The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1885-03-07
EARTH-MEN FROM AFRICA.
A Strange Tribe of People Who Have
Recently landed at New York.
New York World


New York Worldl
Sitting in waiting-room of the Cen
tral railroad ferry. house a few days ago
was as uncouth q collection OF human
beings as falls to the lot Of New Workers
to witness. Wrapped in coarse, striped
blankets, their heads covered with cloth
caps SIX sizes too large for them, the
small peaked faces peered out of their
coverings with a monkey-like gaze at
the crowd of inquisitive Americans who
gathered around. They were African
earth-men or pygmies, recently
brought here from the region
OF the Congo. Until lately
the existence of these people has been
questioned by scientific writers, but re-
cent discoveries have proved the truth
Of the wcll-known assertion of Herodotus
regarding the mysterious tribe OF
dwarfs who burrowed in the earth far
back toward the center of the dark con
tinent. Du Chaillu was the first modern
traveller who investigated the matter and
saw them in their own land and de.
scribe d them as being small I stature,
but larger than one is led to expect from
tho des ription Of lIorodotls, being
somcWhat over three and a half feet
tall, but still they are diminptive speci-
mems of humanity. Their figures are
slim and delicate but very weli-formsl.
The woman ea, ecially is capable of
posing for an artist as bronze Venus.
Thoy are all well clal, the women wear
ing coats and pants Of coarse but warm
material, and they frequently emitted
dry, hacking cough that showed the
ct which our climate and that of
England, whence they came last, is hav
isg upon them. Their fae ees denote but
little intellect, yet they are possessed of
much intelligence, and the children are
surprisingly bright The baby, sitting
under a canopy of cap, was study in
himself.
bis big, black eyes twinkled and snap
ped as he poered this way and that at
the crowd, and he looked the brightest
and best of the lot. His father, the
kng-they are all kings that come here
sat enwPappod in bis royal blanket,
with long bow in his hand, and he ap.
peared to notice nothing that went on
around him Ile wore, attached to his
hair in front, three small shells filed
with some kind OF cement or dirt to
hold them On. These are royal trade
marks, none but he being allowed to
decorate bangs in that manner, and he
looked every inch king of that sort
On their checks they all had a ragged
Scar-thiS is also royal mark, ami is
made by scratching with an arrow and
rubbing in cololing matter-a rude sort
of tattOoing. In addition to these marks
each one had the Joint Of his right hand
little finger taken or. This is a general
tribal mark. They all showed their
fingers and all were alike in this dis
fgTement. Their skin is not 'ack, but
sort of ooppory brown, somethinglike
our Indians, Lut shade or two darker
and richer in tone. They have little
hair, and that is curled like pigtails.
The most curious thing about them is
their language 1t is a series of in
dos ribablo clucks, made by turning the
tongue backward against the roof of the
mouth and saaDnnc II forwagl- not
th. so 4: Or - lea sttsAftt...Y a
Eo:so, but jost 2. in'r'icua,o and seem
ingly u1intellistle 70 u hTman Stin~ I.
They clekod an cil.kqd among ta9u
ae'yes, and tee fniIcman in charg,
clipped i'll and drol Us tonale at tham.
and then the report r tried it, and
tIuckod them, "r'er-s my regards" "
1t seemed incrcdi l. that men sauld
converse among themrelyos with such
an elementary form Of speech, it not bo-
ing elevated above the twitteNng of a
sparrow. Cne certainly could
easier translate tho barks and whines Of
a dog into English. They seemed to be
satisfied with it, and that is certainly
enough.
They have cutie a collection of
African arms and eriosities in thor
possession short and long bows, with
sinew or hide strings; spears and ar
rows of reed, poisoned with the
juices of plants, ana capable of max
ing havoc in the ranks of an enemy.
1t is, in fact, in this mapner only,
that they con be ormidable, as an
ordinary white mancould easily manage
three of them. They decorate them
selves in the manne usual among saw
ages, with shells, heads, and feather /,
the latter being quite ornamental and
artistic. They have a collection of os
trich feathers, heads and horns of
ga elles, gemsboks aud Glands, tiger
and leopard skins, and lions claws-all
trophies of their SIX Il in tie chase and
showing what a su oriority even pyg-
mics have over the brute creation.