The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1878-09-28
An African Village as seen by Stanley,

Traveller, from Africa have often written
'sbou' African Villages, yet am sure few OF
those al home have ever comprchcndcd the re-
atty now propose 90 lay it before them in
This ,kctch ola village In the district OF HON.
bo. The village consist, OF number of low,
comral gra,, hG,S, ranged round n circular
common, in the center 81 which are three or
II four hgrrc~. kept for the double purpose of
Isupplyin. shade to The community and bark.
Icloth 10 the chief The doorWays to the hiits
Iarc very low, scarcely thirty inches high The
common fenced round hy the grass huts shows
plainly the ochrcou, color OF the soil, and it is
50 well trudGcn that no, a graSs-blauc thrives
upon it.
! On presenting myself in the common, at
Itractci out of doors the owner, and ordinary
Inhabitants Of each hut, until found myself
the center of quite Il prOmisCuous population
lof naked men, women, children, and infants
Though had appeared here for the purpose OF
lsludylng the people Of Uhumbo and making a
treaty OF friendship with the chief, the villag-
crs seemed to think had come merely TO make
la free exhibition Of myself rs some natural
lmon,rosity.
| saw before me over Il hundred beings of
! the most dcgradcdunp type II is pos
Sibe to conceive, and though | knew quite
well that some thousands Of years ago the be
ginning of dis wrcched humanity and myself
were one and the same, "A sncaking dislnclina.
Ition to believe it possessed me strongly, and
would even now willingly subscribe some
small amount OF silver money for him who
could hut assist me to cOntrovert the discredi-
table fact
But common sense tells Inc not to take into
undue consideration their squalOr, their ugli.
ness, or nakedncss but to gauge their true pc
sition among the human race by taking avew
of the cultivated fields and gardens Of Uhom-
bo and am compelled To admit that these de
based specimens Of humanity only plant and
SOW such vegetables and grain Us | myself
should cultivate, were | compelled 10 provide
for my own sust"nanCc | see, too, that their
huts, though Of grass are almost as well made
rs the materials will permit; and indeed |
have often slept in worse. Speak with them
IN their own dialect Of the law of mGum and
ta,,D, and it will soon appear that they are in
tclligent enough upon that point Moreover,
the muscles, tissues and tibers of their bodies,
and all the organs OF sight hearing smell, or
motion, are as well developed as in US. Only
in taste and judgment, based upon larger cX-
pcncnCc, III The power Ol expression, III morals,
and intellectual culture are VIC superior.
strive, therefore 10 interest myself in my
gross and rudcly-shapcd brothers and sisters.
Almost bursting into n laugh at the absurdity,
| turn towards an individual whose age marks
him out as one TO whom respect is due, and
say to him, after the common manner ofgrcet-
ing:
MY brother sill you down by me on this
mat, and let us be friendly and sOciable" And
as | say It thrust into hi, wide open hand 20
cowrc,, the currency of the land. One look
at his hand Us he extended 1t, made me think
could carve Il hcllcrlouking hand out of al
piece Of rhlnOCclOs hide.
While speaking, look at his face, which is
like IN ugly and CNtravagant mask, Clumsly
manufactured from some strange, dark brown,
coarse material. The lips proved the thickness
Of skin which Nature had endowed him with,
and by the obStinacy with which they refused
to meet each other the form Of the mouth was
but illdefucd, though capacious and garnish-
ed with is fun complement of we'll preserved
teeth .......
His nose was 50 flat that inquired in per
IiCC!ly innocent manner as to the reason of such
II feature.
An said he, with shy laugh, "it is the
fault Of my mother who when | was young,
bound me too tight 10 her back"
His hair had been compelled to obey the
IcapriCious fashion of his country, and was
therefore, worked up into burrows and ridges
and central cones, bearing II curious resem-
bancc 10 the formation OF the land around
Uhomho. wonder il the art grew by per
Iceiving Natures fashion and the mold OF his
country.
Descending from the face, which, crude,
largc-leatulcd, ruugh-hrwn as II WAS. bore wit
ness to the possession OF much shy humor and
a kindly disposition, my eyes fastened on his
naked body. Through the ochrcouS daubs !
detected strange freaks OF prlcklmg on it ofcir
Clcs and squares and crosses and traced with
wonder the many hard lines and Fuckers ere
aed by are weather, ill-usage, and rude keep
| ing.
His feet were mOnSlrOus abOrtiOns with sOlCs
as hard ~ hooiS; and his legs rs high up as
the knees were pastcrcd with successive strata
OF dirt. His loln-covcr, or the queer "girdlng
tackle need not be described. They were alb
soluely appalling to good taste, and the most
ragged British beggar or Neapohtan lazzaronC
is sumptousy, nay regally clothed in compar-
iSOn to this king" in Uhombo.
If the old chiciappeared SO unprepOsscssing,
how can paint without ofensc my humber
brothers and sisters who stood round us? As
looked at the array of faces, could only com
mcnt To myself: uglier-uglest. AS
looked at their nude and filthy bodies, and
the enormous dugs winch hung down tn" bos-
Oms Of the women, and the general indeccncyI
of their nakcdncss, calculated Fearful" as
the sum total of what | might with proprietyI
say and what, indeed, Is sufficiently descriptive,