all sorts of evils 
 were supposed to befall a man rash or impious enough to attempt 
 to climb it — a feat almost impossible of accomplishment on three 
 sides, and very difficult, though I believe possible, on the fourth. 
 It seems to be splitting asunder, but not knowing how many 
 years the rent has been in developing to its present extent, it is 
 impossible to say whether the rock will eventually come in two or 
 not. Possibly the fear of the spirits is inspired by the troops of 
 baboons which inhabit many of these high hills — Patti in Lokoja, 
 for instance — for one of the Assistant Residents then with me at 
 A mar was killed and thrown down by these animals from a some- 
 what similar mountain in Bauchi country the following year, the 
 reputation of the locality being, naturally, greatly enhanced since 
 even a white man was powerless against the Guardian Spirits. 
 
 At Wase I got fresh milk and butter, and they were very 
 welcome, being, with the exception of the delicacies obtained on 
 my visit to Zaria, the first I had ever had in Northern Nigeria. 
 The surrounding country is park-like, the trees being low and 
 sparse, the land fertile, and the climate fairly healthy. In the 
 vicinity are natural salt deposits, a very valuable asset, though 
 the native trade has, of course, suffered through the introduction 
 of our more refined article by white traders on the Benue. 
 
 The chief then in power was a handsome old man who had 
 fought us and been beaten ; he is, I think, dead now. It is the 
 custom with Filani for the chief and his great men to mount and 
 meet a distinguished stranger (which category, of course, includes 
 
 50 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 any official) some distance outside the town, and to escort him 
 with drumming and trumpeting to his lodging— often in the 
 chiefs own home, unless a rest-house has been built by the 
 Government. He then pays a ceremonial visit to the stranger, 
 and afterwards sends presents (sic), and these are later on paid 
 for by the recipient in cash or kind of equal value, and the visit 
 is returned. On the visitor's departure, the chief again escorts 
 him on his journey for about an hour, or as far as some river or 
 his boundary, or until told to return. In addition to the drum- 
 mers and trumpeters meeting the stranger, there are some Masu- 
 bamrmaganna (" makers of big words "), who call out in a loud 
 voice all the virtues, real or imaginary, of the stranger, the chief, 
 and the counsellors — and are suitably rewarded afterwards. Kola- 
 nuts nearly always form part of a ceremonial present, a great 
 number of them being brought overland through Sokoto and 
 French territory from Ashanti to the northern provinces, and 
 by sea to the southern districts and to Lagos, numbers of the 
 kola-nut traders being taken on board at various ports along 
 the Gold Coast. 
 
 On the King's birthday (November 24th in the Colonies) we 
 had "Garrison Sports" at Amar, the competitors being the 
 Waffs, the police, and the carpenters, the former winning the 
 greater number of the events, but being beaten in the great 
 "Half-mile Championship" by a police recruit, Allj^ Gishiri 
 (Alii " Salt "), so called by me on account of his previous occu- 
 pation, and to distinguish him from the numerous other Allis 
 in the detachment, who was quite a good man though not par- 
 ticularly intelligent. I here saw the Bull-fight for the first time, 
 but as it will be described in a later chapter I need not now 
 make further mention of it. 
 
 An amusing feature of these sports is " The Mammies' Race," 
 the various dusky wives and maidens, although exceedingly 
 bashful and coy when first persuaded to compete, ^making no 
 secret of their wish to win the prize when once they have started. 
 But let the officers holding the tape at the winning-post beware, 
 for sometimes one or two of the older ones pretend that they 
 cannot stop, and run into them on purpose, clasping them around 
 
 51 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 neck or waist, and wickedly trying to upset both their equilibriui 
 and their dignity. Another " good turn " is " nosing " for ton 
 (threepenny-pieces, sarcastically called elephants), in a pan ( 
 flour, the black perspiring faces of the contestants — whose hand 
 are tied behind their backs — presenting a weird spectacle whe 
 plastered with white, and reminding one of the Bundu girls i 
 Sierra Leone. 
 
 The trouble begins when the races are over, for no native ca 
 (or will) see that only the winners should have the prizes. " A 
 all ran all ought to have prizes " is their argument, and they wil 
 not be convinced to the contrary, while often their excuse for no 
 competing in an event is not that they cannot run well enougl 
 but simply that they did not receive anything on a previou 
 occasion. It is strange, too, because competitions for prizes ar 
 known to them ; had we introduced the idea one could accoun 
 for their not understanding it. 
 
 One of their contests is boxing or dambe, in which both hand 
 and feet are used. One hand is bandaged round and round so a 
 to be fairly soft — like a boxing glove — the other being eithe 
 held behind the back or used to ward off blows. Some of th 
 men are very clever at this game, making a feint with the fis 
 and then landing a foot even as high as the opponent's jaw 
 either by swinging the body to one side and bringing the lej 
 round at the same time as if falling, or even by jumping up ii 
 the air. It is very difficult to get any adult to do this for ai 
 exhibition, as, although they will encourage youths to hurt eacl 
 other, they seem to have a modest aversion to doing the sam 
 themselves. And yet no one can say that they are cowardly ii 
 any way, for they love a battle, and many of them hunt will 
 beasts, and the bull-fighting is dangerous enough to please any 
 body — even the spectators, for I have felt extremely uncomfort 
 able on several occasions when the men behind holding th 
 leg-rope did not stop the animal as soon as they had intended 
 and the rapid way in which the onlookers made themselve 
 scarce was quite worth seeing. 
 
 At Christmas time there were the usual celebrations. 1 
 Britisher always tries (and usually contrives) to get his turke 
 
 52 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 and " duff" for these times, wherever he may be. Plum-pudding 
 is slightly rich and heavy for the tropics, but no one could 
 develop a proper Christmas feeling without it, so it always forms 
 part of the menu; and for the other courses chop-boxes are 
 routed out for something that will resemble what we know our 
 people will be having at home. Duck, green peas, apple-sauce, 
 potatoes, asparagus, &c, may appear in the menu, and these do 
 not sound like roughing it ; alas, they come but seldom in the 
 bush, for the cost of transport puts a limit to the number of 
 chop-boxes brought up, and, even when these delicacies are pro- 
 curable, the ducks are mostly skin and bone, the peas are tinned, 
 pale, and tasteless, the potatoes are really yams or perhaps 
 dessicated chips, the apple-sauce is made from dried rings which 
 have lost their flavour, the asparagus is not very tasty, and the 
 butter is rancid. Still, there is one article of diet which one can 
 recognise, the onion, and that plays an important part in the 
 dishes of the West African. But what matters it? We have 
 met to eat, drink, and be merry, and we succeed in all, for we 
 cannot afford to waste any chances of enjoyment. I suppose 
 out of every party of, say, a dozen, one dies or retires during the 
 following year, and at least two others are invalided. It has 
 often been said that Englishmen take their pleasures sadly — that 
 is why we attend both funerals and balls in black perhaps ; but 
 we do not do so in West Africa — we have to be as jolly as possible 
 on these festive occasions to make up for the fits of depression at 
 other times, and perhaps the white mess dress and gaudy kamar- 
 band help towards the merriment, for most of us are greatly 
 influenced by colour. 
 
 In the January of 1907 I went out for a tour to the south 
 with an escort of twenty-five men, and slept the night at Gassol. 
 The chief, or Yerbma, of this place having been deposed, I posted 
 a guard on his house, and next day the new chief was installed, 
 the property belonging to the sarauta (office) being handed over 
 to him on appointment. This is, of course, distinct from the 
 personal effects of the chief, and consists mainly of horses, 
 equipment, arms, drums, trumpets, and other articles of a 
 like nature, necessary and appropriate to the chieftainship, 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 and is always handed over to the successor to the office, the 
 purely personal effects going to the family of the last holder — or 
 being taken by the owner himself if merely deposed. 
 
 After this had been done I went on to Bakunde, a large town 
 near the frontier of the German colony of Kamerun, and also 
 close to Adamawa, sending a message to the chief to meet me in 
 the usual manner, with flute, trumpet, drum, and other instruments 
 of music and torture. This, however, he neglected to do, though 
 a few of the elders escorted us to quarters in the town, and 
 supplied the usual presents — and I the usual payment — the 
 chief being both ill in his house and away to the south, accord- 
 ing to different accounts. He had refused to obey certain 
 orders of the Resident, and I had to try to persuade him to 
 listen to reason, but as he feared that I had come to arrest 
 him, he would not come near me, and so I did not have a 
 chance to exercise my eloquence. Each day a different story was 
 told as to his whereabouts, and as I could not afford to sit down 
 doing nothing, I went south again and visited some towns on the 
 Kamerun boundary; in fact, I got over it once by mistake. 
 There had been a fight in which some casualties occurred 
 between the quarters of a town called Abushishi, and as the 
 Sa(r)rikin Bakunde was headman of the district in which the 
 town was situated, and according to one account he had gone 
 there to make the peace, I went to see if I could patch up the 
 quarrel. I camped in the quarter of the people injured, and 
 sent a message to the others who had provoked the hostilities to 
 come in and see me, and this a few of them did, appearing to be 
 quite friendly, but on leaving they fired a couple of shots at us, 
 and then made off to their hills. I therefore went at dawn next 
 day to surprise them, but found that every one had bolted, and not 
 being able to do any more we burned the village and returned, 
 capturing, however, some fowls, which I awarded to the people ol 
 the injured quarter as compensation. 
 
 Next we proceeded along the boundary to Wanka, a collection 
 of scattered villages, on the peaceful though unpleasant errand oi 
 reminding them that tribute was due, but there was no excitemenl 
 here of any kind, nor could we get into touch with the people, sc 
 
 54 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 we had perforce to return, leaving instructions with friendly 
 natives on the way back to persuade the Wanka people to 
 pay up. 
 
 The people about here are great elephant hunters, shooting 
 thick poisoned arrows or harpoons into the animals from Dane- 
 guns, and following the beasts until the poison takes effect and 
 they drop. By the way, where do they get Dane-guns? The 
 Niger Company is allowed to sell a few under rigid restrictions 
 (the importation of firearms into Northern Nigeria being 
 forbidden), but it seemed to me that they were fairly common, 
 and numbers must have been smuggled over the frontier, as is the 
 case with liquor. 
 
 From there I went to Suntai, where we had the regular but 
 solitary February tornado, and thence to Wurrio and back to 
 Amar, having been away twenty-five days, and having covered 
 881 miles. In some parts the paths were too stony and deep for 
 my mount, and I had to walk about one-half of the way. I had 
 a good little pony, and a cheap one too, for it cost me only £3, 
 and was a splendid goer, but I could not train him to draw a 
 cart which I made from packing-cases. The Taraba and the 
 Benue were both fordable when we returned ; in the latter river 
 the water would have been only up to my ankles when on 
 horseback had not the pony sat down in the middle of the 
 stream and so caused me to be wetted through, a little 
 accident that gave me nearly a week's fever after my return. 
 
 There was not much excitement in Amar itself. We used to 
 play lawn-tennis on a mud court which was so soft that a swift 
 serve would raise a cloud of dust or leave a deep scar, but the 
 afternoon game played between 5 and 6.30 p.m. was always 
 looked forward to, and it was very good exercise. In fact, I 
 think that it is about the best game for such a country, for 
 it can be sufficiently strenuous while it lasts, a player can 
 always leave off when he has had enough, and he is actually 
 playing all the time, not watching or standing in the cold as 
 in some others, or walking a mile to have one hit, as in a certain 
 royal and ancient pastime. Of course, the preparation of the 
 court is the trouble, and a good one always costs money. In the 
 
 55 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 cantonments cement is used, but this does not seem satisfactory, 
 as it soon cracks ; the glare is very trying, and the balls, which 
 speedily become the same colour as the court, are hard to 
 distinguish. In Australia, asphalte courts are the rule, and 
 lawn-tennis can be played all the year round. In fact, in 
 Victoria at any rate, it is a winter game, the matches for the 
 premiership all being played from April to October. The 
 advantage of a hard court is that it can be swept and dried 
 directly the rain has stopped, and it does not want rolling or 
 cutting, but it is expensive so far as shoes and balls are concerned, 
 and hardly as comfortable to the soles of the feet as grass is, the 
 ankles also suffering from the jar. 
 
 In the April following, I went to Ibi to arrange for the 
 transport of some convicts coming from Bauchi, but having, on 
 behalf of the Resident, to see some chiefs with reference to a 
 boundary dispute, I went first to Bantaji and then up from 
 there. It was very hot on the day I arrived at Ibi, and I 
 hurried over the last few miles to get in before the Niger 
 Company's store closed, as I had been looking forward . to 
 some "bottled 11 — and it was good when I got it at last. 
 And, strange to say, a couple of Waff officers, who arrived 
 just afterwards, had the same opinion ; at least, they appeared 
 to have it. One was going to Munchi country, the other, I 
 think, to Bauchi, and while waiting at Ibi I passed him in the 
 Hausa Colloquial Test (success in a higher grade entitling one 
 to examine in a lower), thus, I trust, cheering him upon his 
 way. After a few days at Ibi, I returned to Amar, starting 
 a fortnight later for Ankwoi country. 
 
 For some time there had been trouble on the road between 
 Wase and Ibi, the main trade route from Bauchi to the Benue, 
 numerous complaints having been received of highway robberies 
 by people belonging to villages just to the north of the road and 
 at the base of the Moffat Mountains, so the Resident and I con- 
 cocted a scheme to give the people a lesson once and for all. 
 
 These culprits were a mixture of Langtangs, Ankwois, Yerg- 
 hums, and a number of outcasts and tawaye (rebels) from other 
 tribes, and when the roads, a foot or so in width, were bordered 
 
 56 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 in the rainy season by grass over a dozen feet high, and wound 
 in and out amongst the rocks and trees, the robbers had quite an 
 ideal time — for robbers — being able to await their victims unseen, 
 and to get away if necessary without much danger of subsequent 
 pursuit. 
 
 I therefore sent a party of police in plain clothes, and with 
 their wives, to Wase to find out the exact locality of these crimes, 
 and followed on a day later with the remainder of the escort. I 
 then disguised myself as a Filani chief, and set out with a small 
 party, the women walking in front, some of the men carrying their 
 arms in bundles on their heads, while about half a mile behind 
 came the rest of the force. For a time there was no excitement, 
 but when we had gone about ten miles some men armed with bows 
 and arrows stopped the women, and told the men as they came up 
 to put down their loads. This was what we had been waiting for, 
 and the police threw down their bundles, snatched up their car- 
 bines, and bolted into the bush on each side of the road as if to 
 escape, thus surrounding the robbers, and within a few seconds 
 we had bagged the lot. The women were again sent forward as 
 before, and after we had handed the prisoners over to the police 
 in rear we started off once more, and succeeded in performing the 
 trick three times, capturing over a dozen of the robbers before we 
 reached Donkwon, twenty-two miles from Wase, from which place 
 on to Ibi the road was safe. It may appear to have been rather 
 hard on the defenceless women to have been sent ahead, but the 
 lives of females are always safe in such circumstances, the robbers 
 wanting only to take their goods. Even in war women are seldom 
 killed, for they can be used as slaves or wives by their captors, 
 though in an attack on a town no doubt many women and children 
 lose their lives. To make certain that this will not happen during 
 any of our patrols, we always give the people notice that we shall 
 advance after a definite time (pointing to where the sun will then 
 he), and warn them to get their non-combatants to a safe place 
 beforehand if they mean to resist. 
 
 Thence we went to Sendam, the Ankwoi capital, and other 
 places to receive outstanding tribute, returning to Amar on the 
 8th of June, and I think that the lesson taught was sufficient for 
 
 57 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 the time, for there had not been any more robberies up to the 
 time when I last heard, though I do not suppose for a momenl 
 that there will never be any more, for nothing is permanent ir 
 West Africa — except the native's love of loot, and the malaria. 
 
 The thing which struck me most in the Ankwoi country was 
 the absence of hyenas and vultures, and this was explained by the 
 chief on the ground that the people are very clean in their habits 
 This is perhaps true, for Amar was full of hyenas, there being 
 hardly a night but one or more would be prowling around. 1 
 have never yet heard a hyena laugh ; the sound — or at any rate 
 the commonest one in West Africa — is more like a steam syren, 
 and this has struck the natives also, for they call the syrens on the 
 river boats kura, i.e. hyena. One old lion could often be heard 
 grunting on the other side of the river, but no one ever went to 
 look for him, because it would have meant sitting up all nighl 
 and being eaten alive by mosquitoes. Lady Constance Stewart- 
 Richardson and her husband got some of these animals a month 
 or two later, one of the party being badly mauled. Leopards also 
 are very plentiful, and wild game — hartebeeste, antelope, &c. — 
 can be seen in hundreds near Sendridi in the dry season. I re- 
 member on return from Ibi being struck with Lady Constance's 
 dress — short blue knickers, bare knees, long boots, shirt, belt, and 
 helmet — which, except for the long hair, was exactly the same as 
 my own ; but it was a very sensible outfit for the country, and a 
 woman brave enough to run the risks she did would be compelled 
 to dispense with the conventional attire ; that of a " boy scout ' 
 suited her excellently. 
 
 I set several traps for hyenas, but the only things I evei 
 managed to catch were a dog, and a carrier who was not looking 
 where he was going. The plan of the trap was rather good, and 
 may be worth giving. Two concentric circles were drawn on the 
 ground of three and nine feet radius l'espectively ; then the eartr 
 between the perimeters to the depth of about six feet was dug out 
 thus leaving an island in the centre of six feet diameter. Th( 
 hollow ring was covered over with sticks, grass, earth, &c, anc 
 the ground to a distance of another twelve feet or so surrounding 
 the trap was disturbed so as to present the same appearance, anc 
 
 58 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 the goat, or whatever else had been chosen, was placed on the solid 
 part in the centre. By this means the bait was safe whatever 
 happened, as if a wild beast was stalking it, taking short steps 
 with his eye on his prey, he would fall into the hole ; but if he was 
 more cunning, and found out that the ground in front was not 
 solid, he would not dare to spring over to the goat, for he would 
 not know where the solid ground commenced again. There are 
 other traps, spears hung from trees, &c, but there is no necessity 
 to describe them here as they are of the type used by many native 
 hunters, and are well known to everybody. 
 
 Amar is the worst place I have ever been in, or want to be in, 
 so far as insects are concerned ; tsetse-flies bit one all the day — 
 they give a sharp dig, and are usually off before one can hit back — 
 while mosquitoes were busy all night ; in fact, even about 2 p.m. 
 in the wet season one had to be under a mosquito-net unless sit- 
 ting in a strong draught, and a cool, dark mud house is a place 
 they particularly like. Hornets give a very painful sting, and their 
 white, spongy nests are to be seen in most houses, hanging from the 
 grass or tin roof, or from trees. They are, however, usually harm- 
 less unless disturbed, the only occasions on which I was bitten being 
 once in Jemaa when my house was being repaired, and once on the 
 road to Kontagora, when, riding along reading, I put my head into 
 a nest. At Donkwon my baggage got full of fleas, and I could 
 not get rid of them, for they bred apace in the mud house, and at 
 last the incessant injections of poison took effect, and I began to 
 get boils. The Governor inspected the province in September, and 
 I went back with him to Lokoja and Zungeru, intending to pro- 
 ceed to Kano, as I had been transferred to the political department 
 and wished to go to a Hausa Province. However, I was very bad 
 by this time, and a new order having arrived from the Secretary 
 of State cutting down the tours of service from eighteen to twelve 
 months, .1 was ordered home, having completed a year and a 
 quarter. As I have said, Amar has now been deserted, the head- 
 quarters having been re-established at Ibi, from which place they 
 should never have been removed. 
 
 Part of the south-west of the Muri Province is occupied by the 
 Munshi tribe, one man of whom I enlisted in the police. This 
 
 59 
 
A BENUE PROVINCE 
 
 district was reported to have been entered by " peaceful penetra- 
 tion," while I was there, but whether the results have come up to 
 expectations or not I am not prepared to say, as I rather fancy it 
 might raise a little soreness in certain quarters. But it seemed 
 rather absurd to suppose that a strong, warlike tribe would submit 
 without any resistance — I mean that it seemed absurd to me, but 
 then I was not supposed to know — and other kinds of penetration 
 have been employed since. 
 
 Amar was a great place for proverbs, and when making 
 the hyena-trap I heard many appropriate examples. The people 
 were a mixture, but all spoke Hausa, whereas near Bakunde the 
 country-folk hardly understood that language, though Filani was 
 well known. Some proverbs about the hyena went : 
 
 " If the owner of a goat is not afraid to travel by night, the 
 owner of a hyena certainly will not be." 
 
 " The cry of the hyena and the loss of the goat are one " (i.e. 
 they occur at the same time). 
 
 " If the hyena had a charm for curing smallpox, she would use 
 it on herself" (cf. our "Physician, heal thyself"). 
 
 " It would be the height of foolishness for a goat to hail a 
 hyena." 
 
 But hyenas are also very fond of dogs (although even a fox- 
 terrier and some of the bigger native pets will drive one away 
 unless caught sleeping), and there are some proverbs on this sub- 
 ject also, such as : 
 
 " The dog and his collar are both the booty of the hyena." 
 
 "While the hyena drinks, the dog can only look on." 
 
 60 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 ON my return to Northern Nigeria in July 1908, 1 was posted 
 to the Nassarawa Province, most of which was once part of 
 the Hausa kingdom of Zaria, and at first I was somewhat 
 disappointed, as I had been expecting to go to Kano to continue 
 the study of Hausa. But in the end, the order turned out to be 
 as lucky a one as I could possibly have had, for I came into touch 
 with many wild tribes, and so was enabled to have the experience 
 and the work for which I had been hoping. I had re-entered the 
 University of Cambridge during my leave (this time as a Research 
 Student in Anthropology), and was, therefore, under an obligation 
 to write two theses, one for the diploma, another for the degree in 
 Arts, and as no diploma had then been awarded, I had the chance 
 of obtaining the first one, and I was naturally very anxious to do 
 so. Again, apart from selfish motives, the more one mixes with 
 the uncivilised native, the more one wants to know about him, and 
 the study of one's fellow-men is a fascinating pursuit when once 
 one has begun to look for meanings and origins. I had also begun 
 eating dinners for a Call to the Bar, and had passed a couple of 
 the necessary examinations, and it was not long before I found that 
 this course also was very useful, for soon after arrival at Jemaan 
 Daroro (the headquarters of the administrative division bordering 
 on the Bauchi and Zaria provinces), I was given the full' judicial 
 powers of life and death — though I am thankful to say that I had 
 to exercise them to the full extent in only one case. 
 
 The internal history of Northern Nigeria for a hundred years 
 prior to our declaration of a Protectorate was mainly that of the 
 pastoral tribe of the Filani, and a word or two on these people 
 may be of use, though there is no need to write more, since I have 
 already done so in The Niger and the West Sudan. 
 
 61 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 It is most probable that they arose somewhere in the Centra. 
 Sudan as a result of the intermixture of Berber and also some 
 Arab males with females of various negro tribes, most of the lattei 
 having been captured in war in all probability ; and the site was 
 probably somewhere near Fezzan — there being much more vegeta- 
 tion then in the desert regions than there is at present. 
 
 Now half-breeds are always looked down upon, and as they ir 
 accordance with the general rule adopted the speech of theh 
 mothers — literally their " mother-tongue " — they became estranged 
 from their fathers' relations. In fact it is quite possible that the 
 name Peul (red) was given to them by the Berbers in derision in 
 the same way as Arabs called some mixtures of tribes Habeshi. 
 and other peoples Kafirs. The Hausas to-day call us more often Ja 
 (red) than Fa(r)ri (white). The Berber-negro blood resented this, 
 and when strong enough these half-breeds refused to occupy a 
 subservient status any longer, and, possibly influenced also by the 
 fact that the climate was becoming drier, they separated from 
 their fathers, and proceeded to the hinterland of Morocco, where 
 they became more firmly welded together, and began to acquire 
 learning, later on sending their Mallams, or learned men, as 
 missionaries to several countries. They now developed a national 
 spirit, as did the Boers in the south of the same continent, and 
 wishing to hide their humble origin (for they called themselves e 
 white race) they naturally disowned all connection with the countrj 
 they had left, and tried to invent a descent to suit their new aspira- 
 tions in much the same way as Virgil did for the Romans. The} 
 therefore created a mythical ancestor, as is commonly done, bu1 
 not being very certain of their facts nor of what they reall] 
 wanted, they described him in various ways. There is a legenc 
 that the people sprang from the marriage of a Hindu and a femali 
 chameleon, evidently invented to account for the different shade; 
 of colour amongst the people, black, brown, light yellowish-brown 
 and even white being seen. Another legend gives their descen 
 from Arabs, another from the Hebrews. 
 
 They were evidently of a good though mixed stock, and the] 
 quickly increased in numbers, in learning, and in power, anc 
 began to spread out to the south and west. The first news wi 
 
 62 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 hear of them is that in the fourteenth century they were living 
 along the lower course of the Senegal, and coming further south, 
 though they are said to have records of their presence there for 
 eight hundred years before that. They continued to spread out, 
 always seeking fresh pasture-lands for their cattle, and somewhere 
 about the fifteenth century they reached Northern Nigeria, but 
 for a long time they had but little power, except in individual 
 cases, owing to the fact that they were so widely scattered. How- 
 ever, by the end of the eighteenth century, they had greatly 
 increased in numbers and influence, and in 1802, after a dispute 
 with the pagans of Gober, they made war against that tribe, and 
 encouraged by their victories under Othman dan Fodio, they 
 declared a jehad against all the neighbouring pagan tribes, and 
 within a few years had conquered most of the countries between 
 Gober in the north and the Niger and Benue rivers to the south. 
 
 Othman soon resigned the government of his empire to his 
 son, Mohammed Bello (whom Clapperton saw in Sokoto), and his 
 nephew, Mohammed ibn Abdullah. Bello's portion of the empire 
 consisted chiefly of the Hausa States, the people of which are 
 mostly pagans, who when once conquered, were quite content to let 
 the Filani look after the government so long as they could follow 
 their favourite pursuits of agriculture and trade in peace. 
 
 The Filani owed a good deal of their success to the super- 
 stitious dread in which they were held, even the humbler members of 
 their own tribe being afraid of the powers ascribed to the chiefs, 
 and another cause was the fact that they preached Islam with 
 fanatical zeal, and so considered that they had more to gain even 
 in death than the superstitious pagans. A third reason is that 
 many of them fought on horseback, and in chain armour, and 
 these conditions gave them an enormous advantage in open level 
 country, but many pagan peoples who lived in mountainous 
 country managed to defy the Filani, and in fact some have not 
 yet been brought under control even by us. They have small, 
 well-formed feet and hands, frizzy hair, and slim, shapely bodies. 
 They are usually good-looking, some of the women being really 
 beautiful, reminding me very much of some Samoans whom I 
 once saw in Fiji, and are very proud. Some of the women 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 are loose before marriage but Strict afterwards, with others tl 
 opposite is true. 
 
 From their centre in Sokoto the Filani spread out in a 
 directions, Kano and Zaria being amongst the principal citii 
 taken, Keffi and others in the Nassarawa country falling latei 
 and soon the surrounding pagan tribes began to realise ths 
 unless they could stem the tide of conquest, they too would ei 
 long be under the Filani yoke. 
 
 About the year 1800, Usuman, a Mallam (learned man c 
 priest, and sometimes also a magician ; probably our word doctc 
 corresponds most nearly) of Kebbi near Sokoto, obtained leav 
 from the Sheik, Othman dan Fodio, to preach the Koran in th 
 district of Zaria amongst the Filani there, and came to Kachi 
 cherri, a pagan country north of Moroa where there was a settle 
 ment of his own people. At that time the Filani in that distric 
 had no permanent abodes, but lived in rugas, or collections o 
 temporary conical grass shelters, with their herds, though the; 
 had established villages in fertile spots where their slave 
 (rundawa) were allowed to live and farm on reaching maturity 
 the village of Dangoma to the north-west of Jemaan Daroro beinj 
 an example. The mallams, however, being often persons o 
 considerable influence at pagan courts, had permanent house 
 when they lived in the towns, and after the conquest — and perhap 
 even before — the more powerful chiefs began to prefer the life o 
 the city to that of the grazing-ground, though that is certainl; 
 not universal even now, many rich chiefs still clinging to their ol< 
 modes of life, and refusing to have anything to do with thei 
 brethren of the towns further than selling them milk, butter 
 whitewash (from bones), meat, and hides. 
 
 The news of the outbreak of the jehad declared by Othmai 
 naturally spread fast, and on the capture of Zaria by Mallan 
 Musa, the chief of the Kajurawa (in whose country the part; 
 of Filani with Usuman then were) called all his sub-chief 
 together, and decided to wipe out the strangers, fearing, tha 
 if he allowed them to live longer in his country he himself am 
 his people would be conquered later by them. 
 
 Now, this chief had taken a Filani girl, Indema, as a wif 
 
 64 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 some time before, and being very fond of her, and apparently 
 anxious to obtain her approval, he foolishly told her of the plot 
 the evening before it was to have been carried into effect. 
 Naturally, Indema did not relish the prospect of having all her 
 relatives and other countrymen killed, and she began to wonder 
 how she could contrive to save them. Shortly afterwards she 
 began squirming and twisting, and on the chief asking her what ± 
 was the matter, she complained of internal pains (stomach-ache is 
 very common in West Africa), and said that she must have some 
 medicine from a man at Ungwal Tagamma, where the Filani 
 were then encamped. The chief, anxious for the health of his 
 . loved one, forgot all about his little indiscretion in revealing, the 
 • plot, and said that he would send a slave to get the medicine ; 
 but Indema said that she must go herself — half the virtue of the 
 potion consisting in the fact that it must be drunk immediately 
 after its preparation, and in the mallam's house. So the chief — 
 as blind as Love and twice as foolish — gave her a cone of salt 
 (a form of currency in that district even to this day) as a present 
 for the doctor, and sent her off with a couple of slaves as an 
 escort. 
 
 Although at first helped along, on reaching a stream near 
 Ungwal Tagamma, Indema seemed to get better, and bidding her 
 attendants wait at a stream they came to while she bought some 
 butter, she went on alone, and seeking out Abdurahmanu, the 
 chief of the Filani there, she told him of the fate which would 
 overtake him and his people on the following day unless they 
 could manage to escape. Indema then returned with the butter, 
 and was evidently much better again, and full of love for the old 
 chief of the Kajurawa," who no doubt slept the sleep of the just, 
 dreaming of delicious scenes of slaughter to be enacted on the 
 morrow, and feeling secure in the fidelity of his beautiful wife. 
 
 On Indema's departure, Abdurahmanu at once summoned all 
 his, headmen, and, being accustomed to. travel, they all got away 
 in the night ; so next morning when the Kajurawa assembled for 
 the feast of blood, they found only the very old and the very 
 young cattle, which were unable to travel, and so had been 
 abandoned. The pagans followed the fugitives, who had gone 
 
 65 e 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 to the south-west, as far as the waterfall between Mada(i)kia ai 
 Kaffanchan, and managed to kill a few of the stragglers, but thi 
 were soon driven off with loss, and the main body of the Fila 
 escaped. On coming gradually south they expelled the loc 
 people of Daroro, driving them towards the town of Nindam, tl 
 only one now possessed by that tribe. 
 
 Indema had not been able to fly also — perhaps, and it is nici 
 to think this, she did not attempt to do so,' for had she n< 
 returned from Ungwal Tagamma her husband's suspicions woul 
 have been aroused — and the old chief, now seeing through hi 
 treachery, was so furious that he had her thrown into a ho 
 and stoned to death. The story of Indema moved me strong] 
 when I heard it from a descendant of one of her family in Jemaa 
 Daroro, and I could in fancy see the slim, graceful girl, perhat 
 not more than sixteen years of age, being brutally smashed t 
 death for having saved her people. Even Joan of Arc did n 
 more, and I pictured them in my mind as being something alike- 
 a foolish fancy, no doubt, but one has many such in West Africs 
 Ah, well ! ifr.dbes not do to dwell on these things ; the deed wa 
 done a long time ago — and it is a cruel country ! 
 
 The tribes to the east at that time were not hostile, for th 
 Filani wanted the level country and not the mountainous part i: 
 which the tailed people lived, and they had not yet commence! 
 the slave-raiding which made them such a curse afterwards a] 
 over Northern Nigeria. At first the fugitives camped nea 
 Dangoma, but about a year afterwards they descended the platea 
 and settled on the present site of Jemaan Daroro, the peopl 
 gradually spreading over the ground now occupied by the town. 
 
 While living in the Kachicherri country, levies of stock hai 
 been made by the Kajurawa on special occasions : e.g. if the chief 
 wife gave birth to an infant, one hundred cattle were demanded 
 if the chiefs son's wife had a child, twelve head had to b 
 delivered, and any of the lesser chiefs on similar occasions tool 
 ten, but no regular tribute had been paid. On arrival at th 
 new settlement these payments were, of course, discontinued, am 
 the loss of these very acceptable presentS made the Kajurawi 
 all the more anxious to get the fugitives in their power again 
 
 66 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 For some years they were continually attacking the settlement, 
 and at first it was all the Filani could do to hold them in check ; 
 in fact, on one occasion the pagans actually rode through the 
 town, only to be driven out again. However, about the year 
 1808, after a great fight lasting some seven days, the Kajurawa 
 were at length decisively defeated and pursued, those who escaped 
 returning to Zaria country only to be conquered later on by 
 Mallam Musa, who gradually brought most of what is now 
 the province of Zaria under his control. Similar conquests 
 were taking place elsewhere, as has been said, and later on 
 Bauchi, Adamawa, and other districts came under the Filani 
 ,rule. 
 
 About two years after the final defeat of the Kajurawa, 
 Mallam Usuman was sent to Mallam'Musa — who had conquered 
 Zaria, and had become its chief — to obtain a flag and a name 
 for the new settlement, that being the procedure for the official 
 recognition of a town, and when Mallam Musa asked where they 
 had come from, Usuman replied that the party (Jemaa) had 
 settled close to the mountain of Daroro (to look around, i.e. high). 
 "Very well," said Mallam Musa, "the name of your town will be 
 Jemaan Daroro" (the n being a contraction of na, of), and he 
 then gave Usuman a flag, a robe, a turban, and a fez, to be 
 bestowed in his name upon the man whom the people should elect 
 as their chief. On his return to Jemaan Daroro, Usuman con- 
 trived to get himself chosen, the election lying between himself 
 and Abdurahmanu, the old titular chief, and he then returned to 
 Zaria with the news, and was taken by Mallam Musa to Sokoto 
 to be officially recognised by the head of the empire. He 
 reigned for about thirteen years, when, feeling too old to con- 
 tinue, he took his son Abdulahi to Zaria to have him appointed 
 in his stead. Usuman, who died in the following year, has the 
 reputation of having been a good chief and a great fighter, for 
 the Ayu tribe, and most of the Numuna, Karshe, Moroa, and 
 Kajji people were conquered during his reign. Lander is said 
 to have visited the town about 1827, coming from the north 
 or north-wesj;, an( i to have intended going to Bauchi, but as 
 the road at that time was closed by the head-hunting tribes 
 
 67 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 through whose country it lay, he had to give up the project ai 
 return by the way he had come. 
 
 Abdulahi was the eldest son of Mallam Usuman; he we: 
 with the chief of Zozo (Zaria) to Lafia Beriberi, near the Bern 
 river, to help the chief of that town against some of the su 
 rounding tribes, and during his absence the Kagoro attacki 
 some people at Mongwe — a suburb of Jemaa — and killed fort 
 two. Abdulahi then returned to attack the Kagoro, and havii 
 destroyed Jigya and Tafa he went back to Lafia, and was so( 
 afterwards shot in the neck with an arrow and killed wh( 
 attacking Kwachigiddi. 
 
 Musa, Mallam Usuman's second son, then became chief, beir 
 appointed by Abd-el-Karimi, the new chief of Zaria. He w 
 a drunkard, and soon afterwards Hamada, the new suzerai 
 threatened to depose him, summoning him and Abdurahraai 
 to Zaria, but dying before he could carry out his intention. Tl 
 new chief of Zaria (Mohamma Sani) did so later, and appoints 
 the old chief Abdurahmanu to rule over Jemaan Daroro, banis 
 ing Musa from Jemaa territory. 
 
 Abdurahmanu was now very old, and after three years he w 
 deposed through the machinations of Musa, who was aga 
 appointed, only to be again removed. Musa, if a hard drinks 
 seems to have been a great warrior, for, in conjunction wi 
 Abd-el-Karimi, the countries of Ninzam, Kagoma, and the re 
 of Numuna were conquered, and the Kagoro were defeated, ai 
 most of their crops were destroyed in a war lasting some montl 
 These people would, perhaps, have been annihilated at that tim 
 had it not been for the fact that one of Abd-el-Karimi's mallai 
 had a dream, and prophesied that whoever finally conquered t' 
 Kagoro would die within a year. The war had then lasted sor 
 twelve months, and on that, Chief Abd-el-Karimi retired as '. 
 could get no supplies — the Kagoro having buried all th< 
 remaining grain — and the war was abandoned. The Kago 
 had been brought to such straits that they afterwards car 
 to Jemaan Daroro to beg for food, and about one hundred 
 them were taken to Zaria as slaves. A similar thing happen 
 when Awudu, chief of Zaria, and Adamu of Jemaa foug 
 
 68 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 them. The Kagoro were thus never properly conquered by the 
 Filani, and they never paid tribute to Jemaa, though the 
 Kajurawa had taken slaves from them annually. 
 
 The prophecy was supposed to be still in force when I was 
 in Jemaan Daroro in 1909, but as a British patrol brought them 
 thoroughly under control over twelve months ago, I fear that no 
 allowances were made in the mallam's mind for the strange 
 doings of the white men. And no wonder, for we are such 
 extraordinary beings that no one can tell what we will do. 
 
 Adamu, a full brother of Abdulahi, succeeded Musa, and 
 except for Abdurahmanu, the two branches of Mallam Usuman's 
 family furnished chiefs alternately, each taking it in turn with 
 Zaria's sanction to eject the other. The usual charge was 
 drunkenness, though there is no doubt that the claimant who 
 brought the best presents to the suzerain was always the most 
 successful, and, theoretically, the most temperate. 
 
 Mamma Adda, another son of Mallam Usuman, also had two 
 tastes of power, and two unpleasant removals, being finally re- 
 placed by the present chief, Abdulahi (or Matchu), who began to 
 reign in 1888. He is a grandson of Mallam Usuman, and was 
 appointed by Yerro, chief of Zaria, while fighting in the Kagoma 
 district. 
 
 There had been wars with Keffi in the time of Adamu, but 
 the fighting had been stopped by the Emir of Sokoto. However, 
 about 1893, trouble arose with the late Magajin Keffi (the 
 murderer of Maloney, the Resident in 1902), over land near 
 Tsaunin Kolere to the south-west, and the Keffi people came 
 in 1895 as far as Numbu while Abdulahi was at Zambar, but 
 the latter drove them out, and appealed to Chief Yerro of 
 Zaria who decided in favour of Jemaa. 
 
 About four years later a plot was formed to replace Abdulahi 
 by his brother Usuman, the ex-chief of Jagindi — a town founded 
 on a deserted pagan site by the Filani in the reign of Adamu — 
 the chief conspirators besides Usuman being Umoru, chief of 
 Delle, and Shemaa, a Filani. Another was Mallam Momo Tsula, 
 since made (in)famous by his work at Abuja in 1909, where he 
 tried to seduce soldiers and raise a revolt, but was captured and 
 
 69 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 imprisoned. Usuman had been deposed by his brother, and had 
 gone to Keffi, but he returned to plot, his supplanter bringing 
 the news to Abdulahi at Jemaa, who persuaded a man, Dan 
 Zabia, to go to Umoru's house at night and murder him. The 
 death of the chief of Delle so enraged his followers that the 
 whole of the Jagindi people at once rose, and were soon aided 
 by the Kagoma and Kajji tribes, and by Dangoma. Fighting 
 went on until 1903, when the Resident of Keffi intervened, and 
 a year afterwards Usuman and Shemaa were deported. 
 
 The Yeskwa, previously conquered, signally defeated a Jemaa 
 force sent against them in 1900, and have since thrown off their 
 allegiance, while the Ninzam have always been restless. Abdulahi 
 has seen a good deal of service, having been wounded eight times 
 altogether; he is a strong man requiring firm handling, and 
 naturally does not appreciate our control. He can speak hardly 
 any Filani, his children know almost none at all ; they are turn- 
 ing into Hausawa. Owing to the fact that this country once 
 belonged to the Kajurawa — the principal representatives of which 
 tribe are now at Sanga-^a courtesy title of the chief of Jemaa is 
 Sa(r)rikin Kajuru Filatihu. 
 
 When we occupied Jemaan Daroro, the tribes subject^to the 
 chief became ipso facto under us instead, and although no resist- 
 ance was offered by the people of Jemaa itself, there has been 
 trouble with every one of the native tribes in the surrounding 
 districts. The reason of this is that although early in the 
 nineteenth century the Filani organised a complete system of 
 revenue collection (copied in great part from the Hausawa), the 
 upper classes soon began to lead vicious lives in the towns, and 
 with indulgence came the demand for more and more money, and 
 the less readiness to work for it, until what might have been at 
 first a fair tax grew into an extortion. Many districts supplied 
 slaves in payment of the impost, and this meant warring with 
 other tribes, for they did not wish to give up their own people — 
 though some chiefs had descended even to this level before we had 
 arrived — so continued raids on the pagan peoples took place in all 
 directions. This sort of thing naturally caused hatred and a 
 thirst for revenge, and though a raiding party might be successful 
 
 70 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 so far as the capture of prisoners was concerned, no district was 
 ever really pacified until it had been swept almost clear of fighting 
 men ; otherwise, directly the Filani column had retired, the tribe 
 would be as hostile as before. Thus the Kagoro, occupying the 
 mountains to within five miles of Jemaan Daroro, were still 
 unconquered when I was there in 1909. However, this town was 
 the recognised capital of the greater part of the district, and so 
 we established there the headquarters of one of the adminis- 
 trative divisions of which five in all form the whole province of 
 Nassarawa. 
 
 Our policy in Northern Nigeria has been to rule the country 
 through its own people, and wherever possible even a chief who 
 has fought against us is reinstalled in his position on his sub- 
 mission if he has proved a good ruler, and has sworn to obey us 
 in future. It is the only possible way ; to bring in numbers of 
 new men, who, however desirable from our point of view, might 
 be perhaps unacceptable to the tribes themselves, would have 
 spelt failure from the first. Besides, the former chief is the one 
 to help us if he will, for he knows the country, the political and 
 economic conditions, and the peculiarity of the inhabitants, and 
 when once convinced that we can and will punish any infidelity 
 on his part, he is usually very anxious to act in accordance with 
 our rules. And we do not make these too numerous, the main 
 idea being that everything shall go on as much as possible as it 
 did before, except that acts, such as murder, slave-raiding, theft, 
 &c, shall cease, for these are not only contrary to our code, but 
 are also opposed to nearly every system of laws and customs 
 met with. 
 
 Most of even the wildest tribes condemn these deeds within 
 the tribe itself, though they may sanction them when strangers 
 are the victims, so we try to point out that we, being a strange 
 race, have no more interest in any one tribe than another, that we 
 are fathers to them all, and since that is so they must be brothers, 
 and therefore, now, of the same tribe. That is the only kind of 
 reasoning which they will understand; it is of no earthly use 
 saying that God will be angry at such deeds, that they are not 
 right, and so on ; in many cases the only gods they know would 
 
 71 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 not be at all displeased so long as no one of the same tribe 
 suffered, and with head-hunters he would even approve of the 
 acts if directed against strangers — or at any rate the dead 
 ancestors would. Perhaps the god might even demand victims 
 for sacrifice at certain times. 
 
 So much has been written on the subject of Christianity and 
 Mohammedanism in West Africa that I think it would not serve 
 any useful purpose to say much here, except that it is not correct 
 to say that pagans are officially encouraged to become Moslems. 
 It is true that we support the Filani rulers in Northern Nigeria 
 in each province where they are paramount, because they were in 
 power on our own arrival, but there are some towns still held 
 absolutely by pagans, and no tribe conquered by us would be 
 placed under Filani rule. Thus in the Jemaa division, all tribes 
 which the chief had conquered before we came pay their tribute 
 through him as suzerain, because they had previously recognised 
 his overlordship, but those still independent on our arrival, and 
 since subdued by us, pay direct through their own principal chief 
 to the Government, and no Filani has anything to do with the 
 collection. 
 
 Many of the pagan tribes have imagined that because we are 
 white and even more learned than the Filani, we are a glorified 
 edition of that people, and imprisonment for offences is regarded 
 as another form of slavery. We have therefore to be very careful 
 not to use this form of punishment if it can be avoided, though 
 the problem of inflicting an appropriate penalty is a difficult 
 one to solve, since the award of a fine in lieu appears to them 
 to be the exact equivalent of a ransom. Still, the people very 
 quickly begin to understand, and it often happens that a man 
 who has served a month or two in prison and then returns to his 
 people will prove a valuable ally in the future, for he has gained 
 some knowledge of our power, and has probably been better fed 
 and housed than ever in his life before. The affection of a native 
 is seated mainly in his digestive organs ; you can even beat him as 
 often as you like if you feed him well ; so long as his stomach is 
 full the rest of his body will not trouble him much. 
 
 We have therefore to be careful to explain to pagan tribes 
 
 72 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 not previously conquered by the Filani that they will be treated 
 in exactly the same way as our Mohammedan subjects, for we, 
 being Christians, have no special preference for either, that we do 
 not preach a Holy War in the cause of Christianity, much less 
 on account of Islam, and that we not only do not want slaves 
 ourselves, but will prevent any other people obtaining them. 
 On our return from the Wai-wai country, we were greeted by 
 hundreds of Mohammedans from Jemaan Daroro and the district 
 who shouted our praises for having defeated the Kafiri; and 
 considering that we are also called by that name, amongst others, 
 I pointed out at once that the patrol had not been against the 
 people as pagans, but as head-hunters and slave-raiders, and that 
 "True-believer' 1 '' or "Infidel" would share a like fate if guilty 
 of similar behaviour. This, I know, did not make me popular 
 amongst the Mohammedans, but the pagans were pleased, and 
 they were my especial care, for the Mohammedans are strong 
 enough to look after themselves, and every one is ready to con- 
 sider them. It is only natural for a well-read European to prefer 
 an educated Mohammedan to an unwashed pagan, but it is well 
 to remember that of all a native learns a great part is not likely 
 to be for our particular benefit, and that a good deal of his 
 knowledge only makes him all the more cunning and dangerous. 
 
 There can be little doubt as to whether Christianity or Islam 
 is the better suited to the natives of West Africa, but there is 
 no doubt at all that the limitation of only one wife to a man 
 is a very great obstacle to the adoption of the former, and it is, 
 I fear, the cause rather of immorality than of good behaviour in 
 a country where children are nursed for so long, and many men 
 are too poor to pay the fee for a wife. Still, it is well to remember 
 that any encouragement given to Mohammedanism will recoil on 
 our own heads, for the great factor in the security of our present 
 rule is the knowledge that we are disinterested arbitrators between 
 peoples varying in every possible way. Once let these tribes be 
 united by a common religion, once let them be fired with the 
 fanatical zeal of Islam, and — well, I think there will be trouble 
 ahead. 
 
 It would be absurd to believe that Mohammedans like being 
 
 73 
 
MOHAMMEDANS v. PAGANS 
 
 ruled by Christians whom they despise and regard as damned in 
 the next world — think of Egypt and Turkey and the fact that 
 a Moslemah cannot marry a Christian. It would be the height 
 of folly to suppose that, because we have put down slave-raiding 
 and tribal warfare to a great extent, all the old chiefs have 
 abandoned their desires for becoming rich in an easy and exciting 
 way, or that the warlike savage is ready to settle down to what 
 he once called " woman's work. 1 ' 
 
 Northern Nigeria will prove a difficult problem for future 
 Governors, and the solution will not be helped by the multipli- 
 cation of revenue and other returns which occupy more and more 
 of the official's time, and consequently result in his being less and 
 less able to visit and know the people under him. The only safe 
 policy in my opinion — and I venture to give it with the greatest 
 respect, of course — is to allow those natives who want to become 
 Christians or Moslems to do so, but not to encourage them in 
 any way, certainly not the latter. Those who wish to study the 
 subject seriously would do well to read Dr. Karl Kumm's latest 
 book — the author, by the way, stayed with me in Jemaa when on 
 his way to Egypt. On the contrary, we ought to do everything 
 that is possible to maintain the old beliefs — though they may be 
 purged of any particularly objectionable features — by a sym- 
 pathetic study of them, thus keeping the tribes separate, and 
 avoiding the danger of their combining to expel us, and also 
 conserving to the savage what he most values instead of teaching 
 him to despise his ancestors ; for strange as it may seem to us, 
 there is a great deal of good in his laws and customs, and even 
 in his religion. 
 
 74 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 IN the Nassarawa, Zaria, Bauchi, Yola, Muri, Bassa, and Kabba 
 provinces of Northern Nigeria there are many wild pagan 
 tribes, still unknown — except by name — to the peace-loving 
 missionary ; still ignorant of the struggles their religion will cost 
 them; not yet aware of the fact that their cannibalism, their 
 head-hunting, or their other quaint failings will soon be pro- 
 hibited by the strong and ever-conquering white man. 
 
 What is often called the Pagan Belt stretches across these 
 provinces on each side of, and parallel with, the Benue river, and 
 although the area is not so very large, the diversity of the customs 
 and the difference in the languages is very great. In districts 
 where every large town is fighting every other, there is naturally 
 no intercourse, for the people live and keep themselves within a 
 small definite area, and soon little differences begin to creep in 
 here and there until at length the people of one town can hardly 
 understand those of another, even in the cases where they have 
 come from the same original stock. If, for instance, two brothers 
 quarrel and separate, their families will establish houses wide apart, 
 and as the family develops into the tribe, and the villages become 
 towns, the descendants forget their ancient connection by blood, 
 and remember only that their respective ancestors were enemies. 
 When once separated, internal changes begin, for a priest may 
 become very powerful and may alter the religious observances, or 
 at any rate some of the ideas ; a warrior may discover some 
 improvement in tactics, or in the manufacture or use of weapons ; 
 the people of one town may capture cattle, while those of the 
 other go in more for agriculture ; some will live in the mountains, 
 others on the plains ; and so their modes of life become distinct, and 
 the only agencies likely to bring the people together again are the 
 
 75 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 advent of a strange power (either by conquest, or by causing 
 the different tribes to combine against them) and thei rub\x& Be 
 finders, or other traders, and blacksmiths. The Filani were the 
 first great conquerors of Northern Nigeria, but in most parts we 
 have now replaced them, and our conquests — being made in the 
 interests of civilisation, and not for the purpose of capturing 
 slaves — have been more humane and peaceful ; but in other dis- 
 tricts, particularly on the southern edge of the plateau between 
 the Nassarawa, Bauchi, and Muri provinces, the Hausa traders 
 are even now the only civilising agents. Jemaan Daroro is in the 
 heart of the head-hunting country, the tribes indulging in this 
 little pastime being situated in the eastern half of the Nassarawa 
 province, the southern quarter of the Zaria province, and the 
 south-western and north-western quarters of the Bauchi and Muri 
 provinces respectively. But little was known of the tribes on the 
 borders where the last two provinces joined Nassarawa up to 1908, 
 and in the November of that year I was ordered to take an escort 
 to join a Political Officer from Bauchi, and to proceed along the 
 boundary to decide upon a line definitely dividing the provinces 
 from one another. This district was on the other side of the range 
 to the Ankwoi country, and I was hopeful of being able to link up 
 my old route there from Amar, or at any rate to go very near to 
 it, but the fates in the shape of the Toffs — a rather smart name 
 for a naked people — decided otherwise. Leaving Jemaan Daroro 
 at the beginning of the month (the party, consisting of myself as 
 Political Officer, an escort of an officer and twenty-five men, and 
 some forty carriers), we marched east along the base of the Kagoro , 
 hills, and joined a similar party from Bauchi near the border, and 
 then turning south proceeded along the top of the mountain range 
 which divides the two provinces. Our instructions were to delimit 
 the provincial boundary, to find out something about the people 
 there, and to avoid all hostilities — such an easy order to give on 
 paper, such a difficult one to obey in real life amongst pagans who 
 have never seen a white man, and, what is much more to the point, 
 do not want to see one ! 
 
 Owing to a mistake in the identity of a town (it having a 
 different name in each province), we were led out of our way, and 
 
 76 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 had to climb first down and then up the edge of the ^able-land (a 
 very appropriate name in this case, for the sides were almost as 
 steep as table legs), this proving an experience which will not be 
 easily forgotten by those who went through it. The mountains 
 were almost perpendicular, and there was no chance of riding— in 
 fact, it was as much as the poor little ponies could do to drag 
 their own bodies up, even though freed from their riders. The 
 paths — very few tracks in West Africa can be called roads, and 
 these were execrable even for that country — were almost stair- 
 cases, great slabs of rock jutting out here and there, and forming 
 obstacles which were even worse for the animals than for the men. 
 Our loads were, of course, borne on carriers' heads, and some idea 
 of the difficulty of the ground may be gathered from the fact that, 
 although we had only some fifty soldiers and about ninety others, 
 and there were frequent rests to allow the rear of the column to 
 close up, the tail was over two hours behind the head, both on the 
 day that we descended the range and on the next day when we 
 ascended it again. 
 
 We would mount one rise and there would be another young 
 mountain ahead, another climb and still a further hill, again a 
 scramble and yet again a height. It was enough to break one's 
 heart. The grass, mere dry stubble in most parts, was very stiff 
 and slippery, it having been burnt off, except in sheltered spots or 
 near water, and every hundred yards or so one of us would trip on 
 a root or a stone and, failing to save himself, come down heavily — 
 and how heavy one is at such times ! The endless, endless rocks, 
 the uneven paces we had to take, the grasping and holding on to 
 *ufts of stubble to keep one's footing, the continual grazing of an 
 ankle or a knee, the cutting of our fingers by the longer grass, and 
 the parching of our throats by the hot, dry air — Heavens ! how 
 we longed for a comfortable bed, a long drink, and a sleep ; how 
 unattainable they seemed, and how good they were when at last 
 we really got them. It is very often at these times that the native 
 shows how good a fellow he really is at heart ; soldiers and carriers 
 would help one another over specially difficult places, or take turns 
 to carry a load, and there was nearly always some one ready with 
 a joke or with a word of encouragement for his fellow-sufferers. My 
 
 77 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 good old Yoruba messenger, Ajai (the connoisseur of cockroaches 
 as related in another chapter), wanted to carry me — and I am not 
 light — because I was very short of wind through having caught a 
 bad cold on the first night of exposure to the chilly air of the 
 plateau, the temperature there being much lower than at Jemaa. 
 I can see his ugly old face yet, more like that of a bull-pup than a 
 man, with his faithful, dog-like eyes, and a body of muscle almost 
 as broad as it was long. Another who showed up well was the 
 headman of my carriers, Balaribe, who carried the whole of a 
 large tent up one of the smaller hills, though it was usually 
 allotted to three men even on level ground. As for us four 
 Europeans, we did not see much of each other, since we had to 
 take charge of different parts of the column; but I think the 
 others were just as glad of a whisky, bath, and bed as I was on 
 arrival at the camp, the spot chosen being a village called Ban- 
 dang, just over the top. 
 
 Next morning we pushed on to Monguna, which had given 
 trouble before (and has done so again since), and on the 14th we 
 entered unknown country and camped at Sha. The people, being 
 afraid, had all run away, and it was only towards dark that the 
 guides (procured from a village en route) who had been sent out on 
 our arrival to make overtures of peace, managed to persuade some 
 of the men ,to come in and sell us grain and goat-flesh. There 
 were no yams there, the people living on guinea-corn (a red millet), 
 and a kind of grain which made a dish reminding me of ground 
 rice — I do not know the English name, the Hausa is atcha; it is 
 common in Zaria and elsewhere. When this fails, a bitter root, 
 which the Hausas call gwaza, seems to be the only food, a very 
 poor substitute for yam, being (to my taste, and also to that 
 of a lot of our men) very unpalatable, and liable to make the 
 throat sore. Eggs and milk were unprocurable — in fact, as has 
 been noticed elsewhere, this kind of pagan never milks cattle 
 even if he has them. 
 
 As we were on a mission of " peaceful penetration " we were 
 most anxious not to alarm the inhabitants, nor to provoke 
 hostilities, and so we did not enter any of the towns, but 
 camped outside, and invited the people to come out and trade. 
 
 78 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 Before leaving we would ask the chief to send a messenger on 
 to the next town to tell the people there that we were friendly, 
 and that they need not run away, but that they should stay 
 and prepare food, for which we would pay in full, the payment 
 being made in strips of cloth, looking-glasses, or strings of 
 beads, all money — even cowries — being then unknown there. It 
 was very amusing to see a dirty old man, who had been a 
 stranger to water for years, wrap a piece of calico round his 
 head and admire himself in the looking-glass with the most 
 childish delight. Needless to say, the colour of the white 
 calico, after having been passed around and examined by vari- 
 ous friends and admirers, became almost indistinguishable from 
 that of the wearer's body ; but that did not seem to matter, 
 the main idea being, apparently, that the calico itself, and 
 not the colour of it, was the important thing. As each group 
 of towns had a different language, and many of the tribes 
 were at war with one another, our messages were sometimes 
 disregarded or never delivered, and although I thought this state 
 of affairs unfortunate at the time, we were thankful afterwards, 
 as it proved our salvation. 
 
 Next morning we marched first to 'Mbun, a small town 
 built at the bottom of what was an enormous well of rock, 
 being surrounded on all sides by almost straight walls, through 
 which were only two natural openings opposite one another, as if 
 made for ingress and egress. By the way, there seems to be a great 
 attraction for spelling African names with an apostrophe before 
 the first letter. In this case, the accent is on the " bun," the 
 "M" being only just distinguishable, and so I think that the 
 apostrophe is correctly used, though I have seen another town 
 described as 'Mbel, though the sound was as plainly as possible 
 Ambel, the accent being on the first syllable. 
 
 However, to return to 'Mbun : we found that all the people 
 had disappeared with the exception of the chief and one or 
 two men, but as these were friendly and produced some food, 
 we had our breakfasts and then went on to the town of Toff. 
 It is usually a sign of danger to see no women about, so one 
 generally looks around for them, or else listens for the thumping 
 
 79 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 of the pestles in the wooden mortars, or the grinding of the 
 stones which signify the preparation of food, and should every- 
 thing be quiet, it is well to be on one's guard ; another sign 
 is the absence of food. Naturally, when natives fear an attack, 
 the first thing they do is to get their women and food-stuffs 
 into a place of safety, and it is necessary to be prepared for a 
 counter-attack when this has happened, for the people may 
 think this their best means of defence. Even the most gentle 
 bird, if frightened, may try to peck the hand of one who is 
 doing his best to make friends with it, and savages are not 
 exactly gentle birds at all times. 
 
 The country from Sha to Toff was execrable — or worse if 
 there be a stronger word to describe it — the path lying between 
 high rocks for the greater part of the distance, where stones 
 and poisoned arrows would have been almost as effective as 
 bullets; and for the last mile or more, these hills had been 
 covered by armed men with quivers of arrows slung on their 
 backs, the shafts showing up above their heads, and " wanting 
 war " as my Orderly said. The Bauchi Resident and I went on 
 alone to show that we were not going to attack them, and we 
 were not molested, but we had rather an anxious moment when, 
 on arriving at the top of a rise just outside Toff, we were met by 
 the chief and a number of his warriors, all armed with clubs and 
 long knives. They seemed inclined to dispute our passage at 
 first, but seeing smiles on our faces — though we felt far from 
 frivolous, the escort being about half a mile behind with the 
 carriers — they allowed us to pass in peace, and, avoiding the 
 town, we camped on clear ground near some trees, marking 
 places for our four tents in the centre, the men's bivouacs being 
 placed around them as usual. The remainder of the column 
 arrived soon afterwards, the tents were pitched, and before long 
 we were enjoying the savoury odour of "Lazenby's" or other 
 delicacies, which are especially welcome in a country where a 
 European can eat only what he has brought with him in his 
 chop-box — and how anxiously one examines it towards the end of 
 a trek, especially if out longer than was expected ! 
 
 It may seem paradoxical to say that the military officer, 
 
 80 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 whose profession is fighting, has a much less dangerous life in 
 these wild countries than a Resident, whose aim is rather to 
 make the peace than to break it; but it is so. Whenever the 
 former travels, he is accompanied by troops ; he camps in the 
 positions best suited for defence; if there is to be fighting, he 
 comes prepared, and when it is over, he goes back to his head- 
 quarters. The Political Officer, on the other hand, has to visit 
 the people alone^ for a small escort would often be more dangerous 
 than none at all since it would invite an attack, and yet be power- 
 less to beat it off. He has to get into touch with the people, 
 and so he cannot choose his camping-ground purely for reasons 
 of defence ; he has to avoid hostilities, if possible, and so cannot 
 go prepared for them, though should he be out with a patrol, he 
 has the same risks to run as the commander of the force, for the 
 two must keep together, or else, perhaps, he goes ahead to give 
 the enemy a last chance of submitting. And finally, after the 
 fighting is over and the troops have returned, he again visits the 
 towns alone to receive the indemnity, or fine, or whatever it may 
 be. In the more settled districts, these conditions hardly exist 
 nowadays, though there is always a risk when the representative 
 of the ruling power has an unpopular duty to perform and is not 
 protected ; but in the Pagan Belt — occupied mainly by head- 
 hunting tribes — the danger is very real, and it will be found 
 to be the case that the great majority of the Residents there 
 belongs or has belonged to some branch of his Majesty's 
 naval or military forces, usually the latter. I do not say that 
 the men have been posted there because of that special quali- 
 fication, but there is no doubt that they are the best fitted, and 
 they have in some way found their level in the districts where their 
 training is of the most use to them. It is often said in joke 
 that the Residents are the "bait," while the Waffs are the 
 "fishermen, 1 ' and, as is well known, the bait generally has an 
 unenviable time, being destroyed in order to provide excitement 
 and perhaps reward for the fisher. 
 
 On the following morning one of the military officers had 
 fever, so we decided not to proceed farther that day, but to 
 rest the horses and carriers, who had had a very bad gruelling. 
 
 81 i " 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 All was quiet during the morning : the chief paid us frequenl 
 visits — no doubt sizing up our strength — bringing a little food foi 
 sale each time, and even showing us how he could (or could not] 
 dance ; so we had no reason to suspect that trouble was brewing. 
 Nevertheless, we did not allow any one of our party to enter the 
 town under any pretext whatever, these restrictions having been 
 rigidly enforced ever since we had left friendly country. We 
 thus thought that we were progressing satisfactorily in the good 
 graces of our hosts, and we had a rude shock when, about 
 3.30 p.m., some of the carriers ran up and said that they had 
 been shot at while gathering wood just outside the camp. Hardly 
 believing this, three of us took our shot-guns to make a noise, 
 if necessary — we did not think rifles would be required — and 
 went with the carriers to the spot which they indicated, and 
 when only about 300 yards away from the tents, we saw some 
 armed pagans who, however, ran off at our approach. 
 
 A little food had been brought in during the morning, but 
 none since then, and this act of hostility made it quite clear that 
 we need expect no more. And as there was a yam field close by 
 — these tubers were probably introduced by the Hausa rubber 
 traders, so we heard afterwards — and the men had no food left, 
 we decided to help ourselves, and to send later to the chief 
 inviting him to come and claim payment. This, of course, has 
 to be done very often under such circumstances, otherwise the 
 men would starve, and it usually does much more good than 
 harm, for among these peoples, where might is right, it is a very 
 common occurrence for the stronger party to carry off the other's 
 goods without paying any compensation, so they are agreeably 
 surprised when we actually pay, and pay the proper price too, 
 for what we have taken, although they have not the power to 
 force us to do so, and they are thus all the more ready to believe 
 in us and be friendly. It is easy enough for a weak tribe to say 
 to a stronger that robbery and capture are wrong ; but when the 
 white man, who is even more powerful still, says so, and though 
 he has the power to do what he likes, refuses to use it unjustly, 
 the natives begin to believe that there really must be something 
 in our protestations of goodwill and justice. 
 
 82 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 Two of us accompanied the yam party with our shot-guns, but 
 as an extra precaution, my police orderly followed me with his 
 carbine. We again saw some pagans, and, thinking they would 
 run away as before, we proceeded to the field without taking any 
 notice of them. But the Toffs had evidently come to the con- 
 clusion that the " white man's medicine " was not of much 
 account, and they crept up towards us through the grass. 
 Suddenly we became aware of sounds like "thith thith, 
 thith," and poisoned arrows began falling amongst us. One 
 soldier was wounded through his lower lip and gum, and a 
 few minutes later, I felt a sting on the point of my nose. 
 Luckily, the arrow took only a little of the outside skin, and 
 spent its force on my orderly's fez, which was knocked off, and 
 I must say that I was just as pleased, for the nose would be a 
 very awkward part of the anatomy to ligature. Arrows were 
 now coming thick and fast from our front and left flank, and we 
 fell back a little towards the camp so as to be clear of the grass, 
 meanwhile sending a messenger back for a section of the escort, 
 and directly the Toffs saw this rearward movement, hoarse shouts 
 resounded 'on all sides, and black savage heads bobbed up from 
 the grass in all directions, showing how well the warriors had 
 hidden themselves. From the number of the Toffs attacking us, 
 it was evident that they had been meditating the move for some 
 time, as many were far from their huts, and could not have 
 returned there and procured their bows and arrows in the short 
 interval between the two attacks. Our reinforcements came up 
 at the double, and, opening fire, soon drove off our assailants, who 
 retired to the shelter of some rocks, and their arrows being now 
 useless, they substituted abuse — at least, I suppose so ; the tone 
 did not sound at all friendly or polite. 
 
 We procured our yams, and then returned to the camp, but 
 hearing drums being beaten in all directions, we knew we were in 
 for a hot time, and so decided to take up a new and more open 
 position, and form a square round it — an Irishism perhaps, but 
 appropriate to the real disposition. Strangely enough they 
 allowed us to move in peace — perhaps fascinated by the way the 
 tents were shifted — but no sooner had we done so, than we were 
 
 83 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 attacked on all sides by hordes of yelling savages, and we were 
 soon firing as hard as we could to keep off a charge. Their war- 
 cry was a cross between a dog's bark, a donkey's braying, and 
 Wagner's Song of the Valkyries — more loud than beautiful, 
 though very thrilling — and it was accompanied by drumming, 
 shouting, and blowing on horns and an instrument giving a 
 sound like that of a child's tin trumpet, the latter sounding woe- 
 fully inappropriate to us, but no doubt pleasing the Toffs very 
 much. Meanwhile, arrows were coming in showers on three sides 
 of the square, and we thought we were in for a long casualty list. 
 One officer got two through the roof of his tent, and several of 
 the men had their clothing pierced, but no one else was actually 
 hit. Luckily, the horses, which are usually trying to bite or kick 
 one another, when close together, gave us no trouble, and most 
 of the camp-followers seemed fairly at ease, though quiet. The 
 cooks soon began making the dinners in the open by the tents — 
 my boy had fought against the British force at Kano in 1903 — 
 singing their songs, which seem to be indispensable if the meal is 
 to be a success, in a high falsetto voice as usual, though guilty of 
 a glance of disapproval now and then if an arrow came too close. 
 I wonder if the twang in their voices is responsible for that 
 peculiar West African flavour in their dishes ? Only an African 
 can accomplish either. 
 
 The attack lasted about two hours. Twice attempts were 
 made to rush the square, but as they were heralded in each case 
 by extra shouting, drumming, and noisy encouragement generally, 
 we were able to concentrate and strengthen our fire in the threat- 
 ened quarter, and so frustrate them. A few men, probably minor 
 chiefs, with long Zulu-Kafir-like shields, strutted up and down in 
 front of their followers, defying us to hit them, and strangely 
 enough, we could not do so. We could hardly believe that the 
 shields were bullet-proof, the targets were plain and quite close, 
 and some of the native soldiers were excellent shots, yet we did 
 the bearers no harm, apparently. Nor was our non-success due to 
 unsteadiness; nearly all of us had seen service before — some of 
 the men a dozen times ; the fire-control was perfect — it had to be, 
 for the ammunition was limited — and we hit other men who were 
 
 84 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 without shields and were, therefore, much worse targets. The 
 soldiers themselves easily accounted for the fact by attributing 
 the immunity of the shield-men to magcmi (magic), but I fear 
 that that explanation did not quite convince us. 
 
 At about seven o'clock the attack died down, and we made 
 our dispositions for the night. Perhaps it ought to have been 
 mentioned when comparing the duties of the political and military 
 officers that, so long as things are peaceful, the Resident naturally 
 directs the conduct of the movements, the Waff officers being 
 merely part of the escort ; but directly hostilities commence, the 
 civil official becomes a subordinate, and it was rather strange that 
 the man now in command should be the youngest and the least 
 experienced of the four of us. The Bauchi Resident had been in 
 some previous skirmishes in Northern Nigeria, and the commander 
 of his escort had been a captain in Ashanti during the expedition 
 of 1900, but having transferred from the militia, in which he was 
 then serving, to the regular army, he had lost the benefit of all 
 his previous service, and had had to commence again at the 
 bottom of the list of second-lieutenants. I myself had seen 
 service in South Africa and in Ashanti, my captaincy being 
 obtained during the former campaign, and I had had charge of 
 a few police patrols in Northern Nigeria, as already mentioned, 
 which, although they were not active service exactly, were good 
 training. Yet we all automatically became junior to the lieu- 
 tenant in the Waffs, who had never seen service before, as soon as 
 fighting commenced. Regulations create strange conditions at 
 times, though in a way one can see the reason of such rules ; but it 
 seemed rather unsatisfactory that in a position of great danger 
 such as this was, our lives should be entrusted to the one who had 
 had the least real experience which could be of any use under the 
 circumstances. And in saying this, I do not mean to insinuate 
 that he did not do well; I only wish to point out that the 
 regulations brought about a curious condition of affairs. 
 
 We took it in turns to go round the sentries at night, and I 
 found an excellent plan to keep the men awake in giving them a 
 Hausa proverb to pass on round the cordon until it came back 
 to me. The native soldier will fight like a fury while he sees the 
 
 85 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 need of it, but he is not keen on doing sentry-go afterwards, 
 especially as it is his nature to leave worries to others, and there 
 was on this occasion a great temptation for the men to go to sleep, 
 for all were flying down so as to present as small a target as 
 possible in the event of a night attack. The Hausas, who 
 made up a goodly proportion of the force, are extremely fond 
 of proverbs, and they quite entered into the spirit of this 
 kind of thing, especially as some of the sayings were very 
 appropriate. 
 
 The moon came out about 11 p.m. and it was then evident 
 that there would be no further attack that night, and although 
 drumming was still to be heard, and fires were burning on the 
 hills all round us, we felt that we could relax our vigilance some- 
 what, and reduce the number of sentries. What would happen on 
 the morrow we did not know ; our anxiety was centred on the 
 question whether the 'Mbun people and those farther on would 
 attack us, and, if so, would the ammunition last out. But that 
 was for to-morrow — this was still to-day, and we were dead-beat ; 
 to be fresh and ready for the work it was necessary to get some 
 sleep, so having arranged regular turns, those of us not on duty 
 went to bed. 
 
 To make certain that I did not myself go to sleep, I sat out 
 on a shooting-stick, but even thus, during my second turn, I 
 found myself musing over the events of the day. When I was 
 hit, old Ajai, the court messenger, tore off his long Hausa robe 
 and wanted to hold it in front of me, while the police orderly 
 snatched off his charms (bought from the Mohammedan mallams 
 in Jemaan Daroro specially to ward off arrows) and tried to tie 
 them round my waist. Although the men got in my way and 
 made me angry at the time, it was good afterwards to feel that 
 one's own followers would do these things for their white masters 
 (the others had somewhat similar experiences), for both really 
 thought that they themselves were running extra risks in thus 
 shielding me. Old Ajai cried when I left him afterwards at 
 Keffi, and although his great ugly face looked more grotesque 
 than ever when bathed in tears, I did not feel at all inclined 
 to laugh at him. As for the policeman, he proved his pluck on 
 
 86 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 several occasions, but his name does not appear, for I had to 
 sentence him later on to imprisonment for theft and extortion. 
 
 It is sad to think how many of our protege's go wrong ; most 
 officers can vouch for the fact that some of their soldiers who 
 are splendid men as privates cannot be permanently advanced, 
 because, whenever they are given a stripe, they at once use 
 their authority for the purpose of extorting contributions from 
 the pay of the men under them. And often the relief of a white 
 official at the end of his tour of duty means the rearrangement of 
 the black staff under him, for many natives will do very good 
 work for one master and very bad work for another. I think it 
 is not sufficiently recognised that the ordinary untutored native 
 has but little idea of his own steady, permanent advancement ; he 
 lays up no goods for the morrow, he is rich one day and -poor the 
 next, a gradual rise in status hardly forming part of his calcula- 
 tions. His service is a personal one, given to the white master 
 who has won his affections — the Government is nothing ; perhaps 
 there may be some white men greater than his own master, but 
 they cannot compare with him in other ways, and at any rate 
 they do not concern the servant. Perhaps they provide the 
 money, but his own master gives him his pay, and he is not 
 going to trouble about the source whence it is obtained; other 
 white men may come and relieve him, but the subordinate owes 
 them nothing, and so he need not mind how he works or behaves 
 to them — and thus the poor fellow comes to grief in at least 
 one-half of the cases. 
 
