Evening star., 1935-10-27
Ethiopia a Land
Of Strange Things
BY Frederic J. HGskin.

to stumble upon trail and recognized
1t ss such. For trails through the forests
OF Ethiopia are marked as no other
trails in the world are marked. In
pioneer days In America and in other
foreSted lands, it was customary to blaze
trail by cutting notches in trees. The
Ethiopians long ago discovered a more
ingenious system. They tie knots In
growing saplingS while they are yet
young enough to be supple. The sapIings
then grow into trees with the knots still
tied in them. Some of the trees are
very old, but the loops are still there.
One has to know their Significance-that
they mark trail.
Ethiopia is so full of curiosities that
1t is to be expected good many books
will appear now that the eyes of the
world have been turned on the ebon
empire. There will be no lack of material,
for it is doubtful whether any country
in the world is so strange and magical
as the land Of the Blue Nile.
The knotted trees are not the only
queer ones. In grain fields one will come
upon a lone tree, left standing in the
open, and on platform built in its top
will see a group of living scare-crows.
The Ethiopians take no chances on
damage to their crops and have no faith
in the sort Of scare-crows used in Amer
lea and other countries. Living persons
act the role There will be two or three
of them always on guard during the
growing season, alert to scare away with
Tapping arms and cries, not only ma
rauding birds but baboons.
Then, too, occasionally one sees tree
seemingly decorated like a Christmas
tree with hanging objects These are
beehives which the EthiopianS hang in
the trees to attract wild bees. When a
hive has been occupied, the natives pc
riodically go to 1t and remove the honey.
Then there is certain bird, the sun bird
it is called, which is trained to find bee
trees where wild honey is discovered. A
honey hunter will follow his bird through
the forest and sooner or later the bird
will locate tree.
Speaking Of trees, the thiStleS should
not be passed over In certain sections
of the country there are growths which
many people would be inclined to call
trees, inasmuch as they grow Is and 20
feet high. They are, however not trees,
but thistles from the point of view of
botanical classification. They grow in
dense clumpS and are so fiercely spiny
that they form an almost impenetrable
barrier. The italian invaders will find
them just about as formidable as the
Ethiopian tribesmen.
Perhaps the most romantic trees Of
Ethiopia are not native. They are the
eucalyptus trees which ring a great
forest around the capital city Of Adds
Ababa. When the old Emperor Menelek
was engaged in fighting of the Italians
some 40 years ago he was, for a time,
encamped on the heights of the Entoto
Hills. He liked the location and vowed
that if he was victorious in the war he
would build new capital there. He was
victorious and redeemed his vow, but.
in the course of building the new capital,
all the native trees were cut down tor
building material and for fuel. He woke
up to discover his new capital was
standing in waste of tree stumps
Thereupon he imported thousands Of
eucalyptus trees from Australia and
made it major crime for any one to
touch them. So now the city is en-
powered in a magnificent forest. The
trees grow as much as II feet year
in the Ethiopian climate. The city was
named Adds Ababa because those words
in the Amharic mean new flower. There
are many towns in the country having
the name Adds. 1t is like New York
or New Haven.
Everything seems to be different in
Ethiopia. The Christian churches are
nearly all circular, and within there are
many fascinating frescoes. The art is
distinctive. 1t does not at first appear
very finished, but close examination
reveals great graphic power. Most of
the wall drawings and paintings are
symbolic and serious and very expressive.
For example, one interesting church
freSco shows an angel standing between
two groups of figures. On one side is a
group of saved souls. They are depicted
as sleek, fat individuals, looking SNUG
and contented. On the other side are
the lost souls and it would be difficult
to find more sad. lugubrious, starved
looking set Of woebegones. The artists
keep up to date. There are wall paint
ings showing airplanes, which are some
thing new in Ethiopia
Andrew Carnegie did not extend his
benefces to Ethiopia, but the country
does not lack libraries. They are usually
stone towers with thatched roofs and
they are literally crammed with price
less illuminated manuscripts bound in
sheepSkin-cove boards. The Librarians
are Coptic priests. 1t can scarcely be
said that many Of the natives spend
much time reading. but the priests guard
their treasures jealoesly and themselves
pore religiously over the ancient tones,
many of which, doubtless, would make
any collector covetous.
The people are as strange as their
country They have lived so out Of the
world that most of them know very
little of what goes on over the frontiers.
Now, because of the war and because OF
the efforts Of the Emperor to improve his
people, there are occurring some changes,
but it is big country and there still
are many regions as remote as the
Valleys of the Moon. The Ethiopians
are people Of fine stature, but there
is one who looms above all others He
is the finely uniformed but barefoot drum
major Of the Imperial Guards band. He
stands feet tall
There seems to be some trouble in
the Emperor's family. His eldest son,
the crown prince, Is practically in exile
and has been for some time. He lives
in the distant Province of Dessye. The
second son, Prince Makonnen, Duke Of
Harar. lives at the palace and appears
with his father on ceremonial occasions.
Although only IA years old, he has been
sent on diplomatic missions which he has
discharged well. It Is the general feeling
that he and not his elder brother will