The Dickinson press., 1889-03-16
QUEER LANGUAGES.
CONVERSATIONS CARRIED ON WITH
OUT THE USE OF THE VOICE.
Tho Inhabitants of Gomero Island Talk at
Long Range - The Drums Which the
Cameroons Use So satisfactorily-Traders


Long Range - The Drums Which the
Cameroons Use So Satisfactorily-Traders
Who Pinch Each Others Fingers.
AT one of the recent meetings of tho Berlin
Anthropological Society, Lieut.. Quedenfeldt,
German officer, who has lived on Gomero
Island, one of tho Canary group, described
whisting language which is used by the in
habitants. The language does not consist of
any arbitrary series of signals or sounds;
it is described as ordinary speech, trans
lated into articulato whistling, each syl-
liable having its own appropriate tone
The Gomero uses both fingers and lips
when whistling, and Lieut.. Quedenfeldt
asserts that he can carry on a conversation
with neighbor milo off, who perfectly
understands all he is saying. The practice is
confined to Gomero Island and is quite un-
known in the other islands of tho archipelago
The adoption of tho whistling language is
said to be duo to tho peculiar geological con-
structlon of Gomero Island. 1t is traverscd
by numerous gullies and deep ravines run
ming out in all directions from the central
plateau AS they are not bridged they can
only be crossed with great difficulty. hence
man living within stones throw of another
in straight line has often to 60 round many
miles when he wishes to SEQ and speak to his
neighbor. This, it is conjectured, led to the
adoption of whistling as a useful means of
communication, which has gradually as
sumed the proportions of q true substitute
for speech. 1t is described as being anything
but unpleasing to tho ear
DRUMMING UP" IN WEST AFRICA.
iy,Js >f Il,
the natives of Cameroons, mentioned in
Buchholz's book OH West Africa, by means
of which the most complicated messages can
be conveyed to villagers at distance when
occasions ncces, s,itato it. For this purpose a
peculiarly shaped drum is employed BY
dividing tho surface into uneven halves the
instrument on being struck may bo mado to
yield two distinct notes. BY these and by
shortening or lengthelIng the intervals be-
tween each note. u code is established, with q
regular sequence of taps, strokes and inter.
vals capable of expressing every syllable In
tho language All the natives understand
this code, and SO highly elaborated is it that
chief can by its means summon to his
presence any villuger whom he desires to
see, intimating to tho latter at the samo
,llno the purpose for which no is required.
III this way, too, messages can be sent
from village to village over wide stretches Of
country-the drummer i'll one hamlet trans
mittln9 to the next tho signals he hears-and
WIN extraordinary rapidity. Buchholz
had proof on one occasion OF tho
utility of this drum language and its
capabilities us medium of commllnica-
ton. Tho negro who had charge of his
canoe got leave one morning to attend to
some private business Of his own, which took
him to the other side of the river Tho man
remained away I'M unreasonable time, and
buchholz got very angy, as ho was waiting
to leave the place. Another negro suggested
that they should drum for him The drum
mer was sent for and instructed to inform
tho missing servant that his master was very
angry with him, and that ho was to return
ut once. In Il few minutes tho man returned.
with the inevitable apologies for the length
OF time ho had been away. He had per-
fectly understood tho message ,lrummed out
to him, as BuchEolz uscertained by inuuiring
OF him.
TO PREVENT MEDDLING.
Equally curious is tho SO called sign Ian
guase, or finger speech of Oriental traders,
largely employed on the east coast of Africa,
in tho direction of Zanzibar Walking
through u market place in this region of tho
WI III llc lIuNclcf VIII OlLcu witness u
strange sight. A couple of grave, long
bearded Arabs will step aside, each will put
his hand up the others capacious Sleeve and
tho pair will then begin apparently to pinch
each others fingers for few minutes. Often
the performance will bo varied. One will
unroll bis long turban cloth, or perhaps lift
up his long mantle and then cover his hand,
and concealed beneath this tho pinching of
tho fingers will proceed as before Tho initi-
atcd know that this is method of bargaining
by means of u code of finger speech under
stood by eastern traders from southern Arabia
and northern Africa to tho borders of Persia.
1t has been adopted in the first instance for
simple reason. In the east, especially along tho
coast of the Red sea- Zanzibar and southern
Arabia, all business is transacted in the open
air. And in all such transactions the by
ISLANDERS, idlers, riifraff and meddesome busy
bodies generally contrive to have good deal
TO say, rendering their advice to both buyer
and seller. The unwritten etiquette of tho
east requires that such friendly counsel
should not bo resented. But as tho mcr-
chants and dealers find it un unmitigated
nuisance and q great hindrance to business,
they have adopted a certain codo of finger
signs, which they exchange when bargaining,
with their hands concealed under their
sleeves or turban cloth. Each finger and
each joint of u finger represents Il certain
figure. So tho pair can bargain by the hour,
as they often do to their hearts content, and
none Of the noisy and gaping busybodies
around them will be any the wiser for it
ST. James Gazette.