 But my turn of duty being up I returned again to my tent, 
 and, being tired out, it was not long before I had forgotten the 
 natives' troubles as well as my own worries. 
 
 Any chance of making friends with the Toffs then was gone, 
 so we had determined to leave at daybreak — in fact, we should 
 have done so the day previously but for the fact that one of the 
 officers had fever, as mentioned before. There was only one way 
 out of this mouse-trap, so the guide had told us the previous 
 night, viz. by the way we had come, and as this passed close to 
 the town, and was but a narrow ledge on the side of what was 
 almost a miniature precipice, commanded by rocks above, and by 
 
 87 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 other hills on the opposite side of the defile, we expected a warm 
 reception. But, strange to say, although we were late in starting, 
 and although our movements had been observed, we found that 
 the route was not closed, and the head of the little column entered 
 the pass before the natives seemed to realise that we were actually 
 leaving. Immediately drums began beating, and war-whoops 
 arose, and soon we were again engaged ; but after a short fight, 
 which was mainly a rear-guard action, we found ourselves clear of 
 our adversaries, with only one more casualty on our side. The 
 carriers trudged on with their loads, the horses were led along 
 the gravelly paths, and coaxed over the slabs as usual, and except 
 for the absence of singing amongst the carriers (made up for in 
 some respects by the yells of the Toffs), and for the frequent 
 " P°P' P°P " °* ^he rifles* it might have been an ordinary march. 
 
 As I have said before, the great question had been whether 
 the people of 'Mbun would oppose us or not, for we had to pass 
 through their village again, and would have been even more 
 exposed to attack there than at Toff since the defile was much 
 narrower and deeper. Great, therefore, was our relief when 
 we saw the chief and others with whitened faces (their "white 
 flag ") coming to meet us, and bringing food. Had they and the 
 people of the villages farther on fought, it is a question if we 
 should ever have got back at all, for our ammunition was nearly 
 exhausted (we had but 47 rounds left per man out of the original 
 100), and we were forty miles from any tribes we could depend 
 upon, and even these might have risen against us if we had been 
 already defeated. Our horses were lame, and our carriers also, 
 and we could not have transported any badly wounded men. 
 Luckily, however, we were not called upon to decide the question, 
 for the people of 'Mbun and Toff' were hereditary enemies, and 
 the 'Mbuns were delighted to think that we had fought on their 
 side, so we slept in peace and quiet that night and reached 
 Jemaan Daroro a few days later. A patrol of 100 men with a 
 Maxim gun subdued the Toffs during the following year, and they 
 did not have as much fighting as we had had, from all accounts. 
 But it is one thing to go out with the intention of attacking a 
 tribe, with some idea of its size, with a knowledge of the roads, 
 
 88 
 
A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 and with plenty of ammunition ; it is a very different matter to 
 be attacked when on a peaceful mission, with but half as many 
 men, no gun, and with no reserve of ammunition. The smaller 
 the force the greater the danger, and conversely, the less chance 
 there is of obtaining any recognition for it. 
 
 The Toffs were adepts in the art of taking cover ; several got 
 up quite close to us in the first advance without our seeing them, 
 and they made a flank attack in the yam field. They must have 
 been well directed too, for if we concentrated on one point, they 
 directed their attention to another. The arrows were plain reeds, 
 about a yard in length, with long, thin points (fashioned so as 
 to break off on striking the target and remain in the wound), 
 poisoned with strophanthus and snake virus, I was told. I cannot 
 understand why we had so few casualties ; we found sixty arrows 
 next morning in the square (an area of 900 square yards perhaps), 
 and double as many just outside — I have some now — there was 
 no shelter of any kind, and we were a perfectly plain target. 
 Most of us had at least one arrow within a few inches of some 
 part or other of his body, but yet we escaped very lightly. 
 Arrows would drop between the legs or arms of one of us 
 when kneeling or lying down ; why was it they did not find the 
 flesh ? The lack of an iron head probably affected the accuracy 
 of the shooting to some extent, but the range of flight was a long 
 one, as on one face the Toffs were quite 200 yards away on a little 
 higher ground, and yet their shafts reached the square, the wind 
 helping them to some extent, no doubt. The range was perfect ; 
 they simply had bad luck, I suppose — at least, we should call it so 
 were we to go so near and yet so far — though my sympathies were 
 not at all with them . The knives — like machetes — were, I suppose, 
 imported ; had the Toffs known how to work in iron, they would 
 assuredly have tipped their arrows, and have used spears also. 
 
 The men were stark naked except for a little basket-like object 
 resembling those worn by the Gannawarri, but much wider in 
 some cases ; the women, I heard, wore leaves, but I did not see 
 any females, and except for the fact that the houses were very 
 close together, I had no time to note anything of anthropological 
 interest. 
 
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A BOUNDARY COMMISSION 
 
 What induced the Toffs to leave the road open I cannot tell. 
 Probably they thought that they had us so safely that we could 
 not escape, and they intended to finish us at their leisure later 
 on, for as we moved off we saw numbers of warriors coming over 
 the hills from neighbouring towns, whither they had evidently 
 returned after the attack of the previous evening. Signal fires 
 were kept burning all night, , and drumming was continuous, 
 while now and then there would be sudden bursts of yelling and 
 trumpet-blowing ; all tellings no doubt, of the mighty deeds done 
 by the local herots in the fight that day, and of the very excellent 
 use the white men's skulls would be put to on the morrow. The 
 subsequent patrol found about seventy skulls in one fetish house, 
 I believe; I am glad none of ours were amongst the number, 
 for after all, one's head is quite a useful thing to keep, both 
 metaphorically and literally. 
 
 90 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 ONE of my first experiences of the warlike Kagoro tribe was 
 somewhat startling. I had been among them during the 
 previous month, on my return from my trip to Zaria 
 recorded in a later chapter, and as their tribute had not been 
 comiDg in as quickly as it should have been (some being more 
 than two years overdue), I had given them a slight hint that 
 there were other and more convincing arguments on my side than 
 mere words — arguments, the strength of which they had already 
 had some experience. While I had been in their district the 
 people had paid a small proportion of the arrears, but immediately 
 I had returned to my headquarters the payments ceased, and 
 so I had warned them that I should be coming for more at some 
 future time. 
 
 The road from Jemaan Daroro is steep and very bad in places, 
 for the ascent from the bottom of the cup in which the town is 
 situated is fairly rapid, and as I emerged from a path in thick 
 bush into a clearing near the village of Chanji, there, in line, 
 with their bows at full stretch and poisoned arrows fitted, were 
 some thirty savages advancing towards me. I had no time to call 
 my little escort of eleven men who were some distance behind me, 
 and to have retired would have been fatal ; so feeling exceedingly 
 nervous myself, I rode up and told them not to be afraid, my 
 orderly calling out in Hausa, "It is peace. 1 ' I found on questioning 
 them that they were out after " small game " only (i.e. mice and 
 rats), so we were soon friends, but in the old days, in fact so late 
 as five years ago, had a solitary trader met a hunting party his 
 skull would soon have decorated a hut — and even while I was 
 there some women were the victims of a temporary absent- 
 
 91 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 mindedness on the part of a small band of hunters — for although 
 mice may furnish good sport at times, men provide much better. 
 
 Jemaan Daroro is almost in the centre of the country where 
 the industry of head-hunting is seen in its most nourishing state. 
 To the north and north-east are the Kagoro, Attakka, Ganna- 
 warri, Moroa, and Katab tribes, and towards the north-west the 
 Kajji and Jaba, and all these are tailed. Then to the west are 
 the Kagoma, to the north-west the Kanninkwom peoples, both 
 ardent followers of the sport (shall we say?) of kings, though 
 innocent of the caudal appendage. In the Bauchi Province to the 
 east are the Karshe, Kibbo, and other tribes, to the south and 
 south-east the Ayu, Ninkada, and Nadu, and to the south and 
 south-west the Ninzam, Waiwai, Mada, and others. Of these the 
 Gannawarri and Nadu are known to be cannibals, but I think 
 that none of the others eat human flesh now, although it is quite 
 possible that they gave way to the luxury in earlier times. 
 
 Head-hunters are not found elsewhere in Northern Nigeria 
 to-day so far as I know, except in continuation of the Pagan Belt 
 in the Bauchi province, not at any rate in such numbers as are 
 here congregated, though there are cannibals in other parts. 
 
 The Kagoro occupy part of the north and west faces of a 
 ridge of steep, high mountains running from the Bauchi into 
 the Nassarawa province, and then apparently running back again. 
 All but one of the towns which I saw are built at the foot of 
 the ridge (though there are a few villages right on top of the 
 plateau, belonging to Ogban and Kukkum probably, which have 
 not even yet been visited), and nearly all are defended by planted 
 labyrinths of strong prickly euphorbia hedges, which sometimes 
 reach a height of fifteen or even twenty feet, but there are no 
 stockades of any kind. The towns with the approximate popu- 
 lations (based purely on guess-work in most cases, any strict 
 mode of census-taking being entirely out of the question) are as 
 follows, enumerating them in order from the south : Tuku Tozo 
 (150), Tuku (150), Jigya or Jigga (150), Tafa and Ungwal 
 Giginnia (300), all isolated on the west face of the mountain 
 spur. Chanji (200) is by itself on the main road, with a few 
 scattered houses nearer the mountains. Then on the north side 
 
 92 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 of the range come the biggest towns, all adjoining one another, 
 and forming a veritable nest of savagery, namely Ogban (1500), 
 Kukkum (1000), Fada Kagoro (1500 ; Fada means capital), 
 Apak (500), Turap (400), Safwio (200), Duchui (150), and 
 Kaderko (150). Opposite Fada Kagoro is Malagum (500), 
 while Mafor (100) and Makabbo (100) face Duchui and 
 Eaderko respectively, these three towns being situated on a 
 detached hill to the north of the big spur. The total popula- 
 tion is therefore about 7000, but this estimate is, as I have 
 said before, only very approximate. 
 
 The Kagoro say that they came long ago from Bauchi country 
 westwards to Nimbia, near to where Jemaan Daroro now is — 
 though it was not in existence at that time — and from Nimbia 
 they passed, after a short stay, to the site of the present Fada 
 Kagoro, the leader of the party being Apak, after whom one of 
 the towns was named. There they found the ruins of the habita- 
 tion of a former forgotten people, perhaps the makers of the 
 stone axes said to have been discovered in the vicinity. I have 
 not been able to secure any such implements from that particular 
 district, but I have been given some from j list over the border, 
 and so I have no doubt that the accounts of similar tools having 
 been found there are correct, for some of the Kagoro chiefs on 
 being shown some axe-heads said that they knew that they had 
 been made by the splintering of rocks by lightning — a general 
 belief amongst natives. One, however, the Agwam (chief) of 
 Ogban, said that one of them was an axe, and this was very 
 strange, for the other chiefs all swore that nothing of the kind 
 has been used within their memory. He, however, was a good 
 deal older than the others, and it is just possible that he knew 
 that stones may have been used before iron became available, a 
 metal which must have always been somewhat difficult to obtain, 
 for the ore is not found in the Kagoro country, and only Hausa 
 blacksmiths seem able to work it when brought there. 
 
 As the people have no records of any kind, except the rather 
 confused accounts of which the foregoing is the main outline, the 
 story of their origin is very hard to prove or disprove. One 
 thing which supports their account — and an important point 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 too — is that in the towns on the northern side of the mountain 
 spur the sacred groves are all to the south, and the people look 
 first in that direction when performing their mystic rites, the 
 reason given being that they face their place of origin ; while in 
 those towns on the western side of the range the groves are to 
 the north, and these towns we know are colonies from Fada 
 Kagoro. The fact that the northern towns are the oldest seems 
 to be rather against the theory that the people worked round 
 from the south, but it is quite possible that they came across the 
 top of the spur instead of around it, as the Attakka, their neigh- 
 bours, have done since. Dr. Keane, in Main, Past and Present, 
 mentions a tribe of Kagoro, and the similarity of the name is 
 rather striking, but his people are a branch of the Mande family 
 much farther to the west, and it would be difficult to imagine 
 that there could be any connection between peoples so far apart. 
 
 Nothing is yet known of the languages of the Bauchi plateau, 
 so no comparison can be made, but it is worth noting that 
 the Kagoro salutation is almost the same as theirs (sham or ska), 
 though the tribes do not visit one another, and also all are head- 
 hunters. And the fact that many Hausa words are now used in 
 the Kagoro vocabulary (even for the names of several of their 
 towns) does not militate against this, for that great trade tongue 
 is spoken everywhere, and there have been for a long time some 
 blacksmiths or traders or others amongst them. On the contrary, 
 the fact supports their story, for tobacco has been smoked for 
 many years in the north, yet the Kagoro did not know of it, 
 their adoption of the Hausa name proving that it must have 
 been introduced comparatively recently. 
 
 There is, however, one very important difference that should 
 be noted, namely, that the men of the Bauchi tribes which I 
 saw on the Nassarawa border, and inhabiting the country from 
 which theJKagpxo- claim to have come, wear a peculiar article of 
 dr.ess -which may be described as a " case," and do not circumcise, 
 whereas the Kagoro attire themselves quite differently, and do 
 mutilate the body. No doubt there are many other differences 
 also, but not knowing the Bauchi people, I cannot enumerate 
 them. 
 
 94 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 When I first saw the Kagoro, Attakka, Moroa, Katab, and 
 Kajji people, I thought that they must all be descended from a 
 common stock, since their tribal marks were identical, many 
 of their customs similar, and the languages appeared much alike 
 — especially those of the Kagoro and Moroa — but all denied this, 
 and gave different accounts of their origin. The Kagoro, as 
 I have said, claim to have come from the south-east and then from 
 the south; whereas the Kajji, Katab, and Moroa say that they came 
 from Zaria to the north and north-west; and probably none of 
 these tribes could ever have been powerful enough to drive the 
 Kagoro to. where they now are, for, although much more numer- 
 ous, they are not so warlike. The Kajurawa certainly kept the 
 Kagoro within the precincts of the mountain spur, and it is easier 
 to account for this by supposing that the latter, being a strange 
 and small tribe, spread gradually around the base or over the top 
 of the mountains, than by presuming that they — evidently the 
 weaker, since they paid tribute — could have forced their way 
 across the lower portions of the Kajuru country. 
 
 The similarity of the tribal marks is said to be due to the fact 
 that about two generations ago the Katab had a very skilful 
 operator who invented the pattern (one would think he must 
 have charged so much per cut, judging by the number of them), 
 and that people of the surrounding tribes visiting the town liked 
 it so much that it soon became universal. Both Kagoro and 
 Moroa men told me this, and the chief of Jemaa supported the 
 story, so possibly it is true, though it is certainly strange ; but it 
 must have been more than two generations ago, for even the 
 oldest men have now the universal marks, which, they say, were 
 done in their youth. 
 
 Peoples of the same origin may fight each other — even 
 different members of a single family will do that — but they 
 never keep the heads of their victims as trophies of war, though 
 they retain those of their enemies, and, even if taken during 
 the actual fighting, they are given back to the dead man's 
 relatives to be buried with the bodies on the declaration of 
 peace. If this were not done, the ghosts of the victims would 
 have to serve those of their slayers in the next world, and 
 
 95 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 although such a condition of affairs would be most desirable in 
 the case of war with an enemy, it is not considered good form 
 to make one's own blood relations (or should I say spirits ?) do 
 such work. And in fact, it is quite possible that such a ghost 
 would work harm rather than good to the slayer, since it, and 
 only it, can worry any of its living relatives, a ghost of a stranger 
 being harmless. Now the Kagoro did take and keep Kajji, 
 Katab, and Moroa heads, but not, so they say, those of the 
 Attakka, and this would seem to show that there was originally 
 no connection between the first four tribes ; later on, however, 
 the Kagoro and Katab swore an agreement to restore heads 
 if they should have war and any should be taken, and they 
 say that the terms were carried out on the few occasions on 
 which they came into conflict afterwards. 
 
 Finally, the Attakka even now occupy the hills above Nimbia, 
 and their villages are built in a way similar to that adopted by 
 the Kagoro, though rather higher up the slope ; while the Moroa, 
 Kajji, and Katab inhabit the plains ; so I should say that the 
 Kagoro and Attakka both came from the south and before that 
 from the east, and that they probably had a common origin, while 
 the other tribes came from the north or west, though there was 
 most likely no connection between the Kajji and Moroa, even if 
 the Katab were related to either one or the other. 
 
 It is said that when the Kagoro first came to the country 
 which they now inhabit they did not know the use of the bow and 
 arrow, and that they had only wooden spears, shields, and slings. 
 And this is possibly correct, for the chief of Jemaan Daroro told 
 me that the Attakka had learned the use of arrow poison from the 
 Kibbo (Bauchi) only about twenty-five years ago, and that they 
 had then taught the Kagoro. This seems to argue both for and 
 against the theory of origin from the south and east, for whereas 
 the Toffs use even now only arrows with wooden points, and the 
 Gannawarri do not use the bow and arrow at all, the Kagoro 
 might have been expected to have brought the knowledge of the 
 power of poisons with them unless discovered only after their 
 departure. The country was so overrun with wild beasts at the 
 time of their arrival that they had to live underground, so the 
 
 96 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 legend goes, and make tunnels to their farms, and this makes one 
 suspect that they were to some extent troglodytes, or cave- 
 dwellers, like the Nadu to the south; in fact, they still have 
 caves where they store their food, and which they use as hiding- 
 places when attacked, though they do not improve them in 
 any way. 
 
 For a long time they were ruled by councils of elders, or heads 
 of families ; but having been conquered by the Kajurawa, and 
 forced to pay tribute, they determined to elect a chief, or agwam, 
 to supervise the payment. There had been desultory fighting 
 between these peoples for many years without any decisive result 
 on either side ; but about one hundred and twenty years ago, so 
 far as I can calculate from the lengths of the reigns given me, the 
 Kajurawa demanded a regular annual payment, and the Kagoro 
 were not strong enough to resist. Possibly the Filani were respon- 
 sible in some degree, for their herds had begun to enter the rich 
 Moroa and Kagoro country, and the Kajuwara protected them in 
 return for the levies of cattle described in the last chapter but 
 one. At any rate, two slaves per annum had been asked for, and 
 the Kagoro in despair called a meeting of all the elders to con- 
 sider what should be done. 
 
 Apparently no satisfactory solution of the problem had been 
 found, each elder refusing to give up his own offspring for the 
 good of the State, when a youth, Gundong, said that he would 
 supply the slaves if he were made chief; and this having been 
 agreed to, he struck a silk-cotton tree with his stick, and im- 
 mediately two young slaves appeared, a male and a female, who 
 were given as tribute. A somewhat simpler explanation occurred 
 to me, knowing their gentle habits, namely, that something more 
 human than a cotton-tree was struck with the stick, and that this 
 was the commencement of the capture of passing strangers, an 
 exciting and lucrative pursuit which has been stopped only during 
 the last three or four years, and even now there are little lapses at 
 times. In fact, the Kagoro say that before that time they were 
 not head-hunters, nor had they any slaves. 
 
 Gundong was thus the first agwam, and he is said to have 
 reigned fifty years, the magic cotton tree, as one would expect, 
 
 97 g 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 withering and dying on the day of his death. His brother Bishut 
 followed, and lived for another forty years, and this is rather 
 hard to reconcile until one remembers that it is quite possible 
 that Gundong was born when his father was eighteen (Kagoro 
 marry much younger), and Bishut, by a different mother, when he 
 was fifty. But a wild pagan's idea of even the present time is, 
 to say the least, hazy, and of the past quite valueless, and it was 
 only by finding out which of the Kagoro chiefs fought against 
 certain of the Jemaa chiefs, whose dates could be determined 
 fairly definitely, that any approach to accuracy could be made. 
 
 After Bishut's death there was an interregnum for several 
 years, Jigya or Jigga (the name seems to be pronounced in both 
 ways) usurping the power, and playing the part of a tyrant for 
 some time, but he was expelled in the end and driven to the 
 south, where he founded a village. 
 
 The people then appealed to the chief of Jemaan Daroro to 
 choose a chief, as they could not agree among themselves, and 
 each town was fighting its neighbour, a somewhat strange pro- 
 ceeding, for the Kagoro and the Jemaa people have been 
 enemies for generations. Bishut's son, Mungu, was appointed, 
 but he died seven years afterwards, and was succeeded by Kaka, his 
 brother, the present ruler, who was recognised by the Govern- 
 ment in 1905, and appointed District Headman, or " D.H.M.," 
 as it appears in the records. These chiefs were in no way subject 
 to the Filani, although they had asked the chief of Jemaan 1 
 Daroro to choose their agwam, for although the Jemaa people, 
 with Zaria's help, defeated the Kagoro on several occasions, they 
 also suffered some reverses, and never succeeded in subduing 
 them nor in making them pay tribute. 
 
 After Gundong had given his slaves, the head of each family 
 took it in turn to provide the annual contribution, and if no 
 stranger were available, would seize even his own grand-children 
 and hand them over — children do not count for much in times of 
 danger or famine. They have now been roughly assessed, and 
 most of the towns have paid tribute to the Government direct, but 
 the chief of Jemaa was not given the position of suzerain, 
 for he had been unable to conquer them before our arrival. 
 
 98 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 On Kaka's death his successor will be chosen by the people, 
 and confirmed or rejected by us, and he will be a man, for 
 only males are eligible, females being considered incapable of 
 any posts of authority. The agwam of Fada Kagoro takes 
 one-tenth of the total to compensate him for the trouble of 
 collecting it, the chief of each separate town taking a smaller 
 proportion, and as the chiefs of such independent tribes seldom 
 have very much power over their people, and are always liable to 
 abuse and ill-treatment on such occasions, he does not get over- 
 paid. The incidence on the Kagoro general public is about l|d. 
 per head per adult, not exactly a ruinous tax compared with 
 what we have the pleasure and privilege of paying in England. 
 
 The Katab to the north of the Kagoro are mostly in the 
 Zaria province, only one town being within- the Nassarawa 
 boundary; they are said to have originated in Kachicherri, 
 north of Moroa. "There is a big rock, the Dutsin Kerrima, 
 where sorcery was practised," I was told, "cattle being sacri- 
 ficed there long ago. The demons \aljen was the word used, 
 from the Arabic] are very powerful, and sacred earth is taken 
 from the rock by the Filani, and mixed with potash as a medicine 
 for their cattle. Years ago, Awudu, chief of Zaria, when engaged 
 in a war, which ended in the conquest of the Katab country, gave 
 the people a black bull to sacrifice ; 'on the advice of his mallams 
 — and yet he was himself a Mohammedan priest. Even now on 
 Sunday and Friday nights the hill is luminous, and ghostly white 
 cattle mount on top of the rock and walk about, tended by a 
 white Filani girl." I suppose the mountain is a volcano, and the 
 appearance of steam at intervals has given rise to this myth ; and 
 there is probably some potash in the earth; but why the 
 phenomenon appears on a Sunday I do not know, though the 
 Mohammedan influence might account for the Friday night 
 performances. 
 
 The Kajji (also spelt Kaje, though this gives no idea of the 
 pronunciation) claim descent from the north-west; they are 
 thoroughly under control. Their immediate neighbours to 
 the north and west are the Jaba, with whom they seem to 
 have much in common ; in fact, they once lived on the land 
 
 99 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 now occupied by the Jaba tribe. The migration must have 
 been quite recent, for Canon Robinson, writing in 1894, and 
 describing a journey from Keffi (or as he more correctly spells 
 it Kaffl, i.e. "Stockade," and so "stockaded town"), said that 
 the inhabitants of this district, many of whom wore no clothes 
 of any kind, whilst others were content with a girdle of leaves, 
 were a most degraded and unintelligent-looking set of people. 
 According to the statement of his carriers (never a very 
 reliable source of information, I fear, in such matters), many 
 of them were cannibals. Near Zaria, his route for about fifty 
 miles lay through the land of the Keddara tribe ; but prior to 
 this his advance had been through the country of the " Kedje," 
 who for the most part were professional brigands. The Kajji 
 still indulge in these little failings when possible, and I very 
 much doubt if they have yet been cured of them. 
 
 South of the Kajji are the Kagoma, but the tail-bearing ends 
 at the border, for the Kagoma, the Kanninkwom, and the people 
 south of them, wear little strips of cloth instead. The Kagoma 
 claim descent from the west, and are not connected with the 
 Kagoro in any way, but their houses are almost identical, and, 
 by the way, that reminds me of another point worth mentioning. 
 The houses of the Kagoro and Attakka on the west and south 
 faces of the mountain spur are conical, like those of the pagans 
 nearer their supposed place of origin, while those in the big 
 towns to the north resemble those of the Kajji and Moroa type, 
 and, considering the fact that the building of the Kagoma and 
 Kajji houses far surpasses the best the Kagoro can do, I think 
 it is quite probable that this peculiar plan came from the west, 
 and that the Kagoro were not accustomed to building in that 
 way. • 
 
 To the west of the Kagoma are the Yeskwa, to the south the 
 Mada, their neighbours to the east being the Ninzam and 
 Waiwai. Then come the Ayu who claim descent from the Hausa 
 town of Katsina (as many English people do from Normandy), 
 the Kibbo on the JBauchi border, while to the north of the Ayu 
 are the Karshe people, a rather weak and unwarlike tribe, one of 
 whose towns, Nimbia, has been mentioned before. Some Attakka 
 
 100 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 live quite close to it even now, though their biggest towns are right 
 across the spur and on the north side of it as is the case with the 
 Kagoro. 
 
 The Attakka, their immediate neighbours to the east, were not 
 under control in my time, and I was therefore unable to find out 
 anything about them at first hand. A patrol visited the country 
 and subdued the tribe just after I had left in 1909, but I do not 
 think that they have been studied as yet. They are head-hunters 
 like the Kagoro, they dress in the same way, and their customs 
 are said to be similar ; they are the pot-makers of the district. 
 They probably number about seven thousand, and live in towns 
 on the north and south faces of the mountain spur. 
 
 The Gannawarri have now been placed under the Resident of 
 Bauchi, and, as they were not under control in 1908-9 nor in my 
 district, I was unable to visit any of their towns, though I went 
 a little way into their country to settle a quarrel. They are 
 cannibals, and nearly naked, but the little attire they do wear 
 differs markedly from that of the Attakka and Moroa, their 
 westerly neighbours. They have not even yet been thoroughly 
 subdued, and no tribute was being paid by them when I was there, 
 their refusal to pay inciting the Attakka to do likewise, these 
 people in turn urging the Kagoro to resist the tax. 
 
 The Moroa people say that their ancestors came from Zaria 
 country to Kafanchan (north of Jemaan Daroro), and from there 
 Enniluchwi and his wife went east and founded Chori, or Ungwal 
 Tukunia, some time before the Filani came to the country — about 
 1730 as near as I can make it. Enniluchwi was the father of all 
 the Moroa, and he reached the very respectable age of one 
 hundred years — how we all love to regard our ancestors, mythical 
 or real, as hoary patriarchs ! After him came Yakwu(r)rum of 
 Babban Gidda who ruled for ten years, then in order, Daudu of 
 Mansha, eight years ; Rubu, ten years ; Unkwommakai, fifteen 
 years ; Dawiya of Chori, fifty years (deposed) ; and lastly Abomong 
 of Mansha, now eight years, the present D.H.M. recognised by 
 the Government. 
 
 The Moroa country is open and very rich, most of the visible 
 area being under cultivation at some time or other. In the dry 
 
 101 
 
THE TAILED HEAD-HUNTERS 
 
 season I can hardly imagine a more pleasant spot to live in, and 
 were it easily accessible I should spend many a week-end there. 
 The great blue mountains looming up on the south, the Kaduna 
 river flowing away to the north-west through the harmattan's 
 haze, the herds of cattle contentedly eating the new green grass 
 springing up amongst the brown stubble burnt off at the ends of 
 the rains, the little sienna villages nestling amongst the tall dum- 
 palms, form a picture which I can never forget. I was struck with 
 the beauty of the Kagoro country on my first visit, but the land 
 of the Moroa is even more lovely, and through the haze over all 
 I felt that throbbing heat, that panting indefinable " something " 
 which gives the West African countries their charm. 
 
 102 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 "HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 IT is rather strange that the Kagoro, Attakka, Moroa, Katab, 
 Kajji, and J aba tribes should be noted for their fondness 
 for tails as well as for heads ; the former being prized by the 
 matrons, the latter being eagerly sought by the men. 
 
 The chiefs who have been recognised by the Government now 
 wear Hausa robes, in accordance with our instructions, made from 
 the native cotton, and purchased from the traders ; but no other 
 Kagoro wears cotton of any kind, though many Kajji men do 
 if they can afford it, and so do Jaba and Moroa, though to a 
 less extent. But even amongst the Kagoro chiefs themselves, 
 these robes are not very popular. I could never persuade Makka, 
 the chief of Chanji, to don one — for the reason, I found after- 
 wards, that he had sold it for palm-wine — and Kaka, the D.H.M., 
 only wore his when I was in his town, or when ■ he came to visit 
 me at Jemaan Daroro. I do not think that any of these robes 
 were ever washed, and but few of the bodies of the wearers either; 
 and sometimes, when measuring heads, I had to squirt eau-de- 
 cologne up my nose before I could get near them, although I had 
 even then lost nearly all my sense of smell — but some of these 
 people would have set up a commotion in the mucous mem- 
 brane of a mummy ! 
 
 All males of these six tribes wear a leather triangular loin- 
 covering after they have reached the age of six or eight, and 
 possibly even earlier if the father happens to have skins to spare. 
 Moroa and Kajji men sometimes wear cotton loin-cloths instead 
 of leather, like those of the Hausawa, who always have them even 
 under their loose trousers. Another skin may be worn over the 
 shoulders as a cape, the two front legs being tied together 
 to serve as a cord, and enabling it to be shifted to the one 
 
 108 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 side of the body or the other according to whichever is exposed to 
 the wind or the rain. Both these articles of clothing are made of 
 goat or sheep skin, which is cured by being stretched out on the 
 ground by means of pegs, the meat being scraped off, and a 
 preparation, which sometimes includes ash, being rubbed in to 
 kill the germs. There is, apparently, no softening process used { 
 in connection with the skins worn around the shoulders, for 
 the hair is retained, and they are as hard as boards ; but those 
 for the loins are greased to some extent, and have the hair 
 removed, but they get stiff very quickly if unused. There is 
 no regimental nor society tailor, the skins being prepared by 
 the wearers themselves generally, or by their fathers in the cases 
 of young boys. 
 
 Girls from three to four years of age until married wear the 
 ivyam, a picture-hook shaped girdle of loose native, strands of 
 string, not plaited nor twisted in any way, which is fitted round 
 the body a little lower than the waist, a long end passing fronTi 
 the front between the legs, and meeting the girdle again at the 
 small of the back, where it is tied. This is said to be an absolute 
 sign of virginity, and judging from the strictness with which 
 the females are looked after, and the early age at which they 
 are married, I should say that the badge is in nearly every case 
 a correct one. 
 
 Instead of the girdle, married women wear a tail behind, 
 which has various names according to whether it is decorated 
 or not, but is in its most primitive form called Tcwvndky and this 
 is in shape something like a mushroom, some being long and 
 thin, others being short and stumpy. It is made of a palm 
 fibre, very tightly drawn together and bound with string, and, 
 except in the southern Kagoro towns, there is a wider wheel- 
 shaped end, plaited like basket-work, the whole being left quite 
 plain, or coloured red with earth to match the wearer's body. 
 The next step in ornamentation in some parts is a row or two of 
 beads around the edge of the " wheel," and brass wire may be 
 bound around the " stalk " or " axle " of the humndk, or it may 
 be covered with sheet brass. Finally, the under-surface of the 
 " wheel " may be decorated with coloured glass beads in a more 
 
 104 
 
— a v i 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 or less regular pattern, and the two strings binding the tail to 
 the waist may be thus adorned also. The brass is bought from 
 the Hausawa ; the beads, obtained through them or other traders 
 from the Niger Company, are strung on a thread and then stuck 
 on with liquid rubber, of which there is a good deal in the 
 country ; they are not sewn in any way. The fancy bead patterns 
 were probably invented by the Jaba ; I have seen none amongst 
 the tribes farther to the east, but the brass wire is used to some 
 extent. In Tuku and Tuku Tozo, the tail resembles a cow-bell 
 more than a mushroom, there being no axle or wheel, and there is 
 but little decoration with beads, and none with brass, though the 
 women use beads in much greater profusion for bracelets, necklets, 
 and anklets. I was told that a tiny iron bell was sometimes worn 
 above the tail, but I do not know under what circumstances, 
 nor did I see one. 
 
 When a girl has been married, her mother removes her 
 girdle, and a small branch or bunch of leaves is hung in front 
 to the string around the waist which supports the tail behind. 
 Many women — especially when old apparently — wear leaves both 
 fore and aft, though this is not compulsory ; but those in front, 
 plus the tail behind, are the sign of marriage. At certain times, 
 such as dances and feasts, leaves may be worn by young girls also, 
 and this possibly corresponds in some degree to our own children 
 taking grown-up characters at fancy-dress balls; or there may be 
 some religious reason. 
 
 No woman of these tribes would dare to attire herself in any 
 other but the prescribed fashion, though the only punishment 
 which would be inflicted is the disapproval of her own people. 
 This, however, is a very serious thing in such savage communities, 
 and the differences in the adornment and shape of the tail 
 seem to be the only variations allowed, and even these are con- 
 fined within fairly strict limits. The late Lieutenant Boyd 
 Alexander mentions these tails in his From the Niger to the Nile, 
 though the statement " when the ornament is encased in brass it 
 denotes virginity," is not quite correct. He also relates that the 
 Yergum say of the Gazum people that they have tails about six 
 inches long, for which they have to dig a hole when they sit down. 
 
 105 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 The women of the Keddara tribe wear a tail of loose string 
 like a tassel, while Gannawarri females sport a number of large 
 iron rings in front which clank loudly as they walk. The 
 Kagoma girls wear a small apron of string, sometimes dyed 
 green and ornamented with cowries, while the adult women 
 of nearly all the remaining tribes in the vicinity wear short 
 pieces of cloth, though the bunches of leaves are seen right down 
 to Wase in the Muri province. 
 
 The tail worn by the women of the Kagoro, Moroa, and other 
 head-hunting tribes is probably a survival of a phallic cult, 
 though I doubt if any connection would be now recognised by 
 the people themselves, and it is interesting to remember that 
 " tales of tailed tribes " have sprung up from all quarters of the 
 globe. After all, Englishmen should not be very much astonished 
 by them, since they themselves were once accused of being 
 blessed (or cursed) with caudal appendages. Mr. Boyle says 
 that he has found legends of the phenomena in Abyssinia, 
 Borneo, the Amazon region, Paraguay, China, Guiana, Persia, 
 and the Sudan, and there are tales of tails in the New Guinea, 
 as well as in the old. Sometimes the caudati have been long 
 and prehensile, sometimes short and stiff, as with the Gazum 
 related above, and as with certain divisions of the Mada and 
 Nadu tribes who tell the story about each other. And where 
 the people are sufficiently advanced to sit on seats instead of on 
 the ground, holes are bored in these seats, it is said, for the 
 accommodation of the appendages, while their less civilised 
 brethren have to carry sticks to make a suitable place in the 
 ground. Again, it is sometimes said that the wearers cannot 
 even lie on their backs. 
 
 Professor Tylor says that various reasons have led to the 
 growth of the legends describing human beings with tails like 
 beasts, and, to people who regard monkeys and savages as closely 
 connected, the reason is fairly evident. The satyr was frequently 
 depicted as a half-human creature, sometimes in a form like that 
 of an anthropoid ape, and in East Africa and elsewhere, the 
 imaginary tribes of tailed men were often also monkey-faced. 
 He advises ethnologists, who meet in any district with the story 
 
 106 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 of tailed men, to look for a despised race of aborigines, outcasts, 
 or heretics, living near or among a dominant population who 
 look upon them as beasts, and furnish them with tails accordingly. 
 In Spain, he says, the mediaeval superstition still survives that 
 Jews have tails like the devil — I suppose the fear and hatred 
 of Satan accounts for our supplying him also with this 
 appendage. 
 
 In England, Professor Tylor continues, the idea was turned 
 to profit by priests, who claimed that the men who had insulted 
 St. Augustine and St. Thomas of Canterbury grew tails sub- 
 sequently. Bishop Bale writes that " for castynge of fyshe tayles 
 at thys Augustyne, Dorsett Shyre menne hadde tayles ever after 
 [which seems rather hard on the Dorsets], but Polydorus 
 applieth it unto Kentish men at Stroud by Rochester, for 
 cuttinge of Thomas Becket's horses tail." In the first case, 
 fishes' tails grew on the men; in the second, appendages like 
 those of horses, and as Becket excommunicated the men of 
 Rochester (who plundered his baggage when fleeing from the 
 King, and really did cut off his horses' tails), this story was 
 spread by the Church throughout Europe so assiduously that, 
 as Bishop Bale says further on, " thus hath England in all other 
 land a perpetuall infamy of tayles by theyr wrytten legends of 
 lyes, yet can they not well tell where to bestowe them truely." 
 And again, " An Englyshman now cannot travayle in an other 
 land, by way of merchandyse or any other honest occupyinge, but 
 it is most contumeliously thrown in his tethe that all Englyshmen 
 have tailes." 
 
 This story, says Professor Tylor, at last became a common 
 slander between shire and shire, and Devonians believed that 
 Cornishmen had tails until quite recently. Amongst many 
 savages there is a belief that human beings once had tails, and 
 in Brazil it is related of a certain tribe that a father-in-law, 
 after his daughter's marriage, would cut a wooden stick with a 
 flint, imagining by this symbolic ceremony that he was severing 
 the tails of future grandchildren, and thus securing that they 
 should be born tailless. 
 
 But as regards Englishmen, says Mr* Boyle, it was not 
 
 107 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 supposed they had been created there originally, but that the 
 growth of the appendages was a direct result of the ecclesiastical 
 curse. King Richard Cceur de Lion is related to have been 
 roused to the storming of Messina and the massacre that ensued 
 by the taunts of the Greeks and Sicilians, who greeted him and 
 his men with cries of "tailed Englishmen," while a century 
 later similar insults made the Earl of Salisbury withdraw with 
 his force from Damietta, apparently to the great satisfaction of 
 the "noble Frenchmen," who were not at all anxious to have 
 any men with appendages and under the curse of the Church as 
 allies. Even at Bannockburn the Scots are said to have sung 
 songs about the tailed Englishmen, a fact which may strike one 
 as very strange nowadays, considering that the Scots were 
 regarded as being barbarians, and far below the level of their 
 brethren south of the Tweed in civilisation. 
 
 However, whether the ornaments worn by the Kagoro and 
 other women are the result of a curse, or are a survival — as I 
 suspect — of a peculiar cult, it was most interesting to find people 
 with them, and I was able to obtain a selection. They are not 
 sacred to their wearers, and if they die, the tails will be passed 
 on to other members of the family. 
 
 The men wear loin-coverings of leather or cloth, but they 
 are in many districts copying the garments of the Filani and 
 Hausawa which are so well known as to hardly require any 
 description here. 
 
 No head-covering is worn by either sex, but a cape, resembling 
 in shape the sack with one side cut open worn by coal-heavers 
 in England, may be made of palm leaves for protection against 
 the rain, This may have been copied from those made by the 
 Hausawa, for their name for it, kaUddo, is often used, but it 
 is quite possible that the cape is purely a local invention, as 
 the Ninzams have a kind of immense three-cornered grass hat 
 which is used for a similar purpose. These are worn only by 
 men, and are but very seldom seen even on them ; none of the 
 women of any of these tribes cover their heads, and no persons 
 of either sex have any protection for hands or feet, although 
 most pagan women adopt them readily enough if married to or 
 
 108 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 enslaved by Filani or Hausawa in Jemaan Daroro, where large 
 and small hats and caps, and long boots, slippers, and sandals 
 of beautifully worked leather, or of wood, are fairly plentiful. 
 
 No special badges of rank are worn by either sex, not even by 
 leaders during war time. Youths may dress their hair, but adult 
 men and women and girls shave their heads. With the Kagoro 
 and Kajji (and probably with the other tribes too, though I have 
 not seen any examples), most males up to the age of about 
 eighteen or twenty allow the hair to grow in a broad tuft from 
 the forehead to the back of the neck, reminding one of the cheap 
 wooden horses made for children in England, and some Kajji say 
 that a youth should not shave his head until he has had two 
 children. But this is doubtful, though I suppose most of them 
 have a couple before the age of twenty, that is if they have more 
 than 6ne wife. Some males plait their hair instead in a most 
 intricate fashion, and ornament it with beads, brass rings, and 
 cowrie shells, while others cut it in the form of a mop like the 
 Gannawarri, Karshe, and others. Young girls may do likewise up 
 to the age of about six, but they have the head shaved after that, 
 though the reason given — namely, that they have to carry weights 
 (wood, water, &c.) while the men seldom do — seems inadequate, 
 for the Hausa and Beriberi women carry very heavy loads and yet 
 wear a high, solid pad running from front to back. 
 
 The older men usually allow the beard to grow, but the 
 moustache is shaved now and then, though no shaving seems to 
 be done while preparing for the harvest. I could not ascertain 
 that there was any reason for this except that the men were too 
 busy on their farms to spare the necessary time ; but I suppose 
 there is some religious meaning in it (probably connected with the 
 hair-offering), for the heads were shaved as usual, and they would 
 take much longer to do than the upper lip. Kagoma and a few 
 Kajji men wind cotton around their beards, bringing them to a 
 sharp point ; some Australian tribes also do this. 
 
 Open brass bracelets are worn by Kagoro of both sexes, and 
 wide iron bands (probably obtained from the Gannawarri) on the 
 calves of any old man and old woman who can afford them, but 
 they are very rare. Beads and horsehair are made into necklaces 
 
 109 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" $ 
 
 for women, while light iron chains are hung by men around their 
 waists, especially if courting, and strings of beads are worn by all 
 females. There are no toe-rings, but beads or beans' are used for 
 finger-rings. All ornaments are removable except the metal cases 
 around the legs, which seem to be a development of the wooden 
 protections for the ankles used by the Kibbo. They are very 
 heavy, and make the feet very sore, so that the wearers have to 
 tie on grass wads or bandages of cotton or leather for them to rest 
 upon ; they are, however, valuable, and are therefore kept in the 
 family. 
 
 Both the upper and lower lips of the women are pierced for 
 the reception of small discs of wood called tichiaJc, which are of 
 varying sizes, and may be over one inch in diameter and about 
 three-quarters of an inch high. Sometimes the outer face of these 
 discs is ornamented with a row of seeds, a flat, round piece of 
 native tin, or simply with a little red-coloured earth. Though 
 they are easily removable they are supposed to prevent women 
 eating fowls or dogs, the latter a very great privation ; but as 
 these people do not kiss one another, there is no objection to the 
 tichiaJc on that score. The lips are usually pierced when the girl 
 is about seven or eight years of age, stalks of grass being first 
 inserted and worn for a time, and then sticks of increasing thick- 
 ness until the tichiak itself can be taken, the largest sizes of which 
 give the mouth a very cruel shape, and make the lips project so 
 much that seen sideways the wearer has a pig-like appearance. 
 
 Both ears are pierced in the women, only the left in the men, 
 and they are treated in the same way as are the lips ; but in the 
 southern Kagoro towns the piercing of the ears of the males is 
 not compulsory, and it is, I think, dying out, even in the more 
 northern parts, for I saw but few men wearing ear-rings. Beads, 
 usually in the shape of blue glass rings, are bought from the 
 Hausawa, and are worn, or if these be unobtainable string or 
 sticks will do, but I have not seen any metal ones, not even of 
 brass, wire, or tin, although all of these substances are used for 
 the ornamentation of other parts of the body, as I have already 
 mentioned. The ear-rings are very light and quite moderate in 
 size, and they do not weigh down the lobes, but nevertheless I 
 
 110 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 have seen several torn lobes which could not be mended. The 
 nose is not pierced, as with the Nadu to the south, who wear 
 pieces of wood or bone through the septum of the nose, and 
 through both lips and ears, or as with the Beriberi of Bornu who 
 wear coral-like ornaments in the right nostril; nor is it flattened. 
 The teeth are not filed as with the Bassa, nor are they broken as 
 with the Yoruba tribes ; and there is no deformation of the feet 
 or fingers. 
 
 All members, male and female, of the Kagoro, Moroa, and 
 Kajji tribes are scarified in the same way, though the females are 
 more profusely decorated than the males, and I am told that the 
 same holds good with the Attakka, Katab, and Jaba as well; 
 certainly all whom I saw had had some acquaintance with the 
 knife, though before the present pattern was adopted each tribe 
 had irregular cuts on the forehead only. There is now no religious 
 significance about the designs, they maintain, the lines being 
 simply to denote race, and this must be correct if what they say 
 about copying the Katab pattern is true. 
 
 Males and females have the same marks on the head, and those 
 consist of a number of short perpendicular cuts right across the fore- 
 head from ear to ear, and long slanting lines (thirteen or more) on 
 each cheek from ear to chin. In some cases — particularly amongst 
 the younger men — a kind of zigzag is added to the lowest lines, 
 but this is not compulsory, the other marks are, except in Tuku 
 and Tuku Tozo. The people of these towns seem to be separating 
 themselves from their northern relatives, and to be desirous of 
 settling down peacefully under Jemaan Daroro, for in addition to 
 this and the difference in the shape of the tail, and of the houses 
 before mentioned, there are no euphorbia hedges in this quarter. 
 Youths have the forehead scarified when able to use a hoe, girls 
 when they go to their husbands. 
 
 Men may have in addition patterns on the chest, composed of 
 rows of cuts from about a quarter to one-half an inch in length, 
 and usually made slantwise, but they are voluntary and seem to 
 be dying out. The only persons with these chest-marks were 
 chiefs, but I was told that they were not in any sense signs of rank, 
 nor looked upon as charms, but there is no doubt that certain 
 
 111 
 
 **■ 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 Hausa patterns which are so regarded will spread and be adopted 
 even by the conservative Kagoro (the Kajji have many of them 
 now), especially those which are supposed to have particular 
 virtues such as prevention of sickness, retention of a wife's fidelity, 
 and even those invented for somewhat baser motives. I could no! 
 find out what the patterns which they have now were intended to 
 represent ; the people said that they did not know, and, if bor- 
 rowed, this was probably quite true. The only raised scars I saw 
 were on a Kajji man at Mersa, and they were said to have been 
 more accidental than intentional. On the first occasion when this 
 man noticed that I was looking at him he ran oft' in terror, but 
 afterwards he was quite friendly, and I got several photographs 
 of him. 
 
 Women's chests and backs are decorated with a regular 
 pattern early in life, so there is no need for them to undergo 
 fresh pain later for the sake of acquiring additional beauty. The 
 first lines to be done are those on the abdomen, and though these 
 vary a little in design, the usual triangular and parallel lines are 
 fairly well distinguishable. When a girl reaches the marriageable 
 age the chest and back will be scarified in two parallel sets of 
 long lines of short cuts, running from the breasts to join the 
 pattern already on the stomach, and from the shoulder blades 
 to the small of the back. As soon as possible after the marriage 
 the lines on the forehead are made, and then she is a finished 
 work of art — there is no danger of a Kagoro wife losing her 
 " marriage-lines." 
 
 The scarifier is an important person, though he has not the 
 exclusive right to operate upon every one, and, in fact, the father 
 is always free to slice his own offspring about should he feel 
 inclined, but all the " best people " who wanted their patterns 
 in the most perfect style would certainly patronise the professional 
 artist. The office is practically hereditary, for no man would 
 teach the secrets of his noble art to any but his own son or 
 nephew. 
 
 In addition to the scarified designs, at dances or feasts or 
 when courting, people of either sex may paint on themselves a 
 black stripe about an inch wide, running from forehead to 
 
 112 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 stomach, and sometimes there is a narrow line on each side as 
 well, or for each of these lines may be substituted a set of three 
 narrow ones. No colours are used on the body but black pig- 
 ment and red earth, and no other designs are permitted. The 
 pigment is obtained from the unripe kernel of a certain thorn 
 tree (called illah by the Kagoro, gaude by the Hausawa) which 
 is pounded up, mixed with water, and applied with the crushed 
 end of a stalk of guinea-corn. For scarification, which is to 
 be permanent, of course, the incisions are painted with grease 
 mixed with soot from the bottom of the cooking-pots. 
 
 The women usually smear their bodies with red earth, mixed 
 with grease if they can get it, and the men on certain occasions 
 may coat their legs up to their knees, and this custom is not con- 
 fined to the wild pagans, for I have seen dusky beauties of 
 Jemaa mixing the red earth with vaseline bought from traders, 
 and rubbing it into their bodies until they took on quite a 
 coppery-red tint. In the case of the Jemaa women, I should 
 think the idea was chiefly, if not altogether, for the sake of 
 increasing their charms, but with the Kagoro and others, the 
 coating may have afforded protection against insects also, for 
 their naked bodies must suffer a good deal from tiny tormentors. 
 There is plenty of red earth in the vicinity, also white, but the 
 latter is not used for decorating the body, though it may be 
 smeared on the houses, and even eaten by women under certain 
 circumstances. Hausa women, however, use white and even 
 yellow earth on their faces, especially to mark rings round their 
 eyes to keep off all the evil-eyes. There are no special artists for 
 the painting, the people doing it to each other, or to themselves. 
 
 No distinctive dress is worn for prowess in war, nor to denote 
 that a man had taken a head, as in Fiji, though he was not sup- 
 posed to have attained to the full dignity of manhood until he 
 had killed some one. There was a general idea amongst Jemaan 
 Daroro people that at any rate no Kagoro male was allowed to 
 marry until this most desirable feat had been performed, but the 
 Kagoro themselves deny this, and, judging by the early age at 
 which youths obtain their brides, I feel inclined to believe them, 
 though such qualifications are known to be insisted upon else- 
 
 113 H 
 
"HEADS AND TAILS" 
 
 where, for instance amongst the Dyaks of Borneo. When a man 
 had been lucky enough to procure a head he naturally did not 
 hide his good deed, and on the return of the hero to his house, 
 his whole body was smeared with red earth, and he was carried 
 in procession on the back of a friend, the women of the quarter 
 meanwhile dancing, waving their hands before him, and singing 
 his praises. 
 
 It is rather surprising that the Kagoro and others have not 
 learned to put antimony or sulphide of lead on their eyelids, nor 
 to stain their hands and feet with henna, as do the Filani and 
 Hausawa near them. They say that they are afraid to ornament 
 their hands, lest it should interfere with their farming and work 
 generally, and it is more than probable that this idea is ardently 
 fostered by the men so that the women will continue to do all 
 the hard work — there are no Votes for Women amongst the 
 Kagoro ! 
 
 No Kagoro, Kajji, Attakka, or Moroa woman would dare to 
 attire herself in any other than the prescribed fashion, as I have 
 said, and I have known girls, taken away when young, and dressed 
 in Hausa cloths, to discard these at once for the tichiak and 
 Jcimnoik on their return. On the other hand, the mutilation of 
 the lips is not at all popular amongst women of other tribes, who 
 do not indulge in the practice. Having to judge once between 
 a husband who wanted his wife (a runaway slave from Sokoto) 
 Kajji-ised, and the wife herself, who thought her natural charms 
 sufficient, I decided that she must wear the leaves and tail as 
 she was a wife, and they were the signs of marriage in the 
 country she had adopted, but that her lips were not to be touched, 
 for the perforations should have been made when the girl 
 was young, if at all. They seemed to be satisfied, I am sure 
 I was. 
 
 114 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 I HAVE already said that the Kagoro and other tribes had to 
 pay us tribute, and it may be as well to explain why. The 
 payment of a fixed amount, in cash or in kind, by a weak 
 people to a strong has long been recognised as the sign of the 
 acknowledgment of suzerainty, and it is enforced by the Govern- 
 ment of Northern Nigeria, not so much on account of the amount 
 brought in — the expenses of collection exceeding the sum received 
 in many cases — but rather to remind the natives that we are the 
 masters, and that we intend to keep them under control. This 
 refers more particularly to the tribes in the Pagan Belt ; in the 
 old Hausa States of Sokoto and Kano, the tribute is an important 
 source of revenue, but in those more settled parts the Political 
 Officer is rather more of a resident Treasury official than a 
 traveller, more of a legal expert than an anthropologist, though 
 political problems have to be solved by all. As for those who 
 have always lived in bungalows in Zungeru or Lokoja, they can 
 hardly be said to know the real West Africa at all, and this is so 
 well recognised now that men from the Political Service are being 
 transferred to the Secretariat. 
 
 I had been waiting for a long time for the chance to complete 
 my higher Hausa examination, and at last in December 1908, 1 
 received permission to proceed to Zaria to be tested. It seemed 
 rather strange that I should have to do a journey of over 300 
 miles there and back, and be away from my headquarters for a 
 month just for this reason, but such was the ruling against my 
 application to be considered as having passed in consequence of 
 my success in the army examination before referred to (although 
 my application was supported by the local examiner), and I was 
 very glad to have the chance of the trip. Sending instructions to 
 
 115 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 the Kagoro and Moroa tribes that I should visit them on my 
 return for the tribute, I left Jemaan Daroro on the 1st January, 
 and, marching through Kajji, Jaba, Keddara and other countries, 
 I reached Zaria on the 8th, an average of 19 miles a day. The 
 harmattan season was then at its height, and on the day that we 
 reached Zaria, I walked 12 miles without mounting (we had 
 started at 3.10 a.m.) although wrapped in a thick military great- 
 coat, and I have never liked walking. 
 
 I stayed five days at Zaria, not wholly on account of the 
 examination, the result of which was eminently satisfactory, but 
 because I had been unwell for some time, and there was no doctor 
 at Jemaan Daroro. However, on the 13th I again took the road, 
 and travelling by a different route, arrived at Fada Kagoro on 
 the 19th, this time doing an even better average rate. I had two 
 little excitements en route, for at a town named Liberi I found that 
 the man who carried my camp bed, blankets, pyjamas, and towels 
 had lost his way, and was missing, so I had to sleep as I was in my 
 " shorts " and helmet, with only a great-coat and face towel to 
 keep off the mosquitoes. 
 
 Next morning I had planned to start at 3.0 a.m., and at 2.30 
 I wljistled for the carriers. After about a quarter of an hour, one 
 or two appeared, and the headman informed me that the rest 
 would not come as they wanted to start later. I blew again and 
 waited, but without any result, and I then made for the huts in 
 which they had passed the night. I, of course, found them empty, 
 bqt the men's sleeping-mats were still there, and telling the head- 
 man to collect them, I set one of the servants to make a fire, and 
 calling out in a loud voice, " Burn the mats of all those carriers 
 who are missing," I threw some dry grass on to the fire, and the 
 flames leapt up. Immediately there was a rush from the sur- 
 rounding huts and from the bush, and the owners being made to 
 pack my loads before their mats were restored, we started off at 
 3.30 a.m., only half-an-hour late. 
 
 Every one of the carriers who had caused the trouble in the 
 morning was beaten later, and that day we covered 30 miles, yet 
 there was no more disagreement between us, and the same men 
 accompanied me on several subsequent treks. It may seem harsh 
 
 116 . 
 
o 
 
 > 
 
 u a. 
 
 2 = 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 treatment, but I was going into the Kagoro country for the first 
 time, and unless carriers are controlled strictly, they begin looting, 
 so I had to teach them a lesson at once, for even a petty theft from a 
 man of a savage tribe may mean the massacre of the whole party 
 later. That night the man with my bed turned up again — and I 
 admit I was glad to see him about seven o'clock, just as I had 
 given up all hope — having travelled well over forty miles, for he 
 had had to retrace his steps to get to the town where we had 
 camped in order to find out where we had gone. And if I was glad 
 so was he, for he had had to sleep in a tree with hyenas prowling 
 around and sniffing at the bed which he had left on the ground. 
 
 The next day I reached Zungon Katab, and the -day after- 
 wards I was met by four soldiers, the advance guard of an escort 
 of eleven allowed me while on trek in the Kagoro country, both 
 to lend weight to my arguments, and to guard any cash received. 
 
 The reader will by this time, I hope, have become thoroughly 
 convinced of the necessity for exacting tribute from these com- 
 paratively lawless tribes, but, however sound our views on this 
 score may be, it is unfortunately necessary to state that the 
 natives do not always agree with them. The Kagoro, Moroa, 
 and other head-hunters in the Jemaan Daroro division paid only 
 between a penny and threepence per head per annum, but it can 
 hardly be stated with any show of truth that they did so as 
 willingly as long-suffering Englishmen would if they could sub- 
 stitute that amount for what they usually have to pay. We must 
 necessarily be extremely lenient in all matters where time is con- 
 cerned with these pagans, for most of them have absolutely no 
 idea of any divisions of the year other than "harvest" and 
 " non-harvest," nor of the sunny hours of the day than meal-time 
 and not-meal-time ; as the Geisha has it, " a month or a week or 
 a day, sir," are nought to the happy-go-lucky savage. In 
 fact these names are quite interchangeable in his mind unless 
 connected with anything regarding his own welfare, and even 
 then only if to his advantage. One is often taken in by the 
 apparent innocence of the native, and this does not apply only to 
 the newcomer — though he is naturally the most easily victimised 
 — but to the men who rather fancy that they know a thing or 
 
 117 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 two like myself, for instance, for I am quite sure that I was 
 deceived on more than one occasion, even during my last tour. 
 
 However, to get back to the tribute, I have said that it is 
 necessary to be lenient in matters of time, but there is a limit in 
 all things, and I thought that two years and more was quite long 
 enough. We " sat down,' 1 as the expression is, for a few days 
 at the Fada of the Kagoro, and wiped out most of the arrears 
 due by that tribe, and then we proceeded to Akut to collect 
 the Moroa money. One town, Babban Gidda, had been very 
 obstinate, and as nothing much came in on my demand, I 
 determined to play the people a little trick. 
 
 About 4 a.m. next morning we started off in two parties, and 
 surrounded the town, and then, entering quietly, stole all the 
 horses we could find. Day broke just afterwards, and lamenta- 
 tions arose in all directions, but we were by then clear of the 
 town, and on our way back to the camp. Within an hour or 
 two the necessary cash had been paid, the horses had been 
 ransomed, and the tribute receipts given out, and I believe the 
 victims rather enjoyed the joke, for they have a very clear even if 
 a very primitive idea of justice. At any rate, although they had 
 previously kept clear of our camp, they now came to sell food 
 and joke with the soldiers, an extraordinary fact about the 
 native being that he seldom has a lasting grievance against any- 
 body, and if you attack his town and kill his people to-day, 
 he will be only too delighted to join you to-morrow in an 
 attack on some other tribe. I remember, on my first arrival 
 at Lokoja in 1903, being struck by the fact that the civil 
 prisoners and the police escort laughed and chatted together 
 like old friends while at play ("work" was, I believe, the 
 official term for what they did), and I have even seen a 
 prisoner holding a constable's carbine for him ! The old story 
 of the prisoners having complained that they would not stay in 
 the prison (a mud and grass erection) unless the food was better, 
 is, of course, told about the gaol in Lokoja, but conditions are very 
 different now, brick cells and a smarter police force having trans- 
 ferred the choice of staying or not staying to the Government. 
 
 The next town I visited was Chori, the chief of which had 
 
 118 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 given trouble on several occasions by beating policemen, and by 
 refusing to come to Jemaan Daroro when summoned. I, there- 
 fore, was not surprised to find that his town was empty of 
 horses, he having, of course, heard of the little raid on his fellow- 
 countrymen a couple of days before. The chief was an old man, 
 his name being Dawiya, and this struck me as being very appro- 
 priate according to the Hausa tongue, for da wvya means 
 "troublesome," the only thing against this translation being 
 that the man himself was not a Hausa, but a Moroa. He 
 seemed to be always chuckling to himself, and it was impossible 
 to speak to him without laughing. I began to disbelieve the 
 reports I had heard about him, for he promised, in a most 
 amiable tone, to do everything I ordered, and after half-an- 
 hour or so we might have been lifelong friends. Food was 
 brought, full payment of the outstanding tribute was promised 
 on the morrow (when is the native's morrow ?), and as an earnest 
 four large bags of cowries were brought forth in great style — 
 which, on being counted, were found to be worth 2s. each. 
 
 Next morning Dawiya came again, but without the tribute, of 
 course, and began to explain that it was all in his house except 
 for a shilling or two, and that he wished to complete the whole 
 sum before bothering me to take it. When I suggested his 
 bringing what he had already got, he pooh-poohed the idea, 
 and he soon afterwards said that he had really not been able 
 to collect any at all. 
 
 What was I to do with the poor old sinner ? It would have 
 been quite legal to have arrested him (even we in England are 
 subject to such a proceeding), but in a country where enslaving 
 is still rampant, one has to be very careful not to give the native 
 the idea that arresting and keeping a man for debt is only 
 another name for capturing and holding him to ransom, or for 
 pawning. Strangely enough, at that very moment a charge of 
 enslaving was brought against Dawiya. 
 
 It seemed that years ago he had sold a horse to a certain 
 Hausa trader of Jemaan Daroro, and as it had not been paid for 
 (at least that was Dawiya's defence), he had seized the man's 
 daughter, Lahidi, who was then staying with her mother in 
 
 119 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 Chori. The trader afterwards tendered the money, or the 
 balance of it, but Dawiya would not let the girl go. I 
 ordered Lahidi to be produced, and she came, though very 
 reluctantly. The system of pawning children, or handing them 
 over to the creditor as security for repayment of a debt, is 
 very common in West Africa, though now forbidden by our 
 proclamations, and as I had then to think the matter out, I 
 may as well give some account of it here. 
 
 A great-uncle of mine, the Rev. John Martin, writing at 
 Accra in 1845, says, " I saw an open box [placed on four posts 
 close to the path], containing a human skeleton bleaching in the 
 sun. The flesh had almost all disappeared, being carried away,. 
 I suppose, by the birds. It was the body of a ' pawn * or debtor. 
 He, dying in debt, the body, according to the law of the country, 
 was refused burial until some friends should make satisfaction 
 to the creditor. This pawn system is most destructive to the 
 independence and advancement in civilisation of these people. 
 It is not an uncommon thing for a parent to pawn his child, or 
 for a man to pawn himself to a rich neighbour in order to obtain 
 a sum of money to gratify himself for a moment. The creditor 
 puts on an enormous interest, which requires the services of the 
 pawn to pay, while the principal remains undiminished. If he 
 have no friends to pay the debt for him, he dies a pawn, and his 
 children take his place of bondage, and should he be destitute of 
 both friends and children, his body is denied a grave, and is 
 exposed in the way mentioned. In consequence of this law, the 
 number of free persons is small." He notes that " Okanita, one 
 of the headmen, appeared to be fully alive to the ruinous 
 character of the customs for the dead, and to be very desirous 
 that they should be abolished. They are, the chief said, the 
 cause of more than one-half of the domestic slavery and pawns in 
 the country. A man, who unfortunately loses any member of his 
 family, must make an expensive ' custom, 1 which consists chiefly in 
 drinking rum and firing muskets. If he is a poor man, there 
 is seldom any other resource but to pawn himself or a child." 
 
 The reason of the debt, therefore, may be a religious one, but 
 it is often on account of food that children are pawned and even 
 
 120 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 sold. Thus, during the famine in the Benue provinces during 
 1905, many Bashima mothers actually sdld their children for a 
 couple of bags of guinea-corn, and hundreds must have pawned 
 their own offspring ; but as I shall refer to this point in another 
 chapter, I need not dwell further upon it now. With Kagoro 
 and Moroa, the laws (or I ought, possibly, to say, customs) with 
 regard to pawning are much less harsh than on the Gold Coast, 
 for instance. The debtor does not appear to have usually handed 
 the child to the creditor as security, but if he were unable to pay, 
 the latter would try to seize him or one of his sons, if he had one, 
 if not, perhaps a brother ; and the captive would be compelled to 
 remain with the creditor for four years, and farm his land and 
 work for him generally. After that, supposing that he had 
 not previously escaped, he would be free, and the debt would 
 be extinguished. Of course, the father might pay up in the 
 meanwhile and so release his son, but the other would probably 
 be the usual course, for — as we shall see in the case of the 
 daughters — the father is inclined to make as much out of his 
 children as possible, and the pawn would, in any case, be kindly 
 treated and not sold if of the same tribe. 
 
 Lahidi was, as I have said, brought from Dawiya's house with 
 some show of resistance, and she seemed very much disinclined to 
 return to her own father ; but as, according to the Moroa laws, the 
 debt had been extinguished even if it had not been paid before, 
 and as I suspected that she would be under the influence of Dawiya 
 while at Chori, I restored her to her parents, and sent her to 
 Jemaan Daroro. Her lips had been pierced in the Moroa 
 fashion (the Hausas do not do that, of course), and she wore 
 only the Moroa maiden's girdle of string, and though she was 
 given clothes on her arrival at Jemaan Daroro, she discarded them 
 and escaped soon afterwards, walking alone by night to Chori — 
 a girl of twelve years of age, and there are leopards and hyenas 
 about ! I had her brought back again, and told her that she would 
 have to remain with her parents until she was of marriageable 
 age, and then if she still wished to return to her Moroa family 
 she would be allowed to do so. She was still in Jemaan Daroro 
 when I left in 1909, and her parents were trying all sorts of 
 
 121 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 magani (charms) to make her shake off the attractions of Dawiya's 
 country, but apparently they had not succeeded very well, v as 
 every now and then she would refuse to wear clothes, and that 
 must show strong feelings in a daughter of Eve ! Probably she 
 wished to resemble her great ancestress the better by wearing 
 leaves — that is if she knew of any Eve. 
 
 Another interesting case was one of debt brought by Kura, 
 the chief of the Katab town Kaura, who claimed two horses from 
 one of Dawiya's nephews; the defendant, a boy of some twelve years 
 of age, being represented by his uncle. It appeared that some thirty 
 years before, Kaura's father had given the boy's grandfather a 
 goat to keep for him, and had somehow failed to return it on 
 demand. As I have said before, the native has but a very short 
 memory for such trifles as consideration of the proper ownership 
 of anything he happens to be in possession of and has taken a 
 fancy to. The goat had, of course, brought forth many young 
 ones, as goats will, especially in the fertile climate of West 
 Africa. A calculation of the value of the descendants gave an 
 amount equal to the price of two horses, though perhaps I should 
 not use the word "price," because human beings, horses, dogs, 
 goats, fowls and many commodities such as salt and tobacco are 
 really currency. Now, I myself had done a little arithmetic in 
 my time, and had even struggled with the Government's revenue 
 returns (in which the receipt of a goat, valued perhaps at Is. 6d., 
 has to be entered nineteen times), but this was an absolutely new 
 problem, and, not being an expert in goats, I was somewhat at a 
 loss to know whether they increased in an arithmetical or geo- 
 metrical proportion. 
 
 The boy admitted that his grandfather had received a goat, 
 but maintained that he had paid for it, and that the goat had, 
 therefore, become his own property. I pointed out that no 
 witnesses of the transaction were still alive, and that I had 
 previously announced that I should not go into cases of very 
 ancient debts, but as it was evident that Kura's father's goat had 
 by some means become the property of a grandfather of the boy, 
 and that many descendants of the animal were now in the latter's 
 possession, he would have to give Kura a male and a female from 
 
 122 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 the offspring. It was not a ivery learned judgment, I admit ; it 
 would, perhaps, not even appear to be logical to most of us. 
 But it put an end to a dispute of some thirty years' standing, 
 and satisfied both parties; for the boy was rather afraid that 
 Kura (being a chief) would some day manage to get the whole 
 of his goats from him, while Kura probably never expected to 
 get anything at all under the Whiteman's law. 
 
 It was now lunch-time, and Dawiya's tribute had not been 
 paid, so I told him to prepare to come with me to Jemaan 
 Daroro. This proved effective, and by the time I had finished 
 the meal, I had received the money. The cunning old man 
 had got most of it in before my arrival, and had been hoping 
 that I would go off without receiving payment, thus leaving him 
 to spend it on himself. On a further demand being made, he 
 would have said, of course, that he had not been able to get 
 any, and would probably have got some of his people into 
 trouble, although they were in the right. 
 
 From Chori I went to Bwingen, a town on the Gannawarri 
 border, which had not before been entered on the map. As the 
 afternoon was well advanced by that time, I returned to Akut 
 instead of going on to Zankam as I had intended, it being 
 impossible to camp there owing to an outbreak of small-pox. It 
 was lucky that we did not go on, for I heard that night that the 
 people of one of the quarters had laid an ambush for us, saying 
 that they would pay their tribute in poisoned arrows. I might 
 possibly have been successful had I attacked the place with 
 thirteen men, but I had grown a little more wary than in the 
 days when I went to the Kukuruku country, and, also, a Political 
 Officer will obtain no sympathy (and his wife no compensation) if 
 he gets into a mess without definite orders, so, as the tribute had 
 been collected from nearly all the towns except Zankam, I 
 determined to return to Jemaan Daroro, giving out that I would 
 come back and destroy Zankam the following month, if the chief 
 in the meantime had not come in person to pay. 
 
 Luckily, the people of Akut knew that I had decided to keep 
 clear of the small-pox before the news came of the ambush, and 
 as they told the Zankam people this we did not lose in prestige. 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 I went back to my old mud house in Jemaan Daroro, well content 
 on the whole with the result of the tour, having travelled 362 
 miles during the twenty-nine days for which I had been absent. 
 
 Early the next month I was out again, visiting Fada Kagoro 
 first, and then going to the Kajji district with the intention of 
 using my persuasive eloquence on the resisters there. One town 
 on a hill just outside Fada Kajji, but in Zaria territory, had 
 made a speciality in highway robbers, and I was expecting to 
 co-operate in an attack on them by a patrol from Zaria. How- 
 ever, nothing had been settled at the time, and so, after visiting 
 some more Kajji towns, I went south and east to the Yesko 
 country, which at that time was not Under control. We marched „ 
 eighteen miles and camped at Baddi, a town which had not 
 before been actually entered by a white man, I believe, though 
 its position was well known. 
 
 We were not at all sure of our reception, as a messenger, 
 whom I had sent ahead, reported the place to be empty, and so 
 we proceeded very warily, for that was a suspicious sign. The 
 town was "defended by a network of hedges so arranged as to 
 make excellent cover for the defending archers, and every now and 
 then a bottle-shaped pit, perhaps ten feet deep and six feet in 
 width, yawned in the middle of the road. These are covered 
 over with sticks, grass, and earth in war time, and a side path 
 is cut for the use of the people of the village, the ground all 
 around being dug up and disturbed so that no one except the 
 defenders will know exactly where the pit and the side path are 
 situated. Sharp stakes may be placed in these pits, but I believe 
 that there is usually no need for them, the bottle-shape and the 
 width giving a prisoner no possibility of obtaining a grip any- 
 where, and thus effectually preventing any escape. 
 
 We camped below the town, most of which was built on the 
 top of a hill, and sent a message to the chief to the effect that he 
 should come and greet us according to custom, but we could not 
 prevail upon him to do so. We saw no one, until, towards 
 evening, sounds of drumming and laughter were heard, and 
 parties of men and women appeared, dressed in strings of beads, 
 cloths, and other finery, coming from another town, Kworrebe, 
 
 124 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 where they had been feasting and dancing. They passed close 
 by our camp, but took no notice of us, and things did not look 
 too hopeful. Later on a couple of small calabashes of flour were 
 brought, but they were, of course, quite inadequate for the men 
 I had with me, and as there was evidently no chance of getting 
 anything to eat there unless we seized it by force — and that I 
 could not do — I determined to leave next morning. 
 
 About the middle of the night I awoke dreaming of poisoned 
 arrows, and sure enough, I was being pricked all over. It is 
 wonderful what a chain of thoughts rushes through one's mind in 
 the waking moments. I was so certain that I had been captured, 
 and tied up, and was now being tortured, that I could hardly 
 believe it when I awoke, and saw by the faint moonlight that I 
 was alone in the tent though there were sounds of angry words 
 and movement outside. Still, there was no doubt about the 
 stings, and I felt fresh ones continually, and pretty bad some of 
 them were, too. It was of no use lying there and wondering what 
 the trouble was, so I jumped out of bed, lit the lamp, and saw 
 that my bed was full of travelling ants ! To slip on my long, soft 
 Hausa boots and run outside was the work of a moment, and 
 there I saw that most of the men were rushing about with lighted 
 torches, and beating the ground with their sleeping mats, having 
 been attacked by the same enemy. Fire is, thank Goodness, a 
 very effective antidote, and in half-an-hour or so we were clear 
 of the pests, but it was a long time before we got to sleep again, 
 and we had but little time for rest, for we left about daybreak, 
 and went towards Jagindi, having more excitement en route, as 
 will be seen. 
 
 I was told afterwards that the chief of Baddi had just been 
 elected, and that when a man is appointed to the position, he 
 must provide a feast of guinea-corn beer. He is given usually 
 about three months in which to collect the necessary supply, but 
 even then the feast probably renders him bankrupt until such 
 time as he has seized enough of the property of his subjects to 
 repay the loans. Until the feast has been given he is not con- 
 sidered as having been really installed, but during the interval he 
 is tabu to some extent, apparently, as he must not see nor speak 
 
 125 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 to a stranger. The chief of Jemaan Daroro confirmed this 
 account afterwards, so it is probably correct, though at the time 
 it seemed to me very much too convenient a custom to be true. 
 The people all speak Hausa, and they are probably a colony 
 from Zaria, taking their name of Yesko (plural Yeskwa) from 
 their original leader, a rebel. 
 
