Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1875-09-23
Funeral Rites Of an African of Rank.

A correspondent of the London Times
gives the following vivid description of
the scenes which attend the death of a
caboCeer," or man of rank, in Ashantee /,
Well, immediately after demise, the
body of caboceer is washed, anointed
with sweet oils and grease, and sprlnkled
with gold-dust The oils and grease cause
the gold-dust To stick to the corpse, which,
being black, throws off the bright color of
the gold to prfection. The beard is
trimmed into knots, and upon each knot
are tied small beads of glass and thin
particles of gold. The Ashantces, you
perceive, are ms dainty in the decoration
of the beads of their dead as the Assyrian
dandies were of their own when living.
In cloth of costly silkembroidered dam
ask, or in velvet or in other rich gar.
mcnts, the body is dressed and ornamented
with armlets and necklaces of gold and
silver Very often pure Jumps of UNI
wrought nuggets of gold, bored through
and through, are strung upon a piece OF
hempen string and twisted round the fore
arms in the form of bracelets Thus gayly
bedizened and pertumed and cleansed the
body Is placed upon chair in sitting
attitude, or is shown recumbCnt upon q
bed, trimmed with gaudy drapery. When
this combined rite of publication and
garniture has been completed the rela-
tons assemble and begin to dance and
sing. While the relations and friends are
making merry "A ietishman, or priest, is
led slowly into the festive throng, and the
female slaves of the dead caboceer are
brought before him. After the utterance
of various incantatlOns he pretcnds that
the fetish has denoted, by means Of his
mediation, IA certain slave for election
| TO follow her master to the next world :;
but | need not be ut much trouble
TO suggest To You that the members
| of the family always decide beforehand
among themselves which unfortunate
| wretch shall accompany the deceased
chief Being chosen, and by the choice
condemned To die, the slave is stripped
| naked. Around her neck wisp of hay
| Is wound and her arms are rudely pin
| toned with a rope of straw. She is now
roughly dragged a second time To the pres
encc of the tetiShman, who recommends
! her, in speech OF hlaSphemous rhode
| montadeS and rhetorical parade, To serve
her master dutiiully through the maZeS of
the unknown sphere to which he has been
summoned on Journey, During the de
| livery of the portentous eNhortatiou he is
buSily employed in daubing a white col.
orcd earth over the face of the weeping
slave; and when the admonitory harangue
has been exhausted he strikes her severely
with his open palm upon either cheek
In bcnighted zeal the company snatch up
the sacerdoial cue. They strive Ia riy ]
one another in repeating the assault with
the harShcst violence, and III dealing the
kecncst pain ON her nude and trembling
person.
The eNeCutoncrs, moreover, are blessed
and the congregated band of CaboCeers
manifest their profound respect by raising
! the foot of each eNcCutlOner with both
| hands and by rubbing the sole upon the
crown Of their heads The natives of the
| Gala coast have a loose conception of
! state OF purgatory or probation, and enter
! tain the idea than the soul of the dead wan
! derS unrestingly for many Years about the
world, and requires a servant Ter the per
| Torrance of menial duties in his long and
| CeaSclcSS wandcr!ngs Hence comes the
| custom of killing slave at the death of
! CaboCcer, for a caboCeer may not draw
water, nor hcw wood, nor cook food
Having been removed by diut of cuffs
ar manual force from the sight OF the te-
tiShman. the slave is hurried 70 wooden
box. into which the carcass of the cahu-
ceer will eventually he squeezed Along
the lid of the box the slave is,up,yhed up.
on her stomach and her feet and head are
Cra>pcd by two eNecuuouegs, 50 that her
struggles may ne subject to control \
friend of the dead rabocJer approaches
the PROSTATE creature and >la>hcs her with
a sword Just below the right shoulder.
blade. Catching the blood that flows from
The wound, he smears the box, When q