The Sun.
London, England, 1861-07-03 00:00:00

ETHNOLOGICAL SOCIETY.

Yesterday evening a special meeting of this
society, the last of the session, was held in St. Mar-
tin's-place—Mr. Crawford, the president, in the
chair.

A paper was read by Captain It. BURTON, en-
titled, " Ethnological Notes on M. du Chaillu's
Explorations and Adventures in Equatorial Africa."
The object of Captain Burton's paper was to confirt;
by his own knowledge of the negro tribes in the
central and eastern portions of Africa the charac-
teristic traits of the race men tigned by Mr. du Chaillu,
and to point out the resdnblance between the
negroes who inhabit the larger portions of that con-
tinent. He noticed particularly their generosity
and hospitality, their fetish superstitions, their
inheritance of property and slaves, and the can-
nibalism of certain tribes, two of which, on the
eastern coast, he mentioned as being decidedly
cannibals. Captain Burton expressed the opinion
teat M. du Uhaillu's work was as authentic as
it was interesting, and clearly showed that the
negro character was the same oa the western coast
of Africa as on the east. _ _

Mr. SIMMONDS said that after the continued
virulent attacks on M. du Chaillu, in some of which
doubts were expressed that he had ever visited the
part of Africa he had described, it might be satis-
factory to the meeting if he read extracts from
letters received from his brother-in-law in Gambroon
two years ago, in which he remembered M. du
Chaillu as having then returned from his explora-
tions in the gorilla country with a large collection
of natural history specimens.
Mr. Consul ANSON (a negro) took exception to
Captain Burton's statements respecting the canni-
balism of the negroes of the east coast. He con.
tended that cannibalism had never been proved, and
that all the accounts respecting it depended on cir-
cumstantial evidence. He said that the negroes,
who were shrewd and intelligent, having in numer-
ous instances found that white men visited them
only to do them injury, naturally enough threw
obstacles in the way of travellers, and might, for the
purpose of disgusting them and inducing them to
depart, pretend to eat human flesh, though they
really never made it their food. With regard to
polygamy, he agreed with Captain Burton in think-
ing it was rather a political than a social institu-
tion; and he mentioned that the King of Dahomey
had 3,333 wives, there being a superstition that. if
the exact numberwas not kept some serious calamity
would happen. These wives were principally the
relations of the minor chiefs, and by this means the
political alliances of the King were maintained.
M. DU CHAILLU, being called on by the chairman,
said he should confine his observations to canni-
balism. Be had no doubt whatever that among the
Fans they ate human flesh, and that they ate even
the bodies of those who had died from disease.
Mr. MALONE, a gentleman who had frequently
made loud exclamations during the proceedings,
rose in a very excited manner to make some objec-
tions to M. du Chaillu's work. He said that, as a
scientific man, he denied the correctness of the
statement that a negro harp was made of fibres
from the roots of trees, for it was impossible to ob-
tain a musical note from such a substance. He said
that though he had only read extracts from M. du
Chaillu's work, he had seen sufficient to convince
him that the compiler of it had collected the mate-
rials from other sources than M. du Chaillu's notes,
to make a readable book, and ho thought the state-
ments in the work could not be relied on. He was
proceeding to make other observations to the same
effect, when
Mr. CRAWFURD interrupted him, and said he
must confine himself to the subject before the

meeting.
Mr. MALONE then said lie would first ask M. du
Chaillu it he had seen the harp stated to have been
made with the roots of a tree ?
M. DU CHAILLU rose evidently much excited. He
said he should not, in the presence of ladies, make
such an answer to the abusive remarks of the speaker
as they deserved. There were many persons who
dared to vilify au author who were afraid of pistols.
(Cries of " Order.") M. du Chaillu afterwards rose
to say that he had seen the harp the strings of
which were made from the fibres of roots. _ _

•.
Capt. SNOW said that though a friend of the wild
man he could not deny that in many parts of the
world the natives eat human flesh.
After some observations from Mr. BURKE and
the CHAIRMAN, meeting adjourned till November.

FRACAS BETWEEN M. DU CHAILLU AND MR.
MALONE.—At the close of the meeting, when
many of the audience had withdrawn, but whilst
the room was nearly half full, M. du Chailln
stepped over the benches and chairs to where Mr.
Malone was standing, and after touching him on
the shoulder, held his fist in a menacing manner to
his face, and, after asking him how he dare speak
of him in the manner he had done, he spat in his
face. Mr. Malone, in great astonishment, said he
must call for protection from the chairman from
such an outrage, and was retiring for that pur-
pose when M. du Chaillu called out " Coward,"
" Coward!" There were several ladies and gentle.
men close to them, but no one interfered, and M.
du Chaillu then left the room.

ROYAL SOCIETY FOR THE PROTEC-

TION OF LIFE-FR-031 FIRE.

of the friends and sub-
scribers annualt
o this
society fleeting
was held yesterday in the
Council Chamber at the Guildhall. The Lord
Mayor who presided, said this meeting was held at
The
e
a most interesting period of the society's• existence,
when the public attention had been so excite • dby
the recent great calamity.
The SECRETARY (Mr. Sampson Low) read the
report for the year ending March 31. This showed
that during the year as many as 507 fires had been
attended by the society's fire-escape conductors, and
61 lives rescued by their means. The number of
stations now maintained by the society is 73,
situated at half-a•mile distance from each other—
from Holloway to Kennington, north and south;
and from Poplar to Kensington, east and west. At
each station there is all night a conductor and his
fire-escape ready for action when called upon. The
force comprises 76 conductors and four inspectors.
Subsequent to the date of the report, it was stated,
as a striking proof of the necessity for everything
being ready for instant action, that twice during
one month had a fire-escape in the ordinary quietest
districts, and after 12 months inactivity, rescued
from death at the two fires five lives that would
otherwise have been sacrificed ; again that within
six weeks of the establishment of a new station its
conductor succeeded in rescuing six persons. The
balance-sheet showed the receipts, by donations and
subscriptions, of £7,842 16s. 2d.; and an expendi-
ture of £6,387 6s. 2d., for wages, machinery, and
rewards, and the whole expenses of management,
£630 16s. a
The report having been adopted,
The LORD MAYOR presented the rewards, which
consisted of silver medals, testimonials on vellum,
and amounts of money varying from 10s. to £2, to
14 fire-escape conductors, one of whom, Edward
Dunk, received two testimonials; another, William
Rickett, a silver medal; to three firemen, to 17
police inspectors, sergeants, and constables; and to
11 civilians, for having by their intrepid conduct
been instrumental in rescuing human life from
destruction by fire. Two silver medals were also
given to James Jackson and Thomas Martell, for
their bravery in rescuing a man from a burning
boat during the late great fire.
A resolution, expressive of regret at the sad fate
which had befallen Mr. Braidwood,
and
sympathy
with his family for their loss, was also adopted.

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