 We arrived at the next town, Kano, belonging to the 
 Kagoma tribe, about 8.30 a.m., and halted a few minutes while I 
 sent a messenger on ahead to say that I was going to pay the 
 town a peaceful visit, the messenger rolling up his long Hausa 
 robe and tying it on to the top of a stick, this corresponding to a 
 white flag in that country, so he said. 
 
 Kano, possibly a colony from the great Hausa capital, and so 
 named for the same reason that we christen new places New York, 
 Perth, Richmond, &c, is built on the top of a high rock, and 
 would be very difficult of approach if properly defended. I fol- 
 lowed the messenger with the Mada(i)ki (the D.H.M. of the 
 district), and a local man who also rolled his cloth on a stick, the 
 escort following later so as not to frighten the inhabitants, and 
 the carriers meanwhile continued along the Jagindi road until 
 they reached a stream, where the cook had orders to prepare my 
 breakfast. 
 
 I wanted a lot of guinea-corn to store for the Waff detach- 
 ments at Jemaan Daroro, for during the wet season, just before 
 the new harvest, it is very hard to get owing to the drunken 
 habits of the surrounding natives. There was plenty in this dis- 
 trict, so I gave the chief of Kano permission to pay his outstanding 
 tribute in kind instead of in cash, and as the headman of the 
 district was with me, I ordered the chief to pay over a certain 
 proportion to him at once. Then, everything being apparently 
 in order, I descended the hill and had my breakfast. I expected 
 that the corn would be delivered within an hour or so, but when 
 two hours had passed and there was still no sign of any one I 
 began to feel anxious, and thought it advisable to go and see 
 what was causing the delay ; so, mounting again, I rode back towards 
 the hill. And my anxiety was increased when on coming nearer 
 I heard sounds of quarrelling, and saw my men coming down the 
 
 126 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 ill without any guinea-corn, and followed by armed natives. As 
 >on as the latter saw me they halted, and on joining my own men 
 found that they had been turned out of Kano on the advice of 
 wo sub-chiefs of another quarter of the town, the further supply 
 f guinea-corn having been refused, of course, at the same time. 
 
 The crowd of armed natives on the rocks above us was increas- 
 ig every minute, and it was imperative to act immediately, for we 
 r ere within arrow range from that height, so giving orders for the 
 arriers to move on at once I fell in the escort and gave the Kano 
 len a volley which dispersed them and put an end to their idea 
 f attacking us. We waited for a few minutes to see if they would 
 ome on again, but they had evidently had enough, and we saw 
 hem moving off to better cover farther away. I was rather 
 fraid that they might make a detour and attack the party of 
 arriers farther on, for the low bush in this part of the country 
 rould have made it easy for them to have eluded the escort, and 
 had learnt enough of native tactics to beware of a cunning attack 
 m a flank, so we moved off to guard it. However, there was no 
 iirther trouble, and after having camped at the friendly town of 
 firti we passed on the following day through Fada Kagoma, and 
 eturned to Kajji country. 
 
 The people of Kano are supposed to be good fighters, and they 
 ire said to have fought three Yesko towns double their size, their 
 uperiority being due to the fact that they have a particularly 
 trong aiTow poison — at least, so I was told by the Mada(i)ki, 
 hough I have not seen any of it myself. The Mada(i)ki also said 
 hat the fact that we had gone to Baddi from Kano, and vice versa, 
 vas sufficient to make us suspected at both places, for the people 
 )f each town thought we were friends of the other, and therefore 
 memies to them, since the towns are in a state of intermittent war- 
 are. That is the most difficult thing in dealing with natives. 
 3ne knows what one's own intentions are, but one seldom knows 
 irhat the natives will think they are, and some apparently un- 
 mportant point puts quite a different construction on one's actions. 
 tt is a matter of regret to me that I was not able to visit this 
 particular part again ; Kano paid up in full later in the year on 
 bearing that I was in the district (we had wounded two people, so 
 
 127 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 we were told afterwards), and I suppose Yesko has since been 
 brought under control. I asked for a large escort to accompany 
 me the following month, as there were several towns which defied 
 our authority, but it was refused. 
 
 Fada Kagoma is the head town of the tribe of that name, as 
 will be evident, being situated on a chain of hills which runs from 
 Eano and Jagindi into Zaria territory. It had not been giving 
 trouble lately, though the people were at one time very truculent, 
 and as I had been there so recently I did not stay more than a 
 couple of hours for breakfast and for a talk with the chief and 
 the headman of the district, a Jemaan Daroro man. 
 
 The houses of the Kagoma are like those of the Kagoro and 
 Kajji, but the language is, I believe, quite different ; at least the 
 people say so, and a few words and sentences which I tried cer- 
 tainly were. The unmarried girls wear a little apron, consisting 
 of a fringe of string, dyed blue and ornamented with cowries, the 
 married ones having a very short cloth, about a foot in width, 
 around the loins, as do the Yeskwa. The lips are not pierced, nor 
 are tails worn, so I fancy the similarity in the building of the 
 houses is merely a coincidence; the people, too, say they have 
 quite a different origin. The men wear the universal cloth or skin 
 loin-covering. I did not see any dye-pits in the towns, and I fancy 
 that the people must buy the colouring matter from the Hausawa, 
 who are experts, Jemaan Daroro having several pits in the market- 
 place (and a nasty, bitter smell they have), while the sound of 
 beating the cloths afterwards can be heard every day in that town. 
 
 On my return to Fada Kajji, I found the Resident from the 
 Zaria side there, and we settled some border quarrels and de- 
 limited a boundary. The patrol against the robber town, however, 
 had been abandoned, as when the Governor had passed north 
 towards Zaria a little while before with a caravan of some 500 
 men, the chief had gone to him and had expressed his sorrow. 
 The great man was able (in theory) to do in a moment what the 
 Resident, who had lived in the district for some portion of his 
 previous tour also, and knew the people well, had failed to do in 
 some months, and his Excellency cancelled the proposed opera- 
 tions, saying, " The chief is sorry ; there will be no more trouble." 
 
 128 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 And of course there was not, at least not until the Governor and 
 his large escort had passed, but only a week later there was another 
 case, a bad one. However, the Resident cleverly managed to get 
 hold of the culprits and to clap them safely in prison, and there 
 was no doubt about their repentance and their inability to give 
 more trouble after that. I wonder if His Excellency ever heard 
 the comments of the men on the spot as to his wondrous powers 
 (in theory) of judging men without having had any acquaintance 
 with them. I do not think so ! 
 
 I had now fifteen soldiers and four policemen with me, and so 
 I went to Moroa again to attack Zankam, but on my arrival at 
 Akut I was met by the chief, who brought his tribute, and said 
 that the whole trouble was due to the sub-chief of one quarter 
 only, and that all the rest of the town had paid in full. This 
 being so, I set out early with the intention of catching the trouble- 
 some sub-chief, but he had got wind of it, and although it was 
 before daylight when I got there, his compound was bare, so I 
 had to content myself with burning down his house. This, con- 
 sidered as an actual punishment, is nothing, although it sounds 
 so dreadful, for, palm fronds and grass being plentiful, the roofs 
 can be renewed in a day or two, but, as a sign of ability to 
 punish, it is very often quite useful. A truculent chief may often 
 persuade his followers to oppose the Government, alleging that 
 he is much too powerful to be attacked, or that the charms in his 
 house will keep off any Whitemen ; but when the followers see him 
 hiding, and his house in flames, he loses a good deal of his evil 
 influence. The only time the burning can be a real hardship is 
 when it is done at the commencement of the wet season, for then 
 the grass is too short to be of any use for roofing. 
 
 One stratagem having failed, it was necessary to try another, 
 and the police constable, whose bravery at Toff I have mentioned 
 in an earlier chapter, now did a very plucky thing which deserves 
 mention. I left him behind when leaving for Jemaan Daroro 
 before daybreak next day, and as he hid in Abomong's house 
 until dark, no one knew that he had not gone with me. Of 
 course the news of my departure spread, and the sub-chief 
 returned that day to his house and re-roofed a room to sleep 
 
 129 I 
 
TRIBUTE TROUBLES 
 
 in, and the constable, disguising himself as a trader, went over 
 during the night and arrested him. I gave him six months' 
 imprisonment in the Kajji gaol — where he was joined soon 
 afterwards by his captor, I am sorry to say — and he returned 
 some time before I left, apparently full of the greatest admira- 
 tion for those whom he had once wanted to fight. On my 
 last visit to Moroa he met me with presents of food in his 
 hands, and a broad grin on his face, apparently a much greater 
 person then (on account of his knowledge of the wonderful 
 doings of the Whitemen in Keffi) than he had ever been before 
 — but with, I am glad to say, a better private understanding 
 of the limitations of his own powers, though I am quite ready 
 to believe that he did not explain this fully to his followers. 
 
 130 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 HABITATIONS 
 
 THE houses of the Kagoro, Moroa, Kajji, Katab, Jaba and 
 Kagoma tribes are of a peculiar shape, being more oblong 
 than round, the roof at first sight looking as if it had 
 originally been conical and upright, but had been blown to one 
 side, for the peak points in a slanting direction, and not straight 
 up. The dwelling-houses are built of red or black mud, the 
 walls usually much thinner than one would expect, judging 
 by the size of the house, being only from three to four feet 
 high, and the same height all the way round; but many are 
 larger or narrower in proportion to their width, and many are 
 much smaller than this, the ground plan of the larger houses being 
 on an average thirty feet by eighteen feet. Each has one central 
 door, or in a few cases, two, opening from the front of the house 
 (where the roof is lowest), into the compound, each wife having 
 a separate building for herself and her family. There is a 
 porch or hall extending along the whole width of the house 
 where wood is kept, and a verandah outside that where the 
 people take shelter during the day in wet weather. When it 
 is fine, they sit outside on palm logs let into the ground. It 
 is rather peculiar that these people seldom seem to sit or 
 squat on the bare ground like most natives; they nearly 
 always have some form of stool when in their own compounds. 
 Of course, when away from home, they have perforce to sit 
 on the ground, but they do not do this if they can help it. 
 The porch has a doorway from two and a half to three feet 
 high, in the shape of a half-hoop, which may be closed by a 
 curtain of string, something like those of Japanese make so 
 common in England, or by a stiff grass mat which slides in 
 grooves specially made in the wall, or there may be no pro- 
 
 131 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 tection. Between the porch and the sleeping compartment 
 there will' always be a mat or a blind, fixed in a similar way. 
 
 The plan of the houses reminded me very much of that 
 of a Canadian Pacific Railway sleeping-car, the verandah 
 resembling the open-air platform for observation, and the porch 
 (where the fire is) the smoking-room and the washing-room, 
 or the conductor's room, where there is often some kind of 
 heating apparatus. Then comes a central passage into which 
 open two compartments, one on each side, which can be com- 
 pared to sleeping-berths, and, in fact, they are used as bedrooms, 
 that on the one side, always the right apparently, having a 
 bed of palm fronds or bamboos raised about a foot from the 
 floor for the use of the husband when he sleeps in the house, 
 the opposite room being for the rest of that particular wife's 
 family. Then farther on, at the end of the central passage, 
 is a circular room, in the centre of which, and, in fact, filling 
 most of the space, is a large earthenware vase for holding grain. 
 This will be built on stones as a protection against white ants, 
 and there may be, in addition, smaller granaries, reaching to 
 the ceiling which connects the tops of the walls with the vessels, 
 and has a man-hole to allow the inmates to pass up and take 
 the corn (for these granaries only open at the top), or to hide 
 themselves in case of attack. The dome of the roof is over 
 this granary, so as to give room for the people to climb up, 
 and also so that the smoke will collect there, and not only kill 
 the insects, but also keep the rest of the roof of the house clean. 
 There is no chimney of any kind, but none is required, for 
 the smoke naturally goes to the highest part, and from there 
 escapes through the thatch, and at first sight one would think 
 the houses were on fire. 
 
 A man can build or farm where he likes on unoccupied land, 
 though he will usually erect his house as near as possible to 
 that of his father for the sake of mutual protection, unless 
 they have quarrelled. I am not quite sure if the joint family 
 system is as strongly developed amongst the Kagoro as with 
 the Kajji; but in the case of this latter tribe, it seemed to be 
 flourishing, a very good example being in Mersa, where the 
 
 132 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 chiefs compound included not only his own wives, but those 
 of his sons and nephews and their children. In many towns 
 this system may not hold except in the case of the chief, for 
 there are special benefits to all parties in this case, the chief 
 being thus more solidly supported in council, and his household 
 being made more difficult of attack, while his children and 
 others naturally have more property to divide amongst them- 
 selves, since they share in his perquisites. In an Ayu town, 
 Giddan Sa(r)rikin Ambel, the chief's compound consisted of 
 nearly a hundred houses, and in fact it formed the whole town — 
 as the name implies — being large enough to shelter nearly two 
 hundred of us when on a patrol, there being even then plenty 
 of room to spare. 
 
 The father will usually choose the site of his son's new house, 
 and will place stones in circles or threes for the granary to rest 
 upon, this being because the walls are practically built around it, 
 or perhaps the act may be a symbolic one to ensure good crops 
 and plenty to eat. The blood of a fowl is spilt on the ground as 
 an offering to the ghosts of the people already buried there or 
 near, so that they may leave the house in peace, and then a few 
 leaves of a certain tree are put in a hole dug in the spot chosen to 
 bring good luck, and are covered over again with earth. After 
 that the prospective owner invites all the important men of the 
 quarter, or perhaps even of the whole village if he be a chiefs 
 son, and, of course, provides guinea-corn beer (akarm), without 
 which nothing of any importance is done by these thirsty people — 
 though we should not laugh, considering that our foundation 
 stones are usually laid to the music of the popping of corks. A 
 little (a very little) beer is poured on the site three times, accom- 
 panied in each case by an incantation invoking the blessings of 
 the particular person's ancestors, and the rest is drunk by the 
 assembled company. 
 
 However, when the guests have drunk all they can get, they 
 tell their host to remain in peace, and wishing him luck they take 
 their departure, and he commences building his house. He starts 
 with the granary first, so that the lower part may get the sun 
 before the walls shelter it, and also because, being much higher 
 
 133 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 than the walls, it will take longer to build ; it being, as I have 
 said, in the form of an enormous vase with an opening at the 
 top, and often eight feet or more in diameter. Then the walls 
 are built in the form of an oblong, though the short end en- 
 circling the granary is rounded. 
 
 After the mud has become dry the roof is put on, long rafters 
 of bamboos or palm fronds being first placed in position, so as to 
 slope back gradually from the front, and sharply from the back 
 of the house, in order that the dome may be over the granary, 
 and longer poles are therefore used for the front face than for the 
 rear. These poles are lashed together with tie-tie, and the whole 
 has then much the appearance of a spider's web, for the lashings 
 are arranged in concentric circles from the apex. Grass stalks, 
 about five or six feet long, are then joined together with tie-tie 
 into a flat mat-like fringe, which is rolled on to the poles, begin- 
 ning at the bottom of those in front and going at first from side 
 to side, and then round and round the house until the top is 
 reached, where a knob is formed, each layer of grass being tied 
 to the cross-lashings and to the next roll. The knob at the 
 top may have a couple of sticks thrust through it horizontally, 
 and at right angles, to keep it on, and an ostrich egg or bottle 
 on the highest point as a charm. 
 
 The floors are trampled until hard, and sometimes charcoal is 
 mixed with the earth to harden and blacken it, while cowrie shells 
 are often inserted as ornaments and arranged in circles or " dice- 
 cup " patterns. Sometimes the whole compound has a beaten 
 floor, but this depends upon the women, whose work it is, the 
 men being responsible only for the actual building. The outer 
 front wall of the house is usually decorated in some way or other, 
 even if the ornamentation goes no further than a coat of red 
 earth or charcoal, and in some towns regular designs are 
 worked out. 
 
 Usually the Kajji and Kagoma houses are much ahead of 
 those of their neighbours to the east in every way, for the first- 
 named build their walls more strongly, make better roofs, and 
 they have more idea of decoration. The designs are usually in 
 some form of the double triangle or dice-cup pattern, the insides 
 
 134 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 of the triangles being painted black, or sometimes even hollowed 
 out, and there may be lines in white or black parallel with the 
 sides of the triangles, or radiating from the centre of the dice- 
 cup, dots in the same colour being often added, the patterns on 
 the houses reminding one, in some degree, of those on the 
 abdomens of the women and the chests of the men. The door- 
 ways may be ornamented by lines running around the half- 
 hoop, and all of these may be simply painted on the flat wall, or 
 a bevel may be first sunk by pressing sticks, straight or bent as 
 required, into the soft mud when building the walls. One house 
 in Mersa had a window on each side of the door; but that is the 
 only occasion on which I have seen these extra apertures, and it 
 is just possible that the owner (the chiefs nephew) had copied the 
 windows from those in the Europeans' houses at Jemaan Daroro. 
 
 The porch generally has a long trough-like shelf running 
 right across over the inner door, corresponding in this (to con- 
 tinue the simile) to the hat-rack, for calabashes and other light 
 articles are placed in this — " It must not be used for heavy 
 baggage. 1 ' There is usually a space around the house between 
 the top of the wall and the grass roof, though sometimes extra 
 mud is plastered on to the top of the wall, after the roof has been 
 fixed, so as to fill up the crevices. Where this has not been done, 
 there is plenty of shelf room, but otherwise, not only the porch 
 but the other rooms also may be furnished with troughs. Sticks 
 or horns are stuck in the wall as pegs on which to hang bows and 
 arrows, &c, and I have also seen a hanging-hook of wood, some- 
 thing like a swizzle-stick, or an umbrella frame upside down. 
 These hooks are simply cut from the forks of small trees, and 
 are not improved in any way, but they seem to act well enough 
 for all ordinary requirements, for these people, having no clothes, 
 have but little to hang. 
 
 Low, solid, wooden stools, cut from a lpg, often furnished with 
 a handle (and possibly meant to resemble a dog), are used in the 
 houses, and in the courtyards also by women when cooking, 
 though half-sunken palm logs form seats for the majority, and 
 big loose logs may be arranged like forms around a fire in the 
 centre of the compound for the family to sit upon in cold weather. 
 
 135 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 Skulls of men, and also of the hartebeeste, antelope, and monkey, 
 are strung on a piece of native rope and hung up on the outside 
 walls under the thatch to advertise the family's prowess, being 
 passed on as family trophies. In the towns to the north they are 
 always hidden inside the houses now, so that we may not find 
 them, but when we attacked Jigga and Tafa I found several 
 bunches, these clusters of human skulls being described by 
 an author writing of tribes in another part of the world as 
 resembling bunches of grapes, or strings of onions. 
 
 There are some medicine houses, but no stranger is allowed 
 to go near them, and in fact, their existence is denied, and, as I 
 had no wish to insult the places these people considered holy, I 
 had to pretend that I believed the story ; but a large number of 
 skulls was found in a cave behind Fada Kagoro by the first 
 expedition against them. The house at Mersa, the roof of 
 which was ornamented with an ostrich egg, was said to be a 
 medicine house. Blacksmiths in some of the Kajji and Jaba 
 towns have round houses with very high conical roofs, the 
 difference being due in some respect to the mystery of the iron 
 working, but the Kagoro pay the smiths no special reverence, 
 and I believe the two there before my arrival met with rather 
 sudden deaths, though the last one could sleep in peace, for 
 he was sent by me from Jemaan Daroro to make agricultural 
 implements at the special request of the Kagoro chiefs, who 
 guaranteed his safety. 
 
 There is very little refuse, the ashes being put in the goat- 
 houses, to be used with the droppings as manure, and the remains 
 of the night's food are usually eaten the following morning, or 
 are given to the dogs or vultures, while any loose grain is soon 
 picked up by the fowls and goats. Pits, however, are necessarily 
 made when the walls of the house are being built, and whatever 
 refuse there may be undisposed of is thrown in. 
 
 In addition to the granaries inside the houses, there are some 
 outside as well, these being essentially the same in construction 
 (round vases built on stones) as those already described, except for 
 the fact that they have separate roofs, but they often present quite 
 a different appearance, for a wall is built from the ground outside 
 
 136 
 
A Kajji Compound 
 
 The earth is beaten hard to some distance in front of each house, and when the compound 
 is small the earth of the whole may be thus hardened. In front of each house are the 
 grinding stones. The young boys have a tuft of hair running along the top of the head, 
 the rest being shaved off. 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 the stones, to meet the circumference of the granary, and this forms 
 a fowl-house, the birds being between this wall and the bottom of 
 the vase (and therefore not able to get at the corn), and having 
 their entrance near to the ground. 
 
 The Kagoma and Kajji compounds are kept very clean, but 
 the Moroa and Kagoro housewives are not particularly praise- 
 worthy, and the air in those parts is not always as pure as it 
 might be. A compound has a house for each wife, and, in 
 addition to the conical goat-houses and granaries, other huts for 
 the preparation of food, or for stables, and there will probably 
 be some caves near the Kagoro and Kajji towns where the people 
 can store their grain and hide when necessity arises, but they 
 are merely natural cavities, and are not improved and concealed 
 like those of the Nadu at Ayashi, described in a later chapter. 
 
 No sacrifices are made by the Kagoro when building a house, 
 except for the fowl already referred to, or when felling trees, and 
 in that respect they are less superstitious than we are, for there 
 are no charms or coins placed among the foundations as with us, 
 and there is apparently no idea that the sacrifice of a child is 
 necessary to ensure the stability or the erection as was the case 
 in Halle, even so late as 1843. The building being an intrusion 
 on the spirits' domain, Professor Westermarck regards human 
 sacrifices as being a kind of life insurance ! ! 
 
 In Angwom, a Ninzam town, I saw a rooster in a rather peculiar 
 predicament. A pot had been let into the ground j ust in the centre 
 of the doorway, so that the top of the pot was level with the floor 
 of the house, and into this had been put a rooster, the narrow 
 neck of the pot effectually preventing any part but his head from 
 protruding. Fowls are often kept in pots for fattening purposes, 
 and on my second visit the rooster was missing, but in the 
 position just described the future meal can act as a watch-dog 
 as well, for no one could pass into or out of the house without 
 disturbing him. I do not know that such a proceeding would be 
 popular in England, for after about a month or two the fowl 
 would begin to get unpleasant, but that would not matter to the 
 ordinary inland native, for he would be but little better himself 
 in all probability. 
 
 137 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 When the building of the house is completed, a meal o 
 porridge (tuk) is prepared, and the guests again assemble 
 though on this occasion no beer is drunk — or rather so I wa 
 told, but I would not insult them by believing it. When al 
 have eaten and departed, the family enters and lives happih 
 ever afterwards. A house is reoccupied on the death of the 
 owner, if of the Kagoro or Moroa tribe, but not always if o 
 the Kajji or Jaba tribe, the difference being due possibly tc 
 the fact that the Kagoro have but little room, and the Moroa 
 do not want to have larger compounds than they can easily 
 defend, while the Kajji and Jaba have plenty of space. 
 
 As I have said, the houses of these tailed head-hunters are 
 peculiar in shape, and it may be of interest to note some other 
 forms met with in West Africa, but first I should mention that 
 the houses in the Attakka and southern Kagoro towns are 
 conical like those of the Bauchi plateau, and not oblong like 
 those just described. 
 
 In some parts of the Hausa country, the mosques and the 
 houses of the chiefs are very fine buildings considering the 
 materials available. The larger dwellings are made of mud, 
 the roofs being either flat and of the same material, or square 
 and sloping, or conical, in the two latter cases being made of 
 grass. The whole house is called the gidda by the Hausawa, the 
 separate huts da(i)ki or zaure, and the wall, fence, or stockade, 
 bongo, damfammi, or haffi respectively, the last word giving its 
 name to many towns. 
 
 The first step necessary for the erection of a house is to clear 
 the ground, the next to mark it out, and this latter may be done 
 with sticks, or in the case of a round house with string, and then 
 the plan is drawn on the ground by the chief builder, who drags 
 one foot along the marks so that they become wider and more 
 distinct, hoes or shovels being afterwards used to make these 
 depressions deep enough to take the first layer of mud- "bowls" 
 of which the walls will be built. 
 
 The next step in the building of a mud house is the prepara- 
 tion of the material. The earth, having been mixed with water, 
 is trodden and kneaded and left for a day or two, and it may then 
 
 138 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 be made into sun-dried bricks or be simply moulded into rough 
 balls about the size of a bowl, being brought from the pit to the 
 builders by men on pieces of wood, or anything which may be 
 handy. These "bowls'" are laid in a line in the excavation, 
 another line or two is placed on top, and loose mud is then 
 pressed into the crevices between the lumps and squared off, thus 
 leaving the sides quite straight. Some walls, especially those of a 
 large, square house, will require several rows of these bowls or 
 bricks, but one row is enough for those of the ordinary round hut, 
 the process being repeated as often as is necessary to bring them 
 to the required height. I have never seen any scaffolding erected ; 
 as the walls grow the builders climb up and squat on them (if too 
 high to be reached by men standing on the ground, or on boxes 
 or tree stumps), and as the higher the walls are to be, the thicker 
 they will usually be made also, there is plenty of room for the 
 builders to squat on the top. 
 
 The building must be done in the dry season to be any good, 
 else the mud will be too damp to bind properly, and, so as to give 
 each layer plenty of time to dry, the walls are usually raised but a 
 foot or two each day. Should the work have to take place during 
 the " rains," however, plaited grass protections are laid along the 
 top of the walls to keep off the water. 
 
 Only the mosques and the largest houses are square among 
 the Hausawa and Filani, and they may have flat roofs built 
 wholly of mud, with tin or bark spoutings to carry off the rain 
 water from the roofs, but the Yoruba nearly always use this form, 
 though with high, sloping grass roofs. 
 
 With a grass house, after the forked poles, bamboos or palm- 
 ribs, and grass have been collected, the rate of erection is simply a 
 question of how quickly the builders can work. A small hut, with 
 walls from four to five feet high, can be put up in a couple of hours, 
 or even less, and the weather makes no difference — though it is, of 
 course, preferable to have the floor quite dry at the time, other- 
 wise it will be a long time before it becomes so, as the sun cannot 
 get at it. I had a house in Ilorin built during the rainy weather, 
 the walls of which exuded a green slime daily, with the result that 
 I was soon invalided home. "* 
 
 139 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 After the ground has been cleared and marked out as before, 
 holes, some one to two feet deep, are dug at intervals of a yard or 
 so around the circumference, and forked posts of the required 
 height are placed in them, arranged so that the forks will be 
 on about the same level all the way round. A number of long 
 supple withes (especially if the house be circular) and stouter 
 poles are then laid in the forks horizontally, in order to connect 
 the uprights, and are bound to them with tie-tie (bark or 
 native string), so as to make the whole as rigid as possible. Other 
 cross-pieces are then tied in parallel rows below these right down 
 to the ground, and long grass may now be placed upright against, 
 and outside of, these cross-pieces, being secured by other cross- 
 pieces outside of it again. Lastly, a trench is made around and 
 a foot or so away from the house, the earth being thrown on to 
 the lowest part of the grass, so as to make the dwelling proof 
 against rain streams, in the same way as we protect our tents. 
 Sometimes large grass mats are used instead of the loose grass, 
 in which case the lower cross-pieces may be dispensed with, and 
 fences are made in the same way. The roofs are usually put on 
 before the grass is arranged on the walls, but it is easier to finish 
 the description of this part of the subject before going on to 
 another, so the proper order has not been strictly adhered to. 
 
 When building a large grass house, or a mud house with a 
 verandah, the framework of the roof would have to be erected at 
 about the same time as the forked posts are set up, for all would 
 be connected together. With a square house, two or more (with 
 a large round house, one) stout forked posts, high enough to give 
 the proper pitch to the roof, are erected in the centre line and are 
 connected by a long cross-piece lying on, and bound to, the forks, 
 as before. These and the cross-piece are then connected with the 
 shorter uprights by other slanting poles — generally bamboos or 
 palm-ribs in the large houses, smaller palm-stalks, or perhaps even 
 guinea-corn stalks in the very small ones — which are again 
 connected with each other by more cross-pieces, the whole, which 
 now has the appearance of lattice-work, being securely bound. In 
 the case of a high house these tarika, as they are called, are first 
 tied on near the bottom, the builders gradually working upwards 
 
 140 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 and using each line like a rung in a ladder until they reach the 
 top, when the projecting pieces are cut off or bent over. 
 
 The longer the grass, the easier is the thatching, and the better 
 it will be ; it is usually about three to five feet long when ready 
 for use. While the builders have been at work, other men have 
 joined the grass stalks together with igia or tie-tie, making a 
 kind of fringe which is rolled up like stair carpets and stacked 
 ready to hand, and on the completion of the framework, the rolls 
 are passed up to the men above, who unroll the grass over the 
 tanka, and either tie it (now known as hmu) or pin it with short 
 sticks called kinni. This is also commenced at the bottom — as 
 with our slate or tin roofs — and over the ridge at the top is 
 placed a wide layer of plaited grass like that described as being 
 used on the walls when building in wet weather. The framework 
 of the roof of a small house is usually put together on the ground 
 (perhaps being even thatched there), and it is then lifted bodily 
 on to the mud wall or uprights by half-a-dozen men. 
 
 In the case of a grass house, the doorway is simply the space 
 left uncovered between two of the uprights, but in a mud build- 
 ing a proper lintel is made by placing a stick or two across the 
 top of the opening, long enough to rest securely upon the wall on 
 each side, mud being placed on the top of this, and building going 
 on as before. Windows, if wide, are made in the same way, but 
 in the native houses, when they exist at all, they are mere slits or 
 holes, and so no special treatment is necessary. 
 
 The doorway is closed sometimes with a roughly-made wooden 
 or grass door kept in place by hinges or by a cross pole, but in most 
 cases, a mat, a cloth, or a string blind serves the purpose. The 
 floor will be stamped and beaten hard, when it is known as debbi, 
 and may be blackened with a solution obtained from the locust-tree 
 or charcoal, while the walls may be whitewashed with bone dust or 
 white earth, reddened with red earth, or it may be blackened like 
 the floor. 
 
 To the house proper many additions may be made. As with 
 the head-hunters, outside hut-like structures raised on stones to 
 keep out white ants, and perhaps two-storied, are built for grain, 
 while smaller ones are placed inside the house. There is also a 
 
 141 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 lodge or zaure opening on to the street, where attendants generally 
 live and are at hand to announce a visitor ; the zaure, in many 
 cases, also acting as a stable. A small porch or verandah may be 
 built over the door of the zaure, or of any of the huts. Beehives 
 are usually at a distance, and may be made of long stripes of bark 
 cut in the form of a cylinder, or of gourds or earthenware pots. 
 Each wife has her separate hut, the husband having a larger one 
 which is probably nearer the zaure, and the whole will be surrounded 
 by a wall or fence. In markets, or at halting-places, little grass 
 shelters are run up for the protection of the travellers, but such con- 
 sideration is usually misplaced, for natives, being particularly 
 feckless folk, will pull out the grass at night to make a fire, though 
 knowing full well that they may want the shelter badly a week hence. 
 
 Europeans have, of course, tried to improve the local condi- 
 tions and methods, and it is usual for them to have an extra outside 
 roof covering two or three complete huts, the verandah, therefore, 
 having one roof, the rooms two. In many ways such a house is pre- 
 ferable to a bungalow, for the natives make but little noise when 
 moving about, and mud is cooler than wood, but insects find a 
 more congenial habitation in a hut, and the earthen floor and 
 walls are very hard to keep clean. 
 
 In Ashanti I noticed that the ordinary houses were formed of 
 small one or two-roomed oblong blocks, usually four arranged in 
 the form of a cross. They were built of wattle and daub, and, as 
 the work was well done, and the floors were raised above the 
 ground, I generally found them very dry. They had one draw- 
 back, however, and that was their publicity, for the wall facing 
 the compound was seldom more than a couple of feet high, and 
 whenever I tried to bathe or dress, there was always a crowd of 
 wondering (and let me hope, admiring) males and females to 
 watch the operations. Any performance they could not under- 
 stand they would watch in sileiice, or perhaps whisper questions to 
 each other, but any act resembling something which they did 
 themselves — like cleaning the teeth, for instance — was greeted 
 with loud applause and broad smiles of appreciation. That was 
 eleven years ago ; I fear there is not much that they do not know 
 now about Europeans. 
 
 142 
 
HABITATIONS 
 
 The Hausas are very fond of riddles and proverbs, and it is 
 only natural that many should refer to their domestic conditions. 
 The best known riddles are : " My mare is in foal, but I do not 
 ride her ; I ride the foetus." Answer, a hut with a bed. " The 
 owner is in his house, but his beard is outside " — fire and smoke. 
 Of proverbs, the following are examples : — " Does the rack (of 
 string fastened to the roof) remain if the roof is blown away ? " 
 which comes to mean," Will a good woman refuse to accompany her 
 husband should he go to another town to live ? " " The one who 
 lives in the house knows where the roof leaks," i.e. " the heart 
 knoweth its own bitterness," or the wearer knows where the shoe 
 pinches. " Though a naked man may be ignored on the feast-day 
 he will be sought after when building is on " — compare Kipling's 
 " thin red line of heroes when the drums begin to roll." " The 
 only prevention against fire is to have two houses." Grass is, of 
 course, easily inflammable, but the cooking is usually done inside 
 the huts. " The small pot (the wife) goes to and fro, but the big 
 pot (the husband) remains at home " — i.e. does no work. Yet we 
 think that we can teach them the dignity of labour ! 
 
 143 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 
 SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 THE Ninzam, a tribe to the south of Jemaa, which I have 
 mentioned before, had been truculent for a long time. 
 Some of these towns, also, had not paid tribute for a couple 
 of years, and as no steps had been taken against them, other 
 towns had given out that they, too, would cease their payments. 
 Slave-raiding was rife amongst them, the worst offender being 
 Awudu, the chief of Ungual Kaura (" the town of Kaura," named 
 after its founder), and he had just added the murder of his wife 
 to his little list of accomplishments. Moreover, some of the 
 towns had been fighting amongst themselves, and quite a goodly 
 casualty list was reported. 
 
 The Ninzam are a hot-tempered people, and when there is 
 no common enemy to combine against, they indulge in private 
 dress rehearsals amongst themselves, though these little differ- 
 ences are soon over, the combatants usually killing or wounding 
 not more than a couple on each side perhaps — nothing to speak 
 of, of course. Apparently, though, they are rather cowardly, 
 when not full of beer (the cause of most of their internal 
 quarrels), for we had but very little resistance later in the year — 
 however I must not anticipate. 
 
 I left Jemaan Daroro on the 10th of March and went to 
 Sanga, a town about twelve miles off, where I camped for the 
 night, the chief of Sanga, who was the Headman of the District 
 of Ninzam, having been warned to accompany us from there. 
 He himself had been driven out of two Ninzam towns where he 
 had gone to collect tribute, and a messenger of his had been 
 wounded in another, so it was time to support his authority in 
 some way or other. I had repeatedly asked for a patrol through 
 the country, but the sanction was not forthcoming for various 
 
 144 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 reasons, so I had to do what I could for myself, though I was 
 doubtful if it would be much. 
 
 I had my usual escort of eleven soldiers and a couple of 
 policemen, but on this occasion the chief of Jemaan Daroro 
 accompanied me with a following of some fifty men, who were 
 unarmed, and, as proved afterwards, a source of danger. 
 
 Just after we had left Jemaan Daroro, down came a tornado, 
 and we were soon made aware that the rainy season had com- 
 menced in earnest. There is no doubt about the rain in Jemaa ; 
 it pours down as if from a watering-can with very large holes 
 close together, and I have been three days without seeing the 
 sun, my predecessor having experienced even worse conditions, 
 he said. Usually in Northern Nigeria it will rain very hard for 
 a few hours almost every day from March to October, then clear 
 up, and the day will be as bright as ever though somewhat 
 steamy, but Jemaa has quite a system of its own, being situated 
 on one side of a cup of mountains which catch the rain in all 
 directions. For the remainder of the year there is no rain. 
 
 Travelling is apt to be somewhat exciting in the wet, for the 
 roads become gutters, as I have said before, and the carriers 
 continually stumble and slide about when walking on soft 
 ground, the loads rocking to and fro in an alarming manner. 
 However, the men have a marvellous power of balance, and they 
 usually manage to right themselves in time, and go along with a 
 " splosh, splosh, splosh," as before. But, if any one does happen 
 to go down, the rest make no secret of the pleasure such a sight 
 gives them, for they are always ready to laugh at a man in a 
 slight misfortune, though they will help him readily enough 
 should it prove serious. To a man on horseback, overhanging 
 branches are very dangerous, and I was caught by one (not for 
 the first time, either) just as my horse slipped down the bank 
 of a river, being left hanging over a mass of mud till he was 
 brought back again and placed underneath me so that I could 
 drop on to him. 
 
 Soon after my arrival at Sanga, I received the cheerful news 
 that my house at Jemaan Daroro had been unroofed by the 
 tornado, and that two of the rooms were more or less under 
 
 145 K 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 water (more, I found out on my return). However, there was 
 nothing to be done at the time, for I could not go back, and I 
 heard that the caretaker had shifted the boxes to a water-tight 
 hut, so I had to be content with wondering what the damage 
 would be. Tornados play havoc with grass roofs, as can be 
 imagined, and I remember once in Ilorin, when in bed with fever, 
 seeing a regular douche of water suddenly come through one side 
 of the roof. Luckily it was a few yards away from the bed, 
 and by shifting farther into the corner, and by putting up a 
 ground-sheet, I could avoid the splash — another testimonial to 
 this useful article of kit. It was hopeless, however, to do any- 
 thing to the roof until the rain had stopped, and the mud floor 
 of the hut might have been the bed of a creek afterwards ; it was 
 not really dry for a fortnight. 
 
 Well, we left Sanga next day at 5.40 a.m., and after having 
 passed through several towns, we camped at Zambar about 
 twelve miles off. Here I had to try a case of wounding, and it is 
 perhaps worth mentioning, as showing the Ninzam's primitive 
 idea of responsibility. It appeared that a certain youth, by name 
 Gareba, had had a quarrel with a man of another town (I forget 
 what about), and had gone out looking for him and for trouble. 
 On his way he met Umoru, a member of the other man's family, 
 and promptly went for him with a knife, and the wretched 
 Umoru had evidently had a bad time, Gareba could not see 
 that he had done wrong, for according to the communal idea any 
 member of a family is liable for an offence committed by any 
 other member, though it seemed to me exceedingly hard on the 
 innocent Umoru. 
 
 There appeared, however, to be some right on Gareba's side 
 as to the original quarrel, but I had to try to introduce the 
 idea of individual responsibility, so I gave him a month's 
 imprisonment, and pointed out that either the District Head- 
 men or I would settle quarrels between the actual parties in 
 future. Had he been more civilised he would have had a couple 
 of years in prison. It seems hardly possible nowadays that the 
 same notion of communal responsibility was once the rule in 
 England, and that the difference between tort and crime arose 
 
 146 
 
A Corduroy Road 
 
 In many parts of West Africa the ground is so soft in the wet season that travelling is difficult 
 over it, if not impossible. This road was constructed for the passage of the troops to Kumasi in 
 1900; certain parts of Northern Nigeria would be much benefited by similar treatment. 
 
 A Kajji Granary 
 
 This is built in the shape of a bowl, and is placed on stones for legs. The top has a permanent 
 roof most of the way up, and a removable cap (now removed) so as to allow of access to the grain. 
 A low wall built outside the stones at the foot enables the vacant space to be used for poultry, the 
 fowl-house having a separate door. 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 through the notion that the disabling of a warrior injured the 
 chief (as representing^ the tribe) through depriving him of his 
 services, whereas a tort was a private wrong. Even to-day the 
 king nominally prosecutes criminals, and the victims cannot 
 refuse to give evidence if called upon to do so, while civil actions 
 are brought by the parties wronged, on their own initiative. 
 
 Next morning we went to Ungual Kaura, and halting just 
 outside the town I sent for the chief. After some delay he 
 came, and at once putting him under arrest (somewhat to his 
 surprise, I fear), off we moved towards Fada Wate. Immediately 
 there arose shouts and cries from the town, and people began 
 running out, and soon afterwards little bands of savages began 
 advancing across our left rear and front by a short cut, singing 
 as they went. I could distinguish the shrill voices of women, 
 and I was quite pleased, picturing to myself the gratitude of the 
 people to the Just and Great Whiteman for removing a tyrant. 
 But I was quickly disillusioned, and in a most rude manner (I 
 wonder how often there is a difference between what we imagine 
 the native thinks, and what he really does think), for back came 
 the Mada(i)ki and the chief of Sanga at a gallop to say that the 
 people were going to attack us. "But," said I, "there are 
 women amongst them, and all of them are singing." "That 
 is so," they replied, "but the women accompany the men 
 here when they are going to fight, and they sing to encourage 
 them." 
 
 Being thus brought back to earth again, I could see, on more 
 careful examination, that some of the people were armed (the 
 men, no doubt, it being extremely difficult to tell the sex of 
 these people at a distance, for the women's cloths were hardly 
 larger than those worn by the menfolk), and calling my little 
 escort together, I managed to frighten them off for the time, 
 and so let the carriers get into Fada Wate. 
 
 This town had been fighting with Ungual Kaura during 
 the previous month, so the headman thought that we ought 
 to be safe there, but to test the feeling of the people I called 
 on the young men to drive away the Ungual Kaura parties, 
 and as only about a dozen came out, I did not rely too much 
 
 147 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 on our chances of a quiet day. Some of the little bands had 
 meanwhile come up within about a couple of hundred yards of 
 Fada Wate, and there was nothing for it but to give them a 
 fright, so we dropped a few bullets amongst them, and scattered 
 them for the time being. 
 
 It was now breakfast time, and after that was over, I com- 
 menced the trial of Awudu on the charge of murdering his wife, 
 and on about nine different charges of enslaving and selling 
 women and children whom he had seized on the road. When 
 a man is down there is usually no lack of others to kick him, 
 whatever his colour, and this case being no exception to the rule, 
 there was plenty of evidence. I had got about half through the 
 trial, when a report was brought by the chief that the people of 
 a town on our right were going to attack us. 
 
 It appeared that the large town of Amar (not the old Muri 
 headquarters, of course, which is really Amara, but one belonging 
 to the Ninzam tribe), had sent in some goats as tribute, but 
 these had been intercepted by the people of Ungual Maitozo and 
 seized ; that the Amar men had been driven off, and that the 
 nephew of the chief of Sanga had been killed. Ungual Maitozo 
 had also been fighting with Fada Wate during the previous 
 month, so I still thought we were fairly safe, and I soon found 
 that, beyond sitting down armed on some hills about half a mile 
 off, the people made no attempt to attack, so after lunch I 
 proceeded with the trial. 
 
 About 3 p.m. one of the carriers, who had been sent to 
 take over some goats which the Mada(i)ki of Fada Wate said were 
 ready to be delivered as tribute, ran up with blood spurting from 
 arms and neck, saying that he had been wounded, and lest any 
 more evidence was needed, the chief of Sanga reported, a few 
 minutes afterwards, that he had been in the town, and had over- 
 heard some men saying that an attack was to be made on us 
 during the night, and sure enough drums commenced beating, and 
 armed men began to appear from the huts of Fada Wate itself. 
 
 The only thing to do was to go. The chief of Jemaa's men 
 were unarmed, and my eleven soldiers and two policemen would 
 not have protected the party, especially as we had some twenty 
 
 148 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 horses with us. I had also to get my prisoners to Jemaa some- 
 how, and had, therefore, to detail some one to guard them. All 
 retreat to Jemaan Daroro was cut off by Ungual Kaura in one 
 direction, and by Ungual Maitozo in another, so the only way 
 open was in front, but unfortunately the road had been traversed 
 by only one of our party, and he said he could not remember 
 it. However, there was no choice, and at 4.20 p.m. off we 
 moved. 
 
 The Ninzam let us go through their town, the unenterprising 
 idiots, and we were soon clear, but darkness came upon us while 
 we were still in thick bush, and we should have been rather an 
 easy prey had they come for us. We got over the river by the 
 light of torches of dry grass, and then determined to halt and 
 take our chance, being about six miles from Fada Wate. We 
 slept, ready to move off at any time, with double sentries on 
 the river, of course, but (except for the continual tapping of 
 drums in the distance) there was nothing to disturb us, and 
 we continued our march soon after five o'clock next morning. 
 
 We found that we had camped quite close to a town belonging 
 to the Ayu tribe, and that was probably the reason we had not 
 been attacked. At least I thought so at the time, but I have 
 since doubted if the Ninzam would ever have come against 
 even our small force when once we had got clear of their district, 
 though there is no doubt that they would have attacked us had 
 we slept in one of their towns, for fighting on one's own ground, 
 and in sight of one's own people, makes a wonderful difference 
 in the valour of the warriors engaged. 
 
 Passing on, we camped at the Giddan Sa(r)rikin Ambel 
 (" house of the chief of Ambel "), which was composed of one 
 enormous compound of two long zaures or halls, and enough 
 small huts to house about 300 or 400 people, all being occupied 
 by the chief and his wives and children — the joint family 
 system with a vengeance. 
 
 The chief was a fine-looking old native, who greeted me 
 with a " Hullo, Bature," repeating the English word on every 
 possible appropriate and inappropriate occasion. He was a 
 strong man, and proved rather obstinate in many ways, and 
 
 149 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 I found that he had been taking tribute in our name from 
 the people of a neighbouring town, telling us all the time that 
 they were tawaye (rebels) and would not pay. I therefore deter- 
 mined to take him back with me to Jemaan Daroro, both on 
 account of the example it would be to the other chiefs, and also 
 for the chance it would give the alleged rebel chief to come 
 in and tell his part of the story. 
 
 Next morning, therefore, I told him to accompany me, and 
 so great was his indignation that I had to arrest him at once. 
 We then went on to Amanchi, and had only just had breakfast 
 when a rubber trader from Jemaan Daroro ran in (the district is 
 rich in rubber and palm oil), saying that two of them had been 
 caught by an armed party assembling on the far side of a small 
 hill, with the object of rescuing their chief, and that he himself 
 had managed to escape. A little while afterwards the chief of 
 Jemaa reported that some other rubber traders from his town had 
 been murdered on our departure (which report proved unfor- 
 tunately to be true), and that the chief of Amanchi had dis- 
 appeared with all his people. There was no help for it, we had 
 to leave again, and we started off at 10.15 a.m., camping at 
 Ningishi, some eighteen miles from Ambel. We were shot at 
 while crossing a stream just outside Amanchi, but, except that 
 one of the Jemaa men got an arrow through his clothes, no harm 
 was done to us, and a little exchange of courtesies drove them off 
 with a couple of mementoes, incidentally allowing two other 
 rubber traders to escape and join us. 
 
 After opening up a new road, a short cut from the main route 
 to Kern, we returned to Jemaan Daroro on the 17th of March, 
 and I was not sorry to see the old home again, despite its dilapi- 
 dated appearance. Had I had another dozen men and a supply 
 of ammunition we might have made a stand, but the escort I had 
 was much too small for anything more than a running fight, the 
 men were new to me (the detachment at Jemaa having been 
 changed), and I had not much confidence in them. However, I had 
 got in a fair proportion of the outstanding tribute, and had brought 
 back four prisoners, two being the strongest chiefs in Ninzam and 
 Ayu respectively, so on the whole the tour was quite successful. 
 
 150 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 Poor old Sa(r)rikin Ambel ! I gave him a month, if I remember 
 rightly, in the guard-room under the Revenue Proclamation, and 
 he died just four days before his sentence would have expired. He 
 had been suffering for some time with an internal complaint, and I 
 suppose the confinement (or the blow to his self-esteem) made him 
 less able to fight against it. I had really released him about a week 
 before the proper time on account of his illness, pending confirma- 
 tion from headquarters, and had put him in charge of some Ayu 
 people in Jemaa so that he could hear his own language again, 
 and be cheered up, but without success. It was very hard on him, 
 poor old man, though it was, of course, absolutely his own fault ; 
 but it was also bad luck for me, for he was a brave and strong- 
 minded man, and after his lesson would have proved a valuable 
 ally. Many of these pagans die of imprisonment, however, like 
 caged wild birds, often through no complaint at all that can be 
 diagnosed, and simply because of the confinement. 
 
 The other chief, Awudu, I had to condemn to death, having 
 full judicial powers: circumstances compelled me to carry out the 
 sentence myself the following June as there was no sheriff available. 
 It was a nasty business, and I hope I shall never have to perform 
 a similar act. However, he was guilty up to his eyes, and had 
 really committed enough crimes to hang half-a-dozen men, so 
 there was no occasion to waste any sympathy on him. Still, taking 
 a man's life in cold blood gives one a weak feeling about one's waist- 
 belt ; it is quite different in action, when you know that unless 
 you are too quick for your enemy he will murder you, and you do 
 not think you are trying to kill a human being, but merely that 
 you must stop the advance of a dangerous enemy. 
 
 As to Gareba, he was released in due time, and was one of the 
 first to welcome the patrol later, for ex-prisoners are in most cases, 
 as I have observed before, quite good friends afterwards. And I 
 think the fact is a great tribute to the system of justice which 
 prevails in the country, for after all, we do not want to make 
 enemies of those who offend against our laws, especially when the 
 offenders cannot be called civilised, but our aim is to teach them 
 some higher ideals than they have learned from their fathers, and 
 strangely enough, a gaol is one of the best places for the purpose. 
 
 151 
 
SOME EXCITLNG AKKttSXS 
 
 The tribes I had just visited were all head-hunters, and there 
 were others with black marks against them, who were set down 
 for punishment by a patrol on some future occasion, so it may be 
 of interest to make some remarks on warfare from their point of 
 view. There is a good deal of similarity between their ideas, and 
 though the following notes refer particularly to the Kagoro people, 
 most of the information will apply equally well to the Waiwai, 
 Ninzam, Nadu, Ayu, and Kibbo. 
 
 There is a very close connection between the hunting and the 
 war parties of these head-hunting tribes. A chase may be easily 
 turned into a battle when the arms for both are the same, even 
 amongst the hunters themselves; and the search for beasts may 
 develop into a hunt for men. 
 
 From the accounts given me by the Kagoro, it would appear 
 that when they first came to the country they now occupy, they were 
 dependent on the chase for their food, and that they at first lived 
 in caves. Somehow or other they discovered the bow and arrow, 
 and then they were able to drive off the dangerous and kill the 
 edible beasts. Probably they did not discover the use of poison 
 for some time, for the chief of Jemaan Daroro assured me that 
 the Attakka learned it from the Kibbo only some twenty years 
 ago. Possibly the Kagoro depended in early times on the sling 
 and spear ; the Gannawarri even now fight with the latter weapon, 
 and on horseback. 
 
 There is apparently no actual compulsion on male adults to 
 fight in case of a war, but, judging from their general behaviour, I 
 should think that they would be only too glad to have the chance ; 
 a National Service League would have a rosy time amongst that 
 tribe ! The country is so small that the Kagoro are always within 
 easy distance of their towns, so they can go out in the early morn- 
 ing — not too early if the cold harmattan is blowing — fight by 
 day, and return to sleep at night, a very comfortable arrangement, 
 reminding one of the Concentration Camps in South Africa. 
 They tried about nine o'clock one night to surprise the patrol sent 
 to punish them in 1908 for attacking the Resident and his escort 
 and wounding the officer in command, but they were driven off 
 with some loss, and this was the first night attack known in the 
 
 152 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 strict up to that time, but since then there have been several, 
 >th the Mada and Nadu tribes copying the bad example in the 
 llowing year. The warriors take food enough to last them for 
 « day — though if they are attacking another town they usually 
 ly on getting something extra there — but if fighting near their 
 m towns their women-folk will probably bring them something 
 ;tra to cheer them up. 
 
 There is no need for any permanent organisation for war 
 iring peace-time, for the men are always in excellent training 
 rough hunting or farming, and they are always prepared for 
 entualities since they never leave their homes unarmed, and 
 
 are constantly handling their weapons. "Boy scouts," too, 
 e a recognised institution, being taught how to attack and 
 ke cover by practising first with stones, and later with toy 
 iws and arrows, and those who have shown the right qualities 
 these sham fights will be noted for posts as subordinate leaders 
 len they grow up. 
 
 Before a war is decided upon, the priests and elders repair to 
 e sacred grove and ask for the opinion of the ghosts upon the 
 lestion in point, and as the spirits can be approached only 
 rough the medium of beer — of which, I fear, by far the greater 
 rt goes down the throats of the men still alive, the ghosts 
 ving to be content with a few (a very few) drops spilt on the 
 ound — the reply is usually most favourable. A leader, the 
 %wam Wutd, is then appointed, and he will probably be some 
 m specially chosen on account of his skill in arms and his 
 avery, and not the chief or a priest, though these men will 
 low behind their troops, like the Duke of Plaza-Toro, to cheer 
 drive them on as the case may be. If in alliance with another 
 be, the general of the tribe first starting the trouble would be 
 e commander unless the ally was much stronger in men and had 
 tter leaders. 
 
 Their religion is conducive to warlike prowess, for the 
 ongest on earth will be the most influential in the spirit 
 rid, and also, the ghost of a slaughtered enemy must serve 
 s ghost of him who has taken the head. Again, the hero 
 the admiration- of all the belles of the village ; and last, but 
 
 153 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 not by any means least, the effect of the stories and songs of the 
 prowess and fame of bygone heroes must be considerable. I am 
 not sure if the head of every person, male or female, adult or 
 infant, is equally beneficial, but I think so, for I was told that 
 if a woman who is enceinte is caught and killed, the head of the 
 foetus will be taken, if old enough, as well as that of its mother. 
 A case was mentioned, and the name of the woman given by the 
 chief of Jemaa, and in a case of highway robbery I tried later, 
 one of the witnesses, a woman, stated that that was what she was 
 afraid of, so I fear it is true. One can easily believe it of the 
 cannibal Nadu or the cowardly Ayu, but the Kagoro seemed too 
 brave for that sort of thing ; however, there is no doubt that 
 they all kill women, for I found some female skulls. 
 
 With the Moroa, at any rate, the most foul treachery is quite 
 justifiable, for a case happened while I was at Jemaa. The 
 people of Babban Gidda had a feast to which they invited a 
 number of Gannawarri, and having made five of their guests 
 drunk, they shut them up in a hut and killed them, the rest of 
 the honoured guests managing to escape. The heads of the 
 victims were then cut off, and were set up by the chief in his 
 house as a memorial of the gallant deed, and such was the 
 condition of things when I heard of the deed. 
 
 I at once went to Moroa, and sent messages both to the 
 principal Gannawarri chiefs and to the Babban Gidda people, 
 saying that I should settle the matter, and commanding the 
 people to remain quiet. The latter I knew I could deal with, 
 but the former were warlike and were likely to give trouble, 
 especially as they had killed and eaten a Moroa chief on the 
 day of my arrival (although he had had nothing whatever to do 
 with the murder, but was guilty according to the communal idea) 
 and were reported to be celebrating the wasan wuka (" sharpening 
 the knife "), a ceremony which was said to last;for three days before 
 the opening of a campaign. The Gannawarri sent to say that 
 they could manage the affair quite well themselves, and the 
 Moroa people were so frightened that they were escaping to 
 the towns of friendly tribes, strings of women laden with stores 
 being seen in all directions. But even so, the Babban Gidda 
 
 154 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 ople would not come near me, so I went to the town and 
 ized everything I could find. I then sent to the Gannawarri 
 rough some Attakka people to say that I would give them ten 
 eep or goats and five shillings in cash for every person killed, and 
 ivent into their country as far as a certain tree which was always 
 ie scene of any agreements between the two peoples. The 
 annawarri did not turn up though, and I was at a loss what to 
 >, but after waiting until near sunset, I tied up the stock to 
 ees in the vicinity, and returned to camp, sending again to 
 te Gannawarri to tell them not to leave the animals there all 
 ght, lest leopards or hyaenas should get them. The friendly 
 ttakka had himself seen the goats there, and we had caught a 
 annawarri youth who had lost his way in the harmattan, and 
 ad strayed into the camp, and they prevailed upon the chiefs 
 » send for the goats ; and as the chiefs were now certain that 
 ley could depend upon me, they said that they would keep 
 ie peace. 
 
 A few days afterwards I managed to arrest the chief of 
 abban Gidda, and then the principal Gannawarri chief came 
 ) my camp, and on receiving the twenty-five shillings (mostly in 
 tenths" of a penny) his eyes glistened, and he said he would 
 ot mind losing a few more of his people under similar 
 mditions. 
 
 I sent the Babban Gidda chief to prison ; it was not a case 
 )r hanging, life being held much too cheaply in that district, 
 ad within a month or so the two tribes were apparently as 
 •iendly as ever before. I confiscated the skulls — which, luckily, 
 be Gannawarri did not want particularly — and they now repose 
 i peace on the shelves of the museum at Cambridge. 
 
 There is no formal declaration of war by the Kagoro, Moroa, 
 ec, for fights usually arise from sudden quarrels, but if there 
 hould be any delay between the disagreement and the commence- 
 lent of actual hostilities, the women or people of a town friendly 
 o both sides usually hear of it and pass the word along. The 
 rannawarri, however, have a wasan wuka, which, as I have said, 
 ists for three days, during which time preparations both spiritual 
 nd physical are made for the coming conflict. 
 
 155 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 When the force, if for attack, has assembled, the chief and 
 the chief priest, after having addressed the men, hand them over 
 to the leader chosen, and he then marches them off to the scene 
 of battle. Scouts are sent out in front to avoid surprise, and 
 to obtain news of the enemy's dispositions, and they will climb 
 trees if necessary, and perhaps waylay some unsuspecting strag- 
 glers or scouts belonging to the other side. In fact one of the 
 Mada ambushes which the patrol of 1910 experienced was the 
 tying of goats to the base of a tree, a few men hiding in the 
 branches, which were covered with creepers, so as to snipe any 
 soldiers or carriers who came to unloose them. 
 
 Usually some plan of campaign would have been thought out, 
 and the men would be disposed accordingly; a fairly good line 
 would be kept in the open, but the men would not trouble about 
 the step. All would be on foot — only the Gannawarri and some 
 of the Kibbo having horses — and the advance would be well 
 concealed, probably, for all warlike natives seem to be adepts 
 at taking cover. No dogs are used in warfare, and I should not 
 think they ever could be, for they are fearful curs. The warriors 
 shout their war-cry — " Wifu, wifu ! " — to try to terrify their op- 
 ponents (and a nasty sound it is if you are not expecting it), and 
 they insult them and boast of their own deeds, imaginary or 
 otherwise. 
 
 When an enemy has been slain, the victor, on removing the 
 head with his knife, will sing a special or impromptu song about 
 it, but there seem to be no general songs sung by men to 
 encourage themselves while the actual fighting is in progress; 
 nor do the women cheer them on, as is the case with the 
 Ninzam. I ought to mention, however, with regard to the 
 latter, that no women ever came out against our patrol, later, 
 though we could often hear them cursing and abusing us from 
 the bush. 
 
 Most of the Kagoro towns are defended by labyrinths of 
 euphorbia hedges, perhaps twelve feet high, as mentioned before, 
 and there are usually caves up above the towns — which are built 
 at the base of the mountain spur — where the women can flee 
 with the foodstuffs and other property. The men, if driven 
 
 156 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 out of the town, smash the beehives (earthen pots, standing by 
 the side of the houses) as they leave, so that the insects will be 
 furious by the time the attacking force arrives, and when the 
 invaders have been scattered by this means, the defenders return 
 and pour in poisoned arrows, and probably capture a good many 
 stragglers and fugitives who have taken the wrong turning. 
 And there must at times be many of these, for a man can 
 have no time to choose his direction when attacked by bees in 
 a narrow lane of euphorbia, and will take the first opening out 
 of it to escape his tormentors. The second patrol in 1909 was 
 treated in this way by Jigya and Tafa, three of the Europeans 
 and many of the soldiers and carriers being so badly stung that 
 they were laid up for some days, and the patrol of 1908 had a 
 somewhat similar experience. 
 
 The Kagoro have never dug pits for their enemies, they say, 
 and this is rather surprising, for many of the surrounding tribes do, 
 such as the Gannawarri, the Yeskwa, and the Ninzam, and holes 
 were made for animals before the days of the bow and arrow. 
 Except for the scouts in the trees, there is no idea of raising the 
 position of defence. Of course, they will try to get on higher 
 ground if possible, so as to give their arrows a longer range, 
 and to be able to roll or throw down stones, but houses are 
 not built on piles for defensive purposes, nor have the people 
 any knowledge of earthworks, escalading, or breaching, for there 
 are no walls in the vicinity, but they do cut paths through the 
 hedges of other towns. The euphorbia hedges are more or less 
 peculiar to the Kagoro, other tribes in the district contenting 
 themselves with hedges of some thick, strong bushes, or simply 
 with the ordinary grass fences, strengthened, perhaps, with palm 
 fronds with short poisonous spikes — as we found to our cost 
 near Aro. 
 
 The weapons of the head-hunters are (1) a wooden club, (2) a 
 knife, (3) the bow and arrow, (4) the sling, (5) the spear for 
 throwing or thrusting, and (6) the shield. The club may be a 
 mere thick stick, or a knob-kerry, or it may be a heavy wide 
 scimitar, as with the Kagoma, or a longer, narrower one of light 
 wood as with the Ayu. The knife may be of the usual dagger 
 
 157 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 shape, or the handle may be in the form of an oval ring, and it 
 will be bought from a Hausa trader, or else made in their own 
 towns by foreign blacksmiths. The bow is not strengthened in 
 any way, being merely a piece of bent wood some three to five 
 feet long, but a ring may be worn on the right thumb when 
 drawing it, so as to give a better grip on the missile. The 
 arrows have iron heads with flanges, and are poisoned, the 
 shafts being notched but not feathered, and usually about 
 three feet in length, but Jigya used some 4 feet 8 inches 
 against the last patrol. The Toffs used wooden-pointed arrows, 
 the tips of which broke off on touching the target ; the object 
 in both cases being of course to keep the poison - bearing 
 material in contact with the flesh as long as possible. Fire 
 arrows are unknown, and this is rather surprising, considering 
 the fact that the burning of the enemy's town is one of the 
 objects of every attacking force. 
 
 I have not seen a sling, but the chief of Jemaan Daroro told me 
 that he was wounded by a stone from one at Jigya some time 
 previously, and others say the same thing. Stones are not 
 usually rolled down on the enemy, but the last patrol had an 
 experience of the kind, and I still wonder why the towns built up 
 the mountains are not always defended in this fashion. The 
 spear has a long head with flanges, and a small piece of iron round 
 the butt for balance ; it also has a projection on the shaft on 
 which to rest the forefinger. The shield is round and made of 
 hide, bullock for preference. I believe there are some made of 
 grass also, but I could not be sure that I saw any, though the 
 Attakka seemed to be carrying such weapons; if so, they are 
 much smaller than those made of hide. There is another shape, 
 more square, used by the Mada warriors, resembling somewhat 
 those used by the Toff people, whose weapons have been already 
 described. 
 
 Although these tribes are always fighting amongst themselves, 
 there seems to be a good deal of intermarriage between them, 
 and so, when one side has had enough of the war, any women 
 who once belonged to the hostile tribe, but have been married to 
 men of the tribe wishing for peace, are sent to their relatives as 
 
 158 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 ambassadors, and they are naturally sacred, for they have friends on 
 both sides. If peace is agreed upon, important representatives of 
 the two tribes meet, each party bringing a he-goat in the case of 
 the Kagoro, and decide the terms of peace, and swear friendship 
 in the following way — all their bargains being celebrated by 
 banquets, as with us. 
 
 After having talked matters over, and after the usual agree- 
 ments have been made, payment of compensation, delivery of 
 prisoners, or giving up the right to a claim for territory, which- 
 ever the case may be, each goat is killed by having its throat 
 cut. Some of the blood is then smeared three times with three 
 incantations, of course, on a tree or stone agreed upon, and 
 this act apparently makes it a witness to the compact (have 
 not European lovers sworn by the moon ?), and possibly a 
 partaker in the feast also ; and perhaps is thenceforth re- 
 garded as sacred, like the stone used when praying for rain. 
 This is not impossible, for Jacob poured a drink offering on 
 the pillar of stone which he set up at Beth-el, and Joshua 
 took a great stone and set it under an oak, and "said unto 
 all the people, Behold this stone shall be a witness unto us, for it 
 hath heard all the words of the Lord which He spake unto us ; it 
 shall be therefore a witness unto you, lest ye deny your God." 
 Each party then divides its goat into two halves lengthwise, 
 except for the head, which, with the skin, is the perquisite of 
 the chief priest of the town or tribe bringing the animal, and one- 
 half is taken by each party, the members of which then separate, 
 each cooking and eating the two different halves at some little 
 distance apart in the bush. When the flesh has been eaten, 
 some three men of each party will be told off to accompany the 
 other party to their town, and then all go home, their hostages, 
 who stay for a few days with their late enemies, being, of 
 course, sacred — how that word has changed in meaning! 
 
 The Moroa apparently cut a female goat across the middle 
 while still alive, and give the hinder part to the party from the 
 other tribe or town, receiving a similar portion in exchange, and 
 then all mix together and eat with one another. I am not sure 
 if they too smear the blood on a stone or a tree ; I saw no special 
 
 159 
 
SOME EXCITING ARRESTS 
 
 stone at the place where I waited for the Gannawarri, nor was 
 the tree in any way remarkable. 
 
 A broom is constructed by the party from the people who have 
 made the first overtures of peace, and is handed to the other 
 party, the most important men on each side holding it, and swear- 
 ing that it will sweep out all evil-doers. In the case of the 
 Kagoro, the broom is made of the grass used for lighting fires, 
 the idea being that if the people who gave it ever attack at 
 night, the torch will blaze up and show where they are, for the 
 others will take it to their town and keep it there. 
 
 The principal causes of war are the capture of women or else 
 the murder of men, the latter nearly always, and the former very 
 often arising out of a drunken row. Sometimes the most fiendish 
 treachery is indulged in during a friendly feast, such as I have 
 described at Babban Gidda, and head-hunting was always regarded 
 as a popular and manly sport. In any case blood-feuds must 
 have lasted a long time between tribes before we were there to put 
 an end to them, for the children of a man killed even in battle 
 would keep up the vendetta unless prevented or bought off, and, 
 when life is cheap, and men are anxious for heads, no great sums 
 will be paid to keep an enemy quiet. 
 
 The Kagoro have not amalgamated with any other tribe; 
 and though they have repeatedly defeated the Kajji, they never 
 seem to have followed up their victories nor to have deprived 
 them of any land. This happened indirectly, however, for the 
 Kajji were for a long time too much frightened to go to any of 
 their farms near the Kagoro frontier. I managed to make the 
 principal chiefs of these tribes meet and swear friendship at 
 Jemaan Daroro during the year, and I believe the feeling of 
 greater security, and the consequent increase in the area under 
 cultivation, nearly doubled the harvest of the towns nearest each 
 other on each side of the boundary. And if so I justified my 
 name with them, as with the Hausawa of Jemaan Daroro, who nick- 
 named me Maikwoshe (" the full one," i.e. " the maker of plenty "), 
 not on account of a wish to make rude remarks about any per- 
 sonal peculiarity, but because, while with them, I encouraged 
 their agricultural habits, and made every householder have a farm. 
 
 160 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 
 CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 ^OME people hold that the wild pagans in their native state 
 1 are absolutely beyond the pale, incapable of any good 
 without our intervention, and quite useless in every way 
 iless or until they can be taught to live according to European 
 sals. Others maintain that it is only in their wild state that 
 ,gans are truthful, honest, well-behaved, and in fact thorough 
 ntlemen, and that contact with us does everything to lower and 
 thing to elevate them. It is true that many of the inland 
 ibes are dirty, though the river people are often the reverse ; it 
 true that they do not know of our Bible, but it is in many cases 
 ast untrue to say that they do not know of God, or that they 
 i not worship Him to the best of their ability ; it is true also 
 at many, I might almost say most, of their songs would be con- 
 lered rather too strong for even our music halls, but they do 
 >t go much further than some of the worst of our Immortal 
 ird, Shakespeare ; and as for the wearing of clothes, natives 
 th any pride in themselves like the Kagoro say — " We are 
 igoro, we do not know these customs, our fathers did not teach 
 em to us, we do not wish to change." 
 Many writers on Africa besides myself urge that natives shall 
 educated as natives and not as Europeans, because the local 
 m and customs are in many cases much more suited to the 
 ick people than are those introduced by a foreign race. And 
 .turally so, for it seems the height of impertinence to imagine 
 at West Africa has been left to grow in sin and darkness for 
 nturies simply that the whites might come and save the 
 ople at some future time. We do not realise that Moham- 
 adans regard Christians as lost, that Hindus and Confucians 
 nsider that we are utterly damned in the next world, that even 
 
 161 L 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 the wild, dirty pagans imagine that they, and they only, have found 
 the true God, and that we are impiotts because we revile theirs 
 while urging the acceptance of ours, not recognising them as one ! 
 We ridicule such an idea, we think the native blasphemous for 
 entertaining such views, we turn over in our minds the many 
 absurd (to us) superstitions and customs that he has, and we 
 regard any arguments in his favour with pitiful contempt, or 
 with amusement. But before laughing at him would it not be 
 best to consider if we are really so very different, so very superior 
 after all ? Some tribes pierce their noses ! Very funny indeed ; 
 but do we not pierce our ears ? and not only women either, for 
 sailors do, or did. Some of the black women compress their arms 
 or legs, or tie strings around their waists ; but is not a modifica- 
 tion of the latter the rule in England, where a few years ago the 
 woman who could boast of a waist of only eighteen inches was 
 more envied than one who had won a University degree ? Men's 
 high stiff collars are as bad. Native women paint their faces to 
 make themselves appear more fascinating, and even that is not 
 unknown in England, though our ideas differ from theirs as to 
 what is attractive. Black mothers massage their babies' heads 
 to mould them into the particular shape favoured by the tribe ; 
 is this never done in England ? The people carry loads on their 
 heads, but even this can be observed here, kitchen boys being 
 particularly noticeable, and I have seen white women at Oporto 
 stumbling along under great planks and stones, and working 
 harder than any negresses. 
 
 So too with the beliefs, superstitions, and customs, many 
 of which, if we take the trouble to trace them, will resemble 
 those of our early forefathers, and we do not immediately 
 recognise even our own nowadays because they have become 
 modified as we have developed, and many have been lost alto- 
 gether. But people who will not walk under a ladder, those 
 who throw salt over the left shoulder, refuse to sit down thirteen 
 at a table, and will not cut their nails on a Friday, cannot look 
 down upon the wildest pagan so far as superstition is concerned. 
 Those who use crests, burn obnoxious persons in effigy, or believe 
 that the burning of the dressings has an effect on the wound 
 
 162 
 
Ugly, but Revered 
 
 The object on the left is a head-dress composed of leather covered with cowrie-shells, the 
 figure ot a man on horseback surmounting the cap The centre figure is that of a girl 
 kneeling, with a calabash on her head. The small carvings are said to represent dead 
 children, and are male or female in form accordingly. These are Yoruba objects. See p. 34. 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 from which they have been taken, will not be surprised to hear 
 of totems or of sympathetic magic. The savage wears a charm to 
 make him victorious in battle, even our racing motor-cars have 
 mascots ; the native perhaps regards some particular animal with 
 affection, fear, or loathing — it may be as a result of toteniism, it 
 may be for other reasons — but we know of instances of men 
 amongst ourselves being afraid of cats and horses, although in 
 battle they are as gallant as any heroes have ever been. 
 
 Again as regards religion, many tribes conceive of a Supreme 
 God, the Almighty Creator, in the same way as we do, but 
 whereas we portray Him as a Glorified Being, in shape like us, 
 they may think of Him as such also, or as partly animal or 
 element. He is at times supposed to inhabit representations of 
 Himself, or perhaps idols may be made which become gods, and 
 even nowadays it is impossible to say exactly how some of the 
 lower and ignorant classes in Europe really regard the figures of 
 the Saviour and the Virgin, or the Holy Relics ! We are often 
 amused at the accounts of natives reminding their gods of their 
 existence, or of trying to cheat them by offering gifts at their 
 shrines during a period of stress, but taking them away when the 
 danger is past. At St. Adresse near Havre in France, last year, 
 when on my way to- Portugal, I saw many models of ships in the 
 church, placed there to remind the Virgin that the crews of the 
 vessels they represented were at sea, and invoking her aid on their 
 behalf. After the vessel's return the models are removed again, 
 and in many cases a tablet is erected in grateful remembrance, 
 though this cannot always have been done, otherwise the building 
 would have been a solid mass of them long ere this. Many of the 
 Roman Catholic churches abroad are like toyshops. Again, some 
 of the pagan hymns are more beautiful than a good many found 
 to-day in our hymnbooks, and we often ask for the same things, 
 namely, blessings on earth, and a good place in the next world. 
 
 However, there is no room in a book like this for the discussion 
 of all the points of resemblance between the pagan mind and ours, 
 nor have I the ability necessary for such a work, but it would 
 be as well to remember also, that whereas we may know that 
 we are superior to the black man, he does not admit the fact, 
 
 163 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 but actually thinks that he is quite as much superior to us ! A 
 European will never get anything like as good or as willing 
 service from a native as one of his own natural rulers would ; the 
 expression " as foolish as a white man " is as common as one we 
 have relating to the people of a certain neighbouring continental 
 country; and the conviction of most sects — specially Moham- 
 medans — that Christians will be damned in the next world is even 
 stronger than the belief to the contrary of our most ardent 
 missionaries, who think that we only can show them the way to 
 salvation, and without ws they will have no hope. 
 
