St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1896-07-11
SOUTH AFRICAN RUINS.
Buildings at Zimbabwe That May Re
rs. of Ring solotnon,a Time. rs

of King Solomon's Time.
1T would seem that, at some far dis
tant date, a people more civilized than
any of the present Kafir tribes had pen-
etrated into the region we now call
Mashonaland, and had maintained it
self there for aaconsiderable period.
Remains of gold workers are found in
many parts Of that country. and even as
far as the southwestern part of Mata-
beleland which show that
mining must have been carried on, by
upon scale larger than we. can we'll
deem within the capabilities of the
Kafir tribes as we now see them. There
are, moreover, in these regions, and
usually not far from some old gold
working, pieces of ancient buildings eS-
ecuted with neatness and finish, as
well as with an attempt at artistic eff
feet, which are entirely absent from the
rough walls, sometimes Of loose stones.
sometimes plastered with mud, which
the Kafirs build to-day.
These old, buildings are, with one ex-
ception, bits of wall inclosing forts or
residences. They are constructed OF
small blocks of the granite IF the coun-
try, carefully trimmed to be of one size,
and are usually ornamenteiWiti a sim
pie pattern, such as the s5-called her
ringbone" pattern. The one exception
is to be found in the ruins of Zimbabw
in southern Mashonaland. Here a wall
80 feet high, and from to IL or IA feet
thick, incloses a, large elliptical space.
filled with other buildings, some Of
which We're apparently intended for the
purpose of worship. There are no in
scriptions of any kind, and few objects,
exceptsome rudely carved heads of birds,
to supply any Indication as to the eth-
biological affinities of the people who
erected this building, or as to the natg-,e
of their worship. Such indications as
we have, however, suggest that it was
some form of nature worship, inc cluding
the worship OF the sun. We know from
other sources (inc1uding the Egyptian
monuments and the Old Testament)
that there was from very early times q
trade between the Red Sea and some
part of East Africa; and we know also
that the worship of natural forces and
of the sun prevailed among the early
Se1nites, the view that the builders Of
Zimbabwe were the Arab or some other
Semitic stock, is at least highly plausi-
BILE.
Two things are quite clear to every
one who examines the ruins, and COM
pares them with the smaller fragments
of ancient building already mentioned.
Those who built zimbabwe were q race
much superior to the Bantu tribes,
whose mud huts are now to be found
not far from these still strong and solid
walls; and those other remains scat
tered through the country were either
the work of that superior race, or, alt
any rate, We're built in rnitation of their
style and under the influence they had
left. But whether this race was driven
out, or peaceably withdrew, or beean:s
by degrees absorbed and lost in the sur
rounding Bantu population, we have no
data for conjecture. If they came from
Arabia they must have come more than
10 centuries ago, before the days Z { Mo-
hamned; for they were evidently not
Mussulmans, and it is just as eesy to
suppose that they came in the days of
Solomon, Is centuries earlier. = J-1mes
Bryce, M. p, IN Century.
JACKSON CHANGED HIS MIND.
ELS Friends Have Wondered What Got
Into the Tessotaler.
TS1,,e ~yoa,-e- Taalre<,~, ha1 Iaor, osf fatal =
abstainer for personal reasons best
known to himself. He and a friend
went a-wheeling q few Sundays ago
and stopped at roadside inn TO get
a little refreshment.
Jackson's friend took beer and jack
son filled his void with lemon soda wa
ter. Jaekson's system was so used to
soda that be could stand an unlimited
quantity of the temperance mixture.
His friend soon declared he had enough
hop juice to carry him overto the next
roadhouse. but jackson insisted that he
should have more.
Don't want any more, Jack" said
his friend.
Then, by the pneumatic tire, I'll
take a drink myself" said Jackson,
with sudden determination The waiter,
brought a pony Of brandy and after
jackson had seereted II he was in q
trance.
Waiter. he cried, and when that
white-aprened functionary responded,
bring me three brandies and six
beers"
Jackson looked like ready money, 20
he got his wet goods in good condition.
Then he ranged the nine glasses in. a
circle and regarded them intently for
half an hour, while his friend looked on
in blank amazement. He didn't drink
any more, but had To be carted home on
the train by his friend
Since that Sunday Jackson's jag"
has been with him, and the extraordi-
nary things he has done would furnish
material for halt dozen farce come
dies N. Y Herald.
Tho Value OF q Ton OF MetaL
So remarkable are the results OBJ
tanned in the manufacture of wire that
d scientist has chosen this subject as
a topic fora lecture. Ordinary wire is,
as everybody knows, not at all expen-
sive, but when metal Is worked up into
some of the articles In common use,
its value is enormously increased. At
tention was called to pinion wire.