The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-02
ODD CUSTOMS
 IN zULULAND The Buying and Selling of Wives Flcurishes FIVE CONS THE PRICE Girls Are Literally Raised For the Market-Wiycs Are Allowed in
 Proportion to g Mans
 Possessions
From the Cleveland Leader.

From the Cleveland Leader. The various territories of South and East Africa are advancing so rapidly into the limelight of the worlds notice that an occasional descriptive article on new world" should not be lacking in interest
 The particular locality perhaps, that has entered more frequently than any other into more recent history of that great portion of Africa which lies south of the equator, is Zululand. and yet to the general reading public but little of this important and interesting country is known beyond that it is somewhere in Africa" and is inhabited by savage people.
 Like the rest of Darkest Africa, Zulu lands historical foundation is lost in the mists of time Of its early history com paratively nothing is known
 Before the boundary lines were as well defined as they are today that entire portion of Southeastern Africa (of which Natal and Zuuland are now parD was inhabited by numerous small tribes of black people, who fought with each oth- CT, held their lands, hunted their game, reared their families and lived and died nglorious and unknown
 How long these savage tribes have lived there is not known. but we do know that it has been for considerably more than 2000 years.
 The land was first discovered by Necho's Egyptian fleet in 600 B. C. (ac- cordng to Herodotus) and beyond the fact that the land was inhabited by a savage black race nothing more was known of it until it was again discovered by the famous Portuguese explorer and navigator, Vasco da Cana, on Christi mas day, 1497.
 Origin of Race Mystery
 The origin of the race that now pco- ples the country is shrouded in mystery. Some writers believe that the Bantu tribe-from which the Zulus are supposed to have come-came in great waves of invasion from the far interior. It is not until the appearance of the famous chief, Tshaka, the black Napoleon" (about 1S12), that the modern history of the province begins.
 In those days vast herds of elephants roamed the flatlands, lions and leopards had their lairs in the thick jungle bush, hippopotami and crocodile swarmed the rivers and on the inland plateau buck, buffalo, zebra and other big game graz ed in abundance
 It is hardly surprising therefore, that Tshaka. from the interior, gazed ieal- ously at this beautiful semi-troplcal land, and later, with 100,000 well trained warriors, swooped down upon the conn try, driving all the coast tribes into the sea and made this his domain. Then this remarkable man welded by his mill itary genius the broken fragments of the various conquered tribes into one DOW erful nation that became the dread of l all the surrounding people. He laid waste and swarmed over vast tracts of country, torturing and killing old men women and children, making ruthless massacre on all tribes near and far sparing only the biggest and strongest of the young men, whom he immediately trained and added to his ever-increasine army.
 He was the son of Senzangakona, chief | of the Amazuli tribe, but because his father had taken unto himself, as an ad- dition of his bevy of wives, certain dusky maiden for whom Tshaka had al ready acquired fondness, fierce quar- rel ensued and he deserted his fathers
 
 a rival chief-Dingiswago of the Une- teewa tribe, which was then gaining con siderable prominence as fighting na- tion, and it was from this chief that Tshaka acquired much of his skill in military leadership.
 Made Tribal Chief | He remained with Dingiswago until Senzangalzona died, when he returned tn | his native tribe, and was made chief. From that day his name and fame grew until he was not only monarch of the great Zulu nation, but. recognizing the splendid fighting material which his silb- jects furnished, turned that material into an army of trained warriors, such as South Africa had never known before and no doubt will never know again. He was assassinated in 1913 by his half brother, Dingaan, who was his success sor, but who also fell to the avengers assagai in 1S39.
 1 Mpandi was the next in line and proved | to be the most peaceful monarch of | those times, but the blood was in the | hearts of his peopie-born and bred in l them during two generations of bloody struggles and as age grew upon him they became unruly and battle and raids on the neighboring tribes became numerous and horrible.
 When Mpandl died in 1873, the country was a wilderness. His successor was Cetewago, who became one of Zululand s most famous kings. Under his powerful will, headstrong warriors were soon brought back into something like order and discipline, and though his reign was not bloodiess one, it was successful. | Cetewago was a great king and an able