 And lest there should be any misapprehension, let me say at 
 once that our customs and beliefs certainly are superior to those 
 of the natives, for we have weeded out most of the bad and useless 
 parts, while they are still in a backward stage ; and I do not com- 
 pare their customs to ours simply for the purpose of belittling our 
 state of culture, but so as to invite sympathy for theirs. The only 
 thing I wish to insist upon is that we cannot afford to deride the 
 savage until we have become absolutely certain that there is 
 nothing corresponding to his foolishness in our mode of life. 
 
 Those men who wish to study primitive instincts have an 
 excellent opportunity amongst the pagan head-hunters of Northern 
 Nigeria, though the recent discoveries of tin in the district will 
 soon render the people useless anthropologically. I always 
 sympathised with them even when, according to our ideas, they 
 were doing wrong, for it is, after all, not so very long ago that 
 we became so exceedingly moral and orderly. Would England 
 have been Mistress of the Seas but for unscrupulous pirates like 
 Drake and others ? Did Japan give Russia formal notice that she 
 was going to attack the fleet at Port Arthur ? Did Austria and 
 Italy rush to the Hague ? Did Portugal ? Are we in our next 
 war going to ask the enemy to kindly get the first blow home so 
 that other nations may not say nasty things about us ? They will 
 say nothing nasty to the conqueror, whatever he does ; deeds and 
 not words will decide the contests ultimately, and the spectators 
 will perforce uphold the winning side unless they are prepared to 
 fight on behalf of the vanquished. Thus, when on a patrol, it was 
 not always a question of fighting the particular tribe destined for 
 
 164 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 punishment; one had to consider too what the neighbouring 
 people would do in the case of a reverse, for it is the nature of 
 nations as well as men to kick another when he is down, and to 
 curry favour with the victor. 
 
 Our policy with these people has been to preserve as far as 
 possible their old institutions, and not to interfere, unless it was 
 necessary to stop some practice which was harmful to the com- 
 munity generally, or contravening some law. And by law I do 
 not mean only that which we have laid down in learned enact- 
 ments (which are so badly expressed that thousands of pounds 
 have to be spent in the law-courts before any one can find out 
 what they mean), but what is included in the general policy of 
 the tribe concerned, for it is a mistake to think that savages are 
 absolutely unrestrained. They are not, custom being a very exact- 
 ing code, any infringement of which is often regarded as being not 
 only an injury to the society, but a slight to the gods as well. 
 
 It is not necessary that a law should be written to make 
 it binding ; there are some " unwritten laws " with us — as was 
 seen lately in America — which nevertheless are almost invariably 
 held to be of equal authority with those appearing in the statute 
 book. And there are customs too, the infringement of which 
 would call forth a chorus of disapproval strong enough to compel 
 the person guilty of the offence either to comply with them or to 
 fly, and ostracism, or even worse punishment, might follow. Such 
 customs gradually tend to become fixed, and they are then equal 
 in every respect to laws, and their infringement, even with us, 
 would in many cases sooner or later bring the offender into 
 conflict with the law-courts. Take, for instance, the case of a 'bus 
 full of women except for one man, and another woman enter- 
 ing, it will certainly happen that the man will give up his seat 
 and offer to stand — but why should he ? He has paid for his 
 seat, and having been there first has the prior right to it, but he 
 will not keep it because he respects womankind, and the constant 
 exercise of courtesy in response to that feeling has become so 
 universal that it has grown into a custom, so that if a man 
 ignored the unwritten rules he would be made to suffer by 
 ostracism, or even by actual violence. Again, if a Government 
 
 165 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 refused to resign after having lost its majority in the House of 
 Commons, the members would very soon be guilty of breaking 
 the law, for they would be spending money illegally. The 
 former is one of our customs, the result to a great extent of 
 Christianity, but regard for women is not yet universal among 
 savages, I fear. 
 
 A Kagoro custom, mentioned later, is that the women shall 
 not wear clothes of any kind, and though I gave many of them 
 brightly coloured handkerchiefs of the kind which gladden the 
 hearts and brighten the eyes (and heads) of most of the dusky 
 beauties, they would never wear them ; the reason given when I 
 asked for one being, that "the Kagoro did not do so, 1 ' and 
 apparently no further explanation was thought necessary. There 
 is no reason to suppose that these particular females were ab- 
 solutely different in nature to all the other daughters of Eve of 
 every colour, and I think that it is quite likely that but for the fear 
 of disapproval they would have worn them gladly ; but I respected 
 their customs, and did not attempt to persuade them to do so. 
 
 Religion is about the last subject on which a native will talk, 
 and it was not until I had been known to the Kagoro some 
 months that I could get any information at all, and even then 
 it came only in little bits at a time. Had I only been able to do 
 another tour amongst them I should have found out most of 
 what was worth knowing even on this head, but it was not to be. 
 They believe in a Supreme God who is called Gwaza, and he 
 must be in some way confused with the Universe, for the names 
 of both are the same. So far are they from " worshipping the 
 devil," as is often stated about such people, that they regard 
 the god as a beneficent spirit who helps them against the 
 ghosts of their dead ancestors, and he is apparently regarded as 
 almighty, for at new moon there are rejoicings, and he is invoked 
 and asked to give the people health and good luck during the 
 coming month. 
 
 In times of drought he is asked to send rain on the land, a 
 special day being fixed by the priests for the offering of the 
 supplications of the people, after which they make various 
 mystical preparations, and rain always comes within a day or 
 
 166 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 two. No doubt the priests arrange the time with some relation 
 to the state of the atmosphere, as in the Murray Islands, where 
 Dr. Haddon says that the impossible was never attempted; a 
 rain charm would never be made unless there was some ex- 
 pectation of rain coming. But the explanation given by the 
 priests is that they are powerful and can prevail upon God, and 
 that any delay simply shows that they have had to argue all the 
 more strongly. All the people turn first to the south when 
 praying, if it can so be called, at this time, and then towards 
 the other points of the compass, the reason being that they first 
 look towards their place of origin, as the Jews did towards 
 Jerusalem, in which direction our churches are also built. 
 
 No native beer, or akann, is drunk at the time of the new 
 moon, but in seasons of drought some is said to be thrown three 
 times on each corner of a special stone which is set up for the 
 occasion in the sacred grove, and is supposed to be inhabited for 
 the time by the Supreme God, an incantation being spoken while 
 each of the three sprinklings is made. But before this is done a 
 fowl is killed, and a little of the blood and feathers is placed on 
 the top of the stone, perhaps also some flesh, and the Supreme 
 God is supposed to eat these and be pleased. I did not myself 
 see the stone — if such really existed — it was kept in the sacred 
 grove, but a Court Messenger who had travelled through the 
 country before we came described the rites to me, and said that 
 the stone was about two feet high. It is kept for these rites only, 
 and this, or the stone or tree used as a witness to covenants of 
 peace, seem to be the only things approaching idolatry or fetish- 
 ism. Most Europeans swear on the Bible, or on relics. 
 
 There are no other gods or spirits — for instance, none of rivers 
 or mountains ; ancestors are worshipped so far as their ghosts are 
 feared, but no further, and there are no models or carvings of any 
 kind that I could hear of. Some of the Mada people to the south 
 have various figures in wood and clay, but whether these are idols 
 or not must be left for some one else to determine. By the way, 
 why is it that these figures, idols, or otherwise, are always 
 hideous ? We read in Genesis that " God made man in His own 
 image," but nowadays the process is reversed so far as the idola- 
 
 167 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 trous pagans are concerned. It is possible that a man knowing 
 that most of the petty acts of everyday life were done by some 
 human being like himself, imagined the greater phenomena, such 
 as thunderstorms, floods, &c, to be ordered by some being as 
 much greater than he, as a thunderstorm was more wonderful than 
 the pouring of water from a calabash, and since the manifestations 
 of this mysterious power were destructive more often than not, he 
 was filled with fear. 
 
 In order to propitiate this being, evidently angry or malevolent 
 since his acts were directed against the man, he sought in his 
 mind for some means of approach, and as a native usually wants 
 to visualise everything, he made an image. But what was the 
 image to be like ? He knew himself to be better as a whole than 
 the animals around him because of his superior intellect, though 
 he was often inferior in bodily strength, and so the god was 
 depicted as being of human form, or partly of human and partly 
 of animal form. The swiftness of the eagle and the strength of 
 the lion have always been known to man in the countries where 
 such creatures existed, and we often see parts of them in the 
 representations of the gods; and fishes were also included, par- 
 ticularly amongst maritime nations. Man and all these animals 
 felt hunger and other emotions, and so it was natural to suppose 
 that the gods would experience them also, and offerings of food, 
 and drink, and of riches were made to propitiate them. 
 
 But, strangely enough, the malevolent gods were often made 
 much more of than the beneficent ones, since the former were 
 always likely to do mischief if not appeased, while the latter 
 would do good in any case, and I fear that the same thing holds 
 good in everyday life amongst us even to this day, for even 
 in Parliament it is not an unknown thing for a member who can 
 worry the Government to be offered a post, in preference to 
 a staunch supporter who will always vote for his party. Often, 
 then, the representation of the god was made terrible in order 
 to match his reputation, and that accounts for a good, deal 
 of the ugliness of the idols, though a certain amount must 
 be attributed to indifferent workmanship, and also to the fact 
 that beauty of face seldom appeals to a West African ; a woman 
 
 168 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 who is strong in body, and likely to be a good worker and a 
 prolific mother being much preferred to a girl whose face is 
 her fortune, or would be amongst us. Where iron is rare and 
 precious, it forms part of the offering to the god, and a pious 
 native propitiates his deity by hammering nails into its stomach, 
 or head, or other part of the body (so says The Globe), and goes 
 on his way rejoicing in the knowledge of a good deed done. 
 
 As man rose in the scale of civilisation, he gradually dropped 
 the animal parts of the representation, and the offerings became 
 of a more spiritual nature, though even to-day, at harvest-time, 
 food is still sent to the church by us. However, we know now 
 that it will not be partaken of by the Almighty, but that it will 
 be devoted to charitable purposes, and that we shall derive 
 benefit, not through satisfying any desires on the part of the 
 Creator, but because of our own self-denial in making the gifts. 
 A good example of the gradual change in our own case is seen 
 in the idea of the cherubim, which Ezekiel describes as having 
 the faces of man, the lion, the ox, and the eagle, and they Were 
 furnished with wings. Now, all of us see birds, and flying is still 
 a wonderful feat to us — much more so than swimming — and thus 
 we have kept the wings on our pictures of the cherubim to make 
 them appear superior to us, though otherwise their bodies are 
 exactly the same. So, too, with our delineations of the Creator ; 
 although once depicted as a Mighty and Reverend Patriarch 
 clad in Eastern raiment — thus showing the origin of the idea — 
 the modern custom is rather to indicate His position in a picture 
 by a blaze of glory, through which, however, we dimly see that 
 His shape is supposed to be like ours, for we can understand 
 no higher organisation that the idealised human form. 
 
 The Kagoro dic^not know, or at least they would not tell me, 
 anything about the origin of man in the world, though they had 
 heard of a big flood. The ancient people are said to have been 
 much wiser than those of the present generation, and they drew 
 up all the laws and laid down all the customs which the Kagoro 
 now follow. They were, however, in no sense superhuman ; and 
 in fact were not so strong as the people of to-day (pointing to 
 the fact that they were fugitives in the mountains rather than 
 
 169 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 conquerors in the plains), but they were also not so wicked. 
 They invented many things, but forgot. the art of swimming 
 when they learned how to make bridges, and that is the reason 
 why no Kagoro can swim to-day — though as these bridges consist 
 merely of palm trees felled so as to fall across the streams, the 
 reason does not seem to be a particularly good one. It is more 
 likely that this is another sign that the Kagoro came from 
 Bauchi, where the level is higher and the streams are fewer 
 in number and smaller, than from the west, where they would 
 have seen rivers much enlarged since leaving the mountain. 
 
 Some Kagoro say that there will be punishment after death 
 for evil deeds not expiated during the offender's lifetime. But 
 the majority hold that he who has the stronger arm on earth will 
 become the more powerful spirit in the after-life, and this view is 
 so eminently in accordance with the general ideas of the Kagoro 
 that I cannot help thinking that the other has been borrowed 
 from the Mohammedans, for there is no Hell, and the provision of 
 a feast of dkann will thoroughly atone for the commission of any 
 crime. 
 
 All living Kagoro have souls or shadows which leave their 
 bodies during sleep, and it is dangerous to awaken any one suddenly 
 lest his soul should be too much preoccupied with the pleasures of 
 the moment and not be able to get back properly to the body at 
 once, a fact which is shown #y the feeling of heaviness and the 
 dull look of the eyes. The souls were said to be connected with 
 the breath as well as with the shadow, but how they could leave 
 the bodies of sleeping — and still breathing — persons my inform- 
 ants were unable to explain. The soul always has the form and 
 voice of the body it occupies, and each individual has one, and 
 one only. 
 
 If a person is likely to die, the soul leaves its bodily case and 
 travels towards the stream which divides this world from the next ; 
 and if the ghosts of the departed ancestors on the other side think 
 it is time that the person died, the soul is allowed to cross, but if 
 not, they drive it back to the body, and the sick person recovers. 
 It is curious to note that similar beliefs are prevalent elsewhere ; 
 for instance, I have seen it stated that the people of New 
 
 170 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 Britain think that when a man dies his soul goes to the spirit- 
 land and meets his friends there, but if they do not want him at 
 that time they all drive him away, and so he returns to life again. 
 The stream is crossed in the case of the Kagoro souls by a bridge, 
 and I rather wonder if the difficulties of travelling gave them the 
 idea of a stream; if so it would appear as if they had come from 
 the north-west, where the rivers are formidable, and as if the 
 bridge were a later addition. Sometimes there is a delay, the 
 ghosts not being unanimous in their opinion, and so deferring 
 the final decision, and when this is the case the soul, being without 
 a habitation, shrinks, and if it should in the end be compelled to 
 return to its body the person will feel the effects although he 
 recovers, and will not have the proper use of his brain perhaps, or 
 of one or all of his limbs. But if the ghosts decide that the person 
 has lived long enough on earth the soul is allowed to cross the 
 bridge, and it can then never return to that particular body, which 
 must die. 
 
 The question of the detention or return of the soul is wholly 
 in the hands of the ghosts of the patient's dead ancestors, and no 
 rites are performed by the relatives on earth because they could 
 make no difference ; but if the person who is causing the illness 
 be found, severe measures are taken against him, for all deaths and 
 illnesses are due to black magic, and so when a person is sick it is 
 necessary to discover who is responsible. Souls and ghosts are like 
 human beings, and are exposed to the same dangers, and so while 
 a soul is absent from the sleeping body it may be caught by that 
 of an evil-wisher, or the latter may beat the victim's soul with a 
 stick. In both cases an illness ensues, which in the latter will be 
 evidenced by a feeling of being bruised (I wonder if this has any- 
 thing to do with malarial fever ?), but will not be serious ; while 
 in the former case it is known that the victim's liver has been 
 removed and taken to the cave in the sacred grove, where all the 
 evil-wishers will assemble to eat it. 
 
 An ordinary individual cannot see these evil souls, but a witch- 
 doctor can, because they glow like fire at night, and he is, of 
 course, immediately appealed to and asked to "smell out" the 
 owner. On being summoned he will call over the names of several 
 
 171 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 persons, and the sick man will recognise the one who is afflicting 
 him, so a rush is made for some poor wretch who has evidently 
 offended the witch-doctor, and he is caught and shut in a house 
 with a fire in it, into which pepper is thrown, and he is kept there 
 until he agrees to remove his curse. If he really returns the liver 
 to the sick man, the latter will recover, but he may have only pro- 
 mised to do so in order to escape from the burning pepper, and 
 may eat the liver after all, in which case the person dies, and, if 
 the evil-wisher is still in the town, he will be sold as a slave or 
 choked to death if the family of the victim is strong enough to 
 exact the punishment. If, however, the sick person is very 
 old the evil-wisher may not be punished at all, for since 
 a beer-feast will result on the death of such a victim the 
 deed is rather an advantage than otherwise to the rest of the 
 family. 
 
 The Kagoro know of cases where the evil-wisher who thus 
 became an evil-doer gave back the sick person's liver, and conse- 
 quently allowed him to recover, but took a corresponding organ 
 from a dog or a sheep instead; and although the culprit may 
 have denied the charge, there was no doubt of his guilt, for the 
 animal would die soon afterwards of a similar illness. Probably 
 the evil-wisher would be required to make good the loss, but, 
 as in most other cases, all would depend upon whether the family 
 suffering it was stronger in numbers or more powerful in influence 
 than that of the person causing it. 
 
 The ghosts live the lives of ordinary men — Kagoro men, of 
 course — and spirits of enemies will continue their feuds unless 
 stopped by the Supreme God. The ghosts ride, eat, and hunt 
 as in life, and are always ready for beer, but they cannot be 
 destroyed. They live in the sacred grove and in the mountains 
 behind Fada Kagoro — not in houses, for there are none in the 
 next world; and the plants and trees in the grove being real, 
 there is no need for ghostly vegetation. They seem to have 
 horses, and dogs too, though some Kagoro say that animals 
 have no souls, for the shadow disappears at death; others, 
 however, hold that they have souls of the same shape and size 
 as their bodies, and all agree that they can see the ghosts of men 
 
 172 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 and many other things which the eye of no human being can 
 discern unless he possesses the secrets of the black magic. 
 
 The first husband of a woman will be her husband in after- 
 life, and, if dead, his ghost will come to her house for her when 
 she is dying; the ghost of the first wife will come for a man 
 when he is dying; and, also, the spirits of parents will come for 
 their unmarried children, and vice versa ,• in fact, the organisation 
 of society is as much like that in force on earth as can be 
 imagined. The ghosts are always hungry and thirsty, and 
 unless well looked after will soon punish their relatives left 
 alive on earth, but they will first warn them in dreams. We 
 have many stories in England of the ghosts of murdered 
 people worrying their descendants until the crimes have been 
 brought to light, and the ghosts allowed to go to their resting- 
 place, so we should be able easily to understand the Kagoro 
 beliefs in this respect. A few cases have been known by the 
 Kagoro of members of their tribes having seen the wraiths of 
 their loved ones at the time of their death, although far distant 
 at the time, but it was admitted that such strokes of luck seldom 
 occur. 
 
 A ghost may transmigrate into the body of a descendant born 
 after the ancestor's death, and each may be male or female ; in 
 fact, such a thing is common, as is proved by the likeness of 
 children to their parents or grandparents and others. It is 
 very lucky, too, for it shows that the ghost, which was always 
 liable to misbehave at any time, has returned to a fleshy habita- 
 tion, and so will have no further power to frighten the family 
 until the new body dies, and it is set free again. But though 
 the Kagoro may welcome a reincarnation, other peoples object, 
 and Mr. Martin says of the Akra people that he saw one morning 
 a great number of women and children carrying a child about 
 the streets in a basket, shouting as loudly as they could. On 
 inquiry he learned that the mother had previously lost two or 
 three children, who had died when about the age of this one. 
 When such was the case, they believed that the same soul 
 which was in the first child had returned and entered the 
 next, and that the child would die of its own free will, unless 
 
 173 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 prevented, through mere spite. Hence these steps were taken 
 to cure it of such practices. The child, while alive, was 
 besmutted with charcoal, put into a basket, and carried 
 around the town, the people taking care to abuse it for its 
 wickedness, or to threaten it, should it die, with further 
 penalties. Every ill usage that could be offered, short of 
 murder, was shown it, and should it afterwards die, in spite 
 of this treatment, its head was sometimes crushed with stones, 
 and the body, instead of being buried, was thrown either into 
 the sea or into the bush ; these things being done to prevent its 
 coming again into another child. Some of the people had a 
 notion that such children belonged to the ourang-outangs, and 
 that when they died these animals came to claim them. They 
 made images, therefore, and placed them in the road so that 
 the beasts might take the images and spare the children. 
 
 Ghosts cannot take up their abode in animals, nor in inanimate 
 things, but those of beasts are said to be able to enter the bodies 
 of any children of their slayers who are conceived but unborn at 
 the time, and this is shown by the fact that more than one case 
 has been known of a child being born with marks of wounds 
 exactly like those received by his father or mother when 
 fighting with an animal, or by the animal itself, if the fight 
 took place not long before the child's birth. There seems to 
 be a curious confusion of ideas here ; the former phenomenon is, 
 of course, familiar to us, but the other is strange, and yet would 
 fit in better with the Kagoi'o view of the transmigration of the 
 animal's soul. However, the idea of transmigration is common, 
 for Mr. Martin says of the Akra people that the spirits of 
 departed ancestors received daily offering from their respective 
 families, and when a child was carried off by a wild beast, as 
 sometimes happened, it was supposed that the spirit of one of the 
 departed ancestors had entered the beast in revenge for some 
 neglect on the part of the living. Other writers say that there is 
 a general belief in West Africa that those persons who kill 
 crocodiles, for instance, take their form after death, a reversion of 
 the Kagoro process. At a place called Zoutomy in the Vey 
 country, on the day of the Banquet of the Dead, Dr. Blyden 
 
 174 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 tells us, thousands of people make offerings of rice, flour, and 
 meat (not fish) to their ancestors. At the call of the prophetess 
 in charge, a huge crocodile comes to her and is fed, and this is 
 repeated until the whole surface of the creek is ruffled by their 
 heads, the food being distributed amongst them. There are 
 several of these sacred places, at any of which one may see the 
 prophetess go down under the water, and after an hour or so 
 return to the surface with her hair plaited and her body 
 decorated with strings of beads. In New Guinea and the 
 East Indies, too, crocodiles are frequently respected as being 
 the abode of souls of ancestors, and, on the whole, the idea is 
 not much of a compliment to the late lamented. 
 
 175 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
 CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS {continued) 
 
 WHEN a death occurs, which is, of course, ascribed to the 
 evil-wishing of some person or other, the women related 
 to the deceased, and any others eager for a little excite- 
 ment, assemble and cry (howl would be a better word, perhaps, 
 or shriek) for the rest of the day, or if the death occurs at night, 
 until next morning, and horns are blown. It seems to be the 
 custom in many parts to make as much noise as possible on 
 these occasions, no doubt in order to frighten away any spirits 
 which may be still hovering around. When in the Kukuruku 
 country, I heard great lamentations for one of the wives of a chief, 
 and guns were fired off at intervals ; but the Kagoro do not shoot, 
 no doubt for the simple but sufficient reason that they have no 
 firearms. The people of the dead man's town and of other towns 
 collect, and the corpse is wrapped in a new mat of plaited palm- 
 leaves said to be kept for the purpose. The corpse is not pre- 
 served in any way, no coffin is used, nor is any platform erected 
 near the house for its reception, as I have seen elsewhere ; it is 
 simply left in the house until the grave has been made, the guests 
 assembled, and the sacrifice prepared, and then the burial takes 
 place. 
 
 A grave is dug in the compound, in somewhat the shape of a 
 bottle belonging to a tantalus,, the mouth being perhaps three feet 
 in diameter and six inches deep, the neck two feet across, and extend- 
 ing downwards for a foot or so, and then comes the body of the 
 bottle, perhaps six feet in diameter, and six to eight feet deep. 
 These measurements are, of course, only approximate, and the 
 shape may not be universal, for the grave I saw was a Kajji one 
 in the town of Abett on the Zaria border, but I was told that 
 those of the Kagoro were similar. Dr. C. G. Seligmann tells me 
 
 176 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 it he has seen a grave in Southern Kordofan which was in the 
 ipe of a decanter, and had no relation to the Dinka or Shilluk 
 ives. In this case the narrow neck was some five or six feet 
 length, so the proportion of the different parts of the grave 
 Fered greatly from that of the Kajji one here described, but 
 11, there is some resemblance in the shape, and although there 
 l be no connection between the two, the fact is perhaps worth 
 rationing. 
 
 A fresh grave is usually dug for each corpse, but there may be 
 objection to burying a body in a very old grave. I do not 
 ow how long the corpse is kept before burial, the length of 
 le may differ amongst the various tribes, but the Kajji girl who 
 i died during the night was to be buried next day, though I 
 lid not stay to see if this was actually done. However, when- 
 :r it may be, at the appointed time the women and children are 
 iven indoors, and the most important men then present carry 
 i corpse to the grave (only a few yards off, unless the deceased 
 s died away from home) amidst shouting, blowing and drumming, 
 le body is then placed on the ground, and the chief priest wishes 
 3 soul good luck in the spirit world, and hopes that the 
 jeased's relatives will keep well ; and this is possibly a hint to 
 i ghost not to worry them, for though it can never again re- 
 ter the body after it has once passed the stream, it can return 
 its old haunts and be the cause of many an anxious moment to 
 i surviving relatives. 
 
 Two men then enter the grave, and the corpse is lowered in, 
 t first, and made to recline against one of the sides, with its 
 :e towards the sacred grove, according to one account (and in 
 s case the measurement of the width of the grave was given as 
 ng only about four feet below the neck), or, as others say, the 
 •pse is laid flat on the ground, that of a male on its right side, 
 it of a female on its left. In the case of the Kajji the bodies 
 : laid on the ground, with the face upwards, the head, in the 
 e of a male, pointing to the east, in the case of a female, 
 yards the west. The two men then climb out again, and sticks 
 i placed over the mouth of the grave and plastered with clay 
 , as with the Kajji, a round, flat stone is found to fit the cavity), 
 
 177 m 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 and the excavated earth is heaped on top, but none is let fall into 
 the grave itself, nor are any arms or food placed there. If the 
 deceased has been an important person, the head of a family for 
 instance, a goat will be killed at the grave side ; if unimportant, a 
 fowl ; if it be only a baby, there may be no sacrifice. In all cases 
 it is said that branches of two certain kinds of trees are intertwined 
 and placed on the grave, and a little of the blood of the goat, or 
 whatever it may be, is sprinkled on them, the flesh being cooked 
 and divided amongst all the relatives and others present. The 
 relatives are always summoned ; to forget to do so on one side, 
 and to refuse to come without good reason on the other, would be 
 giving a deadly insult, for as natives poetically put it, " Meat is 
 a message which must not be ignored," and this being interpreted 
 means that no Kagoro will miss a feast if he can help it. 
 
 After this, a pole will be set up on the grave, to which are 
 strung all the skulls in possession of the family, and formerly, if 
 the deceased had been a person of importance, people were killed 
 on the day of the funeral so that their ghosts might accompany 
 his, their dripping heads being placed on the grave and left there 
 until all the flesh was gone, the skulls being then added to the 
 other trophies of the house. Those good old times are gone, 
 however, in Kagoroland, and nowadays there is no difference in 
 the procedure obtaining between the burial of a chief and that of 
 any other person, except that the family of the latter might have 
 no skulls to exhibit. 
 
 It is thought by some that head-hunting is a survival of 
 cannibalism, and certainly it might once have been the fact with 
 the Kagoro that the bodies of the victims slain were afterwards 
 stowed away in the stomachs of the mourners at the same time as 
 their heads were placed on the grave of the deceased responsible 
 for the funeral. But there may be no connection really, at any 
 rate in some cases, the skull being the token of the successful^ issue 
 of a dangerous adventure, like the scalp was amongst the Indians 
 of North America, and the war medal is with us ; and just as the 
 soldiers of a European regiment are feted after their return from 
 active service, so too was the warrior honoured who brought back 
 a hot and dripping head. In some parts, such as Fiji, for instance, 
 
 178 
 
a 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 he was even given a special name, and was permitted during the 
 next few days to besmear his face and chest with a special mixture 
 of lampblack differing from the ordinary war-paint, and the hero 
 thus decorated would strut proudly through the town, an object 
 of praise to the old men who had done the same in their youth, 
 of envy to his comrades who had not been so successful, of venera- 
 tion to the small boys who hoped some day to emulate his deeds, 
 and of tender interest to the village belles, the latter by no means 
 a negligible incentive. Dr. Haddon says of the people of Borneo 
 that one of the chief incentives to procure heads was to please the 
 women, and among some tribes a young man had to do this 
 before he could marry, the possession of a head decapitated by 
 himself being a fairly general method employed by suitors to 
 ingratiate themselves with the maiden of their choice. And this 
 can be understood, for the fact that a young man was brave and 
 energetic enough to risk his life in such a dangerous game 
 promised well for his ability to protect and keep a wife, and so 
 well was this recognised that formerly, amongst the western tribes 
 of the Torres Straits, a youth who had taken a skull would very 
 soon receive a proposal of marriage from some eligible young 
 woman, leap year or no leap year. We know from the Bible 
 that Saul demanded a somewhat similar proof of prowess from 
 David before the latter married Michal. And we have seen how 
 in the case of the Kagoro, a hero was honoured on his return to 
 his home, being allowed to paint his legs red, the women dancing 
 before him while he was carried in procession on the back of a 
 friend. 
 
 A raid to get a head was amongst some tribes a religious busi- 
 ness, the warriors being excluded from intercourse with the women 
 and compelled to live apart. The Kagoro hero boiled his booty 
 in private, but of the Kiwai we are told that the head was hung 
 over a fire until all the hair had been singed off, during which 
 process all the young girls of the village assembled and danced 
 near the fire, singing all the while ; and after the singeing process 
 the head was taken away for the flesh to be removed, after which 
 it was washed and hung up on the main post of the house. But, 
 unfortunately, an act of bravery was not always a necessity for the 
 
 179 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 receipt of the honours, for we learn from Mr. Fison that in Fiji 
 the distinction of the Koroi was not necessarily earned by some 
 deed showing a noble self-devotion and contempt of danger, for 
 he once saw a stout young warrior adorned with all the paint, not 
 for slaying a worthy foe in battle, but by lying in wait among 
 some mangrove bushes by a river, and killing a miserable and 
 defenceless old woman belonging to the hostile tribe as she crept 
 along the mud flat looking for shell-fish. The Kagoro are said to 
 have even removed the unborn child of a woman who happened to 
 be butchered, and many of the animal skulls show that there could 
 have been no danger in their acquisition, yet they are hung up in 
 the place of honour. The Moroa also are not particular. 
 
 There is evidently, then, some other reason in some cases, and 
 this is, so the Kagoro say, that the ghosts of the victims must 
 serve that of the slayer in the next world, every householder in 
 addition inheriting in some way the benefits from the heads 
 collected by his ancestors, as well as from those he has himself 
 obtained. Dr. Haddon says that some tribes in the islands about 
 Australia have a similar belief, and in the case of such people 
 head-hunting would be a wise provision for the future, and one, 
 he supposes, which every careful householder would endeavour to 
 make ! Again, the members of a certain Australian tribe hold 
 that, when a warrior slays his first man, the spirit of the victim 
 enters the victor's body, and henceforth warns him of the approach 
 of danger, this being rather like the Kagoro theory that the spirit 
 of a slain animal may enter an unborn child of the slayer. 
 Another reason is that head-hunting in some countries is a rite 
 precedent to the cultivation of the land, it being necessary to show 
 the head to the fields to ensure a good harvest. Still, the admira- 
 tion of the fair sex and the pride in the number of trophies would 
 have a very great influence, though a father of the Kagoro and 
 surrounding tribes did not insist upon a youth showing that he 
 had not only " a head on his own shoulders " but one of some- 
 body else's in his house before he gave up his daughter to the 
 eager suitor's care. 
 
 As for cannibalism, various reasons are given for the practice. 
 The tailed head-hunting tribes do not indulge in the luxury of 
 
 180 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 man flesh, at any rate not now, but the Gannawarri to the east 
 1 the Nadu to the south do so, and when some of the latter tribe 
 ne to visit me at Jemaan Daroro in 1908, I asked them the reason 
 y they pretended that they had given up the practice though 
 ht Hausa traders had been killed and eaten the year before 
 id an Ayu was treated in the same way a few months afterwards), 
 ey would not tell me, saying that they did not like human 
 h, but when I showed them my white arm, they admitted that 
 night be better than chicken, and seeing a hungry look in their 
 is, I considered it best to cover it up again. 
 There is evidence to prove that, amongst many tribes, canni- 
 ism arose out of a belief that eating a man caused his good quali- 
 3 to pass into the body of the host, which is only the idea that 
 icial foods have special effects on the body, and then on the 
 tin and nerves, carried a little further. So brave enemies were 
 ;erly sought for, and the more gallant the foe, the more certain 
 s he of providing a "joint of black brother" for his captors, if 
 were unlucky enough to be taken prisoner. Or again, the 
 tim might be one famed for his magical powers, or remarkable 
 some other way above his fellows. Thus in Fiji, mothers have 
 :n known to rub their babies' lips with the flesh of a warrior 
 o had been killed in battle, in the belief that such treatment 
 uld make the infants grow up into brave men, and elsewhere 
 . people would eat the bodies of babies that they might renew 
 :ir youth, and charms were made of pieces of the flesh. 
 Another idea which we can understand is the thirst for revenge 
 ich cannot be satisfied with the mere killing of an enemy, but 
 tsts on his utter extermination and humiliation. The Psalmist 
 gs of dipping the foot " in the blood of thine enemies, and the 
 gue of thy dogs in the same," and again, " The righteous . . . 
 ,11 wash his feet in the blood of the wicked." Thus Fijians 
 old eat the thorns which pricked them, and we know that in 
 English law concerning deodands, the weapons used by a 
 rderer, for instance, were confiscated and perhaps destroyed. 
 But even when the death was through misadventure, the 
 trument sometimes had to suffer; thus Blackstone mentions 
 t a well in which a person had been drowned was filled up 
 
 181 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 by order of the coroner, the deodands coming within his juris- 
 diction. 
 
 According to the laws of Ine and Alfred, says Dr. Carter, the 
 thing causing the death was forfeited to the kindred, but later 
 on to God for the king. In 1221 some persons fell out of a boat 
 on the Severn and were drowned, the boat being then sold for 
 eighteenpence, which money went towards the building of a bridge. 
 The Church also claimed the proceeds in many cases on the ground 
 that as the person died unconfessed the thing causing death 
 should be devoted to buying masses for his soul, in the same way 
 as the apparel of a stranger found dead was applied to that pur- 
 pose. In all indictments for homicide, the instrument of death, 
 the " bane, 1 ' and the value were presented and found by the jury 
 in Blackstone's time (thus, that the stroke was given by a cer- 
 tain pen-knife, value sixpence) so that the king might claim the 
 deodand. 
 
 Professor Tylor says the fact that the cartwheel that ran over a 
 man or a tree which fell on him were deodand (given to God) shows 
 how inert things were supposed to be alive and conscious, and the 
 pathetic custom of" telling the bees " when the master or mistress of 
 a house dies is a survival. This is made clear in Germany, where 
 not only is the news conveyed to every beehive and every beast in the 
 stall, but every sack of corn must be touched, and everything in 
 the house shaken, that they may know that their master is no 
 more. Again, the expression, " I'll have his blood for that," is still 
 heard, and many children have been known to take a delight in 
 smashing up teeth after extraction, which had been aching, and 
 many adults, even, will want to kick a table or door which they 
 have run up against. I always do so myself. 
 
 In Fiji, according to Mr. Fison, no greater insult in the way of 
 abuse can be offered to a man than to call him the " Son of a Baked 
 Father," and he says that more than one instance has been known 
 of a chief refusing to allow any one to share with him the body of 
 a particularly obnoxious foe. In some countries the eating of a 
 captive might, by sympathetic magic, have an evil effect on the 
 whole of the enemy. Strangely enough, in Fiji the refusal to eat 
 a captive was an even worse humiliation than to eat him, not only to 
 
 182 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 the man himself, but even to his whole tribe, the body being per- 
 haps even cooked and then left to rot as too loathsome to be eaten. 
 
 But to find a human grave may not only be less humiliating 
 than to be left, it may even indicate great respect, the victim being 
 eaten tenderly with every mark of affection, the kinsfolk in certain 
 Queensland tribes eating certain parts of the deceased as a charm 
 to prevent their remembering him and grieving, murderers in 
 Prussia and Southern Italy eating a part of their victims for a 
 similar reason. Further, by eating part of a victim the murderer 
 would become related to the victim's kinsfolk, and so be free of 
 the blood-feud. The Gallas, too, " bury their dear ones in the 
 stomach instead of the ground," according to Bottego — in the case 
 of some tribes, perhaps, with the idea of preventing the ghosts 
 troubling them. There was often a sense of religious duty in the 
 act, shipwrecked mariners, for instance, being supposed to have 
 incurred the wrath of the gods, and so the captors had to eat 
 them whether they wished to do so or not, and in other parts 
 the human beings offered as sacrifices were eaten. 
 
 Lastly, the lack of animal food is the reason ascribed in many 
 cases, and where there is a scarcity it may well be the case, but 
 there is no doubt that a longing for the actual flavour of the 
 human meat is one of the principal causes, it being sometimes 
 preferred " high," and being kept in water for the purpose, some- 
 times seasoned with limejuice. Thus we are told of paddocks 
 where " human cattle " were kept and fattened for the market like 
 stall-fed oxen, and when in good condition would fetch about 
 twelve shillings each, and of the bodies of even the nearest and 
 dearest being disinterred and bartered for others not coming 
 within the prohibited degrees of consanguinity. It must be 
 horrible enough for captives to know that they may be eaten after 
 they are dead, but what can we say of the people in the Congo, 
 who, as elsewhere mentioned, hawk their victims about piecemeal 
 whilst still alive, the wretched people being led from place to 
 place in order that individuals might mark on the body the por- 
 tions they wanted when it was cut up ! 
 
 In some parts of the world not only captives, but even those 
 incapacitated by age or infirmity, were eaten alive, the victims 
 
 183 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUFEKST1T1UJNS 
 
 voluntarily suspending themselves from a branch and being killed 
 directly they fell. But the depths have not even yet been reached, 
 for an old writer quoted in Liberia, describing a battle between 
 two local tribes, says of the victors that " each female leaped on 
 to the body of a wounded prisoner, and passed from body to body, 
 digging out eyes, wrenching off lips, and slicing the flesh from the 
 quivering bones, while the queen of the harpies crept amid the 
 butchery, gathering the brains of each severed skull as a bonne- 
 bouche for the approaching feast. After the last victim had yielded 
 up his life it did not require long to kindle a fire and fill the air 
 with the odour of human flesh. A pole was borne into the apart- 
 ment on which was impaled the living body of the conquered 
 chieftain's wife. A hole was dug, the staff planted, and faggots 
 supplied to cook the meal, and after they had eaten all they could, 
 the bushmen packed in plantain leaves whatever flesh was left 
 over from the orgie, to be con\jeyed to their friends in the forest." 
 And lest this should be thought to be impossible, it may be said 
 that similar practices have been observed in New Guinea; and 
 Waff soldiers have told me that when they fought the Ganna- 
 warri the women came behind their men-folk carrying baskets 
 over their shoulders and knives to collect the " meat." 
 
 With such peoples there must be a wild-beast instinct for the 
 taste of blood, and that this is sometimes bred in the children is 
 shown by the following facts which came under my notice in 
 Zungeru in 1905, although it would not be safe to argue that one 
 instance proved any universal rule. A small child belonging to 
 one of the cannibal tribes had been found in the bush with his 
 mother a year or so before, the mother being already dead at the 
 time, and when discovered the child had eaten part of one of her 
 breasts. He had been taken to the Resident of the province, and 
 sent by him to a home, and was there taught various useful 
 accomplishments like the other boys in the institution. In the 
 middle of 1905 a little girl in the place died and was left for a 
 few hours during the night in the sick ward there, and the small 
 boy — not more than six or seven at the time, if that— heard of it, 
 and, dodging the person who was watching, got in, and when 
 found in the morning he had eaten half her face ! 
 
 184 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 Compared with such beasts, the description of whose practices 
 makes one want to go and wipe them out, we can turn again with 
 relief to the Kagoro and their relatively humane customs, though 
 it would not be safe to say that even they have never been guilty 
 of somewhat similar cruelties. I rather fancy not, however, for 
 although they captured a policeman and a Court Messenger in 
 1908 and afterwards cut their throats, there was no torturing 
 beforehand. The Kajji say that they took up head-hunting only 
 because the Kagoro practised it on them, and this is probably true, 
 for when I offered to pay for skulls brought me I got five Kagoro 
 heads from the Kajji, but I could not get one from the Kagoro, 
 nor would the Moroa produce any except the five Gannawarri 
 trophies which they had obtained by treachery, and which I forced 
 them to give up. 
 
 But to return to the death ceremonies. At the expiration of 
 seven days the relatives living in the deceased's quarter prepare 
 akann, or native guinea-corn beer, and this is drunk some four 
 days later by the adult males of the place, the feast lasting three 
 days if possible. Why the number is always three I do not know, 
 but I am told that this is the case, and there is evidently some 
 magic in it, for we have seen that the incantations and sprinklings 
 are always in threes. A big pot, some three feet high and from 
 twelve to eighteen inches in diameter, full of akann, is first brought 
 to the grave, on which fresh branches have been placed, and the 
 most important man present— one of the priests, usually the chief 
 priest — dips a calabash into the pot and pours a little akann (a 
 very little) on the grave around the branches, at the same time 
 saying mystic words. This is done three times, the rest of the 
 people sitting in a circle, and then a goat, or one to three fowls, 
 having been killed, the blood is sprinkled on the branches as 
 before, and the flesh is roasted close by; A kind of porridge of 
 grain (tuk) is eaten together with the meat, and an onslaught is 
 made upon the akann. 
 
 After the pot has been emptied all go to their houses, and then 
 the adult males repair to the sacred grove and drink whatever else 
 has been prepared by the family, the women and children being 
 also supplied with the good cheer, but being forced to drink it 
 
 185 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 within their own houses, for it is dangerous to be about at such 
 times. The drumming and horn-blowing are kept up at intervals 
 as long as the beer holds out, but, alas ! it comes to an end at last, 
 and the merrymakers disperse, a good deal the worse for wear, but 
 none the less eager for the next bit of good luck in the way of a 
 death or some other event which will again give them a chance to 
 get gloriously drunk. 
 
 With Moroa people, on the death of a chief, his son (or heir 
 if he has no son) must provide a mare which is led around the 
 assembled guests by a la/ughing woman who is dressed up for 
 the occasion. It is absolutely necessary that a mare should be 
 obtained for the funeral — should the heir neglect to do so the 
 ghost of the deceased will never give him any peace — and she 
 must be sold afterwards ; if not she will die. Why the woman 
 should have to be laughing is past my comprehension, but that 
 is what I was told, and so I suppose it must be correct, and after 
 all, it is quite a mistake to suppose that people must necessarily 
 look glum on these occasions, for we need not go far — only to 
 Ireland, in fact — to find a parallel to these apparently festive 
 funerals. 
 
 Both sexes paint a black stripe from forehead to stomach 
 about an inch wide all the way down, and the women will prob- 
 ably cover their whole bodies with red earth now, even if they do 
 not do so at other times, and the men their legs from the knees 
 downwards. On the seventh day after death all the household of 
 the deceased, except the wives, shave their heads, but the women, 
 being always shaved at ordinary times, now let their hair grow as 
 a sign of mourning for a month — or until married again, if that 
 be sooner — and they remove their tails, not wearing them again 
 unless remarried. I am not sure if the Kagoro regard these 
 changes in their attire as a means for deceiving the departed 
 spirit so that it will not know them again (imagine any one 
 accusing us of doing such a thing), or whether the hair is offered 
 as a substitute so that the man may be left alive, but I fancy 
 that even if either idea once existed, it holds good no longer, 
 for the people can always lay a troublesome ghost by means of 
 beer, and there are but few amongst them who object to refreshing 
 
 186 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 their memories and their throats at times. Should any of the 
 family dream of the departed, beer must be provided at once. 
 
 The Aragga, a tribe to the south of Jemaan Daroro, and 
 north of Lafia Beriberi, are said to smear the corpse of a chief 
 with grease, and they may keep it near a fire for a month or so ; 
 the grease being probably a medicinal ointment, and the fire 
 (the smoke from it ?) helping to preserve the body. It is then 
 buried together with the favourite wife, child, and three attend- 
 ants, who have been killed for the purpose, and also the chief's 
 horse and one-half of his clothes and other possessions; and it 
 is well to note in this connection that officers' chargers are even 
 now often led behind the bodies of their masters at military 
 funerals, the riding-boots being reversed in the stirrups, and in 
 Germany up to 1781 the chargers were shot. Other animals 
 have also been in the procession, and one often hears of cases of 
 people having their pets and some particular articles of jewellery 
 (especially wedding rings) buried with them. 
 
 In such cases, no doubt, the idea still holds that the ghosts 
 of these people, animals, &c. will accompany that of the chief, 
 though there is amongst some peoples a baser motive in killing 
 off the widow, namely that of depriving her of her right of 
 inheriting her husband's property, the principal reason for the 
 introduction of suttee by the Hindus. Where the belief still 
 exists amongst a tribe, I would suggest, not the absolute prohibi- 
 tion of such practices and the ridicule of the tenets of their 
 religion, but the introduction of the idea that substitutes and 
 representations can be used instead, such as animals for human 
 beings, and later on models in wood or even paper for these. 
 The idea is not opposed to either the principles of common 
 sense or of science, for such a process of substitution is known 
 to have been developed in China, and it can be observed in part 
 even in West Africa, where certain Guinea negroes pretend to 
 sacrifice a sheep or goat to their fetish, but feed upon it with 
 their friends, only leaving for the deity himself part of the 
 entrails which they do not want. In other cases a part of the 
 body, such as a finger (for which in further development a piece 
 of valuable metal was substituted) or a lock of hair was con- 
 
 187 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 sidered to do as well, a very satisfactory conclusion for the person 
 who would have otherwise been the victim. A belief in the 
 efficacy of substitution would soon automatically put an end to 
 the sacrifices of human beings, for, after all, every one is fond of 
 life, and most of these practices are performed from religious 
 motives, whereas a violent prohibition would, of course, stop all 
 open performances, but would not stamp them out, and a good 
 many would still be carried out in secret. 
 
 Again, to come back to ourselves, as I always try to do in 
 describing customs which at first sight appear strange, as 
 Professor Tylor says, the offering of the model of his diseased 
 limb by a sufferer is distinctly of the nature of a sacrifice, 
 whether it be a propitiatory offering before the cure, or a 
 thank-offering afterwards, and there are other matters which 
 will occur to the reader but are better not mentioned in a 
 book like this. 
 
 Flour and water will be poured over the graves of important 
 men at the next harvest, so that their ghosts may not be hungry, 
 but this is done only once, and there will also be a pot of akann 
 at the same time, or if that be too soon, at the first harvest after 
 the anniversary. 
 
 Almost every people have attached great importance to the 
 funeral and other ceremonies for the dead, the motives ranging 
 from natural love and affection to fear, and from rational sorrow 
 to the deification of the departed, some of the most magnificent 
 wonders of architecture being due to the last-named cause. The 
 offerings of flowers upon the graves of friends, relatives, and 
 parents are an indication of the sentiments which originated 
 in the institution of ancestor-worship, the dead parents being 
 pictured as real beings exercising a beneficial influence on the 
 conduct of the living descendants, being, in fact, guardian 
 angels. We have ourselves heard expressions like "I wonder 
 if your grandfather can see you now," and imagine we see looks 
 of approval or the reverse in the faces of pictures of dead an- 
 cestors. We regard the soul as having a continued existence, and 
 some authorities maintain that the praises (often undeserved) 
 lavished upon the dead, and the heavy tombstones placed on 
 
 188 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 their graves, are survivals of the time when the ghosts were 
 nattered so that they might feel no anger against the living, 
 and were weighted down so that they could not get up to earth 
 again even had they wished to do so. The ghosts of suicides 
 were especially feared, and the extraordinary precautions taken 
 with the bodies of persons who had taken their own lives were 
 abolished only as late as last century. 
 
 Again, the feasts held on All Souls 1 Day are, in imagination, 
 a feeding of spirits, the object being to alleviate the sufferings of 
 the souls in purgatory by offerings on earth ; " a commemoration 
 of the dead," says Professor Tylor, " which combines some touches 
 of pathetic imagination with relics of savage animism scarcely to 
 be surpassed in Africa or the South Sea Islands. 1 ' In Italy the 
 day is given to feasting and drinking in honour of the dead, 
 skulls and even skeletons in sugar and paste forming appropriate 
 toys for children. In England we can find a lingering survival 
 of the rite of funeral sacrifice even to this day in the soul-mass 
 cakes which girls beg for at farmhouses, and we know that by one 
 of the Saxon tenures (jrankalmoigne) a religious corporation held 
 lands on the condition of praying for the souls of the grantor and 
 his heirs, their tenure being spiritual and not feudal. 
 
 It is often thought that, natives being simple and ignorant like 
 children, a study of the latter will go a great way towards the 
 understanding of the former; for there are similar limitations 
 to the intelligence, as this little story will show — a true one, or 
 else there would be no point in putting it here. A fond mother 
 had been telling her little son, aged three, who was always afraid 
 of the dark, about the guardian angels around him, and that he 
 should not, therefore, be afraid, and to emphasise her point, she 
 had brought him a coloured picture showing a beautiful winged 
 figure floating in a protective attitude over a small boy. Her 
 little son examined the picture with intense interest, and the 
 mother, feeling that she had duly impressed him with the loving 
 care of the guardian angel, asked him what he thought of it. 
 
 He regarded it with great interest for a long time, and then 
 " Oh, mummy," he exclaimed with joy, " that little boy has got 
 braces just like me ! " And one has to be just as sure when 
 
 189 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 questioning natives that they really understand the point upon 
 which one is trying to obtain information. 
 
 We are, nowadays, so much accustomed to regard our 
 deceased ancestors as good spirits, that we cannot at first under- 
 stand the Kagoro view that the only reason for which they visit 
 their living relatives is to annoy them. We imagine our " guar- 
 dian angels" to be always anxious for our good; the Kagoro 
 thinks that his ghosts will do him a bad turn unless propitiated, 
 and it is mainly upon these grounds that they are consulted about 
 important events, such as the undertaking of war, the formation 
 of a hunting party, or the building of a house on new ground, 
 though the assent of the ghosts — obtained through the elders — 
 was always forthcoming if the akann was good and sufficient. 
 Corresponding to this in some degree are the facts that in the 
 days of chivalry the young knight had to pass some time in a 
 church before setting out to put things right, and even now 
 regimental colours are blessed. The object of the libations of 
 blood and akann is that the ghost of the deceased may not get 
 hungry or thirsty, and return to harass his relatives. It cannot 
 worry any one but its own people, and it therefore differs from 
 the soul of a living body ; and the idea that those who succeed to 
 the property of the deceased are responsible for the proper per- 
 formance of the funeral rites is seen plainly in this, an idea with 
 which we in England are familiar. 
 
 It is thought that the spirits of the dead would find no rest 
 unless honoured in the proper fashion, though certain allowances 
 are made when it has been impossible to bury the deceased in the 
 usual way (through having been eaten by wild beasts, for instance, 
 or, perhaps, carried away by a river), and if they are not treated 
 properly, they will certainly vent their displeasure upon their 
 neglectful relatives. Even after the proper rites have been 
 performed, if any member of the family dreams of the deceased, 
 akarm must be procured next morning, for that is clear proof that 
 he has visited the house during the night (the ghost being 
 exactly like the man was when alive) to let the relatives know 
 that he is thirsty. If there be none in the house, it must be 
 obtained elsewhere, some being poured on the grave three times 
 
 190 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 as before ; but no flesh is provided, nor are branches again placed 
 there. The most important man present will ask the ghost how 
 he is, and when he has finished his oblations, he will invoke the 
 Supreme God, begging him not to let trouble come upon the 
 family. 
 
 The principal people at these rites are always the priests, or 
 medicine-men, and they may be the only persons present who are 
 not related to the deceased, for although the immediate relatives 
 might not have enough beer to suffice for the guests were they to 
 ask all their friends outside the family circle, they would hardly 
 dare to offend these powerful personages by omitting to send them 
 an invitation. There are no priestesses, only priests, and these are 
 given presents for special work, and are not paid regular salaries, 
 their chief having even more influence than the agwam. They 
 foretell events not by haruspication, but by examining a bowl of 
 water into which a little flour has been thrown, or by counting lip 
 ornaments threaded on a string, but they do not go into convul- 
 sions or trances. They have no power over the fate of the ghosts 
 so far as being able to send them to another place is concerned, 
 for there is only one after-world, the sacred grove, and all spirits 
 go there when they leave their bodies, whether chief or poor man, 
 whether good or bad ; and in fact, the worse — or at any rate, the 
 stronger — the men are on earth, the more influential will their 
 ghosts be after death. But the priests are supposed to have more 
 influence with the Supreme God in other ways than ordinary men, 
 as, for instance, when praying for rain, and they have certain 
 powers over the ghosts, for they can always summon them for 
 a conference on an important matter, such as the declaration 
 of war or the making of peace, by providing enough beer. 
 
 Priests are usually trained by their fathers or uncles, the 
 secrets being kept in the family, and I could not, of course, find 
 out what they were, but all I heard was various shouts and grunts 
 (imitations of the sounds of animals, perhaps ; there seemed to be 
 nothing mysterious about them), and they cannot perform any 
 tricks of sleight of hand. The Waiwai priests dress themselves in 
 whole suits of string dyed black, having large headpieces of palm 
 fibre, with horns and red seeds affixed, and I can easily imagine 
 
 191 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 that meeting such an object on a dark night would give one 
 rather a shock, especially as rattles, bells, and other instruments 
 of torture are hung about the body in various places. But the 
 Kagoro seem to do nothing of this kind ; they merely smear their 
 faces with red earth, and rush about shouting to frighten the 
 women and children. Apparently they are successful in this, for 
 females and infants are not allowed to leave their houses at night, 
 and no doubt this accounts in a great measure for the morality of 
 the fair sex. 
 
 Dreams of animals are not feared, and if, therefore, they 
 have ghosts, they are not malignant, and, alas for the dreamers, 
 there is no need to have a feast of guinea-corn beer next day as 
 in the case of the appearance of a member of the family. A 
 thirsty man, no doubt, has many visions, and, needless to say, he 
 dreams of departed ancestors,' thus ensuring another glorious 
 " drunk," and not of dead animals, which, having had no acquain- 
 tance with beer during life, have no longing for it afterwards. 
 
 192 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
 CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS (continued) 
 
 1HE Kagoro say that the sun falls into a great water when it 
 sets, and the fire in it is then put out. The water is some 
 imaginary lake, or else the Kaduna or other great river to 
 i west, for there is no lake near them, but I do not think that 
 j Kaduna is meant, because it rises as a small stream a few miles 
 the east, flowing in a wide semi-circle westwards. It is possible 
 it they have heard of the Niger, and that this is the great water 
 erred to ; and if they have not themselves come from the west, 
 t from the south as they say, an account of this river may have 
 3n brought by the Kajji, who got it from people farther to the 
 st again. The sun is thought to travel back to the east behind 
 ; Gannawarri hills by night, and by a higher route, so that no 
 b can see it, and it is there given fresh fire by the Supreme God 
 i sent on its way again next morning. 
 
 If any tree or house is set on fire by lightning, all the people 
 .1 at once quench their fires and hasten to the spot with bundles 
 grass to get new fire to rekindle them. To neglect this would 
 >w that the person so doing possessed black magic, and did not 
 nt to change his fire, and there is evidently some connection 
 ;ween fire and magic, for we have seen that souls glow like fire 
 night, and it is easy to understand that the ignition of a house 
 a flash of lightning would make a native believe that it had 
 :n sent by God, for he had just seen that it had come from 
 jve. For this reason many people are very careful never to let 
 go out, but with the Kagoro there seems to be no special reli- 
 ius idea as regards this. Fire is naturally said to have originated 
 the world from lightning, but it was obtained later by the fric- 
 n of two pieces of wood in what is called the " upright method, 1 ' 
 eral kinds of wood being used for that purpose, and I believe 
 
 193 N 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 the Filani, in certain parts, still make their fires in this way. Th< 
 next method was by striking steel on pyrites or flint, and this i 
 now very common, little leather purses containing the necessarj 
 implements being found in all directions, and probably emanating 
 from one and the same source — the Hausa blacksmith. 
 
 But if there is no religious reason for keeping the fire alight, 
 there is an economic necessity to save the wood, for women have 
 to go some miles to get it, and, though now, when once fire has 
 been brought to a house it is practically never allowed to go out, 
 except when fresh is sent from heaven, I daresay the practice will 
 gradually be dropped as matches are introduced. The first fire 
 for a new house is obtained from the nearest neighbour, who will 
 probably be the parent ; there is no need to wait in order to get 
 it fresh from lightning. 
 
 Fires for warming and cooking purposes are formed by arranging 
 three logs on the ground like spokes of a wheel ; one end of each 
 almost touches the one end of each of the others, and a fire is 
 lighted in the triangular space thus made. As a bit is burnt away 
 a log is pushed towards the centre, and although there may be 
 no actual flame, this kind of fire seems to be almost inextinguish- 
 able, except, of course, in rain. It is wonderful to see how long 
 even a stick will keep burning under proper treatment, the embers 
 being sometimes placed in chaff to prevent too rapid combustion. 
 Generally, magic is harmful, and all accused of using it are in 
 danger, though this is not universal amongst natives, for other 
 writers have stated that men of certain tribes they have visited 
 are pleased to have the reputation of being able to perform won- 
 derful acts. No Kagoro, therefore, will own to having the power 
 of black magic, but every man possesses some of the white variety, 
 at any rate while in his own house, it being useful, apparently, in 
 correcting his wives and children. Charms for warding off danger 
 exist, but they do not seem to be worn on the person, and there 
 are philtres for various purposes, such as making a wife cleave to 
 her husband. If a man has been wounded with a spear or a sword, 
 and the place refuses to heal, the weapon, if obtainable, is washed 
 with water, which is drunk by the sufferer, and he will recover. 
 In 1907, when at Amar, I made a life-size figure-target to 
 
 194 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 iresent a man firing, and set it up in the barrack-square to give 
 ; men practice in aiming before transferring it to the range. 
 ie next day I was begged to take it away, for some of the women 
 i seen it and feared a miscarriage, and I was assured that if it 
 re left there no births would occur that year amongst the police 
 men. I was also asked to keep the face quite clear of any lines 
 spots, for if there were any tribal marks on it, those men having 
 rifications resembling them would die if the target were pierced, 
 s, I could understand, being sympathetic magic, but the corn- 
 tint of the women seemed to be carrying the idea of the evil-eye 
 her far. However, I removed it as requested, and I painted 
 5 face white, so that they might shoot in comfort, for the fact 
 it I did not understand their reasoning was no excuse for laugh- 
 ; at it. Still, there are certain times when one has to object. 
 ; Jemaan Daroro, for instance, on one occasion, I found that the 
 ida(i)ki had not obeyed my order to go to his district, and on 
 :ing the reason, I was told that the stars had not been propi- 
 us. I told him that although he might be quite right to consult 
 ;m when going on his own business, he must leave the time to 
 
 when on my business, and that I should be responsible as to 
 
 suitability. The work was important, and he did it without 
 Y mishap, and I was relieved, for had an accident occurred my 
 ronomical powers might have been doubted. 
 
 The name of an individual is never hidden, for such a course 
 uld not help him to escape the evil-wisher -who catches his soul 
 takes his liver, and does not work his ill by simply calling his 
 ne, nor can he do it by obtaining locks of hair or nail-parings 
 bis intended victim. 
 
 Formerly no woman of any age could eat a dog or a fowl, for 
 y were supposed to belong in some way to the mysteries of 
 chcrafb in which women have no part, and also the tichiak 
 aid prevent it, but there is no longer any restriction of any 
 d imposed upon old women with regard to any food. This is 
 ibably because they have grown out of their fears and fancies, 
 1 would not regard any rules of the kind, which were no doubt 
 ented by the men so as to ensure that there should always be 
 nty of these particular delicacies for themselves. 
 
 195 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 In 1904, when coming up the Kaduna, I bought a young turtle, 
 which I handed to the cook, an Ijo boy, for the purpose of having 
 it converted into soup. He flatly refused to kill it, saying that it 
 was his brother, and took it away to the stern of the barge ; there 
 he talked to it for a long time, finally asking me to let it go, and 
 offering to pay the price. Unfortunately, I had not commenced 
 the study of anthropology at the time, and beyond being amused, 
 I took no further interest, but I let the animal go, as the boy 
 seemed so anxious, and I did not much relish the idea of eating 
 anything which had been petted. I wonder if it was a totem ! 
 
 I was told that all male Kagoro eat with spoons, except in the 
 case of a medicine, but this is extremely doubtful, even when the 
 people are at home, and it certainly does not apply at other times, 
 for I have had chiefs with me, and they had no spoons then. The 
 use of such articles is said to be forbidden, except to men, so 
 that the father may not hear his women-folk and young children 
 eating their meals, the latter taking their food with the right 
 hand — possibly an idea learned from the Mohammedans, and 
 strictly observed by them because other things of a different 
 nature are done with the left. The spoons are made of wood, or 
 from calabashes specially grown with a long neck and a ball at 
 the end so that when cut in two, lengthwise, they form a pair of 
 spoons. I found a double wooden spoon at Jigya, but cannot 
 imagine what it could have been used for; and there were also some 
 made of brass, obtained from the Hausawa. 
 
 There is no particular magic in a name amongst the Kagoro 
 and other head-hunting tribes, and even dead people are spoken 
 of as in life, though they would not be abused lest the ghosts 
 should hear and punish. A Kagoro woman will call her husband, 
 even the first one, by his name, after she has been married a 
 couple of days, though a Filani or Hausa may never do so ; in 
 fact, amongst the latter people such a thing is an offence, and 
 there is a song, apparently a prayer, which goes Allah, na tuba, 
 na faddi sunan rnijjma, "O God, I repent, I have spoken the 
 name of my husband." Kagoro husbands will also name their 
 wives, parents their children, and men themselves, whereas with 
 the Filani, and I think the Hausawa also, the eldest child is never 
 
 196 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 known by its real name, but by some nickname bestowed upon it 
 at the same time. Thus the wife of one of the Court Messengers 
 was known as Yar Jekada (" Daughter of the Tax Collector "), 
 though her real name, almost forgotten, even by the woman 
 herself, was Ashetu. 
 
 Again, children may be named after special events; for 
 instance, several girls are called " Wife of the Whiteman," 
 on account of their having been born when a European was 
 in the vicinity. They may also have names of animals, 
 possibly because it is suspected that the ghost of one has 
 become the soul of the child, or simply because one of the 
 species was caught on its birthday; compare our own custom 
 of christening children born on Christmas Day, Noel, and even 
 Melbourne, Tasma, &c, after the names of towns where the 
 interesting event took place. 
 
 Kagoro wives do not mind their husbands seeing them suckling 
 their children, but many Filani and Hausawa do not allow this, 
 at any rate with their firstborn, on account of the sense of shame 
 which they are supposed to feel, and so far is' this carried in some 
 cases, that the mother will not allow her eldest child to be near 
 her when her husband is present, although she may really be 
 very fond of it. 
 
 Some of the slave names amongst these people are rather 
 interesting, being composed of a whole sentence (like our " Praise 
 God Barebones"), or even of two sentences, the latter being 
 spoken by the person addressed thus, "The King of Slaves," 
 and the person named replies, " is God." " There is no one who 
 can do it" — "except God." Again, "Ask God" — "and you 
 will obtain it." "You hoped that I should become destitute" 
 — "God willed that I should be fortunate"; but the whole of 
 the sentence is rarely said, the first couple of words sufficing in 
 each case, the rest being understood. 
 
 Women and children are not allowed near the sacred grove 
 under penalty of death by stoning, nor can they ever speak of 
 ghosts; even their own relatives would kill them lest their 
 impiety should bring disaster upon the whole family. By this 
 means the husbands manage to keep their wives in subjection, 
 
 197 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 and the husbands are in turn overawed by the priests through the 
 fear of false accusations. It is a strange fact that almost every- 
 where the women are much more influenced by religion than men, 
 and it is usually through the wives that the priests exercise their 
 power over the people. One of the causes is no doubt due to 
 the more emotional nature of women, another may be that 
 they are usually less educated and less worldly-wise when adult, 
 for they have not had the same advantages in training their 
 faculties as their men-folk have had, although they may be 
 quite as clever naturally, or even much more so. It is often 
 put forward as an argument that a man's brain weighs much 
 more than a woman's, but some have pointed out that, allowing 
 for the size of the body, the proportion of grey matter to muscle 
 and bone is about equal in both sexes. I rather think that a 
 good deal is due to the fact that the mother has much more 
 connection with the birth of children than has the father, and 
 the wonder of the creation of a new living being is more forcibly 
 brought home to her. Thus she is more ready to accept a 
 religion which will explain any of the emotions she feels at 
 such a time, and this is more likely to be the case, in that 
 her life, being less exciting than that of her husband, gives her 
 more time to think over and brood upon such matters. Not that 
 a native woman has time to sit down with nothing else to do, but 
 that her work takes her less out of herself, and seldom requires 
 the concentration of her brain on her tasks to the same extent as 
 do fighting, hunting, or many of the other pursuits specially 
 allocated to, or seized by, the stronger sex. One result is that 
 the greater the direct domination of the priests over the women, 
 and the indirect influence over the men, the greater the ignorance 
 and superstition, and the greater the cruelty inflicted upon those 
 who object to this domination, for any tendency to lessen the 
 powers of the priesthood is naturally put down by them 
 immediately if possible. 
 
 It is often said by some that the African in his native state is 
 lazy, while others hold the reverse, and sayings such as " he is as 
 lazy as a black," and " they worked like niggers," illustrate both 
 views. Probably both are right, for the native will not work 
 
 198 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 unless there is a great necessity, but when he has put his 
 shoulder to the wheel he does it with all his might. But' 
 there must be a necessity, either hunger or else superior force 
 must be present to make him toil ; there is no working for the 
 love of it, there is no such thing as the dignity of labour, and 
 even the phrase, " working like a nigger " has probably come from 
 " working like a slave." 
 
 In 1901 I returned from Prahsu, where I had been in command 
 of a detachment, to Kumasi to do duty as an ordinary company 
 officer again, and naturally I found there less office work and 
 more drill to do. Personally, I did not mind the change, but my 
 servants did, for my position was naturally reflected on them, and 
 they sadly asked me why I was a "big man 1 ' in Prahsu, and 
 only a " small boy " in Kumasi. " There is no difference," I 
 said. " I have exactly the same rank whether I am in Kumasi 
 or out of it. What makes you think I have come down in 
 the world?" "Oh no, Massa," they replied, "it cannot be. 
 At Prahsu you were an important person, you were always 
 sitting down, but here you are always running about." 
 
 It must not be thought that the women do all the work, even 
 in these primitive communities, for if the tasks be reckoned up it 
 will be seen that each sex has an almost equal amount. The 
 men do not toil as regularly or continuously as do the women, 
 but while they are at it they undoubtedly have to expend more 
 energy, for they do all the hard work. Certainly they have 
 chosen, if not the wiser, at any rate the more enjoyable part, 
 for hunting animals gives m„ore pleasure than searching for 
 firewood, fighting enemies more excitement than nursing a 
 baby. 
 
 However, the division of labour must always be on much the 
 same lines in primitive societies, for the male's superior strength 
 and health enable and entitle him to choose his tasks, and although 
 female warriors have been known they have in the end been con- 
 quered by those of the stronger sex. Men clear the ground for 
 the farms because women are not strong enough, they hunt 
 because women are not able to do so, they fight their enemies to 
 
 199 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 prevent them carrying off their wives and children, and it is at 
 this time, I suppose, that the division of labour takes place. The 
 male is watching his enemy, and his attention must not be dis- 
 tracted lest he be surprised, so the household duties naturally fall 
 to the female, and when he does return he is too tired to collect 
 firewood for fuel and perform other simple duties, so she must do 
 them. Again, it is in her interest to save him as much as possible 
 so that he may be fresh for the next encounter, for if he is defeated 
 she also is lost. A man trained in the same way as a woman 
 might be very useful, to have about the house in a highly civilised 
 country, but he would be a poor protector in a savage land. 
 
 Hunting is a natural training for war, and as such, and 
 because it is fatiguing and takes the hunter away from the home, 
 it falls to the man's share. Nature prevents women competing, 
 for they would not always be able to fight or hunt, and so the 
 whole community would suffer at some time or other if dependent 
 on them, and they would either have to bear no children so as to 
 be free in their movements, or else be forced to take their offspring 
 with them, and so be an easy prey to a swift enemy, and quite 
 useless as huntresses. However, this is hardly the place to enlarge 
 upon such a subject, so all that need be said further is that labour 
 seems to become sharply defined into men's tasks, or those con- 
 cerned with the protection of the home, and women's tasks, or 
 those performed actually in the home itself, and as the latter are 
 not dangerous they are looked down upon as " women's work." And 
 this is true not only of members of primitive societies but even of 
 the most advanced people, who ought to know better, for neither 
 kind can be performed alone because each is dependent on the other. 
 When taking an oath, the person swearing holds in his hand 
 some ash, and says that if he has done whatever he is accused of 
 having done, or if he breaks his word, may his body become as 
 white as the ash. Or else he takes a head of corn and says that if 
 he swears falsely may the next grain of corn that he eats kill him. 
 However long afterwards he may live, false swearing will be said 
 to be the cause of his death whenever that does eventually take 
 place. But this will not be sufficient in serious cases, perhaps, 
 
 200 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 d then the poisonous pith of a certain tree is pounded and 
 iked in water, and this mixture is given in a calabash to the 
 cused, who will drink water alone first, and then the infusion of 
 p, as it is called. After he has drunk it he is made to walk 
 ound the empty calabash, this making him vomit if he is truth- 
 1, but it has no such effect if not, and in this case he will die 
 at day. Sometimes he is allowed to have his throat tickled 
 th a feather, and even then when he vomits he may be con- 
 lered innocent by the Kagoro, but amongst the Ninzam and 
 yu he would be judged guilty and would be punished, perhaps 
 en killed, all the same. 
 
 In most of these particular head-hunting countries, a powerful 
 an would have a fowl to drink the sap as his deputy, and I was 
 formed that Awudu, the chief of Ungual Kaura, had thus 
 ■oved his innocence of the murder of his wife to the entire satis- 
 ction of the people of his town. They apparently accepted the 
 :quittal, although several of them had seen him beat in her head 
 ith a wooden stool. Unfortunately for him, I had rather more 
 ith in the accounts of witnesses to the murder than in his pro- 
 stations of the evidence of the gods, or ghosts, whichever it was, 
 i his favour, and so his successful issue from the ordeal did not 
 rail him much. I was told that if salt is mixed with the sap the 
 [fusion becomes very poisonous, otherwise not, so the priest 
 iministering it has a little under his finger-nails. And I fancy 
 om questions, that he gives the one whom he wishes to be 
 lought guilty the drink last of all, but before doing so he takes 
 ire that the salt — enough for his purpose now the contents are 
 reatly reduced — is first mixed with the sap, and so the drink is 
 lfficiently poisonous to produce the desired result. Before 
 laking too much of an outcry against such customs it is well to 
 member that trial by ordeal has not been abolished so very long 
 »o in England, and in one of the tests it was quite impossible 
 >r the accused to escape, for on being thrown into water he sank 
 ' innocent, and was drowned ; whereas if guilty the water, being 
 oly, refused to receive him, and as he floated he was taken out 
 ad executed. 
 
 201 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 Festivals are held at any time when beer is available, and 
 always at death, puberty, and marriage, though apparently not 
 at birth in the ordinary course of events. Every now and then 
 there is a three days " drunk," and at such times it is best to give 
 the towns a wide berth, for all the people are intoxicated, and 
 quite irresponsible and uncontrolled. I am not quite sure if these 
 orgies have anything to do with their religion, but it is quite pro- 
 bable that they have, and they may be something like the annual 
 devil-drivings and other " customs " in Cape Coast Castle. My 
 great-uncle, writing there in 1844, says that during such a time the 
 people were in a state of intoxication and frenzy. The fetish-man 
 walked in front, sprinkling water on the people, some of whom 
 were firing muskets, others beating drums or blowing horns ; many 
 were covered with the skin of beasts, or wore caps of the most 
 fantastic shapes, and all appeared to be anxious to make the 
 greatest possible noise. Next came a troop of females, dancing 
 and muttering as they went. Concerning a " custom " made by the 
 natives on the finishing of the harvest and the beginning of their 
 new year, he says that the first day was dedicated to eating, and 
 the second, the great day, to drinking, and with but few excep- 
 tions all, old and young, male and female, were in a state of in- 
 toxication ; some whose friends had died during the past year were 
 walking about the streets and visiting the houses of their friends, 
 making bitter lamentations. One old woman, after proclaiming 
 the departed one's kindness to her, turned herself round, and, 
 with outstretched arms, addressed the spirit, and implored him to 
 come back again. Others were dancing, some had painted their 
 faces ; many carried branches of evergreen in their hands ; many 
 wore a stripe of yellow ribbon about their heads or waists, and 
 many were reeling about in the maddest enthusiasm at the sound 
 of the drum. 
 
 Of the annual " custom " of driving the evil spirit " Abonsam " 
 out of the town, he says that as soon as the eight o'clock gun had 
 been fired in the fort the people began firing muskets in their 
 houses, turning all their furniture out of doors, beating about in 
 
 202 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 every corner of the rooms with sticks, &c, and screaming as loudly 
 as possible, in order to frighten the devil. He being driven out 
 of the houses as they imagined they sallied forth into the streets, 
 throwing lighted torches about, shouting, screaming, beating 
 sticks together, rattling old pans, and making the greatest 
 possible noise in order to drive him out of the town into the 
 sea. 
 
 This custom is preceded by four weeks of dead silence, during 
 which time no gun is allowed to be fired, no drum to be beaten, 
 and no palaver to be made between man and man. If during 
 these weeks two natives were to disagree and make a noise in the 
 town, they would be immediately taken before the chief and fined 
 heavily ; or if a dog or pig, sheep or goat, were found at large in 
 the street it might be killed or taken by any one, the former 
 owner not being allowed to demand any compensation. This 
 silence is designed to deceive Abonsam, so that, being off his 
 guard, he may be taken by surprise and frightened out of the 
 place. Even if any one died during the period of silence, his 
 relatives were not allowed to weep until the four weeks had been 
 completed. 
 
