Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1874-12-04
Some Curious African Customs.

houses have walls of clay or reeds, and
sharp-pointed roofs of straw. The furni-
ture consists mainly of wooden platters
and stools, which are colored black by
long burial in the mud, and their only
light is burning pine knot.
Before the house is usually post, on
which are hung the trophies of the hunt,
such as horns of antelopes, skulls of an.
imals and men, and, horrible to say,
dried hands and feet. These proclaim
to the world how great warrior is the
owner, and, in part, answer the purposes
that fine houses and clothes do with us.
When Nam. Nam pays visit to his
neighbor he carries his own stool to sit
on, and when he goes into mourning for
friend he shaves his head, and scatters
his precious braids, twists and puffs to
the wind, which certainly shows sincere
grief on his part.
When two friends meet they do not
shake hands, but they join their middle
fingers in such way that the joints
crack, while they nod at each other,
more as if in disgust-as it looks to
white man-than in friendly greeting,
If they find hollow tree in which
wild bees have laid up honey, they at
once smoke the bees stupid, and eat hon
ey, wax, bees, and all. Indeed they eat
several things that we would not like.
The children in some parts of Africa eat
rats and field mice, which they catch by
means of baskets woven in the form of
long tubes They are laid fat on the
ground near the mouse holes, and then
the little savages begin great noise of
stamping, shouting and slapping of
hands. The poor little animals are
frightened, and run into the traps for
safety, and are easily taken. They are
then tied by the tails in punches Of a
dozen or SO, as you have seen Children
tie cherries, and bartered with each 9TH
er as choice morsels. Sometimes they
use them as bats to catch cats-roast-
cat being d favorite dish. They build
small huts of twisted reeds, put the mice
in, and cats are attracted to the trap, Of
course.
The grown people feast on still strang-
er diet, such as the bodies Of their enc
mics killed in battle, elephant meat, dried
till it looks like log Of wood, dogs and
the termites, or white ants, of which you
may have read, and whose immense
cone shaped houses are so common in
Africa.
No important thing is done without
consulting certain signs to see if it will
be successful. Some of these are very
curious. One is to put few drops Of
water on smoothtopped stool, then
take a smooth block and rub it across
the stool as though to plane it of. II
the block moves easily the sign is good ;
if hard, the sign is bad.
Another trial is to dose some uDfortu-
nate hen with certain greasy liquid. If
she dies the sign is bad if she gets well
it is good.
But the hens are not the only suffer
ers. Another way to try ones luck is
to seize wretehed cock, duck him un,
der water many times till he is stiff and
senseless, and then leave him alone. The
fate is decided by his recovering or dy-
ing. The guilt of any one accused or
suspected of crime is tried in the same
way, and no one dreams of suspecting
one whose signs have shown favorably.
To protect themselves from the danger
and loss of fires, they provide no fire en-
gines and insurance companies, as we do,
but hang an amulet msde-for those
who are Mohammedans-of few verses
of the Khoran, or Mohammedan Bible,
wrapped in skin, over the door, which
must be admitted is a much simpler and
cheaper way than hours.
If horse or donkey is i'll he is dosed
with raw pork, but human being has
for medicine few verses of the Khoran
made soft in water.-O Olive Thorne IN st.
Nicholas for December.