The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1910-06-28

try extending from the Niger to the
Cross river. The customs, of course.
vary in different parts. Those who
live near the Cross river have prac-
tees that are certainly peculiar. For
instance, when festival Is In pros
pect, the women spend many days be-
forehand in arranging one anothers
hair. smearing 1t with palm oil and
then plastering 1t into singular shapes,
which remain undisturbed for months
at time Most men shave their chins,
but the chiefs allow a small fluffy
beard to grow, and to the end of this
they not infrequently fasten a small
brass bell or some ornament.
AS the English girl wears ring
when she is engaged to be married. SO
the Ibo girl wears necklaces in pro-
portion to the number of lovers she
has. The clothing Is not profuse. The
men are content with straight piece
Of cloth, which falls from their waists
to their ankles, while the cloth worn
by the women reaches only half way
to the knee. On occasions Of festival
the women, like their sex in other
parts of the world, love to adorn them
selves with gaudy ribbons of blue and
orange. fastened in a bow to the right
side of their waists. Both sexes paint
their bodies on fete days, while when
they are In mourning they mark white
rings round their eyes.
Great pains are taken in the paint
Ing Of the figure. When woman
wants to look particularly smart she
has white mask painted over her
own cOuntenance, while a long white
daub stretches down her spine. Al
though the skins of the men are as
black as night, they always take the
precaution, when setting out for war
fare, to paint themselves black. When
a girl reaches manageable age she
Is painted red all over by the man to
whom she is betrothed, which is a
sign she must receive no more at
tentions from the other young men of
the district. But after this coloring
and while she Is being fattened for
the marriage ceremony, she is invari-
ably painted white all over when she
goes out visiting her friends. The ma
tive seizes every opportunity to cover
himself with paint Of some sort. II
he Is sick he plasters himself with a
mick green paint made from leaves.
The usual Ibo way OF saluting a
friend Is to snap the fingers and shake
the INST. The natives at Lokoja, how
ever, salute one another by bobbing
down to the ground and going through
the pantomime Of spreading dust over
their faces. and taking 1t in turns to
make weird noises. Thus, when a man
passes another he says: "Ough, ough
an, ali, va vi oh all" The other man
meanwhile does the same, alternately
with the first, both of them SLOWLY and
pleadfngly and with rising intonation
Inen suddenly one. changing, brings
OUT new word, which the other re-
peats; Oh oh, ali, oh, akoo, ah akoo,"
WINE the other comes in with "Aboo.
apoo, aboo," and thus they pass each
otner, the plaintive coughs" and "ahs"
gradually getting fainter as the dis
lance increases.
IL is not surprising that among the
people who inhabit the fetid swamps
bordering the Niger and the gloomy
shadows of the forests there should no
innumerable secret societies. Most of
tnese are chiefly for the maintenance
or tribal order; some are associated
win superstitious religious practices
while there are others which have ter
iorism and plumber as their main oh.
!ect' Youths are initiated into the
lower grades of these tribal societies
ADVANCE In knowledge of the secrets
as tney reach manhood, and then at.
tam high rank or office in proport,on
10 tneir ability or their wealth
quite apart from these legitimate
.,'pai societies are the brigand socie.
'les. Among the Ibibios there are 90.
vieues known as ."leopards" and al.
nsa'ors' The "leopards" thieve and
"uroer on land, while the "allieators.
take the rivers and creeks as their
province. The leopard" society Is co
called because its members dress
themselves In leopard skins: thew 20
iorth at night. make the woods echo