 All males are circumcised amongst the Kagoro, but not the 
 females, and this practice extends to the other tailed head-hunters, 
 but not to the Gannawarri and other natives of the Bauchi plateau. 
 It is done when the boy is about eight or nine, apparently, and has 
 not been in any sense copied from the Mohammedans, so the 
 Kagoro say, but is an old custom ; if so, this is a difference between 
 them and the people who occupy the site of their supposed origin ; 
 but the fact that Mohammedans have the practice will help to 
 keep it up. It makes no difference to marriage so far as fertility 
 is concerned, but women would probably object to marry a man 
 who had not been through the rite, which is supposed to separate 
 the person from sickness, and I suppose the same repulsion exists 
 to-day among Jewesses. In many tribes the females are also 
 operated upon, notably during the Bundu ceremonies in Sierra 
 Leone amongst the Mendi, but I have not met with it in the 
 Nassarawa district. Because of the accounts in the Bible we are 
 
 203 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 accustomed to imagine its being always done on the eighth day of 
 a boy's life, but it is probable that the Jews themselves shortened 
 the period to that time, for the Hebrew word for " father-in-law," 
 according to Dr. Driver, is derived from an Arabic root 
 signifying "to circumcise," and this would indicate that in 
 primitive times the rite among the Hebrews was a preliminary 
 not of christening but of marriage, being performed therefore 
 much later in life. 
 
 The next ceremony is that of initiation, and this again applies 
 only to the males. When youths are to be initiated, at about the 
 age of ten, they are assembled early on a certain morning in the 
 house of the chief priest, amidst drumming and blowing of horns 
 and other music, each candidate being smeared all over with 
 grease after having been shaved clean. The grown men present, 
 who have been drinking akann to work them up into the proper 
 religious frame of mind, then beat the youths with switches until 
 they are tired, this being, I suppose, a test of endurance. Then 
 the chief priest addresses the candidates, giving them certain 
 information, and telling them to keep away from women until the 
 ceremonies have been completed ; and after having been given 
 switches to beat or drive away any females who may come near 
 them, they are taken to the sacred grove by the men, all of whom 
 indulge in akann, but do not give the candidates any — this being 
 perhaps a test of self-control. 
 
 The boys then go away to the place provided for dancing, 
 generally in front of the chiefs compound, and dance all night, 
 and next day there is more dancing, but no more beating, and 
 again the men show the boys how delicious is the akann by drink- 
 ing it themselves in front of them. This goes on for seven days, 
 and after that the candidates return to their own homes, but must 
 not speak to a female for another seven days. Except for the 
 grease and the shaving, there is no special preparation of the 
 body, and no particular dress is worn, nor any disguises, nor are 
 their names changed. It is said that there are no grades of initia- 
 tion, but apparently no male is considered to have become a man 
 in all respects until he has been circumcised and initiated, and has 
 
 204 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 taken a head, the stages of development to full manhood being 
 circumcision, initiation, scarification, success in head-hunting, 
 marriage, and the shaving of the head, though this order is 
 apparently not universally observed. 
 
 The only time when females are allowed to enter into religious 
 rites seems to be at Moroa funerals, when a laughing woman leads 
 a mare around ; but in some parts of West Africa they play a 
 very important part, sometimes learning a special language of 
 their own which is unknown to the men. Mr. Martin, writing 
 from Badagri in 1846, says there were some hundreds of people, 
 chiefly females, in the town consecrated in an especial manner to 
 their gods. After having spent some months of confinement in 
 houses connected with the idol temples, during which time they 
 were initiated into all the mysteries, and were taught to speak a 
 language peculiar to themselves, they were regarded as sacred 
 persons, and their names were changed. Their heads were in a 
 peculiar manner sacred, and should any one strike them on the 
 head the offence was considered very great and generally unpardon- 
 able. A case of this kind came to his notice where a man and his 
 wife had been quarrelling, the woman being one of the sacred per- 
 sons, and the man had struck her on the head. She immediately 
 fell down, and uttered their peculiar scream, which quickly gathered 
 a number of her own class around her, and they repeated the cry 
 till it had gone around the town and set them all in motion. 
 They continued all the night dancing and screaming, and the 
 next evening the man was taken and bound and placed in the 
 midst of them, they dancing around him in fiendish triumph. 
 Nothing would satisfy them but money, and if that was not forth- 
 coming in such cases they would destroy the man's house and 
 everything he had, and ruin his family. Such was their influence 
 that no one, not even a chief, dared to oppose them, for all the 
 people stood in fear of them, and these people frequently endea- 
 voured to raise quarrels in the town so that they might possess 
 themselves of the property of others. The females, though 
 married, were generally abandoned prostitutes, their husbands 
 not daring to punish them lest they should be involved in trouble. 
 
 205 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 Regular farms are laid out by every Kagoro householder, the 
 men usually doing the digging, and the women the sowing by 
 poking the toes of one foot into the newly-turned ground, and 
 thus making a hole for the seeds, and then dragging the other 
 foot along the ground, and so closing it up again. The imple- 
 ments used by the men are an iron hoe with a very long shaft of 
 the same material, and a hoe-shovel with a larger iron blade and 
 shaft of the same shape, and a wooden handle affixed to it, which 
 curves round and ends opposite the middle of the blade. These 
 are made by the foreign blacksmith before each harvest, the ore 
 being obtained from the Jaba through Kajji country, and are 
 used afterwards as money in payment of tribute, and as presents 
 at death and other festivals. There is, apparently, some tabu, 
 connected with them after the digging of a grave, for they will 
 not be taken into the house again until after the final feast 
 is over. 
 
 No domestic animals are employed in agricultural work, but 
 goats 1 droppings from the goat houses are collected and mixed 
 with ashes for use as manure. Land is allowed to lie fallow 
 (I believe three years), and there is a certain amount of rotation 
 of crops. When the grain is ripening, strings may be tied right 
 across the fields to posts erected at each end, and these are 
 vibrated by a watchman on a raised platform, or in a tree, to 
 keep off birds and monkeys ; or if no string be available, he will 
 shout at intervals. There are no scare-crows, but charms con- 
 sisting of leaves tied on sticks, are placed at the corners of fields 
 to prevent theft, and it is interesting to note that some authorities 
 consider these to be the origin of the Tar-baby stories, examples 
 of which are to be found in the immortal Brer Rabbit collection, 
 and in a book published last year by myself and my wife, Fables 
 and Fairy Tales, or Uncle Remus in Hausaland. 
 
 A man is free to farm anywhere on unoccupied ground, but he 
 must first obtain the consent of the ghosts, and the chief priest may 
 graciously consent to cut the first sod if the beer be sufficiently 
 plentiful and good. The man establishes his right to the ground 
 by tilling it, and it will remain his until he allows it to go out of 
 
 206 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 cultivation. A fowl is killed when the corn is ripening, a hole is 
 dug in the centre of the farm, and the blood of the fowl and the 
 leaves of certain trees are put into it, but the flesh is eaten when 
 the corn is ready for harvesting. Fires are then lighted in the 
 houses, and the smoke having killed off the insects, the corn is 
 stored in the granary. These insects are very destructive, and are 
 called by the Hausawa Kukkhi, a condensed form of Ku ki chi, 
 mu, mua chi (" You have refused to eat, we, we shall eat "), show- 
 ing how absurd it is to store up food when you can eat it all at 
 once! "Eat, drink and be merry" appeals strongly to the 
 native comprehension. 
 
 After the corn has been stored in the granary, another fowl is 
 killed, and the blood is smeared on the outside, the flesh being 
 eaten by the men — and the old women if they are quick enough. 
 The blood has the same effect as the beer, it appeases the appetites 
 of the ghosts, who will then allow the people to live in peace — 
 until, of course, they are thirsty again. At least, that is the 
 explanation which the Kagoro give, but it is quite possible that it 
 is the survival of a form of human sacrifice, for we know that in 
 some parts of the world offerings were made to the Earth-goddess, 
 the flesh of the person selected being torn from his bones, the 
 priest burying half of it in a hole in the earth behind his back, 
 while each householder carried off a piece of flesh to bury in his 
 own field ; and in others a head had to be shown to the fields to 
 make them bring forth a good harvest. The first-mentioned 
 people now sacrifice cattle instead of human beings, and those of 
 another tribe are known to have substituted fowls, and so the 
 process I have suggested in an earlier chapter is not impossible of 
 fulfilment. Still, I do not wish to accuse my people of anything 
 that I cannot prove, for after all the poor pagans have enough to 
 answer for as it is, according to our rules of conduct. 
 
 The Kagoro and other head-hunters have no conjuring tricks 
 that I could hear of, but I have seen snake-charming amongst the 
 Hausawa; a woman in Lokoja who pretended to swallow the 
 reptile being the best whom I can remember. A conjurer came to 
 Jemaan Daroro and performed two simple tricks, assisted by a 
 
 207 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 youth, the two singing all the time and ringing bells to distract 
 the attention. One trick consisted in making water drip out of 
 a gourd, or remain in it, at word of command, this being done by 
 having a gourd with a very narrow neck, and a hole in the bottom 
 which could be stopped with the thumb, and by lifting the 
 thumb or pressing it down when the gourd was reversed, the 
 water naturally flowed or stopped. The only other trick in their 
 repertoire consisted in the man's pretending to draw a needle and 
 cotton through the youth, who had donned a magic belt for the 
 occasion. The belt I found on inspection had several loose 
 strands of thread concealed in it, and the operator really pulled 
 one end out in front when pretending to stick the thread through 
 the youth's stomach, and pulled out another behind as if it had 
 come right through the body, and when he drew this to and fro, 
 it looked as if it were right through, but it really ran inside the 
 belt for half its circumference. He took about an hour to do 
 these two tricks, and I thought the whole performance painfully 
 slow, but I daresay the bell-ringing and singing pleased most 
 of his audience, for a noise is always welcome. 
 
 On another occasion, a man appeared from Zaria way with a 
 magic hoe-shovel with a curved handle as described before, though 
 about ten times the ordinary size, and with a hollow blade, this 
 hoe-shovel having the magic power of running away with men, and 
 to my surprise many Europeans were deceived by it. After a couple 
 of times I thought I saw the secret, and offered to pick half-a- 
 dozen soldiers and keep the hoe still, but the conjurer would not 
 allow it, and so I am certain this explanation is correct. The 
 hoe-shovel is placed on the ground, handle upwards, and some six 
 or seven men are told off to hold it, there being always two or 
 three of the conjurer's own followers among the number. The 
 conjurer then stands in front and begins saying magic words, 
 gradually working himself and his audience into a state of excite- 
 ment, and shouting louder and louder, and after a little time the 
 hoe-shovel begins to move, soon jumping up in the air, the holders 
 falling over one another in their efforts to hold it. There is no 
 doubt that the confederates start the motion, and as soon as that 
 
 208 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 is done the excitement of the others, increased by the voice of the 
 conjurer, does the rest. It is, in fact, on the same principle as 
 table-turning, only much more crude. Poor man ! I fear my 
 challenge must have ruined his trade in Jemaan Daroro, for he 
 left next day, and I was greatly disappointed as I wanted to see 
 him do the trick again. I took some photographs at the time, 
 but they were failures, as were about three-quarters of the others, 
 films being undependable in that climate. 
 
 Formerly, there were but few salutations, sons and wives 
 ignoring or abusing their parents and husbands as the fancy 
 took them, unless in fear of physical punishment ; and even now 
 there is no bowing, though some have learned the prostration on 
 the ground from the people of Kaffanchan who often come to 
 Jemaan Daroro. Others, again, try to salute a European like a 
 soldier, the action generally looking as if they were brushing away 
 perspiration from their noble brows, or wiping their noses, though 
 this is much preferable to the customs of some other tribes. 
 " Every man is a chief in his own house, and there is no need to 
 recognise any one else," so the Kagoro say, and they have a repu- 
 tation for being surly and boorish, but I think that a good deal of 
 it is due to fear, for I have always found the women and children, 
 at any rate, quite polite, and when Kaka, the Agwcm of Fada 
 Kagoro, went with me to Keffi (and every one thought he had 
 been killed, as he had been away for seven days), he was met on 
 his return by all the people of his town with drumming, and 
 blowing, and other demonstrations of welcome. Of course, there 
 were certain men who regarded me with no favourable eye, and 
 it could hardly be wondered at, considering that some of their 
 relatives had lost their lives when fighting against us ; and under 
 similar circumstances (but happening in the contrary way), I 
 should not have felt particularly well disposed towards them. 
 
 But if the head-hunters are chary with polite greetings, the 
 same cannot be said of the Hausawa. I believe amongst the 
 Masai spitting at each other is the rule, the intensity of the 
 friendship being measured by the amount of spittle bestowed on 
 the other's naked body. Fortunately the Hausawa do not indulge 
 
CUSTOMS AND SUPERSTITIONS 
 
 in this luxury, they are more concerned with words than with 
 deeds, and they will squat opposite one another, touch each 
 other's hands and their own breasts three times, and then go 
 through whole strings of salutations, even should they meet each 
 other several times a day, commencing in a loud voice, and 
 gradually dropping off into an almost undistinguishable grunt 
 or two like this : — 
 
 Hail Hail to you too 
 How are you to-day ? Quite well, thank you 
 
 Thanks be to God Praise be to God 
 
 Hail Hail 
 
 Are you tired ? I am not ' 
 
 Hail Hail 
 
 What is the news ? There is none but what is good 
 
 Hail Urn 
 
 Hail Um 
 
 • O 
 Um 
 
 O Um 
 
 • Hail 
 Um O 
 
 O Um 
 
 O 
 
 210 
 
CHAPTER XVI 
 
 A MUTINY 
 
 THE little experience in the Ninzam and Ayu districts gave 
 weight to my next application for a patrol, and about a 
 fortnight later I had the satisfaction of knowing that one 
 rad been sanctioned at last. On the 18th April, therefore, our 
 loble force, consisting of the Waff subaltern and his detachment 
 jf 25 men, about 30 carriers, and myself, left Jemaan Daroro, and 
 samped at Akwa, the Keffi contingent of some 80 men and as 
 many carriers under the O.C. (as the officer commanding is 
 jailed) intending to meet us farther to the south-east in Mada 
 :ountry on the following day. A doctor was also coming from 
 Keffi, and as there was now heavy rain each day his services 
 would probably be more in request for cases of illness than for 
 those of wounding. We arrived at Akwa, where I had had 
 temporary grass shelters erected, about mid-day, and all of us 
 were very much pleased that the patrol had really begun at last, 
 but the fates had willed that we were to be disappointed after all, 
 for about tea-time a runner arrived with the news that there had 
 been a mutiny of a Waff detachment at Abuja, and that the Keffi 
 men had had to go there ; the patrol had therefore been cancelled, 
 and we were to return to Jemaa at once ! 
 
 Our personal feelings of disgust can be better imagined than 
 described, and, politically, the news was most unfortunate, for the 
 tribes whom I had threatened with punishment would now think 
 that the whole thing had been merely a " bluff" to frighten them, 
 and would be all the harder to control afterwards. Various 
 rumours, too, began to come through from Abuja, some to the 
 effect that the soldiers had killed all their officers, others that 
 they had killed one and taken the others prisoner — and there 
 were other variations. Luckily the outbreak proved to be not so 
 
 211 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 serious a one as was at first feared, and it was quelled very 
 quickly by a mere show of force from Zungeru. 
 
 Mutinies are not always so easily settled though, and when 
 they do happen they are exceedingly unpleasant and much more 
 dangerous than ordinary fights, and, also, though some one always 
 has to be blamed in these matters, no one can obtain any 
 credit. I was in one in 1901 in Kumasi, while attached to the 
 West African Regiment, and I do not want a similar experience. 
 I had been invalided to England after having been wounded in 
 South Africa, and though, perhaps, I could not have walked 
 well enough for work on the Veldt, I could travel quite well in 
 a hammock, and so I had been fortunate enough to be accepted 
 as a Special Service Officer in Ashanti. The chance came at a 
 lucky moment too, for my own (the 1st Australian) Regiment 
 was due to leave South Africa for home, and had I not come to 
 Ashanti my active service would have been over. 
 
 Probably most of my readers will remember that in 1900 the 
 Ashanti besieged the Governor of the Gold Coast and his wife in 
 Kumasi, and that, although they had managed to escape, it was 
 only on the arrival of the expedition under Sir James Willcocks 
 that the garrison was relieved. And as this was not our first war 
 with the Ashanti, though it was rather remarkable as being the 
 first occasion on which black troops were employed without a 
 stiffening of whites — mainly owing to the fact that all the available 
 regiments were in South Africa or China — it may be as well to go 
 back a little to consider what led to the trouble with the natives 
 and what was the cause of the mutiny of our own troops later. 
 
 The Ashanti have always been a cruel and warlike race, noted 
 as much for their bravery as for their numerous and bloody 
 sacrifices, and our troops have not been invariably victorious in 
 their conflicts with them ; in fact, in the early days the natives 
 usually had the best of the deal. Sacrifices were very frequent, 
 hundreds of captives being butchered in a single day, perhaps, 
 and the Ashanti became the terror of the surrounding district. 
 But as our position on the Gold Coast improved, we were able by 
 degrees to drive them farther and farther inland, and to confine 
 them within their own boundaries, and so to set free the conauered 
 
 212 H 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 tribes who had begun to look to Englishmen to save them from 
 annihilation. 
 
 It would appear 'that the Ashanti first came into contact with 
 Europeans more or less through accident, or, at any rate, on 
 account of a side-issue. Early last century three rival chiefs of 
 Asin, the country between the Coast and Ashanti, quarrelled 
 because of a theft from a grave (a considerable amount of treasure 
 being buried with the corpses of rich men in those days) which 
 had been committed by a follower of one of them. The case was 
 heard by the chief of Ashanti, Osai Tutu Kwamina, and though 
 Amu, the chief of the parties wronged, was willirig to abide by 
 the decision, his rivals, Chebu and Apute, were not, and having 
 failed in law they proceeded to the test of battle. After several 
 vain attempts on the part of Osai to make peace, his messengers 
 were massacred, Chebu and Apute and the actual murderers 
 taking refuge in Fanti country. Osai then sent a messenger to 
 the Fanti chief with the request that he should be allowed to send 
 a force through his country to capture the culprits, but the Fanti 
 people not only refused his just request, but foolishly espoused 
 the cause of the refugees, with the result that they themselves 
 were attacked and defeated. Within a short time the Ashanti 
 had utterly subdued them, and being now full of the spirit of 
 conquest, they began advancing towards the Coast. 
 
 The fugitive chiefs, Chebu and Apute, then took refuge in 
 Annamabu, where a British fort had been built, but the Governor 
 of Cape Coast Castle at the time (1806), being not altogether 
 inclined to protect them, proposed making overtures to the 
 Ashanti, who shortly afterwards seized the Dutch fort of Koro- 
 mantin. The Annamabu people would not hear of this, but Mr. 
 White, the officer then in charge of the fort, managed to get a 
 message through to the Ashanti commander there, offering to 
 negotiate between him and the Annamabu chief. The offer was, 
 however, rejected, and the Ashanti attacked the town, and 
 though, it is said, they had had originally no intention of 
 fighting with the white men, they were naturally soon involved 
 with them when they came close to the fort, and a great struggle 
 took place. So well did the enemy fight that the Europeans at 
 J 213 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 length sent a flag of truce to them, and soon afterwards made 
 peace by arresting and handing over the murderers, or rather one 
 of them, for the other had managed to escape. 
 
 The Ashanti, after having concluded a treaty of friendship 
 with the British, retired to their own country, and later on the 
 Fanti, now freed from the fear of their conquerors, began to play 
 up again and pay back old scores. Partly on account of, tribal 
 hatred, partly for the sake of plunder, they attacked Elmina, 
 Accra, and other States, and since the Ashanti at that time 
 trad ad with Accra, they determined to interfere, the result being 
 that the Fanti were taught another severe lesson. Unfortunately 
 the British policy was never very definite nor consistent, and, 
 instead of remaining neutral, the officers' then in charge were 
 inclined to encourage the Fanti, with the ultimate result that 
 in 1816 they were themselves blockaded in Cape Coast Castle, 
 and had to pay the Ashanti a considerable sum to raise the siege. 
 In the following year Bowditch and others concluded a treaty 
 with the Ashanti chief in Kumasi, and a Resident was installed 
 there. 
 
 Friendly relations existed for some years, but the newly- 
 appointed Governor of the West African Settlements, Sir Charles 
 McCarthy, and the new chief of Ashanti came to loggerheads in 
 1823 over the murder of a native sergeant of the Royal African 
 Corps — though it is probable that the Fanti were the real 
 culprits — and there was some fighting with varying success on 
 each side. Early in the following year Sir Charles himself took 
 the field, and through greatly under-estimating the courage and 
 numbers of the enemy, he was utterly defeated at Essamako, nine 
 of the twelve Europeans with the little force being killed, and 
 the other three seriously wounded, Sir Charles's skull being after- 
 wards decorated with gold and used as a drinking-cup, so it 
 is said. 
 
 In 1826, however, the defeat was avenged, and there was no 
 serious fighting until Lord Wolseley 1 s expedition in 1878-74, 
 which destroyed Kumasi. There were other expeditions in 1863 
 and 1896, but no actual hostilities took place on these occasions, 
 and the next and last conflict was in 1900. 
 
 214 
 
Ashanti Men 
 
 One of the peace palavers after the Expedition of 1900. Note the gorgeous umbrellas 
 and the typical chairs and stools. 
 
 Ashanti Houses 
 
 My party entering Esumeja. The Ashanti house consists of four oblong buildings 
 placed in the shape of a cross. They differ very much from the buildings of the 
 Hausa, Yoruba, and the Head-hunter. See p. 142. 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 The payment of an indemnity had been imposed as one of the 
 articles of the treaty of peace in 1874, but no very special anxiety 
 to comply with the conditions had been noted on the part of the 
 chiefs, and the Government had been unable to enforce them. 
 Demands had also been made by the Governor for the delivery of 
 the Golden Stool which, much more than the actual person of the 
 chief, represented the sovereignty — in much the same sense as we 
 now speak of the Crown instead of the King — and these also had 
 been ignored. The Governor visited Kumasi in March 1900 and 
 made fresh demands, and, knowing that we were at war with the 
 Boers, and being told by their fetish-men that the time was ripe 
 to rid themselves of our control, and that they could easily capture 
 the Governor and hold him as a hostage for the restoration of 
 Prempeh (deposed from the Stool of Kumasi in 1896), the Ashanti 
 revolted and besieged the fort on the 25th of April. The Governor 
 and Lady Hodgson, together with most of the garrison, escaped on 
 the 22nd June, but the remainder were not relieved until the 15th 
 of July following, after a gallant defence. ' 
 
 The Ashanti fought most valiantly, and the casualties on both 
 sides were very heavy, but the excellent plan of campaign thought 
 out by Sir James Willcocks, and the discipline of the British 
 column, told at last, and in the end the Ashanti were utterly 
 defeated. 
 
 However, to return to the mutiny. The actual fighting ended 
 in the November of 1900, and the troops brought from the other 
 colonies (Northern and Southern Nigeria, Lagos, Sierra Leone, 
 and even from the East Coast of Africa) began to look forward to 
 being sent back again, and to dream of their homes and their 
 dusky "mammies. 1 ' Unfortunately, it was found impossible to 
 let them return as quickly as had been originally expected, for 
 it was not considered safe to leave Ashanti without a large 
 garrison so soon after the war, and the local Jioops were quite 
 unable to furnish the required numbers. The Nigerian Waffs 
 were ordered back first, since fighting was then going on in that 
 country, but as all was peaceful in Sierra Leone, there seemed 
 to be no hurry in regard to the troops from that part of the 
 Continent. 
 
 215 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 One of the best bodies of men in the relief column, as fax 
 as the fighting was concerned, was the West African Regiment, 
 which, although but very recently entered in the Army List, was 
 quite a veteran corps. It had been raised in Freetown, in 1898, 
 by Colonel Woodgate (killed at Spion Kop) to assist in quelling 
 the Hut-Tax Rebellion in the interior of Sierra Leone, and within 
 a week or two of its formation it began sending up drafts to the 
 front. That outbreak was not settled until the following year, 
 and a few months afterwards, Colonel Burroughs brought the 
 regiment to Ashanti. The men thus had but little of the 
 " barrack-square " (which is most essential to good discipline, 
 however much it may tend to kill individuality), and some of 
 the officers were new to them, so that they were not, perhaps, 
 as much in hand as would have been the case had they had the 
 chance to learn the drudgery properly before going on active 
 service. Again, a number of tribes were represented in the ranks 
 — Mendi, Timmini, Susu, Lokko, Limba, Fulah, &c, and there 
 were even a few men from Senegal and Dahomey, so there was no 
 common bond between them such as there would have been had 
 they all been of the same nation — a bond which is now supplied 
 by their esprit de corps. While the fighting lasted they were 
 splendid ; there was no doubt about their bravery — nor about that 
 of their colonel — but when the excitement had subsided, they 
 wanted to get back to Freetown, which was very "sweet" to 
 them, although perhaps distasteful to many of their European 
 officers. 
 
 They had been told, when proceeding to Ashanti in the 
 previous May, that they would probably be back in about three 
 months'' time, and after they had been kept nine months, and still 
 saw but little chance of returning, they began to grow restive — 
 it is a fatal error to mislead a native, however blameless one's 
 intention may be. There were other causes too ; the pay accounts 
 had somehow become muddled, and arrears were not forthcoming : 
 the uniforms were ragged, the equipment (said to have been 
 second-hand to start with) was mostly string and wire ; and worst 
 of all, the bayonets could not be fixed on to the carbines ! 
 
 The blame for this state of affairs has been fastened on to 
 
 216 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 fferent people at different times ; but it seems to me that no 
 ie individual was particularly responsible, for no one really had 
 ly opportunity to improve matters. The real cause of the whole 
 utiny was probably the men's knowledge that they had been 
 sceived — though that point would seem much less important than 
 e other reasons to a European — and nothing one could say 
 nded to make them think otherwise. We were white men, we 
 lew everything, we had used them to fight for us against the 
 shanti as long as we wanted them, we had not paid them what 
 i had promised fa deduction — quite a legitimate one too, though 
 ley refused to see it — had been made from their " chop-money " 
 «ause rations had been supplied in kind), we had not let them 
 turn when we said we would, and we were probably going to 
 sep them there for ever, until they died. It was of no use our 
 ying anything to the contrary, if it was not true let us send 
 lem back. That was their argument, and it seemed rather hope- 
 ss to combat it, since we could not let them go. 
 
 The new Governor arrived in March 1901 for the purpose of 
 ttling the payment of the Ashanti indemnity and other matters, 
 id, when inspecting the West African Regiment, he .told the 
 en that two companies would return to Sierra Leone at once, but 
 iat the others would not follow until they could be relieved, 
 his was absolutely the last straw, and on the morning of the 
 )th, when the Governor was leaving Kumasi, hardly enough men 
 iuld be found in the camp of the Wars (as they were called, from 
 ^est African Regiment) to form a guard of honour. 
 
 The Governor, of course, postponed his departure, and five of 
 i were sent post haste to try to get the deserters back, only two 
 the party belonged to the regiment, the other three, including 
 yself, being Special Service Officers. We travelled all night, and 
 sarly caught them up at Kwissa, but they departed at once and 
 >t ahead again. However, two more companies of the regiment 
 jre stationed there, and we paraded them to warn them not to 
 How the bad example of the others, but they immediately 
 outed out that the deserters were their brothers, and started 
 arching off to join them. We tried to stop some of them, but 
 i were fired at (bullets have an angry "ping-buzz" at such 
 
 217 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 close quarters), and, as it was absolutely impossible for five men 
 to do anything against over 200, we desisted. Just afterwards a 
 message from the Governor — which had unfortunately been delayed 
 in transmission — was handed to us, ordering us to accompany the 
 deserters, and not to use threats nor force, so we therefore started 
 off again, and came up with the whole four companies at Fesu. 
 I remember, when approaching a turning in the road, hearing a 
 tremendous cracking ahead, and I thought that we were being 
 fired at again. But on proceeding farther I found that the sounds 
 were made by burning bamboos, and I admit that I was greatly 
 relieved. 
 
 The men, we heard from our orderlies, had elected as 
 " colonel " Private Morlai Mandingo, a very brave man who had 
 been wounded three times, if I remember rightly. And he, rising 
 to the dignity of his rank, had thrown away his carbine, and was 
 using his side-arm — a sword-bayonet — as an officer's sword, while 
 instead of a red fez he wore a cloth cap. Each company had its 
 captain and " one-star " captains (lieutenants, who wore only one 
 then), and there were orderly buglers and others detailed for 
 duty daily. 
 
 And so much authority did these " officers " possess that on 
 one occasion a couple of privates were flogged for having dirty 
 rifles on parade, and it was rather amusing to find that such a 
 fault was punished with so much greater severity by them than 
 would have been the case had one of us tried the men. There was 
 thus a certain amount of discipline preserved, but this really 
 showed that the state of things was very serious indeed, for it 
 became apparent how much in earnest the men were, though when 
 a question was asked afterwards in Parliament, this served as an 
 excuse to treat the whole affair with ridicule. The men had 100 
 rounds of ammunition each, and they had been given a week's 
 rations of rice a day or two before they deserted, but the latter 
 was beginning to run out, and we saw trouble ahead, the Native, 
 like Nature, abhorring a vacuum. Luckily, however, another 
 message from the Governor arrived, ordering us to pay out ration- 
 money at the usual rate of 3d. per day, and this move prevented a 
 general raiding of the towns passed through. 
 
 218 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 Four of us were fairly popular with the men, but the other 
 icer had had to stay behind in consequence of a notice posted 
 ion the road that the men would " dismiss him ourself " if he 
 me any farther (it was bad luck on him, for he really liked 
 em), and if we had been able to think things over calmly, we 
 ould have been compelled to smile, for we were actually paying 
 e men to defy our authority, so long as they did it quietly. I 
 ,d " doctored " a few of the men while in command of a detach- 
 ent at Prahsu, and was called in by the mutineers to do the same 
 r some of them, and our own orderlies were on quite good terms 
 th their comrades although they gave us a hint when to expect 
 ie next move. But in spite of the half-friendly attitude of the 
 ain body of the men, the leaders would have nothing to do with 
 i, and remembering the experience at Kwissa, we had to make up 
 lr minds to " wait and see," though it was not good for one's 
 srves. 
 
 So it went on, the mutineers suddenly marching off, and we 
 arriedly collecting what carriers they had not taken from us, and 
 Mowing as fast as we could, until after over a week of it we reached 
 ape Coast Castle, where the men, ahead as usual, were met on arrival 
 y the late Captain Watson, who guided them to quarters in 
 ie town. The men, to his surprise, followed him without question, 
 it they had no quarrel with him, of course, it being confined to 
 ie Governor, and the senior officers of their own regiment, who 
 id, as they thought, wilfully deceived them. Colonel Burroughs 
 ith the rest of the regiment (part of the two companies under 
 :ders to leave for Sierra Leone not having deserted) soon after- 
 ards arrived, and with the Governor and us went to the men to 
 y to persuade them to give up their arms. But this they, of 
 >urse, refused to do, and we were given a fairly plain hint to 
 nit. 
 
 The next day the Governor had a parley with them outside 
 ie fort, they having been told to come down and be prepared to 
 3 on board a steamer which had come in the day before, but on 
 earing that they would have to give up their arms first they 
 sfused to do so. " Very well, 1 ' said we, " we shall go without 
 m," and we made a pretence of going off, and in fact Colonel 
 
 219 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 Burroughs and some others did get off to the ship. This, how- 
 ever, brought more than we bargained for, for the mutineers 
 rushed the surf-boats and took the paddles, marching back with 
 them in triumph to their quarters, and leaving a guard to see 
 that we did not go away. This step also prevented the colonel 
 from returning, for no ordinary ship's boat can live in the Coast 
 surf, and in his absence Lieut.-Colonel Henstock became the 
 senior officer, and he proved to be the right man in the right 
 place. 
 
 It was useless now to deny the seriousness of the position, and 
 had his ruse not been successful, we might have had trouble with 
 the Cape Coast natives also, for directly these half-civilised people 
 saw that we were in difficulties they began to revile us, although 
 they had fattened on us for so long. But even then some of the 
 mutineers showed up well, for several of these people were 
 unpleasantly surprised at receiving punishment instead of 
 applause from the soldiers for abusing their officers. How- 
 ever, there was no doubt that something decisive had to be 
 done, and immediately, and this is what happened. The 
 mutineers were invited to come next morning for a further 
 parley, and were told that the captain of the ship had refused 
 to take them armed, but those who gave up their carbines 
 would be given £5 each out of their arrears of pay at once, 
 and would go on board the steamer. At the same time we 
 did not neglect to make what preparations we could in case of 
 trouble ; an old Maxim gun was patched up (it might have fired 
 a dozen shots perhaps), and mounted on the wall of the fort to 
 overlook the place where the mutineers would be formed up, the 
 Europeans in Cape Coast were invited to come inside the fort, 
 and, a steamer from Nigeria having arrived, some officers on 
 board were warned to be ready if called upon. 
 
 Next morning the "loyalists" were formed up under my 
 command against the wall of the fort, being placed so as to 
 be under the Maxim and opposite to the church, while a 
 detachment of the Hausa Constabulary was posted on our 
 right, at right angles to us, and we waited developments. 
 Soon after the appointed time, down marched the mutineers, 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 and formed up opposite to us on being told to halt in front 
 of the church, i.e. in the most favourable position for our fire. 
 They came waving a white flag in front of them, and we were at 
 first very much relieved to think that the trouble was over, but 
 we were soon undeceived. 
 
 The " loyalists," the Hausas, and the mutineers.'formed three 
 sides of a hollow square, and, on its completion, by the arrival of 
 the last-named, Lieut.-Colonel Henstock roared out " Shoulder 
 arms, order arms, ground arms," thinking to catch the deserters 
 on the hop — especially as they would see us going through the 
 movements. But no, only a few men grounded their arms, some 
 refused to move at all, some wavered, then those who had placed 
 their carbines on the ground recovered them — and there was a 
 horrid pause ! 
 
 " I will give you one minute," shouted Colonel Hemstock, 
 alive to the danger. "There are some good men here, but 
 there are some bad also. Those who ground arms will get 
 £5" (we had the money ready in sight of all by the gate of 
 the fort), " and will go aboard at once ... A quarter of a 
 minute gone," continued he, so that the men would have no 
 chance of talking together, " one-half — three-quarters — one 
 minute — ground arms," and about half the men did so. 
 
 Immediately Captain Watson and our colour-sergeant gallantly 
 ran forward and seized Morlai Mandingo (who was in front of 
 " his command"), and rushed him into the fort, and meantime we 
 went over to speak to men whom we knew only required some 
 encouragement to give in, and soon there was a stream of 
 repentants going into the fort. But all was not over yet, for 
 some 100 refused to submit, and marched off, their plan being to 
 go by land to Sierra Leone, being captured later, however, by a 
 gunboat with a loss of, if I remember rightly, over thirty in 
 killed and wounded. Still, we had practically five-sixths of the 
 men back again, and off we sailed that night to Sierra Leone, 
 arriving there on the 3rd April. 
 
 But there was a gruesome duty to be done first. Private 
 Morlai Mandingo was tried by court-martial, and condemned to 
 be shot, and, after the Governor had confirmed the sentence, it 
 
 221 
 
A MUT11\ X 
 
 was carried out against the walls of the fort, the prisoner being 
 tied to a ladder. As junior member of the court-martial I had 
 to give my opinion first, and I can remember even now the 
 impression it made upon me. It is a horrible responsibility to 
 have to decide whether a human being is to live or not! 
 However, such things have to be done if any discipline ii to 
 be preserved, and the sooner they are over the better; mutiny 
 while on active service is, of course, one of the gravest offences. 
 That is the only occasion on which I have seen a man shot, 
 though I have had to witness, and even to take part in, several 
 hangings since, but I have never been able to get used to such 
 scenes, which always make me feel sick. And if other people 
 were affected in the same way (and I suppose they would be), 
 public executions would have a much greater deterrent effect 
 than those carried out in the gaol, for at present there is 
 always a certain amount of sympathy with persons being done 
 to death in private. There would be, of course, some people 
 who would enjoy spectacles like this — there will always be such 
 ghouls in the world — but the general public would, I think, be 
 much more stirred and impressed. Still, I would not advocate 
 public executions, for they were no doubt abolished with very 
 good cause; all I hope is that I shall not have to see any 
 more. 
 
 It may be imagined how we relished the ship's quiet and rest 
 after the preceding fortnight. There was more disagreeable 
 work at Sierra Leone afterwards in trying some of the 
 mutineers, but it was recognised that the circumstances had 
 been exceptional, and that the men's hardships had been great, 
 and so only a few of the worst of the offenders were punished, 
 even in their cases the sentences being very light. I doubt if the 
 regiment is any the worse for the mutiny : no one can wonder at 
 natives becoming restive under such conditions, and it is hardly 
 likely that a similar trouble will occur again, for they have since 
 had a good deal of experience of the barrack square — also there 
 are white troops now stationed in Freetown. Most West African 
 natives are good soldiers, and these are certainly no exception to 
 the rule. I acted as adjutant of the regiment for a short time 
 
A MUTINY 
 
 ;erwards, and the better I knew them the better I liked 
 em. 
 Perhaps it was right to treat the whole affair as a glorious 
 :ce; probably it was a joke to people at home to think that the 
 tive rank and file had taken charge of their European officers, 
 it it was grim earnest to those who were in it ! 
 
 223 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 
 COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE, DIVORCE, AND CHILD-BIRTH 
 
 AT some period in the history of every society, the family and 
 the nation were one and the same thing, and this can be 
 easily understood if we imagine a man and his wife pene- 
 trating alone into a new and uninhabited district, and there 
 raising up a family — or several families, if there be more than one 
 wife. We see such a condition of things related in the case of 
 Adam and Eve ; the Moroa ancestor, it will be remembered, was 
 Eniluchwi, who took his wife to Ungual Tagamma, and became 
 the father of all the Moroas, and almost every tribe has a similar 
 tradition. Now, as the family grew in numbers, so also did the 
 influence of its founder, the husband's position as father gradually 
 becoming that of chief as well, and later on, probably the leader- 
 ship in religious ceremonies was centred in him. 
 
 The idea of consanguinity may be based upon kinship through 
 the father alone, through the mother alone, or partly through 
 both parents concurrently. One is at first surprised to find that 
 the second of these systems is to be found, but where a woman is 
 allowed or compelled to have several husbands, it becomes quite 
 impossible to reckon kinship through the father, whereas there 
 can never be any doubt about the descent from the mother, for 
 that is apparent to all. This is known as matriarchy ; patriarchy 
 being, of course, the system of tracing kinship through the male 
 parent. And as a study of these subjects may help towards a 
 better understanding of the totally different conditions existing 
 amongst native peoples, it will be worth while to consider what 
 was the origin of the differences in these systems, and, in fact, 
 what was the origin of marriage. 
 
 It was at one time thought by many writers that in the 
 earliest times the relations of the sexes were not controlled in 
 
COURTSHIP AND MARRIAGE 
 
 f way, and that communal marriage, or even promiscuity, was 
 )wed. But it is now more usual to admit that there were always 
 le restraints, and that in consequence of these arose group- 
 rriage (some deny even this primitive form), which represents 
 ! first attempt to regulate the relations ; the essential features 
 ng that males and females belonging to the same group 
 re not permitted to intermarry, but would have to take 
 rtners from another group. If the whole clan consisted of 
 [y one group, this would be exogamy, but if, as was more usual, 
 was composed of several groups, the members might be allowed 
 take partners from groups in other clans, or they might be 
 npelled to choose them from other groups of their own clan, 
 s last case being what is called endogamy. In theory, all the 
 les of one group had a right to all the females of the other, 
 t there was always some trace of individual claim of priority at 
 y rate, though it cannot be said that there was the slightest idea 
 it one man and one woman ought to hold together, but still 
 jre would be some preference shown by both sexes. The custom 
 lending a wife to a guest is said to have come from this system. 
 Now, when a woman has several husbands, no child can know 
 10 is his father, and no husband can possibly tell who is his own 
 spring. In fact, he does not consider the point at all, his 
 rther's children and his mother's daughter's children being 
 jarded as his nearest kindred, as with the Ashanti and others, 
 ■ he knows them to be of the same blood as himself, i.e. he 
 ices his relationship through his mother. In this case the 
 man who bears the children may be the head of the household, 
 • there is no doubt about her being their parent ; so a girl on 
 coming a mother either starts a new establishment of her own, 
 i husbands being only secondary in importance, or else she. 
 nains in that of her mother, this being an example of the rudest 
 •m of polyandry. But it is not necessary that a wife should have 
 >re than one husband to enable or compel her to remain in her 
 ither's household. The husband might be, in some cases, more 
 e a mere guest, his visits being made more or less surreptitiously, 
 as to avoid being seen by her mother, brothers, and others, and 
 ring place at night only, the husband not being allowed to take 
 
 225 p 
 
COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE 
 
 the wife away to his own house until she has borne a child — if even 
 then. The story of Cupid and Psyche is said to be founded on 
 this custom, says Mr. Hartland in Primitive Paternity, the breach 
 of which resulted in separation, but afterwards in open and 
 permanent union. 
 
 While the wife lives with her mother, her earnings will pro- 
 bably be taken by her parents, but once the husband has been 
 allowed to remove her to his own house, she pays them over to 
 him. It may be worth noticing that the word for marriage has in 
 one language been found to signify " to slip by night into the 
 house, 1 ' thus clearly indicating the prevalence of this system ; and 
 there is evidence of it even amongst the Kagoro. In many cases 
 the visits of the bridegroom began before marriage, though they 
 may sometimes have been innocent, as we find exemplified in 
 Romeo and Juliet. In others the lover perhaps did not even 
 enter the girl's apartment before she was his wife. 
 
 With some tribes the husband never has the right to take his 
 wife away, being forced instead to enter her family, but even then 
 there are cases when he is allowed to build a separate dwelling for 
 himself and her, thus indicating the beginnings of a conception of 
 father-right. Again (as with the Bassa-Komo) all the men may 
 have to live in one part of their village, all the women in another, 
 the husband visiting his wife, or the wife her husband, as occasion 
 permits. 
 
 Under this early form of matriarchy the authority over the 
 children is vested in the head of the mother's family, generally 
 the eldest male, perhaps her brother, and the gulf fixed between 
 him and the husband may be so wide that one is liable to the 
 other in the blood feud, and even the children may join with their 
 uncles against their father. On the contrary, when a husband has 
 entered his wife's family he may have to fight against his own 
 blood relations in a quarrel between the two families. Of course 
 undfer the patriarchal system a wife might have to side with her 
 husband against her father ; but, as she would not fight against 
 either, the harm done would be nothing like so great as in the 
 cases mentioned above, where perhaps a son and father might 
 engage in a death struggle. 
 
 226 
 
DIVORCE, AND CHILD-BIRTH 
 
 There is another form, indicating a slight advance in the 
 tions of paternity, existing in many places, where a woman can 
 the wife of several brothers at a time, but of brothers only, 
 ere being thus a limitation to the choice of individuals on the 
 rt of the female, though there would not necessarily be any 
 iuction in numbers ; this, however, would probably follow. As 
 ese husbands would be connected both by blood and interest, 
 ey would appropriate her issue and regard them as members of 
 eir own (collective) family, and not as belonging to that of the 
 other. Then, again, the woman might be the wife of the eldest 
 other only, or of both father and son ; or fathers and sons, 
 ides and nephews, or other relatives might hold their wives in 
 mmon, though outside the family they were chaste. Thus Julius 
 Bsar says that the Britons had a species of marriage which 
 >pears to partake both of polyandry and polygyny, for every ten 
 ■ twelve men (usually, if not always, relatives) held their wives 
 common, the children born of each mother being regarded as 
 iving been begotten by the husband who first married her when 
 virgin. The Irish were, apparently, quite as lax even at a much 
 ter date. 
 
 A development of this form is shown in the case of the 'Mbres 
 jout Lake Chad and others, where the joint husbands have to 
 2 brothers and the joint wives sisters. 
 
 But amongst brothers the eldest would in all probability be 
 le first one to marry, and the first child, at any rate, of the 
 ,mily joint-wife would possibly be known to be his. In fact, we 
 sad that amongst the Kulus of the Punjab the eldest brother is 
 semed the father of the first-born son, the next of the second, 
 id so on, and so strongly has this been upheld that these pre- 
 imptions are now absolute in law, even though the facts are quite 
 3posed to them. With another tribe, where each has a separate 
 ife, if one brother be impotent, another brother — or perhaps a 
 ranger — might be appointed to raise up issue for him. 
 
 Thus a definite conception of fatherhood and sonship would 
 :ise, and the father would naturally be inclined to look with 
 uch greater favour (it could hardly be called affection then) on 
 le children whom he knew to be his own, than upon those who 
 
 227 
 
COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE 
 
 he had reason to believe had been begotten by some one else. It is 
 quite possible that the desire for this relationship of father and 
 son, when once aroused, developed so quickly that it soon became 
 powerful enough to abolish polyandry altogether, for'a man would 
 come to allow no share to another in his wife, but would keep her 
 strictly for himself, so that he might be quite certain that all her 
 children were his. This became the custom and then the law, for 
 we know that customs when firmly established are sooner or later 
 incorporated in the law-books. Thus in one of the Hindu Vedas 
 a husband is supposed to announce that he will no longer allow 
 his wives to be approached by other men, since he has been in- 
 formed that a son belongs to him who has begotten him in the 
 world of Yama. (Mayne, A Treatise on Hindu Laws and Usages.) 
 
 Descent now began to be traced through males, and, strange 
 to say, the connection through females was quite ignored, for 
 when a woman married she left her own family altogether and 
 entered that of her husband, the family consisting exclusively of 
 male members, the wives being but mere appendages to their 
 husbands. We can still see some trace of this in our own case, 
 the change of our women's names on marriage being a survival ; 
 but we trace descent through both our parents to a great extent, 
 even titles coming in some cases from either the male or female 
 line, and coats of arms are often commingled. 
 
 Once children had come to be recognised as belonging to the 
 father, he naturally began to value them, the sons to defend 
 his property and to help in the work, the daughters to help also, 
 and later on to be sold to other men for wives. And as one wife 
 could produce only a certain number of children, and more and 
 more were urgently wanted, the man began to take other wives so 
 as to have two or more families growing up at the same time. 
 But how did he procure his wives, and how did he protect and 
 restrain them when he had procured them ? 
 
 We have seen that in the case of many tribes the husband 
 went to live with his wife in her mother's house, and that the 
 children belonged to her. But it would one day happen that a 
 man of rather more independent ideas than his brethren would 
 refuse to submit to this, and would manage to get her away to 
 
 228 
 
DIVORCE, AND CHILD-BIRTH 
 
 i own house. Now, if he were a popular or a powerful man (and 
 : strength of character would probably give him a good deal of 
 luence), he would have many sympathisers, and if his wife's 
 ,n were but a small one he would be able to keep her in peace 
 d safety. And it has been found that even now there is a 
 :vival of this in Sumatra, where it is the custom in several 
 bes, on a marriage taking place, to decide the question of the 
 iidence of the married pair by calculating the relative strength 
 the respective clans, the wife going to the husband or the 
 sband to the wife according as his or her clan is the more 
 werful, the resulting children belonging to the clan in which 
 ey were born and brought up. {Primitive Paternity.) 
 
 But matters were not always settled so easily nor so peace- 
 lly. Marriage by capture was in many cases the usual mode 
 obtaining a partner, and it still exists coupled with exogamy 
 certain localities, either in real earnest (e.g. Central India), or 
 a symbolic form as amongst the Hausawa, where the bride, 
 iled and screaming, is carried off by her husband's people 
 though she may have been anything but chaste beforehand. 
 : the respective friends of the bride and bridegroom may have 
 sham fight or a tug-o'-war, the latter winning as a matter of 
 urse, and the bride then being given up. Even with us to-day 
 l Church of England marriages at any rate) the friends of the 
 idegroom are placed on one side of the church and those of the 
 ide on the other, the bridegroom and his groomsmen, and the 
 ide with her bridesmaids separating themselves from them. 
 Iso, after the father (or person acting for him) has " given the 
 ide away, 1 ' he retires and leaves her with her husband, and the 
 wly-wedded pair go alone to the altar, thus showing the forma- 
 >n of a new household. 
 
 But it must have often been very inconvenient for men, 
 pecially old ones, to have to fight for their brides, and besides, 
 the number of the husbands allowed to one woman grew less, 
 e more distinct became the notion of property of each man in 
 3 wife. Hence arose the system of giving something in return 
 r the sole protection and disposal of her, and of the children 
 10m she bore, and who belonged to the owner of their mother, 
 
COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE 
 
 so, concurrently with marriage by capture, we find marriage by 
 purchase, the girls being sold by their parents to become the 
 absolute property of their husbands. But the husband did not 
 always obtain possession of her at once ; the longer the parents 
 could retain their daughter in their possession the larger were the 
 presents they could exact from the bridegroom. Sometimes he 
 would have to live with her for a time in her mother's house even 
 after he had paid for her, perhaps until she had borne him 
 a child. 
 
 The wishes of the girl herself were seldom consulted. I have 
 come across many instances in Nigeria of what was practically a 
 sale, even by Mohammedans, of young girls to old men (with 
 the natural result that they are unfaithful); and amongst many 
 pagans the conditions are even worse, cruelty often being used to 
 the girls to make them consent, especially in Australia. 
 
 It is somewhat difficult to understand such treatment by a 
 parent of his own daughter until we remember that he has been 
 well paid for her, so if he did not force her to fulfil the contract 
 he would have to return the " bride-price " as it is usually called ; 
 and this custom is still in force in many countries, of course. 
 With the Hausas, for instance, if a man induces another man's 
 wife to desert her husband and live with him, he may keep her as 
 his wife provided he pays her injured husband an amount equal 
 to that which was paid to the woman's father in the first instance. 
 
 But with those tribes who developed more in civilisation, the 
 idea of taking money for a daughter became repulsive, and, 
 though the bride-price was still exacted from the bridegroom, 
 it was given to the girl herself, eitfter for her own particular use, 
 or as a joint provision for the newly constituted family, thus 
 becoming her dower. An extra present was often given to her 
 by the husband, and in many cases a further present was exacted 
 on the birth of children. Sometimes the bride-price is paid 
 partly in kind, the suitor serving the bride's father for a fixed 
 term (as in the case of Jacob for Rachel), on the termination of 
 which and the payment of a proportionate fee the bride enters 
 her husband's family, the children born before this perhaps 
 belonging to her mother's family, And if the husband cannot 
 
DIVORCE, AND CHILD-BIRTH 
 
 y the bride-price he may have to remain in the wife's family 
 r ever, or the heads of his kindred may be made security for it, 
 else some of his children may be handed over — if not already 
 longing to the wife's mother's family. Usually, however, the 
 ildren follow the wife, and so if the husband pays up in full he 
 its his children by her, but it may happen that he takes only 
 ie boys, the girls going to his mother-in-law. 
 
 As has been said, the bride-price became the dower, repre- 
 nted at present by the marriage settlement. At first, as the 
 ife was the absolute property of her husband, everything she 
 id passed with her into his possession. But gradually presents 
 om her own people, perhaps from her husband, other than as 
 ride-price, and others, began to be looked upon as hers ab- 
 ilutely. This corresponds to the dot of France and other 
 ontinental nations, and is a contribution, generally by the wife's 
 imily or the wife herself, to assist the husband in bearing the 
 cpenses of the new household. But only the revenue belonged 
 > the husband, the corpus being inalienable by him. 
 
 It was only towards the end of the last century that English 
 usbands were prevented by the "Married Women's Property 
 Let " from taking their wives' possessions, and the women were 
 aabled to keep a hold on their own, so we must not be too hasty 
 1 judging native tribes who are backward in this and other 
 jspects. The Mohammedan laws of dower are now observed by 
 ae Filani, Hausawa, and others in Nigeria, and this is neither 
 ower nor dot since it is the wife's own property absolutely, and 
 i not given by the husband nor by the parents as a contribu- 
 ion towards household expenses, but is offered in consideration 
 f marriage, corresponding in some degree to our marriage 
 Jttlement. 
 
 And now, having given an outline of the evolution of marriage, 
 :t us proceed to examine the customs amongst the Kagoro. 
 
 The Kagoro and Moroa girls marry later than the Kajji, 
 hose brides can hardly average ten years of age. There is, how- 
 rer, no age limit, for no one knows the number of years he or 
 tie has lived, and even seasons are not noted for the purpose of 
 
 231 
 
COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE 
 
 reckoning ages, though the seed time, harvest, &c, are known, 
 for much depends on them, and in any case there is not much 
 difficulty in obtaining such elementary knowledge when rainy and 
 dry seasons are sharply defined. 
 
 The reason for the early age of brides is, of course, the desire 
 to profit as much and as often as possible by their marriages, as 
 will be explained later. Girls are nearly always chaste before 
 marriage, and even afterwards according to their ideas, and the 
 girdle of string {ivycm) worn by girls is in most cases a ti'ue sign 
 of virginity. Of course, as I was informed, " there is a thief in 
 every town," but the exceptions to the rule must be rare. When a 
 man goes to propose — or his father or guardian for him if he be a 
 minor — he probably ornaments himself by painting his face, and 
 wearing a long iron chain, if he has one, round his neck, and he 
 takes a sum of cowries, from four thousand to ten thousand, the 
 amount depending upon his station and circumstances and those 
 of the girl's family, and gives them to the prospective father-in- 
 law. His suit is often supported by friends, and if it be accepted 
 he adds a hoe, a goat, a dog, and the flesh of another goat which 
 is then eaten. He is then supposed to be betrothed, and can 
 claim his wife at once if she be a divorcee, but he must wait until 
 the next wet season if she be a virgin. 
 
 The only conditions necessary on the part of the bridegroom 
 are that he must be able to pay the bride-price (or rather his 
 father for him), and that he is adult. It is said by some that he 
 must have taken a head, as mentioned before, but that is pro- 
 bably not correct. 
 
 Though the girl has apparently no right of choice, she has 
 some right of veto — though I doubt if she would have the chance 
 of exercising it if not already married — but the father's fee must 
 be paid before she is supposed to know that she is being sought. 
 No doubt she does know in most cases, but sometimes it may 
 happen that the father will accept presents secretly from several 
 suitors, and after he has spent the money simply tell them that 
 his daughter or ward will not marry them. The Kagoro being 
 blessed with but little property, the father probably cannot, or at 
 any rate will not repay the money, so the only remedy the unsuc- 
 
 232 
 
DIVORCE, AND CHILD-BIRTH 
 
 sful suitors have in most cases is to try and capture him when 
 t hunting or farming, and keep him prisoner until he has paid ; 
 perhaps they would have sold him as a slave in earlier times, 
 however, the father stays at home he is comparatively safe, for 
 isoned arrows are fairly efficacious for keeping unwelcome 
 itors at a distance. Sooner or later his friends will prevail 
 on him to settle the quarrel, or he may be induced to appear 
 fore a court of elders. 
 
 However, when a suitor has been accepted, and has paid up in 
 1, a great amount of guinea-corn beer (akawn) is prepared by 
 i people, which on the wedding-day is taken to the house of the 
 ide's father, where the feasting and dancing are held. It seems 
 aDge that the bridegroom's family should supply the dkann ; 
 obably it is part of the bride-price. The festivities then com- 
 :nce (merely drunkenness and dancing, I understand, nothing 
 herwise objectionable takes place), and may be continued for 
 y number of days up to ten, but seldom for more than three — 
 fact until the akcmn gives out — and both the bridegroom and 
 ide partake of it. 
 
 The mother-in-law is said to give the bridegroom a bowl of 
 ans or some porridge (tuk), but no food is provided for any of 
 e guests, for they go home to their meals, returning again for the 
 arm ; it is extraordinary how people, even civilised folk, like 
 ;e beer. There seems to be no avoidance of the mother-in-law, 
 is the case with so many tribes, where the bridegroom is not 
 ly forbidden to speak to her, but must even take to flight should 
 
 by chance meet her. This is a survival from the time 
 ten the husband first visited his wife in secret at her mother's 
 use, and so it is the mother only and not the father who is tabu, 
 ough sometimes the prohibition includes several of the wife's 
 atives. Thus arises our joke — always so popular on the music- 
 11 stage — about mothers-in-law being in the way. The joke is 
 coming unintelligible to most of us, and may some day die out, 
 ough the genius required for making witty remarks about 
 unken husbands, wives with twins, and bloaters will never go 
 recognised, for England has few other topics so excruciatingly 
 i using. 
 
COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE 
 
 Marriages of virgins should take place only during the wet 
 season, after seed time is over, say between June and August. We 
 know that with ourselves "in the spring a young man's fancy 
 lightly turns to thoughts of love," and that in Brittany many 
 marriages take place on the eve of Lent. On the first day of the 
 dancing, the bride is taken to the bridegroom's house by her 
 mother, who is given two thousand cowries, or a hoe, perhaps for 
 her trouble, and by his female relatives, and is allowed to stay 
 and engage in conversation for a little while. She is then taken 
 back to her mother's house, but in the evening the bridegroom 
 follows, and sleeps with her, and the next day she again visits him. 
 Some say that she is now allowed to stay altogether, others that 
 she does not remain until the seventh day, but in any case she is 
 soon given up by her people and enters her husband's family, the 
 time probably depending on the promptness of the payment of 
 her price, though she is not quite removed from the tutelage of 
 her father. 
 
 At the end of the millet farming, the bride is given a tail, and 
 she hangs leaves in front,- these being the insignia of marriage, 
 her girdle of string having been previously removed by her 
 mother. The husband then kills a dog, and eats the head, liver, 
 entrails, and legs, those who have helped him in his suit are given 
 the throat, and the girl's father has the remainder, she herself 
 having nothing, apparently. The reason for giving the throat to 
 the friends is that they used theirs — i.e. talked — in his service, 
 and this extraordinary example of symbolism seemed to me too 
 unlikely to be true, but at the same time I think they are far too 
 unimaginative to make up such a story on the spur of the 
 moment, though there is no doubt that the native mind will 
 invent a reason for everything if given time. The marriage is now 
 complete, and the last scarification — the lines on the forehead — 
 is performed. As has been said before, a Kagoro girl cannot lose 
 her marriage lines, nor can she hide them from view. Probably, if 
 the wife be well behaved and satisfactory, the father and mother 
 will receive further presents from the husband, whose interest it is 
 to keep in with them. 
 
 Widows and divorcees may re-marry at any time of the year, 
 
 234 
 
DIVORCE, AND CHILD-BIRTH 
 
 I the procedure is much the same, except for the fact that the 
 fe may at once live with her husband. But in the very rare case 
 an unmarried girl conceiving, she would be taken to the lover's 
 use by an old man of her family, and the lover would be forced 
 marry her. In this case there is no bride-price — though a fine 
 
 damages would be exacted if possible — and no dancing and 
 inking takes place. 
 
 The first wife is the chief, and she looks after the others. She 
 i, apparently, punish them for disobedience by slapping or 
 
 other ways, and they are not allowed to retaliate. But when 
 nsidering all these rules it must be remembered that if the 
 'ender refuses to pay the penalty he or she can but rarely be 
 reed to do so, for a man would defend himself with his arms, 
 d a woman would run off to her father. A Kagoro or Kajji 
 isband's lot is not a happy one. 
 
 In earliest times, concurrently with the looseness of the mar- 
 ige tie there was naturally greater facility for breaking it. 
 ith many peoples, it is not even now necessary for the bride to 
 
 a virgin, the prospective husband sometimes even requiring a 
 oof of fertility in the woman before she became his wife (as is 
 id to be the case now in the Black Country where girls have 
 love-children "), and he would not always mind who was respon- 
 jle for the proof since the child would be his if he owned the 
 other. It is no disgrace in a Yoruba girl, I believe, to be 
 ichaste before her betrothal, and the chief of Jemaan Daroro 
 Id me that there was not a virgin in his town over the age 
 
 ten — I should have said even less. The Cow-Filani are 
 ry strict, but their sisters of the towns are rather liable to 
 pses, though they seem to take place more after marriage than 
 fore. 
 
 The primitive Arabs have been shown by Professor Robertson 
 nith to have been matrilineal, a husband being not much more 
 an a temporary lover who would go or be sent away at any time, 
 e wife keeping any child of the union. Then there grew up a 
 mporary marriage (mutaa) even now recognised by Shia Mahom- 
 edans — though not by Sunnis — which was a compact of union for 
 
 235 
 
COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE 
 
 a fixed term, becoming dissolved at the expiry of the period 
 named. 
 
 In Bengal to-day a husband may have to execute a deed 
 stipulating never to scold his wife, nor even disagree with her, 
 the penalty in each case being a divorce. 
 
 We have seen how the power of the husband over his wife 
 gradually grew to the exclusion of that of her kindred, and as the 
 notion of property in the wife developed, the husband's power of 
 divorce became greater and greater, and that of the wife less and 
 less. The most unfair laws nowadays are probably those of the 
 Mohammedans, for the husband can divorce his wife without any 
 ceremony, and for no cause, the only check being that he will 
 have to pay her her dower — which he probably still owes. On 
 the other hand, the Mohammedan wife can also have an agree- 
 ment giving her the power to divorce herself if the husband is 
 unkind to her. Even with us the sexes are not treated in exactly 
 the same way, the idea being (as is, no doubt, the case) that a 
 husband is more injured by the infidelity of his wife than the wife 
 by the misconduct of her husband, though the offence is usually 
 regarded as a civil one. 
 
 The seduction of another man's wife, though at first a matter 
 of little concern to any except the woman herself, gradually came 
 to be regarded as an injury to the husband, who had bought her 
 for his own pleasure alone. The offence does not consist in the 
 immorality, but in the damaging of the property of another, for a 
 husband can lend his wife if he likes and no harm is done, though 
 by strict Mohammedan law adulterers can be sentenced to death 
 by a Kadi. As we have seen, the Hausawa and others will take a 
 money payment, but with highly civilised nations this is rarely the 
 case, " the unwritten law " regarding the killing of the wife and 
 her paramour with a lenient eye. We in England have something 
 corresponding to the Hausa notion, accepting damages, and divorc- 
 ing the wife and letting her go off with her new lover — a proceed- 
 ing which the French, for instance, cannot understand — but in 
 India the male offender is liable to imprisonment under the Indian 
 Penal Code. Civilised nations, however, do not take things as 
 calmly as some peoples, who are said to consider it bad form to show 
 
DIVORCE, AND CHILD-BIRTH 
 
 n reluctance to the seduction of their wives though they may go 
 
 with their seducers, the latter, perhaps, in turn leaving their 
 a wives, the deserted husbands taking them in exchange. 
 
 There are other causes for divorce, however, besides infidelity ; 
 is barrenness, cruelty, and incompatibility of temper are good 
 mnds in the highest as well as in the lowest stages, and where a 
 de-price has been paid it can possibly be recovered. 
 
 When a Kagoro girl is once married, she will seldom leave her 
 sband of her own free will except on account of cruelty, im- 
 bence, or because of having borne an abnormal child. If she 
 es leave him, and the husband wants her back, he will take 
 Dther dog to his father-in-law, and ask him to persuade her to 
 ;urn to him, and this is usually done. But in some cases, 
 hough the woman herself may be quite ready to go back, her 
 ;her may not be willing to allow her to do so unless the husband 
 res more presents, and in fact, he may induce her to leave while 
 tually living with her husband so that he can exact some, 
 hen the woman has come to her father's house, the latter has 
 II power over her again, and he may give her to another man in 
 turn for a new bride-price, and refuse her to her proper husband. 
 
 this case the latter has no further power over his late wife, 
 r such an act on the part of her father acts as a divorce, and he 
 supposed to bear his supplanter no malice, though he may try 
 
 persuade her to return to him again. If all his arguments fail 
 th her, he may try to take her by force, or he may give her 
 bher a still larger present than the new one has done, and so get 
 r back again legally. 
 
 As I have said, rival husbands are supposed to feel no ani- 
 osity, but there is a belief, and probably a well-grounded one, 
 at if they meet during a raid or hunting expedition, one of 
 em (usually, if not always, the supplanter) " will be hurt by an 
 row and die." As every man has his special marks on his 
 rows, and the shaft which kills the rival is unmarked, the death 
 put down to magic ; but is it not possible that on such occasions 
 e ex-husband conveniently forgets to mark his arrow ? This, of 
 urse, applies only when one has taken the wife of another 
 agoro, for there is no bad luck involved even in the forcible 
 
COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE 
 
 seizing and keeping the wife of a man of another tribe ; on the 
 contrary it is quite proper, and all the best people do it. 
 
 In addition to the presents to the father of the girl at the time 
 a man wishes to have her as his wife, a further gift, or " child- 
 price," as it might be called, must be made to him on the birth 
 of each child, otherwise the grandfather owns them, and this 
 obtains in the Torres Straits also. I called a meeting of the 
 chiefs in 1909, and told them that as these frequent payments 
 were a source of a good many of the quarrels, on my return the 
 father would receive a present only on his daughter's marriage, 
 and that he would have to return it if the woman ran away 
 by his advice. The child-price would also be abolished, but the 
 husband would have to give a present to his wife on each occasion. 
 The chiefs readily accepted the idea at the time — though as I did 
 not return, I cannot say whether any change has been made — for 
 they saw that although they might lose as fathers, they would gain 
 as lovers (and even the oldest men are continually seeking new 
 wives), and that the woman's father would no longer wish her to 
 leave her husband, while she herself was given an incentive to stay. 
 
 Three different accounts were given me by the Kagoro of what 
 is done with the umbilicus of a newly born child, one being that 
 the part was burnt, the ashes mixed with grease, and rubbed on 
 the child's head to harden it ; another that the ashes were ground 
 and eaten with yam ; and the third, that the cord was planted at 
 the roots of yams to secure a good harvest next year. The Kagoro 
 have but few yams, and these have been imported, so the first 
 would seem to be the correct version ; but with the Moroa, the 
 third is probably the right one. In England, says Mr. Hartland, 
 witches were once supposed to steal children before baptism, and 
 to boil their bodies, part of the resulting jelly being eaten, the 
 remainder being used as an unguent for rubbing on their bodies, 
 and this was the orthodox method of acquiring magical powers. 
 The second account may, therefore, be true of the Kagoro. 
 
 If a child is still-born, cold water is thrown on the face, and 
 shovels, hoes, &c, are beaten in the vicinity — to make it hear, so 
 
DIVORCE, AND CHILD-BIRTH 
 
 ;y say, but there may be some notion of the magical properties 
 the iron— and if there are no signs of life in half-an-hour or so, 
 i child is given up for dead, and the body is buried. 
 Kagoro women will nurse their children for a couple of years, 
 jroa mothers twice that time, but as they live apart from their 
 sbands meanwhile, there are no hard and fast rules. Children 
 ; carried on their mothers' backs, and if it be only for a little 
 ile they can hang on without any artificial assistance, but if 
 go on a journey, a child is put into a sail-shaped carrier 
 ide of leather or string, one end being tied around the mother's 
 ck, and the other around her waist, so that the child's neck is 
 iide the covering, a leg protruding on each side. A Kagoro 
 )ther does not put her child's head in a bag, but she gets most 
 its body there. The Hausa child is supported by a cloth. 
 If a child be an idiot, or unable to move about, it may be 
 rown into the water, " but not killed," so they say, though it 
 mes to very much the same thing so far as the ordinary person 
 11 see. This usually happens when the child is between the ages 
 one and four, but in some cases it may be given a much longer 
 ae in the hope that it will recover and become a normal being, 
 t is evidently a snake, and not a human being," so I was told, 
 md if, after you have thrown him into the water, you go away, 
 d then come back silently and hide yourself, you will see the 
 ild lengthen out until it becomes a snake." This custom of 
 ianticide was prevalent in Jemaan Daroro, and in the sur- 
 imding districts also. Matchu, a Filani blacksmith, who 
 pplied the information, told me that his grandfather, Shobin, 
 3k an idiot boy to the river side, and made him sit with his face 
 the stream. He and the boy's father gave the boy some kunu, 
 native broth, and while he was eating it they stole away and 
 mbed a tree overlooking the river. Soon afterwards the boy 
 meed round, and, seeing no one, he began to grow until he was as 
 11 as a tree, turning at the same time into a snake. Shobin and 
 a father were terrified and ran away, the former tearing his leg 
 ainst a log during the flight, the mark, which he had to 
 5 day of his death, being, of course, an indisputable proof of the 
 •ry. It is possible that once on some former occasion when a 
 
 239 
 
CUUKTSH1F AJNJJ MAKKlAUJli 
 
 child was thrown in, a crocodile or some other monster leapt up 
 and caught him, thus terrifying the onlookers, and giving rise to 
 this myth, which really reversed the natural order. And yet, of 
 course, the child would become part of the crocodile after having 
 been digested, so perhaps, after all, the myth is correct, and 
 merely accelerates the physiological processes. 
 
 If a Moroa gives birth to an idiotic or deformed baby, 
 medicines are tried, even up to the age of ten years if 
 necessary. The mother will nurse it for some time, and if 
 it does not become normal may leave it with the father, and 
 marry some one else ; and she will never return to the house 
 while the child is alive lest its evil influence should prevent 
 her having normal issue, but she may come back after its 
 death. When the father is convinced that it is useless to 
 expect any improvement he calls in a Kagoro or Attakka 
 priest, who will throw it into the river Kaduna, but he 
 himself has to hide, for the child turns into a pillar of fire 
 and smoke, and would consume him if present. The Kagoro and 
 Attakka have much stronger "medicine" than the Moroa, so 
 they do the drowning themselves, and it is just possible, judging 
 from this and from the fact that the time of probation is so 
 long amongst the Moroa, that the Kagoro taught them the 
 custom. 
 
 Even in the changing of a human being into a pillar of fire 
 and smoke we have a parallel in English folk-lore, for we find in 
 The Science of Fairy Tales that Cranmere Pool, on Dartmoor, 
 was once a penal settlement for refractory spirits, and that many 
 of the former inhabitants of the parish were thought to be there 
 expiating their ghostly pranks, the spirit of one old farmer 
 being so obstreperous that seven clergymen were required to 
 secure him, and only then did they do so by transforming him 
 into a colt, which was given to a servant boy with instructions to 
 take it to Cranmere Pool, and slip' off the halter without looking 
 round. The boy did look, of course, and beheld the colt in the 
 form of a ball of fire plunge into the water, and the boy lost his 
 eyesight in consequence. We know what we think of the Moroa 
 myth ; I wonder what they would think of ours ! 
 
 240 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 FOOD AND DRINK 
 
 AS I have said before, the amount of filth that the European 
 takes into his system in West Africa is accountable for 
 more sickness than the mosquito, but the quantity of dirt 
 which Europeans eat and drink is easily surpassed by that which 
 finds its way into the insides of the natives, some of whom seem 
 to revel in it. Perhaps it is necessary to their digestion, as is, 
 I believe, the case with dogs, but whether necessary or not, they 
 certainly get it. 
 
 The principal articles of food in the Jemaan Daroro district, 
 so far as cereals are concerned, are maize, millet, guinea-corn, 
 and a grain called by the Hausawa atcha, which makes a dish like 
 ground rice. There are two kinds of beans, the seeds of one 
 variety being mixed with red earth when being sown, though 
 I could not ascertain for what reason, and of other vegetables 
 there are yams, though these are scarce, sweet potatoes, okroes, 
 manihots, tomatoes (a small wild variety resembling berries), 
 and onions. 
 
 Ground-nuts and other nuts make good soup, and palm-oil is 
 always a welcome addition to a dish, even Europeans revelling in 
 " palm-oil chop," which looks like an Irish stew mixed with red 
 furniture polish, chop here meaning food, and not a cutlet ; 
 while kola-nuts are being introduced, though they are still very 
 scarce. 
 
 Of fruits there are the paw-paw, the banana, and the edible 
 parts of the fan-palm, which taste something like mangoes, and a 
 few limes. Pineapples are not found, though they are to be bought 
 in Lokoja, and in fact, fruit is very scarce in Northern Nigeria 
 generally, even limes and bananas being unprocurable in many 
 districts. Pepper is grown and sold, salt is bought from traders, 
 
 241 o. 
 
FOOD AND DRINK 
 
 or else guinea-corn or other stalks are burnt to produce a saline 
 condiment ; and honey, black and watery, is obtained from wild 
 or domesticated bees. 
 
 Of meats there are the small rat and mouse, and the bat, all 
 of which are said to be very good in soup ; beef, stolen from the 
 Filani should any be about and not particularly watchful ; the 
 red kob and other species, though I have never seen any myself 
 in the Kagoro district, the last having been killed some time 
 ago, I should imagine ; and lastly, the goat, the sheep, and the 
 dog, the latter a very favourite and ceremonial food. The 
 guinea-fowl and francolin do not seem to be eaten though 
 they are found in the district, but the fowl is kept for 
 sacrifices and for feasts. There are several kinds of fish in 
 the rivers, the best eating being what the Hausawa call 
 tarwada, a comical-looking creature with long whiskers. 
 
 Flour, water, and sometimes a bitter herb, may be cooked and 
 made into a kind of weak soup, and this may be drunk at any 
 time, though it is generally prepared in the morning. For lunch, 
 flour and cold water usually suffice — a cold comfort on a wet 
 day, but very appetising when on the march in a hot sun, 
 apparently. After sunset, flour is cooked into a kind of pud- 
 ding or porridge, and is eaten with meat and soup, and any oil 
 and spices which may be obtainable. 
 
