longed to the father. Baraka was appointed the umpire,
and immediately comparing the infant’s face with those
of its claimants, gave a decision which all approved of
but'the loser. I t was pronounced amidst, peals of laughter
from my men; for whenever any little excitement is going
forward, the Wanguana all rush to the scene of action to
give their opinions, and joke over it afterwards.
29 th and 30th.—On telling Bumanika this story next
morning, he said, “ Many funny things happen in Ka-
ragtid f and related some domestic incidents, concluding
with the moral that “ Marriage in Karagud was a mere
matter of money.” Cows, sheep, and slaves have to be
given to the father for the value of his daughter; but if
she finds she has made a mistake, she can return the
dowry-money, and gain her release. The Wahiima, although
they keep slaves and marry with pure negroes,
do not allow their daughters to taint their blood by marrying
out of their clan. In warfare it is the rule that
the Wahinda, or princes, head their own soldiers, and set
them the example of courage, when, after firing a few
arrows, they throw their bows away, and close at once
with their sptears and assagds. Life is never taken in
Karagud, either for murder or cowardice, as they value
so much their Wahiima breed; but, for all offences, fines
of cows are exacted according to the extent of the crime.
31 si.—Ever proud of his history since I had traced
his descent from Abyssinia and King David, whose hair
was as straight as my own, Bumanika dwelt on my
theological disclosures with the greatest delight, and
wished to know what difference existed between the
Arabs and ourselves; to which Baraka replied, as the
best means of making him understand, that whilst the
Arabs had only one Book, we had two; to which I added,
Yes, that is true in a sense; but the real merits lie in
the fact that we have got the better book, as may be inferred
from the obvious fact that we are more prosperous,
and their superiors in all things, as I would prove to him
if he would allow me to take one of his sons home to
learn that book; for then he would find his tribe, after a
while, better off than the Arabs are. Much delighted, he
said he would be very glad to give me two boys for that
purpose.
Then, changing the subject, I pressed Biimanika, as he
said he had no idea of a God or future state, to tell me
what advantage he expected from sacrificing a cow yearly
at his father’s grave. He laughingly replied he did not
know, but he hoped he might be favoured with better
crops if he did so. He also placed jiombe and grain, he
said, for the same reason, before a large stone on the hillside,
although it could not eat, or make any use of i t ;
hut the coast-men were of the same belief as himself, and
so were all the natives. No one in Africa, as far as he
knew, doubted the- power of magic and spells; and if a
fox barked when he was leading an army to battle, he
would retire at once, knowing that this prognosticated
evil. There were many other animals, and lucky and
unlucky birds, which all believed in.
I then told him it was fortunate he had no disbelievers
like us to contend with in battle, for we, instead of trusting
to luck and such omens, put our faith only in skill and
pluck, which Baraka elucidated from his military experience
in the wars in British India. Lastly, I explained
to him how England formerly was as unenlightened as
Africa, and believing in the same sort of superstitions,
and. the inhabitants were all as naked as his skin-wearing
Wanyambo; but now, since they had grown wiser, and
saw through such impostures, they were the greatest men
in the -world. He said, for the future he would disregard
what the Arabs said, and trust to my doctrines, for without
doubt he had never seen such a wise man as myself;
and the Arabs themselves confirmed this when they told.