Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1907-08-16
NvAa is STILL MUCH EATEN


mandant burrows saw another side o
this practice Sitting ut his tent dool
one evening after camp had bcci
pitched he watched his man getting
their supper ready. The day had beer
marked by forced marches and sharl
fighting in which both sides left munN
dead in the thick jungle.
Presently in the gathering dusk q
huge savage passed him stcalthily
with big bundle on his shoulder
wrapped in leaves of the wild banana
palm. Challenged by burrows. the man
said he was only nearing food for his
comradcs-just banana food But ii
fact he and several others had beer
constantly going to ana from th,
scene of the fight. cutting up the bod
les and bringing them down in small
parcels so MS not to attract the wiz,
mans attention as they passed his
tent.
Yet in this very country are tribes
that would not eat human flesh II
they were starving: the curious it'll,
pygmics, for instance, of the Great
Forest. Yet these are infinitely lower
in the social scale than the cannhals
little better than apes, In fact.
Their huts would disgrace an intel
lisent animal. They have no arts. non
do thoy till the soil These queer lit
tie nomao's exist by hunting. trapping
and fishing, They even pursue tn,
elephant, shooting it in The foot Will
poisoned arrows anl then tracking II
until IL becomes helpless. when They
finish off the monster with thei.
spears.
Capt. Ewart S. Grogan. the cxplor
cr, who walked the whole length 81
Africa from the Cape to Cairo. col
lectcd ample testimony Of The pyg
mics aversion to human flesh. II,
witnessed big tribal fight In this
country between the l3atako and III.
Bangala. ANA after al was over N,
came upon the victors fcaslng on tn,
l'ldics of the slain. while the tiny apc
men. weary as they were with ,heii
share of the fray, were securing The
country round for vegetable food
Herbert Ward, +. X, G. s.. is anoth
or traveller who has given much stu
dy to this question. Ana he. too. tcs
titles that the savagcs of the Uppcl
Congo simply prefer human meat tc
any other.
They asked him innoccntly If hc
also did not enjoy ii, and each head
man In bringing presents to the whit,
travellcr-skinny fowls, bananas. su
gar cane, ana so on-inyariaby In
ciudcd quantities of smoke drlcj
meat. snittcd on skewcrs ana unmis
takably of human origin. 1--WE do rs
our fathers have done" these savage!
told him with an indifferent shrug
when demonstrated with on tho sub
iect," complacently said another irlhc
In the Ubangi county Mr.. Ward lie
held the mems nccks adorned wYl
strings of human teeth. dried finger!
and collarbones: and all the houses
were decorated with skulls on the ont
side. In the Ngombi region on the LII
lnnsu River. a mighty tributary of III,
Congo. eight hundred miles from IN,
Atlantic coast, Mr. Ward found n SO
rics OF strongly fortified villages
where the Ulansi cannibals came I,
buy slaves. drawing upon the sup
plies for food as required.
Turning to the South Sea Islands
the Germans. Dutch and British arr
striving to put down cannibalism il
their respective spheres in New Gui
nca So far these efforts have me
with little success. The practice /!
too deep seated To be eradcated In ;
generation or two. No New Guinc;
maiden will look with favor on a snit
or whose hut is not plastered with hn
man skulls ms testimony to his proves.
as hunter and general proyider TO
the home.
In the Solomon Islands, New Brit
ain ana New Ireland, the natives mr.,
also cannibals from deliberate choice
In the Fiji Islands as late as 1857
lived cannibals as ruthless as any OF
earth. They fattcned their victims il
wooden cages until they were read,
for the Draining stones. which yo;
may see in Ovalau TO this day. Ia
gether with notchcs on the trees re
cording the number of human beings
sent to the ovens.
Here the eating of human flcsI
was full of symbols, poetry and phi
losophy. a thing sanctificd by the god
and governed by intricate rules. Lor
Stanmorc. G.. C. NJ. G.. formerly IIigl
Commissioner OF the Fiji Islands. re
cords that the natives reserved spC
cial kind of salad for use at thcs
fcasts. and women were rigidly c>
cluded. But all that is over now an
no sign of the maneating past remain
in the group save a few historic relic
# wood and stone.
The New Hebridcs group is motor
Gus for the comparatively recent cIui
bing and eating of Dr. Chalmers. tn
missionary with his companion. Nj
'rompkin5, and nearly dozen nativ
assistants-Ncw York Sun.
The Only Indian Woman Lawyer.