Connecticut western news., 1890-12-10
LAKE JEWELLERS IN AFRICA.
Thecsands of Blacks Who Rear Thed Huts on Piles in the Denham Waters.

Theesands of Blacks Who Rear Their
 Huts on Piles in the Denham Waters.
 Much attention was recently called to the region around Kotonou, on the Gulf of Guinea, near which place sew eral hundred of the women warriors of the king of Dahomey were killed in battle by the French troops. One of the most interesting features of this region is the large native villages and towns that have been built in the wa ter. The inhabitants many years ago took this means of trying to escape from the terrible raids of the king of Dahomey. Many hundreds of people were actually driven by the powerful king into the water. It happens that the Dahomians are very superstitious about travelling in canoes or crossing streams, and the fugiIives took advan- tage of this fact to secure protection for themselves
 On any good map one may see the "Denham waters" near Kotonou. This is the home of these lake dweners. The towns have each a population of from 200 to 300 souls to as many thousands. Physically the people are fine and healthy specimens of Africans, and as a rule they are free from disease. Governor Moloney, of Lagos says the houses are built upon piles or straight branches of hard wood three to six inches in diameter.
 They are driven into the bottom of the lake. The upper ends are secured by cross pieces, on which is laid a bamboo flooring, two-thirds or one half of which is covered in by house. The uprights of the house are fixed first and secured below the platform to the supporting piles. The roof frame is next made on the platform, and is covered with grass or bamboo leaves and raised to it's position. The remaining portion of flooring is used as veranda In the construction no nails are used.
 These natives are fishermen and also a pastoral people. It is a curious fact that they keep cattle in pens adjoining their houses built on piles over the water like their dwellings. Sometimes during the dry season the shallowness of the water admits of the cattle being allowed to wander on terra firma, but fodder is brought in canoes to many less fortunate animals, which are com. pelled to eke out their existence in these pens surrounded by water until such time as they are tethered and transported by canoe to the butcher.
 The present natives are still in dread of the Dahomians, but even if this fea, no longer existed it is probable that the habit which they and their fathers before them have long followed would lead them to prefer these aquatic resi-. dences
 It is not known how many lake dwell. CTS there are, but it is supposed there are at least 10, 900 of them among the various tribes whose huts cover the Denham waters. Once in a while these tribes make war on one another, and they conduct their fighting in ca, noes capable of holding two or three persons, and their weapons are guns harpoons, spears and clubs.
 In some other parts of Africa, par ticularly in the Congo basin, the habit of dwelling in huts sustained on piles in lakes or rivers is very largely fol lowed, and perhaps million or two o. the people of Africa are still perpetua ting the phase of life of which we have relics in the remains of the lake dweller. of the prehistoric era.-New York Sun