 The morning and evening meals are the only ones which are 
 cooked, and the former are often not hot, especially when on 
 the march, the remains of the previous night's repast being 
 polished off to save trouble. But, needless to say, the people 
 will eat at all and any times when there is something to be got ; 
 their appetites never fail them. Cooked meat is carried when 
 going on a journey, and some dry flour tc* be mixed with water, 
 and as these and other things are put in a bag together, the mess 
 produced is one which many a pet dog in England would turn up 
 his nose at — and I should not blame him. I have tasted many of 
 their soups, but I never did more than taste them, for they all 
 seemed very bitter ; the meat I never attempted — even Hausawa 
 will eat flesh absolutely rotten, often not even troubling to 
 cook it. 
 
 242 
 
FOOD AND DRINK 
 
 The head-hunting tribes in the Nassarawa province do not 
 keep cattle, but some of the people over the Bauchi border do, 
 even though they do not milk them, and this rather surprises one, 
 for the land gives very good pasturage. When the people happen 
 to be quiet, the Filani graze on the lands, and always have a good 
 sale for their butter and milk, all the natives seeming to be 
 staunch advocates of the sour milk cure, and when this is mixed 
 with flour and water the absolute pinnacle of gourmandism is 
 reached. 
 
 A white earth is sometimes eaten as a charm to secure easy 
 child-birth, but there seems to be nothing else in this way used as 
 food, except for the ash mentioned above. 
 
 In times of great famine the roots of a small plant are pounded 
 up and cooked with ashes and water, or oil if available, and there 
 are a few other articles used at such times, though despised when 
 the ordinary food-stuffs are obtainable. I am not sure if the head- 
 hunters eat worms, but I suppose they do. Sir Harry Johnston 
 says that in Liberia some women eat the lice out of each other's 
 heads, that delicacy being the perquisite for doing duty as barber. 
 I do not know if the same holds good in Northern Nigeria, but I 
 should not be surprised to find that it does amongst Yoruba 
 people, for they will eat anything. 
 
 By the way, that reminds me that one day, when having'the 
 rest-house repaired, I went up to see how the work was progressing, 
 being accompanied by Ajai, the Yoruba Court Messenger whom 
 I have mentioned before. I was talking to the Mada(i)ki, who 
 was in charge of the work, when suddenly Ajai made a dart at a 
 large stone, rolled it over, and begaA cramming things into his 
 mouth with evident satisfaction. I looked, and to my horror 
 saw that he was eating live insects like cockroaches, and, turning 
 to the Mada(i)ki, expressed my opinion of Ajai in no polite 
 terms. " These Yoruba wa," said the great man, with a gesture 
 of supreme disgust, " would eat anything ; / should not eat those 
 cockroaches unless they were cooked." 
 
 All these tribes are very good agriculturists, the Moroa being 
 perhaps the best, and they raise a good deal of guinea-corn and 
 millet every year, but unfortunately they make most of it into 
 
 243 
 
FOOD AND DRINK 
 
 beer — or as they call it, dkann — so that from June to October 
 they are usually in a state of semi-starvation, and have nothing to 
 eat but some bitter roots and what they can buy or steal. It is, 
 as far as these peoples are concerned (and I am referring only to 
 them), a pity that the importation of liquor is prohibited, for they 
 will drink, whatever we do, and if they had the chance to obtain 
 gin (which would be much less harmful than akwrm in the opinion 
 of the Committee of Inquiry into the Liquor Trade in Southern 
 Nigeria) they might be able to keep their grain for food, the want 
 of which is the greatest incentive to robbing their neighbour's 
 supplies. I do not say that it is better for a native to get drunk 
 than not to get drunk, though I am strongly of opinion that one 
 " tot " of whisky or gin after sunset is beneficial to a European in 
 the tropics. I only say that since these pagans will get themselves 
 into a glorious state of hilarity on every possible occasion, it is 
 better that they should be able to do so by buying a special 
 liquor than by using up their food-stuffs, and thus be forped to 
 depend on robbery for their livelihood, especially if that special 
 liquor is less harmful in its effects on their systems. And as far 
 as the importation of strong drinks into Northern Nigeria is con- 
 cerned, a good deal is smuggled over the border all along the 
 boundary line, and even up the Niger, as I know myself from 
 experience at Lokoja ; and it seems rather absurd that, since there 
 are profits, the traders should reap them instead of the Govern- 
 ment, especially as a good deal of the stuff would not be used for 
 consumption at all, but for currency as in Southern Nigeria. But 
 when the liquor is consumed the object is not necessarily evil, for 
 Sir Harry Johnston says that the use of trade-gin in the interior 
 of Liberia, as in other parts of West Africa, seems to be much 
 more medicinal than anything else. 
 
 The Mohammedans as a whole would be against the introduc- 
 tion of liquor, in theory at any rate, but all are not alike, for 
 though very strict in many parts, in others their influence in this 
 respect seems to be negligible. The Sa(r)rikin Jemaa thought 
 himself very strict, and was always lecturing his son, the Mada(i)ki, 
 who was often drunk, but even he seemed to have a good many 
 colds which could be cured only by frequent doses of whisky. 
 
FOOD AND DRINK 
 
 soon got tired of being his doctor, and after about the tenth 
 ne sent him a couple of pills instead, and these I suppose cured 
 m — at least he had no more of those peculiar colds. Jemaan 
 aroro was a very drunken and immoral place, and I fear that 
 e principal cause was the fact that carriers employed by 
 iropeans were passing through continually with too much 
 aney to spend. That, I think, is the worst aspect of our 
 ministration ; we overpay all the natives so greatly that they 
 ivays have plenty to spend on vice, and since there is a demand, 
 d at a high price, a supply is soon found. 
 
 Every compound has its own storehouses, some of which are 
 ilt inside the houses, some outside, and the wife in charge of 
 ch house looks after the food supplies of her own particular 
 ogeny. Cooking is done by the women in the courtyard between 
 e houses, which is always in the shape of an irregular circle, the 
 ors of each house opening towards the centre. 
 
 Men and women eat their food separately. In the case of the 
 •mer, four or more sit round a calabash or two (one containing 
 2 porridge, the other the soup or meat), and each man dips in 
 e hand and scoops out a handful in turn ; they say that they 
 ; spoons, or in their absence the right hand only, for this pur- 
 se, but both statements are only partially true, if indeed there 
 my rule in the matter at all, for I have seen them act other- 
 se. The women are less sociable, or, rather, are more strictly 
 ltrolled, for after having given the men their food they retire 
 o their houses, and each woman eats with her own daughters 
 i young sons if she has any, otherwise alone. 
 
 The blood of slaughtered beasts is caught in a calabash, and 
 then cooked with the fat from the region of the stomach, 
 i eaten hot. The Hausawa let theirs get cold, and sell it 
 the markets cut into cubes like loaf-sugar — and a filthy sweet- 
 at it looks. But after all, sausages of pig's blood are eaten 
 England! The head-hunting tribes have no markets, the 
 rest approach to anything of the kind being an exchange by 
 iers who are usually under the protection of the chief at first, 
 )f any one ; they sleep in his compound, or in a special house 
 itted to them by him, and may barter some of their wares in 
 
 245 
 
FOOD AND DRINK 
 
 his compound before their departure next day. When the district 
 has become quite pacified, or the traders have become friendly 
 with other members of the tribe, they have greater freedom, both 
 in their business and in their place of residence and length of 
 sojourn, and as a desire for strange articles usually springs up 
 very quickly in the human breast, the traders are made welcome. 
 Still, there are exceptions, for even friendly and quiet tribes may 
 misbehave occasionally — two Jemaan Daroro men being murdered 
 after I had arrested the chief of Ambel, it will be remembered — 
 or conservatives like the Kagoro may refuse to develop new tastes, 
 and in those cases even the ubiquitous Hausa does not make much 
 headway. In England, too, the foreign merchants were once the 
 special care of the king, and a good deal of the special law and 
 speedy method of justice applicable to them can still be traced in 
 our legal system, for the English king protected them from his 
 subjects in order that he himself might plunder them all the more 
 successfully. 
 
 And the mention of England has made me remember how 
 delicious the fresh bread and butter taste in this country, especially 
 after the sodden loaves and rancid grease (the Hausawa are right 
 in calling the local butter by this name) of West Africa. The 
 beef also is good, very good, perhaps the best in the world ; but I 
 have never yet tasted a saddle of mutton that could equal those 
 of my own country, Australia. 
 
 Honey, water, and millet flour is a favourite drink, its Hausa 
 name of buza being rather suggestive, and palm-wine is drunk to 
 some extent, but the best appreciated liquor, and the one which 
 is the most important ceremonially, is a beer made from guinea- 
 corn, called dkann by the Kagoro and pito by us. 
 
 The method of making the first is as follows. Water and 
 honey are boiled up together, and are then left to cool, after 
 which flour is added, and the mixture is well stirred. When 
 this has been done the liquor is poured off into pots which are 
 closed with small calabashes or other articles, and mud is 
 plastered over the points of contact, to make the whole air- 
 tight. The pots are then placed near the fire, and after having 
 been warmed for two or three days the liquor will be ready for 
 
 246 
 
FOOD AND DRINK 
 
 inking. Palm-wine is, of course, obtained from one or other 
 the palm trees in the vicinity, and for this an incision is made 
 ar the top of the tree, and a pot with a narrow neck is placed 
 derneath, the stream being guided to it by a short, hollow stick 
 bamboo. The Kagoro say that if the pots be closed up the 
 ae can be kept for a month, but I have never known any 
 tive to keep it for more than a day, and I do not think that 
 y head-hunter in this part would be able to set such an example 
 abstinence. When freshly drawn, palm-wine is very refreshing, 
 ninding me of Chile beer, though without being so sweet or so 
 t as that beverage, but when it is stale it is rather bitter and 
 it, and leaves anything but a pleasant taste in the mouth 
 ;erwards. 
 
 Akann is prepared by soaking guinea-corn in water for a 
 uple of days ; after that it is poured into pots which are closed 
 
 with leaves of a tree resembling the banana, and left from five 
 six days, and, when thoroughly dry, it is ground and put by. 
 hen the feast is some three days off, water is filtered through 
 3 flour into pots, where it is boiled for two days, and, after 
 ving been left to cool for a night, it is ready for drinking, heated 
 >nes being perhaps dipped into .the liquid to make it ferment. 
 
 I do not think any offerings are made of ordinary food — beer, 
 ih, and blood being the only delicacies favoured by the spirits 
 parently, but the Hausas always spit out some of the kola-nut 
 
 to the ground as an offei'ing. This probably corresponds 
 European practices, for in Germany up to the end of the 
 hteenth century some of the porridge from the table was 
 •own into the fire, and some into running water, some was 
 ried in the earth, and some smeared on leaves and put on the 
 mney-top for the winds. Relics of this ancient sacrifice can be 
 ind in Scandinavia to-day according to Professor Tylor ; French- 
 men throw away a spoonful of milk or bouillon, and German 
 >ers say that heel-taps are a devil's offering. Possibly our 
 torn of leaving something on the plate "for manners" has 
 imilar origin. 
 
 There seem to be no restrictions on the amount or the kind 
 food eaten by adults or children, or by males and females, 
 
 247 
 
FOOD AND DRINK 
 
 except with regard to fowls and dogs ; each person seems to eat 
 as much as he can get, whenever he can get it. 
 
 The Hausawa introduced the tobacco, as the name shows (taba 
 in both languages), but now a little is grown by the Kagoro 
 themselves and by other head-hunters, and I saw quite extensive 
 fields of it on the Kamerun boundary to the south of the Muri 
 province in 1907. 
 
 The Kagoro and even the Jemaan Daroro people smoke it 
 with ash of atcha, or with potash, not only to make it go further, 
 but to improve its flavour, though the smoke from potash would 
 be extremely unpleasant, I should think. Pipes are made of wood 
 or metal, the former being carved by themselves ; but the latter 
 are bought from blacksmiths, and are very ill-balanced and 
 unsatisfactory to all appearances. All pipes are passed from 
 mouth to mouth. Some of the Jaba wooden pipes are a yard 
 in length, and have two wooden legs, a couple of inches long, 
 below the bowl, to rest on the ground. A greater quantity of 
 tobacco is said to be smoked at beer-feasts than at other times, 
 but I could not hear of any peculiar rites, though women are not 
 supposed to smoke. 
 
 Tobacco is also snuffed as a remedy for headache, and coils 
 of the fragrant weed are used to cure other ills and grievances, . 
 for they are one of the various forms of currency in the district — 
 and money is a wonderful medicine. 
 
CHAPTER XIX 
 
 MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 HEARD only one Kagoro song — this particular ditty came 
 
 originally from the Attakka, I believe — it being sung by a 
 
 youth who walked past my tent accompanying himself on a 
 
 :d auto-harp. The words, as usual, preferred to events which one 
 
 pects in a problem-play. These auto-harps are common in the 
 
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 *33 
 
 ?$m 
 
 ^ 
 
 n 
 
 z=h 
 
 sm 
 
 rz)~. 
 
 stern part of Northern Nigeria. I have seen them at Amar 
 luri) as well as in Jemaan Daroro. They are made of stiff 
 sds some eighteen inches in length, placed side by side, and 
 :ed in position by being plaited with smaller strips of the same 
 iterial. From each reed three strips are cut, but only partially, 
 
 order to leave them still adhering at each end, and these strips 
 rm the strings. They are separated from the reeds by a bridge 
 
 each end, and may be bound around with finer strips, these 
 iembling the bass wires of a piano, while by sliding separate 
 lgs of the same material up and down, the strings could be 
 ned. The plaiting is carried right round to the back of the 
 to-harp so as to make a kind of stiff bag, and this, which forms 
 e sounding-board, is filled with seeds, the player shaking the 
 strument to make them rattle while he is twanging the strings, 
 skilful musician can get quite a pretty melody out of it, but I 
 uld not manage to do so, although I could play an ordinary 
 to-harp. 
 
 The Kagoro, and many others also, make flutes from guinea- 
 rn stalks, the notes being pure and liquid in some cases. I 
 ard only one tune in Fada Kagoro, and it was played in thirds 
 d fifths, but whether by one or two musicians I cannot say, for 
 lid not see them. I should think, however, that there must 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 have been two, for on all the other occasions I have heard these 
 flutes only one note has been played at a time. 
 
 At Mersa, a Kajji town, I saw (and heard) a dance on three 
 occasions, two being for my own benefit, and one for that of a 
 chief whom I had just appointed. One Sunday morning two of 
 us were encamped in the town, and while drowsing in our tents 
 (I always believe in taking it easy on that day if possible, else 
 one is stale all the week) we heard sounds like those of an organ 
 in the distance, and, between sleeping and waking, the mosquito 
 curtain became a wall paper, and I imagined myself in some beauti- 
 ful country village on a summer's morning, listening dreamily to a 
 voluntary being played in a church next door. ... I think that 
 I must have settled down for another sleep, when I was rudely 
 brought back to West Africa by a Bature, ba, ha tashi yau ba ? 
 (" O Whiteman, are you not going to get up to-day ? "), and I 
 saw at my side the black face of my boy with anxiety written all 
 over it — not on account of my health, be it understood, but 
 because he wished to get his work done. That, of course, dis- 
 pelled the illusion, and I had to get up, for I always try to be 
 punctual, even on Sundays within limits, for after all one must 
 consider the dependents to some extent ; they have no chance 
 of working satisfactorily for an unpunctual master. 
 
 I found out afterwards that there was a funeral a couple of 
 miles off, and as the concluding ceremonies had then taken place, 
 I had missed a chance of seeing them, but when I visited the 
 place again, I ordered the chief to have a special performance for 
 my benefit, and this, of course, he did. 
 
 The band first arrived and placed themselves in a circle, tire*" 
 instruments being a big drum, a small one, and several curved 
 horns of the antelope from two to three feet long, each having a 
 hole in one side near the point, converting it into the mouth- 
 piece, and some eight to twelve inches of hollow gourd fastened 
 
 250 
 
s 
 
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 X 
 
 u 
 
 X 
 
 < 
 
 X 
 
 a 
 
■r MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 to the other end to lengthen it. The big drum resembled those 
 used by us, though it was only about one-quarter the size, but 
 the smaller one may have a skin large enough to be beaten on 
 one side only, the body coming almost to a point underneath — 
 resembling a true kettledrum, in fact — or else it may be a tom- 
 tom with sides straight or curved like an hour-glass. The latter 
 is furnished with strings connecting the two rounds of parchment, 
 pressure on which will alter the note, and these drums are, there- 
 fore, particularly useful for signalling purposes. 
 
 m 
 
 ^e 
 
 i- 
 
 ^ 
 
 =3 
 
 
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 *=E 
 
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 5 
 
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 n r 4 i 
 
 =i= 
 
 A few of the players performed solos on their horns, and got 
 sounds resembling those of a violin out of them, so close were the 
 intervals, though a French horn would, on the whole, represent 
 the tone better. While playing, a soloist would go through the 
 most extraordinary contortions, turning himself almost inside out 
 in his anxiety to reach the right note, so after about a quarter of 
 an hour most of them were bathed in perspiration. Music is 
 evidently a serious business with them, and not to be lightly 
 undertaken. After standing in a circle for some time, the band 
 goes through a few simple evolutions, the big drummer advancing 
 towards the centre and then marching around a few times, being 
 followed by the side-drummer and horn-players in turn, and all 
 halt in front of the person especially honoured, and kneel to 
 receive his reward. They never forget that part, and quite 
 rightly too. 
 
 There were no words to this Kajji music, but soon the people 
 began to be excited by the wild harmonies, and joined in, 
 marching round and round the band, taking three steps forward, 
 
 251 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 and then one backwards. The older men and women danced 
 singly, and though the men simply walked sedately, it was 
 amusing to see the contrast between them and their partners 
 of the weaker sex, who took quite a pride in their movements, 
 balancing themselves with their hands out while stepping back- 
 wards and forwards, and enjoying themselves to the utmost. A 
 specially good dancer may perform a pas seul, and one, in doing 
 so, became so much excited that she rushed to where I was sitting 
 and tried to put her arms around me, greatly to the amusement 
 of the onlookers. She almost took me by surprise, and I only 
 escaped by putting up my feet, and by waving my stick at her. 
 And lest this should seem ungallant, let me say I did not relish 
 the idea of having clean ducks ruined by a mixture of perspira- 
 tion and red earth with which she had made herself beautiful for 
 the occasion. However, a dip into my bag of " tenths " (nickel 
 coins, ten to a penny) satisfied her, and she was as gay as ever 
 a minute afterwards, threatening others with like favours (or 
 penalties) unless bought off with similar bribes. 
 
 Young people dance in twos and threes, or even in fours, one 
 walking close behind the other, and catching hold under the arms 
 of the person in front, and all keeping exact time. Mothers may 
 dance singly and carry their babies behind on their backs or on 
 their shoulders while doing so, and most of the women wag their 
 tongues from side to side and squeal while dancing, this sound, 
 which is also used as an alarm on account of its piercing qualities, 
 being known to the Hausawa as Kururua. 
 
 The dance, like the music, is also a solemn performance, and 
 though the people get worked up after a while, the exercise is not 
 violent nor joyous, and there seems to be no pleasure in either as 
 we would regard it. Still, many do become excited, and no 
 doubt there is some underlying motive which is not apparent 
 to the ordinary observer, probably connected with religion, the 
 notes and steps having a special significance understood only by 
 the natives themselves. The fact that the music and dancing also 
 form part of the funeral rites lends weight to this supposition, 
 and it should not be a strange one to us, for dancing has long 
 been known as a religious rite. It is, therefore, rather amusing 
 
 252 
 
"3 
 
 
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 Q 
 
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 S.-g 
 
 "^ hi) 
 
 §.s 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 hear clergymen denouncing it, though, of course, in many cases 
 i present form bears but little resemblance to the old, where 
 cept in the case of the Jews, who were naked before the golden 
 f) the sexes danced apart. 
 
 Dancing has been known from early antiquity. The Bible 
 ntions it repeatedly, for the Jews indulged in it when they 
 erged from the Red Sea, and also when they made the golden 
 f. The young maids of Shiloh were thus occupied in the fields 
 en surprised and carried off by the youths of the tribe of 
 njamin, and David " danced before the Lord with all his 
 ght." In fact, we are told in the last Psalm to praise God 
 nth timbrel and dance," and we sing that still. In all these 
 ies the dance was an expression of praise and thanksgiving, and 
 are are modern instances of its use for religious purposes, the 
 inse Macabre, or Dance of Death, being, according to Professor 
 r lor, a kind of pious pantomime of death performed in churches 
 ring the fifteenth century. The reason for the iname was that 
 i rite of the Mass for the Dead was distinguished by the reading 
 
 the portion in Book II. of the Maccabees, which refers to the 
 ayer of the people that the sins of those who had been slain 
 long them might be blotted out. Every year, in the parish 
 urch of Musgrave, in Westmorland, there is a dance which is 
 rformed by twelve young maidens, chosen T by the vicar, who are 
 orned with garlands of flowers. Led by a band, they dance to 
 e church, where they hang their garlands, which are to be left 
 ere till the following year, and, after prayers and lessons, more 
 ncing is indulged in, even in the church itself. And such scenes 
 i frequently seen in continental cities, the ballet performed 
 
 the Seville Cathedral, during the Corpus Christi festival, by 
 ys, dressed in ancient costumes, being perhaps the most 
 table. 
 
 Sometimes there is a medicinal virtue in the ceremony, for 
 Southern India and Ceylon the devil-dancers work themselves 
 to paroxysms so as to obtain the inspiration necessary to cure 
 eir patients, and others practise divination and give oracles 
 tile in this condition. A Highland shepherd of Strathspey is 
 ated to have had such healing powers, he having cured his own 
 
 253 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 mistress by dancing a reel with her, and afterwards many of the 
 humbler patients by whom he was continually besieged, and, 
 scorning to belittle his powers in any way, he, with the usual 
 Scotch forethought, managed to die a rich man. 
 
 I am not quite sure under what category the Bori dancing of 
 the Hausas should come, the meaning given to bori in Canon 
 Robinson's Dictionary being " an evil spirit," " a demon," or " a 
 delirious person." But it may mean rather the rites and cere- 
 monies of a certain sect or society, the members of which — the 
 Masubori, as they are called — simulate the behaviour of insane 
 persons, and the condition of frenzy into which they are thrown. 
 I think myself that " hallucination " is a satisfactory equivalent. 
 
 Bori dancing is said by Dr. Alexander to have originated in 
 the Hausa States, at some time previous to the introduction of 
 Islam. At first it was a treatment for the insane, but later on, 
 it was degraded into the teaching and practice of an objection- 
 able form of dancing, though the origin was still apparent, since 
 the actions of the dance simulated different forms of insanity. 
 One of his informants told him that Bori first appeared in a 
 small village at the foot of a hill near to Bebeji, on the Zaria- 
 Kano road, but another held that it was started in Jega, a town 
 near Eano, on the Sokoto road. At any rate Gorje, the present 
 head of all the Masubori (the Sa{ryrikin Bori) now lives at Jega, 
 and all the Bori heads, on appointment as such, go there also. 
 
 The following are the different kinds or divisions of Bori, 
 each simulating some kind of insanity, and every Maibori 
 ("actor" or "dancer," or "person possessed"), who may be 
 either a male or a female, in most cases will profess one or 
 more : — 
 
 (1) Bori Dan Sa(r)riki ("Hallucination of being a Prince"). 
 The principal actor does not dance, but remains seated, crying 
 because his supposed father has not given him a present, or a 
 " dash " (from the Dutch dasje, " a small piece of cloth "), as the 
 expression is. The other Masubori salute him as a son of a chief, 
 stand when he stands, and pay him the other usual marks of 
 respect. 
 
 (2) Bori Sa(r)riJcin Rafi ("Hallucination of being Head of 
 
 254 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 the River," i.e. Chief of the Fishermen, Boatmen, &c). He 
 pretends to be spearing fish all the time. We know of anglers 
 even in England — well, perhaps there is no connection. 
 
 (3) Bori Dan Ga(l)ladima ("Hallucination of being a Prince"). 
 He is the highest judge of the sect, appeals being brought to him 
 from the Court of the Wanzami. If he agrees with the decision 
 of the latter, he remains seated ; if not, he jumps up and falls 
 down three times, and then he gives his decision. These first 
 three are the highest in the order, and are treated by other 
 members of the sect as if they were really what they pretended 
 to be. 
 
 (4) Bori Wanzami (" Hallucination of being a Barber"). He 
 does not dance, but pretends to be sharpening his knife or razor, 
 and to be shaving the head of the Dan Ga(l)ladima. He is the 
 Alkalin-bori ("Judge of the sect," the word "Alkalin" being 
 really al kadi na), and is consulted by the members, all of whom 
 respect his decisions. 
 
 (5) Bori Kure ("Hallucination of being a Hyena"). He 
 goes on all-fours, and pretends to be looking for goats — which, 
 with the dogs, are the natural prey of that beast. 
 
 (6) Bori Mallam Alhaji (" Hallucination of being a Learned 
 Man and a Pilgrim "). He is present at all marriages within the 
 sect. He pretends to be old and shaky, and to be counting his 
 beads with the right hand, and to be looking at a book supposed 
 to be held in his left, coughing weakly all the time. 
 
 (7) Bori Bebe (" Hallucination of being a Deaf Mute "). He 
 sits alone, with tears running down his cheeks, but makes no 
 sound. 
 
 (8) Bori Sa(r)rikm Filani (" Hallucination of being a Chief of 
 the Filani "). He goes round with his staff counting his imagi- 
 nary heads of cattle, and then presents himself to the Dan 
 Ga(l)ladima. 
 
 (9) Bori Gwari ("Hallucination of being a Gwari Man") 
 He wanders about, carrying a load of rubbish on his back, after 
 the manner of the members of this pagan tribe, whose country is 
 to the south-west of Zaria. 
 
 (10) Bori Sa(r}riJcm Bdkka (" Hallucination of being a Chief 
 
 255 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 of the Bow," i.e. a Principal Huntsman). He moves about as if 
 stalking and shooting game. 
 
 (11) Bori Tsuguna ("Hallucination of Squatting"). He lies 
 on the ground, according to Dr. Alexander. It may be that he 
 imagines himself to be a dog or a monkey, both of which are 
 known as " squatters," probably the former, considering the next 
 division. Thus a proverb goes, " The squatting is not finished if 
 you buy a monkey when you sell your dog," i.e. the matter is not 
 to be settled in that way. 
 
 (12) Bori Birri ("Hallucination of being a Monkey"). He 
 climbs trees like this animal. 
 
 (13) Bori Jradu. It is rather difficult to render Bori by 
 " hallucination " here, so perhaps I am wrong. I rather think, 
 though, that some word is understood, and that the person 
 imagines himself either to cause the thunderstorm (Jradu) or 
 to be the spirit of it, for he gets into the possessed state only 
 during a storm. 
 
 (14) Bori Kaikai. This might also be explained in a similar 
 way, kaikai meaning " the itch." The person is always scratching 
 his body. 
 
 (15) and (16) The Bori Kuruma and the Bori Inna both 
 pretend that they are afflicted, the former with deafness, the 
 latter with some other defect, perhaps stuttering. 
 
 (17) Bori Mai Jan Chikki ("Hallucination of being the 
 drawer along of the Stomach"). He crawls with his belly on 
 the ground, like a snake. 
 
 (18) Bori Mai Jan Rua (" Hallucination of having red Water," 
 or else, " of bringing up water "). He behaves as if he had fever, 
 and is covered with a black cloth, which is flapped to and fro to 
 fan him. Under this treatment his stomach gradually swells, and 
 eventually he vomits and then recovers. 
 
 (19) Bori Kuturu ("Hallucination of being a Leper"). He 
 sits like a leprotic beggar, and hides his legs, pretending that 
 they have been amputated at the knee-joint. His fingers are also 
 contracted like those of a leper, and he holds his cap in one hand, 
 begging for money. 
 
 (20) Bori Janjare or Janzirri. I am not quite sure of the 
 
 256 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 aning of this. Canon Robinson gives the meaning of janzirri 
 " an evil spirit." I rather think that the word is a corruption 
 hanzirri, "a hog," especially considering the habits of this 
 mal. Dr. Alexander says that this is the worst form of Bori, 
 1 is almost akin to insanity. If not forcibly prevented, the 
 rson possessed will rush round looking for all kinds of filth, and 
 ;ing it, also rubbing the body with it, though an onion pushed 
 
 the mouth at once is said to be an effectual cure. Perhaps 
 ought to be noted that some of the ingredients of the medicine 
 ■ small-pox are very nauseating, at any rate in Jemaan Daroro, 
 d that many people will rub dirt on their bodies to make them- 
 ves repulsive — especially women when afraid of capture — so the 
 >a is not so horrible to the Hausa as it is to us. 
 
 (21) Bori Bardi ("Hallucination of being an important 
 rson," perhaps from the word meaning "cavalry"). He is 
 rays in the forefront of the dancers. 
 
 After the conquest of the Hausa States by the Mohammedan 
 lani, at the beginning of last century, Bori was forbidden in 
 e large cities. But though any one practising it was severely 
 igged for a first offence, and perhaps put to death for a second, 
 still flourished in the smaller towns and villages. Later on, it 
 is recognised and tolerated even in the cities, for a special tax 
 i the Masubori was levied annually, the amount ranging from 
 100 to 200,000 cowries for each town, the value of the cowrie 
 .rying from 4000 to one shilling in Ilorin to about one quarter 
 
 that number in Bornu. It is not quite certain who reaped 
 e benefit of this tax, but probably it was divided amongst the 
 liefs and headmen, and was more in the nature of a bribe 
 
 1 ignore the practices than a properly authorised source of 
 venue. After our occupation, it developed a more legal 
 rm, but serious steps are now being taken to abolish the per- 
 rmances. 
 
 It is amongst the Hausa, Nupe, and Egbirra people that Bori 
 
 held most in favour. There is another kind also, called 
 
 waga, amongst the Kanuri of Bornu, which seems to be purely 
 
 state of hysteria in some cases, of fever or other sickness 
 
 257 a 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 due to exposure in others, the attack being described as com- 
 mencing with a fit of shivering, after which the skin becomes 
 hot, especially in the case of one who has sat under a tree, or near 
 to water, where a bad spirit lives. A case illustrating this came 
 to Dr. Alexander's notice, a soldier's wife being admitted to 
 hospital with a temperature of 103'6°. The woman's eyes were 
 staring, and she pretended at first to be unable to speak, 
 although quite conscious of what was said to her. The fit 
 passed away very quickly after her admission, and her tempera- 
 ture yielded to the usual quinine treatment for malaria, so the 
 case was diagnosed as such. I was asked to see a Hausa woman 
 in Jemaan Daroro, who was so badly possessed with Bon that 
 she could not be brought out of her fit. I threatened her with 
 imprisonment, for she was shrieking and disturbing the peace 
 generally, and there was an immediate improvement, so I have 
 no doubt that in the Hausa form also hysteria plays a great part. 
 At the same time, I am far from saying that the whole thing is a 
 pretence, in fact I am sure it is not so. 
 
 Bori seems to have originated as a treatment for insanity, as 
 has been mentioned before, the idea being that those who were 
 really insane would be thereby less likely to commit acts of 
 violence. It must be remembered that lunatics are never shut 
 up amongst these pagan peoples, being regarded as people 
 specially set apart by the gods. Extended study may determine 
 the relationship between Bori proper and epileptic fits. Later 
 on the treatment was adopted by a class called K(irua (consisting 
 of males and females who would amongst us be called "very 
 fast ") in order to attract more attention. And later still, young 
 children, generally girls, who were not thriving, or who were 
 criminally or morbidly inclined, were subjected to the influence, 
 being supposed to be possessed of some evil spirit which had to 
 be exorcised. To be accused of Bori, therefore, is not necessarily 
 a disgrace, though many men have objected to their wives 
 practising it. Any one of any age may learn it on payment of 
 the usual fees, so the right to initiation is not hereditary, i.e. there 
 is no strictly observed caste of Masubori. 
 
 The initiation, or treatment, may be carried out at the house 
 
 258 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 the District Head of the sect — the Ajenge — or even at that of 
 ; patient, except among the Nupe tribe. In addition to the 
 tion fee, the amount of which varies according to the circum- 
 nces of the candidate, the following are necessary : — A house 
 • the sole use of the initiate and tutor, a shelter for the Maigoge 
 le of the musicians, as explained later), a large new jar, four 
 vh (a white cock and hen, a red cock, and a black hen), money 
 
 the Uwar Tuo (literally, " mother of porridge ") who supplies 
 i food, three grass mats — one each for the candidate, the 
 %igoge, and the Uwar Tuo — one large ram, one small black 
 -goat, one white cloth, and one black cloth. 
 
 Some days are auspicious, others not apparently, and so a 
 isultation takes place between the Ajenge and the Maigoge in 
 ler to fix the date (always a Friday) on which to commence 
 ; treatment. When this has been done, the Ajenge goes alone 
 ;o the bush, and collects the necessary herbs and bark, the 
 mber of ingredients varying from forty-eight to one hundred 
 I two, depending upon the season of the year and the part of 
 j country. The Ajenge returns the same day, and keeps the 
 tterial collected in his house for three days, after which it is 
 t out in the sun. Then the bark is stripped off the wood, and 
 t on one side, the remainder being put into a new pot together 
 th pepper of two kinds, and onions, and on this water is poured 
 i left for two days. The water is then poured off, boiled, 
 sed with millet flour, and made into a pap, which is put back 
 o the pot and stirred up with the medicines there. After two 
 ys more the treatment will begin. 
 
 The bark, which had been placed on one side, is pounded up 
 a mortar, and by a process of fanning is divided into fine and 
 irse. The former is given by the Ajenge to any Masubori who 
 y be present, to be kept by them for curing any one possessed 
 Bori, the powder being placed on hot coal, when the fumes will 
 ise the patient to sneeze, and so recover. The coarse powder is 
 sed with atcha, and made into a firm porridge. 
 
 All is now ready, and the candidate enters the house, clothed 
 white — the hairy parts of the body being shaved in a man, the 
 r being teased out in a woman — and accompanied by a couple 
 
 259 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 of selected tutors, or perhaps by only one. The firm porridge is 
 emptied out on to a part of the floor, and every morning the 
 candidate kneels and eats it, without using the hands, and so 
 acquires the power of being able to fall without hurting himself. 
 
 No reliable account could be obtained of what happened in 
 the house, nor of the ceremonies performed there, but there is 
 always music outside, the Maigoge and the Maikiddan Kwaria 
 playing until tired, and carrying on again when rested. 
 
 The longest period of initiation is forty days with all the 
 tribes, but the shortest time varies, being twenty-five days 
 amongst the Egbirra, ten amongst the Hausawa, and as low 
 as six amongst the Nupe ; but in the case of the last named, the 
 treatment takes place in the bush. When it is complete, the 
 candidate is taken to the bush, if not already there, followed 
 by a crowd of fully qualified Masubori, and is led to a selected 
 tamarind tree, the trunk of which has been wrapped around, with 
 the black and white cloths before referred to, which become later 
 the property of the tutor. The small black goat is killed near 
 the tree, the meat is cooked and eaten, and playing and dancing 
 go on all the time round the tree from right to left. Then the 
 initiate is carried home, arms held up in the air, on the shoulders 
 of a Maibori, who receives a reward for his trouble, and more 
 dancing takes place near some big tree, a baobab if possible, and 
 the ceremony is complete. After that, the initiate's friends are 
 informed as to the particular kind, and the number of degrees 
 conferred. The dancing round the tamarind and baobab trees 
 may be for the object of propitiating the evil spirits which dwell 
 there, all Masubori being afraid of them. 
 
 Every subdivision has its Sa{f)rikm Bori, who may be a man 
 or a woman, elected by the members. When the Masubori wish 
 to elect a head they give a present to the chief of the town in 
 which they live, and he formally nominates the person whose 
 name was given to him at the time. The Sa(rjrikm Bori is 
 responsible for the behaviour of the members under his charge, 
 the collection of taxes due from them, &c, but he is again under 
 the Head of the District, the Ajenge, who also may be male or 
 female. This person collects the necessary bark and leaves of 
 
 260 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 es for medicines, and arranges for and receives tuition fees, 
 ich are his sole perquisite. He carries a staff, which is stuck 
 the ground when a performance is taking place, in order to 
 p off any antagonistic spirits. 
 
 For the foregoing, I am mainly indebted to the report in The 
 wpkment to the Northern Nigeria Gazette, for August 1910, and 
 parts I have quoted it almost verbatim, rearranging the matter, 
 vever, and adding a good many explanations where considered 
 :essary. I have been present at the dance on a number of 
 asions, in places as wide apart as Amar in Muri and Konta- 
 ■a, and in all I have seen the same performances were enacted. 
 
 The Masubori squat round in a ring, the spectators standing 
 tside. The Maigoge (literally, "the doer of rubbing"), or 
 iler, leads the music, playing on an instrument resembling 
 at is popularly known as a Chinese violin, of very primitive 
 istruction. There may be one or more of these, and also men 
 ying on other instruments, the chief of which is the MaiJcwaria 
 the doer of the calabash"), who plays with two short sticks 
 an upturned gourd placed upon the ground. Lastly, there is 
 : Dan Ma'aba ("little flatterer," i.e. herald), who makes the 
 :essary announcements, and, as he picks up his living as best 
 can, he is certain to be complimentary. Every chief has one 
 more, and some have dwarfs, who correspond in some degree to 
 : jester of ancient England. 
 
 The master of ceremonies is the Uban Mufane, who takes 
 
 the offerings, handing them afterwards to the Magajia 
 Heiress," or "Princess"), who gives two-fifths to the musicians, 
 1 the remainder to the dancers. Another duty of the Magajia 
 ;o see that none of the female dancers expose the person. 
 
 Some of the dancers go round and round in a circle until they 
 re worked themselves up into a condition of hypnotic-like 
 ;onsciousness, with eyes fixed and staring. Others accomplish 
 
 same desirable feat sitting down. Suddenly one will begin 
 lealing or roaring, jump up in the air and come down flat on 
 
 buttocks, which have probably been padded for the occasion 
 
 tying on extra clothes round the. waist and between the 
 s. The buttocks strike the ground with violence, the women 
 
 261 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 especially being usually heavy for their height; but the dancer 
 is not content with this, she also beats various parts of her body 
 on the ground, and eventually passes into a state of momentary 
 insensibility, after which the normal condition is regained. 
 
 All deny that they feel any pain when thus ill-treating them- 
 selves, but many become greatly exhausted in the process, one 
 means of reviving them being by pressing backward each uplifted 
 arm some three times in succession, though this appears to be 
 mostly a formal act. Another is to pour kola-nuts or cowrie 
 shells into the mouth of the performer, who does not really 
 swallow them, but spits them out to be collected and taken to the 
 Uban Mufame. A mat is spread out in front of him or of the 
 musicians, or both, and the onlookers are usually very generous 
 in their rewards, the gifts being poured into the dancer's mouth 
 when kneeling down in front of a likely donor (the fit does not 
 seem to affect their judgment in this respect), or by throwing 
 them on to the mats, or anywhere within the ring. The dance 
 goes on until all are exhausted, or the gifts run out, and then 
 comes the division of the spoil. 
 
 There are many tunes, each form having its special air, ac- 
 cording to Dr. Alexander, but the following seems the principal 
 one, as I have heard it on every occasion. Our notation prevents 
 my giving it exactly, the " D " being as much Db as Dtf, and the 
 " B " as much Bt> as here written ; and another thing which makes 
 the air difficult to write is the fact that the native violinists are 
 not particularly exact in their stopping. 
 
 ^Eig^^l 
 
 There is a dance for women only amongst the Hausa, and 
 though they pretend to fall down, I doubt if there is any con- 
 nection between it and Bori. I have seen it only twice, viz. at 
 Jemaan Daroro, and at a town three miles off, called Dangoma, 
 during the feast of Ramadan, so the dance may have a Moham- 
 medan origin. 
 
 Women in groups of four stand round in a circle, the musi- 
 cians — drummers only in this case — standing or sitting outside. 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 One woman out of every group advances, and waltzes twice round 
 the circle, then returning to her companions and throwing herself 
 backwards, but being prevented from actually touching the ground 
 by the others, one of whom catches an arm on each side, the third 
 the head, the dancer keeping her body quite stiff. Some of the 
 women fling themselves back with violence when excited, but they 
 are seldom allowed to fall right down, although they seem to like 
 going as far as possible. After the first has had her turn, the 
 second does likewise, and when all have finished they begin again ; 
 and the dance continues for hours at a time, there being plenty 
 of other women waiting to take the place of any falling out 
 through fatigue. 
 
 As an exercise, too, dancing is not to be despised, as any one 
 who is out of form or has had much experience of village hall 
 floors will know. The soldiers of Crete and Sparta went into 
 battle dancing, and a few years ago our Admiralty (following the 
 example of the United States authorities at West Point) included 
 dancing in the curriculum at the Dartmouth Naval College, not 
 with the idea of giving the cadets pleasure, of course, but for the 
 purpose of improving their carriage and their health, many of 
 the movements being really gymnastics in a pleasant disguise. 
 Possibly the hammock-dancing of Sierra Leone should be in- 
 cluded in this class, the performer swinging himself on a ham- 
 mock between two poles some forty feet in height, and turning 
 himself over and over, or balancing his body like Blondin. He 
 has to be worked into a state resembling hysteria before he will 
 commence his performance. 
 
 The dance may portray incidents in history — we have a 
 pageant taking place even at this moment — or it may be em- 
 ployed to represent special events, such as a battle. TaJcai is a 
 much more sedate game, and is played by both sexes, the males 
 being armed with short sticks. Half go in one direction round 
 the circle, half the other, and each pair of players, as they 
 meet each other, either hit each other's sticks (three times, 
 if I remember rightly) if they be men, or clap hands if they be 
 women. I am not sure what the origin of the game is, nor 
 what is its signification; I saw it only once, some six years 
 
 263 
 
MUSIC AJ\U JUAJNUJLINU 
 
 ago, at a town between Zungeru and Zaria, and I had no time 
 just then to stay and make inquiries. It is probable that it 
 represents a battle, particularly as the word takaichi means 
 "hatred"; or again, the name may come from taka, "to beat 
 down," though the former seems to be the more likely derivation. 
 At any rate, the facts that the men are armed while the women 
 are not, and that the parties coming in opposite directions attack 
 each other, are suggestive of some such origin for the game. 
 
 Then again, dancing, perhaps combined with singing, may be 
 employed as a means of specially honouring an important person, 
 as in the case of Jephtha's daughter, and later with Saul and 
 David, the mention of David's ten thousands on that occasion 
 being the cause of all the subsequent trouble between them. 
 The best known instance in British West Africa is perhaps that 
 of the Ashanti chiefs, who dance by themselves, and in silence, 
 only before the Governor or some other high official. There was 
 also the instance of the Kajji performance to honour me, and it is 
 just possible that the Toff chief performed his gymnastics for a 
 similar reason. In Ilorin it was performed by two Yoruba 
 women after the installation of the Balogims or subordinate 
 chiefs. 
 
 But it is usually indulged in as a sign of joy and gladness, 
 and in that signification it is most familiar to us, though there is 
 not any baser meaning amongst Europeans, except in particular 
 forms, such as the " Can-Can." With native tribes, however, 
 there is no doubt that such an idea is often the raison cfitre, not 
 only in Biblical times, as in the case of "the children of the 
 wicked " in the days of Job, and Salome, but even to-day, and I 
 saw one at Randa, a Ninzam town, the meaning of which was too 
 evident to be mistaken, the fact being worth mentioning because 
 lascivious dances are seldom performed by men, especially when 
 alone. Two men had small drums, the rest, standing in a circle, 
 held short sticks in their right hands, and after singing the 
 refrain several times, all shivered backwards and forwards in a 
 violent manner. They then walked around the circle a couple 
 of times, afterwards resuming their places, and singing and acting 
 as before. Strangely enough, the words of one of the two tunes 
 
 264- 
 
z 
 
 < 
 
 Q 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 i no very apparent connection with the actions, they having 
 :n learnt from the Mada, who had evidently got them from the 
 msawa, though the airs may have been local. The translations 
 re, " Our town is full of young girls, the youths will have 
 :asure," and " Search for the whiskered one, ignore the saluta- 
 n." What this latter means, I do not quite know, and the 
 ^formers could not explain, but I think that it signifies that 
 Is prefer young men to old, for the Hausawa (from whom the 
 rds have come) have another song, "I do not like a hairy 
 :son, the hairs prick me." 
 
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 Another Hausa song and dance I noted in Jemaan Daroro, in 
 s case the women being the sole performers ; and one I heard 
 
 Prahsu (Fanti) had obscene words sung to a hymn tune, 
 ich seems rather an unnecessary insult to our missionaries. 
 
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 ny of them being very pretty, the serenade to the chiefs taking 
 ' fancy particularly, though it might have been played on an 
 trument with rather a sweeter tone than an algaita, which 
 mds like something between a clarionet and the bagpipes, 
 >ugh with only a single note at a time. 
 
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 265 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 One salutation, or song of praise, I heard in the Ankwoi 
 country as we marched, the verse — a string of compliments to the 
 great men of the party — being sung by one man, the rest joining 
 in the chorus with an " O " or an " Urn," or repeating the last 
 few words in a lower key. 
 
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 9 
 
 Two other salutations are very general and are played all 
 over Hausaland on long brass trumpets shaped like coach-horns, 
 which may be in different keys. The words to the first are 
 Ga shi, Ga shi (" See him, See him "), and to the second Ka sauka 
 lafia, Ka sauka lafia (" May you alight in health, May you alight 
 in health," i.e. arrive safely). 
 
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 And there was another song which I heard in Lokoja, sung by 
 a boy from Cape Coast Castle, to which place I believe the air 
 belongs. It, like most of the repertoire, goes on ad libitum and 
 ad nauseam. I do not know how it ends, I never heard it end 
 
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 266 
 
 ^E 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 There are other instruments, the syrinx for instance, and 
 tes of different shapes, which are much too numerous to be 
 scribed here. The xylophone is found in many parts of West 
 irica, though not amongst the head-hunters, and the guitar in 
 :ious forms is common, particularly amongst the Hausas. 
 
 The most primitive music can be reduced to rhythm alone, 
 :ording to Dr. Deniker, and so the earliest instruments were 
 jects used simply to beat time, the present representatives 
 ing triangles, cymbals, castanets, and bones. The drum was a 
 ge further, though it might be only a cloak of opossum skin 
 etched between the thighs, as in Australia. Drums of different 
 ys were then introduced, some — kettle-drums — being still used 
 our orchestras, while others give a succession of notes by being 
 npressed, as we have seen. The xylophone is also a percussion 
 itrument, and so is the sansa, a kind of musical box played 
 th the fingers by some negroes. 
 
 Of wind instruments the most ancient is probably the flute, 
 
 the shepherd's pipe, it being the most easily made, and no 
 ubt the clarionet developed from it, while the introduction of 
 ass gave the musician a wider range in his choice of the sounds 
 th which to gladden the heart of man. 
 
 The bow was the first stringed instrument, the negroes of 
 igola playing on it even now, according to Deniker, by means 
 a sliding ring, and some forms of the Hausa guitar are merely 
 sow fixed to a sounding-board of gourd and parchment. The 
 ison for this is easily seen when we remember that the Arabs 
 anged their bow-strings to accompany their war songs when 
 trching to battle. Professor Ridgeway shows that both the 
 rp of Northern Europe and the conventional lyre of Greece 
 re evolved from the shooting-bow, Vhich was bent up, the 
 ice of the string being taken by a wooden cross-piece from 
 lich the new strings were stretched, and later on, a sounding- 
 ard was found in the back of the tortoise, and in other countries 
 a gourd. From a round gourd, or the round end of an oblong 
 urd, came the banjo, brought to America by West African 
 ves, while from the oval gourd came the mandolin, both of 
 lich are merely shooting-bows with resonators. And the same 
 
 267 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 authority explains the passage in 2 Samuel i. 17, by stating that 
 David taught the children of Judah the use of a musical instru- 
 ment, not of a shooting-bow, with which they must have been 
 long acquainted, his opinion being supported by the statement 
 of the prophet Micah that David was an inventor of musical 
 instruments. 
 
 But even the most uncivilised peoples have composite instru- 
 ments, such as the gora of the Bushmen, and the process of 
 combination has kept pace with the improvement in the instru- 
 ments themselves, so that we can nowadays, by simple movement 
 of the fingers, perform on strings (as in the piano), or on a wind 
 instrument (the organ), or latest of all, in the case of piano- 
 players, we can use wind to play upon strings by percussion. 
 
 I used to wonder why all the native songs are in the minor key ! 
 They are usually sad, and have a haunting note in the melody. 
 It is almost impossible to represent the exact sounds on a piano, 
 because many of the chords are not recognised by European ears. 
 I have made a better attempt at rendering them on the instru- 
 ment itself than in the score, for, although vague chords can be 
 played, they cannot be written with any satisfaction so far as I 
 know, the scale, which differs from ours, being determined by 
 their instruments. The British soldier loves to sing songs of the 
 " Break the news to Mother " order, and seems to delight in the 
 most harrowing details of misfortune and death ; so perhaps the 
 native's predilection for the minor key is not so very extra- 
 ordinary after all. I myself can understand it now, for when 
 I had fever once I composed a " Dead March," my only worry 
 being that I could not have it written out and played at my 
 funeral should it take place then. It did not, however, and the 
 March, which I have called " Dis-Mal-Aria," will be in time after 
 all ; and perhaps I had better write down the reasons for the 
 name lest they be lost to the world, and so much deep thought 
 on my part wasted. Dismal Aria and Malaria will be plain 
 enough to most, but (and here is where the appalling genius 
 comes in) Mai Aria would be a Frenchman's description of the 
 tune, and Dis-Malaria (being a negative) signifies that there will 
 be no fever hereafter if it has done its worst on earth. 
 
 268 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
 The argument is as follows : — 
 
 The first movement pictures an official in the throes of 
 larial fever (mf), and after a repeated dose of it (the fever, 
 b the tune), he passes peacefully (pp) away. The second move- 
 mt represents the delight of the next man in order of seniority 
 be is getting on in years (Forte) — who, by becoming sharp (the 
 ler was rather a flat), gets himself into the vacancy thus left 
 ■ther up the scale (in the treble). But the promotion proves 
 be too fast and furious (ff), for, although he does not exactly 
 e his head (Da Capo), he also falls a victim to the ever-recurring 
 ilarial fever (mf again) ; and once more there is a vacancy in 
 2 higher places, caused not by " Crossing the Bars," but by 
 .ving them empty. 
 
 However bright one feels oneself, it is impassible to play 
 aes in that spirit on the native wind-instruments, on account 
 the position of the holes. I had a band at Amar composed of a 
 liceman, who played the algaita, and six boys who banged the 
 rious drums and cymbals, the latter being made out of empty 
 rtridge-cases by the local blacksmith. I taught them " Home, 
 reet Home," "Auld Lang Syne," "The British Grenadiers," 
 d " Ninety-Five," by whistling the tunes, or playing them over 
 d over again until they had grasped them, on a wheezy travelling 
 rmonium, which I had borrowed from one of the black clerks 
 ho are always strong on hymns), but the effect of the minor 
 y was rather strange, especially as some of the notes could not 
 
 played at all, and so I had to improvise substitutes. Never- 
 eless, the marching improved wonderfully, and the band were as 
 oud of themselves as are any regimental musicians in London, 
 le natives have good memories and a wonderful instinct of 
 ythm, and had I had time, I should have had quite a famous 
 chestra in the end ; but, alas, time brought me to the end of 
 y tour, as space has to the end of this chapter. 
 
 269 
 
MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
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MUSIC AND DANCING 
 
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 271 
 
CHAPTER XX 
 
 A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 THE recall of the patrol had most unfortunate consequences, as 
 I had anticipated, and by the end of June over a dozen 
 Ninzam towns were fighting each other, the casualties being 
 seven killed and forty-two wounded, according to the report of 
 the District Headman, and to complicate matters still more the 
 Waiwai people farther to the south had taken courage, and were 
 busy collecting heads too. 
 
 Owing to the massacre of an Assistant-Resident and his escort 
 in the Zaria province a little while before, the narrow escape of 
 another in Bauchi, and my little experience in Ninzam, orders had 
 been sent to Political Officers that they were not to take any risks 
 which it was possible to avoid, and it also began to dawn on 
 headquarters that all was not well in the Pagan Belt ; so when I 
 again applied for troops a Punitive Patrol was granted. 
 
 There are several grades of these. First there is the escort of 
 eleven men which a Political Officer may take on demand from the 
 officer commanding the detachment, and this was the usual pro- 
 cedure. If a greater number is required, the consent of the 
 Governor must be previously obtained (except when the circum- 
 stances are very urgent) and a military officer is detailed to com- 
 mand those of his men who form the escort, as was the case when 
 we went to the Toff country. The next class is the Patrol, and 
 this may be for purposes of " peaceful penetration," which usually 
 ends in fighting, or it may be necessary for the arrest of some 
 important chief or powerful criminal. All these are in theory for 
 peaceful purposes, and, except in the pagan countries, there will not 
 be much excitement ; but last come the Punitive Patrol and the 
 Expedition, both of which, being intended to fight, are composed 
 of more men, and are more liberally supplied with ammunition. 
 
 272 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 A Punitive Patrol was sanctioned at last, as I have said, and 
 e new officer commanding at Jemaan Daroro and I went to 
 kwa on the 17th July, where we met the Keffi contingent — 
 illy met them this time. Its strength was two Europeans, 
 *hty native rank and file, and some hundred carriers and others, 
 rile we from Jemaa numbered the same as the similar party the 
 evious April, except that I had some fifty chiefs and followers 
 th me. 
 
 Owing to the rivers being in flood the marches were very slow, 
 r we had to wade through the shallow streams, and cross many 
 the bigger ones by means of suspension bridges made of " tie- 
 s." It was quite a gymnastic feat for us Whitemen to get over 
 me of them, but the poor carriers with their loads had a very 
 ach harder task, and in fact a few were so much frightened that 
 ey were unable to do so unaided, and as not more than about 
 ree could be on the bridge at the same time on account of the rock- 
 », our progress was exceedingly slow. However on the 19th we 
 itched Zambur, where shelters had been erected for us by three 
 endly Ninzam chiefs, one of whom was the father of the wife 
 10m Awudu had murdered, and so was on our side, of course, 
 id, on arrival, I sent word to the surrounding rebels to come in 
 once and submit, or expect immediate punishment. 
 
 It might be as well to state before going further what the pro- 
 lure is on these occasions, for, though war is always cruel, we 
 •, if at all, on the side of leniency. Even when on a Punitive 
 trol every opportunity is given to the offenders to repent in 
 He, arms being employed only in the last resort, and sometimes, 
 :n after the last ultimatum has been refused and the force has 
 ;n formed up for attack, an extra message is sent, saying how 
 >n we shall advance. The people are always warned to get 
 iir women and children out of the way, in case they have not 
 eady done so, and, if punishment has to be inflicted, it is 
 ished as soon as possible. 
 
 It is rather sad to think that it should be necessary at all, but 
 a dangerous country stern measures must be taken, for were no 
 dee taken of an attack — or even an affront — to one European, 
 ! next one would probably be murdered, and there could be no 
 
 273 s 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 control whatever maintained over people whose respect is giver 
 only to those who can enforce it. Again, it would never do to lei 
 every one off scot free directly they gave in, for they might 
 invariably give trouble when the Resident was alone, and always 
 give in and escape punishment on the appearance of a patrol ; a 
 criminal in England does not go unpunished because he gives 
 himself up when escape is out of the question. Nor would it do 
 to promise that there would be no penalty, and yet to inflict one 
 on their submission, for that would put an end to all confidence 
 in the representatives of the Government. The only fair way is to 
 impose a general fine on the people of the town concerned, and special 
 penalties on the principal culprits, with the warning that unless 
 the conditions are complied with by such and such an hour force 
 will be resorted to, and this is what usually happens in such cases. 
 
 Of course it would not do to lay down conditions impossible 
 of fulfilment by the particular people concerned, but the Political 
 Officer (who orders everything prior to the actual hostilities) will 
 know the capacity of the town, and after all we are not naturally 
 unjust. We still have the same feelings of pity as our fathers 
 and brothers at home ; we do not necessarily develop into wild 
 beasts because we live in a dangerous country, though one would 
 think so sometimes to read the papers. Perhaps, on the whole, 
 we have a good deal more true sympathy with the natives, for we 
 know them as they really are, whereas many of the arm-chair 
 philanthropists gather their information from Uncle Tom's Cabin, 
 or from reports of the proceedings after the Indian Mutiny. I 
 have heard men laugh at the idea of some miserable prisoner 
 having been a dangerous chief ; but an armed savage, free, excited, 
 and in command of an armed horde which has been worked up to 
 fever heat, is a very different-looking person to a cowed convict 
 whose spirit has been broken. Those men might not have been 
 so ready to smile had they seen him in his natural character, and 
 in his own country. No doubt a trussed Englishman is not a very 
 terrible spectacle to the cannibals who are about to eat him, 
 though when free and armed he was not exactly an enemy who 
 could be despised. 
 
 No reply having come to my messages, we attacked three 
 
 274 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 towns on the following day, and had a little fighting, but there 
 was not much resistance, and, beyond securing some food (which 
 was set off as part payment of a fine), the day was not very 
 eventful. 
 
 On the 20th we did the same thing in a different direction, 
 and the following day went to Ungual Kaura, Fada Wate, and 
 Ungual Maitozo to look up my old friends there. Alas, they 
 had not the manners to wait for us, and we received no warm 
 welcome such as we had been led to expect, but we destroyed the 
 houses as a punishment. As I have said before, I had to hang the 
 chief of Ungual Kaura, and his brother gave out that because I 
 had taken his (the chief's) head he would have mine. I sent to 
 him to say that I was bringing it for him, though upon my own 
 shoulders for convenience 1 sake, so it was exceedingly impolite of 
 him to be out when I called. He came to Jemaan Daroro after- 
 wards to repent, and I installed him as the new chief; for West 
 Africa is a country where bygones are allowed to be bygones, and 
 he was the next heir to the position, and the best man available 
 for it. 
 
 There was one man whom I was very anxious to catch, namely, 
 the lame Mada(i)ki of Fada Wate who had stabbed the carrier, and, 
 hearing that he was hiding on the farm some five miles away, we 
 started off about 3.30 next morning to surprise him . Unfortunately 
 the rear of our party lost its way, and took the wrong road, and 
 we were thereby delayed so long that it was daylight before we 
 arrived, and the birds were of course flown. A house was pointed 
 out to us as his hiding-place, and we charged up, the 0. C. in his 
 shirt sleeves cheering his men on, his boy following close up with 
 his sword, I with a walking-stick (I did manage to hit a man with 
 it once), the doctor with his umbrella, and the subaltern with a 
 golf-stick — quite an awe-inspiring party — and were fearfully 
 disgusted at finding the place empty. When we looked around 
 and saw each other we burst out laughing, though before that 
 the excitement had prevented our seeing anything incongruous 
 in our appearance. We managed to get some of the missing 
 man's property, though, and entered it as part of the fine, and we 
 heard afterwards that we had been within five yards of a hole in 
 
 275 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 which he was hiding at the time. He was killed in action last 
 year. 
 
 The chief of Amar, one of the biggest of the Ninzam towns, 
 had been friendly in March, but had meanwhile gone over to the 
 other side, and so we had to pay him a visit too. It was rather 
 hard luck on him, for he was forced into it to a certain extent, 
 and we were not too severe on Amar ; but he was evidently not 
 beloved by his gods, for he came out against us, and, as luck 
 would have it, he was wounded in the foot, thus, on the whole, 
 doing rather badly. 
 
 On the 24th we went to Randa, another Ninzam town, where 
 shelters had been erected for us, and, having had a pretty hard 
 week, we determined to rest on the next day, Sunday, when I 
 managed to get the song given elsewhere. Here I heard that the 
 Waiwai, a tribe living on two big hills near Randa, had attacked a 
 Ninzam town after we had been there, and, although I myself was 
 quite entitled to punish the people for their misbehaviour, I was 
 not going to allow any one else to do so — in fact their payment of 
 tribute implies an obligation on our part to protect them against 
 others — so I determined to visit these gentry. 
 
 The Waiwai are an offshoot of the Mada tribe, being head- 
 hunters and, of course, slavers. They had never been visited by 
 any one before, and were rather sceptical of the Whiteman's power 
 to enter their towns, so I thought that their conquest would be an 
 excellent lesson to the surrounding tribes who were terrorised by 
 them. Again, as if to make certain that we should come, an 
 impertinent message was sent to us, asking why we did not fight 
 them as well as the Ninzam, and saying that if we did come they 
 would provide a suitable reception. I knew that all the surrounding 
 towns would hear of this, and there was now no help for it, though 
 I cannot say that we were much disappointed at the turn events 
 had taken, for I had several scores to pay off against the tribe. 
 
 On the 26th, therefore, we left about 5.30 a.m., and reached 
 the first village, Ungual Ancho, at 8.10. Passing through this, 
 which was empty, we advanced towards a steep and narrow path 
 leading to the next village, and we were about half way up when, 
 suddenly, the familiar sound of " thith, thith " was heard, and 
 
 276 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 arrows began falling around us, coming from a hill just opposite 
 the path. The O. C. sent the advance guard on at a run, and 
 they, mounting the rise, were able to fire over our heads, and 
 dislodge the assailants. Then, leaving a section to watch the 
 place until the carriers and rear-guard had passed, we pushed 
 forward and were soon engaged in front. However, the resistance 
 soon eased off, and by 10 o'clock we were able to have breakfast. 
 
 That finished, we split into two parties, the O. C. and the 
 doctor going along the top of the hills, and the Jemaa subaltern 
 and myself (the two fat ones of the party) taking the lower 
 ground. The upper column was soon engaged, and, after about 
 ten minutes, its bugler sounded the " assembly " several times in 
 succession, so I brought up the Maxim, the other section covering 
 our passage from below. We had to pass close to high grass on 
 the way, and, seeing it waving, we knew that a little surprise 
 party was waiting for us there ; so we managed to find a higher 
 path to the left, thus out-ambushing the ambush, and, when 
 above the patch, poured in several volleys, the yells telling us that 
 our suspicions had been correct. If they had only kept still, we 
 might have gone straight on, and been " scuppered " beautifully, 
 for we were in a hurry to press forward, as the upper column was 
 evidently in difficulties. 
 
 Our way was now clear, and we soon rejoined our comrades, 
 who we found had been attacked by this very party (but on 
 their left flank and rear) at the same time as a larger body 
 was disputing their advance from the front. The rout of the 
 ambush and the arrival of the Maxim soon put matters on a 
 different footing, and, after a while, the opposition melted away, 
 and we got into a more open spot, whence we could see Waiwais 
 running in all directions towards the Mada country to the south. 
 
 The next village we came to was built on the lower side of 
 Hie of the hills, and we found many natural caves formed by big 
 soulders of rock. Some of these were inhabited, and one or two 
 nen had somewhat unpleasant surprises on entering them, but 
 he resistance was really over, and as darkness was coming on, 
 ind also the rain, we started on our march back to Randa, 
 laving had a long and tiring day. 
 
 277 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 About two hundred men from this place had come with us, 
 wearing strips of bark round their foreheads to show that they 
 were friendlies, and the stock captured was handed over to them 
 to take back to our camp. We had hardly started when a 
 tornado came down, and our journey home was anything but 
 pleasant. As we got near the town a lot of Randa men managed 
 to run away with their charges, and this disgusted us very much, 
 considering that our fight that day would probably do the people 
 of Randa more good than those of any other town, for the 
 Waiwai had always terrorised them. However, even that was 
 not so bad as our experience at Zambur and Fada Wate, 
 where we found that some of the carriers had killed and 
 hidden many of the sheep and goats en route, and were 
 sneaking back to eat them after dark. A European will get 
 a lot of disappointments if he looks for gratitude in a native; 
 there is no past for a black man, there is no future, the 
 present is the only time he is interested in. After all, why should 
 he bother? He is much happier thus, and even those whom 
 we protect would prefer our room to our company, forgetting 
 that did we go they would be as much a prey to the stronger 
 tribes as they were before our arrival. 
 
 I had managed to save a woman who ran out of a cave just 
 under where I was standing, recognising just in time that she was 
 a woman by the baby on her back, and I sent her to the people 
 to say that they had received their lesson, and would have to 
 come to Jemaa to submit formally on my return, and that if 
 they did so we should thenceforward be friends instead of 
 enemies. I am glad to say that most of them did so, and, 
 although it is too much to hope that they will drop all their 
 quaint habits straight away, there is no doubt that, as a great 
 deal of their self-esteem was shattered, and their evil influence 
 abolished, they will think twice in future about inciting other 
 tribes to resist. So long as the Waiwai were untouched they 
 tried to persuade the Ninzam to fight, they raided surrounding 
 peoples as they pleased, and other tribes, seeing them so 
 happy (in a head-hunting sense), naturally tried to follow their 
 example. 
 
 278 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 This is always a problem in such a country as Northern Nigeria ; 
 the Government cannot lay down a rule that the limit of control 
 will extend so far and no farther, for the tribes inside the 
 boundary will always want to know why they are forced to 
 obey when those in the next hills are left alone (not under- 
 standing the " imaginary line drawn from A to B," &c), and so 
 the boundary has to be constantly extended. Again, these tribes 
 are nearly always deadly enemies, and to prevent one under our 
 protection fighting another not so blessed, while still leaving the 
 people open to the attacks of their old foes, would be the height 
 of injustice. A wild tribe will often attack one paying tribute 
 simply because of this very fact (do not wild birds kill a tame 
 one ?) ; and if by taking their tribute we assume the suzerainty 
 over them, it is only our duty to give them something in return, 
 namely, protection. And apart from the question of justice, it is 
 wise on account of policy, for natives soon realise the difference 
 between a good and a bad bargain. 
 
 We rested on the following day, and on the 28th went to 
 Ankirra, where the Mada(i)ki of Jemaan Daroro, the District 
 Headman, had been stoned a month or two before, and, after 
 staying a couple of days without having any trouble, we went 
 on to Giddan Sa(r)rikin Ambel. 
 
 On our way we passed Tare, the people retreating as we 
 advanced, though there was some resistance, and later on an 
 attack was made on a small escort sent back with a mail- 
 runner. We had not sufficient time to return then, but a 
 note was made of it for future reference, and the town was 
 subdued last year, though whether finally or not I cannot say, for 
 it has given trouble every year since our arrival. 
 
 It is a common mistake to think that when a tribe has 
 once been beaten it will cause no more trouble, and I have seen 
 glowing reports (written, usually, just as a Resident is going 
 home) of the peaceful time in store for the district after a 
 successful expedition. I think that so long as the wild pagan 
 is as warlike as he is, and so long as we repress his little failings, 
 whether looting, enslaving, head-hunting, or what not, there will 
 always be a possibility of trouble, and any weakness on our part 
 
 279 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 will sooner or later convert the possibility into fact. The 
 difficulty is, that a Political. Officer is expected to report that 
 all within his jurisdiction is satisfactory, and will remain thus 
 for ever and ever, amen. If he cannot, he will be blamed for not 
 having made it so ; if he does report favourably, and there is 
 trouble later, he will probably be on leave, and so his successor 
 will be blamed for it — and that is much more satisfactory. I 
 have known a tribe described as thoroughly dependable, even 
 when they had refused to pay tribute for some time. But this 
 is a dangerous subject, and to turn away from local affairs to 
 safer channels, I might ask how many times the Ashanti have 
 been reported as certain to be absolutely friendly in future ? The 
 treaties between us and them always seem to have contained some 
 beautiful sentiment of perpetual peace, and the illusions have 
 invariably been rudely shattered. 
 
 The late chiefs house at Ambel easily held the whole of our 
 little force, about 250 all told, and the zaures made quite good 
 mess-rooms. From here we made two excursions, one to Arom, 
 which was unsatisfactory, as we found the town deserted, the 
 other to Ayashi, which did not prove quite so profitless. 
 
 Ayashi is a collection of villages built on a spur of the 
 "Bauchi Highlands," which we ascended when going to Toff. 
 The people are cannibals and head-hunters belonging to the Nadu 
 tribe, and they pierce both lips and the septum of the nose for 
 the reception of bone, wood, or other ornaments. They had pre- 
 viously been " thoroughly subdued " {sic) on several occasions, and 
 had remained quite friendly until the patrol was out of sight, but 
 in each case they had then resumed their little failings as of yore. 
 They are said by a former Resident who visited them to be 
 Phallic worshippers, but I was unable to find out anything definite 
 myself. He also noted that directly they had given in, the people 
 came to him with many complaints to settle, hoping no doubt 
 that he would give a ruling contrary to that of their own chief in 
 cases already decided against them. I have noticed this myself, 
 too, but I am always very careful in such circumstances, for it is 
 impossible to know the real rights and wrongs according to the 
 people's own laws in so short a time. Another request is for a 
 
 280 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 arm to ensure childbirth, and as there is no reason to believe 
 at these natives are particularly sterile, I suspect the charm is 
 ther to ensure the birth of a child out of the ordinary than of 
 y one at all, the Whiteman's charm being naturally more mighty 
 an those of their own medicine men. 
 
 On the 2nd August we attacked the place in two parties, and 
 d rather an exciting day, for the people had caves which they 
 d built up to form quite comfortable dwellings with very narrow 
 juths, which were up on top in some cases. The cover they 
 "orded was excellent, and we would be shot at without knowing 
 lence the arrows were coming. The only way to enter some of 
 e caves was by dropping down feet first, not a particularly safe 
 
 pleasant proceeding, for the defenders had time to get off 
 reral arrows and escape before the intruder's eyes could become 
 customed to the dim light. However, not very much harm was 
 ne on either side, and as I could see that to subdue the place 
 raid take at least a week, we came away again, having managed 
 
 capture enough goats to pay off most of the outstanding 
 iemnity they owed ; and I also brought away a couple of Ayu 
 ads (now in the Cambridge Museum) from one of the little 
 mples. These were small round huts with skulls of men and 
 imals (of which the noses were stuffed with leaves) stuck in the 
 ad of the walls, the whole being then whitewashed. One of 
 e temples had one comparatively thick pillar on each side of 
 e door, but most of them were simply glorified huts with the 
 ual conical grass roofs, though on a smaller scale. 
 
 On the 4th of August we shifted our camp to Gwade, an Ayu 
 lage, and next day we visited Aro, a Kibbo town a little way up 
 e Bauchi hills. We had passed through it during the preceding 
 >vember, and here again the tribute was overdue, so I had then 
 ,rned the chief to take it in to Jemaan Daroro, but this, as soon 
 
 our backs were turned, he had refused to do> and had subse- 
 ently driven one of my messengers out of the town. OiTour 
 y we met a deputation coming to meet us to say that all the 
 bute and the fine would be paid on the following day ; but as I 
 ew that the people had been watching us, and had made up 
 sir minds to submit only when they saw us coming, and that 
 
 281 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 there would be a similar message on the morrow, I determined 
 that they should not get oft" quite so easily as they thought they 
 would. I therefore sent them back to the town with an order 
 that all must be ready on our arrival, and that we were following. 
 Of course, it was not ready, and we had some trouble in getting it, 
 but as the rain was coming down hard we were not sorry for the 
 necessary delay, as we were able to wait under shelters. There 
 were some amusing incidents, too, which made the time pass away 
 quickly, and before long all was complete. 
 
 As soon as they had handed over the full amount, all the 
 people disappeared, and we began to expect trouble, and soon 
 there were shouts from one flank of "Zuma, Zuma," and sure 
 enough clouds of bees were flying towards us. Luckily they were 
 stupid — with the rain, I suppose — and did not sting us, otherwise 
 we should have had rather a bad time. They are, as I have said 
 elsewhere, frequently used in defence of a town. I had not in- 
 tended burning the place, but this act decided me to do so, both 
 as a punishment, and also to keep off the insects, for there was a 
 chance that they might become lively; and under cover of the 
 smoke we left the town and returned to camp. Next day the 
 chief and his headmen visited us and promised to give no more 
 trouble, and I hope that they will keep their word, though I doubt 
 it considering their past record. 
 
 From here we returned to Jemaan Daroro, and had a day at 
 Tafa and Jigya, Kagoro towns which had always been trouble- 
 some. Most of the Kagoro had unfortunately found it incon- 
 venient to be in when we called, so we did not have very much 
 excitement, and after half-an-hour or so it was all over. We 
 slept in a zareba, however, for the Kagoro had attacked at night 
 on a previous occasion, and next day we returned to Jemaan 
 Daroro. 
 
 The O. C. and the doctor left for Keffi on the 11th, and the 
 Punitive* Patrol was over, and then came the office work of writing 
 reports, sending in accounts, &c, which took all my time for the 
 next fortnight, most of the work being done in bed owing to a 
 poisoned leg, and an attack of blackwater fever. 
 
 I have generally kept clear of names in this book, for the law 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 of libel has been reduced to such a fine art nowadays (and the 
 damages are, apparently, twenty times as great as in cases of 
 divorce), that one might be ruined even though on the whole he 
 was praising a man. But I do not think I need be afraid to say 
 that the officer commanding the patrol (an ex-member of the 
 West Australian Police, by the way) was one of the pluckiest men 
 who have served in Northern Nigeria — and that is saying a good 
 deal. The Medical Officer, though he nearly died of pneumonia 
 through the exposure, never thought of sparing himself, and as 
 for the Jemaa subaltern I think it would be impossible for any 
 one to have aught but praise for such a good fellow as he was. 
 Unfortunately, both of us had had our knees poisoned at Aro 
 with palm-spikes, and were laid up for some weeks afterwards at 
 Jemaan Daroro, his being the worse of the two. 
 
