The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-01-04
FRENCH COMO CoNQUGRoRs.
An African Tribe Tnst Numbers MIL
lions Fought Its Way 10 the Sea.
Zion, fhn Nnrr Xcr. GIN,

An African Tribe Tnst Numbers Mill
lions Fought Its Way 20 the Sea.
From the Neto York Sun.
The French Congo country is five times
the size OF France, 1t is believed that it
contains 8 ,OO0,00O people, and more than
half of them are Pahouins, as De Brazza
calls them, or Fans, as Du Chaillu made
them known. Those who know them best
say their names is properly Faugs. They
are by far the most remarkable people III
west Africa.
The Fangs lord it over every people they
meet Years ago they swooped down upon
the coast natives from the interior just as
the hordes Of barbarians invaded Western
Europe. They are among the greatest can
nibals in existence. One Of the most caro-
full studies made Of the Fangs is that OF the
Rev. 2. LeJeune, q missionary, who has
lived among them for SEINE years In most
books and records they are refe red to as
the Pahouins. This, however, is the name
| applied TO them by their enemies The
| word Pahouin is synonymous with savage
or thief aud is perhaps fitting designation
of the race of cannibals who invaded all
the valleys of the Gaboon territory.
The single tribe of the Betsi Fangs, ac~
cording to De Brazza, numbers over :, 0OO,-
900 souls. Tpeir most Important villages
are from three to ten miles back from the
the Ogowe river from Lambarene to Ndyole
| there are 200, 900 Fangs. But all the rivers
forming a network through the country are
IN the possession of this race They are
| divided into three principal tribes, whose
dialvcts differ widely fgom one another.
Ii is easy to sec, however, that their
| languages came not long ago from COM
mon source, and that the emigration Of
large bodies of the great tribe produced
| ma ked dialectlc di ffsreuceS
There were a very few whites who know
anything of their language. The difficulty
of its construction, the indistiuctness with
which it is pronounced, the nasal tone in
which the words are uttered, and the ex-
cessive swiftuess of speech OF the Fasgs
have discouraged most white men who have
tried to master he language. A small die
tieuery OF their toague, howe er, has been
made by Father Lejeune. He says he found
| the task very difficult, and frequently he
was on the point of abandoning 1T in de-
spair. He could find no Interpreter among
them who could translate their speech or
his own. The Fangs would not take him
seriously, and gave him much misinforma-
tion. Finally he found some Fang children
who had taken service in white factories
along the Ugowe and had learned the
Mpongue language. The priest obtained q
large vocabulary from these ohildren.
The adult Fangs decline to learn any
SVuer language. IL tDey engage IN tFdUo
| they speak Fang. II they have any n
troversy with another tribe they will dis
cuss the merits Of the case only in the Fang
tongue. II Is absolutely necessary for mis-
sionarles and merchants and even other
negro tribes, il they are to make Roadway
and get on with the Fa IS, to learn their
| language. The commerce OF Gaboon is in
their hands. They alone supply ivory to
| white traders. II merchant understands
their language business is g. eedlly trans
acted If ne talks through an interpreter
it sometimes takes days to complete sale.
The Fangs have saying that "the Fang
| is he who kills the elephant; the white man
! is an elephant" which is their way OF ssyiag
that the white man is rather stupid. This
expresses their opinion of many Of the trad
trader living at LambAreRe, on the Ogowe
river, some years ago begsn to study the
Fang language. Now nearly all the Fang
rubber and i. DRY dealers flock to him, and
lie controls the larger part Of the trade, to
the great disadvantage OF merchants who
have not his attainments.
Other tribes try ito conceal the fact that
they are cannibals The Fangs are proud
of IT. If one asks them why they have left
the land Of their fathers and Invaded this
region near the sea, they simply reply, 1--WE
came here to eat" Yet they believe in @
Ged who governs all things. They believe
eternal fire. They have made some progress
in the forging Of iron but are not nearly sc
advanced IN their arts as many less active
acute, and powerful tribeS They are con
sta lily engaged in war with neighb0riEg
villages Of their own people or with the
tribes among whom they have intruded
They are satisfied with nothing else thar