,,the ,,jungle ,,folk ,,of ,,africa ,,by ,,robert ,h4 ,,milligan ,the ,jungle ,folk of ,africa ,illustrated1 #hvo1 cloth1 net #a4ej 8,as one reads1 the mystery and terror of the jungle seem to penetrate his soul1 yet he reads on reluctant to lay down a book so grimly fascinating40--,presbyterian4 ,fetish ,folk of ,west ,africa ,illustrated1 #hvo1 cloth1 net #a4ej 8,mr4 ,milligan has written interestingly and vividly of the people among whom he labored1 telling of their ways and habits1 repeating some of their legends and beliefs and pointing out their failings as well as their good qualities40--,n4 ,y4 ,sun4 ,illustration3 ,,canoe ,,of ,a ,,chief ,,on ,,the ,,cameron ,,river4 7,see page #ced7 ,the ,jungle ,folk of ,africa ,by ,,robert ,h4 ,,milligan ,,illustrated ,illustration ,,new ,,york ,,chicago ,,toronto ,fleming ,h4 ,revell ,company ,,london ,,and ,,edinburgh ,copyright1 #aijh1 by ,,fleming ,h4 ,,revell ,,company ,second ,edition ,new ,york3 #aeh ,fifth ,avenue ,chicago3 #ag ,north ,wabash ,ave4 ,toronto3 #be ,richmond ,street1 ,w4 ,london3 #ba ,paternoster ,square ,edinburgh3 #ajj ,princes ,street ,,preface 8,in the realm of the unknown1 ,africa is the absolute10 said ,victor ,hugo4 ,since the time of ,hugo the civilized world has become better acquainted with ,african geography2 but the ,africans themselves are still a people unknown4 ,a certain noted missionary1 while on furlough in ,america1 after delivering a masterly and brilliant lecture on ,africa to an audience of coloured people1 gave an opportunity for persons in the audience to ask him questions pertaining to the subject4 ,he was rather abashed when an elderly negro1 who had been deeply interested in the lecture1 called out3 8,say1 ,mistah ,s41 is they any colo'ed folks ovah thah80 ,most people know that there are a goodly number of 8colo'ed folks0 in ,africa2 but the knowledge of the majority extends only to the colour of the skin4 ,and if in this book ,i endeavour to make the ,africans known as they really are1 it is because ,i believe that they are worth knowing4 ,in the generation that has passed since the books of ,du ,chaillu were the delight of boys--old boys and young--the ,african has received but scant sympathy in literature4 ,du ,chaillu had the mind of a scientist and the heart of a poet4 ,he never understated the degradation of the ,african nor exaggerated his virtues1 but he recognized in him the raw material out of which manhood is made4 ,he realized that the ,african1 like ourselves1 is not a finality1 but a possibility--8the tadpole of an archangel10 as genius has phrased it4 ,but1 then1 ,du ,chaillu lived among the ,africans long enough to speak their language1 to forget the colour of their skin1 and to know them1 mind and heart1 as no passing traveller or casual observer can possibly know them4 ,in more recent books the ,african is usually and uniformly presented as physically ugly1 mentally stupid1 morally repulsive1 and never interesting4 ,this is by no means my opinion of the ,african4 ,kipling's characterization1 8half child1 half devil10 is very apt4 ,but what in the world is more interesting than children--except devils8 ,this book is an attempt to exhibit the human nature of the ,african1 to the end that he may be regarded not merely as a being endowed with an immortal soul and a candidate for salvation1 but as a man whose present life is calculated to awaken our interest and sympathy2 a man with something like our own capacity for joy and sorrow1 and to whom pleasure and pain are very real2 who bleeds when he is pricked and who laughs when he is amused2 a man essentially like ourselves1 but whose beliefs and whose circumstances are so remote from any likeness to our own that as we enter the realm in which he lives and moves and has his being we seem to have been transported upon the magic carpet of the ,arabian fable1 away from reality into a world of imagination--a wonderland1 where things happen without a cause and nature has no stability1 where the stone that falls downwards to-day may fall upwards to-morrow1 where a person may change himself into a leopard and birds wear foliage for feathers1 where rocks and trees speak with articulate voice and animals moralize as men--a world running at random and haphazard1 where everything operates except reason and where credulity is only equalled by incredulity4 ,elsewhere it is the unexpected that happens3 in ,africa it is the unexpected that we expect4 ,a knowledge of the jungle folk of ,africa will include some acquaintance with their jungle home1 their daily life1 their work1 their amusements1 their social customs1 their folk-lore1 their religion1 and1 among the rest1 it will include their response to missionary effort4 ,of these several subjects1 those which receive scant treatment in this book will be more fully presented in a second book on ,africa1 which is now in course of preparation4 ,i have avoided generalizations and abstractions1 in the belief that the concrete and the personal would be not only more interesting but also more informing4 ,this book is1 therefore1 in the main1 a narration of the particular incidents of my own experience and observation during seven years in ,africa2 incidents1 many of which1 at their occurrence1 moved me either to laughter or to tears1 and sometimes both in alternation4 ,for1 nowhere else in the world does tragedy so often end in comedy1 and comedy in tragedy4 ,i am indebted to ,mr4 ,harry ,d4 ,salveter for his kindness in furnishing me with many photographic illustrations1 including the best of my collection4 ,,robert ,h4 ,,milligan4 ,new ,york4 ,,contents ,i ,,the ,,voyage #ai ,dreadful alternatives--,a pork and cabbage saint--,the outfit--,a parting pain--,canary ,islands--,the change to the tropics--,sierra ,leone--,the native yell--,deck passengers--,a meal of potato-peelings--,liberia--,shipboard conversation--,a shrewd decision4 ,,ii ,,the ,,coast #cf ,wet and dry seasons--,the climate--,the trader--,old ,calabar--,the crocodile--,the most beautiful place in ,west ,africa--,the ugliest place in the world--,mount ,cameroon--,a ride on a mule--,landing in the surf4 ,,iii ,,bush ,,travel #ee ,where no white man had been--,the greatest forest in the world--,the caravan--,outfit--,african roads--,bridges--,the worst of the road--,blessings in disguise--,the art of walking--,the arrival in camp--,the misery of morning--,rubber stomachs4 ,,iv ,,bush ,,perils #gc ,the road at the worst--,tired out--,a palaver with the carriers--,elephants--,a caravan astray--,a long night--,a borrowed shirt--,the sullen forest--,accident the constant factor--,a last journey--,advantage of breakfast before daylight4 ,v ,,the ,,camp-,,fire #hi ,the camp--,african mimics--,the lemur's cry--,legend of the snail--,the chimpanzee and the ungrateful man--,a fable of the turtle--,why the leopard walks alone--,a 8true0 story--,a magic fight--,discovering a thief--,a spirit who spreads disease--,a shadow-slayer--,a witch discovered--,lying awake at night4 ,,vi ,a ,,home ,,in ,,the ,,bush #ajg ,efulen--,the 8white animal0 performs--,africa no solitude--,the mail--,the first fever--,yearning for a shirt--,a vivid account of my funeral--,the first house--,cooks and cooking--,the medical layman--,mrs4 ,laffin's visit4 ,,vii ,,the ,,bush ,,people #aca ,the ,bulu tribe--8,better-looking than white people0--,dress--,ornamentation--,a sociable queen--,the white man's origin--,our fetishes--,a magic letter--,buying and selling--,chief ,abesula4 ,,viii ,,after ,a ,,year #adh ,killed by mistake--,a woman stolen--,a passion for clothes--,the ,batanga church--,expectoration a fine art--,romantic career of a nightshirt--,bekalida--,keli1 the incorrigible--,death of ,dr4 ,good4 ,,ix ,,the ,,kruboys #agj ,the ,kru tribe--,the 8real thing0--,kru ,english--,the ,kruboy's superstition--,the ship's officers--,dressing with much assistance--,loading mahogany--,the ,kruboy and the surf--,the white man out of his element4 ,x ,,white ,,and ,,black #aie ,st4 ,paul de ,loanda--,canine passengers--,portuguese slavery--,an ,american problem--,a health-change--,boma--,belgian atrocities--,matadi--,stanley--,what ,i heard at ,matadi--,the apathy of the nations4 ,,xi ,,the ,,fang #bag ,gaboon--,the village--,the house--,the door--,the kiss unpopular1 and no wonder--,marriage customs--,a woman tortured--,an elder brother--,immoral customs--,the ,gorilla ,society--,war--,a troublesome sister--,a blessing that resembled a curse--,a strange war-custom--,music--,dancing--,story of the elephant and the gorilla--,fable of the sun and moon4 ,,xii ,,fetishes #bdi ,the conception of ,god--,dreams--,ancestor-worship--,the conception of nature--,the fetish proper--,a wonderful medicine-chest--,various fetishes--,a case of discipline--,witchcraft--,a convicted witch--,wives and witchcraft--,the white man and witchcraft4 ,,xiii ,a ,,boat ,,crew #bgc ,the ,evangeline--,makuba--,an un-dress ball--,ndong ,koni--,a saint that lied--,capsized and rescued--,a dying slave--,dressed in a table-cloth--,flogging a chief--,a story of true love4 ,,xiv ,a ,,school #cjb ,the language difficulty--,lacked nothing but the essentials--,the late ,m4 de la ,r4--,one of ,macbeth's witches--,death of ,nduna--,bojedi--,more candid than kind--,the racial weakness--,a royal romance--,marriage ceremonies--,a penitent--,a fall4 ,,xv ,a ,,little ,,scholar #cbi ,a health-change--,the brightest of his class--,rotten ,elephant--,very sick--,an object of wonder--,mount ,teneriffe--,adventure with a stage-coach--,adventure with a donkey--,the crisis--,the ,ashantee war--,a burial at sea4 ,,xvi ,a ,,church #ced ,reality versus romance in missions--,arrival of the steamer--,adventure in a canoe--,an ,apollo ,belvidere in ebony--,a sensational call to worship--,a white man's foot--,a prayer that caused a panic--,not wickedness1 but worms--,the right hand1 or the left8--8,dawn of the ,morning0--,m'abune ,jsu--,keeping the ,sabbath--,the harvest--,the ,jesuits--,a building not made with hands--8,o'er crag and torrent40 ,,illustrations ,facing ,page ,,canoe ,,of ,a ,,chief ,,on ,,the ,,cameroon ,,river title ,,mount ,,teneriffe1 ,,canary ,,islands #bd ,,mission ,,house ,,at ,,batanga #eb ,,rev4 ,a4 ,c4 ,,good1 ,,ph4 ,d4 #ee ,,little ,,frances ,,born ,,in ,,africa #hf ,a ,,group ,,of ,,admiring ,,natives #aaj ,,an ,,improved ,,mission ,,house ,,at ,,efulen #aah ,,the ,,passion ,,for ,,clothes #aca ,,the ,,old ,,church ,,at ,,batanga #aed ,,pastors ,,and ,,elders ,,of ,,the ,,batanga ,,church #afj ,,the ,,debarkation ,,of ,a ,,deck ,,passenger #aha ,,man ,,and ,,wife #bbd ,,two ,,men ,,dancing #bbd ,,ndong ,,koni #bcf ,,makuba1 ,,captain ,,of ,,the ,,boat ,,crew #bgf ,,bojedi1 ,,teacher ,,of ,,fang ,,school #cad ,,three ,,fang ,,boys #cgh ,the ,jungle ,folk of ,africa ,i ,,the ,,voyage 8,o ye6 who have your eyeballs vexed and tired1 ,feast them upon the wideness of the sea40--,keats4 ,when ,i was about to sail for ,africa a friend read to me a thrilling incident which was supposed to be prophetic of my own fate4 ,a cannibal maiden proposes marriage to a newly-arrived missionary4 ,the missionary modestly declines her offer2 whereupon1 looking down at him with utmost complacency1 she tells him that she will have him anyhow--either married1 or fried4 ,i have gone to ,africa twice1 and have lived there nearly seven years1 yet ,i have escaped both of these dreadful contingencies4 ,there is no longer any glamour of romance about the missionary life4 ,it is not a life of hair-raising adventures and narrow escapes4 ,in those seven years ,i was never frightened and seldom killed4 ,dull monotony is the normal experience and loneliness the besetting trial4 ,neither are the sacrifices and privations of missionary life so great as many of us have supposed4 ,the sacrifices of the missionary are more tangible1 but not therefore greater1 than those of the faithful minister at home2 whose sacrifices are often more real because less obvious4 ,a few days before ,i sailed the second time for ,africa1 when ,i knew from former experience that the missionary life was no martyrdom1 ,i was one day seated at a dinner-table where ,africa and my going was the subject of conversation4 ,the company had the most exaggerated ideas of the privations incident to missionary life4 ,there was no use in a denial on my part2 and to have disclaimed any of the fictitious virtues with which they loaded me would only have caused them to add the virtue of modesty to the rest4 ,a maiden lady across the table1 who for some time had sat with abstracted countenance1 at last1 with upturned eyes and clasped hands1 remarked3 8,well1 ,i think it is an appalling sacrifice40 ,to have lived up to my part1 my face at that moment should have worn a saintly expression of all the virtues rolled into one2 but it happened that my mouth was quite full of pork and cabbage1 with which my carnal mind was occupied1 and ,i am sure ,i looked more like an epicure than an ascetic4 ,nothing but the pork and cabbage kept me from laughing outright4 ,really1 life in ,africa is much the same as life anywhere else2 and the 8privations0 only teach us how many things we can do without which we once thought were indispensable4 ,this lesson is impressed the more deeply in such a land as ,africa1 where a human being may live for threescore years--comfortable1 apparently happy1 and at least healthy--with little else than a pot1 a pipe and a tom-tom2 the first ministers to his necessity1 the second to comfort and the third to pleasure4 ,if we will persist in regarding the missionary as a martyr1 let us consider that the martyr does not differ essentially from other ,christians4 ,martyrdom is potentially contained in the initial decision of each ,christian4 ,the consecration of a life to ,christ implies the willingness to lay it down for ,him4 ,in an uncivilized land there is a likelihood of unwonted hardships1 and among savages some possibility of a violent death2 but the latter is vastly improbable4 ,one can procure an outfit more conveniently and at less cost in ,liverpool than in ,new ,york4 ,a week at ,liverpool is sufficient for this purpose4 ,the outfit will depend somewhat upon whether one expects to live on the coast or in the bush where he will be cut off from the facilities of transportation by water4 ,all transportation to the interior is by native porters1 who carry sixty or seventy pounds on their backs1 in loads as compact as possible4 ,this excludes most furniture2 and such furniture as can be transported is usually 8knocked down40 ,an ordinary outfit will include several helmets of cork or pith1 several white umbrellas lined with green1 a dozen white drill suits1 denim trousers1 canvas shoes1 leather shoes1 rubber boots1 cheese-cloth for mosquito-bars1 rubber blankets1 pneumatic pillows1 hot-water bags1 a supply of medicines 7unless these are already on the field7 especially quinine and castor-oil1 a six-mouths' supply of food--canned meats1 vegetables and fruits--besides bedding and kitchenware1 tableware1 napery1 etc41 according to need1 and guns and ammunition4 ,there is a romantic interest about this last week spent in the purchase of strange articles for an untried life1 and in taking leave of civilization1--of such things as cities1 society1 music1 fresh beef and fine clothes4 ,the last evening in ,liverpool ,i went to hear ,tannhauser4 ,music had always been my pastime1 and it was not an easy sacrifice to make4 ,i therefore looked forward to that evening with peculiar interest1 knowing that not again until my return1 however long ,i might remain in ,africa1 would ,i hear any music worthy of the name4 ,but ,tannhauser proved to be not a sweet parting from civilization but an awful experience1 by reason of some one in my neighbourhood beating the time with his foot1 as they so often do in ,england4 ,i had one of the best seats in the house1 but ,i exchanged it for another1 only to find myself in a worse neighbourhood2 for1 in addition to a man on each side of me beating the time1 a woman immediately behind 8hummed the tune40 ,at the close of the performance ,i was in a condition of 8mortal mind0 that would have scandalized those who are disposed to canonize missionaries4 ,but the sorrow of parting was thus mitigated as ,i reflected that civilization has its pains and savagery some compensations4 ,i went home and wrote the following to a friend3 8,some one alluding to ,macaulay's knowledge of history and his unerring accuracy once said that infinite damnation to ,macaulay would consist in being surrounded by fiends engaged in misquoting history while he was rendered speechless and unable to correct them2 and ,i am thinking that my inferno would consist in being compelled to listen to some such exquisite melody as ,o ,thou ,sublime ,sweet ,evening ,star1 surrounded the while by fiends keeping time with their feet1 and ,beelzebub humming the tune40 ,on my first voyage to ,africa 7having been appointed to the ,west ,africa ,mission1 by the ,board of ,foreign ,missions of the ,presbyterian ,church7 ,i was four weeks on the way1 from ,liverpool1 and landed at ,batanga1 in ,cameroon1 two hundred miles north of the equator4 ,on the second voyage ,i was five weeks on the way1 and landed at ,libreville 7better known as ,gaboon7 in the ,congo ,franais1 almost exactly at the equator4 ,libreville was the capital of the ,french ,congo4 ,gaboon is properly the name of the bay or great estuary upon which ,libreville is situated1 and is one of the very few good harbours on the west coast4 ,but long before the existence of ,libreville1 captains and traders had used the name ,gaboon to designate the adjacent settlement of native villages and trading-houses1 and it is still the name in general use4 ,we made many calls along the way4 ,some of the places are very beautiful1 such as the ,canary ,islands1 ,sierra ,leone1 ,cape ,coast ,castle1 ,victoria1 ,fernando ,po and ,gaboon2 and some are quite otherwise1 for ,africa is a land of extremes4 ,bonny is repulsive1 and the ,rio del ,rey is a nightmare4 ,meanwhile1 we are getting further and further away from all that is known and natural to our eyes1 and nearer to a land of strange birds and beasts and trees1 inhabited by tribes that to the white man are only a name1 or have no name1 and to whom he is perhaps an imaginary being1 or the ghost of their dead ancestors4 ,at the ,canary ,islands1 a week after leaving ,liverpool1 one may spend a day of interest and pleasure4 ,on my first voyage we called at ,las ,palmas1 in ,grand ,canary ,island4 ,on the second voyage we called at ,santa ,cruz on ,teneriffe ,island4 ,the object of chief interest is the great ,mount ,teneriffe1 seen sometimes a hundred miles at sea2 probably the ,mount ,atlas of ancient fable1 which was supposed to support the firmament4 ,there are of course many mountain peaks in the world which rise to a greater height above the sea-level2 but they are usually in ranges or on high table-lands far from the sea1 and while the altitude is great1 the individual peak may not be great4 ,teneriffe rises directly out of the sea1 slowly at first but with increasing inclination1 until at last it sweeps upward to the clouds and far above them1 to a height of #ab1ejj feet4 ,the sandy slopes upon the higher altitudes reflect the light with unequalled splendour4 ,from the harbour of ,las ,palmas we saw the sun rising on ,teneriffe4 ,we stood on the deck before the dawn1 and while darkness was all around us1 saw the heights already struggling with the darkness1 and the summit bathed in the light of the unrisen day4 ,a heavy mist rolled down and spread over the valleys1 like a sea resplendent with every interchange of deepening and dissolving colour2 while from below arose the increasing noise and tumult of a half-civilized city awaking from slumber4 ,in a little while the clouds begin to assemble1 and the peak is hidden throughout the day3 so it is always4 ,but in the evening1 the clouds again are parted1 like opening curtains1 and the whole mountain is disclosed1 majestic and beautiful in the light of the setting sun4 ,on the homeward voyage the steamers often take on an enormous deck-cargo of bananas4 ,they are put in crates the size of barrels and are packed in straw4 ,in the event of a severe storm before reaching ,liverpool they are more than likely to be washed overboard4 ,it is a pleasure to watch this loading from the upper deck4 ,the ,spanish workmen are neat and clean2 they are skillful and work rapidly1 as indeed they must in order to load the entire cargo in one day1 which is usually the limit of time4 ,all day long ,spanish boys without clothes are crowded around the steamer in small boats1 begging the passengers to throw pennies into the water and see them dive and get them4 ,many pennies and small silver coins are thrown over in the course of the day2 and the boys seldom miss one4 ,a number of the passengers debark at the ,canary ,islands1 and the rest have more room and more comfort4 ,immediately upon leaving the ,islands double awnings are stretched over the decks2 and the passengers and ship's officers the next day don their tropical clothing4 ,the sea is exceedingly calm as compared with the ,north ,atlantic and the air soft and balmy4 ,it recalled those lines of ,keats-- 8,often it is in such gentle temper found1 ,that scarcely will the very smallest shell1 ,be moved for days from where it sometime fell1 ,when last the winds of heaven were unbound40 ,illustration3 ,,mount ,,teneriffe1 ,,canary ,,islands4 ,probably the ,mount ,atlas of ancient fable1 which was supposed to support the firmament4 ,the change to tropical life takes place in one day and it is like being suddenly transported into another world4 ,the men nearly all are dressed in white drill suits1 and most of them wear white caps and white canvas shoes4 ,if they go ashore at various ports along the way they will exchange the cap for a cork helmet and besides will probably carry a white umbrella4 ,the white suits if well made and well laundered look much more comfortable and becoming than any other clothing4 ,they are usually made in military style with stitched collar1 so as we go on further south the shirt of civilization may at length be dispensed with and the coat worn directly over an undershirt1--which latter ought to be of wool and medium weight4 ,except my first year1 ,i wore no shirt at any time through all the years that ,i lived in ,africa1 not even at the ,french ,governor's annual reception at ,gaboon4 ,the ,english at ,old ,calabar on formal occasions make themselves ridiculous in black dress suits with the conventional area of shirt-front and collar4 ,in these they swelter1 vastly uncomfortable1 while the starch dissolves and courses towards their shoes down back and breast4 ,it is not only1 nor chiefly1 the high temperature but the extreme humidity that makes the atmosphere so oppressive4 ,it seems to be seventy-five per cent1 warm water4 ,on shipboard it is usually comfortable and pleasant while we are under way4 ,the most delightful part of the voyage is the first few days after leaving the ,canary ,islands1 when the course lies in the track of the northeast trade-winds4 ,one thinks very differently1 however1 of this trade-wind in coursing against it on the homeward voyage after a length of time on the fever-stricken coast4 ,it seems piercing cold1 and1 as ,miss ,kingsley says1 one wishes that the ,powers above would send it to the ,powers below to get it warmed4 ,it is in this zone that deaths most frequently occur on board4 ,on the outward voyage immediately after the most delightful part of the voyage comes the very worst part of it1 as we pass beyond the trade-wind and close in to the coast near ,cape ,verde4 ,for several days one is tempted to wish that he might turn back4 ,there is a dead calm on board1 and the heat is enough to curl one's hair4 ,it recalled ,sydney ,smith's description of some such place1 where 8one feels like taking off his flesh and sitting in his bones40 ,but it continues only two or three days4 ,during this time the 8punka0 is installed1 a large fan suspended from the ceiling1 the entire length of the table1 worked by a rope1 which a boy pulls with his hand4 ,a week after leaving the ,canary ,islands we reached our first ,african port1 ,sierra ,leone4 ,it has the finest harbour on the entire west coast4 ,from the harbour it is very beautiful1 with mountains of intense green standing like sentinels on either side and behind the town4 ,the sound of the wind raging about these peaks1 like the roaring of a lion1 gives the name1 ,sierra ,leone4 ,despite its attractive appearance1 it is called ,the ,whiteman's ,grave1 and its history justifies the name4 ,but as we proceed down the coast we find that every place which has any considerable number of white men is called ,the ,whiteman's ,grave4 ,the name ,sierra ,leone applies to the entire ,english colony2 that of the town at this place is ,freetown4 ,it was originally a colony of freed slaves1 which the ,english planted there during the suppression of the slave traffic4 ,the first ship-load of colonists1 between four and five hundred1 was landed in #aghg4 ,of these1 sixty died on the way or within a fortnight after landing4 ,freetown has now a population of thirty thousand1 and is prosperous4 ,along the wharf are warehouses with roofs of corrugated iron4 ,the roofs of the traders' houses also1 both here and all along the coast1 are of corrugated iron4 ,here and there among the colourless huts of the natives there stands out boldly the frame houses of successful native traders1 made of imported material and usually painted an impudent blue4 ,houses with floors are everywhere called deck-houses2 for the decks of ships were the first floors ever seen by the natives4 ,so soon as we had anchored1 the natives1 in a score of boats1 were crowding about the gangway1 pushing back each other's boats1 fighting1 cursing and yelling1 in a general strife for the very lucrative privilege of rowing passengers ashore4 ,however otherwise engaged in this scramble they are all yelling2 and the resultant noise is the proper introduction to ,africa4 ,for1 as noise is the first1 so it will be the final and lasting impression4 ,it is the grand unity in which other associations are gradually dislimned4 ,we went ashore in the late afternoon4 ,the people were all in the streets1 moving about1 but no one moving rapidly2 all active1 but no one very active4 ,as there are no vehicles1 pedestrians occupy the whole street1 which is covered with grass4 ,there is a great variety of dress and considerable undress4 ,many of the women wear a loose calico wrapper--a ,mother ,hubbard2 and many of the men are dressed in the ,mohammedan costume1 which is more becoming1 and more suitable for the climate1 than any possible modification of ,european dress4 ,it consists of a long white shirt with loose1 flowing sleeves1 and an outer garment somewhat like a university gown1 of black or of blue4 ,the ordinary man wears anything he may happen to have1 from an eighth of a yard of calico to a rice-bag in which he cuts holes for his head and arms4 ,ever so many were carrying loads on their heads--never any other way--and without touching them with their hands4 ,indeed1 if their hands were engaged ,i am not sure whether they could talk2 for when they talk they gesticulate continually4 ,some were carrying beer bottles erect on their heads1 some carried books1 some of the women carried folded parasols2 others carried fire-wood1 or bananas1 or large baskets of vegetables4 ,they exchange the neighbourhood gossip as they pass1 but without turning their heads2 and sometimes they throw down their loads and seat themselves on opposite sides of the street to have 8a friendly yell40 ,when we returned to the steamer we found on board1 on the lower deck1 about twenty native passengers4 ,they have brought all their household goods1 including chickens2 and several of the women have babies strapped to their backs4 ,they pay only for a passage on deck1 taking the risk of the weather1 and expect to yell their way to ,fernando ,po1 in about two weeks4 ,the number of deck passengers increases at each of the next several ports1 until the deck is crowded2 but they are never allowed on the upper deck4 ,the deck1 formerly spacious and shining1 is now covered with baggage1 the abundance of which is only exceeded by its outlandish variety4 ,the first mate is the ship's general housekeeper4 ,cleanliness and order are a mental malady with him4 ,if he could have his way the ship would carry no cargo1 since the opening of the hatches and the discharging of it deranges the order of the lower deck and litters it with rubbish4 ,besides he would like to employ the boat-crews in holystoning one deck or another all the time instead of only once each morning4 ,the sight of a dog affects him more seriously than seeing a ghost4 ,passengers are a great trial to him who carelessly place their deck chairs for comfort or for conversation with each other instead of leaving them in unneighbourly straight lines as he arranged them4 ,he is rarely on speaking terms with the chief engineer1 because the latter must frequently have coal carried from the forehold2 and there is a standing feud between him and the cook1 whose grease-tub sits outside the galley door4 ,the mate's sole horror of a storm at sea is that the rolling of the ship spills the grease4 ,imagine the life this gentleman lives from the time that the native passengers begin to come aboard and fill the deck with their piles of miscellaneous baggage4 ,he ages perceptibly4 ,disorder is precisely the weak point in the native character2 and much of the mate's time is spent in pitched battles with the native women1 over the bestowment of their goods4 ,no sooner has he1 with the help of several deck-hands1 arranged a lady's goods in a neat square pile ten feet high and seated her children in a straight row than the lady orders all her children to get out of her way and proceeds to tear down the pile in order to get a cosmetic and a mirror that happen to be in two different boxes in the bottom4 ,when the mate is not around the deck passengers seem very happy as they sit at random on their baggage and yell at each other4 ,here and there men in ,mohammedan dress sit on the sunny deck in cross-legged tailor-fashion1 reminding one of old ,bible pictures4 ,if they quarrel a great deal they also laugh a great deal1 and the quarrels are no sooner ended than they are forgotten4 ,at ,lagos several native men came out in a boat to meet a deck passenger and land his baggage4 ,the natives are not allowed to use the gangway1 and if the rope ladder is in use they pass up and down a single rope suspended over the ship's side4 ,on this occasion ,i observed one of the men from the boat alongside sliding down a rope and carrying a heavy box1 by no means an easy thing to do4 ,he expected that the others of his party would be waiting to receive him in the boat below4 ,but they had drifted several yards away and were engaged in eating some potato peelings which a steward had thrown to them4 ,he called to them but they paid no attention3--they were eating4 ,he yelled at them and cursed them1 at the same time making with his legs impressive gestures of appeal and threat4 ,but they sat indifferent until they had finished1 while he with his load remained suspended in the air4 ,moreover1 the sea at ,lagos abounds with sharks4 ,at last1 having finished their repast1 they came to his rescue4 ,i was watching eagerly to see how many would be killed in the ensuing fight4 ,but not a blow was struck1 and the palaver did not last a minute4 ,so forgetful are they of injuries4 ,and though they are capable of great cruelty towards their enemies1 their cruelty is callous rather than vindictive2 not the cruelty that delights in another's pain1 but rather that of a dull imagination which does not realize it4 ,a few days after leaving ,sierra ,leone we anchored off ,monrovia1 the capital of ,liberia1 where we shipped eighty native men1 ,krumen1 who were engaged by the ship as workmen for the discharging and loading of cargo4 ,they are engaged for the round trip down the coast1 three or four months1 and are unshipped again on the homeward voyage4 ,of these ,krumen ,i shall speak at some length in another chapter4 ,they are the original native tribe of this part of the coast and are not to be confounded with the proper ,liberians whose ancestors emigrated from ,america4 ,liberia represents the philanthropic effort of ,america to restore to their native land the ,africans carried to ,america by the slave trade4 ,a large area of country was purchased from the native chiefs1 and in #ahbj the first settlement of colonists was established4 ,liberia is a country of possibilities4 ,there is no richer soil on the entire west coast4 ,it is especially suitable for coffee and cocoa2 but it has remained undeveloped4 ,the poor and ignorant colonists were not fit for self-government4 ,america should have done more or else less4 ,the ,liberians might far better have remained in ,america4 ,during the several generations of their absence from ,africa they seemed to have lost the power of resisting the malaria4 ,the mortality among them was very great and they were pitiably helpless4 ,the government of ,liberia some one has said is a fit subject for comic opera4 ,at one time becoming possessed of a little cash1 by some wonderful accident1 they provided themselves with a small gunboat by which they hoped to convince calling ships that theirs is a real government competent to collect dues1 impose fines1 and enforce the rules of quarantine and release that obtain at other ports1 for which purpose it has proved as ineffective as a pop-gun4 ,but they have used it successfully against the canoes of the ,krumen in levying a heavy and unjustifiable duty upon these men when they return from the south voyage with their pay4 ,after two weeks on shipboard the immobility of life becomes agreeable and we are all content to be lazy4 ,and in the evening when the social instinct is lively and men sit together at leisure in the balmy breeze1 under the canvas roof1 on a well-lighted deck1 the sea so calm as to allay all apprehension1 a wall of darkness around us1 and the immensity of the sea beyond1 as separate from the rest of the world as would be some tiny planet that has separated from the solid earth and rotates upon its own axis1 then the charm of travel on the tropical sea is all that the imagination had preconceived1--a lazy1 luxurious dream4 ,when ,boswell remarked to ,johnson1 8,we grow weary when idle10 ,johnson replied3 8,that is1 sir1 because others being busy1 we want company2 but if all were idle there would be no growing weary2 we should entertain one another40 ,we were all equally idle and lazy1 and wished we could be lazier4 ,there were whole days when the conversation--until evening--contained nothing more epigrammatic than 8,please pass the butter10 or 8,have a pickle80 ,the company consists of traders1 government officials and missionaries2 and the captain is usually present4 ,as our number diminishes at each successive port1 we become better acquainted and more friendly4 ,men of antipodal differences are thus frequently brought into friendly and sympathetic relations1 men who in ordinary life would seldom have been brought into contact with each other1 and who never would have known that they had anything in common2 and the experience is wholesome4 ,i have learned to think more kindly of the ,african trader and to refrain from criticism because of some whom ,i have known intimately on these long voyages4 ,as we sit on deck in the evening the captain tells us that at ,lagos1 where we are due in a few days1 he has seen the natives fight the sharks in the sea and kill them4 ,the shark is the monster of the tropical seas1 the incarnation of ferocity and hunger4 ,the native takes a stout stick1 six inches long and sharpened at both ends4 ,with his hand closed tight around this he dives into the sea1 and as the shark comes at him with its terrible mouth open1 he thrusts the stick upright into its mouth as far as he can4 ,there it remains planted in the upper and lower jaws of the shark1 which1 not being able to close its mouth1 soon drowns and comes to the surface4 ,it is a good story1 and not incredible as a fact2 for the native is brave enough and fool enough to do this very thing4 ,but this is the same captain who tells of fearful storms which he has successfully encountered1 when the ship rolled until she took in water through the funnels4 ,he remarked to me one day1 speaking of one of his officers who was not the brightest3 8,i always have to verify his reckoning2 for he always mistakes east for west and invariably puts latitude where longitude ought to be40 ,he also tells of an invitation he once received from a cannibal chief near ,old ,calabar1 to come ashore and help him pick a missionary4 ,he has seen the sea-serpent many a time and knows all about it4 ,it is not dark green with brown stripes1 as is generally supposed1 but is bright yellow with blue spots1 and is quite three hundred feet long4 ,on one occasion it followed the captain's ship for several days1 at times raising one hundred and fifty feet of its length out of the water1 and being prevented from helping itself to a sailor now and then only by great quantities of food which they threw over to it4 ,this caused a famine on board1 and they reached the nearest port in a half-starved condition4 ,an affidavit goes with each of the captain's stories4 ,most captains indulge in this entertaining hyperbole4 ,some are decidedly gifted with what has been called a 8creative memory40 ,i have never yet known a captain who could not turn out as handsome a yarn as ,gulliver4 ,as the company become better acquainted conversation is more intimate and varied4 ,now we are discussing some subject of continental magnitude1 and again1 with equal interest1 some infinitesimal triviality4 ,detached from the rest of the world1 and with no daily budget of news1 our interest becomes torpid1 and things great and small appear without perspective on a flat surface of equality4 ,we avowed our disbelief in the infallibility of the pope1 and pronounced against his claim to temporal authority4 ,we anticipated all the conclusions of the ,hague ,conference1 and discussed the imminence of the 8yellow peril40 ,we resolved that the ,crown ,colony system was a failure and had never been a success1 and we devised an elaborate substitute but could not agree upon the details4 ,we agreed that the ,english aristocracy had long been effete1 and that the ,duke of ,x1 related to the queen1 was a 8hog40 ,we reached the amicable conclusion that the thirteen colonies should never have rebelled1 and that the blame was all on the side of ,england4 ,we left posterity nothing to say on the relative merits of the republican and the monarchic forms of government1 and decided that the enfranchisement of the negro was a mistake4 ,in juxtaposition to these discussions1 one man occupied the company a part of an evening recounting the entire history of his corns2 but ,i regret that ,i have forgotten their number and disposition4 ,another disclosed the fact that he always wore safety-pins instead of garters1 and descanted upon his preference with such enthusiasm that he made at least one convert that ,i know of4 ,i was carefully told how to mix a gin cocktail 7though ,i may never have any practical use for this valuable knowledge7 and how to toss a champagne cocktail from one glass to another in a beautiful parabolic curve2 also how many cocktails a man might drink in a day without being chargeable with intemperance3 in short1 if there is anything about 8booze0 that ,i do not know it must be because ,i have forgotten4 ,one night 7but this was another voyage and a different kind of captain7 we put in practice the principle of arbitration of which we were all adherents2 and the result was my discomfiture4 ,an argument had arisen among us as to which was the more simple of the two currency systems1 dollars and cents1 and pounds1 shillings and pence--as if there were logical room for difference of opinion6 ,at last1 the captain arriving1 we decided to refer the matter to him and to surrender our judgment to his arbitrament4 ,the captain 7an ,englishman of the very stolid sort71 after a period of reflection replied very slowly1 and with all the gravity of a judge3 8,pounds1 shillings and pence is the simpler system2 for1 don't you know1 that when you are told the price of a thing in dollars and cents you always1 in your mind1 convert it into pounds1 shillings and pence40 8,of course1 ,captain10 said ,i2 8,i had not thought of that until you mentioned it2 neither had ,i recalled the well-known fact that a ,frenchman1 while speaking ,french in the streets of ,paris1 is really thinking in ,english4 ,your decision is as shrewd as it is impartial40 ,,ii ,,the ,,coast ,but the pleasure of the voyage depends largely upon the season4 ,the wet and the dry seasons are distinctly divided4 ,there is a long wet season of four months and a short wet season of two months each year1 and corresponding long and short dry seasons4 ,the rains generally follow the course of the sun as it moves between the northern and southern solstice4 ,the regularity of the seasons is modified by local influences such as the proximity of mountains4 ,the seasons at ,batanga1 for instance1 are not so distinctly divided as at ,gaboon4 ,i am most familiar with the climate of ,gaboon1 which is practically at the equator4 ,the long wet season begins in ,september1 when the sun is coursing from the equator towards the southern solstice1 and continues nearly four months4 ,the long dry season begins in ,may and continues for four months4 ,those are the delightful months of the year4 ,we are accustomed to associate a dry spell with heat and glaring sunshine4 ,but there the brightest sunshine is in the wet season between the showers4 ,the dry season is both cool and shady2 so cool that the natives find it uncomfortable1 while the sun is sometimes not seen for a week4 ,it always seems to be just about to rain4 ,a stranger to the climate would not risk going half a mile without taking an umbrella4 ,but he is perfectly safe4 ,there is not the least danger of rain between ,may and ,september4 ,often in the dry season ,i have travelled through the midday hours in a canoe1 lying full length on a travelling rug with my face towards the sky2 for there is no glare3 the mellow light has the quality of moonlight4 ,but a strong wind prevails during the dry months1 and it is the season when the surf rages wildly on the open coast2 when surf boats with cargo are often broken on the beach and the native crews lose their limbs and sometimes their lives4 ,the ground though very dry does not become parched4 ,the rustling of the palms or of the thatch roof at the close of the season is like the heavy pattering of rain1 so much so that sometimes one is deceived in spite of himself4 ,the dry season is healthiest for white men1 but not for the native4 ,they are not sufficiently protected against the wind1 and pneumonia is common4 ,however much we prefer the dry season1 yet we weary of it towards the close1 and like the natives we fairly shout for joy at the first shower4 ,the wet season is very disagreeable4 ,the rain falls in streams1 and1 as ,miss ,kingsley says1 8does not go into details with drops40 ,there are several torrential downpours each day and night4 ,in the intervals during the day the sky is swept clear of clouds and the sun shines the strongest4 ,the atmosphere is extremely humid and sultry4 ,with the least exertion1 or with no exertion1 one perspires profusely1 and there is no evaporation4 ,one ought to change his clothing several times a day2 but most of us cannot afford to devote so much time to comfort4 ,frequent tornadoes often cool the air in the evening4 ,the most uncomfortable of all places during the rain is on shipboard4 ,the rain will at length find its way through any thickness of awning1 and the delightful deck must be deserted for the stifling saloon4 ,our paradise is transformed to a purgatory4 ,the rain is accompanied by a heavy mist and as it dashes upon the surface of the sea it lifts a cloud of spray that hides the water beneath and we seem to be drifting courseless through cloudland1 with our horizon immediately around us4 ,as it continues day after day everybody becomes depressed2 and as for the captain1 it is scarcely safe to speak to him4 ,one day when ,i was travelling in the wet season1 the captain lost a whole day prowling up and down the coast looking for a place which was completely hidden in the rain and mist4 ,he was angry2 and an angry captain is a fearsome object4 ,he is accustomed to being obeyed1 and is master of everything else but the fourth element1 which occasionally thwarts his plans and derides his authority4 ,at a moment when the rain slackened from a torrent to a heavy shower1 a passenger put his head out on deck and remarked3 8,it's not raining1 ,captain40 8,well1 if that is not rain10 thundered the disgusted captain1 8it is the best imitation of rain that ,i have ever seen40 ,the subject upon which conversation dwells longest and to which it ever returns with gruesome interest is the ,african fever4 ,the news that is brought on board at each port is like a death bulletin4 ,to the new comer it is all very trying and very tragical4 ,but he cannot escape from it2 for the ,old ,coaster 7and a man who has been out once before is an ,old ,coaster7 assumes the grave responsibility of impressing deeply upon the mind of the tenderfoot the serious conditions which he is about to confront4 ,it is impressed upon him that the fever is inevitable1 and that the young and healthy die first2 that temperate habits instead of being a defense are a snare1 and that not to drink is simply suicide4 ,missionaries die like flies4 ,but then of course it comes to the same thing in the end2 there is no escape2 and to worry about it1 or to expect it1 will bring on a fever in two days4 ,exposure to the sun is sure to induce fever2 and yet none die so quickly as those who carry umbrellas4 ,quinine is useless except to brace the mind of those who believe in it2 but it isn't any good4 ,and when you get fever1 you can't escape1 by leaving the coast in a hurry1 even if there should be a steamer in port1 which is very unlikely2 for a man going aboard with fever is sure to die4 ,perhaps it is the horror of being buried at sea that kills him4 8,how is that new clerk whom ,i brought out for you last voyage80 asks the captain1 of a trader who has come aboard for breakfast4 8,poor chap60 says the trader1 8he didn't live two weeks4 ,another came on the next steamer1 and he pegged out in three weeks4 ,they ought to be sent out two at a time40 8,you remember so-and-so10 says another2 8well1 poor chap6 7and as soon as he says 8poor chap0 we know the rest7 he was found dead in bed one morning since you were here4 ,they had used up all the lumber that they had laid away for coffins1 so they took half the partition out of his house1 to make a coffin2 and then they didn't get it long enough4 ,the next fellow is now living alone in that same house with half the partition gone1 and of course he can't help reflecting that there is just enough left to make another coffin2 and1 indeed1 to judge by the way he was looking when ,i saw him last they may have used it by this time40 8,have you heard about the poor chap that so-and-so sent up country8 ,well1 he died a few weeks ago4 ,he was all alone except for the native workmen1 and as soon as he died they ran away in fear4 ,the agent got word of it and started up country immediately2 but the rats had found him first40 ,it is only when one reflects that all these 8poor chaps0 were somebody's sons1 and somebody's brothers1 that one realizes the tragedy of the coast4 ,these little conversations on board seem like the final obsequies performed for those who are dead4 8,do men ever die of anything except fever80 asks a new comer4 8,o yes10 says the ,old ,coaster4 8,let me see3 there's dysentery1--poor ,c died of that last week2 and there's enlarged spleen1 abscesses1 pneumonia1 consumption 7one falls into consumption here very quickly1 and often when he least expects it71 kraw-kraw and smallpox 7smallpox has just broken out at ,fernando ,po3 that's our next port71 not to speak of seven or eight varieties of itch1 which some men have all the time2 but itch doesn't kill4 ,by the way1 ,i suppose you know that in this climate it is necessary that bodies be buried a few hours after death40 ,in the speech of the coast there is no such thing as reticence1 and soon enough we all learn to speak with brutal bluntness4 ,the only comfort held out to the new comer is the hope that he will receive1 as a sort of obituary1 the kindly designation1 8,poor ,chap40 ,i have never argued for the salubrity of the ,african climate2 nor am ,i disposed to protest the general opinion that it is 8the worst climate in the world40 ,the white man never becomes acclimatized1 and never will until he develops another kind of blood4 ,one lives face to face with the constant and proximate possibility of death as long as he is on the coast4 ,it is an unnatural consciousness1 which1 when prolonged through years1 tends to become fixed and permanent even when one has removed from the circumstances that were its occasion4 ,and yet1 the conversation of the ,old ,coaster is liable to make an exaggerated impression4 ,in the first place1 the impression is natural that the climate being so unhealthful must also be uncomfortable4 ,but1 in reality1 while several months of the year are extremely uncomfortable1 the greater part of the year is tolerably comfortable and there are several months of exceedingly pleasant weather4 ,neither is the heat so great as is generally supposed4 ,with the greatest effort on my part1 ,i never succeeded in disabusing my friends of the notion that ,i was slowly roasting to death in ,africa4 ,with every hot spell in ,america1 when the thermometer was standing at #ajj1 their thoughts turned towards me in profound sympathy4 ,while ,i have at times suffered with the heat and there have been times on the river1 between high banks1 cut off from the breeze1 when ,i nearly fainted1 and one occasion upon which ,i was quite overcome1 yet as a rule ,i lived comfortably by day2 and the nights are always cool4 ,the maximum temperature on the coast is from #hf to #hh1 ,fahrenheit1 and even such a temperature is rare4 ,one ought to add1 however1 that owing to the extreme humidity this temperature in ,africa is incomparably hotter than the same temperature in ,america4 ,it is the sultriness of the hottest weather that makes it insufferable4 ,west ,africa is heated by steam and without the medium of radiators4 ,the uniformity of the