 The conditions under which we worked were very bad, and in 
 some ways the travelling proved worse than the fighting, though 
 the hills were not like those of the " Bauchi Highlands." It was 
 at the height of the rains, and every river was flooded, and 
 though in some parts tie-tie bridges had been made by friendly 
 natives, as I have stated, in the hostile country there were not 
 even these, and we had to improvise rafts or else swim on gourds. 
 Some of the rafts were strange-looking craft, tents filled with 
 dry grass, palm-oil dishes, logs, anything ; and when each deep 
 river meant four or five hours' delay in the rain (and it can rain 
 in July), we almost began to wish we had been born frogs rather 
 than human beings. 
 
 However, rivers do not flow everywhere, and there were usually 
 amusing incidents to take one out of oneself; besides, the native 
 is always ready to laugh, and he expects to be encouraged to do 
 so ; so' the time went by, and the difficulties were overcome with 
 much less distress to mind or body than we sometimes expected. 
 The two of us from Jemaa were rather heavy, and the soldiers 
 would yell with delight at our un-Blondin-like efforts to preserve 
 our balance while sitting on a raft shaped like a truss of hay, and 
 flush with the water-line, or our hanging on to a man's hair while 
 being carried on his shoulders. We all agreed excellently, and 
 that was a very important factor, for we were wet through more 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 than half the time. The official approval of the operations was 
 some return for what we had gone through, for we were told that 
 "most excellent work had been done during the patrol under 
 the most trying circumstances," but I think that we might have 
 been given a medal. 
 
 I had had a good many of the chief's followers with me, the 
 headmen of the districts passed through, guides and messengers, 
 and also some to take charge of the captured stock. The District 
 Headman of Ninzam (the chief of Sanga) and several of the others 
 died from exposure, and nearly all our horses were lame, so the 
 hardships of the patrol can be imagined. The present chief of 
 Sanga is the old man's nephew, he who was reported as killed in 
 the previous March by the people of Ungual Maitozo. He had 
 managed to escape, though hit with an arrow, and had been sent 
 home by a safe route by the chief of Amar, who was then friendly 
 to us. 
 
 The soldiers are good fellows, and when properly led they can 
 accomplish almost anything. Their officers on this occasion 
 suited them perfectly, and in saying this I do not include myself, 
 of course, for I was merely a supernumerary when once the fight- 
 ing had commenced. Natives are usually younger in mind than 
 we are, they are fonder of play, and a little laxity while off 
 parade prevents a good deal of punishment later on in their 
 case. One expects the soldiers to be courageous, and they are, 
 but the fact that the carriers are also brave strikes me even more 
 forcibly, for they cannot hit back. It is one thing to fight a man 
 with a superior weapon in your hand to the one he has; it is 
 quite another when you are not only unarmed but are handi- 
 capped with a load. I have sometimes equipped them with the 
 soldiers' machettes to give them a chance if in difficulties, but 
 even when defenceless they are splendid. 
 
 It is, of course, very unusual for a patrol to be sent out in the 
 rains. Most of the expeditions take place about January, when 
 the weather is beautiful, the grass has been burnt down, and the 
 food is plentiful; but as the Ninzam district was in a state of 
 anarchy, and the Waiwai, Ayashi, and Kagoro also wanted 
 punishing, we had no choice but to undertake operations at once. 
 
 284 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 There are other disadvantages besides the bad weather overhead, 
 for when the grass is high a bow and arrow is almost as good as 
 a rifle, and the constant immersions in streams and scarcity of 
 food soon tell on the Europeans. 
 
 Perhaps airships will before long play an important part in 
 warfare, though, judging by what I saw at the Hendon Avia- 
 tion Tests last May, great improvements are still required — 
 improvements, however, which will certainly be made. The cost 
 of an aeroplane would be very much less than the upkeep of a 
 single company for only one year, while it would be invaluable 
 against hill savages. And an air squadron would be a humane 
 institution, for the terror caused by the appearance of such 
 vessels would probably make any bloodshed unnecessary. No 
 one wants to kill these poor wretched pagans, but if the tribes will 
 murder or raid each other for slaves, and if, instead of stopping 
 when ordered to do so, they attack the would-be arbitrator, what 
 else can be done ? If a large force is taken, one has the feeling 
 that it is rather unfair to give the other side no chance of victory, 
 yet if the escort be too small it can do no good, so political 
 reasons make it absolutely necessary to swamp the opposition at 
 once if possible, otherwise there will be much more fighting, and, 
 of course, much greater loss of life in the end. Besides, if we are 
 to stay there, if we are to have any authority at all, punishment 
 must follow the crime immediately. A boy at school who does 
 something wrong is not called to account at the end of the term, 
 but will probably have an unpleasant interview with the " Head " 
 before twenty-four hours are over. 
 
 It seems rather unfair that no medals are given for these 
 "small shows,''' especially considering that men in St. Helena 
 received the Boer ribbon, and militia officers who were embodied 
 even in England were granted honorary rank in the army, while 
 naval officers and men received the Somali medal for simply land- 
 ing the troops. Again, many of the native soldiers on the Ninzam 
 patrol had been on active service over a dozen times and yet 
 remained undecorated. And this injustice is not confined to West 
 Africa. Would it not be possible to have an Active Service 
 Bronze Star to be awarded in every case where no special medal 
 
 285 
 
A PUNITIVE PATROL 
 
 has been sanctioned to those taking part in such operations (there 
 is a precedent in Ashanti), the ribbon either to be of a special 
 pattern, or to be that of the general service medal of the 
 particular country concerned? At present in the Army List, 
 and when in uniform, the man who served in St. Helena may seem 
 a much greater warrior than the one who has seen half-a-dozen 
 small fights against savages, while as I have said before, a 
 messenger-boy is often more liberally decorated than a Crimean 
 veteran. And that is not fair, for after all, a war medal is 
 supposed to indicate active service, and conversely, active service 
 should be rewarded with a medal. The conditions could be, say, 
 (1) that the patrol had been officially sanctioned, (2) that the 
 grantee had had leave to be present, or had necessarily been 
 present, and (3) that fighting had actually taken place. And 
 the grant should be made even to troops who had been defeated, 
 so long as they had done well, for the fighting in that case would 
 probably have been much more severe than if they had been 
 victorious. 
 
 We fought seven tribes altogether in the July and August, 
 and none of us regrets our experience ; at the same time all of us, 
 both white and black, would have been pleased at the grant of a 
 "ribbon." 
 
 286 
 
CHAPTER XXI 
 
 OCCUPATIONS 
 
 nHE commonest form of basket in the northern head-hunting 
 [ towns is in the shape of a calabash, the weaving being of the 
 simplest form. Some of the southern towns add a handle to 
 eirs, and there is another kind used for carrying water or honey 
 lich is made waterproof by being daubed with mud. Goat- 
 ins form bags for grain, but most of the sacks are made of 
 raw. Jemaan Daroro is noted for the excellence of its grass 
 ;eping-mats, which are well made, artistically coloured, and 
 iable. 
 
 No pottery is made in most of the Kagoro towns, the Attakka 
 pplying their requirements in this respect. It is possible that 
 le want of a suitable clay was the original reason of this, but 
 lere is certainly a prohibition against it now, for Attakka 
 omen who have married Kagoro men are not allowed to make 
 its at home, but must go to their own country for the purpose, 
 ;ing at liberty to return, however, after having done so. It is 
 id that ill-luck will overtake the Kagoro if they ever permit the 
 anufacture of pottery in their own country. The pots are quite 
 lain and burnt black, there being no decoration or varnish. 
 
 There are several methods of pot-making amongst the Hausawa, 
 it in none of them is a wheel employed, so far as I know, I saw 
 le method at Jemaan Daroro, the potter being Salifu, Sa(r)rikin 
 inni ("Chief of the Building "), the same term being used for a 
 )use-builder. Clay of a light yellow colour was obtained near a 
 ream close to Arusua, a neighbouring village, whence it was cut 
 ith a hoe and put into a straw waterproof covering, and brought 
 i the house in Jemaan Daroro. Then a certain kind of mud 
 as taken from another stream, the Rafin Gwalliki, and after 
 iving been dried in the sun, it was kneaded and mixed with the 
 
 287 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 clay. Wafcer was then poured on this mixture, and it was left 
 thus for a day. 
 
 Early next morning, dry dust was sprinkled on the floor, and 
 the clay was kneaded up in a lump and pressed together. It was 
 then picked up, and dust was sprinkled on it also, so that it 
 should not stick to anything, and after that it was again kneaded, 
 and made into the shape of a large pancake, or pat of butter, 
 some twelve inches in diameter and one inch or more in thickness. 
 The next stage was to spread it over an inverted pot, which the 
 Hausawa call " the donkey-of-building," and to mould it with the 
 palm and a piece of wood shaped like a " Scotch hand " into the 
 form of a dome. After having been wetted and smoothed, it was 
 placed aside, while the potter repeated the process on other pots. 
 
 After some four hours, the dome was removed and turned 
 upside down, and the potter then placed the fingers of his left 
 hand inside the rim, and steadied the pot, while he beat the rim 
 in from the outside with the Scotch hand until the pot had 
 assumed the shape of a bowl. The edge was then trimmed with 
 a sharpened stick, or knife, and after that, a roll of clay was 
 prepared, about one foot in length and some one and a half inches 
 in diameter, which was placed around the opening, thus thickening 
 the neck, and making the hole smaller. The operator then took 
 a small piece of soft leather, and having wetted it, placed it 
 astride the roll of clay. He seized this with his left hand, and 
 went round and round the pot backwards, steadying it with his 
 right until the roll of clay had been squeezed up into a bell- 
 shaped neck. 
 
 This ended the pot-making proper, the next step being the 
 decoration, and for this a small piece of string — about three 
 inches long — was then rolled slantwise around the shoulder of the 
 pot, the pressure leaving a corresponding pattern. Sometimes! 
 extra rolls of clay may be placed around the body of the pot for 
 strength, and perhaps to keep the spirit in, and so prevent the pot 
 from breaking on its own account, and one I saw had three pairs 
 of small cones. Salifu told me that the cones represented breasts, 
 and were to show that the pot was a female, and as there are 
 similar decorations on pots in the Cambridge Ethnological 
 
 288 j 
 
5 § 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 Museum, this must be correct. These cones and the extra rolls 
 are not made on the body of the ordinary pot or tukunia, but 
 only on those pots which are to be used for oil (telle, &c.), the 
 reason given being that the telle, being stronger, and probably 
 remaining in the house, lasts a long time, and so if the owner 
 becomes tired of it he can change it for another, as a man can his 
 wife. But the tukunia, being always taken to the stream, is not 
 changed, for it will not last long enough to make its owner tire of 
 it, but it, like the male, " will remain in the family until it dies." 
 This may or may not be the true explanation. 
 
 The pot was left for some sixteen hours (i.e. until next 
 morning), and was then baked for two days in a fire, after 
 which it was, of course, black. Salifu said that another way 
 of making the tukunia and the telle is by moulding the clay 
 into a hole in the ground, and then shaping the upper part as 
 he did, but that the high water-jars (tulu) are made in ribbons. 
 
 As both baskets and pots are used to hold food-stuffs, perhaps 
 I should also say a word on the preparation of flour. The millet 
 or other stalks are first pounded by women with wooden pestles 
 in mortars of the same material, so as to separate the grain from 
 the stalks. This is then winnowed in a flat, shallow basket, being 
 simply thrown up in the air and caught again. After this the 
 grain is sprinkled on the higher end of a large, flat stone inclined 
 towards the ground, where a calabash is placed. The grinder sits 
 behind the higher end, and rubs downwards with a smaller flat 
 stone, and by the time the grain has reached the calabash it has 
 become flour. 
 
 Notices are sent round to all males when hunting-parties are 
 to be formed, and they are, as mentioned before, practically 
 identical with war contingents, except for the fact that the 
 chief seems to have more power when on a hunt than in an 
 organised expedition. As there has probably been a scarcity of 
 flesh during the year, a hunt is a serious thing, and the ghosts 
 are consulted by a three days' beer-drinking, as before a war. 
 
 There are practically no large animals now in the Kagoro 
 country, so the rat and field-mouse are the only "game," and 
 
 289 T 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 Jest this should appear more strange than true, I quote an 
 anecdote told in A Voice from the Congo. " Armed with my -577 
 express rifle," says Mr. Ward, " I was hurrying towards a distant 
 valley, where I had been informed there were elephants to be 
 found. On my way I met a party of six or eight men armed with 
 flint-lock guns, and amply provided with powder-flasks and 
 wallets containing missiles. I was impressed by their warlike 
 appearance. ' Where are you going in such a hurry ? ' said 
 they. 'After elephants,' I replied. 'And you — where are you 
 all going?' 'Oh, we are going to the valley below to shoot 
 rats!'" 
 
 Most of the grass is burnt off during November and December, 
 and these animals can no longer conceal themselves, fire appar- 
 ently being employed more for the purpose of clearing the 
 ground than for driving the quarry. Sometimes, patches of 
 grass, perhaps twelve to fifteen feet high, are left, and these 
 are trampled down, so that the inhabitants will be driven out 
 into the open where the men are advancing in line, with their 
 arrows fitted and bows stretched. I have twice seen hunting 
 parties, but no " game," so I do not know if the men are good 
 shots or not. I should think they must be, though, for " hunger 
 maketh a good marksman," and unless they could hit a target 
 when they got the chance, it would hardly be worth while looking 
 for it. 
 
 Each party keeps to the limits of the land of its own town 
 when hunting singly, but usually men of several villages join 
 together, so as to be able to beat a larger expanse of country. 
 There is, I understand, no elaborate code of game laws, each 
 man getting what he can, where he can, when he can. The 
 hunts will last from early morning until sunset, and some men 
 will be away every day from November to March. The harvest 
 is over (October-November), the houses have been re-roofed at 
 the same time, i.e. before the grass is burnt off, and there will be 
 no more planting until April or May, so there is nothing else to 
 do but to " kill something." 
 
 There is only one permanent blacksmith living amongst the 
 Kagoro, a Hausa-Filani from Dangoma, who lives in the capital, 
 
 290 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 the southern towns getting what they want from Jemaan Daroro ; 
 the Moroa, too, have only one, but the Kajji boast several. 
 Sometimes travelling smiths visit these tribes just before the wet 
 season, when there will be a demand for hoes, and stay until it is 
 over. It was not altogether through Matchu's own choice that 
 he lived in Fada Kagoro; he had been plotting for the chief- 
 tainship of Dangoma. I had to banish him somewhere, and as 
 just then the Kagoro chiefs were asking for a blacksmith, and 
 were prepared to guarantee his safety, Matchu's fate was fixed. 
 
 He told me that he made all his arrows of a similar pattern, 
 so that every one who buys from him has the same kind of 
 missile. All the people, however, do not patronise their home 
 industries, but go to Jemaan Daroro, Zangon Katab, or to a 
 Moroa town for them, so that there are several patterns. In 
 addition to this, there is no doubt that some private marks are 
 made on the shaft, or perhaps on the head ; at any rate, every one 
 knows his own arrow, and this is important, because all game 
 belongs to him who first hits it. Even if the wound be slight, 
 and the beast be despatched by another hunter, the carcase will 
 belong to the owner of the first arrow if it be still sticking in the 
 body, for it is held that the animal must die eventually owing to 
 the poison. It sometimes happens, therefore, that one man will 
 pluck out the arrows of another so that there may be no proof of 
 ownership, and this leads to quarrels and fights between the 
 various partisans, especially if the disputants be of different 
 towns, and so fierce have these miniature battles become at 
 times that men have been wounded in them, and even killed. 
 If there be no means of deciding to whom the animal belongs 
 (say if it has escaped, has got rid of the arrows, and is killed by 
 other men who did not see it wounded), the claimants will be 
 required to go through an ordeal, or it will be divided amongst 
 the whole party. The owner of the carcase takes it to his own 
 house, where it is eaten by the family and relatives, the whole 
 being consumed straight off. He is not compelled to give away 
 any of the flesh, though he may ask the priest to the feast, and 
 perhaps even the agwam, for, as with us, a man may try to 
 purchase popularity in high quarters if trying for any office. 
 
 291 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 The poisoned meat does not seem to be dangerous, and is readily 
 eaten without much ill effect, I was told ; in fact, it must be, or 
 else the hunting would be in vain. Arrows are not necessarily 
 poisoned for the shooting of rats and mice, though, for such small 
 animals would be easily caught if wounded. 
 
 I have not seen any game-stalking, so I do not know if the 
 Kagoro dress up to represent their quarry, though I think not. 
 The Nadu to the south do, however, and have a wooden helmet 
 with horns, to which a hide can be attached to conceal the body 
 of the hunter. Pits were dug for animals in the old days, but 
 not now, and there are snares for birds, I am told. Dogs and 
 horses are not used, but with the Gannawarri and Kibbo most 
 of the members of the hunt are mounted, and they drive each 
 year in a very large circle which constantly decreases, everything 
 in sight being slaughtered and eaten. This procedure soon 
 exhausts the game in the country, and since the Kagoro district 
 was once full of animals, there can be but little doubt that the 
 people there did the same kind of thing formerly. 
 
 The weapons are the same as for war, the arrows all have a 
 similarly shaped head (there is no special distinction for different 
 sized animals, though some arrow-heads are much smaller than 
 others, and would be preferable for rats), and they have only one 
 point. Weapons are made to kill, or at any rate to disable the 
 victims, so that the flesh may be secured ; the skins are only a 
 secondary consideration, though generally useful as clothing. It is 
 no reproach from a huntsman's point of view to wound and not 
 capture an animal, but the relatives, who would thus miss a feast, 
 might have an unpleasant word or two to say in the matter. 
 
 So far as I know, there is no fishing with a baited hook, but 
 I am not certain whether small cast-nets are used or not. Fish 
 traps are made of cane, the idea of their construction being the 
 same as in our " lobster pots," but those of the Kagoro are much 
 longer in proportion to the breadth. Only men take part in 
 hunting and fishing. 
 
 The head-hunters have no dangerous sports, so far as I know, 
 but the Filani have, and one feat, that of jumping on to the 
 horns of a bull, I have never been tired of watching. "Bull- 
 
 292 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 fighting is a survival of barbarism, the existence of which is 
 fervently deplored by all but its devotees, [for] the bull is 
 doomed from the moment of its entrance into the arena," 
 writes a contributor in the Encyclopaedia Britannica, and he 
 goes on pompously to say "that a brief description of bull- 
 fighting should be here given, must not be accepted in any 
 way as a token of approval or admiration." The description 
 given is that of a Spanish bull-fight, and although the writer 
 admits that in Portugal and South America the picadores (or 
 caballeros) are not cruel so far as the horses are concerned — for 
 they are expert riders provided with good horses, and it is 
 considered a disgrace if they do not save their horses from 
 injury — he omits to mention that the bull is not killed, and 
 that the only animal in danger of injury or death is the man. 
 In fact, in Portugal, horses are not used at all in more than 
 one-half of the fights, for, being highly trained, they are very 
 expensive, and the caballeros must be rich men to afford 
 them. 
 
 The worst accounts usually come from Spain, but before 
 condemning the Spaniards unheard, we should try to understand 
 their views to some extent. At any rate, students of anthro- 
 pology ought to make an attempt, for Europeans who are unable 
 to comprehend the customs of Europe will hardly make much 
 headway in divining native modes of thought. 
 
 Mr. Calvert (Impressions of Spain), trying to account for 
 the different views prevailing in Spain and England, says that 
 the Spaniard grows up to the sport as our Elizabethan ancestors 
 grew to bull-baiting — even, in fact, as the present generation of 
 Englishmen grows to pugilism (we are liable to forget our own 
 failings), and, long habit having familiarised the Spaniard with 
 bloody details, his experienced eyes follow each trick and turn of 
 the contest with the enthusiasm of a champion watching an athletic 
 display. Danger gives to the contest a dignity which is absent 
 from pheasant-shooting, and which formed no excuse for the 
 vogue to which bear-baiting and cock-fighting once attained in 
 this country. The oanderillero inflicts no more pain on the bull 
 than the humane angler deals out to the wily trout, and the 
 
 293 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 activity and daring with which he addresses himself to his task 
 is superb. These feats must be fraught with infinite danger, and 
 the agility with which the performers acquit themselves cannot 
 be witnessed without a tremor of amazement and admiration. 
 
 One may lecture, write, and preach, he says, against the 
 barbarity of bull-fighting ; but so long as Spain can breed men 
 of such amazing nerve, skill, and dexterity, that they can success- 
 fully defy death and mutilation to provide their countrymen with 
 such lurid sport, so long will bull-fighting continue to flourish in 
 Spain. Mr. Hutton (Cities of Spam) is even more emphatic in 
 his denunciation of the hypocrisy with which Englishmen — and 
 even more Americans — decry this dangerous sport, while delight- 
 ing in the coursing of helpless rabbits with dogs, and in the 
 shooting of tame birds which are bred as pets only to be killed 
 for the owner's amusement later. He should have mentioned, 
 though, that it is only a very few amongst Englishmen rich 
 enough i to have the choice, who would prefer this sort of thing 
 to big game shooting — which is dangerous enough to suit any- 
 body — or even to polo, football, or motor-racing, all of which are 
 always risky to some extent. 
 
 One would think from the article in the Encyclopaedia that 
 there had never been any cruel sport in England, even in the 
 past, much less in the present, an illusion which the following 
 description of the Bull-running at Tutbury, taken from Archce- 
 hgia, may help to dispel. The bull, we are told, was formerly 
 provided by the Prior of Tutbury, later, namely in 1773, by the 
 Earl (sic) of Devonshire. As soon as his horns were cut off, his 
 ears cropt, his tail cut by the stumple, so as to make him the 
 more difficult to hold, all his body smeared over with soap, and 
 his nose blown full of beaten pepper — in short, being made as 
 mad as it was possible for him to be — he was turned forth to 
 be caught, if possible, by the minstrels. I think I am right in 
 saying that not even in Spain — let alone in Portugal or Nigeria 
 — has a bull been so cruelly mutilated. Nor did the cruelty 
 ;nd here, for, if the wretched animal was caught before sunset, 
 le was brought to the bayliff's house in Tutbury, and there 
 :ollared and roapt, and so brought to the bull-ring in the High 
 
 394 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 Street, and there bated (I am retaining the old spelling) with dogs, 
 and afterwards killed and eaten. Truly a gentle and refined sport ! 
 
 There was probably not much danger to the minstrels in this, 
 but there were sometimes even milder risks to be run, for on 
 occasions of rendezvous and public meetings of merriment in a 
 village the landlord of the alehouse would give a " tup " (so they 
 called a ram), or a pig, well soaped, with the tail and the horns 
 and the ears respectively cut off. The writer goes on to say 
 that though some authorities traced the introduction of the bull- 
 running to John of Gaunt (who was Lord of Castile), he himself 
 thought it much older and of purely local origin, being connected 
 with the tenure of the lands by the earl. Since our own bull- 
 baiting was much more cruel and less dangerous than that in 
 vogue even in Spain, we hardly seem to have a right to deplore 
 the depraved tastes of its devotees and to deny it any "token 
 of approval or admiration ! " 
 
 So many writers have described in detail the various aspects 
 of the bull-fighting — the play on horseback and on foot, pole- 
 jumping, sitting on a chair, and the other feats — that an account 
 of them would be out of place here ; but, strange to say, none 
 have mentioned the bull-catching,' which seems to me the most 
 dangerous of all, and as I have seen it in both Portugal and 
 Northern Nigeria a description may have some anthropological 
 value. 
 
 In Portugal the bull is loose, the horns being cased in leather 
 and bandaged, and a number of " catchers " enter the arena and 
 attempt to capture him. I do not know if there is a special name 
 in Portuguese or Filani for these people ; I have used the word 
 " catchers ,1 as best describing their functions. After a time one of 
 them will stand in front of the bull, legs close together, arms 
 extended, and will call and insult the animal until it charges and 
 tosses him, the man as he is tossed grasping the bull by the neck. 
 Once he has got on to the bull's head he must maintain himself 
 until the other catchers can hold the animal and enable the man 
 to extricate himself, otherwise he would almost certainly be gored. 
 I should imagine — though I have no authority for saying so — that 
 only bulls with very long and wide horns can be thus caught, for 
 
 295 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 if they were short and pointing towards the front, the danger of 
 impalement would be very much greater, and also there would 
 hardly be room for the man's body to hang down between them. 
 I saw this done twice at Lisbon, and on the second occasion one 
 of the men was rather badly hurt. 
 
 In Northern Nigeria the horns are not protected in any way, 
 but the bull is not loose. The performers are usually Filani, a 
 cattle-keeping people of partly Berber descent, and it is possible 
 that both they and the Portuguese learned the game from the 
 people of North Africa. Two men hold a rope tied to a hind foot, 
 and one, the catcher, holds another rope fastened to the neck or 
 to the horns. The animal, after having been maddened by tug- 
 ging at the rope, drumming, and shouting, is allowed to dash 
 about, being brought up at will by a pull on one rope or the other. 
 After a time the catcher begins shortening his rope, and in conse- 
 quence advancing towards the bull, care being taken that the hind 
 rope is quite taut so that no sudden rush can be made, and when 
 close up the bull tries to gore, and the man is tossed exactly as in 
 Portugal, holding on in a similar fashion until extricated. Some- 
 times the man will even get astride the animal's neck, using the 
 horns like parallel bars. But as the horns are not protected in 
 these games there is always a great risk, and on two of the five 
 occasions on which I have seen this feat the principal performer 
 came to grief. 
 
 In Northern Nigeria this is the only form of the sport ; horses 
 are never used, the performers are not armed in any way, and the 
 bull is not injured. In Portugal exactly similar conditions pre- 
 vail so far as the catching is concerned, except for the ropes tied 
 to the animal, and even in the regular bull-fighting horses are not 
 always employed, but when they are they are very seldom injured 
 owing to their speed and the dexterity of bheir riders. The per- 
 formers on foot are armed with short darts which do not pierce 
 the flesh more than an inch or two, and the local organisation 
 corresponding to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 
 Animals insists that only a certain number of darts may be used. 
 
 Each bull is played only from fifteen to twenty minutes at the 
 most, and the period is often much less, for there were ten bulls 
 
 296 
 
Bull Baiting 
 
 The man in front of the bull is awaiting a favourable opportunity to spring 
 on to its neck. The man in the forefront on the left is carrying a stick 
 thrust through pieces of dried meat which he has just bought. 
 
 The Biter Bit 
 The toreador fell, and the bull gored him. 
 
 [The above are drawn from actual photograph! taken in the market at 
 Jemaan Daroro, but which would not bear reproduction.] 
 
 297 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 fought in a period of two hours' actual play when I saw it, but 
 this, I was told, gave less time to each bull than is usually the 
 case. After the bull has been captured or symbolically killed it 
 is then driven out of the ring by tame bulls so that its hurts can 
 be attended to ; it is never really put to death. 
 
 Most of the bull-fighting in Spain is, I understand, very cruel, 
 though as I have seen it only in cinematograph pictures and on 
 postcards I cannot pretend to know for certain. The cruelty is, 
 at any rate, not universal, for a strange game takes place at Nova, 
 in Galicia, four times a year, according to another English writer, 
 who says that, on certain occasions, a street serves the purpose of 
 an impromptu ring, the two ends being blocked by tribunes filled 
 with spectators, and the balconies of the houses on both sides over- 
 flow with ladies and gentlemen. The men rush at the bull — which 
 is practically a tame one from the neighbouring hills — and try to 
 aggravate it, and when at length they have succeeded it plunges 
 at them, and they have to turn their backs and flee before it in a 
 crowd, falling at last in a heap, one on top of another, those who 
 come last and fall on top getting their clothes rent by the horns 
 of the bull, to the immense gratification of the spectators. So far 
 from any cruelty to the animal here, the game ends in the bull 
 becoming the matador, and the men play the part usually assigned 
 to him. 
 
 A somewhat similar entertainment is provided on festival days 
 by the people of many towns in the south of France, sometimes 
 no less than five bulls being let loose at the same time, and the 
 people in the "ring 1 ' seem to have a very poor chance as the 
 animals' horns are not protected in any way. There is certainly 
 no cruelty to the bull in Northern Nigeria, nor in either of the 
 cases just mentioned ; nor is there any to the horses, for none are 
 employed, the only danger being that run by the men, so surely 
 this kind of bull-fighting ought to be given rank as a true sport. 
 
 The horse is not used in war or in hunting by the tailed head- 
 hunters, the Eagoro and Kajji possessing but few, though the 
 Moroa and Attakka have a fair number brought from Zaria. 
 They are about thirteen to fourteen hands high, and are rather 
 weak, though sometimes fairly fast. The bridle is made of leather 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 which may be ornamented with brass; there is no bit, but a 
 toothed half-hoop of iron passes behind the animal's jaw to join 
 a similar half-hoop above the nose, so that it can be tightened by 
 a pull on a rope on the left side which forms the rein. The saddle, 
 if any, is a goat-skin tied on to the back, but some of the pagans 
 in the district make a cut in the skin over the backbone about 
 a foot long, and open it out, so that the flesh swells up and forms 
 a pad, which, after a time, seems to become callous. There are 
 no mules or donkeys amongst the head-hunters, but the Hausa 
 traders make use of the latter in great numbers. 
 
 The dog is used as an article of food, and always forms part of 
 the marriage gift. It is a poor specimen — I fancy, only one breed ; 
 they all look the same — but since it is a cur it makes a good 
 watch-dog and it also acts as a scavenger. The noise these 
 animals make in some towns is almost unbearable ; one can hardly 
 call it barking — though that word may describe the booming 
 " boo-woo's " of the bigger breeds — the miserable sounds of the 
 curs are best described as " yauking." 
 
 No animals or birds are used for game fights, but a fowl can 
 act as deputy for a human being in an ordeal. A fact which first 
 struck me as being very strange, but which on second thoughts 
 appeared quite natural, was that animals understood only the 
 local languages. In Amar (Muri province) in 1906, I bought 
 a cow from some Filani people, but I could get no milk from her, 
 although she had a calf at the time, the excuse given by my 
 servants, all Hausa boys, being that "the cow could only talk 
 Filani," and would not give them her milk because she did not 
 understand them. I, of course, thought that the real reason was 
 laziness, but on getting a Filani girl from the barracks, found that 
 the animal was quite tractable, and would give milk in plenty, and 
 as the other servants caught and held the cow, their work was not 
 much reduced. This would not be enough by itself to prove any- 
 thing, for the Filani girl naturally knew much more about the 
 management of cattle than the Hausa boys did, but I noticed in 
 1909 that dogs and horses procured in Moroa were quite at a loss 
 when told to " Come here " or " Gee up ,1 or " Whoa," and when 
 we think of it, if English pets were addressed in an unknown 
 
 299 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 tongue they would not comprehend, so there seems to be no doubt 
 about the matter. After all, if the people themselves did not 
 understand a foreigner's language, it is hardly likely that then- 
 animals would ! 
 
 I do not know whether slave-dealing ought to be called an 
 occupation or not, but it is certainly a very profitable profession 
 to many of the experts in it. While I was in Lokoja during 
 1904-5, the police captured a good many culprits, but they were 
 not more than a very small percentage of those engaged in the 
 trade. One test I had was to find out if the children knew the 
 language of the adults professing to be their parents, and, as this 
 test was often successful, a school was formed somewhere in the 
 Bassa province where children brought down from the interior 
 (usually from countries in the Benue region) were taught the new 
 tongues, and told how cruel we were to any children whom we 
 took from their purchasers, being in reality slave-dealers our- 
 selves. This was an argument which the children readily under- 
 stood, for did they not know that every strong people enslaved a 
 conquered tribe ? So it was extremely hard to get any evidence 
 against slavers even when caught, a difficult task considering that 
 the native quarter of Lokoja was a veritable hot-bed of them. 
 
 A good deal has been heard of the cruelty of slavery, though 
 many of the writers imagine that the institution cannot exist 
 without raids on villages for the purpose of keeping up the supply 
 of human animals. The raids certainly are cruel, and we have 
 almost stopped them in Northern Nigeria, but it is very difficult 
 to know how to act when cases occur of mothers selling their 
 children for a couple of bags of guinea-corn, as actually happened 
 amongst the Bashima of Muri during their famine of seven years 
 ago. The restoration of children to their parents would mean 
 that they would be again sold, to leave them with their buyers 
 did not seem right, so a Freed Slaves' Home was established for 
 the reception of these little orphans. A certain amount of 
 discipline was necessary, of course, and in addition, efforts were 
 made to teach the children some trade, and give them some 
 education. The result was that our kindly intentions were mis- 
 construed, wilfully, no doubt, in many cases, and that we were 
 
 300 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 presented as being rather worse than the slave-buyers them- 
 !ves, since we did not even pay for the slaves we took and 
 reed to work, and that we taught them our language in Zungeru 
 st as the slavers had taught theirs in Bassa. Our justice, too, was 
 len to question, for did we not imprison native traders although 
 ey had behaved rather better than we had done ? There were also 
 fficulties in the way of discipline, for on several occasions children 
 :re prevailed upon by interested outsiders to run away, and as 
 m fences had to be erected, and the home when removed to 
 ingeru was almost opposite the gaol, invidious comparisons were 
 ■awn. 
 
 It therefore became the custom to give the children the choice 
 ' their future disposal, that they should be sent to their parents, 
 the Home, or that they should remain with their buyers, and in 
 ost of the cases which came to my notice, the last alternative 
 is chosen. A record was made, however, of the names of the 
 did and the owner, a copy being sent to headquarters, so that 
 te latter, now guardian, might be asked to produce the child at 
 ly time, and the little slave was told that if the owner was ever 
 lilty of cruelty, or if he wanted to get rid of him, the child need 
 lly complain to the nearest Whiteman to secure his freedom, 
 nd I think that this policy has worked very well, for it is very 
 uch against a trader's interest to treat a child badly, both because 
 ; will get less work under such conditions (even an ill-treated horse 
 ill not be satisfactory), and there will be always the chance of 
 le child running away if afraid to remain. No doubt in time we 
 tall stamp it out, but where the parents are in collusion with 
 le traders, and the children are terrified of the Whiteman, we 
 ive to work under great difficulties. 
 
 Under Mohammedan law a slave can work for his freedom by 
 squiring his master to allow him so much time to himself, and 
 ruelty, especially to female slaves, is often punished by the manu- 
 ission of the slave by order of the native courts. In a great 
 amber of cases, however, the slave does not wish to free himself, 
 ir many high offices are open to him, though we are now putting 
 a end to this practice because the proper successors were thus 
 ften deprived of their rights. Still the Filani raids were very 
 
 301 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 cruel, and some of the pagan customs are worse. One of the most 
 obnoxious kinds of slavery is that of pawning, but I do not know 
 of any instances in Northern Nigeria which equal the custom at 
 Akra described before. We are trying to stamp out pawning 
 as well as slave dealing, and in fact it is looked upon as the same 
 offence, but we cannot accomplish impossibilities, and we have to 
 make haste slowly, for violent changes are apt to produce violent 
 revolutions. However, the public may rest quite satisfied that 
 the Government is doing its best, and a very good best too. 
 
 It will surprise many to hear that slavery had any good points, 
 but the Chevalier des Marchais, a French traveller, who visited 
 Cape Mesurado in 1724-25, wrote to the effect that certain tribes of 
 the Grain Coast, which had been much addicted to human sacri- 
 fices, stopped them when they found that their victims were 
 marketable commodities which could be sold to the foreigners with 
 profit. We also read in Liberia (whence the foregoing statement 
 is taken) that a Captain Snelgrave, who was engaged in the supply 
 of slaves to the West Indies, apparently suggested, like many 
 other writers during that century, that the slave trade was really 
 a preservative of human life, since it offered an inducement to the 
 savage conquerors to spare the lives of their prisoners, in order to 
 sell them into a Christian captivity wherein they might " enjoy all 
 the Church privileges." But even Benin, the City of Blood, did 
 not kill so many people as the slave raiders did, and instead of 
 preserving life, it may be that slavery made it so cheap as to give 
 rise to " orgies of blood." 
 
 It is rather strange that the liberty-loving Liberians, and 
 others who owe their present position to our philanthropy, should 
 so abuse it as to be guilty of the very crimes from which they 
 themselves were protected, but the charge is made by Sir Harry 
 Johnston, and I give the references (Liberia, pp. 1079 and 1080), 
 so that there may be no mistake. " It is clear," he says, " that a 
 considerable traffic in slaves still goes on between Western Liberia 
 and the civilised blacks of Sierra Leone, who take over the war 
 captives of the Buzi and Mandingo tribes as labourers and 
 domestic servants at a price of about £4< each. . . . Undoubtedly 
 the system of apprentices does not differ markedly from a legalised 
 
 302 S 
 
OCCUPATIONS 
 
 ve-buying. The Liberian planter, we will say, goes inland, and 
 offered boy and girl or adult slaves by some native chief. He 
 ys perhaps from £% to £3 value in trade goods for each human 
 ing, and to satisfy his own conscience calls them apprentices." 
 .11 he thinks that on the whole they are better treated than they 
 re when in the interior. I wonder — well, never mind, but if so 
 id the writer ought to know Liberia if any one does) cela 
 %ne furieusement a penser. 
 
 I employed a little ruse at Amar which indirectly stopped a 
 od deal of the traffic down the Benue, and while I was there the 
 [ice captured a good many slavers. I slept for several nights in 
 
 > Government barge near one bank of the river, but in the open, 
 that I could be easily seen, and on the other side was a small 
 loe, with a police patrol hidden amongst the bushes. Any 
 vers coming down at night — the best time to pass a Govern- 
 nt station — naturally tried to avoid me, and to sneak along 
 
 > bank on the other side, and they just as naturally fell into the 
 (coming arms of the patrol. An official has to play many parts 
 ring his life in West Africa ; one would almost imagine that 
 akespeare (or Bacon ?) had been there. 
 
 303 
 
CHAPTER XXII 
 
 MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 ONE of the things which struck me most when a new-comer 
 to West Africa, was the number of different ways of 
 travelling. Not that the methods do not exist elsewhere, 
 for they do, but that the man who is on trek has to get over 
 the ground in many various ways in a short space of time. There 
 are thirteen principal modes, and most of these are capable of 
 subdivision and sometimes of combination, and in case attention 
 has not been directed to this subject before, I give a list : — 
 
 On Land — Walking. Shanks's Pony never had any fascination 
 for me, though I have no objection to seeing others enjoy themselves 
 in this way, and am quite ready to believe them if they say that 
 it does them good. Even on level ground I find it very uninter- 
 esting, and when the paths are narrow — as they generally are — 
 and full of rain-water or stones, and the march commences before 
 daylight, I have often wondered if I really liked being in West 
 Africa; and when the path went up hill and got worse, I was 
 quite sure that I did not. However, there is a harrowing story 
 of the trials and tribulations of a trek in an earlier chapter, so I 
 must not go further into the subject now. The subdivisions of 
 this section would be running and limping, both equally unplea- 
 sant. I saw an amusing cartoon in an illustrated paper a 
 couple of years ago, in which a lame and weary member of the 
 Territorials (of course, they are always the butt of patriotic 
 caricaturists) is depicted as asking how far it was to some place 
 or other where the camp was. "Well," replied his informant, 
 "as the crow flies, it is about nine miles." "Never mind 'ow 
 'e flies," said the weary plodder, for all "book-soldiers" speak 
 execrable English, " 'ow far is it as the beggar 'ops ? " One often 
 asks himself how far off is the next town " as a man limps." 
 
 304 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 By the way, that makes me think of the word limp in another 
 use. Why is it that many men who spend most of their 
 ne in hot countries feel the heat here in England more than 
 ■my Londoners ? I know that this is so in many cases, my own 
 longst them, and it is most embarrassing for a traveller who has 
 sated his friends to tales about lands of breathless heat to find 
 mself feeling quite limp when the thermometer registers under 
 i° in the shade ! I have played lawn-tennis on an asphalte court 
 Australia, and I have marched in South Africa, on days when 
 e shade records approached those of the sun in London in an 
 dinary summer, and yet I did not feel so uncomfortable there 
 
 I have here when the thermometer was more than 20° lower, 
 ifore I knew New York or London, I used to be greatly amused 
 the thought of people being prostrated during a " heat wave," 
 len the temperature was never above a point which would be 
 liculous for an Australian summer, but I can understand 
 now. 
 
 No doubt a great deal is due to the fact that everything in 
 agland is arranged with regard to rain and fogs. In an Austra- 
 m railway compartment the seat-coverings are of leather (or there 
 ay be no cushions at all, the seats being of wicker work), and 
 i large windows and two long ventilators admit the air ; in Eng- 
 ad most of the seats are covered with a red, hot-looking material 
 lough some can be turned over to present a blue leather surface), 
 d there is only one miserable aperture on each side which can 
 
 opened. Here, the houses are apparently built with the 
 tural object of allowing none of the heat from the fires to 
 ;ape ; in West Africa everything opens wide to the breezes. In 
 >ndon any one turning out in a white helmet and duck suit 
 raid be mobbed, in West Africa they are almost universal — 
 ough, strangely enough, not in the southern parts of Australia, 
 ssibly the fact that the natives wore so much white made shy 
 iglishmen more ready to discard the conventional attire while 
 the coast, and to teach the coloured gentlemen instead how to 
 rel in the delights of the frock coat and top hat. Again, heat 
 England comes almost as a shock, for no one is prepared for 
 m a sunny day, much less a hot one, whereas in lands more 
 
 305 u 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 blessed by Helios, one looks forward to more brilliant, if more 
 torrid, weather, and he is prepared accordingly. 
 
 Being carried. — This may be either on a man's neck or on 
 his back, and neither is particularly comfortable. It often 
 happened that I was ahead of my horse or hammock, and arrived 
 at a narrow and shallow stream or slough, and not wishing to get 
 wet, nor to have the bother of undressing, I commandeered some 
 luckless carrier or other. The Yoruba messenger of mine, Ajai, used 
 to rather like the job, and as he was as strong as a horse, and had 
 feet about as large as snow-shoes, I felt quite safe — but there were 
 accidents at times. If you ride on the man's back you can get a good 
 grip on his shoulders (you should not fasten your arms round his ' 
 neck), but if sitting on his neck you have to catch hold of his hair. 
 This is a precarious hold at any time, but it is particularly annoy- 
 ing to find that the man is a Mohammedan and has shaved it off, 
 for the ears are not always quite as steady as handles, and to grip 
 his nose might mean confusing him ! 
 
 You may also be carried on the man's head, though this is 
 not pleasant to anticipate, for it happens only to corpses who are _ 
 rolled up in stiff mats, and are " toted " by one or two men, or 
 to newborn children, who are wrapped up in a cloth or in leaves, 
 placed in a calabash, and brought along by the wretched mother. 
 I have never yet seen a man carrying a child on the road, and 
 this is a little strange, for fathers are usually very good to their 
 children when in their own houses. No doubt the arrangement 
 by which the women stagger along under heavy loads, while the 
 men sometimes even ride unconcernedly by them, is due to the 
 old necessity for the males to be prepared to defend their wives 
 and possessions at any moment. But the sight now is not 
 altogether pleasing to the European eye. I know one newly 
 arrived Resident who, when he saw a woman with a load walk- 
 ing beside a man without one, made the latter take it. The 
 natives did not understand it, neither the wife nor the husband, 
 and no doubt directly the knight-errant had passed she took it 
 again. At Prahsu I remember seeing the mail-runners come in 
 on several occasions — four women, each laden with a bag, and the 
 husband with a stick to drive them on. 
 
 306 
 
te^'-iM 
 
 Wet Travelling 
 
 The Brama Kwatta (Ilorin Province) in flood. Waterproof field-boots are very 
 useful on these occasions. With ordinary boots the traveller has to lift his legs 
 up high on the horse's neck, and thus runs a greater risk of falling into the water. 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 Hammocking. — One may either lie down or sit up in a 
 mmock, there being a slight difference in the shape of the 
 ehicle," according to whether it is required for use on long 
 iks or only in cantonments. Personally I rather preferred the 
 
 1 hammock even to horseback, for I could start at any time in 
 
 2 morning and finish my sleep en route if necessary. I could 
 id while going along, and even have some refreshment handy — 
 ough I always took care to have a book and a meal in my 
 Idle-bags also. An air-pillow is quite a good institution in a 
 mmock, for it weighs very little, and adds greatly to the 
 mfort of travelling. Care must be taken to see that the 
 ad end of the hammock is higher than the other, and that 
 e cross-sticks are wide enough to give plenty of, room for the 
 iveller to turn over. If the hammock-boys are used to the 
 isiness they will not keep step; if they do the jolting will 
 
 awful, for the hammock will swing in rhythm ; while if the 
 ;ps be broken it will remain very much steadier. The reason 
 is brought home to me in a practical way, when travelling thus, 
 ly the military text-books lay down that regiments must break 
 2p when marching over bridges — especially suspension-bridges, 
 is impossible for even two men to pass together over some of 
 e tie-tie bridges on account of the rocking. 
 
 Hammocks are not used in Northern Nigeria, except in a 
 uple of provinces where the tsetse-fly prevents horses living, 
 
 when on patrols for the transport of the wounded, but in the 
 jast colonies they are much in request. It is a funny sight to 
 e a regiment marching out with the European officers and non- 
 mmissioned officers in hammocks ; and funnier still to see it 
 ming back. I remember that in 1901 we used to go from 
 r ilberforce to be inspected on the parade-ground behind the 
 ben) West India barracks on Tower Hill, and, after performing 
 mderfully intricate movements (which would not have been of 
 e slightest use in the bush) we were marched off home in great 
 yle. The hammocks were not allowed on the parade-ground, 
 it had to hide outside, and directly we had passed the gates one 
 Seer or European non-commissioned officer after the other would 
 op into his hammock with a sigh of relief, and be wafted back 
 
 307 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 to barracks to the strains of the regimental band. That was a 
 touch of real West Africa, and perhaps we entered more into the 
 native mode of thought then than at any other time, for other 
 people were working all around while we were lazing, and the music 
 after the fatiguing drill made us dreamily imagine, and almost 
 hope for, a time when this might go on for ever. Sometimes 
 there would be a nasty awakening, for one of the bearers might 
 dream too, and stumble, and then there would be a disagree- 
 able mixture of man and hammock, which was made none the 
 more pleasant because of the remarks of the bystanders, for crowds 
 can collect as quickly in Freetown as in London. But usually 
 the lotus-eating ceased only on arrival at the regiment's private 
 parade, and after dismissal one could start dreaming again. 
 
 When not tired, the hammock-boys will often break into song 
 — while on the march in the bush, of course, not when with a 
 regiment in Freetown — and it is interesting to listen to the 
 different notes and intervals, some of the airs being very 
 pretty. I used to encourage them to sing as much as 
 possible, for I like to see them happy, which is the same 
 in their case as being natural ; but one thing I cannot stand 
 is to hear a native whistling, because it is not natural to 
 him. 
 
 Riding. — The horse, the camel, the donkey, and the ox are 
 used for riding in West Africa, but it has hitherto been found 
 impossible to train the elephant in the way he should go 
 (according to European ideas), and this seems a pity, as he 
 might be very useful in bringing heavy timber from the interior 
 to the waterside, timber which is at present valueless through 
 lack of transport. The horse is used a good deal in Northern 
 Nigeria, and is supposed to have been brought by the Hausas, 
 though they do not ride to anything like the extent that the 
 Filani do. They are small animals, becoming bigger as one 
 goes farther and farther into the interior. They are fairly 
 tractable, strong, and swift under our treatment, but their backs 
 are usually in a horrible mess when owned by natives, owing to 
 the stiff wooden Hausa (or Filani ?) saddles or the operations of 
 the pagans, and sometimes their mouths also. 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 The camel is found only in the more sandy country, and I 
 have not seen nor even heard of one nearer to the coast than 
 Ghirku, some forty miles south of Zaria. Having heard that 
 they are most unpleasant animals to ride, I was not anxious to 
 try, but I am sorry now, as it is generally as well to do all that 
 can be done when in a place, not only because one may never 
 return to have another chance, but also because it brings 
 a stranger more into touch with the local conditions, and all 
 these things help him to better understand the natives of the 
 place. For often during the hearing of a case in court, a strong 
 point is made of some particular act or omission, and really the 
 whole decision should rest upon it, although if the European has 
 no first-hand knowledge of the conditions under which it should 
 be carried out he may not be at all impressed with its importance. 
 
 The donkeys are very small, but fairly strong, for they can 
 carry the loads of two men. Personally I think they are a perfect 
 nuisance, and although described by some authorities as an 
 anachronism and an anomaly I very much prefer carriers, though 
 when passing through an unpopulated country it may be much 
 easier to feed animals than men, so sometimes it would be an 
 advantage to have donkeys. However, the carriers travel very 
 much faster, and in a hostile country they would be able to 
 defend themselves to some extent, many of the carriers being 
 ex-soldiers or police, whereas the donkeys are not only a source 
 of weakness to the caravan, but an actual danger in that they 
 incite an attack. 
 
 The ox is not very much ridden, even in Northern Nigeria, 
 though I have seen such steeds, and they are common amongst 
 the Beriberi people, I am told. Cattle will not live in many of 
 the districts in which even horses will exist, though the boundary 
 lines are fairly close, any difference at all being due, probably, to 
 the fact that horses can always be housed and well looked after, 
 whereas it would be quite impossible to provide shelter for herds 
 of cattle. 
 
 Ricksha-driving. — Rickshas are to be seen in some of the can- 
 tonments, and are there much preferable to hammocks, and, in 
 fact, one man in Northern Nigeria used to travel long distances in 
 
 309 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 them. He is now dead, poor fellow, but I do not mean to say that 
 there was any connection between the events — that one was the 
 cause, the other the effect. 
 
 Driving. — The roads, except in cantonments, are seldom good 
 enough to allow of driving, and even where they are well made it 
 is probable that horses will not be available. Occasionally one 
 may see light buggies, but on the whole they are very rare. I 
 made a four-wheeled cart out of strong boxes at Amar in 1907, 
 the wheels being of the size of large plates, and solid, and I tried 
 to train my pony to draw it, a man marching in front, one on each 
 side, and two at the back hanging on to a rope tied to the axle. 
 I used to invite the other Europeans to go for a drive with me, 
 but never succeeded in persuading any of them to risk it, and, 
 although justly hurt at the time, I cannot now blame them, for 
 although I never voluntarily let the pony go beyond a walk, 
 whenever I had to do so there was a regrettable incident. We 
 know, of course, that the origin of carts was a branch of a tree 
 strapped to each side of the horse, and my cart must have been a 
 student of anthropology, for it returned as often as possible to its 
 primitive form, the pony " going to bush " with a broken shaft 
 hanging on to each side. I tied kerosene tins to him at first to 
 accustom him to the noise behind, but I must regretfully admit 
 that the training was not very successful. Even my own ardour 
 was cooled after about the tenth collision with trees, and, there 
 being no available wood to make more wheels, what was left of 
 the cart was used as a rubbish-box. Driving was quite a harmless 
 form of amusement (to others) while it lasted ; and although I 
 never managed to get more than a few hundred yards in any one 
 day — there was seldom time between the repairs for more than a 
 single trip daily — my fame travelled far and wide, though I was, 
 perhaps, regarded more in the light of a Juju than of a Jehu. 
 
 Motoring. — Although fairly successful in Southern Nigeria, 
 according to the Annual Reports (I have not heard the passen- 
 gers' version, which may possibly be very different), motor lorries 
 are not yet in much request in Northern Nigeria, and in neither 
 country have we advanced to the taxi-cab stage. An attempt was 
 made to run motors along the good roads near Zungeru, and I 
 
 310 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 believe they often went for even more than a mile at a time, but 
 this tropical climate does not seem to suit them, and I venture to 
 doubt if they will ever pay well enough to cover the necessary 
 expenses. Still, there is no harm in trying them, and it is never 
 safe to say what will or will hot be of use in a new country until 
 there have been exhaustive tests under as favourable conditions 
 as circumstances will allow, tests carried out by persons who are 
 capable and also anxious for the success of the experiments. 
 
 Railway Travelling. — The railway is the great juju in North 
 Nigeria at present, and any one speaking disrespectfully of it 
 would be liable to all sorts of pains and penalties ; in fact, such an 
 awful thing is not thought of. Probably it will be one of the 
 least comfortable of the modes of travelling, if the tramway from 
 Wushishi to Zungeru be any criterion, but it is perhaps not quite 
 fair to compare them. The officers there used to travel in a truck 
 with a roof and open sides protected by wire gauze (to keep off 
 the sparks from the engine), which was disrespectfully called the 
 " meat safe." Unfortunately, the meat was not always safe, for 
 sparks used to get in somehow and burn holes in clothes, as I once 
 found to my cost. 
 
 The great public enthusiasm of the higher officials over the 
 completion of the railway has always been accompanied by a 
 private suspicion, in the case of the more humble individuals, that 
 the allowance of personal baggage now taken by carriers at 
 Government expense will be reduced, and that the officials will be 
 made to pay more for their transport than they do at present. 
 Still, that is a personal matter, and not of very great importance, 
 and there is no doubt that for imperial and commercial reasons, 
 which I have given in The Niger and the West Sudan, the line 
 was badly wanted, and the wonderful rate of progress made shows 
 that the hearts of those superintending the construction were in 
 their work. The idea of the line was due to Sir Frederick Lugard, 
 although it is often wrongly attributed to another Governor who 
 spent but little time in the country, and he must be pleased with 
 its fruition. It is always pleasant to be able to chronicle British 
 success, and the fact that the rate of building by us has on this 
 occasion, and on others, far eclipsed the best that other Powers 
 
 311 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 were capable of is something to be proud of. And in the " us " I 
 do not include myself, for I had nothing to do with it, unfor- 
 tunately. Perhaps, in spite of the defeats in athletics, there is life 
 in the old Lion yet. 
 
 I have mentioned that the original conveyance consisted 
 simply of a pair of shafts, and it may be of interest to briefly 
 trace the development of our smaller carriages. And, first, we 
 must remember that although most uncivilised peoples are un- 
 acquainted with any form of vehicle, the absence of one does not 
 necessarily indicate a low level of culture, for there are many 
 peoples fairly well advanced, such as the Filani, whose special 
 circumstances do not permit the use of wheeled transit. 
 
 The earliest vehicle, says Dr. Deniker, resembled that seen 
 amongst the prairie Indians of to-day, viz. two branches attached 
 to the sides of a horse so that they form inclined planes, the 
 driver sitting on the baggage, which is bound to the trunks 
 behind the horse. It is supposed that one day one of the 
 branches or poles broke, and that there was consequently greater 
 ease in draught and an increase in speed, and soon separate poles 
 were placed horizontally upon the ground, being loosely attached 
 to the inclined poles (which now became shafts), and as soon as 
 cross-pieces had been affixed to the horizontal poles we got the 
 sledge, the sole means of locomotion even to-day in Russian 
 forests. 
 
 But in some countries there were further developments, for 
 the advantage of long rollers was discovered, and these are often 
 used now when moving heavy articles for a short distance. But 
 the disadvantage of these was the time lost in having to rearrange 
 the rollers at short intervals, and so permanent rollers were fixed 
 to the vehicle, as can be seen in our present steam-rollers. These 
 rollers were very heavy, however, and steps were taken to lighten 
 them, and it soon became apparent that slices from the outside 
 edges did quite as well as the whole rollers, and so we got wheels. 
 Some vehicles had only one (the wheelbarrow), most had two — , 
 and we see many nowadays, descendants, perhaps, of the old 
 chariots. Others had three, represented to-day by the tricycle 
 and tri-car, though many more had four, known to Europe as 
 
 312 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 early as the bronze age, it is said, while we have even heard of 
 the " fifth wheel of a coach." A fifth wheel (except when kept 
 in reserve) is not regarded as an improvement, so we evidently 
 imagine that we have reached the limit, except as regards railway 
 carriages. The next steps were to do away with the jarring, and 
 great improvements were made by having the wheels higher, by 
 the introduction of springs, and later still by the invention of 
 pneumatic tyres. The reduction of friction, too, had to be 
 considered, better workmanship and the fitting of ball-bearings 
 accomplishing a great deal in this way, and with these improve- 
 ments and the higher wheels came an increase in the speeds 
 attainable. 
 
 One wonders what the next changes will be in our smaller 
 carriages, for of course there are many developments still ahead 
 of us. It is probable that the improvements will be more in the 
 way of making use of lighter building materials, further reduction 
 of the friction, and the employment of superior motive power, 
 than in the shape of the vehicle, or in the addition of wheels. In 
 fact, the bicycle (which is almost equal to a double wheelbarrow) 
 and the mono-rail seem to indicate that we shall have fewer wheels 
 instead of more if there is to be any change at all in this respect. 
 
 On the Water — Swimming. It is not at all pleasant in the 
 early morning to come upon a deep river and find that there 
 are no canoes to be had for love or money; in fact I might 
 go even further and say that the idea of a plunge into the cold 
 unknown before the sun is up is extremely unpleasant, and it 
 is even worse in the rain. But there is often no help for it, and 
 sooner or later one has to peel off his clothes and go in, and 
 when — as usually happens on an ordinary march — many of the 
 natives of the caravan are women, it is exceedingly embarrassing, 
 and the natural hesitation at disrobing is made all the greater. 
 However, the natives will probably take no notice unless their 
 attention is specially attracted, and I have usually managed to 
 get across without creating any great excitement. But I 
 remember when travelling to Zaria once with a man, nicknamed 
 on account of the magnificent proportions of his lower chest, 
 Maitvmibi (" the owner of the stomach "), that his arrival at the 
 
 313 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 waterside was eagerly awaited by the whole party, and the 
 "plomp" he made when he slipped into the water was greeted 
 with loud and frantic applause. One of the carriers who, as luck 
 would have it, was swimming with my luncheon-basket on his 
 head, turned around to look, and became so overcome with 
 excitement that he opened his mouth to cheer, promptly got it 
 full of water, and let the load go to the bottom ! And the filthy 
 mixture of mud, biscuit, sugar, and other dainties exposed to 
 view, when the basket was fished up an hour or so later, quite 
 cured any remains of an appetite that I had — it was pot pourri 
 in many senses. 
 
 There are many ways of swimming these streams, and a 
 European seldom tries to cross unaided, for after a few months 
 in the tropics his heart will not stand much violent exercise, 
 especially in the water, and as the currents are usually very 
 swift and strong in the wet season he would not have much chance 
 were his strength to give out. In the big rivers, too, there are 
 crocodiles, so the larger the party and the more noise that is 
 made the better for one's safety. 
 
 The people living on the river banks are usually adepts at 
 ferrying and swimming, as is natural, for they make their living 
 out of the water. And no doubt the right of taking the fees is 
 held in many cases by particular families, though there may be 
 a special appointment of Sa{r)riTcm Rqfi (" Chief of the Stream," 
 not Sa(r)rikm Rua, a mythical beast also called Dodo), at the 
 disposition of the chief of the town or district. These men 
 usually have watertight gourds tied to each end of a short string, 
 forming a dumb-bell-shaped apparatus, and one can straddle the 
 string and get across by treading the water and, perhaps, by 
 paddling with the hands as well, or he may be pulled over by one 
 of the watermen swimming alongside of him. Or, again, he may 
 dispense with the gourds, and simply hold on to the waterman's 
 shoulder or loin-cloth. 
 
 " Transport by water has undergone more important trans- 
 formations than vehicular transport," says Dr. Deniker. " From 
 the air-filled leather bottle on which, after the manner of the 
 ancient Assyrians, rivers are still crossed in Turkestan and Persia, 
 
 314 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 to elegant sailing yachts; from the primitive reed rafts of the 
 Egyptians and the natives of Chinese Turkestan to the great 
 ocean liners, there are numberless intermediate forms." I do not 
 think that any one watching the gourds in Northern Nigeria 
 would at once connect them with, say, the Campania, or the 
 " dug-outs " with the Dreadnought, though he might by a brain- 
 wave think, of them, and wish he could exchange the prototypes 
 for their descendants. 
 
 By Raft. — Those who object to the pleasures of swimming 
 may make a raft, but it does not necessarily follow that they will 
 keep dry, for there is always a possibility of a slip between the 
 two banks, and it is seldom that a European can board his raft 
 direct from the shore. Some men try to float across in their tin 
 baths, but this is seldom satisfactory, as they usually convert 
 what is meant as a hip-bath into a plunge. On the Ninzam 
 patrol we used tents, and large wooden dishes, about six feet 
 in length, made to hold palm-oil — perhaps, though, these ought 
 to be classed with canoes. A tent is converted in the following 
 manner : — A hole is dug in the ground, about three feet by three 
 feet, and one foot or eighteen inches deep. The outer fly, which 
 must have no holes, is then spread in this (double if the tent be 
 large), and grass, as long and as dry as possible, is packed into it 
 so as to preserve the shape of the whole. The ends of the fly are 
 then folded over as far as they will go, and tied with the tent 
 ropes, the whole forming a square block which is then removed 
 and placed in the water. If the grass be long and dry, the block 
 will be quite three-parts out of water, for there will be plenty of 
 air space, and the sides will be kept apart ; but short and wet 
 grass is not very satisfactory, for it is heavier and less stable. 
 
 This raft is usually pushed across by men swimming alongside, 
 but I found it much better to tie a couple of loose strings to one 
 corner, and to give these to two of the swimmers to hold in their 
 mouths, and pull in that way, there being by this means a steady 
 tension instead of a series of jerks. It is a safer way, too, for the 
 swimmers, not being steady in the water, are apt to push more 
 violently than they intend to at times, and, as the passenger 
 is squatting on the top of the bundle, and the centre of gravity 
 
 315 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 is high out of the water, the equilibrium is anything but stable. 
 Another advantage is that, whereas pushing tends to make the 
 raft go round and round, the strings will keep it right end first. 
 
 If there be no tent, and no bath, perhaps logs can be used, or 
 some other material ; at any rate some one or other of the local 
 natives will know what to do, even if there is no experienced 
 European in the party. I think one great advantage of travelling 
 in these new countries is that a man is continually thrown on his 
 own resources, and no doubt the thought that one has overcome 
 difficulties is one of the greatest charms of West Africa. — diffi- 
 culties which would appear enormous if one read of them in the 
 average story-book, though not really so bad when properly 
 tackled. These checks are an awful nuisance when one is in a 
 hurry, but otherwise the ridiculous incidents which are certain to 
 occur usually smooth over a great deal of the hardship ; there is 
 always something to laugh at if one be on the lookout for 
 amusement. 
 
 By Canoe. — However, in some places there are canoes to be 
 had ; in fact, they are almost always available on the big rivers 
 when unfordable, and it is only in inland districts that one would 
 like to be a fish at times. The canoes are of various sizes, though 
 as each is usually hollowed out of a single tree — and is therefore 
 called a "dug-out" — the main idea of the construction is the 
 same. Mats are often placed tent-wise over the after-part of the 
 larger-sized canoes as a shelter, and these are transferred to 
 the shore to act as bedrooms at night. 
 
 Cooking on board a narrow wooden canoe sounds dangerous, 
 but it is made possible by sprinkling sand on the bottom of the 
 vessel, and lighting the fire on this, three stones holding the pot| 
 in place. Three stones are always used (except where the native 
 blacksmiths have copied our iron stands), never four ; at least I 
 have never seen four, and I suppose this is because they are much 
 easier to arrange, for the level of the pot can be regulated by 
 altering the position of only one out of three stones, while if there 
 are four, two, or perhaps even three, must be moved. That no 
 number greater than three is thought proper or necessary is 
 shown by the riddle, UJcu, uJcu, gamma ga(ryi, "Three, three, 
 
 316 
 
<*■ 
 
 
 A Native Canoe 
 
 Most canoes have a platform at each end for a poler, but this has only one at the stern. The 
 shelter (of palm fibre) covers the trader's goods by day and is used as a tent by night. 
 
 A Kajji Joint-Family Residence 
 
 he house of the Chief of Mersa and his family. Note the stool with a handle, and the granary 
 with a circular entrance for fowls to the right of the photograph. See p. 132. 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 complete the town," the answer to which is murufu, a " cooking- 
 place." The mode of propulsion is usually poling in shallow 
 water, paddling in deep; and when proceeding up-stream the 
 canoe-men usually hug the shore, but when coming down, the 
 middle of the river is preferred in order to get the full benefit of 
 the current. 
 
 Canoes are often damaged, of course, and the rough iron 
 rivets used in repairing them look anything but satisfactory to 
 the European eye ; but when the splits are only sewn with fibre 
 the repairs seem even more unsafe, yet both these modes must 
 answer well on the whole, or some other would have been invented. 
 Some of the canoes will hold horses as well as men. I came from 
 Mozum to Lokoja once with a horse and about thirty natives on 
 board, and yet there was plenty of room for me in the sheltered 
 part. The usual way of getting a horse over a river where there 
 is no ferry is to make him swim, a waterman swimming in front 
 or else sitting in a canoe. In the latter case care must be taken 
 that the horse is down-stream from the canoe, else he may be 
 swept under it and drowned. Horses are usually much afraid of 
 water, and are, I believe, easily drowned, but as I never lost any 
 in that way I cannot state this as a fact on my own authority. 
 Two of Maitumbi's animals were drowned in the Kaduna when 
 on the trek mentioned before, but they were ahead, and I do 
 not know the circumstances. 
 
 By Barge or Punt. — This may be only a ferry, attached to a 
 wire, and square in shape, or it may be more like a canoe run to 
 fat, and intended for travelling on the river, where it is poled along. 
 This is very pleasant when there is plenty of room, and a man 
 alone in a barge is usually quite comfortable. But when over- 
 crowded it is very much the other way, for not only is there but 
 little room for the Europeans, but the different sets of servants 
 are usually quarrelling, and I suppose eighty per cent, of the 
 quarrels between white men on the coast are the result of some 
 act of a servant of one or other of them. 
 
 Barges are not much used below Lokoja, nor are they often 
 seen in any of the main streams during the rains ; but in the dry 
 season they are the usual mode of transport on the rivers, as they 
 
 317 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 draw only a few inches. They are supposed to do about twenty 
 miles against stream, and double that when coming down with it. 
 
 By Swine. — I do not mean that the passengers are "road- 
 hogs," nor even water-hogs; this is a native corruption of the name 
 Swan, which was given to the #rst two' steam barges in Northern 
 Nigeria, and it has proved so appropriate that it now applies even 
 to beautiful new vessels (to quote the style of the Annual Report) 
 called Zaria, &c. They are single stern-wbeelers, the boilers being 
 fore and the engines aft, and steam-pipes run back in some at the 
 height of one's head, in others level with his knees, so that the 
 wretched passenger is usually burnt a few times somewhere or 
 other during a long journey. There is a half-deck above, and as 
 it is almost on a level with the smoke-stack one can have quite 
 a good time at small expense catching the sparks that fly. 
 Very often the passenger does this involuntarily, or rather his 
 clothes do. 
 
 A larger development is the double stern-wheeler, the apo- 
 theosis of which is, I suppose, the Corona, the Governor's yacht, a 
 three-decker, and hardly ever used, or able to be used, until lately. 
 This boat is extremely comfortable when running, but some of 
 the smaller ones are not, as there are no cabins, and when several 
 Europeans are travelling together and each has his baggage on 
 the tiny deck the scene of confusion is lamentable. " The upper 
 deck is provided for the recreation and comfort of the passen- 
 gers,'" according to the official General Standing Orders, but one is 
 rather inclined to wonder where the comfort comes in when these 
 boats are overcrowded, as they usually are, the only space between 
 the travellers being occupied by mosquitoes. I think there must 
 be some doubts in the marine mind also about this, for in the 
 Annual Report for 1908 the river transport is described as being 
 somewhat unsatisfactory. There is no doubt about the recrea- 
 tion ; one has to be a gymnast to get about at all. 
 
 By Steamer. — Last is the steamer, and though I am informed on 
 credible authority that quite two out of three small cargo boats 
 can get to Baro, the railway port on the Niger, a good many 
 manage to decorate the rocks at various intervals. The passenger 
 steamers are now too large to come past Burutu, and as the old 
 
 318 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING 
 
 ■tanks are being gradually replaced by new boats of a superior 
 ss, the passenger from West Africa has on the whole nothing 
 complain about if he travels in one of Elder-Dempster's best 
 ;sels. Certainly it is a very welcome sight at the end of a long 
 lr, and the relief at being able to rest in peace, and to know 
 it there will be plenty of clean food ready at the proper time 
 ;hout any worry on one's own part, is almost too great to be 
 scribed. 
 
 These are the principal modes of travelling in Northern 
 geria ; there may be aeroplanes before long, but at present the 
 ly airy flights one can indulge in are those of fancy, and they 
 i much too complicated to be described in detail, especially 
 ten they are the result of fever. 
 
 The native in charge of every stern-wheeled boat, whether a 
 ine (I mean the boat) or not, is always called " Captain," and it 
 perhaps interesting to note how large a number of the white 
 icials have this rank. A great many of them have had previous 
 litary service, and the experience has naturally been of great 
 ility to them afterwards, but why should they all have stuck 
 
 the grade of captain ? There is sometimes a little jealousy 
 tween subalterns of the regulars and captains of the auxiliary 
 rces, even in West Africa, though this is usually confined to 
 w arrivals, and I remember once hearing a very junior officer, 
 
 10 had never before been out of England, very badly sat upon. 
 "What wonderful titles men have got out here," said the 
 
 idding general, although he ought to have known better, con- 
 lering that he himself had been advanced to the local rank of 
 mtenant, pro tern., " I wonder that they are allowed to call them- 
 Ives ' Captain ' when they do not belong to the army. I should 
 
 11 them ' Hedge-row Captains.' " 
 
 " They call themselves by the rank which they held on active 
 rvice," was the reply, " and since a soldier's real work is fighting 
 hostile country, and not merely drilling on a peacefuj parade- 
 ound, I do not think they will worry much over the opinion of 
 ; Cease-fire Subaltern' like yourself!" 
 
 319 
 
CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 I SUPPOSE no book on any part of West Africa would be 
 complete without some reference to the folklore of the 
 country, and this is especially the case with Northern Nigeria 
 and the Gold Coast, where the Hausawa, or as we call them, the 
 Hausas, are found. During my last tour I collected about 150 
 new tales, and I could have quadrupled the number with ease had 
 I not had so much other work to do. 
 
 Whether these people are indigenous, or whether they are 
 a mixture of Berbers and local Negroes, or (as I think) of Berbers, 
 Arabs, and Negroes from the south-west of Egypt, need not be 
 argued here, for I have already written on the subject in ?%e 
 Niger and the West Sudan, but some points are worth noting. 
 
 Their original country is what is now Northern Nigeria, and it 
 consisted at one time of seven States, the Hausa Bokkoi (" Hausa 
 Seven "), where the true tongue was spoken, to which seven others, 
 the Banza Bokkoi (" False Seven "), were afterwards added. About 
 one-third of the vocabulary of this language is composed of 
 Arabic words, but the origin of the rest is still in doubt, though 
 there seems to be some connection between the Hausa and the 
 Coptic grammars. About a.d. 1000 the Hausa States were 
 conquered by an alien race, probably of mixed origin, and coming 
 from the east, the new-comers bringing the horse with them, and 
 these people ruled the country until they in turn were subdued 
 by the Filani in the early part of last century. 
 
 The Hausas have not the finely chiselled features of the Filani 
 nor yet the very thick lips and flat noses of the Coast Negro ; they 
 are rather short and stumpy, and have woolly hair. They are 
 good agriculturists, and, as a people, are more inclined for peace 
 than for war, though individually, they are fine fighters when 
 
 320 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 operly led. They are also the traders par excellence of West 
 frica, always extending their sphere of operations, and are noted 
 r their success in being able to drive hard bargains. 
 
 They are very fond of tales and proverbs, and almost every 
 jll-known animal or bird, and nearly every trade or profession, 
 represented in the folklore of the people ; and as many animals 
 n change themselves into human beings, according to their ideas, 
 is not surprising to find that they are supposed to follow the 
 me pursuits. I hope to publish a book later which will give 
 fairly complete idea of the tales, but in a single chapter one 
 ,n only point out some of the general characteristics, and I. will 
 infine these remarks to tales about animals. By the way, the 
 ime should be spelt Hausa, and pronounced How-za, not 
 oussa, which is the French rendering. 
 
 The spider (gizzo) is the king of cunning and craftiness, and, 
 'ter each tale, the narrator excuses himself for the untruths that 
 : has necessarily told, by saying that they have been told in the 
 ime of this insect. The spider is nicknamed Maiwayo, the crafty 
 le, and at various times he is shown as outwitting the different 
 limals and even man, though he does not seem quite the equal 
 ' an old woman. Many of his victims pay him out in the end, 
 at he usually escapes because of his having procured a charm for 
 3pularity from a Mohammedan mallam, or learned man, in the 
 illowing way : — 
 
 The Mallam, the Spider, and the Hyena 
 This is about a certain Learned Man and his Horse. He 
 arted from Zaria to go to the city of Kano, but, being tired, 
 3 dismounted and rested at the foot of a tamarind tree. Soon 
 forwards the Hyena came along, and, seeing the Mallam, said, 
 O Learned One, there is an Animal over yonder which has died ; 
 ill you not lend me your Horse so that I may get there quickly ? " 
 nd the Learned Man said, " Certainly, get on his back, O 
 yena." Then the Hyena said, " Many thanks, but let me first 
 ike off the saddle and leave it here. 1 ' 
 
 When she had taken it off, she led the Horse away, and, when 
 ie had led him to her den, she killed him and her Cubs ate him. 
 
