St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-12-21
LAKE JEWELLERS IN AFRICA.
Thousands OF Blacks Who Rear
Their Huts on Pixies in the Dem

Thousands OF Blacks Who Rear
Their Huts on Pixies in the Dem
ham Waters.
New York Sun.
Much attention was recently called to
the region around Kotonou, on the Gulf
of Guinea, near which place several
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 water. The
inhabitants many years ago took this
means of trying to escape the terrible
raids of the king of Dahomey. Many
| hundreds of people were actually driven
by the powerful king into the water.
1t happens that the Dahomians are very
superstitious about travelling i'll canoes
or crossing streams, and the fugitiveS
took advantage 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 jewellers. The
! towns have each population of from
| POO to 800 souls to as many thousands.
! Physically the people are fine and
| healthy specimens of Africans, and as q
Moloney. of Lagos, says the houses are
| built upon piles or straight branches of
| hard wood three to six inches in dame
| ter. They are driven into the bottom OF
! the lake. The upper ends are secured by
cross pieces, on which are laid BAN
! boo 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 sup
| porting plies. The roof frame is next
| made on the platform, and is covered
with grass or bamboo leaves, and raised
| to its position. The remaining portion
| of flooring is used as yeranda. In the
| construction no nails are used.
These natives are fishermen and also
| pastoral people. 1t is 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 wafer admits of the cattle being
| allowed to wander Oh terra firma, but
fodder is brought in canoes to many less
| fortunate animals which are compelled
| to exc out their existence in these pens
+, surrounded by water until such time as
| they are lethered and transported by
canoes to the butcher.
The present natives are still in dread
|
no longer existed it is probable that the
| habit which they and their fathers be-
fore them have long followed would
lead them to prefer these aquatic resi-
! dences. 1t is not known how many lake
| dWellerS there are, but it is supposed
| there are at least 10000 of them among
| the various tribes whose huts cover the
Denham waters. Once in while these
| tribes make war ON one another. land they
| conduct their fighting in canoes cap
able of holding TWO or three persons,
and their weapons are guns. harpoons.
spears and clubs. In some other parts
| of Africa. particularly in the Congo
basin, the habit of dwelling in huts
sustained on piles In lakes or rivers is
very largely followed, and perhaps a
million or two of the people of Africa
are still perpetuating the phase of life
of which we have relies in the remains
of the lake jewellers of the prehistoric
era.