climate is pleasurable1 and is very strange to us of northern latitudes4 ,one may reckon upon the weather to a certainty4 ,within the limits of a given season there is scarcely any variation from day to day4 ,the insalubrity is due to the deadly malaria of the reeking1 mosquito-infested swamps4 ,mr4 ,henry ,savage ,landor1 after a journey across ,africa1 announces to the world that he is a strong disbeliever in the mosquito theory of malaria4 ,but1 that the mosquito is the agent of the malaria bacillus1 medical science no longer regards as theory1 but as fact1 a fact established by the most elaborate and painstaking series of experiments ever conducted in the interest of medical science4 ,mr4 ,landor also tells us that he and his men were frequently attacked by malarial fever1 becoming so weak that they could not raise their hands2 but in every case a dose of castor-oil effected a cure in a few hours4 ,he is therefore a strong advocate of castor-oil1 but disbelieves in quinine4 ,the use of castor-oil is no new discovery4 ,every man who has had any experience in ,west ,africa takes it at the approach of a fever4 ,but there is no substitute for quinine4 ,and the medical men of the coast will agree in saying that life depends always upon the judicious use of it4 ,in recent years there has been such progress in the knowledge of malaria1 and how to meet malarial conditions1 that the record of ,west ,africa is continually improving4 ,then again1 missionary societies1 following the example of the various ,european governments1 have ceased to make war upon the inevitable and have greatly reduced the term of service4 ,in ,american missions the term is generally three years2 in ,english missions it is a year and a half or two years2 and in the government service the term is usually much shorter than in the missions4 ,my first experience in ,africa was not a fair test of the climate4 ,we were engaged in opening a new mission station in the bush1 and the conditions were the most unhealthful4 ,our food was the coarsest1--it was several mouths before we tasted bread2 our accommodations were the poorest1--part of the time we lived in a tent that did not protect us against the heavy rains2 and besides there were forced journeys to the coast in the wet season with incidental hardships4 ,after a succession of fevers and sensational recoveries ,i fled from the coast with broken health at the end of a year and a half4 ,but the second time1 when ,i lived at ,gaboon1 ,i stayed five and a half years1--far too long4 ,during the first three years at ,gaboon ,t had fever once every two or three months4 ,i became very familiar with its preceding symptoms--physical exhaustion for several days1 such that the least effort induced painful weariness and a frequent heavy sigh2 aching of head and limbs2 chills alternating rapidly with feverish heat1 and a terrible temper4 ,at the end of the third year ,i had a very severe fever which1 instead of yielding to quinine the third day1 became much worse1 and the natives carried me in a hammock to the ,french hospital4 ,there ,i remained for five weeks4 ,but after that ,i had no more fever1 not even once1 though ,i remained in ,africa more than two years longer1 which would have been absolutely impossible if the fevers had continued4 ,the difference was in my use of quinine4 ,at first ,i took quinine only with the attacks of fever1 and then ,i took an enormous quantity4 ,but in the later period ,i kept myself immune by taking it daily whether ,i was ill or not4 ,i took five grains every night for those several years4 ,people are usually greatly surprised at this and ask if such an amount of quinine was not a terrible strain upon the constitution4 ,it was1 without doubt2 but not so great a strain as malarious blood1 and frequent fevers1 and the shock of very large doses of quinine at such times4 ,if ,i had not been in greatly reduced health before ,i began to take it regularly it is not likely that ,i should have required nearly so much4 ,but this is anticipating2 for we are still on the outward voyage4 ,in general the coast of ,west ,africa is not beautiful2 although it has a weird fascination for those who have once lived on it4 ,it is low-lying1 straight and monotonous3 a gleaming line of white surf1 a golden strip of sandy beach1 a dark green line of forest--and that is all1 for days and days and days1 and for some two thousand miles1 only broken at long intervals by the great estuary that is a peculiar characteristic of ,african rivers1 and by low hills far away on the horizon4 ,many of the traders are living1 not in the white settlements1 but in single trading-houses and far apart along this lonely shore4 ,they like it or they hate it4 ,to some it is an idle dream-life that they enjoy1 and to others it is a nightmare that they abhor4 ,some of those who came aboard looked like haunted men4 ,each day is exactly like all the others1 and the natural surroundings never vary however far they may wander along the beach--three endless lines of colour stretching away to eternity1 the dull green forest front1 the yellow strip of sand1 the white surge of the foaming surf1 and beyond it the boundless sea4 ,even in the darkest night the forest still shows as a blacker rim against the darkness1 and the surf-line is white with a whiteness that no night can obscure4 ,the unceasing sound of it is like low thunder1 and unless one loves it he must often think what a relief it would be if it would stop but for one brief moment1 and how the silence would 8sink like music on his heart40 ,in such places1 and in the bush1 the traders sometimes wear only pajamas1 by day as well as night4 ,there are natives enough around1 and there is always noise enough2 but it is the noise that only emphasizes solitude4 ,and one were better to live entirely alone than to be subjected to the influence of ,african degradation without the moral restraints of home and the society of equals1 unless his religious belief be something more than a mere acceptance of tradition1 and his principles something more than conventional morality4 ,there is a better class of natives whose society might relieve loneliness1 but the trader1 as a rule1 does not gather this class around him4 ,some are pleased to say very hard things about the traders4 ,but he who would judge justly must have a mind well attempered to the claims of morality on the one hand1 and on the other1 to the allowance due to the frailty of human nature when placed in circumstances of unparalleled temptation4 ,no man ever realizes the moral restraints of good society until they are all withdrawn2 nor how insidious the influence even of the most repulsive vices when they have become so common to our eyes that they cease to shock3 the moral safety of most men is in being shocked4 ,of course there are bad men among the traders1 and some very bad2 and the rumshop which1 wherever the white man has penetrated1 rises like a death-spectre in the landscape1 is an abomination to which it would be difficult to do injustice4 ,but it is not chiefly the trader who is responsible for the rum traffic4 ,many of them would be thankful if the various governments would entirely prohibit its importation4 ,moreover1 they sell a thousand things besides rum1--as many useful things1 and necessary to civilization1 as the native is willing to buy4 ,the traders are all men of courage--we can at least admire them for that--and many are honest and many are kind2 and it were far better to refrain from condemning the dissolute than that in so doing one should soil the reputation of an honest man4 ,we called at ,cape ,coast ,castle1 ,accra1 ,lagos1 ,monrovia and several other places where there are no harbours1 and where the surf is so violent that passengers rarely go ashore unless these places are their destination4 ,the longest stop on the voyage was at ,old ,calabar1 sixty miles up the ,calabar ,river1 where we stayed five days4 ,old ,calabar when ,i was there first was the ,english capital of the ,oil ,rivers ,protectorate1 which afterwards became a part of ,nigeria4 ,the heat was insufferable2 for1 while it is possible to keep cool on the hills where the white men live1 it is not possible in the low channel of the river1 and especially in the cabin of a steamer4 ,the name ,old ,calabar has a fine far-away sound1 like ,cairo or ,bagdad1 and suggests a place of romantic and legendary interest4 ,and indeed the tales of the ,arabian ,nights scarcely surpass the real history of the native despots that have ruled at ,old ,calabar even down to the death of ,king ,duke in our own times1 when1 despite the presence of the ,english1 it is said that five hundred natives were stealthily put to death to furnish the king a seemly retinue in the other world4 ,the run up the ,calabar ,river is a pleasant variety after the long weeks on the sea4 ,here we first saw the crocodile1 which abounds in all the largest rivers of ,africa4 ,it is the ugliest beast in the world4 ,lying on a bank of mud1 its head always towards the water1 and among old logs and roots1 it looks itself like some gnarled and slimy log1 and is difficult to discern4 ,but at the sound of a gun or the near approach of the steamer it slides down into the water quick as a flash4 ,most of the passengers get their guns and take a few shots at them4 ,in every case the passenger declares that he has shot the crocodile without a doubt2 and as the creature disappears into the water there is of course no way of disproving the statement4 ,but when we were coming down the river there seemed to be as many as ever4 ,the ,spanish ,island of ,fernando ,po is the most beautiful place in ,west ,africa4 ,seen from the harbour in the early morning light or in the soft glow of the evening it is a fairy-land of tropical beauty4 ,the bottom of the semicircular harbour is the crater of an extinct volcano and is very deep4 ,the bank is covered down to the water with a lavish growth of ferns1 and trailing vines1 and flowers of many colours2 while above the palm tree is abundant--the most graceful of all trees1 and the billowy bamboo tosses in the breeze4 ,in the middle and extending backwards is the white town of ,saint ,isabel1 and behind the town stands a great solitary mountain of green1 which rises to a height of ten thousand feet4 ,like other fairy-lands it requires the illusion of distance4 ,it appears best from the harbour1 and that is true of most tropical beauty4 ,the soil is the most fertile in ,west ,africa4 ,i have seen plantains there full twice as large as any that ,i have seen elsewhere4 ,for some years it has been producing large quantities of cocoa1 most of which is shipped to ,spain and thence over the world in the form of chocolate4 ,africa is a land of extremes4 ,from ,fernando ,po crossing again to the mainland we went fifteen miles up the ,rio del ,rey to the ugliest place in the world4 ,i have also been in the ,rio del ,rey several times on the homeward voyage1 when the steamers usually spend a day there taking on palm-oil and rubber1--a coast steamer would go to ,hades for palm-oil and take all the passengers along with it4 ,there is no native village here4 ,the three trading houses receive the produce which the natives bring down the river4 ,all around is one vast mangrove swamp1 an ideal mosquito-incubator4 ,the trading-houses are erected upon a foundation made with the ashes of passing steamers1 which were saved and deposited here4 ,the foliage of the mangrove is thin1 and at a distance resembles our poplar4 ,but the greater part of the mangrove is a solid mass of roots1 almost wholly above ground and more nearly vertical than horizontal4 ,the trees seem to be standing on stilts1 six or eight feet long1 as if they were trying to keep out of the water4 ,there are also aerial roots1 long1 leafless and straight1 depending from all the branches1 even the highest1 which as they reach the water spread into several fingers4 ,at the high tide the roots are submerged and the ugliness of the swamp concealed for a while4 ,but as the tide ebbs the roots appear dripping and slimy until they are completely exposed3 and as the water still recedes long stretches of ftid mud-bank appear4 ,the smell has been accumulating for ages4 ,a low-lying mist rises from the oozing banks1 and now and then stretches a stealthy arm out over the river1 or creeps from root to root4 ,some one standing near exclaimed3 8,o heavens1 what a place60 ,i could only wonder at the geographical direction of his thoughts2 for my thoughts were of ,gehenna and the river ,styx4 ,the mangrove swamp is surely the worst that nature has ever been known to do4 ,my feeling of disgust was intensified by many experiences of after years4 ,sometimes approaching a town at the ebbing tide1 a strong native has carried me on his back from the boat to the solid bank1 across a waste of sludge1 and sometimes he has fallen in the act4 ,other times1 when one could not wade1 they have thrown me a line and have dragged me across in a canoe2 and ,i felt that if the canoe should capsize ,i would sink almost forever2 or1 perhaps be dug up twenty thousand years hence and exhibited as a pre-historic specimen4 8,every prospect pleases10 reads the hymn1 8and only man is vile40 ,but the worst dbris of humanity is not half so vile as the prospect of a mangrove swamp at low tide4 ,the death record of the ,rio del ,rey is appalling4 ,every time that ,i have been there--seven times--the traders that came on board looked like dying men2 and often their limbs were bandaged for ulcers or kraw-kraw4 ,i was once on board when an ,english missionary and his wife debarked at this place1 expecting to go on up the river1 beyond the swamps1 to the mission station in the hills of the interior4 ,the lady was becoming more and more fearful during the voyage1 and the effect upon her of this lower river was such that she was almost hysterical4 ,she remained on board all day until we were about to weigh the anchor4 ,the first impression counts for much in the matter of health and resistance to the fever2 and the sight of that shrinking woman going ashore in such a place was pitiable2 for we all felt that she was doomed4 ,after a few months1 however1 she escaped with her life2 but she was never able to return to ,africa4 ,the mangrove swamp stretches along the greater part of the coast of ,west ,africa1 and along the rivers where the water is salt or brackish because of the flow of the tide from the sea4 ,the next experience after the ,rio del ,rey was a greater contrast than ever4 ,we proceeded forty miles southward and called at ,victoria1 in the ,german colony of ,cameroon4 ,the harbour at ,victoria is divided from the sea by a semicircle of islands1 some small and some larger4 ,one of these islands1 a large barren rock1 when seen from a certain part of the beach1 bears a singular though grotesque resemblance to ,queen ,victoria as she appeared when seated upon the throne4 ,it is presumably from this that the place was given the name ,victoria2 for the ,english traders were there before ,germany occupied the territory4 ,immediately behind the harbour is the great ,mount ,cameroon1 one of the greatest mountains in the world1 a solitary peak1 which rises immediately from the sea to a height of #ac1gjj feet2 which is twelve hundred feet higher than ,teneriffe4 ,it was evening as we approached1 and before we had entered the harbour it was night2 for in the tropics day darkens quickly into night and there is no twilight4 ,but on the top of the mountain1 far above our night1 we still saw the rose-red of the lingering day4 ,the moon rose behind the mountain and we steered into the shadow of it closer and closer1 for by night it seemed much nearer than it really was4 ,the number of passengers had diminished to a very few1 and they were silent2 not a voice was heard on the deck4 ,it was the strangest silence ,i have ever experienced2 not the mere negation of sound1 but like something positive1 and diffused from the mountain itself2 a silence more impressive than speech2 the silence of an infinite comprehension4 ,the engines stopped3 we were ready to cast the anchor1 and ,i found myself wondering how the captain's voice would sound when in a moment he would shout3 8,let go40 8,how fit a place10 someone at length remarked1 8for the sounding of the last trumpet and the final judgment6 before this mountain which has looked down unchanged upon all the generations that have come and passed away since the world began40 ,it is not always silent1 however1 for the natives1 with some sense of its majesty1 call it the 8,throne of ,thunder40 ,fierce storms wage battle around its middle height1 with terrific peals of thunder such as ,i have never heard elsewhere4 ,sometimes for many days it wraps itself in clouds and darkness1 completely invisible4 ,i was once a whole week at various ports within a few miles of it1 and did not catch a glimpse of it4 ,the clouds wrapped it about to the very base1 and there was nothing to indicate that it was there except the unusual frequency of storm and thunder4 ,then1 one day when we were at ,victoria1 the weather brightened so much that we expected soon to see the peak4 ,i asked a native attendant1 a young man1 to watch for it and tell me if he saw it4 ,at length1 while ,i was sitting on deck watching for it myself1 he exclaimed3 8,the peak6 ,mr4 ,milligan1 the peak60 8,where80 ,i said4 8,i don't see it40 8,look higher10 he exclaimed4 8,i am looking as high as ,i can4 ,i am looking as high as the sky40 8,look higher than the sky10 he cried1 with native simplicity2 8the sky is not high40 ,i lifted my eyes still higher towards the zenith1 and there1 through an expanding rift in the heavy cloud1 ,i saw the peak1 calm1 bright and beautiful1 just as it had been all the time1 even when hidden by low-hanging clouds4 ,i have often thought of it since4 ,god is higher than our highest thought1 higher than our sky4 ,our habits of mind and heart1 even our theology may hide ,him from our sight1 until by some unwonted experience these are shattered1 and through the rent clouds of our former sky we see the living ,god4 ,a short time before ,i left ,africa ,i spent ten days at a sanitarium of the ,basle ,mission1 on the side of ,cameroon1 between three and four thousand feet high4 ,i had then been in ,africa for years and had tropical blood in my veins1 and ,i suffered much with the cold4 ,there was so much covering on my bed that ,i was fairly sore with the weight of it1 and yet ,i was cold4 ,the storms raged frequently1 hiding the heavens from those below and the earth from us2 for we were above the storm-cloud1 and dwelt in light and sunshine4 ,the detonation of thunder beneath us was like the muttering rumble of an earthquake4 ,the ,german government has built a splendid road from the base of the mountain up to the sanitarium4 ,the road is well graded1 and winds upwards like a continuous ,s1 covering a distance of sixteen miles in the ascent4 ,i was delighted when ,i found that the missionaries would provide me a mule upon which ,i could ride up to the sanitarium4 ,i am a lover of horses1 and often during those years in ,africa ,i had been homesick for the sight of one4 ,the mule1 when he appeared1 was sleek and strong2 ,i put my arms around his neck and patted him and caressed him as if he were a long-lost friend4 ,then ,i mounted him and started up the road1 an attendant following behind with another mule and carrying my baggage4 ,the mule which ,i rode was deeply imbued with ,longfellow's sentiment3 8,home-keeping hearts are happiest2 to stay at home is best40 ,he climbed slowly and reluctantly1 and by some mysterious operation of the law of gravitation his head had a persistent tendency to turn about and swing down the grade4 ,i soon realized that ,i could go faster without him1 and that the strength which ,i was expending in keeping him in the path of duty was greater than that which ,i would require in going my way alone2 and ,i had no strength to spare4 ,therefore after three or four miles in his company1 finding his disposition fixed and unaspiring1 ,i dismounted1 and leaving him in the road for the guide1 ,i walked the rest of the sixteen miles4 ,but ten days later1 when ,i was returning to ,victoria1 the same mule was again put at my disposal1 and ,i gladly accepted him4 ,for ,i was much stronger1 and ,i was going in the direction of his own desire2 and besides it was down-hill all the way1 and ,i knew that he was too lazy to hold back4 ,the grade was not such that there was any danger to him from running2 so ,i galloped the sixteen miles1 and had the ride of my life4 ,i could have shouted with delight4 ,after a few miles ,i took a severe pain in my side4 ,i dismounted and lay down on the ground4 ,in a little while ,i was all right again1 and taking off a pair of stout suspenders ,i tied them as tight as possible around my waist with a large clumsy knot at my side4 ,i had already discarded my coat1 and my only upper garment was a woolen undershirt with short sleeves4 ,the suspenders around my waist gave me a new accession of strength and ,i galloped all the rest of the way1 with the same pleasure1 and entered ,victoria where ,i made something of a sensation4 ,my last association1 therefore1 with the great mountain1 was not an impression of its solemn majesty1 but the memory of a jolly good ride4 ,illustration3 ,,mission ,,house ,,at ,,batanga4 ,i was glad when at last we reached ,batanga1 and the long voyage was over4 ,our attention was drawn to the canoes in which men were fishing1 and for which ,batanga is famous4 ,the quiet morning sea was dotted with them within a radius of a mile around us1 some of them being two miles from the shore4 ,the ,batanga canoe is the smallest on the entire coast4 ,it is almost as light as bark2 the men come to the beach in the morning carrying their canoes on their heads4 ,it is quite an entertainment to see them going out through the surf1 and ,i have seen a canoe capsized half a dozen times in the attempt4 ,later in the day1 when the surf is heavier1 they cannot get out at all4 ,at sea the man straddles his canoe and lets his legs hang in the water2 and in this fashion he sometimes ventures two miles from the shore4 ,we anchored nearly a mile from the beach and were sent ashore in a surf-boat manned by native ,krumen4 ,there is no harbour at ,batanga1 and the landing in the surf was the most exciting of my ,african experiences until that time4 ,as we entered the surf the boat stood still for a moment1 until caught up on the breast of a breaker1 and--8,then1 like a pawing horse let go1 she made a sudden bound10 and we were carried towards the beach with violent speed that looked like destruction for us all4 ,the crest of the breaker passed under us1 however1 when we were close to the beach1 and immediately the ,krumen leaped into the water1 and with all their might ran the boat up on the beach far enough to escape the next wave4 ,then1 while most of them placed themselves around the boat to steady it1 the rest of them presented their backs to the passengers and yelled at them to jump on and ride ashore4 ,as the pitching boat was poised for a moment1 standing on the gunwale1 ,i seized a ,kruman firmly by the hair with both my hands1 and leaped upon him1 astride his neck with my legs over his shoulders4 ,i had put on a fresh white suit for the occasion1 notwithstanding that ,i had been instructed by the ,old ,coasters that the ,kruman1 with his unique sense of humour1 makes it a point to drop the new comer into the surf and present him to his friends ashore as much bedraggled and beflustered as possible4 ,i also had on the inevitable cork helmet1 so bulky1 and drooping over the eyes4 ,most men unaccustomed to them feel as awkward as they would in a ,gainsborough hat4 ,the ,kruman1 ,i am glad to report1 did not drop me2 perhaps because ,i kept so firm a hold on his hair that he did not know how much of it he might lose by a sudden or unexpected separation from me4 ,it was probably my own fault1 and not his1 that when he stooped to deposit me1 ,i missed the trick of lighting on my feet1 which ,i afterwards learned4 ,i reached the ground on all fours1 in the wet sand4 ,the white helmet fell from my head and rolled off towards the sea and ,i followed it1 running quadrupedal fashion1 and snatched it from an approaching wave4 ,a moment later ,i was exchanging greetings with a group of missionaries who had gathered on the beach4 ,at this landing on the beach ,i observed that we were standing under a cocoa-palm4 ,i looked up1 and lo1 there was no snake hanging from it4 ,now1 the most vivid impression--in fact the only impression of ,africa that ,i had carried thus far through life1 except that of sunny fountains rolling down golden strands1 was made by a picture in the old-fashioned geography2 in which there were crowded together1 with contempt of perspective1 an elephant1 a hippopotamus1 a rhinoceros1 a lion1 a leopard1 a gorilla1 a chimpanzee1 several other monkeys1 and a python hanging from a tree4 8,they are all here10 said some one1 in explanation2 8but they are not so thick on the ground as you may have supposed40 ,illustration3 ,,rev4 ,a4 ,c4 ,,good1 ,ph4,d4 ,dr4 ,good died at ,efulen at the age of thirty-seven4 ,he was a man of the ,livingstone type4 ,,iii ,,bush ,,travel ,upon our arrival at ,batanga we at once commenced the preparations for a journey into the bush1 than which nothing could have been a greater contrast to the long1 idle voyage on the sea2 for our physical strength and powers of endurance were to be taxed more than ever before4 ,there were two others besides myself1 ,mr4 ,kerr1 a new arrival1 and the ,rev4 ,a4 ,c4 ,good1 an intrepid and consecrated missionary whose name was already known throughout the ,united ,states4 ,dr4 ,good had been twelve years in ,africa1 working most of the time among the ,fang of the ,ogow ,river1 but had lately come to ,batanga for the purpose of opening the ,bulu interior4 ,the language of the ,fang was so much like the ,bulu that ,dr4 ,good could converse with the latter from the first4 ,before the arrival of ,mr4 ,kerr and myself ,dr4 ,good had already made one journey into the ,bulu country to a distance of seventy-five miles1 where he chose the site of the first station1 afterwards named ,efulen4 ,in those days nearly all the distance between ,efulen and the beach was covered with dense unbroken forest4 ,none of the ,bulu as far as we knew had ever been to the coast2 and no white man had ever entered that part of the interior4 ,the ,mabeya tribe1 living immediately behind the coast tribe1 were already in trade relations with the ,bulu2 so that there were roads1 that is1 foot-paths1 through the forest4 ,but they were seldom used1 and were only a little better than none at all4 ,the present good bush-road from ,batanga to ,efulen did not exist in those days4 ,we made it ourselves after we had been there nearly a year1 and it has been greatly improved from time to time4 ,the first road which we followed made a great detour to the south1 and we walked1 according to ,dr4 ,good's calculation1 seventy-five miles from ,batanga to ,efulen1 although the distance by the present straight road is less than sixty miles4 ,and1 by the way1 before we enter the forest1 bidding a temporary farewell to civilization1 we do well to take leave of this highly civilized term1 8mile40 ,it is more than superfluous in such a forest3 it is positively misleading4 ,such roads are not measured in terms of linear distance1 but only in measures of time4 ,to say that a place is distant half a day's journey1 or five hours1 is to speak intelligibly2 but to say that a place is five miles distant is to give not the slightest information as to the time it will take to reach it4 ,on the few good roads which in recent years have been improved by the government one might perhaps walk thirty miles a day3 on the worst roads that ,i have attempted ,i could not walk five miles a day with equal labour4 ,men can now walk to ,efulen in three days over the present road1 and ,i with others have done it in that time1 although in greatly reduced health2 yet ,i was not nearly so tired as when ,i used to walk it in five days over the road that we first followed4 ,the greater distance was by no means the only difference2 the chief difference was in the quality of the road4 ,the first road was so obscure that in many places we could scarcely follow it2 and in some places it was so completely overgrown that we had to cut our way through1 making the road as we went1 for which reason we always kept men with cutlasses ahead of the caravan4 ,much also depends upon the season4 ,a road might be very good and easy to travel in the dry season1 but almost1 or quite1 impassable in the wet season1 when the forest is flooded1 when the streams have become rivers and the rivers have far overspread their banks1 so that the traveller is wading in water much of the time4 ,in opening a new station we could not choose our time for travel1 and it so happened that in my year and a half at ,efulen ,i only made two round trips in the dry season4 ,the ,african forest is the greatest in the world1 both in the area covered and in the density of growth4 ,the tribes with whom ,i am familiar conceive of the whole world as a vast bush intersected with rivers4 ,the tribes are moving ever from the interior towards the sea2 and some of those who have long been coast tribes still retain in the idiom of their language the record of their former ignorance4 ,the word for 8river0 is used to designate the sea1 and 8the whole world0 is 8the whole bush40 ,a man will speak of his country as his 8bush10 and the white man's country he calls 8the white man's bush40 ,god1 they say1 loves 8the whole bush40 ,heaven1 or the other world1 is 8the other bush10 and in singing 8,i have a ,father in the promised land10 they say3 8,i have a ,father in the bush beyond40 ,one who is accustomed to the maple1 beech1 oak and pine1 finds the ,african forest strangely unfamiliar4 ,there are extremes of soft and hard woods2 and one will soon observe that as a rule the soft woods have large leaves1 while most of the hard woods have small leaves4 ,teak1 mahogany1 lignum vit1 ebony and camwood are characteristic4 ,the most striking and beautiful tree of the forest is a species of cotton wood4 ,it grows an enormous height1 with a silver-gray trunk like a column of granite1 and is supported by immense buttresses4 ,in the primeval forest1 that which has not at any time been cut down for man's habitation1 the foliage is very high and the gray trunks suggest the columns of a cathedral4 ,the branches above interlace1 forming a canopy of foliage and excluding the sun4 ,cable vines of various sizes1 many of them six or eight inches in diameter1 lash the trees together1 ascending the tree trunks in a spiral coil like an endless python and sometimes strangling them to death1 then swinging from tree to tree in loops and coils1 gnarled and twisted4 ,the foliage and flowers of these spread through the tree tops1 making the dim light below more dim1 and from the swinging cables an undisciplined profusion of other vines and various hanging plants depend in festoons and draperies1 all interwoven in bewildering confusion4 ,the ground is covered with a thick compost of rotting leaves and branches and insects4 ,every few yards a giant tree trunk lies prostrate and is filled with myriad insects that will soon devour it4 ,lightning sometimes strikes the tallest trees1 which come crashing down bringing half a dozen others with them4 ,then in this open place where the sunlight reaches the ground there shoots up with amazing rapidity a tangled undergrowth1 from which young trees race upwards to secure the light and air in such rivalry and struggle that the weak are soon strangled or crowded to death1 and the battle is to the swift4 ,the poet ,william ,watson in melodious verses prays for-- 8,the advent of that morn divine ,when nations may as forests grow1 ,wherein the oak hates not the pine1 ,nor beeches wish the cedars woe1 ,but all in their unlikeness blend ,confederate to one golden end40 ,no one will deny that this is beautiful poetry2 but it is deplorably false science4 ,nothing could be more untrue to the facts4 ,the oak1 the pine and the cedar1 considered as living things with conscious aims and individual interests 7for that is how the poet would have us consider them71 do hate each other with a hatred to which there is no parallel in human society4 ,men sacrifice for each other1 and we even have martyrs4 ,but in the forest there is no sacrifice1 no martyrdom1 nor do trees ever confederate2 but each fights for itself in a ceaseless and savage struggle4 ,and nowhere else in the forest world is the struggle for existence so remorseless as in the tropic zone of ,africa2 for nowhere else is variety so profuse and growth so rapid4 ,in the primeval forest the undergrowth is not dense and travel is not so difficult4 ,but as the natives are always moving their towns and abandoning old sites1 a considerable portion of the forest is the growth of a few years2 and here the undergrowth is so dense and matted that there is no possibility of passing through it except as one tunnels his way with the cutlass1 and the jungle closes on both sides of the path like a wall4 ,this is the usual character of the bush along the rivers4 ,there are not many flowers in the forest4 ,the most common is the orchid4 ,but flowers are numerous in the clearings and more open places4 ,in particular there is a lovely convolvulus of delicate lavender that climbs over all the lower growth of the clearing and blooms in such profusion as to give its colour to the landscape4 ,the impression of the beauty or the ugliness of the forest depends largely upon whether one sees it in the wet or the dry season4 ,in the dry season1 travelling on a fairly good road1 the idea of the cathedral with its solemn majesty was often present with me2 ,i was impressed with its beauty and enjoyed the solitude4 ,but in the wet season ,i loathed it4 ,who could enjoy1 or even recognize1 beauty while standing knee-deep in mud8 ,its stillness is not the stillness that speaks to the mind and heart4 ,it is dull and dead4 ,we had twenty-eight native carriers 7whom we must call porters when speaking to ,englishmen7 each with a load of about forty pounds4 ,they often carry more than twice that weight over the present road to ,efulen2 seventy pounds is the standard load4 ,but besides the better roads there is also this great difference that the natives were at that time new to the work of carrying heavy loads1 to which they have since become accustomed4 ,the present young men have grown up in the work4 ,besides our personal effects and food supplies we carried trade-goods1 with which to buy food and building material from the natives1 and to pay native workmen4 ,there was no currency in that interior tribe4 ,we paid out principally salt1 beads1 and brass rods1 the latter used for ornaments for the legs and arms4 ,after a year there was some demand for cloth--highly coloured prints--and other articles for which there was no use at first4 ,we were dressed in suits of denim or other cheap material4 ,i bought my suit at a trading-house in ,batanga for two dollars1 and packed away all my better clothing4 ,beneath the coat ,i wore a heavy woollen undershirt1 the only proper kind for the tropics1 and proper all the time1 no matter what else one may choose or discard4 ,we were glad to discard the helmet while travelling in the forest1 and to substitute a felt hat4 ,tastes differ widely as to the best footwear2 but ,i like best for such a road a pair of canvas shoes with rubber soles1 alternating with stout leather shoes every second or third day4 ,each man carries a wooden stick or staff about five feet in length4 ,when a man has chosen and trimmed for himself a stick that exactly suits him1 he becomes attached to it with a sentimental regard1 according to the distance he has travelled with it and the journeys he has made4 ,he is sensitive to any criticism passed upon it2 and no experienced bush-traveller will make disparaging remarks about another man's staff1 but around the camp-fire they will vie with each other in praising each his own4 ,i remember mine very well and ,i would give much to have it now4 ,perhaps this attachment is the stronger because1 as a rule1 we do not carry watches in that country4 ,most watches will run only for a short time4 ,a fine gold watch is the most useless of all2 the very cheapest will run longest4 ,when ,i began to tell this in ,america1 ,i found that ,i was sacrificing my reputation for accuracy of statement3 whereupon ,i stated the facts to a jeweller who1 after consideration1 said there was a very plain explanation1 namely1 that the hair-spring of the more expensive movements is usually finer and more closely coiled than that of the cheaper watches1 so fine that the least rust upon it would interfere with its motion4 ,our outfit for the road was very light4 ,this was ,dr4 ,good's habit and with me it was a kind of instinct4 ,we were measuring our strength against the forces of the forest1 testing our ability to endure and to wrest from the forest itself the means of enduring4 ,having this feeling1 to carry along the ready-made comforts of civilization seems like taking a mean advantage of nature4 ,some few things must be taken4 ,but the opinions of the wisest differ as to what those few things should be1 and each man ardently believes in1 and advocates his own outfit4 ,the explanation is that nothing of the outfit except food is an absolute necessity4 ,other things1 however important1 are of the nature of comforts2 and what is necessary to one man's comfort1 another can often do without4 ,one may suggest for such a journey a good water-proof bag containing a sweater1 extra socks and pajamas1 and two blankets4 ,a good rubber blanket is a necessity if one expects to sleep in the open forest4 ,canned foods1 of course1 are used1 and for cooking utensils1 a frying-pan and a sauce-pan will suffice for three1 and a cup1 tin plate1 knife1 fork and spoon for each4 ,several cutlasses are necessary for clearing the road1 preparing beds1 cutting fire-wood and other uses4 ,matches also must be taken and kept in a dry place4 ,a few towels and toilet articles complete the necessary outfit4 ,on our first journey we took camp-beds1 but only because we had need of them at ,efulen4 ,i never carried one again4 ,besides this general and common outfit each man nearly always has some one article that nobody else carries but himself1 and that1 in his mind1 is more important than anything else4 ,i do not remember what ,mr4 ,kerr's indispensable was1 for we never walked together except this once1 it being necessary that either one of us should stay at the station4 ,mine1 however1 was a pair of leather gloves1 at which ,dr4 ,good used to laugh2 for we travelled often together4 ,but they saved me much loss of blood and the pain of torn hands from the brambles and long briers that stretched across the path1 and they also enabled me to protect my face from them by pushing them aside better than ,i could have done with bare hands4 ,dr4 ,good's indispensable was a mosquito-net with canopy and sides which he also urged upon me as a necessity and which ,i insisted was a superfluity4 ,there were no mosquitoes in our camping-places in the forest2 but he used the net to protect against damp and against any slight motion of the air1 for one takes cold very easily and the least cold is liable to induce fever4 ,we had many a good-natured 8scrap0 over these hobbies2 but neither of us ever converted the other4 ,there was1 however1 one article with which ,i was always well supplied and for which ,dr4 ,good himself usually thanked me before the end of a journey1 and that was the indispensable safety-pin4 ,i never foresaw any particular use for it1 but many uses unforeseen invariably emerged as we travelled4 ,some travellers carry a piece of oiled baize in a convenient and accessible place4 ,it can be used to sit down on2 for one can never sit on the ground1 even if it is dry1 because of insects4 ,but its special use is for an apron1 which is attached with safety-pins and worn in the morning through the dripping shrubbery4 ,if one is wearing high shoes he can even keep his feet dry by this means4 ,the road that threads the forest from ,batanga to ,efulen was a narrow foot-path twelve inches wide and poorly beaten4 ,the wet season had begun and the rains had been falling two or three weeks4 ,the road was not even as good as we had expected2 for ,dr4 ,good1 who had fully described it1 had passed over it at the end of the dry season1 when the road was at the best4 ,the typical ,african road is a contorted line that vacillates and swerves to right and left1 turning and twisting at acute angles continually1 and often for no apparent reason1 as if it had been made by some crazy person4 ,but in such cases there was always an original reason even when it no longer exists4 ,for instance1 the native carrying a load finds a tree fallen across the path4 ,it is easier for him with his load to go around it than to climb over it4 ,but a log does not remain long in an ,african forest4 ,between insects and rot it is soon demolished4 ,meantime1 along its length there has grown up a dense undergrowth2 and rather than cut through this the native keeps to the path1 now beaten1 which passed around the log2 and the new traveller wonders why the path should not be straight4 ,it is estimated that an ,african road is a third longer in each mile by reason of its crookedness4 ,but this is not the only peculiarity of a forest path4 ,african trees have enormous roots1 and much of them is above ground4 ,this is the chief obstruction1 and there are many others4 ,no two successive steps are the same length1 nor upon the same level4 ,if the attention is diverted for a moment1 one may stumble and fall4 ,the road carefully avoids the hills and keeps down in the lowest parts4 ,the natives1 carrying loads1 dislike climbing1 but they have not the least aversion to mud2 indeed1 it has some advantages for their bare feet4 ,one passes through every variety of it and every depth4 ,the road often follows the bed of a stream for a distance1 a foot or more under water or in mud1 according to the season4 ,meanwhile1 the part of the traveller that is above ground is kept moist by the dripping shrubbery that meets across the path4 ,many of the shrubs are covered with thorns1 spines and hooks4 ,one of the worst of these1 armed with sharp spikes and not easy to see because it bears but little foliage1 sprawls across the path just high enough to catch the average man under the chin1 where it leaves a mark that looks as if it might have been made with a cross-cut saw4 ,then1 again1 there are long stretches of road that are not any worse than crossing a ploughed field after a rain4 ,every day1 and sometimes several times a day1 we forded streams1 often wading to the waist1 and we rather enjoyed it after the mud4 ,the deeper ravines we crossed on bridges4 ,bridge-building in ,africa is no great triumph of mechanical engineering4 ,the bridges which crossed the narrower ravines and gorges consisted simply of several long1 slender poles laid down side by side4 ,they ought to be on a level but are not4 ,one is six inches or a foot higher than the other1 and there is so much spring in them that the feat of crossing is equal to a tight-rope performance4 ,over extensively flooded areas where the water is too deep to wade1 a bridge of single poles is supported in forked uprights at intervals of the length of the poles1 and above the bridge a rope of vine is stretched to hold with the hand4 ,it happened more than once that by some mishap we tumbled into the stream below2 but the natives were quick to fish us out4 ,the worst part of the journey was on the last day1 through the new clearings which the natives had made for their gardens4 ,in these the whole forest lay prostrate1--trees great and small1 the tangled mass of vines1 and all the dbris made by its crashing fall4 ,the whole enormous mass is left lying until the lighter parts of it dry3 then it is burned over4 ,this burning is repeated at long intervals until at length much of it is burned away4 ,but by this time the natives are perhaps thinking of deserting it and making a new garden somewhere else1 or they may have moved their town away4 ,meanwhile1 they somehow reach the ground and plant their cassava which flourishes in the fresh1 rich soil4 ,the difficulty in an ,african garden is not to get things to grow1 but to keep other things from growing4 ,they never hesitate to fell the forest thus across the road1 obstructing the caravans and bringing curses on their heads4 ,one might think on approaching a town through one of these clearings that it had been made as a formidable defense in time of war4 ,to go through it is a tedious and exhausting trial4 ,one moment the traveller is crawling on all fours under a log2 then he walks up the inclined trunk of a tree a distance of fifty feet1 then turns and follows one of its branches1 from this leaps to a branch of another tree which he follows down to the trunk1 which is perhaps ten feet above the ground1 while below him are upright sticks or broken branches upon which he may be impaled if he falls1 or at least badly bruised4 ,from this he mounts a cross-log and proceeds downwards to another which he follows until it brings him five feet from the ground1 when he jumps the rest of the way1 crawls under another log1 proceeds a few yards on the ground1 mounts another log1 follows it until he finds himself again six feet off the ground and wondering how he will reach it2 but the next moment he has already reached it and wonders how he got there4 ,then he does this all over again1 and then again4 ,i never passed through such a clearing without getting bruised or hurt in some way4 ,the natives with their bare feet climb over these smooth logs better than the white man with his shoes unless they have rubber soles2 in the morning before the dew has dried it is especially hard4 ,it is much harder from the fact that we are no longer in the shade of the forest1 but exposed to the fierce tropical sun unrelieved by the least breeze because of the surrounding forest4 ,a caravan with their heavy loads1 walking through such a forest ruin1 presents a picturesque scene to the spectator4 ,some are crawling under logs1 some are climbing on top of them1 half a dozen are walking in procession up an inclined trunk1 some are walking a log ten feet in the air1 others are twisting their way through a maze of branches and some have fallen to the ground4 ,with such a clearing in mind1 and remembering what has been said about ,african bridges1 the reader will not be likely to ask the oft-repeated question1 why donkeys and horses are not more used4 ,the use of either would necessitate the carrying of a derrick with rope and tackle4 ,this recalls to my mind an occasion some years afterwards that afforded high amusement to some friends of mine4 ,i had been home in ,america for several years and was about to go to ,africa a second time when ,i received a visit from ,mr4 ,kerr1 who was home on furlough4 ,he gave me an enthusiastic account of the work done by the ,german government in improving the ,bulu roads1--although it was perhaps the road to ,lolodorf rather than that to ,efulen of which he was speaking4 ,he declared that as compared with the first roads that he and ,i had travelled1 ,i would never recognize it as an ,african road2 for it was 8grand10--8simply grand40 ,with an outburst of enthusiasm ,i replied that since ,i might be appointed to that station1 and since the road was 8simply grand10 ,i would buy a pair of donkeys at the ,canary ,islands and take them with me4 8,man alive60 he exclaimed1 8one would think you had never been in ,africa2 a donkey couldn't get over it40 ,to my friends it was a hopeless paradox that a road could be 8simply grand10 and yet be impassable to a donkey4 ,nevertheless1 about that time they began using donkeys on the road to ,efulen1 so much had the roads been improved in the intervening years1 and they have been using them more and more since that time4 ,there is difficulty1 however1 in getting them over the streams and ravines1 and ,i am not sure whether they are used to advantage in the wet season4 ,only experience will teach a man to walk the bush-road with the least effort2 and some never learn4 ,i can remember yet how on that first morning ,i shrunk from the water and the mud1 trying to keep my feet dry and my clothes clean4 ,i think ,mr4 ,kerr had more sense from the beginning4 ,i1 however1 was in a state of rigidity1 both physical and mental1 that would soon have exhausted me4 ,but after a while a kindly ,providence took me in hand1 sending upon me a rapid succession of blessings in disguise4 ,the mud lay deep in the path and ,i was trying to straddle it as ,i walked1 when1 as ,i sprang forward to clear a wider space1 some demon was evidently permitted to catch my foot and throw it up1 with the result that ,i landed full length on my back in the mud4 ,a few minutes later the same impalpable enemy tripped me and ,i fell headlong on my stomach4 ,still later we reached a broad1 black1 quiescent pond of water of the consistency of molasses4 8,can you swim80 said ,dr4 ,good to me2 8,i forgot to ask you that40 8,yes10 said ,i1 thinking of the glowing description he had given me of the road1 8there were several things you forgot to ask me1 and some things you forgot to tell4 ,but even if ,i could not swim in clear water1 ,i could probably swim in that pond40 ,we plunged in and were able to wade through it4 ,shortly after this a drenching rain fell1 a tropical downpour1 that wet us to the skin4 ,in this rain we stood and ate our first lunch1 some fresh biscuits which one of the ladies at ,batanga had baked that morning1 saying as she tied them up for us in heavy oil paper1 that it would be the last food of that sort that we would taste for a long time4 ,but when the rain came on1 the native carrier who had them in charge appropriated the oil paper to carry his shirt in1 leaving the biscuits exposed to the rain4 ,as we stood eating them while it still rained1 it was with mitigated sorrow we reflected that it would be the last of that sort we would taste for a long time4 ,i will admit that this was a dreary outset1 but it was not unfortunate4 ,my tenderfoot rigidity had completely relaxed for the remainder of the day4 ,i cared not what happened afterwards1 and walked without timidity1 fearing neither mud nor water1 nor height1 nor depth1 nor any such thing4 ,no amount of experience and practice in walking long distances on our public roads at home will insure success in walking a bush-path4 ,in the latter there are constant obstructions and frequent annoyances1 the