 321 x 
 
HAUSA FOLKLOKU 
 
 The Learned Man waited and waited, but there was no sign 
 of the Hyena nor of the Horse, and he sat there at a loss what 
 to do. Just then the Spider came along, and said, " O Learned 
 Man, what are you doing here ? " He said, " I am at a loss what 
 to do ; I have lost my Horse which I was to have ridden to Kano." 
 Then the Spider said, " But here is a saddle, how is it you have 
 no Horse to ride ? " The Mallam replied, " The Hyena came and 
 led away the Horse to her den." Then the Spider said, " Look 
 here, I am going to bring the Hyena to you at once ; I shall 
 girth on the saddle, I shall put on the bridle, and you shall 
 mount her and go to the city of Kano. If I do this for you 
 will you give me a charm for popularity in return ? " And the 
 Mallam gave the required promise. 
 
 Then the Spider got up and went to the Hyena's den, and 
 called out, "Hyena, you are wasting a splendid opportunity; 
 there is a free feed to be had quite near here, yet you are at 
 home doing nothing ! " Then the Hyena replied, " Is it true, 
 O Spider ; has some Animal really died there ? Let us go to 
 the place with all speed." So she came out of her den, and 
 they went off together in the forest. 
 
 Soon they came upon the saddle-cloth which the Hyena had 
 flung off on the road, and the Spider said, " O Hyena, if I take 
 this saddle-cloth, and put it on your back and ride you, we shall 
 go much more quickly, for I am but a poor traveller." So the 
 Hyena said, " Take it, O Spider, and put it on, by all means." 
 So the Spider took it and put it on her, and mounted. After 
 going on a little way, they came upon the saddle also, and the 
 Spider said, " O Hyena, your back is very sharp, I had better 
 girth the saddle on so that I may feel more comfortable while 
 riding; I cannot go quickly like this." So she said, "Take it 
 and put it on, by all means." So he put it on, and mounted 
 again. Then he went and got the bridle also, and said, "0 
 Hyena, if you have this on you, and if you were about to fall 
 through the slipperiness of the ground, I could pull it and you 
 would not fall." So the Hyena said, " Take it, and put it on too." 
 So he put the bridle on her and mounted. And as they were 
 going along, the Spider got the spurs, and said, " Let me put 
 
2 
 o 
 
f:' m 
 HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 these on, so that if I touch you we shall go more quickly." And 
 when he had put on the spurs and had mounted the Hyena 
 again, he kept digging the spurs into her stomach, and making 
 her run, until he had brought her to the Learned Man. 
 
 Then the Spider said, " O Learned Man, mount, here is the 
 Hyena, I have brought her to you." So the Mallam made a charm 
 for popularity [by writing out a verse of the Koran, and encasing 
 it in a piece of soft leather], and gave it to the Spider, and then 
 he mounted the Hyena, and went off towards Kano. As he was 
 moving off, the Spider called out, " When you get to Kano, do 
 not tie up the Hyena with a hide hobble, put a chain on her." 
 Then the Learned Man said to the Hyena, " Stop, the Spider is 
 saying something behind us." But the Hyena said, " I heard ; he 
 said that when you have reached Kano you must tie me with a 
 hide hobble, you must not chain me up, for if you put a chain on 
 me I should die, and you would have nothing to ride." So he 
 spurred her, and they ran off. 
 
 When he had come to Kano he dismounted, and tied her up 
 with a hide hobble, so when night came the Hyena ate the hide, 
 and got free. Then she drank the water set ready for the 
 inmates of the house, and ate all the fowls that she could find, 
 and then she seized a goat and ran off with it to the forest, and 
 succeeded in finding her way home to her cubs. 
 
 When she had refreshed herself, she went out to look for the 
 Spider, but he had been given a charm for popularity, so every 
 Animal she inquired of wished to save him from her anger, and 
 said, " I have not seen the Spider." She searched for him until 
 she became tired with traversing the forest, but she did not see 
 him, and after a time an internal sickness griped her, and she 
 died in the forest. That was the reason why the Spider became 
 popular ; every tale is ascribed to the Spider. 
 
 The spider had not much cause to be proud of his victory 
 over the hyena perhaps, for she is known as a silly beast, quite 
 the buffoon of the animal world, but he soon had another 
 adventure on his hands. 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 The Spidek, the Fish, and the Lion 
 
 This is about the Spider. It was a time of famine, there had 
 been hunger in the land for a long time, and there was nothing 
 For him to eat; but some small Red-Breasted Birds used to 
 pluck the berries from a tree in the centre of a very deep lake 
 which no one could enter, and they used to give him a few. One 
 lay when the Birds had come back, the Spider persuaded one 
 sf them to let him ride on his wing, and they went to the lake 
 together. When the Spider was about to pluck the berries the 
 Birds stopped him, and tried to deceive him, saying, " We always 
 sleep in the tree, and in the morning find that the berries have 
 ripened." 
 
 Now when they had gone to sleep, the Bird who was carrying 
 the Spider slipped her wing from under him, and she flew off 
 md left him helpless, so that when he moved he fell into the 
 lake. He sank in the water until he came to the house of the 
 Water-Dwellers, and they made him so welcome that they began 
 quarrelling over him, each claiming him as a relative. Then one 
 of the disputants said, " Mix some locust fruit, and make it very 
 hot, and if he is a relative of ours he will drink it however hot it 
 may be ; if he is not, then he will let it cool." When they had 
 prepared it, the Spider said, " Take it into the sun [to make it 
 hotter, apparently forgetting he was under water], and keep on 
 stirring it," and he drank it all up. Then the Water-Dwellers 
 said, " He is our brother," and they brought him to the house of 
 a Fish who had just laid 100 eggs, and installed him there, but 
 the Spider said to the Fish's young ones, " If you hear a sound 
 like ' pus,' you will know that I am hiccoughing." 
 
 When they had gone he took the eggs, and put them on the 
 fire, and when he broke them and they made a " pus," the young 
 Fish said, " The guest is hiccoughing." _ Then the older Fish 
 rebuked them for saying so, but the Spider called out, "Do 
 not scold them, I am their father," and he ate up the eggs all 
 but one. 
 
 After two days, he said he must return home, and many of the 
 Water-Dwellers said they would escort him [a mark of honour 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 as mentioned before], the Frog being the most important of them. 
 So they started travelling, and soon afterwards the Fish which 
 owned the eggs and had been left behind, entered the house 
 where the Spider had been lodging, and saw that he had eaten 
 the eggs. Then they called out, " Bring back the stranger, he 
 has eaten the eggs." But the Spider heard first, and said, " Hurry, 
 hurry, the rain is coming," and, when he had come to the 
 bank, he told the Fish escorting him to get inside his basket 
 and he would carry them. The Frog was going to enter, but the 
 Spider prevented him, but the Fish all got inside, and the Spider 
 tied up the mouth of the basket tightly, and then he lighted 
 a fire and put one of the Fish on it to grill. 
 
 Now it happened that just then the Lion arrived, and came up 
 behind the Spider and stood there. But the Spider did not see 
 him, and as soon as the first Fish was cooked he took it off the 
 fire to make room for the next, and threw it behind him, and the 
 Lion took it. This happened each time, and when all had been 
 cooked the Spider looked around, expecting to see his pile of Fish, 
 and found that the Lion had eaten every one. Then the Spider 
 was furious, but, being always cunning, he addressed the Lion 
 with the usual salutation, " O Great One, Elder Brother of the 
 Forest, did you see the feast that I provided for you ? " And the 
 Lion replied that he had, and they went off together, apparently 
 the best of friends. 
 
 As they were walking along, a Partridge flew out just in front 
 of them, and the Spider said that she was trying to avoid paying 
 her barber [for tattooing her]. Then the Lion said, "Was it 
 you who made those marks on her?" and the Spider said 
 "Yes." 
 
 A little farther on a Guinea-Fowl rose up, and the Spider said 
 that she too was trying to cheat him. Then the Lion asked if 
 the Spider had made her marks for her also, and, on being told 
 that that was the case, he said that he should like some. Then 
 the Spider said, " It will be very difficult to tattoo you, O Strong 
 One, unless proper preparations are made ; first, it will be neces- 
 sary to kill a Buffalo, and to flay it, and to make a rope of the 
 hide." So the Lion captured a Buffalo, and gave the body to 
 
the Spider, who cut its throat, and skinned it, and made a rope 
 of the hide. Then he asked the Lion to go into the forest and find 
 a tree so strong that however hard it was pushed it could not be 
 bent. So the Lion shook trees in every direction, and he broke 
 them all, until at last he found a Kiria which he could not bend, 
 and the Spider tied him to it. Then he said to the Lion, " Now, 
 see if you can move, and wherever the lashings are loose show 
 me," and where the Spider saw any movement he tied the rope all 
 the tighter. Then he put his knife in the fire, and when he had 
 made it red-hot he slashed the Lion's body in all directions, say- 
 ing, after each stroke, " That is for the fish you stole from me," 
 and when he had cut the Lion until he was tired he went off home. 
 Soon afterwards the White- Ant appeared, and said to the Lion, 
 " If one makes day for you (does you a good turn) will you make 
 night for him (repay it with a bad one) ? " And, when the Lion 
 had said that he would not do such a thing, the White- Ant ate 
 through the hide in all directions, and freed the Lion. But the 
 latter trod on him and ate him, and the White- Ant said, " Alas ! 
 that is what I feared." 
 
 Then the Lion went to an Old Woman, and asked her advice 
 as to how he could pay the Spider back ; and she said, " Well, if 
 I do you a good turn do not repay me with a bad one." And 
 when he had promised she took the Lion to her house, and made 
 an evil-smelling soup with which she smeared the whole of the 
 Lion's body, with the exception of his eyes, and she took him and 
 put him in a corner, and all the house smelt of the soup. Then 
 she went to the Spider's house, and said, " Who has killed the 
 Lion ? he is rotting." And the Spider said, " I have a deadly 
 poison ; when I shot him I knew he would die ; " and he con- 
 tinued boasting of how he had hunted and killed the Lion until 
 they arrived at the Old Woman's house. But when the Spidei 
 had come close and had touched the Lion, the latter seized him 
 and threw him against the wall, and killed him, and then the Lior 
 said that he had avenged himself. 
 
 This story is more complete than most, and shows how th< 
 spider deceived the lion, and was in turn trapped, a varian' 
 
 326 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 making the jackal a victim. There is a resemblance in this to 
 our story of " The Lion and the Mouse." 
 
 The goat, the sheep, the jackal, and the donkey are regarded 
 as wise animals, while the dog and the monkey are rather foolish, 
 though usually too clever for the hyena, which is the butt of all 
 the animals. 
 
 The Hyena, the Sheep, and the Monkey 
 There was once a Sheep who, with her two Lambs, set out on 
 her travels, and the three journeyed on and on, until, as night 
 approached, they found themselves at the house of the Hyena. 
 The Hyena made food for them, and they ate it, and when they 
 had finished the Hyena gave them a hut to sleep in, and she and 
 her seven Cubs shut them in lest they should run away. During 
 the night the Sheep dug a hole, and made a tunnel under the wall 
 [this is often done by the Hyenas in order to reach Goats and 
 Sheep shut up in a hut], and she and her two Lambs escaped. 
 They ran on to the brink of the river, and there they obtained 
 three gourds, one large, the other two small. Then they made 
 three holes in the earth, and the Sheep put the gourds in the 
 holes, and she and her Lambs ran on again. 
 
 In the morning the Hyena arose and looked in the hut where 
 the Sheep had slept, but saw that she was too late, so she galloped 
 after them, and there on the brink of the river she saw the three 
 white gourds [which she mistook for the heads of the Sheep and 
 her Lambs]. " Oh, there they are," she said ; " they have not gone 
 far," and she sprang on to them. But the earth gave way and she 
 fell into the river. 
 
 Just then the Monkey came up to drink, and the Hyena said, 
 " O Monkey, will you not let me catch hold of your tail that I may 
 pull myself out ? " But the Monkey replied, " Oh no, if one does 
 you a good turn you will repay him with an evil one." But she 
 swore that she would not do such a thing, and so the Monkey 
 stretched out his tail, and she seized it, and pulled herself out of 
 the water. When she had done this the Monkey said, " Now let 
 me go " ; but the Hyena said, " Will you not let me have a bite off 
 it ? " and she bit off half, and even then she refused to let him go. 
 
 327 
 
As they went along they came upon the Jackal, the Wise-Mar 
 of the Forest, the Learned One, the Scholar, and they asked him 
 to judge between them. Then the Jackal told the Hyena to 
 release the Monkey first, but she said that he would escape if she 
 did so, but after a while she was persuaded and let him go. Then 
 the Jackal rushed into his hole, calling out to the Monkey tc 
 climb into the tree above, and so they left the Hyena sitting there 
 alone. 
 
 Perhaps a part of the cleverness of the donkeys is due to the 
 fact that some of them are really girls, corresponding in some 
 respects to the swan-maidens of other countries. 
 
 The Donkey-Girl 
 
 There was once a certain Woman who was very anxious for 
 Children, but she had not had any, and one day, seeing a Donkey, 
 she prayed to God to give her a Child even if it were only a 
 Donkey. On her return home she found that she had conceived, 
 and she afterwards brought forth her Offspring, a Donkey. The 
 Donkey was always tied up near the house until it grew big, and 
 then it was allowed to go into the bush by itself [as is the custom 
 by day, returning to the owner at night]. When it went to the 
 forest it used to throw off the Donkey skin and enter the water 
 and wash, and after that it would put on the skin again and 
 return home, and be tied up as before. 
 
 One day it went to the forest to feed, and a Hunter saw it 
 throw off the skin, and enter the water, as a young Maiden, more 
 beautiful than any he had ever seen. Then the Hunter ran to 
 the King, and said, " So and So's Child is not a Donkey at all, 
 but a Human Being." And the King sent a Messenger to the 
 Girl's Father to ask him for the Donkey in marriage. The 
 Parents said, " How can the King marry a Donkey ? " but the 
 King replied that he wanted to do so, and they said, therefore, 
 that they would give him it, and the Donkey was brought to the 
 King's house and tied up there. 
 
 Next morning, the King unloosed it, and sent it out to feed, 
 telling the Hunter that if the Girl should enter the water and he 
 
 328 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 could steal the Donkey skin, he should be given a Horse [a form 
 of currency and a ceremonial present] as a reward. Now the 
 Hunter had made friends with a Hawk, and he said to it, " O 
 Hawk, if this Girl enters the water, and you manage to steal her 
 skin, I will give you three Fowls ; " so when the Girl had gone 
 into the water and had taken off' her Donkey skin the Hawk 
 swooped down and took it. When the Girl came out and found 
 that her skin hacl disappeared, she ran home to her mother's 
 house and hid, but her Parents gave her a Woman's clothing, and 
 took her to the King's house, and the King made her his Wife. 
 
 There are several tales of human beings marrying with insects 
 or animals, but there is usually deceit on the part of the latter, 
 and these unions usually end in a sad way, but in one tale the 
 spider is admitted to be the best husband of all, though the 
 reasons do not seem very satisfactory to us. 
 
 Dodo, the Spidee, and his Wives 
 A Spider had two wives, and one day he went and made up 
 two bundles of wood, and he brought them and gave each Wife 
 one. Then he asked them if there were any Man who would do 
 better than he had [because he had done their work for them], 
 and as they said that there was, he told them to take him to the 
 house of the Man who was better than he was. So they started 
 out, and having bought white cloth, they came to the house of 
 Dodo [a mythical monster ; in this case he is a land spirit, for he 
 cannot enter the river, but he is usually a water god, possibly 
 originating from the crocodile]. They said to Dodo's Mother 
 that they had brought a Bride for the " Man of Men," and then 
 they left the Spider there, wrapped in the white clothes like a bride 
 [the face being also veiled], and went home. 
 
 Soon afterwards, Dodo came home singing, and wondering how 
 he was going to wash the dirt from his body, and, when the 
 Spider heard him, he got up and ran away. When Dodo had 
 arrived, his Mother told him that a Bride had been brought for 
 him, and Dodo asked where she was. Then he looked in the 
 clothes, but saw no bride, and he followed the Spider's footsteps. 
 
 329 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 Meanwhile, the Spider had overtaken some Farmers, and they 
 asked him what was making him run away. He replied that it 
 was Dodo, and then they said, " Pooh, sit down here, and if he 
 comes we will hide you amongst the roots of the tomatoes." But 
 Dodo was corning on, and when the Farmers saw him, they asked 
 the Spider who it was that was coming. " That is the Dodo who 
 is chasing me," he replied, and then they said, " Get up, and run 
 away, we cannot hide you from him," and they also ran away. 
 
 The Spider arose, and ran on again, and came upon some 
 Harvesters, and they also asked what he was running away from, 
 and, when he told them, they said he could hide in a furrow. 
 But when they saw Dodo coming, they too told him to fly, and so 
 he ran on again until he reached a river, and he crossed it just as 
 Dodo arrived on the bank. Then the Spider stood his ground 
 and laughed at Dodo, for he could not cross the river, ;and so he 
 got safely back to his house while Dodo had to retrace his steps. 
 
 Then the Spider seized one of his Wives, and took her to 
 Dodo for him to marry her, but he ate her instead. Then the 
 Spider asked the other Wife if there was any better man than he, 
 and she said, " Oh no, you are better than any man." 
 
 I cannot call to mind any stories which ascribe to the dog the 
 task of helping a human being in trouble, but the horse is 
 mentioned in such a connection in several tales. The speed of the 
 animal is naturally the useful characteristic in this connection, 
 but the horse is made to show also a certain amount of intelligence, 
 and in this story a mare acts like a Fairy Godmother. 
 
 Salifu and the Wonderful Maee 
 The King of a certain city had ten Sons, and sickness seized 
 hold upon him, and he knew that he was going to die. So he 
 summoned his ten Sons to his bed-side, and said to them, " Come 
 to-morrow, and I will advise you how to live a happy life on 
 earth." 
 
 Next morning, the Sons came, and he summoned the Eldest 
 first, and said to him, " You see that I am about to die ; you know 
 my old Mare ; when I am dead that Mare will be your portion." 
 
 330 
 
'■' 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 it the Eldest Son said, " I refuse ; there is much property ; I shall 
 t be content with the Mare." 
 
 Then the Father summoned the Second Son, and made the 
 me proposition to him, but he also refused, and so did all the 
 thers down to the Ninth with a like result. But the Tenth, 
 ,lifu, said, " I agree, Father, and I thank you." He then went 
 it, and all the Others arose and went also. Salifu went off to 
 llect grass for his Father's horses, and before he had returned his 
 ither was dead. Then there were lamentations, and after that 
 e property was collected ready for distribution. 
 
 Everything was arranged in ten lots, Slaves, Cattle, Horses, 
 onkeys and everything, and then the Eldest Son was told to take 
 s lot, the Second to take his, and so on to the Ninth Son. But 
 ilifu refused to take his portion, and said that the old Mare was 
 ough for him, and that he did not want anything else. Then 
 s Mother began to abuse him for not taking the lot [apparently 
 e distribution was not on the Mohammedan system — otherwise 
 ir share would have been greater by his refusal — but on a system 
 mething like that of the Hindu, where a mother shares with her 
 ns], but he refused to be persuaded. So the Other Brothers 
 id, " Very well," and they divided the tenth lot, and Every One 
 mt away. Salifu took away his Mare, and soon afterwards she 
 nceived, and bore a Foal, a wonderful male Charger. Then the 
 ing of another City heard the news and said that he wanted to 
 ly the Foal, and he gave 100 Slaves for it. 
 
 Then Salifu's Brothers said that their Father had played them 
 trick, since the Mare could bring forth a Foal worth 100 Slaves, 
 id they determined to kill Salifu and seize his possessions. So 
 ey said to him that he must go to a certain tree and pick kola- 
 its for them. Now the tree was in the midst of a lake, so the 
 )y knew that he could not get near it, and he began crying, 
 ben the Mare said, " What are you crying for ? " He replied, 
 My Brothers summoned me, and told me that I must go and 
 ing them kola-nuts from the lake." Then the Mare said, " Is 
 at all ? Leave off crying ; since you did not cause your Father 
 y grief you will not have any. Now, go into your Father's 
 om and bring me a handkerchief." When he had brought it, 
 
 331 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 she spread it in front of him, and a Crow and a Frog came out of 
 it. Then the Mare said to them, " Go to the lake and get the 
 kola-nuts. 1 " So they went ; the Crow flew up above and plucked 
 off the nuts, and when they fell into the water the Frog caught 
 them. Then they emerged from the lake, and the Crow took the 
 nuts to the Boy, and he gave them to his Brothers. Then they 
 said, " There is no one who can beat this Boy ; go home again," so 
 he went home. 
 
 But soon afterwards the Brothers were gathered together 
 again, and sent for Salifu, and when he had come they said, " We 
 are giving our Servants food ; go home and they will bring it to 
 you, and when you have eaten it give them back the calabashes." 
 Then Salifu returned home, and began crying, and the Mare 
 asked him what he was crying for ; and, when she had been told, 
 she said, " Go into your father's room and bring that handker- 
 chief." So he entered, and brought it, and, when the Mare had 
 spread it in front of him, Slipperiness came out, and Small Pieces 
 of Wood, and they went to the road, the Slipperiness placing 
 itself in the middle of the path, the Wood doing the same. Four 
 Youths had been detailed to bring the meat and grain, and one to 
 carry the soup [all eaten together, the whole being enough for, 
 perhaps, eight men], and when they had reached the road to the 
 house, the first one stumbled, for the Slipperiness had caught 
 him, and when he fell down the Wood broke his legs. All fell 
 down and broke their legs, and the food was wasted in the 
 forest. 
 
 Then again the Brothers summoned Salifu to come, and they 
 said, " Go home, for guinea-corn, millet, atcha, and rice will be 
 sent to you all mixed together, and you must separate them by 
 to-morrow morning." Then he went home and began crying, 
 and the Mare asked him what he was sad about now ; and, when 
 she had been told, she once more had the handkerchief brought. 
 Then she spread it as before, and said, " All You who are inside. 
 come forth, there is work for you to do," and immediately a great 
 multitude of Ants appeared, and separated the grain, and Salifu 
 sent it back in different calabashes to his Brothers. 
 
 Soon afterwards the Brothers said, " There is a certain Girl 
 
 332 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 among the rebels, the King's Daughter, go and bring her here." 
 Then Salifu began crying again, and told the Mare what he had 
 been set to do, and she said, " Here is my Foal, bring sour milk 
 in a large gourd, put some millet into it also, and mix them [a 
 very great delicacy, as mentioned before], and let him drink it." 
 When the Foal had drunk, the Mare said, "Now saddle him, mount, 
 and go oft'." Salifu said that he did not know the way, but the 
 Mare said that the Foal knew it, so off they started. They 
 travelled all day and all night, and, by the next morning, they 
 had reached the town. Then the Foal said, "Let us find a place 
 where we can hide in this long grass ; when the Women come out 
 to draw water we will seize the Girl we want." 
 
 So they went and hid until noon, when a crowd of Young 
 Girls came out of the city to go to the waterside. Four of the 
 Girls were holding a cloth like a canopy over the King's Daughter, 
 and she walked along between them. Then the Foal rushed out 
 of the grass, and the Boy seized the Girl, and lifted her on to his 
 saddle, and they galloped off as the alarm was sounded. But 
 Salifu returned safely to his house, and brought the Girl to his 
 Brothers, and she said, "Oh indeed, did you not seize me for 
 yourself? who is it who made you do it for him ? " Then the 
 Brothers said to her, " Go into the house ! " But the Girl said, 
 " Oh no, I am a King's Daughter, I will not enter unless a Ram 
 is killed in my honour." So a Ram was brought, and she told 
 them to kill it, and, when it had been divided up, she took the 
 skin and beat it with her hands, and the skin arose and became 
 a Ram again. Then she said to the King, " Now you also let me 
 treat you likewise," and the King agreed, and she killed him. 
 Then she said to the Brothers, " You also will I kill unless you 
 make Salifu King ; " and so they agreed, and she made him King 
 and took him to the King's palace, and she said, " To-day you are 
 King, Salifu; he who refuses to follow you, kill him. They 
 refused to do what your Father told them, but you obeyed, and 
 so you are now best off." 
 
 Birds seem usually more intelligent than animals, and there 
 is a tale of the battle between them in which the latter are badly 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 worsted, but sometimes they come off only second best. They, 
 too, help man at times, though at others he must beware of them, 
 since they are always stealing his grains and fruits. The follow- 
 ing story shows a bird to much better advantage than the human 
 beings concerned. Does it refer to a process of substitution ? 
 
 The Geeedy Woman and the Good Bied 
 
 There was a certain Old Woman once who had a Daughter. 
 There was also a man who had a Ball which he wanted to sell, I 
 but he said that his Bull was not to be bought for money, but ' 
 that Whoever bought it, on the date when payment became due, 
 must be buried alive. Then the Old Woman said that she would 
 take the Bull on these terms, and the Owner said, " Very well, 
 you have a Daughter ; when the date comes you must give her to 
 me so that I may bury her alive," and the Old Woman agreed, 
 and she took the Bull. 
 
 When the day came the " Burier-alive " came, and said, " Old 
 Woman, the day has come ; give me your Daughter that I may 
 bury her alive ; " and he went off and began digging a grave. 
 Then he returned, and took the Girl, and made her walk in front 
 of him. When they had gone some distance, the Old Woman, 
 in order to delay the evil hour, called out, " O Burier-alive, the 
 Girl has some jewels, will you not allow her to fetch them ? " So 
 he said, " Bring them to her," and she brought them. When 
 they had gone on again the Old Woman called out, " What about 
 her clothes ? " and he said, " Bring them," and so she brought 
 them also. 
 
 After a while they came near to the grave, and the Old 
 Woman was crying that Fate was against her, and saying, " Had 
 I only known that it would come to this I would not have acted 
 so ; it is Greed which kills the Dog, not Hunger." Just then a 
 Red Bird flew up, and said, "What are you crying for, Old 
 Woman?" And she replied, "Alas, because of my greed my 
 Daughter is to be buried alive!" Then the Bird said, "Old 
 Woman, leave off crying. I will dry your tears for you, but if 
 I do you a good turn you must not return me a bad one." 
 
 Then the Old Woman called out, "O Burier-alive, my 
 
HAUSA FOLKLORE 
 
 lighter has silken cords for her neck, will you not allow her 
 fetch them?" And he said "Bring them." But the Red 
 •d took them, and tied them around her neck, and became 
 irirl, while the Girl turned into a Red Bird, and flew up and 
 urned to the Old Woman. Then the Burier-alive made the 
 d Bird walk in front — he did not know it was a Bird — and 
 de it lie down in the hole, and began mixing earth to plaster 
 over the grave. But the Bird flew away when he was not 
 (king, and so the Burier-alive made his clay for nothing, for 
 did not know that she had flown away. Then the Bird 
 urned to the Old Woman, and said, " You must fight against 
 eed ; it is a thing to be avoided, and if you are patient it will 
 lappear." 
 
 Most excellent advice, which is recommended to all the 
 msas and other natives of the country; but, after all, they 
 ; not so bad ; it is wonderful sometimes to see what hardships 
 ey will put up with. They are fine fellows when unspoilt, and 
 eir good humour and cheerfulness under adverse circumstances 
 2 an excellent antidote to the European who is working up for 
 St of the blues. And in spite of the blackwater, I hope that 
 is with them, as also with my readers, not a case of " Good- 
 e," but only of " Au Revoir." 
 
 335 
 
INDEX 
 
 Abdtjlahi, 67, 69 
 
 Abdurahmarm, 65 
 
 Abnormalities, 237, 239, 240, 258 
 
 Abomong, 129 
 
 Abonsom, 202, 203 
 
 Administration and policy, 70, 71, 73, 
 
 78, 82, 91, 98, 115, 123, 151, 161, 
 
 164, 214, 216, 245,273, 274, 279, 280, 
 
 300, 301, 309 
 Adultery, 236 
 
 After-life, 170, 172, 173, 191 
 Age for marriage, 231, 232 
 Agriculture, 206, 243 
 Airs, native, 251, 262, 265, 266 
 Airships, 285 
 Ajai, 78, 86, 243, 306 
 Ajenge, 259 
 Akra customs, 173 
 Amai (Muri), 49, 51, 56, 59 
 
 (Ninzam), 148, 276 
 
 Ambel, 149-151, 280 
 
 Ambushes, 156 
 
 Ancestors, 167, 169, 170, 171, 175, 224 
 
 Animals, 24, 32, 58, 60, 96, 121 
 
 and language, 299 
 
 .powers of, 172, 192 
 
 stories of, 320-335 
 
 substitution of, 172, 207 
 
 transmigration into, 173-175 
 
 Ankwoi, 56, 57, 76 
 
 Anthropology, 31, 61, 161, 164 
 
 Ants, travelling, 125 
 
 Apak, 93 
 
 Aragga tribe, the, 187 
 
 Arbitration, 19, 164 
 
 Arms and weapons, 84, 89, 93, 96, 157, 
 
 292 
 Arrows, poisoned, 83, 84, 89, 150, 276, 
 
 281, 291, 292 
 Ash, for manure, 136, 206 
 
 smoked, 248 
 
 for salt, 242, 243 
 
 of umbilicus, 238 
 
 Ashanti, 17, 85, 213, 214, 225 
 Attakka tribe, the, 92, 94, 95, 101, 103, 
 
 111, 152 
 Australia, 18, 21, 56 
 Auto-harp, 249 
 
 Avoidance, 197, 233 
 
 Awudu of Ungual Eaura, 144, 147, 151, 
 
 261 
 Ayashi, 280, 281 
 Ayu (or Ayub) tribe, the, 92, 100, 150 
 
 Baikib, Dr., 21 
 
 Bakunde, 54 
 
 Band, Kajji, 250, 251 
 
 police, 271 
 
 Bassa province, the, 42, 75, 111 
 
 Bassa-Eomo tribe, the, 226 
 
 Barge, 317, 318 
 
 Barth, Dr., 21 
 
 Baskets, 287, 289 
 
 Bat, 242 
 
 Bauchi province, the, 22, 50, 67, 75, 94 
 
 Beer, 125, 133, 153, 167, 172, 185, 186, 
 
 188, 190, 192, 202, 206, 233, 244, 
 
 247 
 Bees, 142, 157, 182, 282 
 Benue, river, the, 28, 30, 48, 75 
 Betrothal, 232 
 
 Birds, stories of, 324-326, 333-335 
 Black magic, 171, 193 
 Blacksmiths, 136, 194, 248, 290 
 Blood eaten, 245 
 
 feud, 183, 226 
 
 Boats (canoes, barges, steamers, &c), 
 
 24, 26, 30, 42, 43, 313-319 
 Sort dancing, 254-262 
 Bornu province, the, 20, 39 
 
 Bori, 257 
 
 Bow, the, an early harp, 267 
 
 Bowditch, 214 
 
 Boxing, 52 
 
 Bravery of Europeans, pfief., 216 
 
 of natives, 52, 86, 129, 144, 149, 
 
 152, 180, 181, 215, 216, 218, 284 
 Bread in England, 246 
 Bride, 298 
 
 Bride-price, 230, 231, 232, 237, 238 
 Britons, polyandry amongst the, 227 
 Broom, magic, 160 
 Building, methods of, 133-138 
 
 rules of, 132, 133, 138 
 
 Bull-baiting, 51, 292-298 
 Burial, 176-178 
 
Burroughs, Colonel, 216, 219 
 Bush, the Australian, 18 
 
 Cakes, soul, 189 
 
 Cambridge University, the, 31, 35, 61 
 
 Camel, 309 
 
 Cannibalism, 92, 100, 101, 178, 180- 
 
 184, 238 
 Canoe, 316, 317 
 Captains, an army of, 319 
 Capture, marriage by, 229 
 Carriages, the origin of, 312, 313 
 Carrying children, 239 
 Cart, a strange, 55, 313 
 Cattle, 243, 309 
 Caves, 97, 137, 281 
 Cereals, 241, 243 
 Ceremonial dances, 264 
 Chad, Lake, 20, 227 
 Chain, an iron, 232 
 Charms, 86, 111, 112, 122, 163, 181, 
 
 194, 206 
 Cheating God, 163 
 Cherubim, 169 
 Child, Akra custom to prevent its 
 
 dying, 173 
 Child-birth, 198, 200, 230, 238, 281, 
 
 306 
 Child-price, 238 
 
 Choice, the right of, of a woman, 232 
 Christianity, 72, 73, 161 
 Christmas celebrations, 53 
 Circumcision, 94, 203, 204 
 Civilisation, ours and native, 161-164, 
 
 189, 200 
 Clapperton, Captain, 20 
 Clothing, 42, 103, 108, 113, 122, 124, 
 
 128, 166, 191, 292 
 Colonial Office, the, pref., 29, 48 
 Congo or Kongo, river, the, 20 
 Conjuring, 207, 208 
 Consanguinity, 224, 228 
 Cooking, 50, 242, 245, 316 
 Corn, 206, 207 
 
 Corpse, treatment of the, 176, 177, 187 
 Courtship, 232, 233 
 Cover, natives taking, 89 
 Cowries, 232, 234, 257, 262 
 Crocodile, 174, 175, 239 
 Cruelty, 184 
 Currency, 79, 244, 248 
 Custom, 105, 114, 146, 161-210 
 
 Dada, 34 
 
 Danger, signs of, 79, 80, 124 
 
 to officers, 80, 81, 85, 272, 285 
 
 Dance, a, for Hausa women, 262, 263 
 medicinal, 235 
 
 Dance, religious, 253 
 
 Dancing, 82, 179, 202, 205, 252-265 
 
 " Dash," the, 254 
 
 Days, lucky, 195, 259 
 
 Death-customs, 41, 120, 173, 176, 186- 
 
 191, 202, 250, 252 
 Death, life after, 170 
 Debt, 120-122 
 
 Decoration of houses, the, 134, 135 
 Denham, Major, 20 
 Deodand, the, 181, 182 
 " Dis-Mal-Aria," 269, 270 
 District Headman (D.H.M.), 98 
 Divorce, 235-237 
 Doctors, 29, 283 
 Dodo, 329, 330 
 Dog, the, 156, 172, 195, 232, 234, 237 
 
 241, 242, 299, 327 
 Donkey, 309 
 
 Donkey-girl, story of, 328, 329 
 Doors, 131, 141 
 Dreams, 187, 192 
 Driving, 310 
 
 Drums, 250, 251, 267, 271 
 Drunkenness, 186, 244, 245 
 
 Eaes pierced, 110 
 
 Earth, eaten, 113, 243 
 
 red on body, 113, 114 ; whiti 
 
 eaten and on body, 113 ; yellow oi 
 
 eyes, 113 
 Eating, 196, 245 
 Euphorbia hedges, 92, 124, 156 
 Evil-eye, the, 195 
 Evil-wisher, the, 171, 195 
 Executions, 151, 222 
 Expeditions, grades of, 272 
 Eyes, 113, 114, 195 
 
 Fada, 93 
 
 Fada Wate, 147, 275 
 
 Family, the joint, 132, 133, 149 
 
 Farm, rules for a, 132, 206 
 
 Fascination of West Africa, the, 17 
 
 23, 29, 47, 102, 316 
 Fatherhood, 225, 227 
 Feasting, 133, 138, 202, 233 
 " Female" pots, 288, 289 
 Fever, 31, 32, 55, 58, 81, 282 
 Fighting, 41, 54, 57, 67, 68, 70, S3-9C 
 
 95, 97, 126, 129, 144, 147, 150, 152 
 
 164, 221, 272-280 
 Filani people, the, 30, 37, 39, 50, 61 
 
 73, 76, 97, 194, 231, 235, 243, 292 
 Fire, 125, 158, 171, 193, 240 
 Fish, 242 
 
 story of, 324-327 
 
 Flour, 289 
 
 338 
 
INDEX 
 
 ate, the, 249, 267 
 
 ilk-lore, Hausa, 320-335 
 
 iod and drink, 50, 78, 80, 82, 124, 
 
 125, 126, 153, 183, 196, 241-248, 259, 
 
 260, 289, 292 
 
 ml, the, as deputy, 201, 299 
 
 — as sacrifice, 133, 137, 167, 178, 
 185, 207 
 
 — as watch-dog, 137 
 )wl-house, the, 137 
 •uits, 241 
 
 •og, stories of the, 325, 332 
 imiture, 135, 202 
 
 AME-LAWS, 290-292 
 
 uinawarri tribe, the, 92, 96, 101, 106, 
 
 154, 184, 203 
 
 hosts, 177, 178, 180, 189, 190, 191, 
 
 206 
 
 oats, disputes over, 41, 42, 122, 123 
 
 — as food, 242 
 
 — as gifts, 232, 259 
 
 — as sacrifice, 159, 178, 185, 187, 
 327 
 
 oat skins, 104 
 
 od, ideas of, 163, 166-169, 191, 193, 
 
 203 
 
 olden stool, the, 215 
 
 ourds, swimming with, 314 
 
 overnment of Northern Nigeria, the, 
 
 29, 115, 302, and see Administration 
 
 and Policy 
 
 ranary, an inside, 132, 141 
 
 — an outside, 136, 141, 245 
 rass, when burnt, 290 
 
 — for roofing, 140, 141 
 
 — for torches, 149 
 raves, 176, 177, 183 
 
 [abeshi, the, 62 
 
 [abitations, Attakka, 96, 100, 138 
 
 — Ashanti, 142 
 
 — Ayashi (Nadu), 281 
 
 — Filani, 139 
 
 — Hausa, 138-142 
 
 — Jaba, 131, 138 
 
 — Kagoma, 100, 128, 131 
 
 — Kagoro, 96, 100, 128, 131, 138 
 
 — Kajji, 100, 128, 131, 138 
 
 — Katab, 131 
 
 — Moroa, 100, 138 
 
 — Yoraba, 139 
 
 [air, 63, 109, 186, 187, 195 
 [allucinations (Bori), 254-257 
 lammock, the, 307, 308 
 
 dance, 263 
 
 larmattan, the, 46, 116 
 [ansa beliefs, 34, 50 
 
 Hausa customs, 229, 231 
 
 folklore, 320-335 
 
 language, the, 31, 40, 45, 48, 56, 
 
 94, 115, 126, 320 
 
 soldiers, 37, 220 
 
 States, the, 21, 62 
 
 traders, 93, 194, 246 
 
 Head-hunting, 90, 92, 95, 101, 113, 
 
 152, 153, 160, 178-180, 185, 232 
 Heat, 305 
 
 Henstock, Lieut.-Col., 220, 221 
 History of Bori dancing, 254, 257 
 
 of Jemaan Daroro, 64-71 
 
 of the Kagoro, 93-99 
 
 Hoe-shovel, the, 206, 232, 234 
 
 magic, 208, 209 
 
 Honey-beer, 246 
 
 Horns as native instruments, 250, 251 
 
 Horse, the, 33, 41, 42, 53, 55, 63, 88, 
 
 118, 119, 145, 172, 186, 205, 298, 
 
 308 
 
 stories of, 321, 322, 330-333 
 
 Hunting, 55, 91, 152, 200, 237, 289- 
 
 Hyena, the, 58, 59, 321-323, 327, 328 
 Hysteria, 258 
 
 Ibi, 49, 56 
 
 Igbaja, 34 
 
 Ijo belief, an, 196 
 
 Ilorin, 31 
 
 Images, 167, 168 
 
 Implements, 206 
 
 Indema, the story of, 64-66 
 
 Infanticide, 239 
 
 Inheritance, 190, 331 
 
 Initiation, 204, 205, 258 
 
 Insanity, 254, 258 
 
 Insects, 28, 29, 32, 59, 241 
 
 Instruments, musical, 267, 268 
 
 Iron, 93, 106, 239 
 
 Jaba tribe, the, 92, 99, 103, 111 
 
 Jackal, story of, 328 
 
 Jagindi ("Red Behind"), 70 
 
 Jebba, 21, 31, 39 
 
 Jehad, the Filani, 63, 64 
 
 Jemaan Daroro (or Jemaa), 61, 66, 67, 
 
 76, 92, 93, 98, 111, 116, 124 
 Justice, 151 
 
 Kaduna, the river, 30, 193, 195, 240 
 Kafir, 62, 73 
 
 Kagoma tribe, the, 70, 92, 100, 128 
 Kagoro tribe, the, 68, 71, 91, 92, 94, 
 
 95,103, 115,152,203, 231 
 Kajji tribe, the, 67, 70, 92, 95, 99, 103 
 Kajurawa tribe, the, 64-66, 95, 97 
 
Kamerun (or Cameroon), the, 54 
 
 Kano, 20, 33, 39, 49, 126, 323 
 
 Karshe tribe, the, 92, 100 
 
 Katab tribe, the, 92, 95, 99, 103, 111 
 
 Keddara tribe, the, 106 
 
 Kibbo tribe, the, 92, 100, 152 
 
 Kola nuts, 51, 247, 262 
 
 Kontagora, 43, 49 
 
 Kukuruku tribe, the, 41 
 
 Kumasi, 17, 214, 217 
 
 Kwv/rua, the, 252 
 
 Ladies, European, in West Africa, 49 
 Laing, Major, 21 
 Land, travelling on, 304-313 
 Lander, Richard, 20, 21, 67 
 Language, 37, 38, 75, 149, 299, 300 
 Lascivious dances, 264, 265 
 Leaves, 42, 105 
 Lightning, the origin of, 93 
 Lion, 58 
 
 stories of, 324-327 
 
 Lip ornaments, 110, 114, 121 
 Liquor, the importation of, 244 
 Liver, the, eaten, 171, 172, 234 
 Loads, carrying, on the heads("toting") 
 
 162, 306 
 Lokoja, 24, 27, 28, 30, 39-41, 49, 59, 
 
 118 
 Lugard, Sir F. D., 39, 40, 45 
 
 McCarthy, Sir Charles, 214 
 
 Mada tribe, the, 92, 106, 153, 276 
 
 Magic, 85, 194 
 
 Maibori (pi. Masubori), the, 254, 258- 
 
 261 
 Mallam (priest, magician), a, 64 
 
 story of, 321-323 
 
 Markets, 142, 245 
 Marks, tribal, 95, 111, 112 
 
 on birds, stories of, 325, 326 
 
 Marriage, 105, 113, 158, 173, 179, 205, 
 
 224-235 
 Martin, the Rev. John, 120, 173, 174, 
 
 202, 205 
 Massage, 162 
 Meals, 53, 242, 245 
 Meat, 78, 242, 246 
 Medals, 36, 178, 284-286 
 Milk, 50, 243, 247 
 Mohammedans, the, 72, 73, 161, 203, 
 
 236, 244, 301 
 Monkey, a story of the, 327, 328 
 Morality, 192, 232, 236, 245 
 Moroa tribe, the, 67, 92, 95, 101, 103, 
 
 154, 224, 231 
 Mosques, 138 
 Mosquitoes, 28, 29, 32, 59, 241 
 
 340 
 
 Motors, 310, 311 
 
 Mourning, 186 
 
 Mouse, the, 91, 242, 289, 290 
 
 Munshi tribe, the, 56, 59, 60 
 
 Murder, 148, 150 
 
 Muri Province, the, 48-60, 75 
 
 Musa, Mallam, 67 
 
 Music, native, 249-252, 265-271 
 
 Mutiny, a, 116, 211-223 
 
 Nadtj tribe, the, 92, 97, 106, 111, 153 
 Nakedness, 42, 101 
 
 Names, 51, 160, 179, 195-197, 228, 312 
 Nassarawa Province, the, 22, 61, 75, 
 
 92, 94 
 Natives, the, bravery, 52, 86, 129, 144 
 
 149, 152, 180, 181, 215-218, 284 
 
 ■ • conservatism, 161 
 
 goodness of heart, 77, 151, 161 
 
 gratitude, 40, 86, 220, 278 
 
 happiness, pref., 25, 142, 207, 252 
 
 284, 335 
 honesty, 24, 87, 205, 232, 233, 
 
 244 
 laws and customs, 71, 161, 162 
 
 165, 169, 181, 228 
 
 memory, 271 
 
 overpayment of, 245 
 
 policy with {see Administration) 
 
 punishment of, 26, 72, 116, 130 
 
 155, 170, 218, 222, 274 
 
 self-esteem, 163, 164 
 
 time, idea of, 98, 117 
 
 treachery, 154, 180 
 
 work, 27, 74, 118, 143, 198, 199 
 
 245, 250, 306 
 Niger Company, the, 22, 39, 55, 56 
 
 105 
 and the West Sudan, the, 19, 61 
 
 320 
 
 the river, 20, 24, 27, 30, 193 
 
 Night attacks, 152 
 
 Ninkada tribe, the, 92 
 
 NInzam tribe, the, 68, 70, 92, 100, 144 
 
 150 
 Notation, musical, 262, 268 
 Nupe soldiers, 37 
 Nursing children, 239 
 Nnts, 241 
 
 Oaths, 201 
 
 Officials, pref., 80, 81, 85, 283, 302 
 
 Ordeals, 201 
 
 Origin, the, of the Filani, 62 
 
 generally, 224 
 
 of the Hausa, 320 
 
 of the Kagoma, 100 
 
 of the Kagoro, 93, 170, 171 
 
INDEX 
 
 Origin of the Kajji, 99 
 
 of the Katab, 99 
 
 of the Moroa, 101, 224 
 
 Othman dan Fodio, 63, 64 
 
 Oudney, Dr, 20 
 
 Overpayment of natives, the, 245 
 
 Overweg, Dr., 21 
 
 Ox, the, 309 
 
 Pagan Belt, the, 75, 81 
 
 Painting, 112, 113, 179, 186, 192, 232 
 
 Palm-wine, 246, 247 
 
 Parentage, 225 
 
 Patrols and tours, 41, 53, 56, 144, 211, 
 
 272-286 
 Pawning, 120 {see slavery) 
 Peace, agreements of, 158-160 
 " Peaceful penetration," 60, 78, 272 
 Phallic cult, the, 106, 280 
 Pipes, 248 
 Pits for human beings, 124, 157 
 
 for wild beasts, 158, 292 
 
 for refuse, 136 
 
 Police (for some time constabulary), 
 
 the, 28, 32-35, 39, 42 
 Polygyny, 73 
 
 Porridge, 185, 233, 245, 247, 259 
 Pottery, 287-289 
 Prettiness, 168 
 
 Priests, the, 191, 197, 206, 240 
 Proverbs, 60, 85, 86, 143 
 Publicity, 142 
 Punishment of natives, the, 26, 72, 
 
 116, 130, 155, 170, 218, 222, 274 
 Punt or barge, the, 316, 317 
 
 Qthnine, 21, 258 
 
 Rafts, 315, 316 
 
 Eailway, the, 311, 312 
 
 Eain, 166, 283, 284 
 
 Rat, the, 91, 242 
 
 Restrictions on food, 110, 247, 248, 
 
 289, 290 
 Revenge, 181, 182 
 Richardson, James, 21 
 - — Lady Constance Stuart, 58 
 Ricksha, the, 309 
 Rivers, crossing, 283 
 Roads in West Africa, 77, 91, 145, 150, 
 
 304, 310 
 Robbers, highway, 57, 100, 124, 128 
 
 Sacked grove, the, 196 
 Sacrifice, 99, 133, 137, 159, 167, 169, 
 174, 175, 178, 185, 188, 190, 207, 247 
 Saddle, a cruel, 299 
 Sadness of native airs, the, 268, 271 
 
 Salt, 201 
 
 Salutations, 50, 51, 94 
 
 Sanga, 144 
 
 Sap (poisonous draught), the, 201 
 
 Sarauta (chieftainship), the, 63, 54 
 
 Scarification, 95, 111, 112, 234 
 
 Serenade, a Hausa, 265 
 
 Seville Cathedral, a dance in the, 263 
 
 Sexes, the treatment of, in divorce, 
 
 236 
 Shadow, the, 170, 172 
 Shaving, 186 
 
 Sheep, a story of the, 327, 328, 333 
 Singing, 179 
 Sitting, 131, 135 
 Skulls, 136, 154, 155, 178, 179, 185, 
 
 281 
 Slavery, 97, 119, 144, 148, 300-303 
 Sleep, 170 
 Small-pox, 123 
 Smell, 103 
 
 Snake charming, 207 
 belief that a child turns into a, 
 
 239 
 Sokoto (better Sokkotu), 20, 33, 39 
 Soul, the, 170, 171, 172, 173, 182, 188 
 Soup, 239, 242, 245 
 South, looking towards the, 167, 
 Spelling, 79 
 Spices, 241 
 Spider, stories of the, 321-326, 329, 
 
 330 
 Spoons, 196, 245 
 Sports, 51, 52, 55, 289-299 
 Steamers, 318, 319 
 Stern-wheeled boats, 318, 319 
 Still-born children, 238, 239 
 Stone implements, 93 
 Stones, 158, 167 
 
 Stream dividing the worlds, the, 170 
 Subaltern, a "cease-fire," 319 
 Substitution, 172, 187, 188, 207 
 Sun, the, 193 
 Swimming, 170, 313 
 " Swine," the, 26, 42, 318 
 Symbolism, 234 
 Sympathetic magic, 182, 195 
 
 Tabu, 125, 196, 233 
 Tails, 103, 104, 106-108, 234 
 Taken, the, 263, 264 
 Tar-baby stories, 206 
 Timbuktu, 20, 21 
 Time of marriage, 234 
 
 native idea of, 98 
 
 Tobacco, 94, 248 
 
 Toff tribe, the, 76, 80, 83, 87, 88, 96 
 
 Tornado, a, 145 
 
 341 
 
traders, 21, 22, 76, 82, 94, 181, 246, 
 300,' 301 
 
 Training for war, 153 
 
 Transport, origin of, 312, 314 
 
 transmigration, 173, 174, 180 
 
 Crap, a, for beasts, 58, 292 
 
 for fish, 292 
 
 Travelling, 145, 283, 304-319 
 
 Tribal Marks (see marks) 
 
 Tribes, the origin of distinctions be- 
 tween, 75 
 
 Tribute, 54, 66, 70, 91, 97, 98, 115-148, 
 150, 279, 281 
 
 Tripoli, 20, 21 
 
 Tsetse fly, prevention against the, 41 
 
 Turtle, the, 196 
 
 Umbilicus, treatment of the, 238 
 Ungual Kaura, 144, 275 
 Uniforms, 35, 36, 53 
 Usuman, Mallam, 64, 67 
 
 VIBGINS, 104, 232, 234, 235 
 Virtues, assimilation of, by eating, 181 
 Visits of the bridegroom, the, 226, 234, 
 235 
 
 " Waffs " (West African Frontier 
 
 Force), the, 33, 37, 215 
 Waiwai tribe, the, 73, 100, 276-278 
 Wallace, Sir W., 43 
 " WARS " (West African Regiment), 
 
 the, 40, 212, 216-223 
 War, causes of, 160 
 declaration of, 155 
 
 War, preparation for, 153 
 
 tactics, 89, 156, 157, 277, 281, 285 
 
 Wars with Ashanti, 213-215 
 Wase, 50 
 Water, holy, 201 
 
 travelling on the, 313-319 
 
 Waterproof sheet, uses of a, 44, 146 
 Watson, the late Captain, 219, 221 
 Weapons and arms, 84, 89, 93, 96, 157, 
 
 292 
 White flag, equivalents for the, 86, 
 
 126, 278 
 Widows, the killing of, 187 
 
 the remarriage of, 234 
 
 Willcocks, Sir James, 215 
 Windows, 135, 141 
 Witch-doctor, the, 171, 172 
 Wolseley, Lord, 214 
 Women fighting, 147, 156 
 
 in religious rites, 186, 197, 205 
 
 property in, 228, 229, 231, 236 
 
 Work, 40, 48, 74, 118, 198, 199 
 Wound, the treatment of a, 194 
 Wraiths, 173 
 
 Yesko (pi. TesJcwa) tribe, the, 70, 100, 
 
 126, 127 
 Yoruba beliefs, 34, 35 
 people, the, 30, 34, 37, 111, 235, 
 
 243 
 soldier, the, 37, 38 
 
 Zabia, 22, 45, 46, 61, 67, 75, 95, 126 
 Zungeru (really Dungeru), 39, 40, 42, 
 59, 301 
 
 Printed by BALLANTtNE, Hanson &» CO. 
 
 Edinburgh &° London 
 
EXTRACTS FROM REVIEWS 
 
 OF 
 
 "The Niger and the West Sudan; The West 
 African's Note-Book" 
 
 A Vade-mecum containing Hints and Suggestions as to what is required 
 by Britons in West Africa, together with Historical and 
 
 Anthropological Notes 
 
 By CAPTAIN A. J. N. TREMEARNE 
 
 Dip. Anth., F.R.G.S., F.R.A.I. 
 Late Hausa Lecturer and Scholar, Cambridge 
 
 HODDER & STOUGHTON, LONDON, 1910. 6s. 
 
 Journal of the Royal Geographical Society. — " Captain Tremearne's 
 useful manual . . . bears strong testimony to the author's industry. ;-■-—- 
 The views of an officer who has had much experience of natives and is 
 conversant with their modes of thought deserve careful consideration. . . . 
 His hints are very much to the point . . . the author's advice is eminently 
 sensible. . . . Probably the kits of most men who hereafter go to the West 
 Coast will include a copy of this book." 
 
 Man (Royal Anthropological Institute). — " Very useful little book. . . . 
 The compilations, which form the ethnographical part, are the work of an 
 industrious and careful student, and are well suited to help those who 
 intend to push inquiry forward. . . . Captain Tremearne deserves the 
 gratitude of the West Coast natives for advocating the wise development 
 of their own civilisation instead of the systematic application of European 
 codes of honour, morals, and education, all equally unsuited to them. . . . 
 This chapter ought to be read by all colonial administrators." 
 
 The British Medical Journal. — " Captain Tremearne's book is really 
 remarkable in its way ; the amount of information respecting The Niger 
 and the West Sudan that he has contrived to pack into a thin volume of 
 moderate size is quite extraordinary. . . . The author's instructions and 
 hints as to health, medicines, and food seem generally very good. . . . For 
 those who serve in West Africa, whether in a medical, civilian, or military 
 capacity, one can hardly conceive of a better 'guide, philosopher, and 
 friend ' than this little book of Captain Tremearne's." 
 
OF 
 
 "Fables and Fairy Tales for Little Folk; or, 
 Uncle Remus in Hausaland" 
 
 By MARY and NEWMAN TREMEARNE 
 
 HEFFER & SONS, Ltd., CAMBRIDGE, 1910. 2s. 6d. 
 {Copies have been graciously accepted by H.M. the Queen.) 
 
 Colonial Office Journal. — " The inexhaustible charm of the fairy tale, 
 and especially of that form of the fairy tale which makes animals act and 
 reason like human beings, attaches scarcely less closely to the folk stories 
 of West Africa than it does to those of Europe. . . . From the child's point 
 of view most of these stories possess the crowning merit that they have no 
 particular moral. . . . The stories are told with a simplicity and absence 
 of affectation which are welcome." 
 
 Journal of the African Society. — " Major Tremearne has collected 
 a large quantity of valuable folk-lore material during his residence in 
 Northern Nigeria. . . . The present volume contains twelve stories retold 
 in an attractive style for children, and illustrated with some very spirited 
 and characteristic drawings." 
 
 Nature. — '' A popularised version of a series of folk tales collected by 
 Captain A. J. N. Tremearne, and published, with much useful information 
 on the ethnology and customs of the Hausas, in the Proceedings of various 
 societies. ... Its quaint and humorous incidents of animal life will doubt- 
 less be fully appreciated in the nursery." 
 
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 and folk-lore. The tales . . . are full of human interest, and their descrip- 
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 Morning Post. — " To those who are on the look-out for a new type oi 
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 girls as a part of school instruction. ... Or the child may just be left alone 
 to enjoy the tales, and give rein to wonder and imagination." 
 
FORE AND AFT 
 
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 manners and customs, and many an amusing incident and perilous journey that 
 took place. 
 
 The Tailed Head-Hunters of Nigeria. 
 
 An account of an Official's seven years' experiences in 
 the Pagan Belt of Northern Nigeria, and a description of 
 the manners, habits, and customs of some of the native 
 tribes there. By Major A. J. N. Tremearne, B. A. (Cantab.), 
 F.R.G.S., F.R.A.I., late Hausa Scholar, Christ's College; 
 Hausa Lecturer, and First Diplome in Anthropology, Cam- 
 bridge ; author of "The Niger and the West Sudan," 
 "Fables and Fairy Tales," &c. 
 
 With 38 illustrations and a map. Price 16s. nett. 
 
 One of the author's aims in writing this book has been to show how much the 
 uncivilised natives of Northern Nigeria resemble some other aboriginal races, 
 possibly even our own remote ancestors, and, incidentally, to prove that they are 
 by no means as black in many ways as they are painted. Having served in 
 different parts of West Africa for the greater part of ten years, first as a Military 
 then as a Police Officer, and subsequently in a Political and a Judicial capacity, 
 he has possibly a wider view of West African things in general than many writers 
 on the country. 
 
 Head-hunters are found in various parts of the world, notably amongst the 
 Dyaks and South Sea Islanders, but that they should combine with this the 
 curious custom of wearing artificial tails is surely unique in the annals of 
 anthropology. 
 
 SEELEY, SERVICE &CO., Ltd., 38 Great Russell Street. 
 
THE NEW ART LIBRARY 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 M. H. SPIELMANN, F.S.A., and P. G. KONODY 
 
 "The admirable New Art Library."— Connoisseur 
 
 THE volumes in this series are primarily intended for the use of Art 
 Students. The instruction given is of the most thorough kind, and is 
 based on long practical experience and intimate knowledge ; the names 
 of the authors will be a sufficient guarantee for the high excellence of their 
 work. The greatest care is being bestowed on the illustrations, which are 
 very numerous and in a remarkable degree explanatory of the text. It may 
 be doubted whether artistio processes have ever before been so dearly 
 illustrated. 
 
 It is hoped that the volumes will also be welcomed by those amateur artists 
 who, although they do not follow art for a livelihood, are in no way content 
 with inferior craftsmanship, but are earnestly bent on acquiring a sound and 
 workmanlike method, based upon knowledge of technical processes in all 
 their details. 
 
 But there is a third class to whom these volumes may prove of high interest, 
 the lovers of art, who, though they produce nothing themselves, are not 
 content with an unintelligent enjoyment of artistic creations. No one can 
 be said to understand them who is ignorant of the principles on which 
 they are executed. The special enjoyment which an artist finds in a work of 
 art may be shared by the art-lover if he will take the pains to examine it in 
 the same way as the professional artist, and thus gain some understanding 
 of the purely technical means of expression employed. The cultivation of a 
 correct taste is thus assured — the knowledge not only of what to like, but why 
 to like it. Appreciation is thus founded on reason. 
 
 The prices of the volumes will be lower than those of any similar publica- 
 tions ; at the same time, the publishers believe the series will be as complete, 
 thorough, and practical as any hitherto issued, and will contain many novel 
 features not hitherto found in kindred works. The intention has been to 
 meet the requirements of students and of Art Schools throughout the country, 
 who will at length be able to procure trustworthy and authoritative instruction 
 books at a modest expenditure. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 The Practice of Oil Painting & Drawing 
 
 By SOLOMON J. SOLOMON, R.A. 
 
 With SO Illustrations from Mr. Solomon 's Drawings and othtr sources. Extra crown Ivo. it. tut 
 " The work of an accomplished painter and experienced teacher." — Scotsman. 
 
 " If students were to follow his instructions, and, still more, to heed his warnings, their painting* 
 would soon show a great increase in efficiency." — Manchester Guardian. 
 
 " The drilling that you get at the cost of many fees in an art school is all to be found at a single 
 sitting in this book." — Illustrated London News. 
 
 SEELEY, SERVICE t«f CO. LIMITED 
 
THE NEW ART LIBRARY-Continaed. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 Human Anatomy for Art Students 
 
 BY 
 SIR ALFRED D. FRIPP, K.C.V.O., C.B., M.B., M.S. (Lond.), F.R.C.S. 
 
 Surgeon-in-Ordin»ry to H.M. the King : Lecturer upon Anatomy at Guy's Hospital. London 
 
 AND 
 
 RALPH THOMPSON, M.B., Ch.M., F.R.C.S. (Eng.) 
 
 Senior Demonstrator of Anatomy, Guy's Hospital 
 
 And an Appendix on Comparative Anatomy, and Illustrations, by 
 HARRY DIXON. M.S.B.S. 
 
 Profusely Illustrated with Photographs, and by Drawings by 
 INNES FRIPP, A.R.C.A. 
 
 Master of Life Class, City Guilds Art School 
 
 With 151 Illustrations. Stuart extra crown 8ro. 7s. 6d. tut 
 
 M An ideal manual for the student of the most difficult and most essential branch of art study.** 
 
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 "This book, with its abundant and excellent illustrations, will be a real help to knowledge." 
 
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 " Excellently illustrated from the first page to the last by original drawings and photographs most 
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 ''Combines the best scientific and artlstio information." — Connoisstur. 
 
 "A book which we can unhesitatingly recommend to the art student* because it is written by 
 men who are thoroughly at home in the subject treated of. and who, moreover, have been mindful 
 not to encumber their exposition with unnecessary minutias.*' — Studio. 
 
 VOL. III. 
 
 Modelling and Sculpture 
 
 BY 
 ALBERT TOFT, A.R.C.A., M.S.B.S. 
 
 Profusely Illustrated with Photographs and Drawings 
 
 Stuart txtra crown loo., 6s. not. With 119 Illustrations 
 
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 "Written in a most interesting manner, beautifully printed on excellent paper, and illustrated as 
 Messrs. Seeley know how to illustrate."— Glasgow Citiim. 
 
 " Will be found an Invaluable aid to the student. . . . Takes the student step by step through 
 the various technical processes, the text being supplemented by over a hundred excellent lllustra- 
 tions."— Studio. 
 
 SEELEY, SERVICE &5* CO. LIMITED 
 
PORTFOLIO MONOGRAPHS ON 
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 " A triumph of magnificent illustration and masterly editing."— The Times. 
 
 Many of the Volumes are issued in two forms and at various nett prices. Where two prices are 
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 ANDERSON, Prof. W. 
 
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 ARMSTRONG, Sir WALTER. 
 The Art of Velazquez. 3s. 6d. 
 The Life of Velazquez. 3s. 6d. 
 
 The Peel Collection and the Dutch School of Painting. 5s. and 71. 
 Thomas Gainsborough. Half-linen, 3s. 6d. 
 W. Q. Orchardson. 2s. 6d. and 3s. 6d. 
 
 BEDFORD, W. K. R. 
 Malta. 25. 6d. 
 
 BENHAM, Canon, and CHARLES WELCH, F.S.A 
 Mediaeval London. 3s. 6d., 5s., and 7s. 
 The Tower of London. 5s. and 7s. 
 
 BENHAM, Canon. 
 
 Old St. Paul's Cathedral. 5s. and 7s. 
 
 BINYON, LAURENCE. 
 
 Dutch Etchers of XVI Ith Century. 2s. 6d. and 3s. 6d. 
 John Crome and J. S. Cotman. 3s. 6d. 
 
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 English Society of the Eighteenth Century in Contemporary Art 
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THE SCIENCE OF TO-DAY SERIES 
 
 With many illustrations. Extra Crown 8»». $s. net. 
 
 BOTANY OF TO-DAY. A Popular Account of the Evolution 
 of Modern Botany. By Prof. G. F. Scott Elliot, M.A., 
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 "One of the books that turn botany from a dry-as-dust into a fasci- 
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 AERIAL NAVIGATION OF TO-DAY. A Popular 
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 SCIENTIFIC IDEAS OF TO-DAY. A Popular Account, 
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 ASTRONOMY OF TO-DAY. A Popular Introduction in 
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 ELECTRICITY OF TO-DAY. Its Work and Mysteries 
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 ENGINEERING OF TO-DAY. A Popular Account of the 
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 described in Non-technical Language. By Thomas W. 
 Corbin. With 73 illustrations <Sr" diagrams. 
 
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 MEDICAL SCIENCE OF TO-DAY. A Popular Account 
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 (Eng.), Surgeon to the Royal Free Hospital. With 30 
 illustrations. 
 
 MECHANICAL INVENTIONS OF TO-DAY. An 
 
 Interesting Description of Modern Mechanical Inventions told 
 in Non-technical Language. By Thomas W. Corbin, Author 
 of "Engineering of To-day." With 112 illustrations &■ 
 diagrams. 
 
 SEELEY, SERVICE o> CO. LIMITED 
 
A Catalogue of Books on Art, 
 History, and General Literature 
 Published by Seeley & Co Ltd 
 38 Great Russell Street, London 
 
 Some of the Contents 
 
 Elzevir Library .... 
 Events of Our Own Times Series 
 Miniature Library of Devotion 
 Miniature Portfolio Monographs 
 New Art Library 
 Portfolio Monographs 
 Science of To- Day Series . 
 Seeley 's Illustrated Pocket Library 
 Seeley's Standard Library . 
 Things Seen Series 
 
 5 
 6 
 
 9 
 10 
 
 11 
 
 12 
 
 *5 
 16 
 
 The Publishers will be pleased to post their complete Catalogue 
 
 or their Illustrated Miniature Catalogue on receipt. 
 
 of a post-card 
 
CATALOGUE OF BOOKS 
 
 Arranged alphabetically under the names of 
 
 Authors and Series 
 
 ABBOTT, Rev. E. A., D.D. 
 
 Hints on Home Teaching:. Crown 8vo, 3s. 
 
 How to Parse. An English Grammar. Fcap. 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
 
 How to Tell the Parts of Speech. An Introduction to English 
 
 Grammar. Fcap. 8vo, 25. 
 
 How to Write Clearly. Rules and Exercises on English Composition. is.6d. 
 Latin Gate, The. A First Latin Translation Book. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
 Via Latina. A First Latin Grammar. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
 
 ABBOTT, Rev. E. A, and Sir J. R. SEELEY. 
 
 English Lessons for English People. Crown Svo, 4s. 6d. 
 
 ADY, Mrs. See Cartwright, Julia. 
 
 A KEMPIS, THOMAS. 
 
 Of the Imitation of Christ, With Illuminated Frontispiece and Title 
 Page, and Illuminated Sub-Titles to each book. In white or blue cloth, with inset minia- 
 tures. Gilt top ; crown Svo, 6s. nett ; also in vellum, 10s. 6d. nett. t 
 
 " It may well be questioned whether the great work of Thomas a Kempis has 
 ever been presented to better advantage." — Tke Guardian. 
 
 ALLDRIDGE, T. J., I.S.O., F.R.G.S. 
 
 A Transformed Colony. Sierra Leone as it was and as it is. With 
 
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 ANDERSON, Prof. W. 
 
 Japanese Wood Engravings. Coloured Illustrations. Super-royal 8vo, 
 
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 ARMSTRONG, Sir WALTER. 
 
 The Art of Velazquez. Illustrated. Super-royal 8vo, 3s. 6d. nett. 
 The Life of Velazquez. Illustrated. Super-royal 8vo, 3s. 6d. nett. 
 Velazquez. A Study of his Life and Art. With Eight Copper Plates and 
 many minor Illustrations. Super-royal 8vo, cloth, 9s. nett. 
 
 Thomas Gainsborough. Illustrated. Super-royal 8vo, half-linen, 3s. 6d. 
 nett. Also new edition, small 410, cloth, ss. nett ; leather, 3s. nett and 5s. nett. 
 
 The Peel Collection and the Dutch School of Painting, With many 
 
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 W. Q. Orchardson. Super-royal 8vo, sewed, 2s. 6d. ; half-linen, 3s. 6d. nett. 
 AUGUSTINE, S. 
 
 Confessions of S. Augustine. With Illuminated pages. In white or 
 
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 BARING GOULD, Rev. S. 
 
 Family Names and their Story. Demy 8vo, 7s. 6d. nett. 
 
 Cliff Castles and Cave Dwellings of Europe. With 54 Illustrations 
 
 and Diagrams. Demy 8vo, 12s. 6d. nett. 
 
 BEDFORD, Rev. W. K. R. 
 
 Malta and the Knights Hospitallers. Super-royal 8vo, sewed, 2s. 6d. 
 
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 The Tower of London. With Four Plates in Colours and many other 
 
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 Old St Paul's Cathedral. With a Frontispiece in Photogravure, Four 
 
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 2 
 
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 BICKERSTETH, Rev. E. 
 
 Family Prayers for Six Weeks. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
 A Companion to the Holy Communion. 32010, cloth, is. 
 
 B1NYON, LAURENCE. 
 
 Thomas Girtin : His Life and Works. An Essay. With Twenty-one 
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 Dutch Etchers of the Seventeenth Century. Illustrated. Super-royal 
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 John Crome and John Sell Cotman. Illustrated. Super-royal 8vo, 
 
 sewed, 3s. 6d. nett. 
 
 BIRCH, G. H. 
 
 London on Thames in Bygone Days. With Four Plates printed in 
 
 Colour and many other Illustrations. Super-royal 8vo, sewed, 5s. nett ; cloth, 7s. nett. 
 
 BRIDGES, Rev. C. 
 
 An Exposition of Psalm CXIX. Crown 8vo, 5s. 
 BUTCHER, E. L. 
 
 Things Seen in Egypt. With Fifty Illustrations. Small 4to, cloth, 
 
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 CAMERON, D. Y. 
 
 Six Etchings by D. Y. Cameron and William Strang. Imperial 
 
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 CARTWRIGHT, JULIA 
 
 Jules Bastien-Lepage. Super-royal 8vo, sewed, 2s. 6d. ; cloth, 3s. 6d. nett. 
 Sacharissa. Some Account of Dorothy Sidney, Countess of Sunderland, 
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 Raphael : A Study of his Life and Work. With Eight Copper Plates and 
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 CESARESCO, The Countess MARTINENGO. 
 
 The Liberation of Italy. With Portraits on Copper. Crown 8vo, 5s. 
 
 CHITTY, J. R. 
 
 Things Seen in China. With Fifty Illustrations. Small 4to ; cloth, 2s. ; 
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 CHORAL SERVICE-BOOK FOR PARISH CHURCHES, THE. 
 
 Compiled and Edited by J. W. Elliott, Organist and Choirmaster of St. Mark's, 
 Hamilton Terrace, London. With some Practical Counsels taken by permission from 
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 The following portions may be had separately : — 
 
 The Ferial and Festal Responses and the Litany. Arranged by 
 
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 The Communion Service, Kyrie, Credo, Sanctus, and Gloria in 
 
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 3 
 
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 CHURCH, Sir ARTHUR H., F.R.S. 
 
 Josiah Wedgwood, Master Potter. With many Illustrations. Super- 
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 The Chemistry of Paints and Painting Third Edition. Crown 8vo, 6s. 
 CHURCH, Rev. A. J. 
 
 Nicias, and the Sicilian Expedition. Crown 8vo, is. 6d. 
 For other hooks by Professor Church see Complete Catalogue. 
 CLARK, J. W., M.A. 
 
 Cambridge. With a coloured Frontispiece and many other Illustrations 
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 CODY, Rev. H. A. 
 
 An Apostle of the North. The Biography of the late Bishop Bompas, 
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 land. With 43 Illustrations. Demy 8vo, 7s. 6d. nett. 
 
 COLVIN, Sir AUCKLAND, K.C.S.I., K.C.M.G. 
 
 The Making of Modern Egypt. Fourth Edition. With Portraits and 
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 CORBIN, T. W. 
 
 Engineering of To-day. With Seventy-three Illustrations and Diagrams. 
 
 Extra crown 8 vo, 5s. 
 
 CORNISH, C. J. 
 
 Animals at Work and Play: Their Activities and Emotions. With 
 
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 Animals of To-day: Their Life and Conversation. With Illustrations 
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 Life at the Zoo. Notes and Traditions of the Regent's Park Gardens. 
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 The Naturalist on the Thames. With many Illustrations. Demy 8vo, 
 
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 The New Forest and the Isle of Wight With Eight Plates and 
 
 many other Illustrations. Super-royal 8vo, 7s. 6d. nett. 
 
 Nights with an Old Gunner, and other Studies of Wild Life. With 
 
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 Wild England of To-day and the Wild Life in it. With Sixteen 
 
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 CUST, LIONEL. 
 
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 LE, J. M. 
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 VENPORT, CYRIL. 
 
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 VIES, RANDALL, F.S.A. 
 English Society of the Eighteenth Century in Contemporary Art. 
 
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 WSON, Rev. E. C. 
 The Life of Bishop Hannington. Crown 8vo, paper boards, 2s. 6d. ; 
 
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 STREE, O. G. 
 The Renaissance of Sculpture in Belgium. Illustrated. Super-royal 
 
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 LMAGE, CECIL G., M.A., D.C.L., LL.D., F.R.A.S. 
 
 Astronomy of To-Day. A popular account in non-technical language. 
 
 With Forty-six Illustrations and Diagrams. Extra crown 8vo, 5s. nett. 
 
 RDLEY, WILMOT, Rear-Admiral S. 
 Our Fleet To-day and its Development during the last Half Century. 
 
 With many Illustrations. Crown 8vo, 5s. 
 
 ZEVIR LIBRARY, THE. 
 Selections from the choicest English Writers. Exquisitely Illustrated, 
 
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 Volume I. Fancy &■ Humour of Charles Lamb. 
 
 „ II. Wit cV> Imagination of Benjamin Disraeli 
 
 „ III. Vignettes from Oliver Goldsmith. 
 
 „ IV. Wit & Sagacity of Dr. Johnson. 
 
 „ V. Insight and Imagination of John Ruskin. 
 
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