American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1866-05-05
Strange Customs.

shS u@Di'e ouu Sus'Oue vi SUNNI VI tne
tribes in the interior Of Africa, as we
find 10 new volume Of travels by David
and Charles Livingstone. Just issued in
London. Speaking Of the women in
Morambals. the narrative says:
These damsels looked with considera.
bic disgust on the "men in bags" as the
trowsered whites were called. Even the
less fastidisus matrons quieted their chil'
dren by threatening to fetch the white
man to bite them. In their eyes, DR.
Livingstone. busy with wet and dry
bulb Thermometers, was an object Of pity
"playing with toys, like a little boy" bu
when they discovered the traveller
spreading butter, "raw butter" on thei
bread. their disgust was beyond express
ion. They only used butter, after melt
ing it. to anoint the heads and bodies.
The most wonderful of ornaments, i
such it may be called, is the pelele OF
upper-lip ring Of the woman. The mid
die o:the upper-lip for the ring is pierced
to the septum of the nose, and a small
pin inserted to prevent the puncture clos
I ing up. After it has healed the pin is
taken out and larger one is pressed in
to its place, and SO on successfully fol
weeks. and months. and years. The pro.
cess Of increasing the size Of the lip goes
on ill its capacity becomes so great that
a ring of two inches in diameter can be
introduced with ease.
All the highland women wear the pelele,
and it is common on the upper and low
er shire. The poor classes make them
hollow or of solid bamboo, but the wealth,
ier Of ivory or tin. The tin pelele is often
made in the form of a small dish. The
ivory one is not unlike napkin ring. No
woman ever appears in public without the
pelele, except in times of mourning foi
the dead. 1t is frighfully ugly to see
the upper-lip projecting two inches be-
yond the tip Of the nose. When au old
wearer Of hollow bamboo ring smiles
by the action OF the musces Of the cheeks
the risg and the lip outside Of it are drag
ged back and thrown above the eye
brows. The nose is seen through thu
middle of the ring. and the exposed teeth
shew how carefully they have been chip
ped to look like Ahose Of & cat or croca'
die.
The pelele Of an old lady, Chikauda
Kadzs, q chiertainess, about twenty miles
north Of Morambls, hung down below hei
shin. with. Of course. piece of the up
per lip around its border. The labial let.
ters cannot be properly pronounced, but
the under lip has to do its best for them
against the upper teeth and gsm. Tell
them il makes them ugly, they had bet
ter throw it away; they reply. "Kodi
Really 1t is the fashion !" How tbi,
hideous fashion originated is an enigma.
Can thick lips ever have been thought
beautiful. aud this mode of artificial en-.
largement resorted to in consequences ?
The constant twiddling of the pelele
with the tongue by the younger women
suggested the irreversnt idea that it
might have been invented to give safe
employment to that little member. why
do the women wear these things? we in.
CURED of the old chief. Chinsume. Evi.
dently surprised at such stupid ques-
ton. be replied: "For beauty, to be sure |!
Men have boards aud whiskers women
have none and what kind Of creature
would . woman be without vhisksrs and
without Q pelels /? She would have a
mouth like q nan, and no beard hal hs!
hal" Ahervard. on the Rovums, we
found men wearing the pekls as well as