obstructions requiring a peculiar physical aptitude1 the annoyances a peculiar mental aptitude4 ,the native possesses both aptitudes to a marvellous degree4 ,the average native1 carrying on his back a load of forty pounds1 can keep up with the average white man carrying nothing4 ,yet1 ,i have no doubt that on a turnpike1 neither of them carrying anything1 the average white man would equal the native and perhaps outwalk him4 ,it must also be remembered that the white man is in a hostile climate in ,africa1 and is never normally strong4 ,we started in the morning as soon as it was light enough to see the path1 that is1 about six o'clock1 and walked eight or nine hours a day1 stopping an hour at noon4 ,we walked at a very rapid pace1 almost on a run where the path would permit4 ,about four o'clock we stopped for the day1 usually at a camping-ground made by the natives in carrying produce from the interior4 ,these camps were open glades surrounded by the forest wall and ceiled by the blue sky4 ,two or three nights we camped beside a flowing stream1 a hidden brook1 that 8all night to the sleeping woods sang a quiet tune40 ,after sitting ten minutes ,i followed along a short distance till ,i found an inviting spot where the pellucid stream widened and spread over a sand bottom1 and there1 all mud-bespattered1 perspiring1 weary and sore1 ,i lay down in the cool1 running stream1 with my clothes on4 ,does the reader know what luxury is8 ,certainly not1 unless after eight or nine hours of walking and wading over such a road he has lain down in a cool stream with his clothes on4 ,i turn my face to one side and then the other1 and let the flowing water caress my cheek1 and as it washes away the mire from my clothing1 it also soothes the weary limbs and sore joints and smoothes out the wrinkles of care2 and my heart answers back in a song to the murmur of its music4 ,this is the ancient ,lethean stream in which the weary and the aged bathed and became oblivious of pain and sorrow4 ,after a bath ,i get into woollen pajamas and slippers1 and sit down a little later to the best repast of modern times--an absolutely unlimited quantity of boiled rice and corned beef4 8,is this really corned beef80 said ,i2 8it tastes like angel40 ,does the reader know what luxury is8 ,not unless after such a journey he has sat down to such a meal4 ,for luxury is not something objective in the thing that we enjoy1 but in the keenness of our relish2 and that depends upon contrast--in this instance the contrast of rest and food with hard and hungry endurance4 ,a few days after reaching ,new ,york1 ,i attended a banquet at which was served ,i know not how many courses1 the richest and the best4 ,objectively1 it was everything that ingenuity could devise2 only keen-edged appetite was wanting4 ,and ,i was saying within me to my fellow guests3 8,ah6 ,i have a secret that you know not4 ,this is only a taste of luxury2 but if you would enjoy it to the full measure of your capacity1 you must follow me eight hours through the fell roads of the jungle1 bathe in running water1 get into woollen pajamas1 and then sit down in an arboreal salle manger to a banquet of unlimited rice and corned beef40 ,we usually slept under booths made from the boughs of trees which we found in most of the camps4 ,the most primitive bed and that which we sometimes used1 was made by cutting slender1 round poles six feet long and laying them side by side on two cross-sticks at the head and foot4 ,the native carrier sleeps on this bed of poles with nothing under him and nothing over him2 but when possible he keeps a fire beside him4 ,we white men were wrapped in a blanket or two4 ,but the use of such a bed is not wise when it can be avoided1 and it is seldom necessary4 ,more than once some one unable to sleep had to rise in the dark1 find one or two bags in which loads were packed1 spill the contents on the ground 7making such a noise that one suddenly waking might suppose that an elephant had charged the camp7 and spread the bags upon the bed in the hope of subduing the effect of its knots and depressions and its general hardness4 ,i soon discarded that sort of bed and preferred to bivouac in a hammock of stout and stiff canvas1 suspended between two trees1 with a rope stretched taut above it upon which ,i threw a large and light rubber blanket which formed a gable over me4 ,this was1 at least for me1 the most comfortable and luxurious bush-bed that ,i ever slept in4 ,but in the early morning of the second day both comfort and luxury seemed remote and unrealizable ideas4 ,there is a miserable chill in the forest at five o'clock in the morning that always makes one reluctant to leave his warm blankets2 and on that morning it was raining4 ,after coming out of the stream the night before1 ,i had wrung out of my clothes what water ,i could1 and they remained without further drying until ,i put them on in the morning to the accompaniment of chattering teeth1 for they seemed as cold as ice4 ,the boys' fires had all gone out and we ate some boiled rice left over from the night before--ate it standing2 for sitting down one's clothes will get next to him1 but standing up one can shrink away from them1 or1 at least1 he can try4 ,after some experience ,i was almost able to stand up in a suit of clothes without letting them touch me4 ,everything was wet and cold and the branches and shrubs shook water on us4 ,there is a right way and a wrong way to conquer the ill-will of such a morning4 ,the wrong way is to confess your misery1 to shiver and shrink and try to save yourself4 ,the right way is to plunge into it suddenly1 get wet as quickly as possible1 step lively1 and make believe that you like it4 ,the power of this mental attitude is astonishing1 and with a little determination you will soon be master of the situation4 ,before the end of the second day we discovered that the native stomach is made of the finest kind of rubber4 ,before leaving ,batanga we had given to each carrier a supply of food for seven days1 and before the end of the second day1 some of them had eaten it all4 ,that meant hunger and trouble for all those 8foolish virgins0 for the rest of the journey4 ,it also meant trouble for us4 ,the others divided with them1 as they nearly always do when this happens4 ,but still they did not have enough and all were hungry before the end of the journey4 ,in consequence they were too weak to carry their loads4 ,they lagged behind and grumbled continually1 and sometimes they seemed on the point of refusing to go on4 ,the difference between a good carrier and a poor one is often simply this1 that the one stops eating when he is full and the other stops only when the supply of food is exhausted4 ,,iv ,,bush ,,perils 8,by what ,i have read in books1 ,i think few that have held a pen were ever really wearied1 or they would write of it more strongly40--,robert ,louis ,stevenson4 ,several months later ,dr4 ,good and ,i returned from the interior to ,batanga1 passing over the road at its very worst4 ,it was near the end of the wet season4 ,for many weeks the rains had fallen day and night4 ,the forest was flooded2 the streams were rushing rivers1 and the rivers had far overspread their banks4 ,beyond these floods were marshes which were still worse4 ,where the water was too deep to be waded1 temporary bridges such as ,i have described had been constructed1 consisting of a single line of poles extending from one support to another1 sometimes two or three feet under the water1 with a rope of vine stretched a few feet above that one might hold with his hand4 ,these bridges were more simple than ingenious1 and more ingenious than safe4 ,a number of times the vine above broke1 upon which we lost our balance and fell into the water but were rescued by a life-saving crew of the carriers4 ,for in crossing the worst places we always waited for the carriers4 ,nor did we proceed until we saw all the loads over safely4 ,one or two crossed at a time and the others1 having laid down their loads1 stood by to be of service in case of accident4 ,in one place when we were crossing a rushing stream in which the bridge was buried two feet under the water1 the line of poles beneath our feet suddenly came to an end1 having been swept away by the current1 and we crossed the deepest part on the upper vine alone going hand over hand until our feet came in contact with another pole4 ,but this let us down into the water almost to our necks4 ,in another place1 crossing a considerable stretch of water1 the bridge was such that ,dr4 ,good preferred to cross by climbing the trees and passing along the interlacing branches4 ,we were seven days on the way between ,efulen and ,batanga1 including a ,sunday on which we rested4 ,i was a convalescent1 having recently been sick with a very severe fever that had kept me in bed for more than a month1 and ,i was still weak4 ,indeed1 the reason for hurrying to the coast at this time instead of waiting for the dry season was chiefly my need of a physician4 ,the first day ,i walked four hours very slowly and could do no more2 but my strength increased greatly on the way and we walked further each day4 ,on that journey we had to use the cutlasses very often to clear the road so as to make it passable2 and one day we found the road so flooded that we were obliged to leave it and for several hours we cut our way through the matted undergrowth where there was no road2 but it was very slow work4 ,that same day ,dr4 ,good1 in jumping over a muddy place1 lighted on a slippery stick that was hidden beneath the surface and fell headlong4 ,i was following so close behind that ,i was already in mid-air when he fell2 and1 of course1 ,i tripped over him and fell too4 ,for a few seconds at least we were a sorry sight4 ,there was a stream near by1 however1 and we washed away the portion of ,german territory that clung to us1 and made a presentable toilet4 ,but ,dr4 ,good had fallen on a projecting root and had hurt his side quite badly4 ,it was like him to say nothing about it until1 as we stood at the stream1 ,i observed that he was pale4 ,then he told me that he had hurt himself and that there was a pain in his side4 ,he thought that a band tied around his waist would relieve him2 so ,i peeled a strip of bark four inches wide from a tree and tied it tight around him1 over his coat1 making a bow at his back4 ,considered sthetically it left much to be desired1 but it served the purpose4 ,he walked with difficulty the first hour or two2 then the pain gradually subsided1 and although he was bruised1 it occasioned him no further trouble4 ,on the last night of our long immurement in the forest1 we camped for the first time in an open glade where the sun had warmed and dried the ground1 and the wood also was dry enough to enable us to have a big camp-fire4 ,we kept the fire all night1 and for the first time on the way got our clothes well dried4 ,not only were they dry2 they were even warm when we dressed in the morning4 ,we were in high spirits and greatly enjoyed our breakfast4 ,but immediately upon starting out1 and before our blood was in vigorous circulation1 we came to a long stretch of water covering acres of ground4 ,we were greatly surprised at this1 for ,dr4 ,good knew this place and had not expected any such thing4 ,the explanation1 as we found two hours later1 was that a little town had just been built near by and the people1 being at war with their neighbours1 had dammed a stream so as to surround their town with water and marsh for defense against the approach of their enemies4 ,this unsightly and disgusting place they were very proud of as serving admirably their purpose of safety4 ,when we came to the water we waded in and walked on and on not knowing its extent4 ,but at last we were in almost to our shoulders1 and ,dr4 ,good suggested that ,i should wait while he looked for the road1 for he knew the way better than ,i4 ,it was long before he found it and ,i stood for an hour in the water4 ,i had never felt any ill effects from wading water1 but now ,i was standing1 not wading2 and ,i had not done any walking that morning to invigorate me4 ,before we had proceeded far after leaving the water1 my joints were stiff and muscles sore1 especially the tendons of the heel and the knee1 and every step cost pain4 ,but we had the longest day of all before us1 and our food supply being exhausted1 we must reach ,batanga that night4 ,it was a day ,i shall never forget4 ,to the pain of aching joints and sore muscles was soon added that of exhaustion4 ,it happened that ,i had been quoting ,heine and passing severe moral verdicts upon him for saying somewhere--8,psychical pain is more easily borne than physical2 and if ,i had my choice between a bad conscience and a bad tooth1 ,i should choose the former40 ,this1 no doubt1 is pure paganism2 but now when ,i was suffering something of the weakness and pain that poor ,heine endured1 ,i am afraid that if ,i had been offered a bad conscience in exchange for physical suffering1 with the sure promise that ,i could get my better conscience back again at the beach1 ,i might have succumbed to the temptation4 ,thank ,god that in the crises we seldom have the choice4 ,at any rate1 ,heine did not seem so much of a pagan that day as when ,i sat by the warm camp-fire the night before descanting on another's pain1 and ,dr4 ,good did not have to listen to further moral dissertations on my part4 ,hours before we reached the beach my legs were fainting under me but still we walked on with long strides and at the usual rapid pace1 threading the forest while hour was added to hour4 ,we did not take our usual noonday rest1 for we both knew that if ,i should stop walking for a little while ,i would be unable to go on4 ,we usually chatted together as we walked1 but that day from noon until we reached the beach1 ,i do not recall that a word was spoken4 ,dr4 ,good was too wise to express the sympathy that ,i knew he felt4 ,we had always taken turns in setting the pace2 but at noon ,i said to him3 8,you go ahead2 ,i am not equal to the extra mental exertion of setting the pace3 it will be easier for me to keep up with you40 ,the last hour of that interminable day was through a grass field where we were exposed to the sun and the heat4 ,the rank grass was much higher than our heads and intercepted the sea-breeze4 ,it also cut my arms and face till ,i was covered with blood2 for ,i was too tired to protect myself4 ,each successive step required a new decision1 and an effort involving the utmost conjoint exertion of mind and body4 ,my teeth were set and ,i was breathing audibly4 ,at last we entered a native town and as we passed through the long street1 the people and their chief1 ,bivinia1 came trooping forward with cordial greetings and hands extended towards us2 but ,i neither extended my hand nor replied to their salutations4 ,indeed1 my mind was so concentrated on the effort that it required to keep on walking that ,i was only half-conscious of the presence and attention of the natives2 they were like forms moving to and fro in an uneasy dream4 ,but the longest day has an end4 ,we reached ,dr4 ,good's house and ,i threw myself into a chair while he dispatched a messenger to ,mr4 ,gault who lived two miles further1 asking ,mr4 ,gault to send men with a hammock to carry me on to his house where ,i was going to stay4 ,it is doubtful whether one ever recovers from such an unnatural straining of nerves and muscles4 ,the muscles in a few days may regain their elasticity and the joints their suppleness2 but somewhat of the power of endurance is lost and especially the quality of resiliency1 the power of quickly recovering from mental or physical prostration1 leaving one an easier victim of virulent disease2 and nerves so overwrought may from time to time wreak the vengeance of untold misery through all the after years4 ,during the following dry season we employed a force of men in making a new road1 the present road from ,batanga to ,efulen4 ,it is practically straight1 and therefore much shorter than the old road1 so that a good walker can make the journey in three days4 ,moreover1 it follows higher ground and is more dry4 ,we also cut down many trees along the way1 which relieved the gloom1 although the road still passes beneath a leafy arcade sufficient to protect from the sun4 ,we improved the bridges and wherever possible made a bridge by felling a tree4 ,but the native roads1 except the few that have been improved by white men1 are still such as ,i have described4 ,it happened also that most of our journeys were at first made in the wet season4 ,after the first year1 however1 that was no longer necessary1 and we began to feel that the pioneer period was drawing to a close4 ,but ,i presume that those who now live at ,efulen and other interior stations1 in journeys to the further interior1 especially to towns off the main road1 if they travel in the wet season1 find just such roads as we first travelled4 ,the last time ,i walked from ,efulen during my first term in ,africa1 ,i enjoyed the journey4 ,the forest was more dry than ,i had believed it could be4 ,the ground was strewn with leaves suggestive of our autumn4 ,nor was it dark and depressing as before4 ,upon the forest-canopy of green1 supported by tall columns of sombre gray1 the light danced and played like sunshine on rippling water and shone through in silvery streams and shifting golden bars4 ,the forest floor was a humus of soft mould and light1 dry leaves4 ,the low green undergrowth1 closing the path before and behind me1 now that it was not dripping with water1 was attractive1 and gave a pleasant sense of privacy combining with the subtle sense of companionship with the vast life of the great forest4 ,for it was no longer the dead1 repellent jungle of some months ago1 but a real forest in which one loves to walk alone1 a forest full of mystery and spiritual suggestion1 whose stillness speaks to us in a language that we strive to understand1 or gives1 as ,tennyson says1 8,a hint of somewhat unexprest30 8',tis not alone the warbling woods1 ,the starred abysses of the sky1 ,the silent hills1 the stormy floods1 ,the green1 that fills the eye4-- ,these only do not move the breast2 ,like some wise ,artist1 ,nature gives ,through all her works1 to each that lives1 ,a hint of somewhat unexprest40 ,in setting out from ,efulen we always had a 8palaver0 with the carriers which in one instance1 at least1 threatened to become a fight4 ,dr4 ,good on his first journey before my arrival in ,africa had paid the carriers a certain amount for the round trip2 for they had to carry their loads both ways4 ,one can scarcely overestimate the authority of precedent in ,africa4 ,the citation of a precedent is sufficient to justify any subsequent action that may be to the advantage of him who cites it1 even though the action be flagitious and the precedent only remotely relevant4 ,a single precedent may establish a custom and established custom is a despot from whom there is no appeal1 and whose authority transcends moral law4 ,a ,kruman1 if asked why he does this or that1 thinks that he gives the most lucid explanation when he answers3 8,it be fashion for we country40 ,we had expected to pay our carriers from ,batanga to ,efulen less than ,dr4 ,good had paid1 since they were carrying loads only one way4 ,but his one trip had established the amount of pay1 and at the first mention of lower prices there was a storm of protest accompanied by scathing moral observations4 ,it made no difference to them1 they averred1 whether or not they carried loads both ways2 they would just as soon walk with a load as without one1 and indeed a little rather4 ,we had no alternative1 so we paid the full price of a round trip2 but we stipulated that if at any time we should wish to send loads from the interior to ,batanga1 we should require the carriers to take them without any additional pay2 and to this they cordially agreed4 ,it was seldom that we had anything but mail to send to ,batanga1 except when one of ourselves was going1 and then we usually had four or five loads4 ,but there were always several times this number of carriers4 ,some few1 therefore1 must be selected to carry the loads1 while the rest walked light4 ,it was natural1 ,i suppose1 that when they knew a white man was going back with them to ,batanga they should all pretend to be sick in order to escape carrying a load4 ,so sure as they heard me coming towards their house in the early morning to choose several carriers1 immediately they presented such a spectacle of suffering as was never seen in any hospital4 ,it was very perplexing for almost invariably some one or two of them were really sick and quite unfit to carry loads4 ,on one occasion as ,i approached1 the scene was more heartrending than usual4 ,there were means and cries and shrieks such as might issue from a railroad wreck in which a score of broken and mangled human beings were pinioned by the wreckage4 ,i found them sitting and lying around in every posture of pain4 ,some were nursing sore feet and sprained ankles1 some had violent attacks of indigestion1 several had fever1 and one had a fit4 ,each one was occupied with his own suffering and betrayed no consciousness of my presence4 ,after looking around ,i walked out without speaking4 ,i made a bold guess as to the sick and the well2 and returning a few minutes later1 followed by several workmen with the loads1 ,i advanced as if by some occult means ,i knew exactly the degree of sincerity or insincerity on the part of each1 and placed the heaviest load in front of a certain man1 saying quietly3 8,you will carry this load40 ,now it happened that this was the only sick man in the crowd and he was quite unfit to carry anything4 ,the truth is that the man1 being really sick1 did not call in the assistance of dramatic art1 and he made less fuss than any of the others4 ,we were not many hours on the way before ,i discovered the mistake ,i had made4 ,it is very difficult to make any change on the road1 and is regarded as something less than fair4 ,to accomplish it without a mutiny one must assume a terrifying countenance of the utmost ferocity and cannibalism4 ,in this ,i was evidently successful2 for late in the afternoon ,i suddenly called a halt1 waited until all the men came up1 and then ordered a man to take the load off the back of the sick man and put it on the man who that morning had been seized with a fit at my approach4 ,this ,i did with the more relish because ,i had heard him chuckling about it along the way and telling the joke on the white man4 ,we seldom saw an animal in the forest1 although we knew they were there4 ,the only monkey that we saw on our first journey ,mr4 ,kerr shot and gave to the carriers who ate every part of it1 inside and out1 including the skin--after burning off the hair4 ,we sometimes heard the blood-curdling night-cry of the leopard2 but we never saw one4 ,on several occasions when ,i was alone ,i heard elephants plunging along the path before me1 or suddenly discovered their tracks at my feet1 so fresh that the water was still trickling into them4 ,the elephant is not dangerous unless one comes upon him suddenly and startles or frightens him2 but if he 8charges10 he is terrible4 ,a chief near ,efulen was one day walking in the forest at the head of a hunting party4 ,at a point where the path suddenly swerved around the upturned root of a tree1 he found himself face to face with an elephant4 ,before he had time to fire the elephant instantly charged4 ,it put its tusk through his body and then trampled him to death under its feet4 ,the natives taught me1 when ,i heard elephants ahead1 to stop and shout until there was complete silence2 which meant that they had hidden in the forest and ,i could pass along the path in perfect safety1 no matter how near they might be4 ,but the first time that this occurred1 and the second time1 ,i made the natives prove their advice by going ahead themselves1 which they never hesitated to do4 ,in the wet season ,i always walked in company with the caravan2 but in the dry season ,i preferred to walk alone1 and often left the carriers far behind me1 scattered along the road in different groups4 ,at a fork in the road ,i always threw a handful of fresh leaves upon the road that ,i followed1 as a sign to the carriers that they might be sure to take the same way4 ,never but once did they fail to follow me4 ,on that occasion some of the carriers were boys of a strange tribe1 the ,galway1 more used to waterways than to bush roads4 ,until the last evening they had walked behind others who were familiar with bush travel and whom they could follow heedlessly4 ,but that evening it happened that the ,galway were ahead and they took the wrong road1 not observing my sign of the leaves on the path1 and the whole caravan went astray except two carriers who were far behind and separated from the others4 ,to follow their misfortune to the issue1 the ,galway got separated from the rest of the caravan and arrived at ,batanga two days late1 famished with hunger and frightened half to death4 ,meanwhile1 ,i had walked on far ahead until ,i thought that the carriers might require all the daylight that was left to catch me1 and then ,i stopped and waited for them2 though ,i had not yet reached the camp4 ,as time passed and no carriers appeared ,i began to feel uneasy4 ,the chill of the evening was approaching1 and ,i had not even a coat2 so ,i began to walk back and forth rapidly to keep warm4 ,finally1 two carriers arrived4 ,one of them had my food1 which was fortunate2 but the other had nothing that ,i wanted on the road4 ,the lost ,galway had my bed and extra clothing1 and even the matches4 ,we waited for them anxiously and called loudly1 but there was no answer4 ,then swiftly1 as always in the forest of the tropics1 the day turned into night3 8,at one stride comes the dark40 ,a heavy1 palpable darkness1 like smoke1 enshrouded us and rose higher till it blotted out the leafy canopy and blackened the very sky4 ,the opacity of the darkness was such that we could not see each other1 nor could ,i see my hand when ,i placed it before my eyes4 ,for a while ,i forgot the loss of the other carriers in thankfulness for the company of these two men4 ,for1 however kindly the mood of the forest by day1 or however joyful the camp-fire by night in congenial company1 yet1 to one alone through the night1 without comfort or means of rest1 and with the possibility of being lost1 the forest is truly dreadful4 ,one in such a plight interprets the forest through the medium of his misery and his fear4 ,the intolerable vastness of his prison dungeon suggests the 8outer darkness10 and the experience of a soul forsaken4 ,i was miserably cold and had nothing to protect me2 nor had ,i a bed except a rubber blanket4 ,i kept walking back and forth on a bit of path a few yards long1 notwithstanding that ,i had walked all day4 ,there was but little rest4 ,occasionally ,i threw myself down on the rubber blanket but was so cold that before long ,i rose again and began walking4 ,fortunately ,i was in unusually good health1 for ,africa1 or the exposure might have resulted even more seriously than it did4 ,my cook1 ,eyambe1 a ,batanga man1 who had worked for us at ,efulen for several months1 possessed the remnant of a shirt1 so much prized that he had carried it with him to the bush1 lest his numerous relatives1 male and female1 should wear it out in his absence4 ,he came to me in the darkness feeling his way1 and said1 8,mr4 ,milligan1 my shirt1 you must take him and wear him1 please4 ,this bush he no be too bad for we black man2 but my heart cry for white man40 ,i took it1 of course1 and wore it4 ,but the cheer that ,i derived from the kindness of his heart was greater than the poor comfort of the shirt4 ,i thanked ,god when morning dawned at last2 but it is unnecessary to say that ,i was in poor condition for walking next day1 the last day of the journey4 ,i knew that the exposure would bring on fever and ,i walked more rapidly than usual so as to reach ,batanga as soon as possible4 ,i sometimes even ran1 as if in precipitate flight from a pursuing beast4 ,the part of the road over which ,i passed that day was quite new and poorly cleared4 ,my clothing may not have been stout enough to withstand the thorns and briers which ,i encountered2 or else1 in my hurry1 ,i was reckless4 ,at any rate1 when ,i emerged from the forest1 behind ,mr4 ,gault's house1 one leg of my trousers was gone from above the knee1 and the other leg was also exposed through several rents1 the remainder of the trousers being fastened with numerous safety-pins4 ,i was also scratched and bleeding more than on any previous trip4 ,as ,i turned and looked back from the beach towards the gloomy and sullen forest1 in the vivid realization of the exposure of that long night and the fever which ,i knew was imminent1 ,i had the feeling which ,stanley describes when he and his long caravan emerged from the dark prison forest after the immurement of several months1 in which scores of their comrades had died by the way1 the whole caravan now enfeebled and wasted with hunger1 the black1 glossy skin turned an ashen gray4 ,they ascended a hill and first looking up yearningly towards the bright blue sky1 they then turned with a sigh and looked back over the sable forest that heaved away to the infinity of the west4 ,in their sudden exaltation they shook their clenched fists at it1 uttering imprecations1 and with gestures of defiance and hate4 ,they apostrophized it for its cruelty to themselves and their kinsmen2 they compared it to hell1 and accused it of the murder of a hundred of their comrades4 ,but the forest which lay vast as a continent before them1 and drowsy1 like a great beast1 answered not a word1 but rested in its infinite sullenness1 remorseless and implacable4 ,i was not mistaken in my apprehension of fever4 ,i did not return to ,efulen again4 ,one fever followed another in quick succession1 becoming at length so serious that my fellow missionaries at ,batanga united in urging me not to risk another attack4 ,an ,english steamer on the outward voyage called just at that time and ,i went south to ,gaboon1 where ,i sailed on a ,french steamer for ,marseilles and thence home4 ,little did ,i think when ,i was leaving ,efulen for a few days1 as ,i supposed1 that ,i was really taking a long leave of ,efulen and ,africa1 not again to see either for four years1 and never again to see ,dr4 ,good4 ,that last morning1 when ,i was setting out for the beach1 he walked with me down the long ,efulen hill to the foot1 where we stood perhaps half an hour1 formulating our expectations and making the clearest-cut plans1 none of which were realized1 although they pertained to the immediate future4 ,the element of accident is a constant factor in ,africa1 that continually changes the course of our reckoning and overturns our surest calculations4 ,accidents are no more numerous there than elsewhere1 but they are more serious4 ,climbing a mountainside1 a slip of the foot is fraught with more danger than on a level road4 ,in the hostile climate of ,africa1 the smallest accident1 a moment's incaution or forgetfulness on your own part or on the part of others1 may change the entire future4 ,elsewhere the best-laid plans of men have about an equal chance with the best-laid plans of mice1 if the observation of ,burns is to be trusted4 ,but in ,africa the probability of the future is entirely with the mice4 ,while ,i was in ,africa a second time and living in ,gaboon1 two hundred miles further south on the coast1 ,i visited ,efulen once more4 ,the road was much more improved than when ,i had seen it last4 ,the sun shone through the arcade of vines and branches and formed upon the pathway a filigree of gold and silver light4 ,the mode of travel was different accordingly4 ,it was the best time of the year and there was a happy party of eleven1 so that the journey was like a continuous picnic4 ,four of the party were ladies1 three of whom were carried in hammocks and one rode a donkey4 ,besides1 and chiefly1 there was a very sweet little girl1 two years old--a little splash of golden sunshine in the gray forest light1 a dream of home1 a fragment of a song ,ah me6 how lonely one becomes for the sight of a white child when he has lived some years in the jungles6 ,much of the time the ladies were walking and the hammocks empty4 ,the hammock is suspended from a long bamboo pole borne upon the shoulders of two carriers4 ,but the carriers must be relieved frequently1 for it is dreadfully hard work4 ,six of the strongest native men are required for one hammock4 ,little ,lois also had her special hammock1 with a firm floor in it1 so that she could sit upright1 and she was perfectly happy when riding through the forest4 ,illustration3 ,,little ,,frances1 ,,born ,,in ,,africa4 ,ah me1 how lonely one becomes for the sight of a white child when he has lived some years in the jungles6 ,several towns had been built along the way and in one of them we stopped each night1 where we occupied native houses and slept on native beds of straight bamboo poles covered with armfuls of grass--as good a bed as one could desire4 ,the numerous ticks in the grass were converted into bed-ticks--such was our resourcefulness of expedient4 ,the only dislikable part of the journey was rising so early in the morning when we could have slept on for hours1 after the walk of the preceding day4 ,but an incident of that journey impressed it distinctly upon my mind that there is some advantage in eating breakfast before daylight4 ,one morning we had an oatmeal breakfast4 ,the day dawned upon two tardy boarders before they had eaten and they were horrified at discovering that the oatmeal was full of vermiform animalcules4 ,of course1 they could not eat it and had the poorer breakfast in consequence1 and the other nine thought that it served them quite right for being so late4 ,a doubt has always lurked in the recesses of my mind as to whether the joke was really on the two or on the nine4 ,we did not1 as in former days1 keep steadily to a regular pace without stopping1 even for hours at a time1 and walking in comparative quiet4 ,for the hammock carriers go very rapidly1 on a dog-trot1 continually shouting1 and a white man follows immediately behind each hammock4 ,they repeat a regular call and response1 half song1 half shout1 as if to sustain their animation and courage4 ,what wonderful voices they have6 ,the forest1 startled from her deep repose as we pass along1 rebounds with shout and answering echo1 while we dash on over height and depth1 over rock and stream and mire1 for an hour4 ,then1 out of breath and in copious perspiration1 we sit down for fifteen or twenty minutes1 and at the word of command we are off again with a dash and a shout4 ,it is all very pleasant and a great improvement on the old way1 although one pays very little attention to the forest and is wholly oblivious to its moods4 ,but the old way is still the regular way on all roads except those few which the white man has undertaken to improve4 ,and this disposition to 8improve0 everything he puts his hand to is a radical difference between the native and the white man4 ,the mental habit of the native is contentment with things as they are2 in which he is far more happy than fortunate4 ,he would let this old world1 or this old 8bush0 as he calls it1 stay as it is to the end of time4 ,the unhappy restlessness of the white man1 his dissatisfaction with what he has and his longing for what he has not1 his eagerness for change and 8improvement10 the native is sometimes disposed to regard as a morbid mental disease4 ,but the greatest wonder of it is that the white man includes the native himself in his program of improvement4 ,he finds him a denizen of the forest1 his mental habitudes like her changing moods1 now sullen and cruel1 now gentle and cheerful for a little while1 partaking of her darkness mingled here and there with broken beams of light2 and as he clears a way through the deep forest making the darkness light1 so he labours that a gleam of heaven's light may shine down into the benighted native soul2 that it may lighten the path of his destiny more and more1 and lead him on1 in ways of purity and peace1 till the gleam become the 8perfect day40 ,v ,,the ,,camp-,,fire ,if it is dreadful to be overtaken in the forest by the punctual night of the tropics1 while unprepared1 without camp or comfort1 yet1 to the weary man1 after a good bath and a good supper1 and with a good bed awaiting him1 the brief period of the departing day and the increasing camp-fire glow1 the smell of wood smoke and the crackle of the burning log1 are a delightful experience4 ,the camp is usually an open glade1 where the night is not so sudden in its fall4 ,the shadows grow longer in the evening light1 and the gray twilight deepens till the stars shine through4 ,then in the red glow of the camp-fire1 phantom shadows and eerie forms flit to and fro1 approaching towards us and receding into the darkness like spirits impelled by curiosity1 and planning either play or mischief according to the mood of the observer4 ,in the day the man is properly the master of his mood1 but in this hour it is pleasant to relax and let the mood be master of the man1 giving a free rein to fancy4 ,immediately after supper it was my custom to hold prayers with the carriers4 ,then1 if the labour of the day has been easy1 or a ,sunday rest has intervened1 they become more sociable and communicative than usual1 and often prolong the evening with camp-fire stories4 ,they are born orators and can tell a story to perfection1 whether it be a fable handed down from others1 or a narrative from their own experience4 ,the knowledge of the native may be ever so limited and his thought meagre1 but he can always give it appropriate and striking form and express himself in forceful and sometimes beautiful language4 ,he never hesitates nor becomes incoherent2 his words flow like a river and keep well within the course of his purpose4 ,his gestures are animated and infinitely varied1 sometimes grotesque1 more often graceful1 and always expressive4 ,he has also a faculty of imitation beyond all men4 ,for instance1 two schoolboys 7if we may leave the camp-fire for a while to digress upon this native talent for imitation7--two schoolboys sit talking together1 myself paying no attention1 when one of them imitates the clicking of my typewriter so that ,i immediately recognize it4 ,a new clock has recently been placed in the school1 and ,i recognize their imitation of its stroke4 ,again1 ,i recognize the noise of the gasoline engine of the launch1 ,dorothy1 now at half speed1 now full speed1 now running smoothly and now with the peculiar omission followed by a heavier stroke1 due to a weak battery4 ,a boy in talking to me refers to another boy by a name that ,i do not know1 one with rather a peculiar countenance4 ,i say3 8,i do not know of whom you are speaking40 ,he replies3 8,he looks like this0--slightly twisting his face into an exaggerated and ludicrous likeness of the other boy1 which ,i instantly recognize4 ,one day at ,efulen the body of a very large monkey1 killed by ,mr4 ,kerr or ,dr4 ,good1 hung suspended from the roof of our back porch4 ,the expression of the monkey's face was fearfully human4 ,it did not look dead1 but rather as if it had been very drunk the night before and was sleeping off the effects4 ,i heard our two house-boys giggling and chuckling on the porch1 and looking out ,i saw them standing in front of the monkey trying to look just like him1 which they did with such startling success that ,i complimented them by telling them that either of them might exchange places with the monkey without ,dr4 ,good ever knowing the difference4 ,on one occasion a party of white men and native boys were travelling on a river launch for several days4 ,four of the white men occupied their spare time in playing a certain game with dominoes4 ,one day when they had left the cabin1 four native boys sat down in their places and taking the dominoes1 began to imitate the white men4 ,they were absolutely ignorant of the game1 and did not know the white men's language1 and yet they presented the semblance of the whole performance1 each boy impersonating an individual white man--his exclamations1 manner1 and general behaviour during the progress of the game1 from the deal to the last trick and the noisy conclusion4 ,this art of imitation is useful to the natives in hunting4 ,for instance1 a deer hunter in the forest will imitate the noise of two fighting bush-deer1 and he will do it so well that any deer within hearing will come running to the spot4 ,in reciting their numerous fables1 in which animals are made to talk and act so as to teach lessons of prudence and goodness1 the native will imitate the noise or the movements of each animal1 and some of these stories one might almost follow without knowing the language4 ,this talent is also useful to the native in preaching the ,gospel1 which they all do1 great and small1 old and young1 as soon as they become ,christians1 and often long before4 ,i talked one day to a group of ,christian boys1 or young men1 on the words3 8,now the serpent was more subtile than any beast of the field10 applying the words obviously to the subtility of the ,evil ,one in tempting us4 ,shortly afterwards1 one of those young men1 ,ndong ,koni 7whose name ,i am likely to mention very frequently in the succeeding chapters7 preached to a large audience a sermon on those words1 which put mine to shame3 8,you know where you may expect to find other animals10 he said1 8and you also know their times40 ,and then naming first the leopard1 he told them the kind of place that it frequents1 and at what hours it seeks its prey1 while the eager audience roared assent4 ,so he did with the elephant1 the gorilla and others4 ,but the serpent1 he told them1 is found everywhere1 often in the path before them1 even in their houses1 and always when least expected4 ,then he compared its powers with those of other animals1 describing the leopard's strength to fight1 the fleetness of the deer in escaping1 and how the monkey climbs2 but how the serpent outfights the leopard1 outruns the deer1 outclimbs the monkey4 ,the audience knowing well all the habits of the animals of the forest1 was wildly appreciative1 and several times took the sermon out of the speaker's mouth4 ,on another occasion1 a young man1 ,amvama1 preached on the 8,lost ,sheep0 of the parable1 describing its peculiar helplessness4 ,all the animals of the forest1 however far they wander1 can find their way back--but not the sheep2 every other animal has some peculiar defense against its enemies of the forest1 but the sheep is defenseless4 ,the sheep lost in the forest cannot of itself get back to the town1 and it is sure to be devoured by the wild beasts4 ,amvama did not fail to apply this to our own moral plight as lost and helpless4 ,but1 we will return to the camp-fire in the forest1 and the dim and dusky company seated around it1 and the larger circle of fitful shadows and furtive forms that come gliding out1 and back again into the forest4 ,the opaque darkness pours forth such a volume of sound as never was heard in any forest elsewhere2--a thousand mingled noises of the night1 weird1 and difficult to associate with any bodily form1 but belonging1 one might easily fancy1 to the shadow spirits of the forest1 some of them perhaps the spirits of dead men--of those who1 labouring under heavy loads1 fell by the wayside1 and died of sickness or fatigue1 whose skeletons we sometimes pass2 of those who by the spell of an enemy's fetish lost their way1 and never saw the face of man again2 of those who for some crime have been driven forth into the forest by their own people1 to die of hunger1 or by the beasts4 ,above all the myriad noises of the night1 and separate from them1 at times there falls upon the ear a prolonged cry of distress1 that smites upon the heart1 heard always in the ,african forest and never afterwards forgotten4 ,it is a succession of ten or twelve long cries1 shrill1 tremulous and piercing2 rather low at first1 and vague1 but gradually rising to a cry of definite terror1 and again descending until it is lost in the volume of the forest noise4 ,it is a little disappointing to find the real source of this peculiar cry2 and most people never find it1 for it is exceedingly difficult to locate2 whether near or far1 whether high or low1 one cannot be sure4 ,it does not proceed as imagination suggested1 from the spirits of the dead at variance and afflicting one another1 but from a warm-bodied1 innocent creature1 the lemur1 which lives in the heights of the trees1 feeds upon insects1 birds and reptiles1 and seldom comes to the ground4 ,in appearance it is somewhat like a bulky bear's cub1 but not well armed for offense or defense1 and leading a precarious life among the stronger and fiercer creatures of the forest4 ,and now it occurs to me that the ,lemures in ,roman mythology were the spirits of those who had died in sin and who could not find rest1 for whom expiatory rites were celebrated in the temple4 ,it is generally supposed that ,linnus gave the name lemur to this family of animals because of the pale and strangely ghost-like faces of some of them2 but the peculiar cry of this particular kind of lemur is more sepulchral than the appearance of any of them1 and might well be a reason for the name they bear4 ,there is one other characteristic sound in the night-forest1 though personally ,i have not heard this sound when far from the coast4 ,it is a single monotonous note1 a little like a low tone on a flute1 about ten seconds in duration1 and without rise or fall1 a doleful sigh or sob of unending remorse4 ,this sound1 although it always seems to be distant1 is even more difficult to locate than the other4 ,it is human more than all other sounds of the forest1 and yet sepulchral1 and the superstitious mind is easily persuaded that it issues from the unseen world4 ,the source of it is rather extraordinary2 for according to native testimony it proceeds from a certain gigantic snail1 as it slowly draws itself into and out of its shell4 ,this theory is difficult either for white man or black man to verify2 for the sound is heard only at night1 and it ceases as one approaches4 ,but the native is by no means likely to be mistaken4 ,and now at the camp-fire a native is relating to his fellows a strange legend of the origin of this sound2 a legend familiar to all the tribes of ,west ,africa1 and illustrating a rare interpretative faculty of the native mind4 ,this is the camp-fire story3 8,there was once a wayward and wilful son who lived alone with his mother4 ,one day coming home hungry he ordered her to gather some greens and cook them for him4 ,the mother1 who never resisted his wishes1 went out and gathered plenty of greens and cooked them4 ,but in the cooking they shrivelled up as greens always do4 ,then the mother presented the greens to her son2 but the son looking at them accused his mother of having eaten the greens herself4 ,this she denied2 but the son would not believe her1 and in his anger he struck her a blow on the head1 and the mother fell dead at his feet4 ,then he cried out in anguish and sorrow2 long and bitterly did he cry1 but in vain4 ,she was dead6 ,she was dead6 ,he had killed his own mother4 ,from that day1 all the days he mourned1 saying always3 #8,i killed my mother2 ,i killed my mother2' and all the nights he sobbed and moaned3 #8,i killed my mother4' 8,then the spirits seeing his sorrow1 that it was very great1 and hearing him cry always day and night1 at last were moved with pity1 and turned him into a snail1 which cannot suffer like a man4 ,but though the snail does not weep in the daytime1 yet at night it mourns and cries3 #8,i--killed--my--mother2' and so it will keep on crying until the end of the world40 ,the reader will of course understand that the note of the snail is single and bears no resemblance to these articulate words of the son's sorrow4 ,the interpretation is purely spiritual1 and poetic genius could scarcely improve upon it as an expression of the unending remorse which the sound conveys to sensitive and susceptive minds4 ,sitting around the camp-fire they listen to the story as interested as if they had never heard it before1 as children listen to the repetition of fables and nursery tales4 ,then remarks are made upon a son's duty towards his mother1 and some of them tell what good mothers they have2 for this is the deepest reverence and highest sentiment of the ,african mind4 8,whatever other estimate we may form of the ,african10 wrote ,leighton ,wilson1 than whom no one has ever known the ,african better1 8we may not doubt his love for his mother4 ,her name1 whether she be dead or alive1 is always on his lips and in his heart4 ,she is the first being he thinks of when awakening from his slumbers and the last he remembers when closing his eyes in sleep2 to her he confides secrets which he would reveal to no other human being on the face of the earth4 ,he cares for no one else in time of sickness2 she alone must prepare his food1 administer his medicine1 perform his ablutions and spread his mat for him4 ,he flies to her in the hour of his distress1 for he well knows if all the rest of the world turn against him she will be steadfast in her love1 whether he be right or wrong4 8,if there be any cause which justifies a man in using violence towards one of his fellow men it would be to resent an insult offered to his mother4 ,more fights are occasioned among boys by hearing something said in disparagement of their mothers than all other causes put together4 ,it is a common saying among them that if a man's mother and his wife are both on the point of being drowned1 and he can save only one of them1 he must save his mother1 for the avowed reason that if the wife is lost he may marry another1 but he will never find a second mother40 ,following the legend of the snail1 several fables are told as we sit by the camp-fire4 ,there is a fable called1 ,the ,chimpanzee and the ,ungrateful ,man3 8,there was once a poor man who had but one wife and one child1 and they lived in a small house in a far-away bush town near which was a stream with fish4 ,the man was a hunter1 and with his spear he hunted game in the forest1 but the woman made fish-traps of basketwork and caught fish in the stream4 8,one day when the man was hunting in the forest the woman took her babe and went to look at her fish-traps4 ,she put her babe on the bank and herself went down into the water4 ,soon the babe began to cry2 but the mother heard not for the noise of the running water4 ,now there was a mother chimpanzee in the top of a great tree near by4 ,the chimpanzee had her home there in a safe place2 but when she heard the