The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-08-04
AMONG THE ZULUS.
What Rev. r. Shemeld Saw in
South Africa.
TWENTY COWS BUY a WIFE.
A Colony Of Half . Miilion-very Few
Are Christians-Practice Of
Polygamy.

Rev. Robert Shemeid, who Tor hve years
has been conducting the Bethany Zulu
mission, at Escourt. Natal, in South Africa.
has been in the city for several days, and
yesterday morning he gave q lecture on
Zululand. at the Free Methodist church,
in this city.
Mr.. Shemeld gives very interesting ac-
counts of the country in which he has been
living. To PosT-INrELLIGExcER reporter
he said yesterday:
"Escourt. where my wife and myself are
located. is $50 miles inland from the coast.
We have society with thirteen members
and several pfobationers, and we like the
country very we'll. )"
HAS there been any improvement in the
condition of the Zulus in the last five
years2n
"Yes. indeed. There has been radical
Improvement. There are other mission
aries at work in other parts of both Natal
and Zuiuland, and their efforts have
brought gaod results. Eleven of my thir-
teen converts to Christianity were few
years ago naked savages. Some of them
can read the Zulu language now, and few
can read English"
How do you get about the country?"
1--WE have new railroad now running
up from Port Natal into the interior. They
have few buggies. which are called 'spid-
ers, but my private conveyance is four
OK team covered wagon. The roads are
very rough and stony, and it is difficult to
get about with any degree of comfort"
"How many Zuius are there there?"
"In the colony embracing Zululand and
Natal there are about 10000. They have
f,l<1 he ocf IN
''What about marriage?"
''They are polygamists. The women do
the work and the men drink beer. 1t is a
very poor man indeed who only has one
wife, and they run from one to twenty
wives. Zach wife has a hut and little
patch of garden ccrn, which she cultivates
for her lord. The p.ice of wife is from
ten to thirty head of cattle. according TO
the rank of the woman. A chiefs daugh-
ter brings thirty head, asub-chief's twenty,
and common mans daughter only ten.
To have twenty wives a man must be very
rich. / called on Chief Ndomba one day.
and in the course of a conversation asked
him how many wives he had. He told me
that he could not remember, but he named
over fifty-seven of his children.
1.-THE women marry very young, and
many of the marriages, on account of be-
ing arranged by the fathers, are compul-
sorry. But the women are true to their
husbands.
THE people all believe in witchcraft, and
are very superstiiious. They worship the
spirits of their ancestors, and in times OF
drouth make offerings to the Queen of
Heaven. Many of their customs bear a
striking resemblance to those OF the an
cient Jews, and think they must at some
time have come in contact with the Jews.
They have medicine doctors, lightning
charmers and witch doctors, and are alto
gether very Intelligent savages. l con-
slider life and property in Zaluland as
safe as it is in America.
Mr.. Shemeld speaks the Zulu language
fiuently and breaches in that tongue
There is, he said, mo written Zulu Ian
guage. though lately the missionaries have
reduced the language and the Bible is DOW
printed in Zulu. There are three very pecu-
liar clicks representing the letters c, q and
that il. is very han TO express on paper
The language can be translated, however,
and many words in English have syno-
nyms in Zulu. The first five months of
the year are Undasa. Umbaso, Uncwaba
Ulutiyna and Untulikazi."
Rev. Shemeld will go to Mt Vernon to-
morrow and may return again to Seattle
in lew days. He is on tour of the West
for the purpose of raising funds for his
mission, and will return 10 Africa again in
the fall, accompanied by his wife, who is
now studying medicine in Minneapolis.