Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1888-07-27
HUMAN SACRIFICES.
Savage and Shocking Customs Sti1i IN
Vogue In West Africa.

]
horror. Again and again an English
trader or traveller has had to look on
these CUSTOMS" but the horrors were
never fully described until 1873, when
the German missionaries, Bounat,
Kuehne and Ramseyer, were prisoners
in Coomassie at the time of the native
Crown Princes death. As soon as he
was seen to be dying, the executioners
began to scOur the streets for victims
When they caught any one, two Of
them would come behind, and each
thrust knife through the cheek, the
blades passing over the tongue, and a
handle sticking out on each side. This
is to prevent the poor creature from
swearing on the life of the King''-
that is, swearing that if he dies, the
King must die, too-in which case, in
stead of being killed, he would not
only be spared, but ranked among the
''okra" courtiers whose life depends
on that of the King. and who-killed
when he dies-hold till his death places
of trust and honor.
Besides those thus caught, every
great chief had to offer victim; but
the number was chiefly made up of
slaves and prisoners of war. The
wives-painted white and covered with
gold ornaments-sat around the coffin,
Tapping off the flies They were
strangled at the funeral. So were six
pages. who. similarly painted and
adorned. sat by the dead man. They
had known their fate some days before,
but none ran away save three wives of
low birth. whose places were at once
supplied by other girls. For nine DAYS
the slaughter went on, the people fast
ing, with shaven heads and bodies
painted red, but drinking all the more.
And this death wake was to be
repeated forty days after.
When King dies the victims are
slain at the rate of 200 week for
three months. But there have been
"grcater customs" than these. A
Kings mother died in 1916; her son
slaughtered 5000 people. 1000 being
prisoners just captured from the Fam
It's. To make up the tale, every big
Ashantee town had to give 100, every
smaller town ten victims.
A royal burial is on this wise: At
the bottom of huge grave are laid
the heads of the slain; on them the
coffin rests. Then. just before the
earth is thrown in. one of the bystand-
ers-a freeman, if of some rank so
much the better-is suddenly dubbed,
cash made in the back of his neck.
and he is rolled in upon the coffin.
The idea is to send along with the
crowd of slaves and prisoners some
one who shall look after them as
ghostly "major domo."
For King there remains yet another
''custom." At the end of thirty moons
the grave is opened, the royal bones
fastened together with gold wire and
the skeleton placed in long building
divided into cells. the doorways to
which are hung with silk curtains.
Then on his birthday the King of
Ashantee goes early to the house of
the royal dead. Every skeleton is
taken from its richly ornamented cof-
lin, where it has lain surrounded by
the things which had been most pleas
ing to it IN life, and is placed on
chair to welcome the visitor. As the
King enters each cell with meat and
drink Offering to the departed, the
band plays the favorite melodies of
that particular King. and. unawares
the royal visitor signs to the execu-
TONERS who have followed him. and an
attendant is pierced through the cheeks
and killed, the King washing the skel-
eton in the warm blood. The same
work goes on at the next cell, and SO
on. the fearful work going on far into
the night. The band plays a signal as
each victim is slaughtered. Two blasts
OF the horn mean death, DEATH"
three drum taps, "cut it off," one
beat from big drum, 1.-The head has
fallen" The signal is taken up by
other bands, and all through the city
horn-blowing and drum-beating goes
on increasingly. The Ashantees al
ways say of drum, sit speaks" and
every traveller admits that they man.
"5O w CiiCiI ilOlu IudC unmanaUeaDle
instrument a most varied range of
sound. The sounds form words. the
whole rhythm sentence, readily
understood by native listeners. Each
chief has his own ''call," just as each
Highland clan had its own battle tune.
OF course this constant killing makes
the people callous to suffering and
brutal to their prisoners. Their feel
ing in regard to death is not courage
but apathy. The spectators are as
delighted at these revolving "customs"
as the Roman populace was at the
gladiators' show. Now and then a
victim is tortured. The missionaries
watched one who, besides the knives
through his cheeks, had couple of
forks thrust into his back. He was
then dragged before the King, gashed
all over the body, his arms cut off, and
IN this plight compelled to dance for
the amusement of the royal savage. - .
IL