babe she felt pity and she came down to the ground and taking the child in her arms1 nursed it to sleep4 8,the mother1 having removed the fish from the traps1 came up the bank to get her babe1 and lo6 there sat a great monkey and the babe sleeping upon its breast4 ,she screamed with fright1 and screamed again1 so that the chimpanzee1 afraid lest the hunter might come1 put the babe down and ran into the forest4 ,the woman snatched her babe and ran home very much frightened4 ,she told the story to her husband but he only laughed4 8,however1 the next time the woman went to work at her fish-traps the man followed her and hid in the thicket4 ,again the woman laid down her babe and waded into the stream and again the babe began to cry and again at length the kind chimpanzee ventured down the tree and quieted the babe on her breast4 ,then the man thinking only of procuring a big feast of meat drew stealthily near with spear in hand and aiming it right at the heart of the chimpanzee suddenly hurled it with all his might4 ,but the chimpanzee1 seeing him just in time1 held out the babe to receive the flying spear which pierced through its body4 ,the horrified father had slain his own child4 8,the chimpanzee laid the dead babe on the ground with the spear still sticking in it1 and fled to the forest4 ,but before disappearing it turned and said3 #8,i was doing you a kindness in taking care of your babe4 ,therefore the evil that you would have done me has fallen upon yourself4'0 ,there is a very common fable in which the turtle teaches the wisdom and prudence of not interfering in other people's palavers4 ,the leopard and the python had a quarrel4 ,the leopard visits the turtle and asks his help against the python4 ,the turtle says to the leopard3 8,come again to-morrow evening40 ,then the python comes to the turtle and asks his help against the leopard1 and the turtle says to the python3 8,come again to-morrow evening40 ,the next evening the python comes again to the turtle and asks his help against the leopard4 ,the turtle says to the python3 8,go hide in the thicket and keep still for a while40 ,then the leopard comes to the turtle and asks his help against the python4 8,go hide in the thicket10 says the turtle4 ,then the leopard ran into the thicket and walked on top of the python4 8,now10 says the turtle to the python and the leopard1 8you can settle your own palaver40 ,another man tells why it is that the leopard has no friend among all the animals1 but walks always alone in the forest4 ,once upon a time a chief made a great trap to catch animals4 ,first a gazelle fell into the trap4 ,then he cried and cried to his companion 7the story-teller imitates the cry of this and the following animals to a critical but delighted audience7 but the gazelle's companion did not hear and he died there1 for the chief was away on a journey4 ,then a wild boar came and was caught and he also cried to his companion4 ,then an antelope came and was caught4 ,they all died in the trap4 ,then came a leopard and was caught1 but before the leopard died a turtle came2 and the turtle felt pity for the leopard and released him4 ,then the leopard wanted to kill the turtle which had released him4 ,so the turtle crawled inside of a hollow tree4 ,the leopard followed the turtle into the tree1 but he got fast in the tree and could not get out4 ,now this was a tree that bears fruit upon which monkeys feed4 ,so after a while there came a blue-nosed monkey to eat the fruit of the tree4 ,then there came a white-nosed monkey2 then a red-headed monkey2 then a black monkey4 ,when the leopard heard the noise of the monkeys he begged them to come and release him4 ,then the monkeys all came and got the leopard out of the tree4 ,but no sooner did the leopard find himself safe than he fought with the monkeys1 and he killed the white-nosed monkey and the red-headed monkey and ate them4 ,then the black-haired monkey1 who had escaped up a tree1 said to the leopard3 8,you leopards are rogues and treacherous4 ,we helped you and saved your life1 and as soon as you were helped you turned on us and began to kill us40 ,so the leopard to this day has no friends1 but walks alone in the forest1 for he cannot be trusted4 ,and there are men who cannot be trusted any more than the leopard2 therefore they live without friends4 8,oh10 cried the audience1 8men do not know the language of the leopard and the language of the monkey40 8,no10 replies the story-teller1 8men cannot speak the language of either of these animals2 but some men have fetishes by which they can understand the language of all animals when they hear them talk40 ,a man tells 8a true story0 about a slave who lives in his town1 and who frequently turns himself into a leopard and eats the sheep of the town4 ,he has also1 in the form of a leopard1 attacked men and women of the town1 who had offended him4 ,everybody in the town knows this to be true4 ,this suggests to another the story of a magic fight4 ,a certain stranger coming into a town walked rudely against a man1 wishing to quarrel with him that he might get his goods4 ,the man said nothing1 but expecting that the stranger would return and try to provoke a fight he prepared himself by making medicine2 for he had great knowledge of medicine and magic1 though he never used his knowledge except in self-defense4 ,the stranger returned as he expected and again walked rudely against him4 ,the man said to the stranger3 8,do you want to fight with me80 8,yes10 replied the stranger1 and he cursed the man's mother1 at which the man struck him4 ,now the stranger was a powerful witch1 and immediately he turned into a leopard2 but to his great surprise his opponent also turned into a leopard4 ,then a terrible fight took place between the two leopards4 ,they leaped and sprang upon each other and howled so frightfully that the women of the town fell down with fear2 but the men all gathered around the fighting leopards4 ,then suddenly the stranger turned himself into a python and springing upon the leopard threw a deadly coil around its neck2 but the other leopard also turned into a python1 and the pythons fought together1 coiling about each other1 hissing1 and biting4 ,then the stranger turned into a gorilla that he might seize the python and choke it in his terrible hands1 but the other python also turned into a gorilla1 and the gorillas fought and tried to squeeze each other to death4 ,at last the stranger1 getting exhausted1 turned into an eagle that he might fly away1 but the other also turned into an eagle1 and pursuing him dealt him a fatal blow4 ,the dying eagle changed again into a man and begged the other man for mercy1 which was refused4 ,he would not make medicine for him1 and so the stranger died4 ,on one of these camp-fire occasions a coast man who had been employed at ,efulen tells how he recovered certain goods that a ,bulu workman had stolen from him4 ,he called together all the workmen1 both ,bulu and coast men1 and after telling them that his goods had been stolen he proposed to discover the thief by ordeal4 ,he told them of an ordeal that was well known in his town1 and that never failed4 ,then he produced a dish of medicine he had made1 which he said he would squirt into the eye of each man4 ,in the eye of an innocent person it would be harmless as water1 but it would burn the eye of the guilty one4 ,from the first he had suspected a certain ,bulu man1 but he wanted formal evidence and the best evidence would be the man's confession1 which he determined to obtain4 ,he stood the men in a row1 with the suspected ,bulu man near the last4 ,then he began squirting a copious dose of medicine into an eye of each man in turn4 ,it did not hurt in the least1 for the very good reason that it was nothing but water--which nobody knew but himself4 ,then when he came to the suspected man1 he slipped a handful of red pepper into the water1 and squirted it into the man's eye4 ,a sudden scream1 a full confession1 and the goods restored were some of the more important effects of this wonderful ordeal4 ,and many ,african ordeals are useful for discovering a criminal when you happen to know who he is4 ,one man tells 8a true story0 of an evil spirit who hates people and who spreads disease and death4 ,he once appeared in the forest near a town1 in the form of a little child1 evidently lost and hungry1 and crying bitterly4 ,some kind-hearted woman finding him took pity on him and carried him to the town in her arms4 ,but she was soon smitten with smallpox1 which spread from her to others and the whole town was destroyed4 ,however the evening may begin with fable and fiction1 it usually ends with narratives of fact and experience4 ,but their facts are as fabulous as their fables and there is no distinct line between4 ,one may listen to a story that is a tissue of impossibilities1 and may suppose that the native is repeating a myth or a legend to which the imagination of at least several generations has contributed fantastic details1 only to find that the purport of the story is a narrative of fact which the native solemnly believes4 ,for they know little of nature's laws and nothing of their uniformity4 ,therefore 8miracles0 are always happening4 ,the miracles of the ,new ,testament1 as a display of supernatural power1 do not at first impress the native mind2 not because he cannot believe them1 but because he believes them too easily1 and believes that miracles more wonderful take place in his own town every day4 ,but the moral quality--the benevolence and mercy--of the ,new ,testament miracles impresses him deeply1 and this to him is their wonder4 ,for1 among his people1 men and women who possess supernatural power wield it to an evil purpose1 or at best1 in their own interest4 ,a man tells of a murderer in his town who was suspected of having killed a number of persons who had died a mysterious death1 after having first lost their shadows4 ,the suspected man was closely watched1 and1 sure enough1 one day they caught him in the very act of driving a nail into another man's shadow4 ,everybody knows that a man's shadow is his spirit1 or at least one of his spirits1 and if it be mortally wounded1 or in any way induced to leave him1 he will die4 ,no man will long survive the loss of his shadow4 ,but while witches and other murderers commit their evil deeds under cover of night1 the shadow-slayer chooses the day and often the noonday4 ,many a man has lost his shadow at noonday--not so difficult to understand if it be remembered that we are speaking of the tropics1 where1 at certain seasons1 the sun at noonday is directly overhead4 ,the people were so enraged at this murderer who was caught driving the nail into a man's shadow--was caught only after the deed was done1 making death certain--and who must have been the cause of all the recent unaccountable deaths in the town1 that they carried him into the forest and bound him to the ground in the track of the driver ants1 which immediately covered his whole body and devoured him1 leaving nothing but the bones4 ,but in the night-time his screams were still heard1 even after his death1 and the people were sore afraid4 ,his spirit haunted the town1 until at length the people deserted it and built in another place4 ,and even yet the belated traveller passing that way hears the screams of the dead man4 ,but the greatest fear in all ,africa is the witch4 ,the witch's soul is 8loose from her body10 and at night she leaves her body and goes about the town1 an unseen enemy1 doing mischief and wickedness4 ,a young man by the camp fire tells of a witch in his town who for some time had been 8eating0 the children of the town4 ,it is not the body1 but the spirit1 that she eats1 after which the child sickens1 and gradually becoming worse1 at length dies4 ,the discovery of witchcraft was made in a peculiar way4 ,a certain man who was sick and lying awake at night with pain1 thought one night that he heard a sound in the street4 ,he crawled close to the wall and peering through a crack he beheld in the street the phantom form of a woman carrying the form of a child4 ,she laid the child down in the street4 ,then she drew the form of a knife with the evident intention of cutting the child to pieces and eating it4 ,but the knife was powerless to cut because of the bodily eyes of the man who was a spectator4 ,again and again the woman tried to dissect the child and still the knife refused to cut4 ,at length it occurred to her that she was probably being watched4 ,then1 taking the child up quickly1 she returned it to the house whence she had stolen it1 restored it to its body1 and fled1 without being recognized by the man who had seen her4 ,in the morning he reported to the town all he had seen4 ,the wildest excitement ensued4 ,the mothers of the town were in terror1 not knowing who the witch was that was eating their children4 ,but one of the women was taken suddenly ill and they became suspicious1 though they said nothing4 ,she grew rapidly worse until she was seized with a convulsion and foam appeared at her mouth1 a certain sign of witchcraft and that her own witch inside had rebelled and was eating her4 ,then they all reviled and cursed her1 gave her no food1 threw cold water on her1 mocked her agony1 and exulted in her pain until she died4 ,a deep1 resonant1 hungry roar of a leopard arrests the attention of the company around the camp-fire4 ,it is at a pretty safe distance1 however1 and the white man having given orders to keep the fire burning retires to his hammock a little apart1 but takes his rifle with him4 ,the effect of these last stories is sobering and saddening1 especially to a mind not yet accustomed to such tales4 ,a shadow lies across the white man's heart4 ,and that same shadow lies across every charm in ,africa and mars every beauty--the reflection of the cruel ignorance and awful sufferings of its people4 ,the observer who does not see the shadow must never have entered into the mind-life and the heart-life of the people4 ,the vast forest darkness1 and the weird night-sounds that befit the darkness1 deepen the impression of the camp-fire stories4 ,that piercing cry of the lemur1 how it suggests the terror of the wretched man devoured by driver ants6 ,and that other mournful note is surely the remorse of spirits in the other world for cruel deeds committed here4 ,there is now something awful in the darkness4 ,one feels with the ,ancient ,mariner-- 8,like one that on a lonesome road ,doth walk in fear and dread1 ,and having once turned round walks on1 ,and turns no more his head2 ,because he knows a fearful fiend ,doth close behind him tread40 ,sleep does not come quickly to a mind depressed4 ,as ,i lie awake and listen1 the noises of the night reverberating through the forest1 with the rush of the wind in the tree tops1 blend together in one vast chorus1 whose music is a funeral march4 ,the materialistic modern mind calls the universe a machine4 ,but the old ,norsemen of the forest said that it is a tree1 the tree ,igdrasil1 that lured the mind of a great modern mystic4 ,often in the night-forest have ,i recalled the ,norse legend of the tree ,igdrasil1 the tree of existence4 ,it is watered by three streams1 the past1 the present and the future4 ,the branches are human history1 the leaves are the actions and the words of men2 the wind sighing through it is the sobbing of men's sorrows4 ,but the forest is as variable in her moods as the mind of a man4 ,stern at times and sometimes awful1 yet again she loves to soothe the mind and impart a gentle cheer4 ,if you would know the charm of the night-forest in her most intimate and communicative mood you must wait until some time1 as if in response to an inaudible summons1 you waken after several hours of deep1 restful sleep that is one of the secrets of the forest4 ,under a roof and between close walls a wakeful hour is monotonous and miserable and the habit of wakefulness is a malady that were fit penance for mortal sins4 ,but in the open forest1 especially when there is a glimmer of stars shining through the screen of dark foliage1 a wakeful hour passes easily4 ,one is never lonely in such an hour1 for a mystic life pervades the night-forest1 and one realizes that it is something more and greater than the definite forms which the eye sees by day4 ,when these are dissolved in darkness one is more sensible of the underlying1 mysterious life1 as of a spiritual presence4 ,forms1 whether material or creedal1 sometimes conceal the reality which they represent4 ,the noises of the night-forest1 the mingled voices of innumerable crickets1 tree-toads1 frogs and croaking night-birds1 the chatter of the stream over the stones1 the rushing of the wind above the trees1 with many unfamiliar sounds1 each almost indistinguishable in the thrilling volume1 seem but the sights of the silent day transformed into sound1 and one feels that the interpretation of the sound would be also the interpretation of the forms and shapes1 of colours1 of shadows and broken light-beams4 ,this illusion may be promotive of the native belief in animistic nature4 ,for the eye does not see those animate creatures in the day1 and to the child-mind it might easily seem that the myriad noises of the night issue from rock and hill and stream and tree4 ,lying thus awake but restful1 the blended noises of the resounding forest fall upon the passive ear like the confused echo of some world-orchestra1 or a broken strain from the music of the planets and the stars as they sweep through vast orbits1 on and on forever4 ,for the night-forest1 unlike the day1 speaks always musically to the ear that is attuned to hear it4 ,the soft sound of the wind among the leaves of the highest branches again lulls the wakeful listener into sleep2 and he enjoys it the more because of the brief disturbance4 ,,vi ,a ,,home ,,in ,,the ,,bush ,efulen1 my first ,african home1 ,i saw for the first time in ,july #ahic4 ,it is in ,cameroon1 among the ,bulu people1 directly behind ,batanga1 less than sixty miles from the coast1 and about two hundred miles north of the equator4 ,efulen is situated upon a hill two hundred and fifty feet high and nearly two thousand feet above the sea-level1 and is surrounded by mountains4 ,the scenery is beautiful and magnificent and resembles the mountainous parts of ,pennsylvania2 but in that tropical climate there are atmospheric effects seldom seen in the colder latitudes4 ,mountain and valley are covered with a forest of green with here and there a tree of red or scarlet1 and so dense that one might think he could walk on it4 ,from the top of ,efulen hill one looks out on a rolling plain of foliage that stretches away over valley and hill1 until it becomes extinct in the dim distance of the empurpled hills4 ,often in the morning1 when the atmosphere of the valleys is clear1 an overhanging mist cuts off the tops of the mountains1 which appear as elevated table-lands1 all of the same height1 and precisely level4 ,a few minutes later the scene is magically transformed4 ,the mist has descended and filled the valleys as if all the clouds of the heavens had fallen down1 while the mountain-peaks1 radiant with the sunlight1 rise out of the mist like islands out of a deep sea4 ,i have said that ,dr4 ,good had already made one journey into this interior4 ,he chose ,efulen for the site of the new mission station1 and set natives to work cutting down trees and clearing the top of the hill4 ,the name ,efulen1 which we afterwards gave it1 was first used by the natives themselves4 ,it is from a ,bulu word1 fula1 which means to mix2 for they never had seen such a mingling of people1 of different towns and even hostile tribes1 as they saw daily on our hill1 where all could come with safety4 ,it was but few trees that the several workmen had cut when we arrived4 ,for the native1 especially when working for the white man1 requires a large amount of intellectual stimulus4 ,we found a bare spot of sufficient size for our tent1 and there we pitched it and began felling the trees around us1 letting the sun down upon ground that it had perhaps not reached for centuries4 ,the wet season was upon us2 the rains were heavier and more frequent each day4 ,our tent did not turn the heaviest rains1 which sometimes came in on us in the night and saturated our beds2 but it did us no harm4 ,much more serious were the extreme and rapid alternations of temperature within the tent4 ,after a thunder-storm it was often cold enough to make our teeth chatter1 while between showers1 if the sun shone upon the wet tent1 it was impossible to endure the heat inside4 ,at such times1 however1 all we had to do was to stay outside4 ,we slept on camp-beds1 three of which filled the tent1 leaving in the middle just room enough for a table1 and we sat on our beds while eating1 side-dishes being placed on the beds4 ,our table1 which ,dr4 ,good and ,i made with a cross-cut saw1 and which had no legs1 was a solid cut out of a log three feet in diameter4 ,the first time we sawed it through our saw sloped off in a line at least thirty degrees from the vertical and with an increasing curve1 to ,mr4 ,kerr's undisguised amusement4 ,but having served our apprenticeship we got the next quite straight4 ,and since the slope of the hill was about thirty degrees1 the log table1 when properly placed1 stood exactly upright1 and ,mr4 ,kerr's ridicule was changed to admiration of our skill and judgment4 ,most of our dishes were of tin1 which we called our silver service4 ,indeed1 there was no want of tin1 for most of our food was imported in tins--meats1 milk and butter4 ,africa1 as some one says1 is a land flowing with milk and honey--condensed milk and tinned honey4 ,there are many varieties of tinned meats1 according to the labels1 but they all taste alike when one has become tired of them and dislikes them equally2 sometimes1 when one is feverish1 the smell of them is as much as an ordinary stomach can digest in that debilitating climate4 ,during those first months our meats were chiefly ,armour's sausage and some anomalous concoction of strong meats and stale onions called ,irish ,stew4 ,we bought from the natives bananas1 plantains and sweet potatoes1 and after some time we were able to buy a chicken on rare occasions4 ,as soon as possible we began raising our own chickens2 but it was only after several months that we had them frequently4 ,our cook1 a young man from the coast1 who spoke ,kru ,english1 would come to me and ask3 8,mastah1 what thing you go chop8 ,must ,i kill a chicken1 or must ,i kill a tin80 ,he much preferred to 8kill a tin10 for in that case the cooking was very simple and consisted in punching a hole in the top of the tin and then placing it on an outside fire--we had no stove4 ,when we began to have chickens occasionally the cook informed us that he must have an assistant1 because 8one man he no be fit for do all them work40 ,thus we lived for two months and a half1 until our house was built4 ,we bore the rudeness of our circumstances by making them a constant source of mutual amusement4 ,and often we conquered defeat itself by laughing at it4 ,the hill was crowded from dawn until dark with a pandemonium of naked and astonished natives1 who had never seen white men before4 ,they think aloud4 ,every impression utters itself in a yell4 ,the habit of talking aloud to themselves is so common that some white men have accounted for it by supposing that they are talking to the spirits of their ancestors4 ,i can only say that if this be so they evidently conceive of the other world as being very far away4 ,each separate act or movement of us white strangers produced a shout of astonishment4 8,he walks60 they shout1 when he takes a step forward2 or3 8,he sits down60 as they jostle each other for a front place to see the animal perform4 ,the animal1 meanwhile1 rises to his feet1 sits down1 then rises again1 turns round slowly1 lifts one leg1 then the other1 lifts his arms and turns round again4 ,if he has a hat on he will take it off several times4 ,if by any chance he should have a coat on he will take the coat off too4 ,no matter how much he may take off they will still desire him to take off more and complete the vaudeville4 ,he turns round once or twice more1 moves each of his several limbs again1 turns round again as an encore1 and then sits down1 while the crowd yells appreciation and delight4 ,then follows a lively discussion as to his appearance and proportions4 ,some of them think he would be good-looking if he only had some colour1 but such a complexion would make anybody ugly4 ,others think that he is good-looking even as he is4 ,an interesting query1 however1 is whether his whole body is white1 or only his hands and face1 the rest of him being black like themselves4 ,in order to settle this urgent question they beg him to take off his trousers4 ,illustration3 ,a ,,group ,,of ,,admiring ,,natives4 ,they admire the white man's hat as much as himself1 and regard a suit of blue denim as a nobler work than an honest man4 ,the white man's feelings are not seriously affected by the fact that they evidently consider his hat quite as wonderful as himself1 and a suit of blue denim a nobler work than an honest man4 ,of course the first novelty will soon wear off1 but a white man1 as long as he lives away from the coast and the older settlements1 will always be an object of wonder and excitement1 and will be expected to maintain his position by wonderful and exciting performances4 ,there is danger that the missionary will never get used to it1 but will lose his whole stock of patience and perhaps his reason in the effort2 and there is danger also that he will become so well used to this inordinate attention that he will miss it dreadfully when he comes home1 and is relegated to his proper obscurity in ,american society4 ,africa is not a great solitude in which one of an ascetic temper might enjoy silence and meditation4 ,there is no quiet except during the night and no solitude but the solitude of a strange city where one passes through a multitude unrecognized and unknown4 ,for these ,africans will probably never know us4 ,nor had we three white men any privacy in our relations with each other1 either in our tent or in the house that displaced it2 and for my own part1 this was the most trying of all our privations4 ,under the circumstances ,i think we three men deserved great credit for not hating each other4 ,but after supper1 when it was dark ,i used to go out to a little walk about ten yards long in front of the house and removed a short distance from it1 the only smooth walk on the entire hill1 and there ,i enjoyed a few minutes of delightful respite from noise and publicity1 while my thoughts of home and friends were unrestrained4 ,the life in the homeland seemed already painfully distant1 and almost vague and unreal4 ,like ,silas ,marner1 when he removed from his old home to ,raveloe where he was surrounded by people who knew nothing of his history1 so to me sometimes the past seemed like a dream because related to nothing in my present life1 and the present1 too1 a dream1 because linked with no memories of the past4 ,even at night the noise does not cease1 but only removes to a distance where it no longer disturbs4 ,the people stay in their towns at night1 but they usually make more noise than in the day4 ,from a village at the foot of the hill rises the weird and incessant wail of their mourning for the dead1 an appalling dirge that chills the blood2 from another village near by1 a savage noise of war drums and shouting by which they are warning an expected enemy that they are on the watch2 from another1 the uncouth music of their dissolute dance2 from another the cries of men who profess to be transformed into gorillas or leopards3--on all sides the noise ascending throughout the night like the smoke of their torment4 ,how eagerly we welcomed the mail6 ,it arrived once a month1 and was six weeks old4 ,even ,dr4 ,good1 indefatigable worker1 and the opposite of emotional1 was unable to pursue the usual routine of work when we were expecting the carriers with mail4 ,they usually came in the evening1 and all that day we were under a noticeable strain of expectancy4 ,we were also exceedingly talkative and communicative for a day or two after its arrival4 ,years afterwards ,i once visited one of our missionaries1 ,miss ,christensen1 when for some months she had been staying alone at ,benito1 one of our old coast stations4 ,i remarked that the arrival of her mail must be a great relief to the extreme loneliness of her situation4 ,she replied that1 on the contrary1 the mail day was the loneliest of all1 for want of some appreciative friend to whom she could tell the news contained in her letters and talk about it4 ,there were educated natives around her whose friendship was almost sufficient for other days1 but not for mail day4 ,her home interests were unintelligible to them4 ,my first letters from ,efulen were written on an immense log that lay near the tent4 ,i stood and leaned over upon it as ,i wrote4 ,when ,i finished my first letter ,i found that ,i had been leaning against a stream of pitch all the while1 with the sleeve of a woollen sweater lying in it4 ,but the difficulties of letter-writing were not merely physical4 ,each correspondent in the homeland naturally expected me to tell him all about the natives and our life in ,africa4 ,to describe adequately any one phase of our life would require a length of letter that would have made my correspondence unmanageable1 and to refer to our strange surroundings without adequate description would have left my letters unintelligible4 ,i thought to meet the difficulty by dividing my friends into groups1 asking friends of a feather to flock together1 and writing occasionally a long and elaborate letter to each flock4 ,i have never succeeded in killing two birds with one stone1 but ,i killed a number of valued correspondents with each of those letters4 ,no one replied to them but the person to whom the envelope was directed4 ,after one month in ,africa1 while we were still in the tent1 ,i had my first and worst experience of the dreaded ,african fever1 although in this instance it was probably malarial-typhoid4 ,it lasted several weeks4 ,when we had been at ,efulen nearly a month ,dr4 ,good was suddenly called to the coast by the severe illness of his wife1 who was at ,batanga expecting soon to leave for home4 ,dr4 ,good was not a physician1 but with years of experience and an aptitude for medicine he had acquired such skill in the treatment of ,african fever that he was almost equal to a physician4 ,as for myself1 ,i summed up my experience in the statement that once in my life ,i had had a severe headache4 ,i do not remember whether ,mr4 ,kerr's experience had been as extensive as mine4 ,we both had a vague consciousness when ,dr4 ,good left for the coast that our situation was precarious and fraught with some danger3--in a country called the ,whiteman's ,grave1 under conditions that even in ,america would have taxed the constitution of the strongest4 ,in the light of later knowledge we could have greatly improved upon our pioneer methods1 and they seemed to us quite amateurish though supported by the best intentions4 ,in coping with untried conditions and unknown factors of danger one must always expect to go through a period of preliminary inexperience and make preliminary blunders before attaining the mastery4 ,but in ,africa the preliminary inexperience often costs the life of one and the blunders disable another1 while the triumph is reserved for those who come after4 ,the imperfection of our first policy was inevitable2 the present method1 which provides every procurable comfort for men so situated1 is not only more humane but immensely more economical4 ,it is only in the last few years that missions have become a science--at least in ,africa1 and that those who go to dangerous and unknown places may profit by the formulated experience of those who have gone to such places before4 ,of course it was never intended that two new arrivals1 ,mr4 ,kerr and myself1 should be left alone at a new station4 ,but the unexpected emergency which called ,dr4 ,good to the coast is typical of the miscarriage of the surest plans that men can make in ,africa4 ,only a few days after ,dr4 ,good left ,efulen ,i was stricken with the fever4 ,the approach of it is very peculiar1 especially the first time4 ,i mistook it for a spell of homesickness2 for one becomes extremely depressed4 ,i thought ,i had been brave1 but all at once the very pith of my resolution was gone4 ,i felt that ,i had overrated my courage4 ,the life which ,i had chosen seemed a doom from which there was now no honourable escape4 ,my feelings recoiled in an agony of revolt that was mentally prostrating4 ,it was the fever and ,i did not know4 ,it was night and ,i was walking near the house1 but ,i was too tired to continue walking1 and ,i lay down on the ground in the dim starshine and wept for home1--it was many years ago and ,i was very young4 ,i was not surprised that ,i had a severe headache1 for ,i thought it was the result of my mental agitation4 ,the next day ,i was worse1 and the following night ,i was delirious the whole night1 but morning brought relief4 ,i did not think it could be fever for the symptoms were not what ,i had expected4 ,we were pitiably helpless4 ,at last1 a happy thought striking ,mr4 ,kerr1 he exclaimed3 8,i have a thermometer3 that will tell us40 8,it would tell us10 said ,i1 8if we knew what normal temperature is2 but for my part ,i don't know1 though ,i think it is #bab0--perhaps ,i was still delirious4 ,mr4 ,kerr suggested that it might be marked on the thermometer4 ,and1 if not1 ,i said that he might take his own temperature first1 and so ascertain the normal4 ,however1 it was marked on the thermometer at ninety-eight and two-fifths degrees1 or thereabouts4 ,mr4 ,kerr then took my temperature and found that it was #aje4 ,in the evening it was #ajf4 ,next day it was the same1 and so the fever raged for several days4 ,we dispatched a messenger to ,dr4 ,good1 reporting to him also my temperature for two days4 ,it was the tenth day of the fever before he reached me1 though he started immediately2 for the roads were at the worst4 ,he had no expectation that ,i would be alive4 ,meantime ,i had begun to take quinine4 ,the wet season was now at the worst4 ,the tent was not sufficient to turn the heaviest rains1 which sometimes came through and saturated the bed4 ,between showers the sun came out so strong that ,i was compelled to leave bed and rush outside for fresh air4 ,after several days of this1 ,mr4 ,kerr suggested that my bed be moved into the house of the workmen1 which had only an earthen floor with a considerable slant to it4 ,but it had at least a thatch roof that would turn rain and would afford a better protection against the sun4 ,there was a square opening for a window over which we hung a salt-bag4 ,then followed a long fight for life1 through several weeks1 and a slow victory due chiefly to the kindness and untiring care of my associates4 ,dr4 ,good after his arrival nursed me day and night4 ,what is usually known as ,african fever ends fatally or otherwise in a few days4 ,i therefore concluded long afterwards that it must have been malarial-typhoid4 ,we each have our foibles and whims which sickness sometimes brings into strong relief4 ,one of my own ,i cannot forbear relating4 ,after several days of sickness1 when ,i knew that it was fever1 and recovery seemed hopeless1 my mind turned to the meagre and unique undertaking formalities in such a place as ,efulen4 ,the fact that no boards were procurable did not trouble me in the least2 ,i felt that ,i could be comfortable in a cotton blanket or a rubber sheet4 ,but ,i had a great longing for a genuine white shirt laundered in ,america4 ,through all the successive changes of clothing by which ,i had gradually discarded the total apparel of civilization ,i had maintained a serene attitude4 ,but1 for that final ceremony1 after which there should be no more changes1 ,i had a childish desire for something that would separate me from the rude and savage surroundings of ,africa and that would serve to designate the civilization to which ,i really belonged2 and the most civilized article ,i could think of was a white shirt such as those ,i had packed away in the bottom of a trunk at ,batanga4 ,a little incident of that period will further illustrate the helplessness of bachelor white men in such an emergency4 ,one day1 when ,i had been ill a week1 ,i became hungry for the first time2 but not so hungry that ,i could eat corned beef1 sardines1 or ,irish stew2 and we had not yet been able to procure a chicken or even an egg from the natives4 ,mr4 ,kerr looking hopelessly over the pile of tins suddenly discovered one little tin of oysters1 which had gotten into our supplies by some happy mischance4 ,he shouted for joy and came running to show it to me4 ,nothing could have been better2 and when he asked me how ,i would like to have them prepared1 ,i said ,i would like them stewed in milk4 ,he soon brought them to me steaming1 and even the odour seemed to invigorate me4 ,i took a spoonful--and with a nauseous exclamation ,i spewed it into the middle of the room4 ,dear reader1 condensed milk is forty per cent4 sugar4 ,two other incidents of those days will serve to exhibit certain native characteristics that ,i may not have occasion to notice again4 ,a party of natives were going to the coast and on the way they stopped at ,efulen4 ,hearing how very ill ,i was1 and consulting with the workmen1 they concluded that ,i might live one more day1 or two days at the most4 ,accordingly when they reached the coast1 the two days having expired1 they reported to my friends that ,i was dead4 ,the report was credited for several days1 although in the mind of some there was a doubt4 ,it was only when these messengers appeared again and they asked them about the details of the funeral that the story broke down notwithstanding the fine imagination of the natives2 for they had never seen a white man buried1 and their own customs were very different4 ,they evidently made me so misconduct myself at my own funeral that my friends concluded that ,i was alive4 ,but that was the nearest ,i ever came to an untimely end4 ,i would not by any means call those natives unmitigated liars4 ,not every white man can maintain the distinction between fact and conviction4 ,again1 one night when the fever was at the worst1 a small boy1 ,lolo1 who was sitting by my bed keeping cold water on my head1 told me that there was no more water4 ,this was the fault of the cook1 a man of ,batanga4 ,mr4 ,kerr was asleep in the other end of the house1 and he needed sleep4 ,i sent for the cook and told him to go quickly and bring water4 ,there was a good spring part way down the hill a short distance behind the house4 ,the man refused to go1 though he had never been disobedient before4 ,he was afraid of the darkness4 ,it was useless to threaten him or quarrel with him1 and worse than useless for a sick man4 ,no power under heaven could have compelled him to go to that spring alone2 nor was there any one on the premises who would go with him4 ,not all are so cowardly in the night2 but there are many strong men in ,africa who would fight bravely to death with any visible or natural foe1 but are arrant cowards before the creatures of their own imagination2 invisible and supernatural enemies with which they fill the darkness of the night4 ,it was a great day for us when our new house was finished4 ,it was made entirely of native material and was much like a native house except that it had a floor and was elevated from the ground and had swinging doors and windows4 ,like all houses of white men in ,africa it was set on posts about six feet from the ground4 ,the walls were of bark1 in pieces six feet long and from a foot to two feet in width4 ,the bark is held by split bamboo the size of laths1 placed horizontally1 six inches apart and tied with bush-rope made of the abundant vine1 which is split and shaved down with a knife4 ,the roof1 which was supported by rafters of bamboo1 was of palm thatch4 ,this roof turns the rain perfectly and is much cooler than any other kind4 ,there was no ceiling in the house4 ,illustration3 ,,an ,,improved ,,mission ,,house ,,at ,,efulen4 ,the first house was similar but much smaller4 ,the changes of temperature at ,efulen being very sudden1 and immediately felt within the thin walls of our house1 we had need of fire1 and we made a fireplace by a simple device for which we claimed joint credit4 ,we cut a hole in the floor and built the ground up from below to the level of the floor4 ,there was no chimney1 not even a hole for the smoke to escape2 but it got out easily enough through the opening 7the width of the rafters7 between the walls and the roof4 ,usually we found it very pleasant to sit around a good fire in such a fireplace1 and the smoke troubled us but very little4 ,often however by reason of some sudden change of wind1 or passing whirlwind1 the smoke was seized with panic and spread in a black cloud through the room1 so enveloping us and suffocating our senses that the fire itself was wholly inferential1 on the principle that where there was so much smoke there must be some fire4 ,many a thought of siderial sublimity1 in the moment of its utterance1 was thus strangled in a mouthful of smoke and ashes4 ,the whole house was twenty-four feet long and sixteen feet wide4 ,there were five rooms in all4 ,the partitions were of bark and did not reach to the roof but were eight feet high4 ,we had greatly improved our furniture4 ,those who admire mission furniture ought to have seen ours4 ,instead of the first table1 which was a solid piece of log turned on end1 ,dr4 ,good and ,i sawed a cut six inches wide out of that same log1 and ,mr4 ,kerr put rustic legs into it4 ,the chairs were made exactly the same way but cut from smaller logs4 ,in such a house1 seated upon such chairs and around such a table we sat each evening after supper1 indulging in a social hour4 ,and while the votaries of the simple life in the far-away homeland were absorbed in the discussion of such questions as ,how to ,avoid ,luxuries1 the subject of our discussion was frequently ,how to ,obtain ,comforts4 ,we were not always idle as we talked2 for the evening brought its own duties1 often of a strictly domestic nature ,sometimes1 as we sat around the table1 ,dr4 ,good was engaged in darning his socks1 ,mr4 ,kerr was mending his shoes1 while in a state of despair ,i was trying to put a neat patch on a pair of trousers4 ,this magnificent house was regarded by the ,bulu1 not as a private house1 but as a public place1 equivalent to their palaver-houses4 ,they sometimes showed resentment when we insisted upon the personal view of it and required them to ask admission before coming in1 which they were disposed to do in crowds and at all times1 even when we were eating4 ,we were always willing to show them through it in groups1 though it took considerable time4 ,some of them expressed their astonishment in vociferous yells1 but others1 deeply impressed1 looked around them with a reverential air1 like people in church4 ,they came up the steps of the porch on their hands and knees1 as ,africans always do at first4 ,the women and children seemed afraid of the height of it and it would not have been possible to get them to stand near the edge and look down from the dizzy height of nearly six feet4 ,this timidity which at first ,i could not understand and which later disappeared1 ,i imagine was not due so much to the height of the house above the ground but to their doubt regarding the safety of the floor4 ,they had never walked on any floor but the solid ground1 and they stepped upon ours as if they fully expected that it would break and let them through4 ,we had hoped that the climate of ,efulen would be more healthful than that of the coast2 but the health record since the station was established in #ahic1 has not been better than that of some other stations4 ,personally ,i believe that without doubt ,efulen is more healthful than the immediate coast at ,batanga2 but ,i do not regard it as more healthful than ,gaboon4 ,it is certainly cooler and owing to its elevation of two thousand feet the air is not so humid and is more exhilarating4 ,but the changes of temperature are very sudden and one becomes sensitive even to slight changes after being in the tropics a few years4 ,in the light of similar experiments made elsewhere in ,west ,africa it seems likely that less fever but more dysentery will prevail in those localities that have the higher altitudes1 and less dysentery and more fever at the coast4 ,to some persons fever is more dangerous2 to others1 dysentery2 one may take his choice4 ,at ,efulen the sand-flies are very bad1 morning and evening2 but they cease their activity in the bright sunshine and also in the darkness of night4 ,there was a marked improvement in our food after some months1 owing to our obtaining a better cook from the coast4 ,the coast men were at first in doubt about their safety among the ,bulu1 and none of those would go with us who could get a position at the coast4 ,but when a number of their men had come back alive their fear was removed and we obtained better help4 ,our first cook was a common workman who had never cooked before4 ,it was part of my duty to instruct him4 ,to the objection that ,i had never cooked anything in my life there was the compensating consideration that the best way in the world to learn anything is to be obliged to teach it to somebody else4 ,the moment that ,i dreaded most in they course of the day was that in which the cook appeared coming towards me to get the order for dinner4 ,for1 with ,irish stew1 salmon and sausage1 what opportunity is there for the exercise of a fine gastronomic imagination8 ,it was the same thing from day to day2 and if ,i derived no other good from the experience1 ,i at least learned for all time to sympathize with housekeepers in the monotonous circularity of the domestic routine4 ,under my painstaking instructions the cook learned to wash his hands instead of simply wiping them on his hair or his legs1 to place a tin of meat on the fire 7after punching a hole in the top7 and to take it off when ,i told him to do so2 he learned to put plantains into the fire to roast and to take them out any time he happened to think about it4 ,but he had not yet learned the difference between warm water and hot water when he tired of his work and returned to his beloved home1 while ,i began on another candidate for kitchen honours4 ,about the time ,i had taught him to boil water he also wearied of work and went home4 ,then ,i hired a ,bulu boy and began to instruct him even with more assurance1 for ,i was now an experienced teacher4 ,the ,bulu boy learned fast1 though he evinced an incorrigible disposition to carry his dish towel on his head1 or tied round his neck4 ,finally after an experience of trials and tribulations in many chapters ,i appealed to ,mrs4 ,godduhm of ,batanga who trained a cook specially for us2 and he proved a saint of the frying-pan4 ,it was this cook ,eyambe1 who afterwards1 as ,i have told in writing on bush travel1 when we were overtaken by night in the forest1 insisted that ,i should take his shirt1 and said3 8,you must take him and wear him please4 ,this bush he no be too bad for we black man2 but my heart cry for white man40 ,it was several months before we had flour4 ,meantime1 during my long fever1 ,i conceived a desire for bread that became a craving like the hunger of famine as ,i grew weaker4 ,dr4 ,good sent word to ,mrs4 ,good at the coast to send some bread as the carriers were returning immediately4 ,he did not tell me that he had sent for it1 lest by some mischance it might not come4 ,but when it arrived and before he opened the package he told me it had come4 ,then they opened it2 there were two loaves--all blue with mould and looking like poison2 for it was the wet season and the carriers had been long on the way4 ,the disappointment was too great4 ,i told ,dr4 ,good to cut off the worst part1 on the outside1 and burn the rest to a black crisp1 and ,i ate the burned bread4 ,flour arrived some weeks later when ,i was again on my feet2 and then it occurred to us that none of us knew just what to do with it4 ,for our cook had not yet arrived4 ,one of us modestly confessed that he knew something about making biscuits4 ,it was immediately voted that he take half a day off and exercise his culinary talent4 ,the biscuits were made and appeared that evening on the table4 ,when ,i surveyed them ,i suggested that it would be fitting that we should keep them as happy memorials of this first triumph4 ,so saying ,i took the two that were coming to me and put them in my box of curios under the bed4 ,i have them after all these years4 ,time works no change upon them4 ,some months later ,i had a severe attack of dysentery and for three days had been allowed no food but the white of an egg4 ,the physician1 who happened to be visiting at ,efulen at the time1 told me one morning1 in response to my eager inquiry1 that he would allow me something a little heavier than the white of an egg4 ,i immediately applied for a mince pie2 for we had minced meat in tins4 ,the proposition was promptly vetoed by the doctor4 ,but a week later1 when ,i was again on my feet1 the request was granted4 ,this mince pie was the most pretentious achievement that we had yet undertaken1 and the most stupendous failure4 ,if too many cooks spoil a pie1 as it is said of some other things1 ,i think that the whole community of ,efulen1 white and black1 must have had a hand in that ill-fated pie1 for a few persons could never have made so many mistakes4 ,the oven was a pot set on an outside fire1 with another pot turned upside down to cover it4 ,an explosion occurred during the process of cooking4 ,i do not know what caused it--possibly a stone bursting or the overheated pot cracking4 ,at any rate it was a good opportunity for ,dr4 ,good's wit1 who contended that the pie had exploded through the neglect to put air-holes in the top of it4 ,and that night he presented a resolution that hereafter cooks should be obliged to punch air-holes in the top of every pie1 lest they should explode1 thereby endangering our property and our lives and entailing the loss of the pie itself4 ,i suggested an amendment1 that in no case should a cook be allowed to make such pies upon tin plates1 lest the plates1 not being observed1 might be cut up and eaten with the pie4 ,efulen has now passed the experimental stage4 ,one can get as good cooks and better food there than at the coast4 ,in the work of the station1 though formally we were equal1 yet as a matter of fact1 we recognized ,dr4 ,good as head1 owing to his years of experience and his competence4 ,dr4 ,good spent most of his time itinerating--preaching in the streets of the villages near and far4 ,he also made several long tours of two or three weeks for the purpose of exploring the further interior4 ,while at the station he studied the language1 translated1 and did a large amount of medical work4 ,mr4 ,kerr had charge of the work of building1 and most of the material work necessary in establishing the station4 ,i studied the language1 did all the buying from natives and went to the coast when it was necessary that a white man should conduct the caravan4 ,later in the year ,i did what ,i could of ,dr4 ,good's medical work in his absence1 the chief result being invaluable experience on my part1 and no fatalities that could be proved to be the direct result of my treatment4 ,i am sure that those who have never been among uncivilized people1 or at least those who have not a vivid realization of their ignorance will not know what a layman with experience may accomplish in healing the sick and instructing the mind through healing4 ,when ,i went to ,africa ,i was as ignorant of medicine as an educated man could be1 and ,i had neither ,dr4 ,good's liking nor aptitude for it4 ,but1 in the first place1 like other white men in that climate1 ,i was soon compelled to become my own physician4 ,for even if there is a professional physician at the same station1 he cannot be there always2 but self-care must be constant1 and so one accumulates a considerable experience4 ,and what he does for himself he can do for the natives4 ,for however ignorant he may be of medicine he is wiser than they4 ,when ,i saw a woman writhing in a convulsion ,i at least suspected poisoning2 but they suspected witchcraft and beat drums around her to drive out the bad spirit4 ,when ,i saw a poor boy delirious with fever and instead of administering some remedy the distracted parents were only trying to discover who had bewitched him1 the difference between my knowledge and their ignorance seemed immeasurable1 and ,i could advise them and help them1 for already ,i had learned considerable about malarial fever4 ,when a poor child was suffering with worms1 that frightful scourge of ,africa1 incredible to us in the extent of its prevalence1 and the parents1 though they knew and could tell me what was the matter1 yet knew of no remedy but to change the child's fetishes1 ,i knew1 even if ,i had been in ,africa only a few months1 that santonine is far more effective than any change of fetishes4 ,and no man ever lands in ,africa before he knows that sulphur is excellent for itch4 ,ulcers also are exceedingly common4 ,cuts1 scratches and wounds are always neglected and may become bad ulcers2 and sometimes the blood is so tainted by the diseases of vice that ulcers will not heal without internal remedies such as potassium iodide4 ,there is abundant need of all the skill of the best equipped physician4 ,but the majority of cases needing medical treatment are simple in the diagnosis and the treatment2 for the weak and the sickly are bound to die young4 ,fevers1 ulcers1 worms1 and itch are very common and cause more suffering than everything else4 ,but any layman can do something for these4 ,and if he is associated with a physician for a time1 he can learn to do much for the relief of suffering4 ,he can do as much as he has time to do2 and knowledge grows with experience4 ,so it was that even ,i1 despite unusual ignorance of medicine and original ineptitude1 after some years1 when ,i was in charge of a boys' boarding-school1 treated from fifteen to twenty boys a day2 for the parents were especially willing to send their sick boys2 and at the end of the term there was very little sickness among them4 ,there is much less sickness among the tribes of the interior than those at the coast4 ,if we knew all the reasons for this we might also know why the coast tribes everywhere are dying out1 many of them being now but small remnants of formerly great and powerful tribes4 ,the coast tribes have all come from the interior1 and the interior tribes to-day are all moving towards the coast4 ,the change of climate may have been for the worse2 for the strong sea-breeze alternating with the stronger land-breeze is hard on those who are not protected by clothing4 ,the slave traffic greatly reduced the coast tribes and threatened the extinction of some of them2 but it is not a reason why they should still continue to decrease4 ,the excessive use of the white man's rum without doubt reduces the birth-rate among coast tribes4 ,besides1 certain diseases have been imported with the white man's vices4 ,and it is also possible that the greater amount of sickness and disease among coast tribes may be in part due to the better care of children among the semi-civilized people of the coast1 with the result that a greater number of weak and sickly children live to maturity than in the savage life of the interior1 where none but the robust are likely to survive4 ,many sick people came to ,efulen1 most of them with very bad ulcers4 ,they realized the benefit1 and it won their good-will and their desire to have us stay among them2 but ,i cannot say that it won their gratitude4 ,even when they paid nothing for medicines or for bandages1 they took for granted that we were in some way serving our interest by healing them4 ,their psychology allowed no place for any altruistic motive4 ,the outer bandage with which ,dr4 ,good bound their ulcerated limbs1 he used several times1 in fact as long as he could1 for bandages were not easy to supply and many were required4 ,but his patients1 especially the women1 liked to have new white bandages each day1 for they regarded them as ornamental4 ,so they would take off the bandage before coming to him and would declare that they had lost it1 or that it had been stolen4 ,but frequently when he would tell a woman that he would not dress the ulcer until she should find the bandage she would deliberately take it out of her basket before his eyes and hand it to him half laughing and half scolding4 ,shortly after our arrival at ,efulen a chief came from a distant town bringing his sick wife4 ,he left her1 however1 in the village at the foot of the hill and first came up alone to talk the palaver with ,dr4 ,good and see what the white man would give him if he would bring his sick wife to him to be healed4 ,very frequently they asked for pay for being treated and for taking our medicine4 ,the medical work therefore did not serve our missionary purpose as greatly as ,i had anticipated4 ,but that is no argument against it4 ,duty is duty2 and to relieve pain and suffering as far as we are able is a duty quite apart from any consideration of gratitude or reward4 ,no more notable event occurred during the entire year than the visit of ,mrs4 ,laffin1 one of our missionaries at ,batanga1 who had only been in ,africa a short time1 and was destined soon to find a grave there4 ,dr4 and ,mrs4 ,laffin came in the dry season1 when the roads were at the best1 and ,mrs4 ,laffin was carried in a hammock much of the time4 ,mrs4 ,laffin was a saintly woman1 an ideal missionary and a very charming lady4 ,she was the first white woman who ever visited the ,bulu country1 and it required a superb courage4 ,she greatly desired to see the ,bulu people2 and besides1 with the true woman's sympathy1 she wished to know how we were really living at ,efulen and to offer suggestions for our comfort4 ,our new house1 for the first time1 seemed very bare and quite unfit for such a visitor4 ,as soon as we heard of her coming ,i sent to the coast for a number of things that ,i felt we must have for her reception4 ,among other things ,i asked ,mr4 ,gault to send me some table-cloths1 out of one of my boxes2 though we had never felt any need of them before4 ,he sent me bed-sheets instead2 but they served the purpose admirably2 and we had towels for napkins4 ,one day1 when ,i was apologizing to ,mrs4 ,laffin for our having only the comforts and none of the luxuries of life1 she replied about as follows3 8,if ,i had loved a fine house and housekeeping more than anything else ,i would have stayed in ,america where both are possible4 ,but ,i have chosen missionary work in preference1 and housekeeping therefore is only a hindrance4 ,now1 if you had carpets1 upholstered furniture1 and pictures on the walls1 ,i1 having a woman's domestic conscience1 would feel that1 instead of giving my time to the people1 ,i ought first of all to oversee your house and order the housekeeping4 ,but1 as it is1 this house gives me no more concern than if it were a wood-shed or a stable1 and ,i can go to the towns without restraint or any conscientious scruple4 ,i believe that in ,africa we ought to have as good food as possible1 comfortable beds and chairs1 and plenty of room1 and ,i hope that you will soon have all these2 but for the brief period of my visit here your house just suits me40 ,i may say that ,i made no more apology4 ,one day while ,mrs4 ,laffin was there she was buying some food from a native for which she paid him in salt4 ,she gave him the right amount1 but he as usual thought it was not sufficient and told her to go and bring some more4 ,when she did not do as he said1 he ordered her in the threatening tone that he would use to a ,bulu woman4 ,i immediately came forward and taking up his cassava threw it down the hill and told him to follow it 8quickly1 quickly40 ,he looked at me in surprise and hastened to explain that it was not ,i whom he was addressing1 but only the woman1 and that he would never address a man in that manner4 ,i told him that ,i would far rather he would address me in that way than the white woman4 ,but he still repeated3 8,it was not you1 white man2 it was not you1 but only a woman that ,i spoke to40 ,at length1 however1 he understood my meaning1 but was only more surprised than ever and calling out to his friends told them1 to their great amusement1 that in the white man's country the men obey the women1--which was not exactly the idea that ,i had intended to convey4 ,i then told him that if he would tell the white woman that he was sorry for his rudeness she would still buy his cassava4 ,it was strange how ,mrs4 ,laffin without knowing a word of ,bulu1 and making but little use of an interpreter1 yet1 by the language of a sympathetic heart expressed in manner and in actions1 reached the hearts of those poor ,bulu women1 and discovered some womanly quality in them4 ,they all followed her through the village1 and they were almost gentle in her presence4 ,i heard them telling afterwards how that in passing through a certain village she saw a child who had cut its finger and was crying4 ,it was a cut that his mother would not even have noticed1 but ,mrs4 ,laffin instantly drawing a pretty handkerchief from her pocket tore it in two to bind the bleeding finger4 ,in another matter they showed surprising modesty1 which ,mrs4 ,laffin evidently thought was natural to them2 but1 indeed1 it was natural to them only in her presence4 ,one cannot describe1 nor even understand1 the powerful influence of such a woman upon the degraded and fallen of her own sex2 but even all good women have not ,mrs4 ,laffin's influence4 ,when she was leaving ,efulen after two weeks1 to return to ,batanga1 the ,bulu women as she passed through their villages left their work and their palavers to follow her far along the way in silence1 only asking that she might some time come back again4 ,it was not many months afterwards that she was stricken with the dreaded fever1 that came suddenly and unawares1 like some stealthy beast creeping out of the jungle in the darkness4 ,the third day she died4 ,she had been in ,africa a little more than a year4 ,such is the price of ,africa's redemption4 ,but we may not say that her life was wasted4 ,such a life and such an influence cannot be in vain4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,passion ,,for ,,clothes4 ,they soon begin to wear clothes which they regard as mere ornamentation2 nor do they always distinguish the 8gender0 of the garments sold them by the white man4 ,,vii ,,the ,,bush ,,people ,the natives of ,efulen1 the ,bulu tribe1 are a branch of the great ,fang tribe4 ,they are brown--not black1 in colour1 and are several shades lighter than most of the coast tribes4 ,they need not be commiserated for their colour4 ,it is quite to their liking2 and they think they are far better-looking than white people4 ,the ,bulu go almost entirely naked4 ,the men wear a strip of cloth a few inches wide1 suspended from a string around the hips1 one end of the cloth being fastened in front and the other behind4 ,they wore only bark-cloth when we first went among them1 made from the bark of a tree1 the pulp being hammered out of it and the coarse fiber remaining4 ,the women wore less than the men1 their entire dress consisting of a few leaves suspended from a similar string around the hips and a square-cut bobtail of coloured grass4 ,children wear nothing but the string around the waist1 which is put on immediately after birth and has a fetish significance4 ,an occasional rub with oil and then with red powder1 made of camwood1 completes the toilet of the adults4 ,before our first year had passed some of the men in the villages near by were wearing imported cloth1 and in larger pieces4 ,by this time both men and women are wearing it4 ,superficial changes follow rapidly in the wake of the white man4 ,but further back in the interior the conditions are still unchanged4 ,if they have but little use for clothing1 they are excessively fond of ornamentation1 and the women are slaves of fashion4 ,most of their ornaments are imported trinkets from the white man's country1 which have travelled far in advance of the white man himself4 ,both men and women have a peculiar and striking way of dressing the hair4 ,crossing it back and forth over strips of bamboo1 they build it into three or four ridges1 several inches high1 running from the front to the back of the head4 ,each ridge is mounted with a close row of common white shirt-buttons4 ,when shirt-buttons cannot be procured1 a certain small shell is used4 ,sometimes the ridges are circular1 one within another like a story cake1 iced with shirt-buttons4 ,in addition to this the women often sew on above each ear a card containing as many as six dozen buttons4 ,sometimes they also build a kind of splash-board behind the head1 from ear to ear1 to hold more buttons4 ,the hair thus arranged remains undisturbed for several months4 ,it forms a convenient place for wiping their hands or the bread-knife 7which is also every other kind of knife7 or anything else that may be particularly dirty4 ,after dressing the hair grease is smeared over it1 from time to time1 which in the sun melts into the hair1 giving it a rich gloss2 and some of the grease passing through issues in a very black stream down the back4 ,this enables it to support an amazing abundance of small animal life4 ,they are very generous in helping one another to remove these1 and in passing through a village one may often see some one reclining with his or her head in the lap of a friend who is performing this kindly office4 ,it is especially appropriate that a host should thus accommodate a guest4 ,it is done in the street1 of course1 where everything else is done4 ,for if they should retire to the house any length of time something might happen and they not be there to see2 or1 some bit of particularly spicy scandal might be detailed and they not hear it1 and life even at the best is dull enough4 ,but we have not completed the decorating of these women2 for they would be ashamed to be seen in this paucity of ornamentation4 ,across the middle of the forehead they wear several strings of beads1 or sometimes a strip of monkey-skin1 an inch wide1 edged with shirt-buttons1 and fastened behind the head4 ,they also have bangles three inches to a foot long1 all around the head1 consisting of loose hair strung with beads of all colours4 ,but there is still room for more1 and they wear around the neck countless strings of a small blue-black bead1 piled up sometimes several inches high on the shoulders4 ,occasionally they pierce the septum of the nose and insert a string of beads or a brass ring2 and the ears are treated in the same manner4 ,a black tattooed marking between the eyes1 and two broad artistically designed lines of the same upon the cheeks running from the direction of the ear towards the mouth1 complete the head-ornamentation of a fashionable ,bulu woman4 ,upon one arm1 or both1 she wears an enormous cuff1 made of heavy brass wire1 an eighth of an inch in diameter1 coiled into a solid gauntlet1 large at the elbow1 tapering down to the wrist and spreading again towards the hand4 ,it is made on the arm and is not supposed to be removed4 ,sometimes it is worn on the upper arm1 in which case it chafes the arm1 and after a while causes an ulcer4 ,these are also frequently worn on the lower leg4 ,but for this latter purpose they prefer a large brass ring1 several of which they wear on each leg1 and which they keep brightly polished4 ,a woman if she can afford it1 wears as many of these brass rings as she can walk with4 ,it is strange that they have no love of flowers1 and still more strange when one considers their instinctive love of music4 ,passing through a village and seeing a woman performing her semi-annual duty of combing her hair1 ,i have suggested the decorative possibilities of flowers rather than shirt-buttons4 ,i have even gathered them for her and have put them in her hair1 and ,i am sure they were becoming4 ,but to her they were ridiculous2 nor was she moved when ,i told her that white women in my country infinitely preferred flowers to shirt-buttons4 ,the men are tattooed on their faces and their breasts2 but the markings are light and scarcely disfigure the face4 ,every man carries at his left side a long1 two-edged1 sword-like knife4 ,it is a splendid article1 which they themselves manufacture4 ,it is carried in a sheath of python-skin1 suspended from a shoulder-strap of leopard-skin1 though sometimes monkey-skin or goat-skin is substituted4 ,the flint-lock gun had reached there long before our time2 and every man had a gun which he carried all the time4 ,the men are usually tall1 athletic and remarkably well-formed1 though not as full in the chest as a perfect physique would require4 ,most of the younger men are good-looking4 ,many of the younger women have decidedly pretty faces1 but they are not as intelligent-looking as the men4 ,most of the children are beautiful1 with sweet1 good-natured faces and lovely eyes4 ,indeed1 all of those whom one would call good-looking have beautiful1 large and expressive eyes1 that can look brimful either of laughter or affection2 and the boys1 to the age of fourteen or fifteen1 have the most beautiful eyes ,i have ever seen4 ,the ,bulu people were unmistakably friendly and fluently sociable4 ,it did not seem to matter much that during those first days we did not understand a word they said4 ,the women were more sociable than the men1 but the men were more dignified and self-respecting4 ,most sociable of all was the head-wife of the principal chief4 ,in the usual traveller's book he would be called a king and she a queen1 but these titles are misleading without explanation4 ,this 8queen0 often used to come to ,efulen selling potatoes1 half a bucketful at a time1 for which she bought more beads4 ,she was getting along in years1 but still maintained an air of superannuated gaiety4 ,upon her back were several ugly scars where his lordship1 her husband1 had struck her with a cutlass--an unpleasant habit quite characteristic of ,african husbands4 ,one day1 wishing to strengthen the bond of friendship1 she presented us with a coil of snake for our dinner1 which we declined with profuse thanks4 ,on another occasion1 after our house was built1 she came with five junior wives of the same chief1 and asked that they be shown through our house4 ,i escorted them through the house1 as one might escort a party through the ,white-house in ,washington4 ,shrieks of wonder accompanied their inspection of every article4 ,finally this head-wife1 in lively gratitude1 insisted upon dancing in the dining-room for our entertainment4 ,the feet are the least active members in this singular dance4 ,most of the time she stands in one place2 nor does she pirouette like the dervish of ,egypt4 ,the dance has not the gladsome hop of the ,bohemian dances1 nor the swift glide of the tarantella2 and of course it is altogether unlike any of our conventional dances4 ,it is an amazing and rapid succession of extravagant gestures1 grotesque poses and outrageous contortions4 ,the shoulders and stomach and all the muscles of her seeming boneless body are set in violent motion4 ,if dancing is 8the poetry of motion10 this is downright doggerel4 ,she accompanies it with a vocal imitation of their several wooden instruments1 as incongruous as the dance itself4 ,she seems to be imitating half a dozen instruments at once1 while deaf to either applause or remonstrance on our part she dances on heedless of perspiration and decorum4 ,finally this lady came to me one day and1 offering to leave her husband1 made me a proposal of marriage1 to the delight of ,dr4 ,good and ,mr4 ,kerr4 ,shortly after this she went crazy4 ,we came in contact with a belief regarding the white man's origin which is widely prevalent1 namely1 that their dead ancestors have gone over the sea and have become white men4 ,we1 therefore1 are their ancestors4 ,dr4 ,good and ,i once entered a town where the white man had never been seen4 ,while the people were still standing back1 afraid of us1 a woman looking intently in my face uttered a cry of recognition1 mistaking me for her dead grandfather1 or grand-uncle1 or something of that sort4 8,are you not so-and-so1 of my family80 she asked4 ,not being eager to claim relationship1 ,i hastily assured her that ,i was not4 8,are you a spirit1 or are you flesh80 she asked4 ,i told her ,i was no spirit1 but flesh and bones and as solid as herself2 and ,i invited her to come and put her hand on me4 8,will my hand not go through80 she asked2 and ,i assured her that it would not4 ,then coming towards me gradually1 taking a short step1 then a fearful breath1 then another step1 she at last put her hand upon my arm and then not knowing what would happen to her she turned and ran down the street4 ,but soon recovering herself she cried out3 8,he is solid just like us4 ,my hand didn't go through40 ,then they all came1 men1 women and children1 to investigate for themselves4 ,some pinched me1 some pushed1 and some pulled my hair1 to the infinite amusement of ,dr4 ,good4 ,i made no protest against the more delicate experiments of the women and children2 but the sense of touch on the part of the men was so obtuse that ,i turned on one of them and by the vigorous use of my fists undertook to convince him that my quality was more substantial than spirit1 while the town shrieked with laughter4 ,the rest were willing to take that man's word that ,i was solid4 8,you're flesh and bones10 they cried in a chorus4 8,yes10 said ,i1 8,i am flesh and bones and fists40 ,when we first went among them our safety was in their fetishism and this we had counted upon4 ,however kindly they may have felt1 yet to them our poor bundles of goods were fabulous wealth2 and it was our opinion then and afterwards that greed would have completely mastered them and they would have killed us for our goods if they had dared4 ,dr4 ,good1 as ,i have said1 had lived for years among the ,fang1 whose language is so much like the ,bulu that he could understand the ,bulu from the first1 although he did not always let them know this4 ,in the first ,bulu town where we stayed over night ,dr4 ,good heard them discussing us4 ,the younger men were greatly excited and might have proved dangerous but for the counsel of the older men1 who are always held in high respect4 ,these elders argued that since we three strangers1 with a few unarmed followers1 had left our own tribe and had come boldly among them we must surely have very powerful fetishes--powerful enough to overcome theirs and inflict death on our enemies4 ,our very goods which they coveted was evidence of this2 for it is only by fetishes that people acquire riches4 ,further evidence was afforded by the fact that we had meat in tins which our boys told them had been there for two years and it was not rotten4 ,they had seen it1 and it smelled delicious4 ,but the convincing proof was ,mr4 ,kerr's gun1 the most beautiful thing that ever had been seen1 and which1 according to the report of the boys1 was never known to miss aim 7which indeed was a fact when ,mr4 ,kerr held it7 and everybody knows that this depends entirely upon a man's fetishes4 ,these sage counsels prevailed4 ,and before this belief in our fetishes and the fear of them was dissipated we had gained their friendship1 and were safe on that basis4 ,a month after our arrival at ,efulen1 ,dr4 ,good1 having occasion to go to the coast1 on the way bought something from a native to whom he gave a note addressed to me in which he requested me to give the bearer a red cap--a thing of yarn worth about five cents1 much appreciated by the native1 but more becoming to a monkey than a man4 ,dr4 ,good explained to him1 as his eyes dilated with astonishment1 that he would only need to go to ,efulen and hand the note to me without saying a word1 whereupon ,i would fetch out a red cap and give it to him4 ,it was almost too great a strain upon his credulity1 but he agreed4 ,his entire town accompanied him to see this unheard-of miracle4 ,it was a walk of half a day and they passed through several towns on the way1 in which they told what was going to happen at ,efulen4 ,the population of each town1 jerking the dinner off the fire1 snatching up the baby and leaving the dead to bury their dead1 joined in the procession4 ,a great crowd presented themselves before the house4 ,they had agreed not to invalidate the evidence of the miracle by letting me know what ,dr4 ,good had said4 ,the note was the fetish that must effect the result4 ,they stood with their hands over their mouths for fear the secret would fly out4 ,despite their extraordinary efforts to keep silence for a minute they were only moderately successful4 ,the leader handed me the note3 ,i looked at it and without a word went into the house and immediately returned with the cap4 ,they vented their astonishment in a great shout4 ,then each of them1 yelling as loud as possible1 began to repeat the entire incident from the beginning4 ,they must have been telling the story to their dead ancestors in ,europe and ,america1 if one might judge by their evident distance1 and by the fact that no one seemed to expect anybody else to listen to him4 ,this incident increased our prestige4 ,in a certain trading-house a similar incident once occurred4 ,a native presented a note to the trader who gave him a knife4 ,then all the young enterprising natives appropriated paper wherever they could find it1 and cutting it into similar pieces presented it to the trader supposing that he would automatically produce a knife and give it to them2 but when they witnessed his dumb ignorance they concluded that there were serious limitations to the white man's magic4 ,i have said that they regarded our meagre stock of goods as fabulous wealth4 ,they regarded us as we might regard a multi-millionaire4 ,and1 strange enough1 we gradually fell into their way of thinking1 and regarded their attitude as consonant with the facts4 ,and why not8 ,for1 to be rich is to have a little more than your neighbours1 and to be poor is to have less4 ,there is no sense of privation in being compelled to do without those things which nobody else has2 but however much we may have1 we feel the pinch of poverty when there are additional comforts and enjoyments immediately around us which we cannot procure4 ,our privations were many and great1 but they were for the most part inevitable4 ,after the first few months we had the best procurable in our situation1 and far more than those around us4 ,so1 every man in such a place will learn that wealth1 after all1 is a sentiment more than a condition1 a feeling rather than a fact4 ,but the return to civilization is like a sudden reversal of fortune1 and in dire contrast a man experiences a very painful and oppressive sense of poverty when confronted with wealth so far beyond his own4 ,we gave out various goods in pay to workmen engaged upon our premises4 ,we bought food for the workmen and some for ourselves4 ,the staple article of exchange was salt3 one might almost call it the currency4 ,there is so little of it that there is a chronic hunger for it4 ,children like it better than sugar4 ,a teaspoonful of salt is the price of an egg4 ,we also gave in exchange beads1 shirt-buttons1 brass rods1 red-caps1 knives1 gun-flints1 and later in the year we began to sell a little cloth4 ,we bought bananas1 plantains1 cassava 7that which ,stanley calls 8manioc10 which is their principal food7 and building-material4 ,all exchange is by barter1 and it is a very tedious and trying process1 a long palaver being regarded as almost essential to propriety even in the purchase of the smallest article4 ,in trading among themselves the man who can talk longest and loudest usually gets the best of the bargain4 ,the maintaining of a fixed price is new to the ,african and is hateful to him1 even if the price be good1 for it tends to deprive him of the palaver1 which is the joy of his life4 ,he makes the best of the fixed price however and even discovers that it still has some dramatic and histrionic possibilities4 ,he lays down his bamboo1 or his thatch1 before me1 telling me in a neighbourly manner how far he has had to go for it and how exceedingly scarce it is becoming1 how unusually good this particular material is and what lavish offers he received for it along the way1 and how friendship for the white man prevailed over baser considerations4 ,for1 what were he and his people before the white man came8 ,but now1 as for himself1 he has left behind all his vices1 and that very morning has decided to be a ,christian4 ,i interrupt this fine flow of sentiment by asking him what he wants in exchange for his thatch4 ,he thinks he will take a little salt4 ,i measure out with a spoon the exact amount--which he knew before he left his town4 ,the dramatic moment is when ,i put away the spoon4 ,he glances from the salt to myself several times with a fine simulation of disappointment and contempt1 calculated to reduce me to pulp4 ,he is no child in his art1 but such an adept that my moral fortitude almost surrenders before that look4 ,i seek to relieve the strain by saying with affected carelessness3 8,that's all4 ,take your salt and get out40 ,the reply to this delicate suggestion is a prolonged yell of many mingled emotions3 and then he grabs1--not the salt1 but his thatch and starts down the hill cursing the white man4 ,i have not so much affronted his judgment as ,i have wounded his feelings1 and perhaps have put a stumbling-block in the way of his salvation4 ,he thinks better of it1 however1 and comes back1 takes the salt and goes away blessing me4 ,it was hard to procure eggs4 ,the natives do not eat eggs but always set them4 ,at first they asked the price of a chicken for an egg1 because1 they said1 the egg would become a chicken1 with proper treatment4 ,the time element is always eliminated in every consideration4 ,but most of the eggs that they brought us would never have become chickens under any circumstances2 and this they knew1 for they had given them a thorough trial4 ,when ,i pronounce an egg to be bad a man always wants it back2 for he or his friend will try to sell it to me again1 watching an opportunity when ,i am very busy and have not time to examine it closely4 ,i have probably refused the same egg half a dozen times in one morning1 and then perhaps have bought it1 and the successful vender has amused the people of his town by relating the transaction at my expense4 ,the women bring their garden produce in heavy loads carried on their backs in large baskets4 ,i stand on the porch as ,i buy and they on the ground1 their produce lying on the porch at my feet4 ,they always rise very early1 and they usually reach the hill about daylight4 ,we cannot buy more than half of the food they bring2 so there is a noisy and animated scramble for first place4 ,they are there before we are up in the morning and they wait in a shed occupied by our men a little way down the hill and in front of our house4 ,there they indulge in chatter and laughter1 and one might think they had forgotten their errand4 ,but the moment ,i open the door and step outside 7for it fell to me to do the buying7 every woman1 with a yell1 snatches her basket and pitches it on her back1 or perhaps comes dragging it along the ground1 thinking in this way to gain a moment over her sisters1 and pushing and pulling each other1 some of them laughing1 more of them cursing1 and all of them yelling1 the whole fanfare sweeps up to the door4 ,not having been accustomed to rise so early1 my sense of humour is still dormant at that hour2 life is always a serious matter to me and a doubtful boon until after breakfast4 ,i yawn1 and yawn again1 and heave a weary sigh1 as ,i reflect that the clamorous noise which has thus ushered in the day will continue through the long hours until its close4 ,soon after our arrival at ,efulen ,dr4 ,good and ,i visited the town of an old chief of some fame1 named ,abesula4 ,abesula's claim to greatness was based upon the possession of thirty-five wives and any man who could endure life with thirty-five ,african wives must be made of uncommon stuff4 ,he was old and most of them were young and unruly1 and each one seemed disposed to do her full duty in reconciling him to death by making his present life intolerable4 ,as we entered the town an old woman who knew ,dr4 ,good and was very glad to see him came forward to salute him1 calling him his usual name1 ,ngoot4 ,she was covered thick with redwood powder1 like red oxide1 from head to feet1 and he was dressed in light-coloured clothes and was quite trim1 for we had travelled by a good road4 ,in a salutation of 8linked sweetness long drawn out0--8,ay6 ,ngoo-t1 ,ngoo-t1 ,ngoo-t10 she threw her arms around him and embraced him affectionately1 leaving him covered with redwood powder4 ,other women1 evidently thinking that this was the proper way to receive a white man1 followed her example4 ,now1 one of ,dr4 ,good's peculiarities was an insuperable aversion to effusions of emotion4 ,but he always considered the effect of his actions upon the mind or the feelings of the natives2 so he submitted to this tender ceremony1 but he looked as miserable as ever ,abesula did with his thirty-five wives all calling him names at once4 ,then the old woman1 not wishing to show partiality1 approached me with an amiable1 toothless smile and all the redwood that was not on ,dr4 ,good's clothes2 but regardless of consequences ,i took to my heels and bestowed myself at a safe distance down the street1 feeling that ,i had made sacrifices enough for the black race to be morally excusable for declining this unsavoury embrace4 ,in the evening we sang several hymns to draw the people together4 ,they all came and ,abesula sat in the midst4 ,then ,dr4 ,good preached to them1 and some paid close attention4 ,but after a while ,abesula1 interrupting1 said3 8,ngoot1 won't you soon be through preaching8 ,for ,i wish that you two white men would sing and dance for the people2 ,i don't care for singing without dancing1 and ,i don't like preaching at all40 ,but we did not resort to this sensational method of holding a congregation4 ,that same evening a score of ,abesula's wives engaged in a general quarrel with each other4 ,an ,african family has no skeletons in the closet4 ,they all hang outside the front door4 ,the quarrel began with two of them1 who1 earlier in the evening1 sat each within the door of her own house1 on opposite sides of the street1 reviling each other in language of loathsome indecency1 until at last1 when their intellectual resources of warfare were exhausted1 the other women told them to come out into the street and fight it out4 ,whereupon the two women came out into the street and throwing off even their scant apparel of leaves1 began to fight4 ,to our surprise they did not scratch nor pull each other's hair1 as we had heard that women do when they fight4 ,it was more like wrestling1 although blows were delivered according to opportunity4 ,they were fairly matched2 but at last one was thrown to the ground1 the other falling on top1 and then clasping each other and fighting they rolled over and over in the street4 ,when one of them was beaten the other women began to take sides and a large number became involved4 ,then the indiscreet ,abesula interfered and they all joined together against him4 ,to say that this large and unhappy family washed the dirty linen of their domestic infelicity in the street is putting it too mildly4 ,the linen was foul and fit only for the fire4 ,the women sought to shame the old savage out of countenance by the revelation of filthy secrets--but there are no secrets in ,africa4 ,abesula replied with a shocking history of their immoralities which ,i fear was too true4 ,he raged like an infuriated beast4 ,he asked for a stick4 ,some one brought him one about ten feet long4 ,as he talked he beat the ground with the stick and when it broke in his hands he called for another4 ,he cursed them and threatened them with the hostility of supernatural powers by which they would die various sudden deaths in surprising forms1 and suffer frightful penalties in another world4 ,all this while he was pounding the ground1 in which performance it was supposed that his wives were beaten by proxy4 ,it was a very forcible way of expressing his opinion of them1 and of showing them what their conduct deserved1 while it was safer for himself and more conducive to good health and a long life1 than a personal attack upon them1 seeing that it was one against thirty-five4 ,but finding at length that this bloodless flogging even when accompanied with awful language produced no other result than self-exhaustion and violent perspiration1 he resolved to kill himself without actually dying--a simple paradox to the ,african mind4 ,he brought out of his house a long knife and a lighted torch1 and carefully arranging a seat in the middle of the street where all could witness the shedding of his blood1 he sharpened the knife1 made his last speech1 in which he told his wives how he would haunt them after death1 then raised the knife above him1 threw back his head1 and pointed the knife towards his breast4 ,this tragical performance requires that at this interesting moment some one1 preferably a wife1 should rush towards him in terrible alarm and excitement and wrench the knife from his hand just in time to save his life4 ,this touching evidence of regard is a first measure of reconciliation and is usually followed by a truce of hostilities4 ,but ,abesula had made life so bitter for these women that their contempt was unbounded and they desired no armistice4 ,not one of them moved to save his life4 ,he still held the knife above him1 as if to say3 8,is no one going to interfere8 ,is it possible that you would allow a great man like me to take his own life when you could so easily prevent it8 ,at least think of the trouble it will entail1 the grave-digging1 the burial1 a month of mourning1 and perhaps charges of witchcraft40 ,still no one moved4 ,abesula suddenly resolved to sharpen his knife again so as to make death quite certain4 ,this being done he again raised it and pointed it towards his heart4 ,a native man said to ,dr4 ,good3 8,stop him6 white man1 stop him6 ,take the knife from him60 ,and it may be that the women had been expecting a white man to perform this obliging duty4 ,but neither of us moved4 ,at last the knife descended1 and with such terrible force that it would have been driven into his heart and clean through his back if it had not been that his arm was trembling with excessive determination1 and the descending knife1 missing aim1 struck the ground1 penetrating nearly to the hilt4 ,poor ,abesula1 inconsolable at finding himself still alive1 and feeling that his dignity1 if not his life1 was gone forever1 rose from the ground and sneaked away4 ,but he cast a baleful look backward1 as if to say1 8,for two beads ,i'd destroy this world and make another where great men could be appreciated4 ,as for you black creatures1 you don't know a great man when you see him40 ,later that night when all had retired to sleep1 ,dr4 ,good and ,i were still discussing polygamy1 that some white people assert is right and necessary for ,africa4 ,mr4 ,e4 ,d4 ,morel points to the triumphs of ,mohammedanism in ,africa as a proof of its better adaptation to the moral and material welfare of the people than ,christianity1 attributing its success to its allowance of polygamy4 ,but ,mr4 ,morel's friend1 ,sir ,harry ,johnston1 than whom perhaps no man living knows more about ,central ,africa and its people1 accounts for the rapid spread of ,mohammedanism in a very simple and obvious manner1 when he says3 8,mohammedanism1 as taught to the negro1 demands no sacrifice of his bodily lusts40 ,mohammedanism does improve the ,african--there is nothing gained by denying it4 ,but1 at best1 it only 8moves the masses to a cleaner stye10 which1 though cleaner1 is still a 8stye02 while the aim of ,christianity is a household1 in which the law is love1 not lust4 ,it is natural that it should take the negro longer to learn this lesson and that he should be slow in making the sacrifices that it demands4 ,in the morning ,abesula seemed to have forgotten all about the palaver1 as if it were a very ordinary occurrence1 as ,i presume it really was4 ,we rewarded him for the house that we had occupied by a gift of a red-cap 7cost1 five cents71 the remains of our tallow candle and six lumps of white sugar4 ,,viii ,,after ,a ,,year ,my progress in acquiring the language was greatly retarded by my long sickness1 and by more than one prolonged stay at the coast4 ,but the language is easy4 ,at the end of a year ,i was conducting ,sabbath services in ,dr4 ,good's absence and preaching in a stammering way4 ,mr4 ,kerr was speaking the language much better than ,i2 and ,dr4 ,good had actually translated the ,gospels1 though it was a tentative translation that he knew would soon need revision4 ,we were also penetrating a little beneath the surface of native life1 seeing with other eyes and beginning to realize its degradation and to feel deeply its misery and sadness4 ,when we three white men1 on our way to ,efulen1 entered the first ,bulu town1 the old chief asked ,dr4 ,good whether we were brothers4 ,when ,dr4 ,good replied that we were not1 the old man1 turning slowly towards his people1 with an incredulous laugh exclaimed3 8,what a lie60 ,it seemed impossible that three men who were not brothers could travel together in the forest and not kill each other4 ,one day ,i heard a sudden outcry of great alarm from a village at the foot of our hill4 ,several men of that village were at our station at the time1 and with a shout they started for home4 ,i quickly followed them and saw as ,i entered the village that a tragedy had occurred4 ,i afterwards learned that four of their prominent men had been shot4 ,they were hunting in the forest and not suspecting danger1 when another party1 who were really friendly1 mistook them for enemies in the dark forest1 and shot all four4 ,this is a kind of mistake that occurs frequently4 ,the native would rather kill ten friends than let one enemy escape2 so they often kill first and investigate afterwards4 ,the village was very small and the loss of four stalwart men left them insufficiently protected against their enemies4 ,this day the four bodies had been found in the forest and the news had just reached the village4 ,instantly1 all the wives of those men stripped off their scant clothing of leaves1 smeared their bodies with clay and running into the garden of bananas threw themselves on the ground tearing their hair and screaming1 while the other women of the village gathered around and tried to comfort them4 ,there was more than one reason for this demonstration4 ,in part it was probably genuine grief2 but there was also a strong element of fear1 the fear of every wife whose husband dies from any cause whatsoever1 that she will be charged with having bewitched him and suffer the penalty of death1 perhaps by being buried alive with the dead body of her husband4 ,for in this instance of the four men1 it would be said1 that they wore upon their necks certain fetishes that would have made them invisible to any one attempting to do them harm1 and that evidently the spell of witchcraft had broken the power of the fetish4 ,the fact that a man's wife1 or wives1 are the first to be charged with his death1 implying that they would be more likely than others to desire it1 throws a lurid light upon their social relations and incidentally upon polygamy4 ,the ,african wife everywhere is an artist in the use of poison4 ,in that entire year at ,efulen ,i do not remember that there was one natural death1 though we never ceased to hear their mourning for the dead4 ,in those tribes where no degree of civilization is yet established it is estimated that nineteen out of twenty ,africans die by violence4 ,and when one comes to know the people individually and by name1 instead of by impersonal figures1 one realizes something of the enormity of wrong and suffering covered by this record4 ,one of the friendliest of the natives who had been coming to see us almost every day1 a young man of splendid physique1 was dragged up the hill to our door1 unconscious1 a bullet from an enemy's gun having penetrated his forehead1 breaking the skull and laying bare the brain4 ,with their coarse knives they had tried to dig the pieces of broken bone out of the wound4 ,that war began with the stealing of a woman1 or rather her elopement with a man of another town4 ,the reason she gave was that her husband was so homely she could not live with him4 ,the man probably had no wife and had no possible means of procuring the very large dowry necessary for her purchase4 ,the town from which the woman was stolen1 according to native custom1 at the very first opportunity killed a person belonging to the town to which the woman was taken4 ,then the other town killed several of their people4 ,during this war the people of the more distant town could not reach ,efulen1 and those of the nearer town brought their guns when they attended our service on ,sunday and sat with them in their hands1 ready for instant action4 ,the war between the two towns continued until twelve persons had been killed1 eight on one side and four on the other4 ,then another woman was stolen1 and another war began and this first one was settled in a great palaver1 which was called in a neutral town1 the people of the two opposing towns being gathered together and sitting on opposite sides of the street4 ,after endless oratory1 some of it weak enough and some of it eloquent1 it was agreed that one side1 having killed four more than the enemy1 should pay over to them four women1 and the town to which the man belonged who had first stolen the woman should collectively pay a proper dowry4 ,having thus agreed they returned to their respective towns and it remained only to name the four women who should be given over to the other town4 ,dr4 ,good and ,i were present when the old chief1 after taking counsel with the elders1 named the four women4 ,the whole town was assembled4 ,as he pronounced each name there was a shriek and a woman fled to the bush2 but a number of men knowing the name beforehand1 caught her1 dragged her back into the street1 while she struggled and threw herself on the ground as if she were trying to kill herself4 ,but it was useless4 ,they bound them with bush-rope and they were taken away4 ,upon reaching the other town1 they would become the wives of the chief1 or others upon whom he might magnanimously bestow them4 ,my impression is that at first they are usually regarded with ill-will4 ,sometimes1 when a woman seems not to be reconciled to her lot1 her feet are put in stocks until she is brought into subjection2 but in time she submits to the inevitable and makes the best of it4 ,i have known instances among the ,fang where such women were regarded as slaves4 ,yet in all their degradation there was still something childlike about them4 ,we found them always interesting and even lovable2 and though so far below our own moral level1 our sympathy was not repelled by their degradation4 ,one upon the mountain top may seem far above his fellows2 but1 when he looks up1 the infinite stars are equally above them all4 ,the higher our ideals the more lowly our hearts1 the more sane and broad our sympathies4 ,it ought not to be expected that we would accomplish any individual or social transformation in a brief year4 ,only with length of time can even a divine religion1 so long as it leaves men free1 transform the customs of ages1 and in minds knowing only animal desires1 create new and noble ideals4 ,without doubt the new truth that we taught had become more intelligible and above all1 they grasped its practical import4 ,we not only preached but practiced justice1 honesty1 truthfulness1 and kindness 7to their amazement71 and they interpreted our creed by our practice4 ,for they themselves were preachers of righteousness before they ever heard of the white man2 but it was in doing that they lacked4 ,we felt at the end of the year that they understood us1 and recognized our moral principles as right3 and this was a great advance4 ,but the actual reforms among them were for the most part merely superficial and scarcely moral4 ,some of them developed a passion for clothes1 which they regarded as mere ornamentation4 ,it is sometimes said that we missionaries preach a 8,gospel of cloth0 mistaking clothes for morality4 ,and a superficial observer at ,efulen would probably have supposed that the ludicrous effort of the people to clothe themselves was the result of our teaching and advice4 ,but it was due only to their ready habit of imitation2 and as a matter of fact we were disposed to discourage it4 ,for one of the first lessons that the white man learns in ,africa is that clothes and morality are not so nearly related as he had supposed4 ,it is preferable in this as in everything else that knowledge should precede practice3 otherwise1 the results will be at least grotesque and often injurious to health4 ,one man is dressed in the crown or the brim of a hat2 another wears a pair of cast-off shoes1 