The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1885-11-19
THE CONGO COUN1nL.


cs VI thc NdIlNcS.
A Boston gentleman, who has spent
ABOUT fourteen years of his life on the
east and west coasts of Africa. but most
OF that period on the east coast, in con-
versation the other day. gave some
points IN regard to the Congo country
(where he spent some three years, and
about which public curiosity has lately
aroused,) which are not covered in Mr..
Stanley's latest book, and NAV there
fore be interesting.
The language of the natives of the
Congo country is called Favott. and is
SO very difficult to acquire that he
knows of only one European who had
mastered 1t sufficiently to understand
1t. though he can speak but very little
OF II. 1t appears to be composed of
short words which, in the rapid manner
OF speaking, seem to be run together,
and each sentence to consist of a longer
or shorter compound word. 1t is capa.
BILE OF strong emphasis. and is quite ex-
preSslve, but the natives are not given
to geSticulation even when talking
eXcltedly, excepting always the feticharo
or fet Oh man when dealing out damna-
ton to transgressOrS. The trouble in
acqu ring the language appears to be
the general unwillingness of the
natives to teach it to white men. 1t is
said. however, that some of the Portu-
| guese who are born and raised there
have acquired the language, and speak
/ IT as iiuently as natives. In their inter-
/ course. the blacks are generally polite
toward one another, and have great
respect for old age. This is as true of
the people of the East as of those of the
West Coast of Africa. But the coast
people of the Congo are neither indus
trious nor sober. When the Portuguese
first established trading stations on the
. Congo. they taught the people to drink
rum. and this is now universal habit
| among them. In their native villages
and settlements the men will not work
in cultivating the SOIL but spend the
time in hunting, war and such amuSe-
mentS as their country affords oppor-
tunltieS for pursuing-and drinking rum
or gin, when they can get it.
When they hire out to the European
traders, the natives are good workers.
but a certain proportion of their
monthly pay is stipulated to be rum or
GIN. They hire out, agreeing to stay a
year, at the end of which time they re-
turn to their tribe. where they have a
grand jamboree. They bring home the
liquor by the cask, two or three men of
the same village frequently combining
together in the ownership, and when
they arrive it is the signal for all their
relatives to receive them with JOY and
gladnesS. When the liquor is landed
the King or chief is first served with his
share or tax of it. Then a certain
amount is sold to procure meat and rice,
or perhaps more frequently these arti- /
Giles are purchased with other COM |
mOdities brought from the factories, /
and the feast begins. When the re-
turned men and their friends drink and .
gorge, gorge and drink, until their en-
tire store of earnings is exhausted the
orgies lasting longer or shorter, accord
ing to the amount brought home and
the number of helpers that aid in con-
Stunning it-then they return once
more to the monotony of hard work
at the factories. The men of two
tribes-the Cavindas and the Kroboys
are principally employed by the
Dutch, English and Portuguese factors.
They are physically strong and hardy
race of men, and make splendid sailors,
and, barring some drawbacks, good
servants, The Cayindas are employed
as sailors, domestic servants. washer
men and cooks. while the Kroboys are
employed only as sailors and laborels.
Nearly all the natives are inclined to be
thevish in their prOpensitieS. Even the
best and most trustworthy. if tempted
too strongly, will yield at times. the
only safe plan being to put no tempta-
ton IN their way.
Like all aboriginal people the Congo
blacks are very superstitiouS, but to
what extent they believe in a future
state can only be conjectured- They
believe in the existence of good and bad
spirits, which they believe are all the
time lowering around and when one of
them dies they believe that his spirit or
soul is seized by either the good or the
bad spirits, and carried away to become
one of them Hence. when a native is
dying. his friends come around, fire off
guns and make horrible noises, for the
purpose OF frightening off the evil
spirits. What effect this may have on
the good spirits is not stated.
Their religious ceremonies are not of
a very high order, being mostly of a
nature. or for the purpose of {
warding off danger, disease, etc, and 6
here the fetch plays an Important part '
They do not make human sacrifices like y
the Ashantes. but when they want any
favorS from the invisibles they bring a
goat or a chicken to the fetch man to '
be sacrificed, and are given in return I
an amulet or charm, or fetch. as they 1
call it. The fetch is the terrible. the
unknown power, ut once the prosecutor j
or the avenger, according rs its power t
IS invoked or rejected This the present T
Informant illustrated by an anecdote. y
The Dutch have a factory ut Banana q
point, which is approached by two v
roads, one on each shore side of the ?
narrow peninsula. On the boundary line v
0t their property, on each road. a d
" atch-hOnse was established, to regu- S
ate admttance from the outside a
But the laborers, servants and Il
sailors from outside csme in II
IN such numbers, axd gave so a
much trouble by getting drunk and 4
creating disturbances that the agents A
inally thought it best to make fetch. as A
{ is termed, on the boundary line. They b
fetch man tc make feticlI 0
This consisted first in bringing his fetict h
'r idol on to the line, making figures in 5
he sand around it. and fOurishes or II
signs around and above it with his o
,,s,2;is and arms, and then taking a L
L.