Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1903-05-13
A DECADENT RACE.
The Boobies Of the West Coast Of
Africa Adopt the Vices of the
White Man.

White Man.
Reuters representative has had an
interview with Lieut.. Boyd Alexander,
rifle brigade, who has Just reached
England after an interesting expedi-
ton over the little known Spanish is
land of Fernando Pc, says the London
Leader.
Although lying within a few miles of
the Niger coast and in the direct track
OF steamers, the island is practically
unknown, except for a narrow cult
waited belt round the coast. The noun
famous interior, consisting of dense
forest and jungle, is given over en-
tlrely to curious tribe of natives
known as Boobies, the majority of
whom have never seen white man.
Speaking of his travels, Lieut.. Alex
ander said: Il reached the island from
the German port OF Victoria, in the
Cameroons, which is only 80 miles dis
tant, and soon found that, owing to the
physical conditions, scientific research
was not an easy matter. The mountain
ranges and dense forests, laden with
FEVER, made travelling very difficult, es-
pecially in the northern part of the is
lano. Roads there are none, and the
few native tracks so cross and recross
that we were constantly losing our
bearings.
~ VI the natives of the island, Lieut..
BOYD Alexander said: ''They are GU
rlous and timid race, quite unlike any,
thlng L have seen on the west coast,
and OF an extremely low type.
Except for the purpose of going
out on organized drinking bouts, many
OF them never leave their primitive
dwellings, among the rocks, and. gem
orally speaking, they had never before
seen white man. They are known as
Boobies. They are of poor physique,
and are, in fact, dying of palm wine
and rum.
Usually they arc quite naked. ex-
cept for curious straw bonnet which
they wear. Some, however, add to this
scanty loln cloth. They make them
selves more hideous than they would
otherwise be by painting their bodies
with colored mud, and a plaster of
TINS mixture, which is bright red. on
the lower part of the face, renders
them particularly unattractive.
Their dirt is unspeakable. Tbey
never wash, but to their arms is at
tached by means of a hempen band
knife which they use to scrape off the
filth with which they are encased. They
manage, too, to induce a deformity bv
"inoing tightly round the upper arm
ana oelow the knee strong woven
bands.
Ihey are exceedingly timid, and
often when they caught sight of nv
party coming up narrow track thew
would rush into the depths of the for
est and set up a weird and fearsome
wall, in which their dogs joined. To
keep Boobie away from his nalm
VINE is to make him a wretched being
AT certain hours in the dav Their
little villages would be quite deserted
everyone, including the little children.
having gone off with their calaba she's
on carouse. This is practically all
they live for. They believe in an evil
spirit, to propitiate which they make
JuJu of small pieces of rotten wood
Ihese they plant at certain specified
Places, and anyone touching them is
supposed to sicken and die Although
l carefully searched the island. T could
md no traces of their burial places"
Lieut.. Boyd Alexande secured neArlv
500 specimens of birds, SO of which are
new to science. He states as curious
1sct that the birds, mammals and
plants are for the most part quite un-
like the ewest African forms. but are
similar to those found on the eastern
side of the continent.