or perhaps one shoe1 while his friend wears the other2 and even when they are new he is indifferent about shoe-strings4 ,one man will wear as his entire outfit a ragged coat of inhuman proportions2 another wears a pair of trousers that have outworn all the buttons1 while his whole time and attention are occupied in keeping them on1 and with indifferent success4 ,such rags of clothing turn these fine and manly-looking fellows into low-down rowdies or even into the semblance of apes4 ,nor do they always know the gender of the garments shown them in the trading-houses1 and not all the traders will assist their taste4 ,one may sometimes see a tall chief dressed in a pink or blue ,mother ,hubbard4 ,at the coast ,i once saw a stalwart bushman1 who had just disposed of an ivory1 8dressed to kill0 in a lady's under-garment1 fresh from the box1 snow-white and trimmed with delicate embroidery4 ,he was so proud as he strutted along that he could scarcely speak4 ,but clothes1 until they have learned to take proper care of them1 are often injurious to their health4 ,they will keep these garments on night and day1 wet or dry1 and may not take them off till they fall off4 ,it is worse with shoes4 ,the feet of the native are shod with natural sole-leather2 and if they were not1 the bush-paths would be impassable for him4 ,but he wears his shoes through mud and water1 and keeps them on at night4 ,the result is that they make his feet tender1 besides injuring his health4 ,shortly after we went to ,efulen1 such was the passion for clothes that if one should throw away an old pair of socks instead of burning them1 no matter where they might be thrown1 one might count on it that somebody1 probably a boy1 would soon appear in the yard wearing those socks1 sometimes on his hands instead of his feet1 thinking that they would last longer4 ,one day when ,i decided that a certain pair of shoes were no longer fit to wear1 ,i took them out into the yard and placing them on a block1 took an axe1 and proceeded to chop them into small pieces4 ,all the natives in the yard1 visitors and workmen1 came running to me and loudly begged for the shoes with outstretched hands4 ,but oblivious to their clamorous entreaties1 ,i kept swinging the axe and compelling them to stand back4 ,when ,i had finished ,i asked them what they wanted1 explaining that ,i could not swing an axe and listen to them at the same time1 especially when they were all talking at once4 ,they turned away with looks of disgust4 ,a certain chief at ,efulen succeeded in procuring a suit of bright blue denim4 ,the following ,sunday the family came to our service with the suit divided between them1 the women having divested themselves of the native attire4 ,the old man wore the coat1 his wife followed with the trousers1 and a grown daughter brought up the rear with the vest4 ,of course they came late1 and walked to a front seat4 ,the missionaries were supposed to maintain their gravity4 ,i was not there myself and am indebted to ,mr4 ,kerr for the incident4 ,my visits to the coast were like coming back to civilization2 such was the contrast of ,batanga and ,efulen4 ,and1 besides1 there was a white child at the coast1 little ,frances1 a dear little girl about a year old1 whom ,i carried in my arms much of the time that ,i was there4 ,for ,i have already told how one longs for the sight of a white child4 ,during those visits to the coast ,i often preached in the ,batanga ,church and ,i became well acquainted with that congregation4 ,by their progress of a few years and by the ,christian character of many individuals known to me1 ,i was accustomed to measure the possibilities of the ,bulu and the prospect of our work4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,old ,,church ,,at ,,batanga4 ,the walls are of split bamboo and the roof of palm thatch4 ,the triangular openings serve both for ventilation and expectoration4 ,the first ,sunday after my arrival in ,africa ,i preached in the church at ,batanga4 ,i had carefully packed away every article of better clothing1 including all starched linen1 and all my shirts1 and was wearing a suit which ,i had purchased at a trading-house for two dollars4 ,i have reason to remember this from what ,dr4 ,good said afterwards4 ,he told me that when ,i landed from the steamer he surveyed me with eager curiosity1 and that ,i had somehow impressed him with a doubt as to whether ,i would be able to adapt myself to our bush-life4 ,but when he entered the ,batanga ,church the following ,sunday and saw me standing in the pulpit divested of collar1 cuffs and shirt1 and dressed in a suit that everybody knew had cost exactly two dollars1 doubt was banished1 and to a fellow missionary he expressed his changed mind in the emphatic words3 8,he'll do40 ,but surely in ,africa and everywhere else our dress should be that which is proper to our work and our surroundings4 ,the ,batanga ,church had a membership of four hundred1 and the attendance was very large4 ,the present edifice is a hideous and expensive structure of foreign material1 altogether inappropriate to native conditions and a disfigurement in the landscape4 ,but the old church of those days1 while not sufficient in size1 was admirable in other respects and picturesque--elevated on posts and with a board floor1 bamboo walls1 and roof of palm thatch4 ,along the base of the walls1 at regular intervals1 were large triangular openings for ventilation4 ,but the people being accustomed to leave all matters of ventilation and sanitation to providence1 evidently supposed that these openings were intended for their accommodation in expectorating4 ,for the habit of expectoration is fixed and constant1 and is as characteristic of ,africa as noise4 ,one does not object to it so much among bush people1 who usually assemble outside1 and in whose houses there are only ground floors4 ,but when they begin to be civilized it is more noticeable and becomes offensive4 ,the majority of the ,batanga people1 with the native instinct of good manners1 were just sufficiently civilized to know that it is bad form to spit on the floor1 but not sufficiently civilized to break off the habit entirely4 ,during the service they continually expectorated through the openings in the walls1 and especially the women4 ,it seemed that the more interested they became in the sermon the more fluently they expectorated4 ,my attention was arrested and almost diverted by the uncertainty and suspense whenever ,i saw an old woman on the inside end of a pew1 lean forward1 twist her head to one side1 take deliberate aim1 and fire past six persons4 ,she never missed the hole--unless some one of those between her and the wall should happen to move or lean forward just at the wrong moment1 which of course was not her fault4 ,the appearance which this habit presented outside the church always recalled what ,dickens said of this same habit in ,america--that the appearance outside the windows of a railway coach was as if some one inside were ripping open a feather tick4 ,the men and women sit on different sides of the church and ,i believe that in their stage of civilization it is best that they should thus be separated1 though sometimes it is attended with inconvenience4 ,for instance1 a father may have charge of a baby that wants its mother2 and if so it may be passed from one to another across the entire church1 as ,i have seen1 dangling by one little arm1 and with no covering but that which nature has provided in its black skin4 ,the large majority are dressed and there is nothing grotesque or foolish in their costumes4 ,most of the men wear a white undershirt and a large square robe of cotton1 usually of bright colours1 bound around the waist and falling almost to the feet4 ,this is the most becoming male dress in ,africa2 and the black man in his own climate always looks best in bright colours4 ,a few of the men1 in too great haste to be civilized1 wear shirts and trousers1 the trousers a manifest misfit and the shirt outside the trousers4 ,this mode of wearing the shirt1 however1 ,i would not criticise2 it is charmingly naive1 and rather sensible when one becomes accustomed to it4 ,the women wear a similar square robe of bright cotton1 or better material1 bound around immediately below the arms1 leaving the shoulders bare1 and falling to their feet4 ,but among them are many1 both men and women1 who wear a smaller cloth1 bound around the waist and falling to the knees1 with nothing on the upper body4 ,individuals have different costumes but these are the types2 and the types are so established that anything eccentric or much out of style would occasion a smile4 ,people of the bush sometimes straggle into the service so absurdly dressed that the gravity of the entire congregation is upset4 ,it was so one ,sunday when the following incident occurred4 ,while ,i had fever at ,efulen1 being obliged to change clothing frequently1 ,i discarded pajamas for nightshirts4 ,they were long ones that reached to my feet4 ,these when taken off were usually hung near the fire to dry1 where the smoke stained and discoloured them4 ,when ,i was well ,i discarded them4 ,mr4 ,kerr1 for some reason1 presented one to a ,bulu man4 ,soon afterwards the man visited the coast and of course took this wonderful garment with him4 ,what is the use of having fine clothes if one is not to show them off8 ,the ,bulu man1 looking very grand in my stained nightshirt1 attended the service in the ,batanga ,church1 came late1 of course1 and walked up the long aisle to a front seat1 while the large congregation made an agonizing effort to 8remember the ,sabbath day to keep it holy40 ,but there were a number of missionaries present and they had heard me speak of those garments and their extreme discolouration by the smoke2 and when they saw the ,bulu enter they immediately recognized the garment4 ,some of the ,batanga people had begun to wear shoes1 though there is no need of them and they look better without them4 ,they have a preference for heavy shoes that will make a noise as they walk up the aisle1 otherwise people might not know that they had them4 ,but above all1 they must have shoes with 8squeaking0 soles1--or1 as the natives say1 shoes that 8talk02 and the first question a native asks when he would buy a pair of shoes is3 8,do they talk proper loud80 ,they wear black shoe-strings when they cannot get pink or white4 ,some of them are so uncomfortable that they remove their shoes during the service4 ,the collection at the ,batanga service was gathered only occasionally and was unique in quality and quantity--chickens1 bananas1 cassava1 sweet potatoes1 dried fish1 pieces of cloth1 shirts1 hats1 knives1 boards1 etc4 ,but ,i had occasion frequently to review the records of the session of the church1 and of realizing the undercurrents of the lives of those people2 and there ,i found nothing amusing4 ,it was a sad1 sad story of pathos and dire tragedy4 ,there were confessions of weak failure2 but there were other confessions of defeat only after long and brave fighting against temptations which those in ,christian lands cannot conceive and which ,i cannot relate4 ,there were stories of domestic sorrow4 ,a ,christian man tells the session that he did not partake of the communion because his heart was full of bitterness against his heathen wife for her unfaithfulness and immorality4 ,a ,christian woman declares that she refused to marry a man who had other wives4 ,she was tied hands and feet and carried to his house4 ,another woman tells the wrongs she endured from a heathen husband4 ,a broken-hearted father tells that he had not lately attended the services because the death of his only son had filled him with doubt of ,god's goodness4 ,a widowed mother also confesses doubt because ,god had taken away her only son4 ,these are the weak ,christians who have been called before the session2 and these are the men and women at whose weaknesses travellers and other critics would laugh and point the finger of scorn1 and because of them condemn the entire congregation of those who profess to be ,christians4 ,the majority of white men in ,africa judge the native ,christians without mercy1 and they judge the whole native church by its weakest member4 ,at ,las ,palmas1 on ,grand ,canary ,island1 ,i tasted a fresh fig for the first time in my life and pronounced it 8disgusting10 whereupon a native ,spaniard1 a judge of figs1 looking at me1 said3 8,o1 sir1 you are eating a bad one60 ,he was right4 ,i was eating a bad fig and judging the whole species by that one4 ,it is thus that many white men judge the native ,christians of ,africa4 ,prominent in the ,batanga ,church1 and always present at the service1 was a woman1 ,bekalida1 noted in her tribe for her good looks1 but in these latter years smitten with a disease that had horribly disfigured her1 and had eaten away her entire nose4 ,when this calamity befell her she was so overwhelmed with grief and shame that for a long time she could not bear to be seen in public4 ,but at last1 with her face covered1 she appeared in the little prayer-meeting of women conducted by her great friend1 ,miss ,nassau1 and there1 in pathetic and eloquent words1 she poured out her heart while they wept1 and told them how that she had been vain and proud until the ,lord in ,his love had smitten her2 how that during the long weeks of her affliction faith forsook her4 ,her heart was hard and rebellious and she felt that she could not bear her shame2 but she yearned for that comfort that only ,god could give2 she came to ,jesus again in penitence and ,he received her and her heart was filled with the peace of ,god2 for it was better to be disfigured than to be vain and proud4 ,in that same congregation there was one ,mbula1 who afterwards became a minister2 a young man of simple manners and godly life4 ,growing up in the midst of ,african degradation1 he was yet pure1 strong and manly4 ,he developed unusual gifts as a preacher1 simplicity and force1 fluency of speech and a charming grace of manner that many white ministers might envy4 ,there was another young man1 ,eduma1 who also became a minister and is to-day an influential leader among those who are striving to live in a higher and better way than they have hitherto known4 ,already from that congregation missionaries have gone to the ,bulu1 whom they formerly despised4 ,at least one of those missionaries1 ,ndenga1 has lived a life1 and done a work1 of faith and devotion that is fitted to surprise and to convince all those who have seriously doubted whether the ,african is capable of a high ideal and of patient performance4 ,towards the end of our first year among the ,bulu it was very plain that a change had taken place in our relations to them4 ,they had become convinced that our persons were not inviolable as they had first thought and that we had no fetishes to serve us as a potent protection2 while1 on the other hand1 though we had steadily gained their regard1 it might be doubted whether their friendship was yet sufficient for our security4 ,if there is ever any danger of violence it is in this period of transition4 ,one or two incidents will illustrate the change of feeling4 ,in a certain town which ,dr4 ,good and ,i once visited1 much farther in the interior and where no white man had ever been before1 a young ,bulu man came to us at the close of the service and addressing us in ,english said3 8,i sabey ,english mouf40 ,imagine our surprise6 ,he gave us some account of himself4 ,illustration3 ,,pastor ,,and ,,elders ,,of ,,the ,,batanga ,,church4 ,his name was ,keli4 ,when a child he had been taken by his father on a visit to a neighbouring tribe4 ,while there he was stolen from his father and taken to a distant village where he became a slave4 ,some time afterwards he was taken to the coast and sold to a chief of the coast tribe4 ,finally the chief sold him to a white man1 who in turn gave him to another white man and he was taken to ,gaboon4 ,his master was a ,frenchman1 and ,keli was his personal attendant4 ,the boy made himself so useful that when the ,frenchman went on furlough to ,france he took him along4 ,after living in ,paris a considerable time the ,frenchman concluded not to return to ,africa2 whereupon he sent ,keli to ,england and gave him into the charge of an ,english trader who was expecting soon to sail for ,africa4 ,with this trader ,keli returned to ,africa4 ,not long after this the trader having occasion to visit ,batanga took ,keli with him4 ,this was his opportunity4 ,in the night he fled to the forest4 ,finally he fell in with a caravan going to the ,bulu country1 and at last reached his town1 after an absence of seven years1 during which his father and mother had died1 and he had been long-forgotten4 ,keli had not been trained by his various masters in wisdom and judgment1 and he made the mistake of telling the people all that he had seen in ,paris and ,london--all about the big buildings and multitudes of people1 all about the clothes they wore and the very cold season of snow and ice1 all about horses and carriages and railway trains--quite overtaxing their credulity1 and earning the reputation of a notorious liar and incorrigible fool4 ,missionaries sometimes make the same mistake and pay the same penalty4 ,meantime ,keli had become accomplished to the extent of knowing ,french and ,english and five native dialects4 ,but1 alas6 how destitute of moral power is civilization alone6 ,keli did not seem to have any moral ideas4 ,the restraining fear of his former fetishism had been expelled1 and no moral motive implanted4 ,his morality was much below that of the average ,bulu1 except in the shedding of blood4 ,nothing but long familiarity can make that an indifferent matter to any man however degraded2 and ,keli had a horror of blood4 ,we took him home with us to ,efulen and made him cook and houseboy1 for we were in our usual strait at the time4 ,he knew his work well and was unapproached in service for the short time that he behaved4 ,but at the first opportunity1 one ,sunday during the service1 ,keli captured and stole a chicken1 the mother of a young brood4 ,he strewed feathers along a bush-path to make believe that a wild animal had taken it4 ,of course it will be remembered that among a people who have so little1 a chicken is one of the high values4 ,the theft was not insignificant in the mind of the ,bulu4 ,but for us the really serious import of the matter was that it raised the question as to whether they could steal from us with impunity1 or with any possibility of not being detected4 ,they had never attempted it before1 being restrained by the dread of our supposed fetishes1 which ,keli knew to be a delusion4 ,i need not say that we had never fostered the delusion1 yet it had served a providential use4 ,it was now likely to be dispelled and we were not certain as to the consequences4 ,keli immediately killed the chicken and gave it to a ,bulu man1 his accomplice1 who wrapped it in a loin-cloth and took it to his town while ,keli himself came running to me in great distress1 as soon as the service was concluded1 telling a most interesting story of a bushcat that he had seen just as it was disappearing with the chicken1 and how he had given chase and had tried to rescue it4 ,of course ,i suspected himself1 but ,i said nothing until1 by a chain of evidence that ,i have forgotten1 ,i traced it to him4 ,we made him a prisoner1 and ,dr4 ,good soon wrung a confession from him4 ,he said he would find the chicken--which1 however1 having lost its head1 could never be the same chicken again4 ,i took him to town still a prisoner1 a workman walking behind him with a rope around his waist4 ,he led me through the town to the house of his accomplice4 ,entering the house he proceeded directly to the bed and from underneath it produced the chicken1 wrapped in the cloth of the other thief4 ,i took the chicken and the cloth and started back to the station1 still accompanied by ,keli1 and a long procession of natives4 ,i had gone but a short distance when the owner of the cloth with a number of men following1 came running from behind1 and dashing past me with a shout1 immediately turned about1 placed himself in the narrow path before me1 and with his long knife in his raised arm demanded his cloth4 ,it may have been mere bluff on his part1 one cannot tell4 ,the chief danger1 if there was any1 was not their natural brutality so much as their excitement4 ,of course ,i could not yield to a demand that was really a threat and so bring us into contempt4 ,but ,i was far from comfortable and ,i would gladly have made a present of the entire incident to my worst enemy4 ,my resources were1 in the first place1 straight bluff1 and second1 the moral prestige of the white man4 ,keeping my eye fixed upon him ,i ordered him out of the path1 and as he did not obey1 ,i suddenly struck him as heavy a blow as ,i could1--so suddenly that he was taken completely off his guard and was thrown headlong into the thicket1 while ,i passed on4 ,surprised more than hurt1 it took him some time to recover himself and to take counsel with his fellows4 ,meantime1 wishing to avoid an ugly palaver1 and still to retain personal authority1 ,i unfolded the cloth1 discovered before the eyes of the people that it was very dirty and full of holes1 laughed at it and got them to laugh1 and finally threw it aside1 saying3 8,tell him that this cloth is not fit for a white man to take40 ,as ,i moved on ,i heard the man and his friends coming again1 running and yelling2 but as he came up the people shouted that they had his cloth1 and the sight of it appeased his anger4 ,that night we kept ,keli a prisoner in our house4 ,dr4 ,good thought that in our peculiar situation we could not afford to let him go unpunished4 ,with great reluctance he advised that he ought to be flogged in the presence of the people4 ,he was always kind and considerate towards the natives1 but he was not a man who would shirk a duty because it was disagreeable4 ,for myself1 my mind was not quite clear that flogging was a moral necessity4 ,but ,i knew ,dr4 ,good well and had learned to trust him1 so ,i consented that he should do as he thought best4 ,the next morning1 therefore1 he and ,i took ,keli down to the principal town1 and having called all the people together1 ,dr4 ,good told them1 in native fashion1 the story of ,keli's wrong4 ,and he added that in view of ,keli's youth and the hard circumstances of his life he had decided that he would only flog him and dismiss him4 ,thereupon1 with a rod prepared for the purpose1 he began to administer the flogging4 ,now1 if ,i were relating fiction and not reality1 ,i should certainly proceed to have ,keli properly flogged and the mind of the community deeply impressed in consequence4 ,but as reality never quite attains the ideal1 and as ,i may not substitute imagination for history in this sober narrative1 ,i must tell of 8the slip twixt the cup and the lip40 ,prominent among ,keli's moral discrepancies was cowardice2 and even before the rod descended for the first time he uttered a scream that evidently startled ,dr4 ,good1 for he let go his hold and ,keli bounded from him4 ,dr4 ,good chased him and could easily have caught him but it had been raining and the clay surface of the street was smooth and slippery1 giving ,keli's bare feet a decided advantage4 ,they both resembled amateur performers on roller skates4 ,the chase that followed seemed to appeal peculiarly to the humour of the natives1 which was the more excessive because of the strong reaction from fear and apprehension4 ,they laughed wildly4 ,keli led the way around the palaver-house once or twice1 then down the street1 ,dr4 ,good following him close and reaching after him1 while he administered what would have been a severe flogging but that the strokes persistently fell about twelve inches behind ,keli's shoulders1 affording him1 ,i imagine1 an acute realization of the old adage1 8,a miss is as good as a mile40 ,soon they reached a steep slope in the street1 and ,keli1 steadily gaining1 at last made his escape4 ,i1 looking on1 maintained an exterior of stern gravity that was the very antithesis of my feeling4 ,but deeper than outward gravity and inward laughter ,i was praying that nothing might happen to impede ,keli's steady progress2 for this flogging in pantomime served to impress a moral lesson1 while it left no marks on poor ,keli's skin1 whom seven tribes and nations had helped to degrade4 ,i should not wonder if ,dr4 ,good himself felt somewhat as ,i did4 ,on our way home ,dr4 ,good intimated to me the moral propriety of not mentioning the incident to ,mr4 ,kerr or any of the missionaries at the coast1 for ,i was soon going to the coast4 8,indeed10 said ,i1 8you could not possibly bribe me to silence regarding the episode of this morning4 ,it would be a great wrong1 in this weary land1 to deprive my fellow missionaries of such an entertainment1 and ,i am really thinking of going to the coast a day earlier than ,i had expected40 ,no man could yield to the inevitable with better grace than ,dr4 ,good4 ,before we reached home he was laughing2 and he was even disposed to anticipate me in telling the story1 which he did with dramatic effects and graphic touches inimitable4 ,it was not long after this that the ,bulu conceived the idea of wresting from us a higher price for all articles of native food4 ,when we refused their demand they all joined together in a boycott4 ,our position was serious enough2 for we had a number of workmen from the coast whose entire food we purchased from the ,bulu4 ,we happened to have rice on hand which for the time we gave the men and which was sufficient to last several days4 ,meantime1 it happened that there was more sickness than usual4 ,some of the principal chief's wives had bad ulcers and were coming daily for treatment4 ,but one day when our rice was nearly exhausted1 ,dr4 ,good turned them all away1 saying that he would treat them when the people would bring food4 ,this was a possibility that had never occurred to them4 ,a few days later they decided to bring food and end the boycott4 ,but now that they had once attempted it there was need that we should always be prepared by having on hand a supply of rice4 ,about this time ,i went to the coast expecting to remain only a few days and return with a large caravan2 for we were in need of many things4 ,it was on this journey that the incident occurred which ,i have related1 when my carriers lost their way with my bed and clothing and ,i suffered extreme exposure4 ,the result was a fever immediately upon reaching the coast1 and a second fever before ,i had sufficiently recovered from the first to set out for the interior1 and then a third fever1 the worst that ,i had had4 ,if ,i could have reached ,efulen ,i would probably have recovered2 for the climate of ,batanga is dreadful4 ,but the wet season1 which had been coming on gradually was now at its worst1 and cut off the possibility of a retreat to the interior1 in my greatly reduced health4 ,the last fever had been so serious that ,i could not risk another4 ,there was only one thing to do4 ,so1 with the advice of all the missionaries at ,batanga1 ,i took the first steamer that came1 and fled from the coast1 having been in ,africa a year and a half4 ,nor did my health permit of my return to ,africa for four full years4 ,as ,i put out from the ,batanga beach in a surf-boat and stood looking back at the receding shore while we rose and fell with the heavy waves of the evening sea1 the last one that ,i saw was ,mrs4 ,laffin1 who again came out and waved her handkerchief4 ,she was very well then2 but only a few weeks later she died4 ,a month after ,mrs4 ,laffin's death came the dreadful news that ,dr4 ,good had died4 ,he was a man of iron constitution and such amazing vitality of body and mind that it seemed impossible to associate death with him4 ,the unnaturalness of his death impressed me as might some great convulsion in nature2 as if a mountain had been uprooted and cast into the depths of the sea4 ,mr4 ,kerr was at ,efulen when ,dr4 ,good died and several other missionaries had arrived4 ,while ,i was still there ,dr4 ,good had planned a trip of three weeks into the interior further than he had yet gone with a view to choosing a site for another mission station2 but circumstances at ,efulen led him to postpone the journey4 ,at that time he received a message from a notorious and dreaded chief of the interior near the present ,elat1 warning him not to dare to come into his country1 for that he would surely kill him4 ,dr4 ,good1 however1 continued his preparations for the journey4 ,in the course of a long and serious conversation as to what it would be best to do in case that interior chief or any other should do him violence or should capture and detain him1 he urged and exacted from me a promise that in any event the ,german government should not be called to his assistance1 even to save his life4 ,not that he denied his right to protection but he knew the severity of the government1 having recently witnessed it in a war upon a neighbouring tribe4 ,and indeed ,i myself had arrived in ,africa in time to see something of the desolation of that war in the silent and smoking remains of towns from which the people 7all who had escaped from the sword7 had fled into the depths of the forest4 ,for instance1 two little boys who had just been taken into our school at ,batanga had been found alone in the forest1 and crying beside the dead body of their mother4 ,i yielded to ,dr4 ,good a reluctant promise as he desired2 for ,i could not controvert the moral principle which actuated this strong1 brave-hearted man4 ,for other reasons he did not go at that time2 but not long after ,i left ,africa1 and upon the arrival of others1 he set out upon this hard and uncertain journey4 ,perhaps he erred on the side of economy and indifference to comfort1 not providing himself with everything procurable that could conserve his strength and vitality4 ,he made extensive explorations of the interior1 chose the site for a new station1 returned to ,efulen exhausted1 and the next day was stricken with fever4 ,the third day afterwards he died1 having been delirious most of the time4 ,he was only thirty-seven years old4 ,his last conscious words were a message to the church at home1 8,see that ,i have not laboured in vain40 ,great man and great missionary6 ,there was something about ,dr4 ,good that always reminded one of ,livingstone4 ,six years later1 standing at his grave on ,efulen hill1 where every tree and every foot of ground were associated with his memory1 ,i recalled the inscription in the crypt of ,st4 ,paul's ,cathedral1 over the tomb of ,sir ,christopher ,wren1 its great architect4 8,if you ask a monument look around you40 ,the ,church of ,efulen1 the growth of which has since been marvellous1 no costly pile of stone or marble1 but of more precious human souls upon whose darkness the light of heaven has dawned1 the large congregation that gathers there to worship the true ,god1 and the many changes in the community near and far--these are the lasting monuments of ,dr4 ,good4 ,,ix ,,the ,,kruboys ,it was not on the voyage to ,batanga1 but on subsequent voyages along the lower coast1 to the ,congo1 to ,st4 ,paul de ,loanda and ,benguela1 that ,i was fully impressed with the service of the black man to the white and the disposition to cruelty on the part of the latter4 ,for it is south of ,batanga that the natives employed on the steamer do their hardest work4 ,what ,i saw and heard on those several voyages gave ample food for reflection upon the moral danger of unrestrained authority and the unfitness of most men to govern their fellows of lower degree4 ,i was allowed to remain absorbed in my own thoughts as there were but few passengers on board2 on one such journey ,i was the only passenger for three weeks out of five4 ,after leaving ,sierra ,leone on the outward voyage the course changes eastward4 ,a few days later we sighted the coast of ,liberia and nearly opposite ,monrovia we anchored and waited for eighty black men who were shipped as workmen for the rest of the voyage4 ,we anchored far out at sea2 for the ,liberian coast is very rough and dangerous1 and for most of the entire coast the latest charts are more than fifty years old4 ,these workmen belong to the ,kru tribe4 ,they do all the work of discharging and taking on cargo for the entire voyage1 remaining on board for the round trip--usually three or four months--and receiving in payment an average of a shilling a day4 ,we do not call them 8,krumen10 but 8,kruboys10 for in ,africa they are boys till they die4 ,the ,kruboys are the 8real thing10 the ,africans that you have pictured in your imagination and have read about1 and at the sight of them coming off in a fleet of large canoes1 accompanied by the whole population1 almost stark naked--the majority wearing a bit of calico the size of a pocket-handkerchief--black and savage1 and each of them yelling like ten savages1 the ladies on board usually hurry down to their cabins and remain for a while in obscurity4 ,ropes are thrown over to the ,kruboys and they climb the side of the ship like monkeys4 ,at closer view they do not appear savage at all4 ,every face reveals laughing good-nature1 and each man looking after his simple necessities in a businesslike way makes himself as comfortable as possible1 and yells as loud as possible1 while he asks for what he wants and declares to all on board what he is going to do1 though he does not seem to expect anybody to listen to him or to pay any attention to him4 ,there is considerable disputation1 some quarrelling1 and an occasional fight4 ,they have a remarkable way of passing from laughter to quarrel and from fight to song by the easiest sort of transition3 passion does not linger4 ,one soon becomes accustomed to their nakedness1 and even the ladies seem to forget it4 ,in this they are helped by the native's childlike unconsciousness of any breach of etiquette4 ,then sometimes one goes to the other extreme and thinks that there is nothing of the savage about them at all--barring the yell and a soon-discovered incorrigible indifference to the categories of 8mine0 and 8thine0 with consequent insecurity of all portable property4 ,in this stage of developing opinion ,i have heard ladies pronounce them 8perfectly lovely40 ,and the ,old ,coaster blandly informs them that they are 8as innocent as lambs40 ,the ,kruboy is of real negro stock1 and is not so graceful1 not so intellectual1 not so gentle in manners1 as the natives further south of the ,calabar1 the ,bantu tribes1 who are not classified as negroes4 ,but the ,kruboy's physique is magnificent1 in size1 development1 and strength4 ,they prefer to sleep in the companionway or some other sheltered place2 but1 as there is not room for all1 most of them lie in their nakedness on the open deck1 exposed to all kinds of weather4 ,their food is rice1 salt pork1 and sea biscuits4 ,their degradation is manifest not so much in the indecency that most people expect1 as in their unappeasable hunger and greedy appetite4 ,all food is 8chop0 to the ,kruboy1 and when he eats he 8chops40 ,you may not like this word--you may hate it2 but you will be obliged to use it continually on the coast2 and the ,kruboy would not understand any substitute4 ,one day the ,kruboys were landing some salt at ,batanga for our missionary1 ,mr4 ,gault1 when the boat capsized in the surf and before they could recover it the salt had all dissolved in the sea4 ,they came to ,mr4 ,gault carrying the empty1 dripping sacks1 but absolutely indifferent to the loss1 and said3 8,massa1 the sea done chop all them salt40 ,the ,english names of the ,kruboys are interesting1 and need some explanation4 ,in the ,african languages there is no distinct vocabulary of 8proper names40 ,as it was with the ,jews1 and some other nations ancient and modern1 so in ,africa names are usually descriptive or commemorative of some incident1 notable or otherwise1 and any word1 phrase1 or sentence1 may be so used4 ,for instance on the ,gaboon ,river there is a very small village1 which1 as ,i was entering it for the first time1 one of my boat-boys described as consisting of four men1 four women1 four houses1 four goats1 and four chickens2 but the name of it was ,bi ,biana ,milam--,we ,despise ,big ,towns4 ,i thought it was rather pathetic2 for ,i know how the big towns vex the little towns4 ,childlessness is a reproach and a great sorrow among ,african women2 and a certain woman in ,gaboon who was advanced in years when she bore her first child gave him a name which means1 8,it-is-no-disgrace-to-be-childless40 ,these names sound far better in their own language4 ,but the ,kruboys of the steamers take ,english names which1 to say the least1 are not dignified1 and are more absurd when the ship's officers call them out in anger--and the ship's officers are always angry when they talk to the ,kruboys4 ,frying-,pan1 ,black ,kettle1 ,crowbar1 ,ham and ,eggs1 ,liver and ,bacon1 ,bottle of ,beer1 ,whisky1 ,bag of ,rice1 ,weariness1 ,three ,o'clock1 ,daybreak1 ,half a ,dinner1 ,castor ,oil1 ,every ,day1 ,to-morrow1 ,never ,tire1 ,sea ,breeze1 ,jim ,crow1 ,two ,pounds ,six1 ,smiles1 ,silence1 ,my ,friend1 ,gunpowder1 ,bayonet1 ,cartridge1 ,crocodile1 ,misery1 ,get-your-hair-cut1 ,tom ,tom1 ,pagan and ,shoo ,fly are names ,i have heard4 ,while we are on this subject we may as well get acquainted with the ,kru ,english1 which is the 8,pigeon ,english0 of the coast4 ,all ,kruboys 8speak ,english ,mouth0 in this peculiar dialect4 ,to people of intelligence and cultivation it is always very offensive at first4 ,they especially cannot bear to hear white people use it2 nor does it seem to them in the least degree necessary4 ,good ,english is as simple and they think would be quite as easily understood by the black man4 ,i remember well how it first affected me4 ,i was disgusted when ,i was told that ,i would soon be speaking it myself4 ,the first change in my feelings took place when ,i found that it had its method and its idiom4 ,it is not 8any old ,english40 ,there is correct and incorrect ,kru ,english4 ,it may properly be regarded as a dialect4 ,the ,african languages1 however they may differ in vocabulary1 have a common idiom4 ,kru ,english is simply the idiom of the ,african languages with an ,english vocabulary4 ,there are some irregularities and a small number of importations from other tongues1 the principal foreign word being 8sabey0 for 8know10 from the ,french 8savez40 ,one of its principal features is the use of the verb 8live0 for the verb 8to be40 ,i stand in the doorway and call3 8,half a ,dinner60 and the answer comes back faintly3 8,i live for come40 ,if ,i want to ask a boy whether ,shoo ,fly has arrived1 ,i say3 8,shoo ,fly live80 ,and as ,shoo ,fly never arrives when he is expected ,i probably get the answer3 8,shoo ,fly no live20 or1 8,shoo ,fly no lib20 or possibly1 8,he lib for chop1 massa40 ,to 8find0 a thing is to search for it1 though one may not find it at all2 and a man will say3 8,i find him1 find him1 long time and never look him40 ,there is a great dearth of prepositions in the ,african languages2 and in ,kru language the word 8for0 serves all prepositional uses4 ,it seldom uses more than one demonstrative1 and the word 8them0 is forced to do this reluctant service4 ,i ask3 8,what for them man ,weariness he no work to-day80 and perhaps get the answer3 8,he live for sick4 ,he live close for die40 ,there are certain stock phrases that one hears all the time3 8,you sabey ,englis mouf80 8,i hear him small1 small40 8,massa1 ,i no sabey them palaver40 8,them man he make me trouble too much40 8,i go one time0 78one time0 is 8at once071 or 8,i go come one time40 ,kruboys are not the only ,africans who speak ,kru ,english4 ,it is spoken by thousands along the coast who have no knowledge of any other ,european language4 ,even ,frenchmen1 and especially ,germans1 in their own colonies1 sometimes have to learn ,kru ,english in order to converse with their boat-boys4 ,white men are often proud of speaking it well1 and ,i have sometimes seen men standing at the head of the gangway and shouting down to the boys in a boat below1 apparently for no other reason than to display their linguistic talent1 as one might be vain of a knowledge of ,french or ,german4 ,i have not used it as much as some2 for1 in the ,congo ,franais where ,i spent most of my time1 very little ,english1 good or bad1 is spoken2 and in the interior one does not hear it at all4 ,but ,i am very familiar with it4 ,i have preached in it and have even prayed in it4 ,this would have been impossible if any person had been present who could speak good ,english4 ,humour is peculiarly a social enjoyment4 ,it takes at least two persons to enjoy a joke4 ,often in the native towns ,i have witnessed the most amusing incongruities without being in the least amused1 until ,i thought of it afterwards1 sometimes long afterwards1 when talking with some one else who would appreciate the humour and see the incongruity with me4 ,so1 ,i say1 ,i have preached in the ,kru ,english1 and1 reverently1 ,i believe--at least without any consciousness of incongruity2 but if an ,english-speaking person had entered the church ,i could scarcely have proceeded to the end of the sentence4 ,shortly before leaving ,africa ,i was visiting a coast town in a tribe whose own language ,i did not know4 ,but they understood ,kru ,english1 and ,i preached to them in that dialect1 on the parable of the ,lost ,sheep4 ,it will not be fully appreciated without the ,african accent1 tone1 and gesture4 ,i related the parable to them about as follows3 ,s'pose one man he have hunderd sheep and one sheep go loss for bush1 what you think them man he go do8 ,well he go lef' all them other sheep and he go find them sheep he live for bush4 ,he go find him1 find him1 and no tire till he look him4 ,s'pose he find him four or three days and never look him1 well1 he no tire2 and s'pose he find him seven or six days and never look him he no tire2 ten or nine days and never look him1 he no tire2 he go find him1 find him1 find him1 all time till he look him4 ,and s'pose he look him1 well1 he take them sheep on him shoulder1 so ,he carry him for house and give him plenty chop1 and he be glad too much4 ,then he go call all him friends1 plenty man1 plenty wife1 and small piccaninny1 and he say to them3 8,say1 you sabey them sheep that done loss for bush8 ,well1 this day ,i look him4 ,then all people they make palaver and be happy too much4 ,so1 s'pose man go lef' all him sins and do ,god-fashion2 well1 all them people1 what live for top1 they make fine palaver1 and be happy too much40 ,there may be inaccuracies in this1 but it is tolerably correct2 and ,i am sure that my ,african audience understood it4 ,there is ,kru ,english and ,kru-er ,english1 and ,kru-est ,english4 ,in the latter1 8that0 and 8them0 become 8dat0 and 8dem40 ,but even if many natives use this form they perfectly understand the white man when he uses the correct form2 and it is execrably bad taste to exaggerate either the pronunciation or the idiom1 and to outdo the native himself in departing from the correct form4 ,it also seems to me to be bad taste for white people to use ,kru ,english when it is not necessary1 as some do4 ,and when a white woman deliberately adopts in her own household the word 8chop10 and other such words1 she puts a strain upon my respect4 ,once when ,i was living at ,gaboon1 a north-coast man from ,accra called on me1 with whom ,i conversed in ,kru ,english4 ,that evening ,i received a letter from him which ,i kept for a long time as one of my souvenirs of ,gaboon4 ,i venture to reproduce it from memory3 ,right ,reverend ,father in ,god3 ,this day ,i done look gold toof what live for your mouf4 ,all my life ,i never look so fine toof4 ,berra well4 ,i like toof for my own mouf all same as them toof4 ,i no like white toof again4 ,s'pose you go buy me one toof all same as yours2 s'pose you buy him for your country2 berra well2 ,i be fit for pay you cash and ,i be your fren all time4 ,please1 ,mister ,milgan1 do this for ,god's sake4 ,your fren1 7,signed7 ,,joseph ,,accra4 ,for trade and commerce between ,africa and the civilized nations the ,kruboy is at present more important than any other ,african1 and is almost indispensable4 ,for1 owing to the heavy surf the open coast is nearly inaccessible for the landing of cargo and can only be worked by the most skillful and daring boatmen1 and the ,kruboy excels all ,africans in these qualities4 ,they received their first training from the slavers of early days1 in whose service they learned both beach work and ship work4 ,the slavers finding them useful allies and wishing to maintain friendly relations with them persuaded them to put a distinguishing mark upon themselves so that none of them might be taken and enslaved by mistake4 ,this mark is a tattooed band1 with an open pattern1 running down the middle of the forehead and to the tip of the nose4 ,the fashion1 when once established1 remained1 and they are all tattooed in this way4 ,the ,kruboy also until late years hired with traders all along the coast to do beach work1 that is1 handle boats and cargo1 sample rubber and oil1 prepare copra1 and do the variety of work of a trading-house4 ,he is willing to serve an apprenticeship almost for nothing1 during which time1 he says1 he 8live for learn sense40 ,he is paid largely in goods4 ,on his return to his country 7and he will not stay away longer than a year7 the ,liberian government exacts a portion of his goods4 ,a large part of the remainder goes to the elders of his tribe who have protected his wives in his absence4 ,if he refuses this demand1 which is usually exorbitant1 or if he stays away too long from his country1 the wives themselves are confiscated4 ,goods1 however1 that are made up into clothing are never demanded2 and this accounts for a habit of the ,kruboy which sometimes amazes ship-passengers4 ,on his return as a deck-passenger after serving a year down the coast he turns tailor and employs all his time in making clothes1 cutting them out and sewing them1 on the deck4 ,if there are many ,kruboys thus travelling the lower deck presents an aspect of fantastic activity4 ,in late years they have not gone far down the coast except as ship-hands4 ,the ,kru people are peculiarly inaccessible to ,christian influence4 ,this is in part owing to the fact that they are away so much of the time4 ,the life that they live when thus separated from their people and the nature of their contact with white men are not conducive to their moral welfare4 ,but1 as a matter of fact1 very little missionary work has been done among them4 ,they are extremely superstitious4 ,the surf1 with which the ,kruboy fights desperate battles for his life1 is full of malignant spirits2 and so of everything that opposes or hurts him4 ,his soul leaves him when he sleeps1 and often some witch catches it in a trap2 whereupon he takes sick and soon dies4 ,sometimes the witch inflicts a fatal wound upon the soul2 and sometimes he hangs the trap over the fire and the soul shrinks and dies1 himself failing and dying at the same time4 ,occasionally1 however1 the wandering soul stays away of its own accord4 ,a witch-doctor may catch it and put it back into him for a consideration4 ,sometimes when the soul of the sleeper would return in the morning it finds its place taken by some malicious spirit which inflicts sickness4 ,the witch-doctor must first expel this spirit before restoring the man's soul4 ,when a person of any importance dies the ,kru custom is to kill a number of others to accompany him to the underworld4 ,the underworld is somewhat like this1 and the inhabitants there pass their time somewhat as we do here2 much of it is therefore spent in talking palavers4 ,sometimes they even talk palavers which began in this life and were not settled or were decided unjustly4 ,for this purpose they often need the testimony of persons still living1 and such persons immediately die in order to go to the underworld and give testimony4 ,this is a common explanation when a number of persons die about the same time4 ,i like the ,kruboy so well and ,i admire his bravery so much that ,i am reluctant to admit his glaring deficiency of morals1--that he lies1 steals1 commits adultery1 and kills his neighbours with a good-natured or perhaps stupid indifference to right and wrong scarcely paralleled even in ,africa4 ,the treatment that the natives receive at the hands of the ship's officers is often the very opposite of brave4 ,many of these officers are pleasant gentlemen4 ,some of them will later be captains1 and as a rule none but the best ever reach that position4 ,the captains of the coast steamers are a fine class of men and delightful to travel with4 ,i have never witnessed cruelty on their part towards the natives2 though ,i have sometimes wondered that they did not interfere and restrain the angry passions of their officers4 ,yet1 it must be added that the officers have not so much need of restraint when the captain is standing by4 ,not to touch upon the doubtful propriety of swearing under any circumstances2 no one but a fool will habitually swear at a ,kruboy4 ,for the ,kruboy is as indifferent to a curse as to a blessing1 and thus it reacts upon the man himself1 exasperating him and putting him into such a rage as to threaten him with a fit of apoplexy or at least a brain-storm4 ,the cursing of one or another of the officers at the ,kruboys is both loud and continuous1 and if it should suddenly cease one might be justified in supposing that the ship had sprung a leak and was about to go to the bottom and the officers to certain death4 ,on the homeward voyage there are always1 among the deck-passengers1 a number of ,accra or ,lagos men who have been working on the south coast and are returning home with their pay1 a large portion of which is in the shape of various goods4 ,there is no harbour in either of these places and the steamer anchors far out1 in rough water1 the passengers going ashore in boats4 ,some officers when in charge of native passengers are careful of their baggage2 but occasionally--and not seldom--it is flung down into the boat below without the slightest care and even with the apparent intention of causing as much breakage and other damage as possible4 ,the officer casts an occasional glance towards the upper deck1 quite sure that the white passengers are enjoying the joke4 ,but he is mistaken3 both the missionary and the trader are indignant4 ,for they both know the native better than he does1 and they also know that those goods were earned by the hard labour of at least a year1 and perhaps three years1 during which time he has not seen his home or his friends4 ,and only those who know them intimately can understand this