The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1890-02-12
cLIMpsrs Or AFRICAN BELLIES.
How the UnciviIized Women of Interior
Africa Enhance their Charms.


How the Uncivilized Women of Interior
Africa Enhance their Charms.
Gorgeous is hardly the word to apply
to the get-up of the ordinary African
savage, but it may we'll be allowed to
stand in regard to the gala costumes of
the plump and oily-skinned Wa-Teita
bellies, who fairly took possession of
our camp on this occasion. The ladies
of this tribe believe in the time-honor-
ed idea of enhancing their charms in
stead of concealing them. To carry
out this happy feminine conceit they
array themselves almost exclusively in
a costume of beads, of which orna-
ments they wear most astonishing
quantity. Young women came strut
ting proudly into our camp with GER
tainly not less than thirty or forty
pounds of beads of various bright col
ors disposed about their persons. As
the ladies of Western Asia carry about
in the form of jewels and gold coins
their husbands surplus wealth, so the
bellies of Teita burden and at the same
time decorate themselves with their
little all in beads.
The weight of beads they carry and
the manner in which they are worn
must be exceedingly uncomfortable.
But they care no more for comfort
where fashion is concerned than do the
ladies of Paris or New York. The saw
age belle is, in fact, always a greater
votary of fashion than her civilized sis
ter. If Miss Fashionplate of America
converts herself into a wasp and the
Golden Lily of China discards her feet
at the dictates of fashion, rest assured
that the dark daughters of the Savage
Continent act well up to their lights in
the same direction. But the M'Teita
belle does nothing absurd. There are
no holes bored in their lips, nor is her
well-oiled body disfigured by tattooing
as are the women of many savage peo-
pies. She files her front teeth to
sharp point, which leads you to draw
irreverent comparisons between her
knowing smile and the jaws of a rat
trap. Her chin is elevated like Brit
ish soldiers by the enormous collar of
beads she wears, and various other lit
tie peculiarities reveal themselves to
our eyes or our nostrils as she poses
before our tent to be admired; but with
all this, / say, she is neither human
wasp nor person who has to be car
ried pick-aback from having destroyed
her feet.
But let us endeavor to draw pic
ture of her as near as one may in mere
words. In the first place, you see
nothing of a fashionable M'Teita wo-
mans neck. The whole contour from
chin to collar-bone is filled out with
bulky roll of hundreds of strings of
many colored beads that elevates the
chin and impedes the movements of
the head. Forty or fifty other and
longer strings suspended from eacL
shoulder cross Between the breasts,
forming a bandolier that seemed to us
as much of a burden as an ornament.
Another huge coil encircles the waist, or
in some instances, instead of innumera-
BILE strings, bead belt of curious pattern
and neat design. One would think
this were beads enough to satisfy even
the most bead-loving African damsel.
But even these massive accumulations
fall short of perfection in the eye of
the M'Teita belle. Wherever there is
room about her person to bestow a
bead, there, rest assured will the bead
be found, if she has enough to 60
round. The head is shaved so as to
leave a circle patch of wool on the
crown, about three inches in diameter.
A broad band, or coronet, of beads en-
circles and covers this shaven part, and
the hair of the crown is gathered and
twisted into hundreds of tiny strings,
on each of which is threaded a red,
white, blue, or green bead. Hoops of
beads threaded on wire adorn the ears;
neat cuff-like bands of the same bright
articles encircle arm and legs; and, in
deed, the fig-leaf, with which her simple
soul satisfies the requirements of de-
cency, is tiny apron of beads. fringed
and embellished by border of tiny
iron chains-of Chaga workmanship.
But the most curious object about
the Mount Leitar ladies' costume, and
which was seen by us on the women of
no other tribe, is observed from a
back view. Suspended from the beads
around her waist is piece of goatskin,
patterned after an exaggerated swal-
low-tail, the pointed extremeties of
which descend to the calves and flap
jauntily about her legs as she walks.
1t is needless to add that this strange
garment also is adorned with beads.
Picture to yourself a hundred or SO
chocolate-hued women of all sizes and
ages. one-half of their persons glisten-
ing like patent leather in the bright
sun, with every motion of their supple
bodies, by reason of the liberal dress
ing of castor-oil they have plastered
on, and the other half bright and bar
barous of color-masses of beads; and
you have with us seen truly East At
rican spectacle. But take my advice
and clap your handkerchief to your
nose in Difference to that particularly
dashing young lady who is approach
ing the tent. She has been making
her toilet afresh for the conquests of
the afternoon among the porters. In
other words, she has just come from
her hut, after amounting from head to
foot with pint or so of extremely
odoriferous oil. How she shines and
glistens-and what a bouquet! And
how proud and self-conscious she is OF
these added charms! She cannot help
smiling as she notes our looks of adj
miration and approval. Or likely she
smiles to let us see to what fine points
her teeth have been filled. We note
the teeth and also curious sharp and
lively twinkling of the bright, beady
black eyes, which betrays the fact that
every lash, which in other lands are
coveted by the fair sex for the softened
expression they impart has been re-
moved Thomas Ste0epS in the N. Y.