the blood her little son and nephews, who kneel to
receive it. Sisters and female relatives come next to
be anointed by her, and it is pleasant to see those
dearest to her pressing forward with congratulations
and wishes. She then rises from her seat, uttering a
sort of whining cry, and walks off to the house of the
sultana, preceded and followed by spear-bearers. During
the day she walks about the village, still hooded,
and attended by several followers shaking gourds containing
grain, and singing “Heigh-ho, massa-a-no,” or
“ masanga.” An old woman is appointed to wrestle
with her for a broomstick which she carries, and finally
the stick is left in her hand. Late in the afternoon a
change is wrought; she appears as in ordinary, but
with her face curiously painted, her followers being
also painted in the same way. She sits without smiling
to receive offerings of grain, with beads or anklets
placed on twigs of the broomstick, which she holds
upright ; and this over, she walks among the women,
who shout out “ Gnombe ! ” (cow) or some other ridiculous
expression to create a laugh. This winds up the
ceremony on the first day, but two days afterwards
the now emancipated woman is seen parading about
with the broomstick hung with beads and rings, and
looking herself again, being completely cured. The
vanquished spirit had been forced to fly!
Black - art cases were duly tried, and generally
ended in conviction. A cowherd who had sold me
some fish died very suddenly; one of his two wives
was suspected of having poisoned him; and being
tried, she was convicted and condemned. She was
taken to the dry bed of the stream, her arms tied
behind her, and was killed by having her throat cut
from ear to ear. No hyena touched the body, which
still more confirmed the belief that she was guilty;
for my Seedee cook said, “ Has not the hyena the soul
of a man ? does he not know your thoughts when you
determine on shooting him ? ”
On the 10th of July my servant asked permission
to go and see the uchawd. . I accompanied him to the
outside of the bomah (village fence), where a woman
and lad lay on their faces with their arms bound
painfully tight, and writhing in torture. Poor creatures
! they met with no sympathy from the jeering
crowd, but the ropes were slackened at my request.
They had been apprehended on suspicion of having
bewitched the sultan’s brother, who lay sick for fifteen
days, and unless they could work off the magic
spell they must die. The lad said, “ Take me to the
forest; I know an herb remedy.” On the seventh
day from this scene (during which the lad was outside
the village, and the woman kept by the sick
patient in the stocks) the former was killed and the
woman released. I went to see his body the following
day, but the hyena (I was told) had taken it
away. Nothing remained but blood and the ashes of
some hair by a fire. Could they have tortured him
by burning ? A case of adultery was punished in the
most horrible manner, too painful to describe minutely.
They had no Divorce Court! The strapping
young fellow who had found his way into the harem
of the sultan, was tied to railings, stripped, certain
parts of his person were smeared and covered with
rags, then set fire to by the sultan in person, and he
was dragged to the fire outside the village; but before
he could reach it, assigais from the hands of the son