The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1866-09-28
The Barbarous Tribes of Africa

Al meeting Vi Tue LONDON LthnOlOgI-
cal Society, July 10th, an interesting paper
was read by s; "; Baker the well known
traveller, on The Tribes Of the Nile Basin
in which he described many Of the native
tribes in the center Of Africa with whom he
and Mrs Baker came in contact during his
exploration Of the sources Of the Nile. He
confined himself principally to description
Of those tribes which appear to have been
tory, having been barred out from the ear
Hest ages from the rest of the world by the
almost intermuable marsh through which
the White Nile winds its course Without
any exception, they are without belief iii
a supreme Being, nor have they any form
of idoatry or superstition. The men are
perfectly naked, apparently not knowing
that they are so; the girls, up to the age Of
about fifteen, are also entirely naked, after
which period they wear slight fringe of a
few inches in length They arc physically
strong, exceedingly tall and muscular, they
build small circular huts congregate in Will
ages, and generally cultivate small amount
of grain dhurra) on the dryer portions of
their land. There is no actual negro type,
excepting the woody hair; the forehead is
rather low, the head broad, the back of the
skull heavy, bat neither is the jaw promi
nent nor are the lips extraordinarily full,
nor is the nose fattened They possess
large herds Of cattle which they never hill,
contenting themselves with bleeding tlkm
periodically, sometimes drinking the blood
raw, sometimes boiling it. Milk is their
chief diet, invariably mixed with saline
water They catch game in pitfalls, spear
fish with harpOons by casting at random,
and they are continually at war with neigh
boring tribes, owing to raids upon their
herds. They have no laws of marriage,
the number OF man S wives depending up
on his wealth in cattle, wife being invari-
ably purchased for her value in cows. This
may be accepted as a general outline of the
tribes bordering the White Nile They are
armed with lances, some with bows and ar
rows. clubs Of iron wood, and they are gov
erned by chiefs, none of whom appear to
have much control over their subjects
Glass beads, and both copper and iron
rings, iron hoes and lance heads are the
common articles of barter They work in
iron, forming lances, arrow heads carefully
barbed, and they prepare charcoal for
smiths work.
Their ornaments consist Of beads. iron
+, rings. with which the women load their an
klcs, and strings Of rounded pieces of river
shells wound round their waists and nechs.
In some countries, such as the Shir, where
no iron ore exists, the arrow heads are
formed of lronwood. The absence of arti-
clcs and weapons ofmetal in no way proves
heir excess Of savagedCm: having no met
ais to work there are no backsmiths. The
hard wood supplies the want ofi,nn. as the
hard stone is used by the New Xealandcr.
and flint stones formerly served for arrow
heads. The kytch tribe is the exception
to all others in ahiect misery, and in the
! Lowest stage OF Savagedom. They never
cultivate, probably owing to the miserable
marsh, which would render it inpossiblc.
! Thus they are dependent upon G~hiuy and
trapping for their existence, neither of
which appears to hc productive rs the ma
tlvcs are race OF skeletons. They wander
| like .tolkS Oven the country. searching for
! lizards, mice, snakes. locuStS. and white
ants. Hours arc spent III digging field
mice from their burrows. The men are, of
course. naked, and their hair is stained red
/ ly a thick plaster Of COW dung a"tl wood
ashes the change of color being the effect
OF the potash. The womer are equally ma
hed as the men, not having even the slight
attempt at clothing common among other
tribes. Shon ii man becomc old his eldest
son occupies the place Of his father IN the
~.
his parent wires Nothing can he lower
IN the human racc.than this wyctchel tribe:
there Is hardly a remove in advance of the
chimpanzee except the power Of spccc,,.-
In the 9th degree Of north latitude the Bari
tribe commences, AMI the natives of that
district are tar superior to the three previ-
| ous.y described. The couutry is dry and
fertile, and diversified by muumtainc. The
! men and women are tai and muscular, the
mountains are llch in iron ore which they
smclt AL work with great dcxtcIi'y.-
hey cultivate the ground aud use manure
for their crops. Their huts are, like those
OF all African tribes circular, having a low
! doorway, ahout two feet high Ike the en-
trance Of Il dog kennel. Mr.. Bakcratiaches
considerable importance to the generally
/ circular form of the huts of tie African
! tribes. as characteristic Of their similarity.
/ he distinctions Of tribes are marked, al
most without exception, by distinctions in
| Eeatdress which in all eases i, aecomnan-
led by a distinct language Oa reaching
, the western bend OF the Nile, in north ati.
tude deg. - min, a sudden change takes
place. The river is the boundary of saw
agedom, and on crossing the ferry to the
south bank Mr.. Baker came to "a people
differing totally in their appearance and
habits from those on the north. That
country, named Unvoro, is governed by u
despOt, and it exhibits a degree Of order
! and civilization unknown to the northern
tnbcS. Nakedness is considered disgrace,
and both men and women are carefully
clothed with bark cloth or PREPARED skins.
They are excellent smiths, they draw wire,
and make good knives and lanees; cultivate
the ground with great care, grow tobacco,
and indulge IN the use of double pipes, two
| bowls being united to single stem, and
they are thus enabled to smoke two quail
| ties OF tobacco at one time Their huts,
though circular, are much larger and more
lofty than those Of the other tribes, and
have entrance six feet high, with portico.
Mr.. Baker then proceeded to notice the
tribes on the borders of Abyssinia, who are
IN still superior state Of civilization The
Abysslnlan afluents of the Nile, he observ-
ed, sprung from a land inhabited by the
only independent Christian country in the
whole OF Africa, among whom reading and
writing are common, and where the features
and form of the inhabitants are closely al
lied to the European, forming strong con-
trast to the tribes who inhabit the banks of
the White Nile.
DIR. Beke made some remarks on the ret
repression of civilization among the African
tribes. In his opinion they are becoming
more and more savage, and he asserted that
nearll y all travellers in Africa were of that
He Al