sacrifice2 for the ,african can die of homesickness4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,debarkation ,,of ,a ,,deck ,,passenger4 ,it is in accord with native etiquette that these men coming home should arrive very much dressed1 in new clothes1 starched linen and infinite jewelry4 ,this dressing is done on the open deck and occupies sometimes the entire day before the arrival1 to the delight of the white passengers1 who also give much kindly and gratuitous advice1 which the native takes in good part4 ,but in spite of their assistance there is nearly always something a little 8off0 in the completed toilet4 ,one individual1 grandly dressed1 had his new shoes on the wrong feet4 ,they had been made on a very crooked last and the effect was more grotesque than one would suppose4 ,he looked as if he expected to walk with his legs crossed4 ,well1 we may enjoy all this with very kindly feelings towards the native4 ,but the fun is all spoiled when the ship's officer perpetrates a practical joke apparently for our amusement4 ,these passengers1 men and women1 in places where the sea is rough1 are lowered into the boat by a chair1 which is fastened to the end of a long rope suspended from a crane4 ,the chair looks perfectly safe and comfortable as it sits on the deck4 ,the native gets into it without hesitation4 ,the rope is then drawn up by the crane till the chair is raised from the deck and goes swinging out over the bounding main4 ,its occupant1 if it be a woman with a baby1 for instance1 screams with fright1 and perhaps as the chair moves off flings her baby back on the deck1 trusting to ,providence for its landing2 but the ,african baby leads a charmed life4 ,meanwhile the woman shuts her eyes and resigns herself to her fate4 ,the chair is lowered to the boat below1 and if the sea be rough and the boat heaving and tossing there is a very dangerous moment as the chair first comes in contact with it4 ,the women are always lowered with care4 ,but in lowering these much-dressed men--usually several at once--the officer in charge frequently makes it a point to 8capsize0 them1 by letting the chair come down on the gunwale of the surf-boat1 or on a thwart1 so as to spill the occupants into the boat and into the six inches of very dirty water in the bottom of it1 head first1 or on their backs4 ,not to speak of the bruised and bleeding condition which sometimes results from this treatment1 the native's toilet is deranged1 his clothes perhaps torn1 and he goes ashore in woeful dishabille4 ,no one enjoys this joke but the officer himself4 ,at ,lagos1 on the homeward voyage1 in these late years natives come on board with large basket-coops of chickens which they take to ,sekondi and sell to the white men connected with the mines4 ,in each of these baskets there are three or four dozen chickens1 which will sell for three shillings each2 and surely this is an industry that ought to receive every encouragement4 ,it is good for the natives and good for the miners4 ,yet1 on certain steamers1 such is the carelessness in loading them that sometimes not half the chickens reach ,sekondi alive4 ,there is not the least necessity for this large loss1 nor for any loss4 ,one day a trader of ,fernando ,po and ,i standing together watched a native1 who had just come on board with his chickens1 while he took out of one basket sixteen dead ones1 exactly a third of the whole number1 and he probably lost as many in landing them4 ,we both thought that if the owner had been a white man in all probability not a chicken would have been lost4 ,the ,kruboys are divided into deck-boys and boat-boys4 ,the more intelligent and experienced of the deck-boys run the steam-winches and cranes1 used in raising cargo from the hold1 and in loading and stowing4 ,above the unceasing and relentless creaking of these three or four machines is heard the loud voice of one or several natives who stand at the open hatches and transmit orders from those in the hold below to those at the machines1 the orders being always accompanied by appropriate gestures1 which are also signals1 so well understood that words would not be necessary for the common orders4 ,those at the hatches repeat from early morning till late at night the following calls3 8,heave a link--half a link--half a link--lower away4 ,lower a link--half a link--lower a link--heave away40 ,except between ports this goes on incessantly above the noise of the several winches4 ,on one occasion when ,i had been feeling miserable for several days ,i said to the captain3 8,if ever ,i go mad ,i am sure ,i shall go on saying as long as ,i live3 #8,half a link--half a link--heave away4'0 ,the captain replied3 8,that is precisely the end to which ,i myself am looking forward40 ,but when ,i am well ,i never weary of watching them at work4 ,a great variety of cargo is discharged1 but more salt and gin than anything else4 ,we take on rubber1 ivory1 mahogany1 ebony1 camwood1 palm-oil and kernels4 ,the palm-oil and kernels are used for the manufacture of soap and candles4 ,the camwood1 also called barwood1 was more in demand before the use of analine dyes1 but is still used in dyeing bandannas4 ,but the work of loading mahogany is of greatest interest to the passengers4 ,at ,gaboon many hundreds of these logs are always lying on the beach 7or 8in0 the beach1 as the disgusted captain frequently reports7 awaiting shipment4 ,african mahogany in these days is being shipped even to ,america where it is used for furniture4 ,it is not nearly so valuable as the mahogany of ,cuba and ,south ,america4 ,but when it is figured with the 8roe0 it brings an enormous price4 ,the roe of the mahogany is formed in the grain by one ring overlapping the other1 making mottled ringlets of light and shade1 sometimes very pronounced and exquisitely beautiful4 ,only those trees are cut which are close to the river1 for the native has no mechanical means of transporting it and no mechanical aptitude to invent such means4 ,they cut it into logs about twenty feet long1 the average diameter being three feet4 ,such a log weighs about a ton and sometimes much more4 ,they slide the logs down into the river on improvised rollers4 ,then in one or several canoes they tow from two to eight logs at a time to the coast where they are sold to the white trader for about five dollars each1 in goods4 ,this is the average value at ,gaboon4 ,the trader puts the house-mark on them and then leaves them on the beach until they are shipped4 ,at high tide most of them are afloat but they cannot drift away1 as the waves are stronger than the current and drive them back on the beach4 ,the ,german traders usually have their logs squared before shipping whereby much is saved on the freight to ,europe4 ,but others say that it costs more to have them squared by the native using an adz than to pay the extra freight and have them squared in the mills of ,europe4 ,the ,kruboys are sent ashore from the ship to raft the logs1 having first rolled them down the beach or dug them out of it4 ,a spike with a ring attached1 called a dog1 is driven into an end of each log1 through which a rope is passed4 ,then they are towed1 ten or twelve at a time1 to the steamer1 usually anchored half a mile1 or even a mile from the shore4 ,the ,kruboys with surf-boats and paddles tow them well away from the shore and then they are taken by the steam launch1 if the launch happens to be in order1 which is once in a while4 ,it is only in late years that the ,english steamers have carried launches4 ,the first of these were evidently such as had been discarded by more favoured lines4 ,they had ways past finding out4 ,one of these1 from its characteristic habit1 a trader named the ,sudden ,jerk1 following native custom4 ,another which was sound only in the whistle ,i named the ,piercing ,scream4 ,the work of unbeaching the logs and towing them to the steamer is very hard1 but the danger and the excitement is in getting them loaded and stowed4 ,they are made fast at the ship's side4 ,several of the ,kruboys remain in the water4 ,they first knock the 8dog0 out of the last log2 then they pass a chain around it which is made fast to the steel cable of the deck-winch4 ,a signal1 always accompanied by a shout1 is passed up to one on deck who transmits it to the man at the winch and the log is lifted out of the water4 ,the ,kruboy rises with it a part of the way1 then leaps into the water and prepares the next log4 ,this may not seem so very difficult to men who are as much at home in the water as on shore4 ,but these logs weighing a ton each are all the while dashing against each other or against the ship's side with a deep boom that echoes through the ship4 ,they are pitching and tossing and spinning1 while the ,kruboy tries to balance himself on top1 keeps his eye on every log that is near1 and at the same time does his work4 ,but however it pitches and plunges he rides it as easily as a cowboy rides a pitching broncho4 ,at first ,i looked on not only with interest1 as always1 but with a horrible fascination that ,i had never before experienced4 ,all the passengers1 from the upper deck1 are watching the ,kruboy lying across a log that heaves and rolls while he passes the chain beneath it1 and at that moment another log is driven towards it with its full ton weight1 the two colliding broadside4 ,the passengers shout2 if there is a lady aboard she screams4 ,but somehow1 when those logs meet1 the ,kruboy is not between them4 ,he is underneath1 and quite out of sight4 ,at last he comes up somewhere1 and shaking the water from his woolly head1 looks up with a smile full of white teeth and says3 8,he nebber catch me40 ,and this goes on all day long1 whenever logs are loaded4 ,occasionally an arm is broken1 more often a leg1 and sometimes a life is lost4 ,when the log is raised to the height of the lower deck it is passed from one spar to another which is over the hatch1 and sweeps across the deck1 all the ,kruboys at the same moment shouting for everybody to get out of the way2 but no time is lost in waiting for them to obey the order4 ,they dodge skillfully1 however2 for one is always dodging something in ,africa1 and there is seldom any accident4 ,but terrible accidents have sometimes occurred down in the hold1 during the hard work of stowing the logs so that every cubic foot of space may be occupied4 ,i have also seen the steel cable break when a log weighing nearly two tons was suspended over the hatch4 ,one thinks1 of course1 that all the ,kruboys down in that dark hold are directly under the falling log1 which is never the case1 and the volume of vocal noise which ascends immediately afterwards is a great relief to the blood-curdled feelings of the spectator1 for it indicates that nobody is missing4 ,but the fright extends beyond one's solicitude for the ,kruboys4 ,for it looks as if that log would plunge right through the bottom of the ship4 ,one will discover1 however1 that it fell upon a bed of several logs carefully placed there against such an accident4 ,but ,i have not yet told of the hardest and the bravest work of the ,kruboy1 a work for which few men anywhere in the world would have sufficient daring1 namely1 his landing of cargo through the surf in the season of the 8calemma10 or great wave of the southwest coast4 ,twice ,i have gone far south of ,gaboon when the sea was at the worst4 ,once ,i went as far as ,benguela1 in ,angola1 and again ,i visited the ,congo4 ,on the latter journey ,i was nearly five weeks on shipboard4 ,the boat-boys are divided into crews according to the number of surf-boats in use4 ,in a good sea a crew usually consists of seven men1 six of whom use paddles1 while the seventh1 the headman1 stands erect in the stern of the boat and steers with an oar attached to the stern4 ,in a rough sea fewer boats are lowered and the crew is increased to as many as thirteen men4 ,however long the day's work or hard the battle with the sea1 they sing to the last stroke1 keeping time with their paddles to one of their strange1 wild boat-songs4 ,sometimes the song has only rhythm and no melody1 being a monotonous repetition of several notes3 8,so sah1 so sooh1 so sah1 so sooh1 so sah1 so sooh1 ad--zh6 ,so sah1 so sooh10 etc4 ,the man who sings at his work will do more work in a given time and do it better4 ,not that the ,african is always a great worker4 ,he is seldom that2 but he does more work singing than he would do not singing4 ,and he sings because1 however wronged and oppressed1 there is a freedom within him which the white man can never take away2 a lightness of heart1 a buoyancy of spirit intractable to tyranny4 ,west ,africa is notorious in all the world for its paucity of harbours1 and its heavy surf1 which at certain seasons rages like a battle1 the roar of it like many voices defying the white man that would approach its shores4 ,the surf at one place where we called was so bad that we were seven days discharging one day's cargo4 ,the sea rolled in with a tremendous swell--the calemma--like a wall of water that looked three stories high1 which1 as it approached the land1 burst into a succession of breakers that raced towards the shore1 and striking with the boom of cannon1 tossed the white surf high into the air4 ,one always feels1 in going through it1 that he is fighting a personal foe2 there is even something human in the sound of it4 ,the ,kruboy says it is full of spirits4 ,savage spirits1 they must be1 and drunken1 which leap and tumble and shout in mad carousal4 ,at each place the first venture in the surf-boats was watched eagerly from the ship4 ,three or four boats set out together with a light cargo4 ,near the surf they stop1 landing one at a time1 and waiting for the right moment4 ,they wait perhaps as long as half an hour4 ,then1 in the first boat1 at the word of the headman1 they throw their weight on the paddles and pull for their lives1 not looking to either side1 nor speaking a word4 ,now they are in the breakers1 borne forward upon the racing waves with violent speed1 a roaring monster before them and another more ferocious one pursuing4 ,at this moment the safety of all depends upon the skill of the headman in keeping the boat placed right to the wave4 ,and in any case1 if the boat1 upon reaching the beach1 strike the ground at a moment when the water has receded1 the breaker following will be upon it before they can drag it up the beach1 and catching it up will perhaps stand it straight on end1 and hurl it backward upon the beach2 or1 if it be not straight to the wave1 it will be whirled about and flung up the beach1 rolling over and over1 with all its freight of boxes and barrels1 the boys escaping ,i know not how--but not always escaping4 ,one day when the beach seemed much better than usual1 the captain and the ship's surgeon ventured ashore4 ,the purpose of the captain was probably to visit the shippers with the object of drumming up trade1 as captains are obliged to do on the coast4 ,for this purpose he makes a very friendly call on each trader1 listens to his graphaphone1 and even praises it4 ,he was brave to risk the surf1 but he took the doctor4 ,the captain afterwards narrated the adventure of their landing to a small but enthusiastic audience4 ,he said that after waiting outside the surf half an hour1 the headman suddenly gave the order1 and in a moment they were in the breakers1 riding on the top of one of them1 and speeding towards the shore at the rate of 8seventy miles an hour10 which calculation was merely his sensation expressed in terms of linear measure4 ,the captain was in the bow of the boat well braced and cushioned4 ,but when the boat struck the beach with the force of a railway collision1 the doctor was thrown violently over two thwarts into the captain's bosom1 whom he clasped about the neck with a steel-like grip4 ,the next moment another breaker picked the boat up and hurled it upon the beach1 throwing both captain and doctor to a perfectly safe distance where they sprawled upon the sand4 ,the doctor1 still hugging the captain's neck1 and very much frightened1 exclaimed3 8,o ,captain1 dear ,captain1 is there anybody killed but you and me80 ,but now it is evening1 at the close of a bad day4 ,no white man has ventured ashore these ten days4 ,but the ,kruboys have gone1 and there on the beach is a boat making a last attempt to come off4 ,the sea has been getting worse all day1 and it is now like a boiling caldron4 ,they have been there for hours1 and have tried again and again to get off1 but have failed1 though they have no cargo1 and they are the best crew and have the best headman of all4 ,several times they have been thrown back on the beach1 and once the boat was capsized when nearly through the breakers2 now they are making a last effort4 ,they stand around the boat1 their weight against it1 alert1 and waiting in eager attention for the word of command4 ,a shout from the headman1 and in a moment they have pushed the big boat out into the water1 have leaped into it1 grasped the paddles1 and are pulling like mad4 ,the first breaker strikes the boat a blow that staggers it3 the spirits must have been very angry4 ,they are through it2 but the boat is nearly half full of water and is not straight4 ,the headman throws himself upon the oar1 but alas6 with such force that the becket attaching it to the stern is wrenched off4 ,they are now at the mercy of the next breaker1 a fearful one1 which sweeps them ashore with violence1 whirling the boat round1 and then rolling it over and over upon the beach4 ,as the water recedes we see them lying scattered at random upon the sand4 ,they get up slowly as if half dazed2 and one of them lies unconscious as the next wave washes over him1 matting his hair with the wet sand4 ,and there lies the brave headman badly bruised1 the flesh torn from his leg1 exposing the bone from the knee down4 ,but one poor boy has fought his last fight with the wild sea4 ,many fights he has won1 but the spirits have beaten him this time4 8,oh1 boys10 he says1 8,i'm hurt4 ,i can't get up4 ,i can't even move4 ,i'm afraid my back is broken40 ,so it was indeed3 his back was broken4 ,late in the night he died1 the other boys sobbing like children as they stood around him4 ,next day they buried him2 and that evening they got off to the ship4 ,as they approached1 the wind wafted to us the sound of a native dirge1 weird and plaintive1 which they were chanting for their dead brother4 ,i feel bound to tell the sequel of this incident4 ,the next day the sea was so bad that it seemed useless and foolish to attempt to land4 ,the boys presented themselves in a body before a certain one of the officers and said3 8,mastah1 them sea he be bad too much4 ,we no be fit for land cargo4 ,s'pose we try1 we go loss all cargo1 and plenty man's life4 ,so please excuse to-day1 ,mastah2 for we think to-morrow go be fine40 ,the answer they received was a volley of profanity and curses4 8,just because one of them was killed they all turn cowards10 said one4 8,always thinking of themselves60 said another4 ,with many such shrewd observations1 and sundry moral exhortations to bravery1 the boats were lowered and they were ordered into them4 ,but on these same steamers there are brave men and kind-hearted4 ,on this particular morning the purser boldly protested4 8,if they are cowards10 said he1 8what are we8 ,for notwithstanding the demands of business1 not one of us has ventured ashore for many days4 ,i'm no coward myself10 he continued1 8but ,i confess that those boys put my bravery to shame4 ,they are the bravest boys in the world4 ,neither do ,i believe that they are bound to risk their lives in such a sea as this for a shilling a day40 ,while he was speaking some one shouted3 8,there goes the first boat40 ,we ran to the side just in time to see the boat borne down by the first breaker1 whirled around and capsized1 the boys struggling for their lives1 not only with a furious sea1 but with heavy boxes and casks and the boat itself1 all tossed to and fro in the surging waters4 ,they escaped without serious injury2 but no white man could have escaped4 ,about the same time1 a few miles up the coast1 a steamer had one of its strong surf-boats flung upon the beach with such violence that it was broken in two across the middle4 ,another steamer had two boys killed4 ,one day our boys went ashore early in the morning1 leaving the ship at half-past five4 ,they were expecting to make the first trip before breakfast1 as usual1 and therefore had nothing to eat before starting4 ,they had landed the cargo safely at the trading-house2 but the sea was so bad that they could not get off to the ship all that day4 ,they made several unsuccessful attempts1 and it was almost night when at last they succeeded4 ,meanwhile1 the swell had become so heavy that we had steamed far out for safety1 and were anchored seven miles from the shore4 ,the boys reached the ship after dark1 and we then learned that the white trader ashore had given them nothing to eat2 although the ship would have repaid him4 ,those boys had battled with the sea weak with hunger1 not having had a taste of food all that day4 ,it is only fair to say that on the steamers they are well fed4 ,there are but very few ,english traders who would do as that man did2 though there are many such men of other nationalities4 ,only a short time afterwards1 one evening at the table1 an officer who had been ashore told us a story that was intended to prove the cruelty of the native4 ,a white trader1 he said1 had caught a young elephant4 ,he went away on a journey to the bush1 leaving the care of it to his native workmen4 ,upon his return1 after several months1 he found the elephant in very poor health2 and a few weeks later it died4 ,there was no doubt that the natives had neglected to feed it in his absence1 and this was the cause of its death4 ,horrible cruelty of the beastly native6 ,pungent remarks1 appropriate to the occasion1 were contributed all around the table4 ,for myself--,i was thinking of those starved and tired boys battling with a raging sea4 ,but ,i said not a word4 ,what would be the use8 ,we need not be sentimental about the native's wrongs4 ,though a victim1 he is not necessarily innocent4 ,he would do unto others as others do unto him2 and his life is perhaps not rendered more miserable by the white man than it was before4 ,but1 then1 they are savages and we are supposed to be civilized2 and the most wretched excuse that the white man can give for his cruelty is that he is only imitating the natives themselves4 ,the white man is always calling the native a devil1 and always expecting him to act like an angel1 while he himself1 so far from being angelic1 sets an infernal example4 ,the truth is that the white man in the tropics is out of his element as much as the diver who works in the deep sea4 ,the atmosphere in which he was produced and in which he developed--the mental1 moral1 social and physical conditions--are also necessary to his moral and physical maintenance4 ,the climate weakens and depresses him1 while at the same time he is not sustained by domestic cheer and the society of equals to which he has been accustomed4 ,he is invariably nervous and as a consequence impatient1 while at the same time the circumstances that confront him in the discharge of his daily duties are such as would try the temper of a saint4 ,if he remain long in a climate so unnatural to him and in a strange and uncivilized society the likelihood is that there will be an imperceptible and unconscious lowering of moral standards and accommodation to the standards of the society around him4 ,cruelty which at first shocked him gradually ceases to shock and at length he becomes indifferent1 or perhaps himself capable of barbarous deeds from which he would at first have recoiled with horror4 ,for the men of whom ,i have been speaking are not inferior to the average man at home4 ,your virtues1 and the graces of mind and character upon which you pride yourself--your strength and composure1 your patience and devotion to duty1 your honesty1 your justice1 your purity--all these belong not only to yourself but to the society which has produced you and of which you are a part4 ,the moral standards which it has erected in the course of its social evolution1 the safety with which it has surrounded you1 the comforts which this safety has made procurable1 the disapprobation by which it punishes any infraction of its laws--to these1 not to yourself alone1 you owe your moral attainments4 ,none but the highest and most fixed moral standards will bear transportation to a tropical climate and tropical society4 ,until this fact is clearly recognized the relation of civilization to the uncivilized tropics is likely to be productive of misery and shame4 ,if ,i did not hate sensationalism ,i could easily fill this chapter with a record of the misdeeds and barbarities in ,africa of men1 many of whom belonged to respectable families and to good society and were well-behaved at home4 ,neither does the white man become acclimated in the tropics--no more than the diver in the deep sea4 ,the longer he remains1 his physical and moral resources become the more exhausted4 ,let us keep these facts in mind in judging those of whom we have spoken1 and those of whom we have yet to speak in the next chapter4 ,x ,,white ,,and ,,black 8,our only program1 ,i am anxious to repeat1 is the work of moral and material regeneration40--,king ,leopold ,,ii4 8,the work of civilization1 as you call it1 is an enormous and continual butchery40--,m4 ,lorand1 in the ,belgian ,parliament4 ,st4 ,paul de ,loanda1 in the ,portuguese colony of ,angola1 is the only place on the entire west coast of ,africa that looks like a real city4 ,it is several centuries old1 and from the sea the appearance is not unlike the ,mediterranean cities of ,north ,africa4 ,but as soon as one goes ashore this illusion is dissolved4 ,what makes it unlike any other settlement on the west coast is chiefly its roofs of red tile instead of corrugated iron1 with its superheated appearance1 that is used in all places recently built4 ,the city is also lighted by oil lamps4 ,the harbour being one of the best1 ,i went ashore with the captain and after a walk about the town we played a few games of billiards with the ,british consul4 ,i had then been several years on the coast and this seemed like a brief return to civilization4 ,the night coming on brought with it more civilization4 ,a native band played1 by ear1 two or three tunes1 and played them well--considering4 ,it is said that they have played those same tunes since the band was organized1 and no one now living remembers when that was4 ,a mouldering church1 ,our ,lady of ,salvation1 which stands on the beach1 is two and a half centuries old1 and is a work of art1 containing interesting and historical scenes in blue and white tiles4 ,from this place in the dark age of slavery thousands of slaves were shipped across the ,atlantic2 and the ,roman ,catholic bishop sat on the wharf and baptized them1 not individually1 but in shiploads4 ,surely ,our ,lady of ,salvation might have been called ,our ,lady of ,sorrows4 ,there were very few passengers on board1 but there were a number of dogs4 ,the captain had a weakness for dogs4 ,the breed of the dog made no difference4 ,whether they were useful or useless1 whether sound and healthy or dreadfully diseased and scarcely able to walk1 he loved them all without partiality or discrimination4 ,men further up the coast who had ,european dogs that were particularly mangy or threatened with rabies would give them into the captain's care and he would take them for a health-change down the coast4 ,at one time there were nine dogs living on board4 ,he never seemed to realize that in this1 as in all other things1 tastes differ2 and that a certain dog1 an ,english mastiff1 as ugly as the rest of its kind1 might not be entirely welcome to share my soup at the table just because it was welcome to his4 ,there were two fox-terriers tied together with five or six feet of small rope between them4 ,as their health improved these two terriers became animated beyond all control4 ,they amused themselves by pulling down cages full of parrots for the delight of hearing them remonstrate in a prolonged concert of harsh squawking4 ,but their chief exercise was straight running at breakneck speed from one end of the promenade deck to the other1 with six feet of rope stretched taut between them1 to the terror of the passengers1 who were so few in number that they were regarded as a negligible quantity4 ,there was a lady on board with whom ,i occasionally walked until the terriers made it impossible to do so without sacrificing either comfort or gallantry4 ,at the sight of them coming towards her1 like a whirlwind sweeping down the deck and the rope threatening to trip her up1 the lady's energy all went to her hands instead of her feet2 for she invariably lost her presence of mind and stood still wringing her hands instead of hastily retreating into some safe corner4 ,but ,i could not understand why she should think that ,i also ought to lose my presence of mind and stand still and be tripped when ,i had youth and fleetness of limb to accomplish an escape4 ,we were three days at ,benguela during which we witnessed the ,mardi ,gras celebration4 ,men1 women1 and children filled the streets with merrymaking and presented a spectacle of fantastic colours1 grotesque costumes1 and uncouth masks1 such as ,i had never before seen4 ,our errand to ,benguela was the delivery of a large consignment of supplies for the newly projected railway which1 it is expected1 shall ultimately extend far inland to the region of ,lake ,tanganyika1 thus connecting with the traffic of the east coast4 ,the bit of this railway already built represents what ,portugal has done towards the development of ,africa in the course of several centuries4 ,the trading-houses of ,benguela are surrounded by walled enclosures1 or compounds1 in former days used for the confinement of slaves awaiting shipment4 ,this is not like the bush country further north1 but is more open and its main slave-trail extends a thousand miles into the interior4 ,this is the end of the trail that ,livingstone followed in his first tragic journey across ,africa4 ,but that which ought to be fully known to the civilized world is that slavery still exists in the whole territory of ,angola and in the adjoining ,portuguese islands1 and with all its attendant horrors4 ,most of the house-servants and factory-servants of ,benguela are slaves purchased with money and frequently resold4 ,young women are sold and resold by white men to white men as mistresses4 ,any white man in ,benguela will tell one that the average price is twenty pounds4 ,she may be resold from time to time at a decreasing price4 ,the work on the large plantations is done by slaves who serve under the lash1 and it is estimated that half the population of ,angola are in slavery2 some would say more than this4 ,this includes domestic as well as foreign slavery4 ,but the traffic by the ,portuguese has made domestic slavery more severe4 ,they were also being shipped from ,benguela at that time1 to the islands of ,san ,thom and ,principe1 at the rate of three or four thousand a year1 and in all probability the number has since increased4 ,i have visited ,principe1 and ,i know something of the actual conditions in that island4 ,the ways of ,portugal have not changed in these four centuries of her ,african history4 ,in the year #aeji a ,portuguese officer landing in ,south ,africa became embroiled with the ,hottentots and he and twenty of his men were killed4 ,three years afterwards a ,portuguese captain landed a cannon loaded with grapeshot as a pretended present to the ,hottentots4 ,men1 women and children gathered around in wonder4 ,while they were admiring it the ,portuguese captain fired it off and looked on with delight as the wretched people fell in heaps4 ,and ,portugal has not changed4 ,the ally of ,england from time immemorial1 and possessing a remarkable collection of souvenirs in the form of anti-slavery treaties1 some of them recent and one of them as late as #ahhe1 she still prosecutes her slave-trade with vigour1 albeit with circumspection to her reputation as well as her profit4 ,the ,bailundu rebellion1 in the interior of ,angola1 in #aijb1 was still an occasional topic of conversation4 ,the ,portuguese claimed that it was caused by the few ,american missionaries of that interior district--as if their own rapacity and lust were not sufficient explanation4 ,if that be true1 and if it be true that the missionaries are responsible for all similar wars from ,angola to ,china1 as their detractors allege1 it is surely evident that the missionary influence is not to be derided after all1 but is a tremendous force to be reckoned with in national economy4 ,the ,bailundu rebellion was a complete failure4 ,the unorganized native forces were unable to stand before an army disciplined by white officers1 and it soon developed into a wholesale massacre of natives4 ,shortly afterwards a missionary from that part spent a day with me at ,gaboon and recounted many incidents of the war4 ,portuguese planters exacted enormous indemnity which reduced many to slavery4 ,such incidents as the following occurred3 ,a certain man1 in order to pay his portion of the indemnity exacted by a certain planter1 at last was compelled to sell his two children as slaves4 ,he returned to his village with desolate heart and tearless eyes1 went into his house1 came out again1 and walked around it1 went into it again and came out with his sword1 uttered one heart-broken cry1 and plunging the sword into his breast1 killed himself4 ,as a consequence of the war1 however1 the ,angola secret became known and there was considerable feeling aroused among the better class in ,portugal4 ,to their righteous remonstrance the government responded by abolishing the name of slavery and prosecuting the traffic as vigorously as ever under an ingenious and particularly diabolical form of law called 8labour contract40 ,the only difference to the native is that while formerly his servitude was a direct violation of law it is now perfectly legal2 but he is still seized and transported and labours under the lash until he dies4 ,in #aije1 ,mr4 ,henry ,w4 ,nevinson went to ,angola for the express purpose of investigating the reported slavery4 ,mr4 ,nevinson upon a careful and intelligent investigation found the conditions such as ,i have stated1 and he gave an accurate report in a series of articles in ,harper's ,magazine4 ,the slave-merchant1 or 8labour-merchant10 as we must now call him1 procures his labourers in the interior1 sometimes six hundred or eight hundred miles from the coast4 ,he pays for them in rifles and other goods4 ,the price that he offers1 while very small1 considering the value of a slave to a planter1 is yet sufficient to excite the cupidity of a class of natives beyond the possibility of control4 ,they first sell their domestic slaves to the white men1 then they sell anybody whom they can get into their power4 ,in the old slave days it was not safe for three men to go together to the slave-market lest two of them should combine to sell the third1 and such is always the brutalizing effect of the slave-trade on many of the natives4 ,those slaves that are not used on the plantations of ,angola are marched in caravans to the coast4 ,they march in shackles1 or chained together1 and under an armed guard4 ,many die on the way1 sometimes half the caravan4 ,arriving at the coast1 they are sold1 or contracted1 to an employer1 usually a planter of ,san ,thom or ,principe1 at a large advance on the interior price4 ,they are then brought by the employer before a magistrate who draws up a contract in proper legal form4 ,it makes not the slightest difference what the native answers to the questions asked him or whether he answers at all1 a contract is drawn up in which he declares that he has come of his own free will to contract for his services at so much labour for so much pay1 and that the contract holds good for five years4 ,the contractor on his part agrees to pay a certain monthly wage and to provide food and clothing4 ,the native is given a copy of the contract and a little tin cylinder in which to keep it1 the sign and declaration of his freedom and protection by law4 ,but hypocrisy can go even further2 for these ,portuguese1 merchants and government officials1 actually pose as ,philanthropists4 8,see10 they say1 8what we have done for these men and women4 ,they were all slaves to black men1 and we have redeemed them40 ,philanthropy is usually unlucrative1 but the genius of the ,portuguese has made it pay4 ,despite the expiration of the contract at the end of five years and the promise of a free passage home1 the native thus transported is never known to return4 ,henceforth he is one of a long line of men and women that labour on the cocoa fields all the day long1 some of the women carrying babies on their backs--that labour in stolid silence under the lash or the prod of a sharpened stick from early morning till the sound of the evening bell4 ,that they become debased and immoral is only what we should expect2 and therefore the traffic in men's bodies is also a traffic in men's souls4 ,so they live and toil1 each day like all the others until the last short journey1 when1 as ,mr4 ,nevinson describes1 8their dead bodies are lashed to poles to be carried out and flung away in the forest40 ,but is there no relief to the dark picture8 ,no compensation8 ,yes1 there is some compensation4 ,we get cheaper cocoa and plenty of chocolate4 ,the people of the ,united ,states have a deep and practical interest in the question of the principles that ought to regulate the relations of the governing and the governed in those tropical countries that are under the dominion of the various civilized powers4 ,having come into possession of the ,philippine ,islands1 with their vast and undeveloped resources1 the problem is their own and waits for solution4 ,upon the people of the ,united ,states1 because of the serious and responsible situation with which they are confronted1 may devolve the task of devising and administering a form of government in accord with the higher modern standard of ,english-speaking people in regard to the national duty involved in the relation of a civilized power to a subject and savage people4 ,no graver problem is likely to arise in the course of the entire century of which we are still on the threshold4 ,and the ,united ,states is the better prepared for her task by the fact that she is uncontrolled by precedent and unbiased by tradition4 ,the ,portuguese theory of tropical control is evident enough4 ,the acquired possession is an estate to be worked for the benefit of those in control1 whose right is simply 8might40 ,its native inhabitants1 who have the moral right to its possession1 are counted among the various resources of the acquired property1 and may be exploited accordingly4 ,the practical sequences of this theory are slavery and plunder4 ,the theory that surrounds the colony with high tariffs for the exclusive benefit of the governing power and which concedes foreign monopolies to the disregard of native interests1 is not essentially different from that of ,portugal4 ,this latter is the theory that is being worked out in the ,congo ,franais as a result of the example and influence of the ,belgian trusts1 and the intrigues of ,king ,leopold's agents in ,france4 ,we believe that it cannot be permanent as a form of ,french colonial government because of the humane and generous instincts of the ,french people4 ,and it is certain that such a policy could not long endure in any territory under the control of the ,united ,states4 ,for a policy in order to be permanent must have the support of the moral sentiment of the nation1 and such a policy traverses our basal doctrine of the native equality of men4 ,but there is in the ,united ,states a tendency to the other extreme1 namely1 to insist upon the native right of self-government1 holding that the sum of our duty is to set up a civilized form of government and then withdraw from control1 leaving the native nation to maintain it4 ,the advocates of such a policy are guilty of a serious oversight in forgetting that 8democracy is not simply a form of government1 but a state of human evolution40 ,the native form of government cannot advance far beyond the social life of the people1 for they are sustained by the same moral forces4 ,as a matter of fact there is not in the world a single example of a successful native government of a tropical country4 ,failures are conspicuous on both sides of the ,atlantic2 for instance1 ,hayti in the ,west ,indies and ,liberia in ,africa4 ,the tropical governments of ,central and ,south ,america are not in any sense native governments1 but are administered by a permanently resident foreign community1 in their own interest1 whose moral standards tend to lower more and more as they mingle with the native populations4 ,a form of native government that would compare with those of civilized nations is by no means possible until the moral forces that have contributed to the highest civilization are operative in their social life4 ,it is evident that the tropical nations if left to themselves will not develop the resources of their country4 ,but it is equally evident that the civilized world will not1 and ought not1 to leave these resources undeveloped4 ,for civilization depends upon the tropics for many trade products1 including india-rubber1 and the dependence increases at such a rate that it is predicted that the main lines of commerce in the future will run north and south instead of east and west1 and the prediction is not fanciful4 ,it would seem therefore that the development of the resources of the tropics will be by the native under the supervision of the white man4 ,the ideal government will be based upon the clear recognition of mutual need and mutual benefit2 and the principle that will mould the form of government and be constantly operative in its administration will be the duty of the civilized nation to bring to the uncivilized its best benefits1 to their mutual advantage4 ,the interest of the native himself will be always the first consideration2 for he has the first right to the resources of his country and to the reward of his labour2 and the interest of the foreign nation second1 in the greater sources of supply and the enlarged market for her merchandise4 ,to give actuality and force to such a government three things will be required in its administration1 as suggested by ,mr4 ,benjamin ,kidd in his book1 8,the ,control of the ,tropics03 first1 its officers must be only those who represent the highest moral ideals of civilization2 second1 the most intimate contact must be maintained with the home government2 third1 the policy and its administration must be constantly subject to the severe scrutiny of public opinion4 ,public apathy1 inconsiderate confidence in our agents in the tropics--the conceit that they cannot go far wrong because they are ,americans1 will lead to shame and degradation4 ,such a moral motive and the conscientious discharge of the duty involved constitute the white man's right1 and his only right1 to occupy the black man's country4 ,it was with ,captain ,button of the ,volta that ,i went up the ,congo to ,boma and ,matadi4 ,i owe to several of the captains1 and to ,captain ,harrison in particular1 a debt of gratitude for many kindnesses2 but ,i travelled most with ,captain ,button and from no other did ,i receive so many kind1 and often costly favours4 ,more than once1 upon finding me in very bad health when his ship called at ,gaboon1 he fairly forced me to go for a health-change2 and on the occasion of my visit to the ,congo ,i was in such a miserable condition of health that a single attack of fever would probably have been my last1 when ,captain ,button swooped down upon me and carried me off4 ,i had been troubled with abscesses1 common enough on the coast1 and when ,i went aboard ,i had a very severe one on my left forearm4 ,one night1 near the ,congo1 when ,i was suffering with the pain and had been awake several nights1 the captain had a stretcher placed on deck for me and advised that ,i lay my arm in a basin of warm water which was placed beside me4 ,he then told the ship's surgeon to examine my arm and see whether it ought not to be lanced4 ,but he told him not to mention the matter of lancing it to me4 ,i was weak and nervous with loss of sleep and he wished to save me the additional pain of thinking about the lancing of it and consenting to it4 ,the doctor examined the arm and then having consulted with the captain went below and got his lance4 ,when he returned the captain was sitting beside me ready to assist4 ,the doctor a second time bent over the arm as it was extended over the basin4 ,then ,i saw the gleam of a knife which was instantly plunged into my arm4 ,ten minutes of agony during which the captain poured on warm water1--and then rest2 the first ,i had had for many days1 and a few minutes later ,i was asleep4 ,that was the last of the abscesses and from that time ,i gained perceptibly each day4 ,at ,boma1 the capital of the ,congo ,free ,state1 sixty miles from the mouth of the river1 we lay in against the bank and moored the ship to the shore4 ,close beside us was a sight upon which ,i gazed with gruesome interest1 the wreck of the steamship ,matadi4 ,my first voyage to ,africa was on the ,matadi4 ,i think it was on her next voyage that she was wrecked4 ,like all the ships of her class she was called a palm-oil tub4 ,the steamers of the present service are incomparably better4 ,the ,matadi was blown up by a fearful explosion of gunpowder that had been carelessly stored4 ,all the crew except one were drowned4 ,there were also on board two ,american missionaries1 ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,harvey1 who went down with the ship4 ,they were in their cabin when the explosion occurred4 ,the door jammed and could never afterwards be opened1 so that the bodies remain there to this day4 ,a smoke-stack protruding out of the water1 a part of a poop-deck1 overgrown with grass1 and an enormous side-piece flung upon the shore--such were the innuendo of the scene4 ,boma is built on the side of a long1 sloping hill4 ,its buildings1 many of them made of sheets of corrugated iron1 are scattered in disorder4 ,behind them on higher ground is the attractive1 pale-coloured residence of the governor4 ,there is a good road and several avenues of palms and a number of flower-gardens surrounding the residences4 ,a well-ordered hospital1 a state school1 a palace of justice1 a prison for white men1 a fort and barracks are the more conspicuous buildings4 ,three street-lamps and a native band that plays twice a week1 probably by ear1 make life delightful and bring the city up to date4 ,boma looks well from the river--as looks go in ,africa4 ,but when one remembers that for more than twenty years it has been the capital of the ,congo ,free ,state1 a territory four times the size of ,germany1 from which also vast wealth has been drawn and that ,belgium's civilizing agencies have been concentrated here1 one is not greatly impressed4 ,at least it does not compare with the other capitals of ,west ,africa1 the ,french ,libreville1 the ,german ,dualla or the ,english ,calabar4 ,in the hospital at ,boma one may see cases of the strange 8sleeping sickness10 that awful scourge that has in late years passed across ,africa from the east to the west decimating the population and often in the farther east destroying entire towns4 ,until very recently there has been no recovery4 ,the patient sleeps without waking1 except for food--sleeps and wastes away for eight or ten months until he dies4 ,the germ is now supposed to be carried by the tsetse fly4 ,i of course witnessed no ,belgian atrocities at ,boma1 and it would surely have been a matter of amazement if ,i had4 ,but still more amazing is the report of certain casual travellers1 who had no more opportunity than myself for direct observation1 to the effect that there are no atrocities1 because they did not witness them4 ,if ,i had gone to ,king ,leopold's representative1 the governor at ,boma1 and had told him1 in the course of a neighbourly conversation1 that ,i had heard about the ,belgian atrocities and had come to witness them that ,i might exploit them to the horrified nations1 and then had asked him to accommodate my purpose by having at least a few atrocities performed in the front yard1 including the different varieties of murder1 mutilation and torture1 it would have been parallel to the methods pursued by certain persons1 who actually heralded their arrival and their purpose all along the way1 notified ,leopold's agents in particular1 perfected their investigations by asking questions of these same agents1 and then proclaimed that these cruel reports of atrocities and atrocities represent an unparalleled conspiracy on the part of several hundred men from half a score of nations1 who having lived many long years in the ,congo have become prejudiced and have accumulated a number of personal grievances against the ,belgian officials and are now seeking by the invention of innumerable charges of unheard-of crimes to ruin the reputation of ,good ,king ,leopold and deprive him of his rights4 ,the administration of the ,congo government is not a melodrama2 it is anything but that4 ,leopold's atrocities are not placed on free exhibition at ,boma for the entertainment of travellers1 some of whom are immorally unconcerned in regard to the real suffering of the natives4 ,they are performed only for money and plenty of it4 ,the motive is money and the argument is that they pay4 ,though ,i was only a traveller1 and not a resident1 in the ,congo ,free ,state1 yet ,i can speak with some authority on the question of the ,belgian rgime2 for ,i lived several years in the adjoining territory1 the ,congo ,franais1 a large part of which was farmed out in concessions to ,belgian companies1 whose policy and methods were precisely those of the ,congo ,free ,state4 ,such a system1 however1 is contrary to the spirit of the ,french1 and one cannot think that it will long endure4 ,consider for a moment the various sources of the evidence against ,leopold and his agents4 ,there are about two hundred ,protestant missionaries in the ,congo ,free ,state1 representing the ,united ,states1 ,canada1 ,great ,britain1 ,germany1 ,norway1 ,sweden and ,denmark4 ,these missionaries1 men and women1 have lived for years in the ,congo1 many of them twenty1 and even twenty-five years1 and are scattered over the entire territory4 ,they speak the language of the people and therefore have the most intimate knowledge of conditions4 ,their motive is only the good of