Km.
Z U L U KRAAL ON THE UMGANL, WITI] CATTLE A N D SHEHP,
THIS scene ts taken in one of the smaller kraals on the hanks of the Umgani River, in Natal, It shews the
arrangement of the huts around the cattle-fold in the centre ; the time of day is in the morning about ten o'clock, when
the cattle are milked and driven out to pasture; a boy is
seen on the left side of the picture, millting a cow into one
of the long wooden milk-jars used for that purpose. At the
time of milking, a cord with a stick is introduced through
the nostrils of the animal to cause it to remain quiet, No
sooner is the day's milking over, than the milk is poured
fi-oin the wooden jars into calabashes, containing a small
quantity of very acid curd, by which means the whole contents
become rapidly converted into tKc "thick milk," oicurds
and whey, so much used as an article of food amongst
the Kafii-s. The cattle are conducted into the kraai by the
sound of a shrill whistle, which they soon learn to foliow.
Tlie Zulus are very fond of ornamenting their favourites
amongst the herd by cutting their ears into fantastic shapes,
slitting the dewlap, and cultivating excrescenecs, resembling
buttons and tassels, upon the head and neck, by tying up
t h e skin. The Amaponda and Ainakása tribes usually display
t h e i r taste by twisting the horns of their cattle, whilst growing,
into every possible variety of form, which causes them
to present an unusually grotesque appearance. To the right
is a group of Zulu sheep, a remarkable breed, differing considerably
fi-ora the European, and having wool approaching
to hair; theii- flesh is poor and but little esteemed. Above
t h e entrance to one of the huts is the skull of a heifer,
ZULU WOMAN RETURNING FROM WORK IN THE FIEL.t)S.
indicating that it has been slaughtered on some late festive occasion. Several shield-sticks, surmounted by leopardstails,
are stuck into the fence of the cattle kraal, whilst the luduna's flag or signal, consisting of a civet-cafs skin
and a bunch of feathers, floats at the top of a pole, signifying that the Induna is at home. When a dance U to
take place, or a party of visitors is expected to arrive, the inhabitants of the kraal betake themselves to the toilette for
many houi-s previously to the time appointed for the fete ; both the young men and women dress their wooUy locks with
an astonishing degree of care, every curl being retouched and twisted with a mimosa thoni, and dressed ivith fat. The
arrangement of their beads is another matter of paramount importance, and the dressing of the " issikoko," or head-ring, and
the I'ed tuas on the crown of married women, are subjects which have before been alluded to. I have ft-equently been
detained for houi-s at a time waiting for my sitters to decorate themselves, unable to make them understand, or rather
feel satisfied, that they would make equally good pictures without undergoing such useless and tedious preparatious,
especially as regarded the dressing of their crisp locks : and perhaps, after so much time wasted in their frivolous toilettes,
they would suddenly rush away, after sitting to me for a tew moments, saying, "Wha t shall we be now.'" or "What
will bccome of us now we are painted?" One man lefused my application to paint his daughter, alleging that she was
betrothed ; and fearing it would have some evil influence upon her, asked very gravely what effect it would produce upon
her marriagc-