The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1889-08-03
CONCERNING TWINS.
The Mysterious Sympathy That Usually
Exists Between Them.


exists between two beings who came
into the world together. There can be
no doubt that this sympathy is real,
and not the effect of the imagination,
as some have supposed. So far as is
known it does not always develop it
self, and when it is present it's cause is
not by any means understood. A very
real affection generally exists between
twins, and often seems to show itself
in the earliest days of infancy. 1t is no
uncommon thing for twin who has
lost his or her counterpart to pine away,
dropping gradually into the clutches of
the destroyer, who, in taking away the
other, has deprived life of all its joy.
But though intense fondness is no
doubt to great extent the cause of
such sad occurrences, the sympathy
which twins have for one another shows
itself here. With many savage races
twins are hurried out of the world i'm
mediately after they have entered it;
Others allow them to live, but only
under certain conditions. In western
Africa, little below the equator, be-
tween ten and twelve degrees east
longitude, live large tribe called the
Ishogo. They have many peculiar Gus
toms, but none more so than their
treatment of twins and of the mother
who is so unfortunate to bear them.
An idea seems to exist with them
that no woman ought to produce
more than single child at time,
and they seek to rectify the error
by giving their deities every chance of
killing one of the children before they
have arrived at the age ut which they
are considered able to take care of
themselves. This is held to be at about
six years old; once that age has been
passed, it is thought by these people that
'aproper balance between life and death
has again been struck, and they do not
deem any further precautions neces-
sary. Immediately the birth of twins
takes place, the hut in which the event
happened is marked in some manner
which will render it readily distin-
guishable from all others in the village.
Those who have read accounts of
African travel will probably remember
the unanimous testimony which eX-
plorers of the Dark Continent bear to
the extraordinary loquacity Of its ma
tives. Africans talk as they Breathe
INCREASINGLY, and yet the unfortunate
mother of twins is forbidden to eX-
change single word with any but the
immediate members of her family. She
may go into the forest for fre-wood,
and perform the household work nee
essary for the existence of herself and
strict silence, unless she finds herself
near one of her close relatives. The
consequence of this peculiar custom is
that the Ishogo woman breads the ad-
vent of twins more than any thing, ex-
cept, perhaps, being childless; and
nothing irritates newly-married wo-
man more than to tell her that she is
sure to become the mother of two chill
dren at birth. When the six years
of probation have dragged out their
weary length, grand ceremony is
held to celebrate the release of the
three capuves, and their admis-
sion to the society of their fellows.
At daybreak all the village is
aroused by proclamation made in the
principal street, and the mother and
friend take up their stand on either
side of the door of the hut, having
previously whitened their legs and
faces. The rest of the inhabitants of
the place cOngregate round about, and
at a given signal the white-legged
women march away from the hut. fol-
lowed by the twins, the mother clap
ping her hands and capering about, the
friend beating a lusty tattoo upon a
drum and singing song appropriate
to the occasion. After this procession
has gone the round of the village there
is general dance. Then every one
sits down to great feast, and eating,
drinking and dancing are carried on
for the rest OF the day and all through
the night. AS soon as the next day
dawns all restrictions upon the mother
and her offspring are held to be re-
moved. This ceremony is known as
IN paza," word which signifies both
the twins, and the rite by virtue of
which they and their mother are adj
mitted to the companionship of their
kind.
Cases in which one of pair of twins
has felt some disturbing influence at
work within him when evil was be-
falling his other self are. numerous.
As with all matters of the kind, the
instances are apt to border upon the
land of fiction, but there are many
which are perfectly we'll authenticated.
Though twins are usually alike in form
and feature this is not invariably the
case. The writer knows twin brothers
who can scarcely be said to bear even
a family likeness to one another, and
whose compilations go to the very ex-
tremes of darkness and fairness. But
though unlike bodily, they resemble
one another mentally to such an ex-
tent that thew passed from the bottom