Crittenden press. [volume] (Marion, Ky.) 1879-1907, 1906-04-26
AFRICAN PYGMIES.
L LONDON INSPECTS SIX SNAIL
fNDIIIDUdLS From THE con-
90 COUNTRY.


Men Average Pour rect Six. and
Women About our Q Get in Height
without Religion. Go Naked and
have Peculiar Customs.
London town Is very much interest.
81 In six small human beings Who
have recently arrived from Africa.
Colonel Harrison. an ofnccr In tho
British Army. has brought with him
from tho lturi forosts % tho belgium
.Congos q half dozen pygmics.
Colonel Harrison went last year
into tho Ituri forest. also Known as
Stanley forest. hoping TO captur ono
or more obapiA This part OF bis cH.
pCdluon Was a failure. On the other
hand. hc succeeded In living four
mouiAs amid the pygmios and per
sua-ci four mon and tao women %
tlo tribe 90 accompany him 10
Europe
Tho long Journey has been acoomp-
.i9a,d b. do SIX dwarfa Ia the face
~ thousand difficulties. Colonel
IiarrI .on and bis protcrcs were de-
talaci 90 Kl1r'oum AMI later at Cairo
for several weeks. certain English
philanthruplc societies having earnest.
~ opposed their oHpatrlauon Tho cx.
ploror was obliged 20 prove to the
| British Government that tho dwarfs
Ncro With him voluntarily.
Tho six pygmics were q courue duly
measured by the English anthropolo-
rlats on their arrival In London. Their
moan height Was feet inches for
mon aud 4 feet inch for women
Tho Congo Pygmics arc very strong
and also brave without being asncr.
| ally aggressive. although Colonel liar.
r.son reports that last winter. during
h.s stay Ia tho forest Of lturi. n party
u pyEmlns attacked a Belgian cara.
van. killing seventeen carriers and
plunder.uE the gooda They arc no
MAIDS. having neither fields nor houses.
/ and live only on game and Wild fruits.
| Thoir household utensils are limited
| to- few carihon s1ucopana. IN which
/ thoy cook game without taking tho
/ trouble 10 skin u. They eat tho skin
ls well as the meat. even breaking the
bones with their teeth.
Arc Sons OF Nature.
| They walk about completely un.
clothed. only among tho tribes that
live on tho confines OF tho forest and
have relations with the negroes 81
lgroatcr stature. do tho women wear n
girdlc OF leaves.
| Both tho men and women shave tho
head partially, some cut straight paths
across their woody hair: others dress
10 with BIRDS feathers or squirrel
,ails.
| They have absolutely no religious IN,
stncts and believe To neither God nor
devil They generally practice polyg
amy. As with the Chinese. the birth
u girl is regarded as calamity
Strangely enough. tho young mothers
sometimes steal the newborn children
~ the neighboring tribes OF normal
stature. leaving their own babes In
exchange.
Last Of a Great Race.
The Pvrmie5 DO not live 20 a
great age said Col Harrison Life
is hard IN the Fombcr Congo forests
nature is "a pitiloss task master TO this
remnant 81 the race that once peopled
the greater part OF Africa The rain
that falls IN torrents for eight months
transforms the ground into a marsh
10 may DO added that the pygmies
are remarkably intelligent. that they
appear 20 have the gift of language q
an incredible degree. that they exec
In the art Of extracting iron from thu
ore, Of forging II. and OF making arrow
heads OF II without other tools thar
round stones.
Electricity 10 be Cheaper.