The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-10-26
MISSION LIFE IN AFRICA
REV. f. KNAUER, OF BATANGA, DE-
LINERS INTERESTING ADDRESS.

Rev. Frederick G. Knauer, of Batanga
who spoke at the Central Presbyterian
church yesterday afternoon, gave an
interesting account of missionary's life
in Africa, and the manners, customs and
religious belief of the natives of the
Dark Continent. Mr.. Knauer found the
g. eatest obstacles in the way of the mis-
sionary to be polygamy, superstition and
an utter absence of order. Children who
come to the mission schools from homes
where cleanliness is unknown, who per-
haps breakfast at o'clock in the after
noon Gf they happen to have anything
in the house to eat), take the only other
meal of the day at o'clock at night,
ana do not think of going to bed till
the moon is doWn-fnd rising at o'clock
in the morning, an early plunge in the
sea, dining at regular hours, duties to be
performed at stated hours and a o'clock
retlrlng hour a rather difficult condition
to accept. Among the superstitions COM
mon among the natives is the belief that
spirits dwell in all objects about them;
the man who has small piece of wood
tied to his arm has invoked the aid of
asks that he might, like the tree, grow
tall and strong. Polygamy, so common
and so distressing in its effects, is in
dicatiye of the social and financial posi-
ton of the husband, as he may have as
many wives as ne can afford to buy. The
wife is mere chattel, to be bought and
sold, and no matter what her wrongs
she has no appeal from them. The Ger
man government which now holds the
territory on which the missions are sta
toned, when appealed to, concluded they
had not sufficient hold on the people to
enforce drastic measures, but expect to
place a tax on all after the first wife,
the tax on the third to be double that
placed on the second.
When a missionary goes by boat, or
across the country on foot to hold meet
ngS in village, he notifies the chief
upon his arrival. He is always gladly
welcomed and the chief beats a drum to
call the people together. The audience
will be limited by the number of inhabi-
tants in the villages, varying from 20 to
500.
The missionaries of these stations have
been particularly fortunate in getting the
confidence of the dWarfs, of whom much
has been speculated and but little known
as they have been so abused by the other
native tribes that it is a difficult matter
to gain a foothoid among them They
are considered by the other natives as
unworthy CT anything but abuse and
contempt but the missionaries find them
as susceptible to refining influences as
any on the continent.
The natives are apt at developing pr.mi-
tive resources, as the collection of arti-
cles shown by Mr.. Knauer and exam
med by those present after the meeting
made of banana fiber; redwood powder
which, mixed with water, they use for
paint; a tooth brush made of vine;
bread stick made from the starchy part
of root; a necklace of brass, weighing
one and one-half pounds, and dress
Cor a large, oblong piece of CLOTH that is
called dress) made of bark soaked and
pounded and sewed with pineapple fiber
thread.
The necklace of brass is a pledge of the
husbands love for his favorite wife She
must have it placed about her neck, and
then resting it on block it must be
fastened together with blow from
stone or heavy implement. If she pleases
him very much he gives her two. and if
his love is very, very strong he insists
on her wearing three! One headdress
shown was unique. Fiber threads had
been woven with the hair into a helmet
and ornamented with white buttons
This when the wearer had tired of it, had
been cut from the head, a very common
way of changing the style Ct hair in that
country - .