the native1 and every influence that makes for the betterment of the native's condition contributes to their success4 ,that they should not know the truth in regard to the alleged atrocities of the ,belgians is impossible2 that they should unite to falsify the truth is unthinkable4 ,but their testimony is all of one kind1 and against ,belgium1 and constitutes probably the most terrible indictment of a civilized government in the last two thousand years1 if not in the history of the world4 ,but there are other witnesses besides missionaries4 ,in #aijc the ,british government1 in response to the entreaty and remonstrance of missionaries and traders and ,english ,chambers of ,commerce1 appointed ,mr4 ,roger ,casement1 ,british ,consul to the ,congo1 to make a thorough investigation of conditions in the ,congo ,free ,state4 ,mr4 ,casement1 whom ,i had the pleasure of meeting at ,matadi1 was peculiarly fitted for the task assigned to him4 ,he had spent twelve years in the consular service in ,africa4 ,he had the unqualified confidence of the ,british government and was held in the highest esteem and admiration by all classes of men in the ,congo4 ,mr4 ,poultney ,bigelow says of him3 8,roger ,casement is the sort of man depicted in ,jules ,verne's novels1 the man who is everlastingly exploring and extricating himself from every imaginable difficulty by superhuman tact1 wit and strength40 ,mr4 ,casement's report of the results of his investigation is a revealing document4 ,it confirms the worst charges that had been made4 ,it abounds in such incidents as the following3 8,this man himself1 when ,i visited him in ,boma gaol1 in ,march1 #aija1 said that more than a hundred women and children had died of starvation at his hands1 but that the responsibility was due to his superior's orders and neglect40 ,but even ,belgians have been1 and are to-day1 among those who denounce the ,belgian king4 ,for instance1 a ,belgian agent1 named ,lecroix1 confessed that he had been instructed by his chief to massacre all the natives of a certain village1 including women and children1 for not bringing in enough rubber4 ,he also told how that on one occasion his chief had put sixty women in chains1 all but five of whom died of starvation4 ,at last the feeling became so strong in ,europe that in ,september1 #aijd1 ,king ,leopold appointed a ,commission of ,inquiry consisting of three persons1 two of whom were his own subjects2 the third was an eminent ,swiss jurist4 ,this was somewhat like ,king ,leopold investigating himself4 ,but the ,commission seems to have listened impartially to the testimony4 ,with the eyes of ,europe upon them they proceeded to the ,congo and spent four and a half months in taking the sworn testimony of 8hundreds of witnesses40 ,the contrast between what the ,commission expected to find1 and what they actually found1 may be best expressed in the words that ,m4 ,janssens1 president of the ,commission1 is reported to have spoken publicly before leaving ,boma3 8,i came here with a feeling of confidence1 expecting to find everything in order4 ,i did not think ,i was about to come into contact with such putridity as ,i have found40 ,in general the report of ,king ,leopold's ,commission confirms all the charges1 including the very worst1 that had ever been made against the ,congo government4 ,to such an extent is this true that those who are working against the continuance of ,king ,leopold's rule in the ,congo would be willing to base their appeal on the report of the ,commission alone4 ,it is a lengthy and exhaustive document1 but a few brief extracts will convey a fair idea of the whole2 for instance the following3 8,in the majority of cases the native must go one or two days' march every fortnight1 until he arrives at that part of the forest where the rubber vines can be met with in a certain degree of abundance4 ,there the collector passes a number of days in a miserable existence4 ,he has to build himself an improvised shelter which obviously cannot replace his hut4 ,he has not the food to which he is accustomed4 ,he is deprived of his wife1 exposed to the inclemencies of the weather and the attacks of wild beasts4 ,when once he has collected the rubber he must bring it to the ,state station1 or to that of the ,company1 and only then can he return to his village1 where he can sojourn for barely more than two or three days1 because the next demand is upon him4 8,they brought before the ,commission a multitude of native witnesses1 who revealed a great number of crimes and excesses alleged to have been committed by the sentries4444 ,the truth of the charges is borne out by a mass of evidence and official reports4444 ,the agents examined by the ,commission did not even attempt to refute them4 8,according to the witnesses1 these auxiliaries convert themselves into despots1 demanding women and food1 not only for themselves1 but for a retinue of parasites which a love of rapine causes to become associated with them4 ,they kill without pity all those who attempt to resist4 8,if we accept ,stanley's figures it is incontestable that a large part of the population must have disappeared2 for1 from ,stanley ,pool to ,nouvelle ,anvers1 the banks of the river are almost deserted40 ,thus much from the report of ,king ,leopold's ,commission4 ,what is called the 8sentry system0 is the most atrocious factor in this policy4 ,as a matter of course coercion must be used in the enforcement of a continuous labour-tax4 ,an army of thirty thousand native soldiers is maintained for the suppression and exploitation of the people1 who are unarmed and defenseless4 ,thus can a king do when he becomes a trader4 ,this army is raised by conscription1 and is practically an army of slaves4 ,the conscripts are removed from their own people and are made to serve among strangers4 ,despair is never a sanctifying grace2 and these desperate men are armed and compelled to a life of continual cruelty and shocking crime1 whereby they are in course of time transformed into foulest fiends4 ,to them is committed the oversight of those who collect rubber and the punishment of those who come short4 ,this is the 8sentry system40 ,when ,i visited ,boma and ,matadi the commonest subject of conversation1 both by traders and missionaries1 was the ,belgian atrocities4 ,matadi is one hundred and ten miles from the sea4 ,between ,boma and ,matadi1 at a bend in the river1 there is a fearful whirlpool called the ,devil's ,caldron1 at least it is 8fearful0 in the wet season when the river is highest and the current swiftest4 ,this vortex is the shape of a funnel4 ,as we left it on our right and passed across the outer rim1 the big ocean steamer listed to starboard4 ,a short time before1 a lighter loaded with cargo and manned by ,kruboys had been drawn into it4 ,several persons watched it as it swept around in a narrowing circle until at last near the centre it suddenly took a header and plunged into the abyss with its human freight4 ,matadi is built on the side of a perpendicular rock1 which ,richard ,harding ,davis says is 8not so large as ,gibraltar1 nor so high as the ,flatiron ,building1 but it is a little more steep than either4 ,three narrow streets lead to its top4 ,they are of flat stones1 with cement gutters4 ,the stones radiate the heat of stove-lids4 ,they are worn to a mirror-like smoothness1 and from their surface the sun strikes between your eyes1 at the pit of your stomach1 and blisters the soles of your mosquito boots40 ,matadi is not much more than a railroad terminus4 ,between the ,lower and ,upper ,congo1 that is1 between ,matadi and ,leopoldville1 on ,stanley ,pool1 the river is not navigable1 owing to the rapids4 ,a railroad two hundred and fifty miles long unites these two places4 ,it was built at a tremendous cost both of money and of life4 ,out of four hundred ,chinese imported at one time1 for work on the railroad1 two hundred and fifty died within three years4 ,kruboys and others were brought from the north and engaged to work according to a certain definite contract2 but in most cases the contract was disregarded and they were practically enslaved1 working until they died4 ,the railroad1 the ,chemin de ,fer du ,congo1 is exceedingly useful and has also proved a paying investment4 ,the fare from ,matadi to ,leopoldville1 two hundred and fifty miles1 was fifty dollars1 when ,i was at ,matadi1 that is1 twenty cents a mile4 ,but ,i imagine that those who had made the journey on foot over that rough country1 did not begrudge the exorbitant fare4 ,henry ,m4 ,stanley1 starting from ,matadi1 blasted the rocks in order to make a road by which the sections of his boat could be dragged along en route to the ,upper ,congo4 ,until ,i visited ,matadi ,i did not know the meaning of the name which the natives gave to ,stanley1 ,bula ,matadi4 ,it means ,breaker of ,rocks--a name to be proud of1 surely2 and one which ,stanley deserved4 ,his authority was superseded by that of the government of the ,congo1 which to this day is called by the natives ,bula ,matadi--,breaker of ,rocks and incidentally of men4 ,it happened that ,consul ,casement was at ,matadi2 and the captain and ,i were invited to a picnic which was given in his honour4 ,it was a novel experience for ,africa4 ,we rowed down the river and landed for our lunch in a peculiar and pleasant place on piles of rock1 of historic and even legendary interest4 ,during those days there was a representative missionary gathering at ,matadi and ,i had the opportunity of meeting and conversing with missionaries from all over the ,congo ,free ,state4 ,some of them ,i had known before4 ,all whom ,i met had but one story to tell in regard to the 8,belgian atrocities10 a story that might have been a chapter from the history of ,hell4 ,they told of seeing more than fifty severed hands at a time1 including hands of children1 which the soldiers were taking to the white men to prove that they had killed people according to their orders4 ,the black soldiers had also eaten the flesh of their victims4 ,sometimes the agents demanded an amount of food from the natives for themselves and the entire post which the natives could only continue to furnish by buying from other natives2 and they were expecting that when they could buy no more they would be killed4 ,in some villages when the impost of food was delivered the people had nothing left for themselves1 and fed on leaves4 ,when the rubber in certain districts was becoming exhausted and the tax was not reduced the people mixed the latex 7juice of the rubber vine7 with an inferior latex1 and when they did so the agent1 if it was discovered1 made them eat it4 ,the work about the posts was done by slaves1 mostly women1 and at night these women were obliged to be at the disposal of the native soldiers4 ,missionaries themselves had met soldiers driving to the post women tied together with ropes1 to be held as hostages until their husbands could bring a certain amount of rubber4 ,this was the usual means of compelling men to bring rubber4 ,they often tortured the women in order to intimidate the men4 ,but many of the hostages could not be redeemed and were starved to death4 ,they told of the mutilations of the living1 of hands and feet chopped off1 and of men unsexed4 ,they told of four or five men placed in a row one behind another and shot with one bullet1 and of women and children crucified4 ,they told of the population of certain districts reduced from thousands to hundreds1 and in other districts wiped out entirely4 ,it is estimated by some that since the ascendency of ,king ,leopold in the ,congo the total population has decreased from twenty-five millions to fifteen millions1 there being ten million murders set down to the account of the king4 ,returning from ,matadi to the steamer in the sultry tropical night1 it seemed as if the very atmosphere were drenched with blood1 that we breathed its vapours1 and that the great swift-rolling tide beneath us was the blood of the slain millions1 hurrying out to incarnadine the sea that boats against the shores of all the civilized world4 ,the greed of ,leopold and the apathy of the nations are together responsible for the existence of present conditions in the ,congo4 ,it is irrelevant to answer that there are also atrocities in ,portuguese and other possessions of ,africa4 ,there is more oppression and cruelty in the ,congo ,free ,state than in all the rest of ,africa4 ,moreover1 we have no authority over ,portugal and can exercise only the right of appeal and its moral influence4 ,but the ,powers signatory to the ,brussels ,act1 with the ,united ,states in the lead1 created the ,congo ,free ,state1 and are still the formal guardians of its people4 ,a conference of those ,powers would without doubt deal with other evils in ,africa besides those of the ,congo ,free ,state4 ,to the average man1 unversed in the forms of international usage1 it would seem within the competence of any one of the ,powers which committed to ,king ,leopold a sacred trust upon certain definite conditions1 to urge upon the other responsible powers the duty of meeting again to inquire whether those conditions have been fulfilled and to adjudicate the issues relating to their non-fulfillment4 ,meanwhile1 the ,congo ,state lies bleeding at every pore1 and those who are hoping and praying in all the world for a people who have ceased to hope and have never learned to pray1 have their eyes turned towards the ,united ,states4 ,a missionary writing from ,baringa in the ,congo said3 8,an old chief came up to where we were standing4 #8,oh1 white man1' he pleaded1 #8do have our work changed4 ,we do not want to shirk it1 but there is no longer any rubber in our district and my people are being killed for nothing4 ,what am ,i to do8' ,i suggested that the inspector appointed by the king would no doubt come to ,baringa and he could appeal to him4 ,he asked how long it would be before the inspector would come4 ,i said perhaps two months2 upon which he cried out1 #8,two months6 ,it will be too late then4 ,we shall all be killed before that time4' ,and after we had left him we could hear him crying after us1 #8,we shall all be killed6 ,we shall all be killed6'0 ,four years have passed1 and in all likelihood the chief with his family has been killed long ago1 leaving not even a name behind him1 but only this haunting cry1 that keeps ringing in one's heart4 ,so they all are crying to us with outstretched hands2 a people who call the white man1 ,father1 and trust him with pathetic confidence until he betrays their trust and smites them with the rod of tyranny4 ,i think ,i can hear their piteous cry wafted on the winds that wander over the great forest3 8,we shall all be killed6 ,we shall all be killed60 ,,xi ,,the ,,fang ,during my second and much longer term in ,africa ,i lived at ,baraka1 a mission station two miles south of ,libreville1 in the ,congo ,franais1 on the great estuary of the ,gaboon ,river1 or1 the bay1 as ,i always called it4 ,the coast tribe of the ,gaboon is called the ,mpongwe4 ,but my work was almost entirely with the interior tribe--the ,fang4 ,the ,fang is probably the largest of all the tribes of ,west ,africa4 ,the ,bulu of the ,cameroon interior are a branch of the ,fang1 and there are several other branches4 ,they occupy the interior of ,cameroon and the ,congo ,franais1 extending north and south behind at least twelve coast tribes occupying three hundred miles of coast4 ,m4 de ,brazza after extended travel among the ,fang estimated that there were more than ten millions1 and perhaps fifteen millions of them2 but ,i think it unlikely that further knowledge will confirm this calculation4 ,m4 de ,brazza is usually a most reliable authority2 but he probably travelled through the more densely populated parts of the ,fang territory4 ,since most of my work was done among the ,fang1 along the ,gaboon ,river1 they are the tribe that ,i know best4 ,i am very partial to them1 and therefore1 before going further ,i must say a word in regard to the pronunciation of this word1 8,fang10 and beg the reader not to speak of them as if they were a generation of vipers4 ,the name is not pronounced in the least like our word 8fang10 and indeed the vowel sound in the latter word is unknown in the ,african dialects2 the sound of the letter 8a0 is like that in the word 8father40 ,the whole ,fang tribe has been moving towards the coast for many years1 and they have already emerged at several points1 notably ,gaboon4 ,dr4 ,leighton ,wilson1 writing about #ahfj1 speaks of them as having just appeared west of the ,sierra del ,crystal ,mountains1 one hundred miles east of the ,gaboon ,coast4 ,dr4 ,wilson1 who had a more extended knowledge of the coast than any man of his time1 speaks of the ,fang as the most remarkable and most forceful people he had met in ,west ,africa4 ,they now have villages among the ,mpongwe1 and along the entire length of the ,gaboon ,river and the tributaries of the river and estuary4 ,this for years was my mission field1 a territory one hundred and twenty miles east and west1 and fifty miles north and south4 ,the entire area is a network of waterways1 which are also the highways2 for there are very few bush-roads1 and they are of the worst kind4 ,i know of no more attractive field in ,west ,africa4 ,it combines the far more comfortable home of the coast1 and the more hopeful work of the interior4 ,by the use of a launch1 or even a sailboat1 the towns on the watercourses are easily and quickly accessible4 ,thus1 also1 it allows for expansion and concentration of influence in their proper relation4 ,instead of the influence of the missionary being concentrated in an immediate community where he becomes practically a pastor1 in such a field as that of the ,gaboon watercourses he is rather as a bishop among native pastors1 and influential in many communities4 ,for the native1 however meagre his education1 if he be otherwise worthy1 is always a better pastor than the foreigner1 and needs only counsel4 ,the church also is likely to be more independent in spirit1 and resourceful4 ,in a single community where the white missionary is ever present1 ,christianity shares his prestige1 and a few leaders being converted1 the movement becomes popular1 and many follow without deep convictions or earnest purpose4 ,but in a community with which no white man is identified ,christianity cannot acquire an artificial popularity2 converts are earnest1--are leaders1 not followers1 and each group becomes the centre of a strong influence1 exerted in service from the beginning1 and the nucleus of a native church4 ,at the same time there may be a proper concentration of influence in boarding-schools and classes for religious training1 and especially in a seminary for the training of catechists and ministers4 ,this withal approaches most nearly to the method of our ,master1 who preached to multitudes in various places widely separated1 the while ,he concentrated ,his influence in the training of the twelve4 ,he who of all men might have dispensed with methods1 was really a master of methods4 ,before my time the only work of our mission among the ,fang was at ,angom ,station1 on the upper river1 seventy miles above ,baraka2 but the work though faithfully done had been restricted to one town1 which was a small factor in the great field that ,i have described1 which larger field had never been opened to missionary work4 ,when our missionary at ,angom died1 and his successor after a short period withdrew1 the station was abandoned2 and the little church not yet established in the faith1 unable to stand alone1 soon collapsed4 ,a few years later1 in #aijb1 when little remained but the name1 the ,angom church was formally dissolved by the ,corisco ,presbytery4 ,i have written at some length of the ,bulu of the interior4 ,the ,fang of the interior1 at the head waters of the ,gaboon1 are like the ,bulu1 while some of those at the coast are quite civilized4 ,the ,fang village in this territory is built close to the river or stream4 ,the population of a village varies from fifty to three hundred2 the average population is probably not more than a hundred persons4 ,those of the same village are closely related1 usually brothers or first cousins1 and their wives and children1 with the elders1 or grandfathers4 ,they regard themselves as one family1 and all the children of the village as brothers and sisters4 ,under no circumstances would they intermarry4 ,the child addresses ever so many men as 8,father10 and ever so many women as 8,mother40 ,parental authority is not exclusive2 the whole town has more or less to say in the control and discipline of each child4 ,the result is that while a score of parents are adding zest to existence in a fine squabble as to whether the child shall sit here1 or there1 shall do this1 or that1 the child1 heedless of conflicting orders1 does as he likes and goes where he pleases4 ,yet1 one finds1 as he knows them better1 that the real parents are always distinguished and exercise the final authority4 ,the village consists of a single street running away from the river1 though sometimes there is a second street1 at right angles with the first1 and occasionally even a third4 ,on either side of the street the houses are built in straight rows1 close together1 and almost exactly the same4 ,among the ,bulu the houses are detached2 but among the ,fang they are under one continuous roof4 ,this arrangement is convenient for an enemy in time of war4 ,for1 to set fire to the first house is to burn the whole town2 and nothing could burn more rapidly than dry thatch4 ,nearer the coast the enemy will often saturate the end of the first roof with kerosene--it is the only use they make of kerosene4 ,across each end of the street is a 8palaver-house10 which is the public place1 where the men spend most of the day in talking1 eating1 sleeping and quarrelling4 ,this is the club-house of the men1 and the women enter it only on privilege4 ,a missionary entering a town will nearly always be sure of an audience in the palaver-house4 ,the houses have bark walls held by horizontal strips of bamboo tied with rope of vine1 and supported by upright poles two feet apart1 which are sharpened at the lower end and stuck in the ground4 ,the roof is of palm thatch1 and there is no floor4 ,not a nail is used in the entire construction of the house4 ,nearer the coast1 bark is not used for walls4 ,they are made of split bamboo1 attached horizontally to upright poles4 ,the interior is a single room with beds around the walls4 ,the bed consists of straight round poles laid lengthwise upon two cross-poles1 the head being supported by a wooden pillow4 ,upon these beds the natives sleep with nothing under them and nothing over them4 ,but they usually keep a fire at night1 which is made on the earth floor4 ,there is no outlet for the smoke1 but it escapes through a narrow open space between the walls and the roof4 ,the door is tight closed at night1 and often a family will enjoy themselves around a smouldering fire in smoke so dense that a white man could scarcely enter4 ,their houses are kept as clean inside as their construction allows4 ,but they are always in a state of disorder4 ,the native mind has no categories4 ,the native's knowledge consists of isolated facts which he feels no mental compulsion to classify2 neither do the women take pleasure in household order2 and the notion of each article having a regular and proper place is foreign to their minds4 ,however civilized they may become in the future1 ,i can hardly think that the teapot under the bed or the pig in the parlour would ever offend their sense of propriety4 ,in the middle of the front wall is a rectangular hole1 that looks like a window1 but it is both door and window4 ,at night it is closed by propping a piece of bark against it4 ,the successful entrance of this door is a gymnastic feat requiring long practice for its performance1 and we can afford to watch the white man's first attempt4 ,he has seen the black man pass through it so easily that he does not suspect any difficulty4 ,approaching with assurance he lifts one leg quite high and passes it over the sill1 only to find that he cannot get his head in2 for not only is the door very low but the ragged thatch eaves of the roof project immediately in front of it4 ,in the attempt his helmet1 striking the eaves1 rolls into the street4 ,he goes after the helmet1 brushes off some of the dirt1 and approaching a second time1 though with less assurance1 he puts the other leg through the door1 which is no improvement whatever upon the first effort1 and he loses his helmet again4 ,a third time he essays to enter1 but with a step that indicates a rise of temperature4 ,he thrusts his head and shoulders through the door1 then tries to bring a foot in after him2 but1 invariably failing to get his foot nearly high enough to pass the sill he trips1 falls forward1 and goes plunging into the house sprawling on all fours1 and only by extraordinary exertion escapes the fire in the middle of the room4 ,the children1 if they are not accustomed to the white man1 scream with fright1 and the grown people laugh without restraint4 ,those in the street laugh still louder and afford every evidence that the rear view of the performance--the unintelligible exertions1 the sudden disappearance and the feet lingering on the door-sill--was an entertainment which they would greatly enjoy a second time4 ,the white man gets up out of the dust and the ashes1 glares fiercely around and asks if anybody knows where his helmet is4 ,some time in the future1 after an extended and distressing experience he may chance to observe exactly how the black man enters his small door4 ,he neither halts nor hesitates2 but throwing up one leg1 he throws his head down at the same time1 probably extending an arm in front of him1 and thrusting both head and leg through together1 he bolts into the house4 ,near the coast the houses are better4 ,there are often several rooms in a house4 ,they have doors that swing on hinges1 and windows the same1 but unglazed4 ,they have grass mats upon the beds4 ,but all this is the result of the imported civilization4 ,the idle life of the ,fang1 especially in the interior1 and his freedom from responsibility1 seem to the impatient white man to have obliterated from his mind the idea of time4 ,the more prosperous people near the coast have a passion for clocks1 but it is because they like to hear them tick and strike4 ,a ,fang cannot conceive that he has wronged you if he comes several days late to keep an engagement4 ,this unreliableness in everything where time is a factor is one of the chief trials of the white man in ,africa4 ,but he ought to regard the native's viewpoint and consider how very irritating and really discouraging to the native must be the white man's incessant hurry4 8,we are not in a hurry10 says the black man4 8,why should you come to ,africa to set us all hurrying8 ,has it made your own people so very happy that you want to share with us the blessing of haste80 ,the ,african is the most sociable man in the world4 ,he could not easily be killed with work even the hardest3 he is not much afraid of it4 ,but isolate him1 take him away from his people1 and he could easily die of homesickness4 ,he is strongly emotional and warmly affectionate by nature4 ,he loves his children1 and sometimes embraces them tenderly1 but he never kisses them4 ,the kiss is meaningless to the ,african4 ,they have never seen any such thing except between white people4 ,i am almost ashamed to tell their interpretation of it as some of them have seen it executed and have reported to their people2 but ,i presume it will do no harm4 ,they think that white people1 in kissing1 expectorate into each other's mouths4 ,the word by which they designate the kiss is a compound which means 8to exchange saliva40--,no wonder it is not popular6 ,when those at the coast begin the practice of this fine art1 it is usually accompanied by a sound loud enough to start a team of horses4 ,all their spare time they sit in the palaver-house and talk1 stopping for an occasional nap4 ,the old men as they sit scratching themselves with the itch relate wonderful tales and tell infinite lies about their achievements when young1 how many women eloped with them1 how many enemies they had killed in war1 and how they had fought wild animals with unheard-of bravery4 ,but they turn out interesting tales and are always listened to respectfully because of their years4 ,the chief factor in the social life is the marriage customs and the relations of husband and wife4 ,the woman is regarded as inferior in every way to the man4 ,it would be disgraceful to a man to be caught eating with his wife4 ,her duty is to work for him and to provide for him4 ,she is bought with a price and is a part of his wealth2 indeed1 a man's wealth and influence are measured by the number of his wives4 ,the son inherits the father's wives1 all but his own mother4 ,frequently in the forest one may see a woman staggering along the rough bush-path under a load of forty or fifty pounds1 and perhaps carrying her poor babe in a strap hung at her side1 while her lordly husband walks before her with only his gun or a knife4 ,in some tribes a wife must keep a certain distance behind her husband as they walk4 ,if he should fall she must also fall1 lest she laugh at him4 ,illustration3 ,,man ,,and ,,wife4 ,the woman always carries the load4 ,illustration3 ,,two ,,men ,,dancing4 ,the music1 supplied by various drums1 may have charms to soothe the savage breasts2 it certainly would soothe no other kind4 ,a man and his wife once came to me from a distant town1 the woman carrying a load of food which they wished to sell1 the man carrying nothing4 ,i told them that ,i had no use for the food and could not buy it2 whereupon the man appealed to my pity and urged that the poor woman1 who was exhausted1 and who was suffering with an ulcer on her foot1 was not able to carry the load back home4 ,i replied that ,i knew how to relieve her1 and ,i asked them both to turn their backs and close their eyes4 ,they did as ,i asked1 probably expecting that ,i would perform some miracle that would make the burden light4 ,but1 taking the burden from the woman's back1 ,i suddenly put it upon the man1 and threw the strap over his shoulder4 ,he flung it upon the ground with an angry protest at the great indignity ,i had put upon him in the presence of his wife4 ,inconsistent with this is his love of his mother1 of which ,i have spoken before2 but it may be mentioned again1 for it is the strongest sentiment and the deepest emotion in the mind and heart of the ,african4 ,he always loves his mother more than his wife4 ,the wife is also expected to love the members of her own family more than her husband2 but the love of mother is strongest in the men4 ,she is the one who will defend him against the machinations of his wives and be true to him when all others combine to denounce or to injure him4 ,one day on an ,english steamer a traveller who was standing on deck and teasing some ,kruboys in a boat below remarked to an ,old ,coaster how very good-natured they were4 ,the ,old ,coaster told him something to say to one of them that involved a reflection on his mother4 ,the traveller made the remark and was startled and somewhat frightened when the 8good-natured0 ,kruboy turned upon him in a rage1 cursed him and threatened to kill him4 ,if he had been ashore he might have paid the penalty with his life4 ,the ,african1 old and young1 thinks he has fully justified any violent assault upon another when he says3 8,he cursed my mother40 ,any reflection whether it be more or less serious is called a 8curse40 ,a man also loves his children more than his wife4 ,often the head-wife is the one who bears the most children4 ,children are not weaned until the age of three years or thereabouts4 ,during all this period of lactation the husband and wife observe absolute continence in regard to each other1 though not necessarily in regard to others4 ,a man has as many wives as he can afford to buy4 ,the idea of marrying 8just for love0 is laughable4 ,such an act is sometimes cited as indicating weakness of character4 ,marriages of 8strong-minded0 men are controlled by expediency and convenience4 ,in the territory of the ,gaboon ,i know of no man that has more than ten wives2 but in the farther interior some chiefs have half a hundred4 ,yet1 though the possession of many wives is the ambition of every man1 most of them never possess more than one4 ,the dowry which a man pays for a wife is enormous2 and none but the most successful traders are able to earn the amount4 ,a dowry is often kept intact and passed from father to son1 doing repeated service4 ,a man may also procure a dowry by the sale of a sister4 ,i have heard ,fang boys boasting that they were rich because they had several sisters4 ,for those who are not so fortunate as to inherit a dowry or to have a sister1 there are two alternatives2 first they may remain unmarried1 with the result that they will be regarded as contemptibly poor1 and will be engaged in endless palavers with all the husbands of the town2 or1 they may boldly steal a woman of some other town1 which will cause war between the two towns1 and in the end1 after several or many persons have been killed1 the whole town will have to pay the dowry4 ,sometimes a man may have an incomplete dowry and may by working earn sufficient to complete it4 ,the following would be an ordinary dowry among the ,fang living near the coast3 ,ten goats1 five sheep1 five guns1 twenty trade-boxes 7plain wooden chests71 one hundred heads of tobacco1 ten hats1 ten looking-glasses1 five blankets1 five pairs of trousers1 two dozen plates1 fifty dollars' worth of calico1 fifty dollars' worth of rum1 one chair and one cat4 ,in addition to the above he must make frequent presents to his wife's relations1 who may be expected to arrive at any time and in any number for an indefinite visit4 ,if there is any hatred in the heart of the ,african man it is usually directed towards his wife's relations4 ,a man is all his lifetime subject to bondage by reason of his wife4 ,a certain fellow missionary was married to another missionary4 ,some of the ,african boys1 knowing that the white man had paid no dowry1 expressed envious regrets at the ease with which a white man marries a wife4 8,all you white men have to do10 they said1 8is simply to ask a woman2 and the whole palaver is finished40 ,this also made my celibacy the more incomprehensible4 ,when a wife dies without having borne children the husband has the right to insist that the dowry be returned4 ,a part of it and sometimes all of it will have been spent1 and the people are reluctant to make up the loss2 so the request that the dowry be returned after the death of a wife nearly always leads to war1 though they do not question the right of the custom4 ,if the wife runs away either to her own or another town1 the dowry paid for her must be returned1 if the woman is not sent back4 ,in nearly every case her people will find it more convenient to send her back than to restore the dowry2 so their bad passions of greed and immorality are balanced the one against the other1 and the large dowry serves the purpose of keeping husband and wife together4 ,but if the woman runs away not to her own town1 but to some other town1 eloping with another man1 her people will often prevent war between the two towns by inducing her to return4 ,otherwise they themselves will become involved in the war4 ,nearly all the wars between different communities of the same tribe begin with a 8woman-palaver40 ,a woman after an attempt to run away1 or upon being brought back1 is usually put in stocks until she becomes submissive4 ,her foot is passed through a hole in a heavy block of wood about four feet long1 the hole then being closed by a bolt4 ,she is kept thus night and day4 ,the irritation of the rough wood often produces a very bad ulcer4 ,a woman in stocks is a common sight in the ,fang towns4 ,one day while ,i was in a ,fang town on the river1 ,i heard a woman crying in the next town as if in great pain4 ,i asked an explanation and said ,i must go and see what was the matter4 ,some men of her town being present tried to persuade me not to go by telling a variety of conflicting lies that made me suspicious4 ,i went to the town1 and found in the palaver-house a withered old savage punishing his young wife by putting her hand in a large and heavy block1 with the help of his younger brothers4 ,he had made a small hole in the block and was dragging her hand through it4 ,the hole was so small that he thought she would not be able to get her hand out1 and it would not require the usual bolt4 ,the hand was about one-third of the way through the hole and was already badly bruised4 ,i knew the ,fang towns1 and just how far ,i could safely venture to use force in each1 for they differ widely4 ,the individual counts for nothing2 everything depends upon the feeling or attitude of the whole town towards the white man4 ,the sight of the woman and her crying were unbearable2 ,i ordered the old chief to withdraw her hand immediately4 ,he knew just how to do it and ,i did not4 ,he began to argue1 but ,i said3 8,argument afterwards3 remove her hand instantly40 ,still he talked1 and the woman cried4 ,but a moment later my hand clutched his throat and he found himself pinioned against the opposite wall4 ,thereupon he indicated his readiness to comply with my request4 ,he dragged her hand out of the block2 the women of the town1 all assembled1 led her away as they moaned pathetically in sympathy1 the woman herself still crying4 ,a little later ,i followed them into the house and found them pouring warm water over the bruised hand to soothe the pain2 but the woman still cried4 ,meantime1 the old man told me the story4 ,it was typical of the extreme injustice often committed against the ,african woman3 ,a young woman married against her will to a very old man1 with the inevitable consequence that she despised him and cared too much for somebody else4 ,i made the incident the text of my sermon and preached an up-to-date sermon on ,woman's ,rights4 ,the old man's cupidity1 always alert1 suggested a happy expedient4 ,in a suave manner he deliberately proposed that since ,i knew so well how to treat a woman1 he would as a favour accept a proper dowry from me1 renounce his claim upon her and let me marry her4 ,but ,i exclaimed1 at least to myself3 8,this is so sudden60 ,but would not the old man immediately carry out his purpose when ,i had left the town8 ,no1 he would not4 ,an unexpected interruption in the performance of such an act he would regard as a sign that the act would be attended by misfortune to himself1 and he would not repeat it4 ,and that particular act1 if he had repeated it1 would certainly have been attended by misfortune2 inflicted not by any invisible power1 but by a white man4 ,for1 having undertaken to prevent the wrong1 if ,i should afterwards allow it1 ,i would lose influence and be despised in that town4 ,but lest the reader should think of me as a very warlike individual1 with a ,bible in one hand and a big stick in the other1 ,i hasten to say that1 except in self-defense1 ,i have only three times1 in more than twice so many years1 laid violent hands upon a native2 and all three times the outrageous treatment of a woman was the occasion4 ,less dowry is paid for a child than for 8a whole woman10 as the ,fang would say4 ,a man frequently pays the dowry for a very young girl1 who is then taken to his town and given in charge to his mother to raise1 and the mother will probably 8raise0 her very early in the morning4 ,she trains the girl for her son1 and at a proper age delivers his wife to him4 ,children are often betrothed to each other1 the boy's father paying the dowry to the girl's father1 the children of course having nothing to say in the matter4 ,i am inclined to think that these latter are the happiest marriages in ,africa4 ,a man once came to ,efulen in great distress saying that his little daughter1 a mere baby1 was very ill and that if we did not help her she would surely die and1 he added1 the worst of it was that she was betrothed and he had received a portion of the dowry which he would be obliged to return if she should die4 ,his grief was truly pitiable4 ,i have known instances where a child was betrothed before it was born1 the dowry to be kept intact and returned in case the child should not be a girl4 ,one ,sunday ,i walked to an inland town two hours behind ,baraka1 where ,i found the people engaged in talking a dowry-palaver4 ,i had to wait until this was finished before ,i could get a hearing4 ,the occasion of the palaver was briefly this3 ,some years ago1 in another town1 there were two brothers whose father died leaving them their sister as an inheritance4 ,a husband was found for this sister who paid a handsome dowry4 ,the elder brother appropriated the dowry and took to himself a wife4 ,several years passed2 the younger brother was grown to manhood1 and he too desired a wife but had no dowry with which to procure her4 ,he demanded from his brother his rightful share of his sister's dowry4 ,the dowry of course was gone2 but the elder brother now had a daughter five years old1 and it was proposed that he should find a husband for this child1 thus procuring a dowry with which to settle with his younger brother4 ,the trouble between the brothers became serious2 and the people1 wishing to avoid war1 induced them to ask a certain neighbouring chief1 who had a reputation for wisdom and diplomacy1 to arbitrate between them and decide the matter4 ,this was the palaver that was in progress when ,i entered the town on ,sunday1 and ,i heard the closing speeches and the decision of the judge1 which was as follows3 8,i will cut the palaver thus3 ,the elder brother must dispose of his daughter as speedily as possible1 and pay to his younger brother the sum of the dowry4 ,meanwhile1 to procure obedience to this1 the elder brother's wife will remain in this town as my wife until the dowry is paid40 ,this amicable arrangement was agreed to by all the parties concerned4 ,this chief deserved his reputation for cleverness4 ,a few weeks later ,i was passing through his town when he called after me and asked if ,i were going to pass by without making him a little present of some tobacco in recognition of our intimate friendship4 ,in reply ,i asked3 8,why do you not rather complain that ,i pass your town without stopping to tell you ,god's ,word8 ,is tobacco more important80 ,his sprightly answer1 delivered with perfect simplicity1 was1 8,no doubt ,god's ,word is more important2 but tobacco also is ,god's gift1 and ,i am very grateful to ,him for it40 ,some of their immoral customs one can only mention with reserve even in writing4 ,it is always regarded as amiable1 and is sometimes required1 that a host should give his wife to a guest4 ,the wife is not consulted4 ,yet1 if the guest1 being a ,christian1 should refuse to comply with this custom1 the woman1 regarding herself as repulsed1 will become enraged and vow vengeance upon the visitor2 it will be positively dangerous for him to eat food in that town lest she poison him4 ,it is common also for a man afflicted with a long illness to ask a friend to assume his marital relations until his recovery4 ,in one instance this request was made of a ,christian man by an intimate friend1 and at the woman's suggestion4 ,the man in his distress appealed to me to talk the palaver with the sick man4 ,if a man has many wives1 it is regarded as magnanimous for him to take but little notice of social wrong-doing2 and the result is boundless immorality4 ,charges of adultery are often made for the purpose of extortion4 ,for this same purpose husbands and wives together often conspire against another person4 ,polygamy is the greatest obstacle to the introduction of ,christianity4 ,it is not identical with the question of ,african sensuality2 but involves a man's wealth1 influence and reputation1 all of which depend upon the number of his wives4 ,it is the very foundation of the whole structure of ,african society and is as firmly rooted as their ,cameroon ,mountain in the ,african soil4 ,critics of missions say that the obstacle is insuperable4 ,but we believe in a ,power that can say to the mountain3 8,be thou removed2 and be thou cast into the sea40 ,and that same ,power is actually removing polygamy to-day4 ,moreover1 the critics do not seem to see or do not understand that if polygamy be an insuperable obstacle to ,christianity it is also an insuperable obstacle to civilization1 which they advocate4 ,the renouncing of polygamy and putting away his wives with all the loss that it involves serves as a final test of the ,african's sincerity in professing the ,christian faith4 ,the man of the parable said3 8,i have married a wife1 and therefore ,i cannot come40 ,when at the close of a service in a native town ,i gave a similar invitation a man replied with a sorrowful shake of his head3 8,i have married five wives1 and cannot come40 ,in the later chapters of this book ,i shall tell of men who1 notwithstanding the jeers and contempt of the people1 have put away many wives and have come4 ,among the real negro tribes of the ,soudan 7for the tribes of ,central and ,southern ,africa are not pure negroes7 there is a central government and a general organization4 ,but there is no tribal organization among the ,fang or any other tribe south of the ,calabar ,river4 ,the village1 or a group of villages close together and immediately related1 is the unit and the entirety of organization2 although a common language is a bond of sympathy and they might freely unite against a common foe4 ,their government is nearly patriarchal in form4 ,there is a headman in each village who is usually advanced in years4 ,but unless he has many more wives than any other man he takes counsel in all matters with the elders of the town2 and there are many public discussions in which all the men have a right to advise4 ,there is no despotism1 except the despotism of custom which no chief would challenge4 ,the right hand of the government is a secret society of the men1 usually called ,the ,gorilla ,society1 or sometimes ,the ,leopard ,society4 ,this or some corresponding society is found in all the tribes of ,west ,africa1 though there are details of difference even between the communities of the same tribe4 ,the head of the society is not supposed to be a man1 but a gorilla4 ,they all know that this is not true but they have agreed to impose this lie upon each other and no one would dare say that the head of the society is a man4 ,this man1 or gorilla1 is a witch-doctor and has great knowledge of witchcraft and all the occult arts4 ,when a person dies the gorilla can tell whether he has been a victim of witchcraft1 and he has means of discovering the witch4 ,in order to realize the power of this man and the society one need only remember that nearly every death in ,africa is imputed to witchcraft4 ,his knowledge1 however1 is not regarded as absolute4 ,he designates certain persons whom he professes to see in a vision1 and they are then tried by ordeal4 ,it would be impossible to exaggerate the ,african terror of witchcraft4 ,when it is announced that a certain deceased person has died of witchcraft1 a panic ensues4 ,they run back and forth in the street with wild1 staring eyes1 uttering imprecations and demanding blood4 ,the common ordeal is to drink some poisonous concoction and if it does not produce vertigo the accused is adjudged innocent2 but if he staggers or falls he is guilty1 and the people1 all standing around and looking on with spears and swords in their hands1 immediately rush upon him and kill him1 usually cutting the body to pieces4 ,far more women than men die this death4 ,among the ,fang this society represents the worship of ancestors4 ,the motive of the worship is not devotion to their ancestors but rather that they may procure their help in every undertaking1 good and bad4 ,each man as directed by the head of the society secures the skull of a father or uncle recently deceased and after various ceremonies1 of which ,i shall speak when ,i describe the native religion1 he puts the skull in a box made for the purpose4 ,no woman may see the contents of the box1 nor is she supposed to know what it contains4 ,if she should see the skull she will die4 ,and she really does die1 if it be known that she has seen it4 ,she is doubtless poisoned by the society4 ,the spirit of the ancestor1 if the skull is well treated1 will punish with sickness or death a disobedient or false wife1 or any other enemy4 ,this it is supposed will in some degree restrain disobedience on the part of wives and secure justice and honesty between men4 ,thus it serves the purpose of government4 ,where the power of the ancestor is the efficient agent rather than the supernatural power of the head of the society1 the latter has less prominence and often does not profess to be more than a man4 ,but where he is regarded as a gorilla1 or spirit1 no woman or child or uninitiated man may see him and live4 ,therefore as he approaches a town he gives warning by roaring like a gorilla4 ,the women and children flee for their lives4 ,or1 if unable to escape1 they fall upon the ground and shut their eyes1 mothers also putting their hands over their babies' eyes1 until the gorilla passes out of the town1 after having helped himself to chickens1 bananas or anything that he desires4 ,the ,african1 it is said1 loves idleness1 amusement and war2 of these three he probably loves war most4 ,except in the vicinity of the foreign governments or the missions1 war is the usual condition2 not only between tribe and tribe but between village and village4 ,beyond the range of civilization there is no salutation between persons casually meeting and no need of it2 a man hearing another approaching in the forest would hide4 ,nsama1 which means a crowd1 is also the word for chance1 or opportunity2 because a man does not go anywhere alone and a crowd is his opportunity4 ,of course villages are often on friendly terms and some may manage to remain so2 but in such cases there are usually strong reasons of expediency4 ,the usual beginning of a war is the stealing of a woman1 as ,i have said2 but this does not always lead to war and the shedding of blood4 ,nearer the coast milder measures of retaliation are often preferred1 and when a woman is stolen the offended town will capture one of the other side and keep him prisoner until the woman is returned4 ,the solidarity of the village in the native mind is impressed upon one continually4 ,they also capture persons of a village in which some one owes them a dowry which he is reluctant to pay4 ,in all such matters the whole village is held responsible for each one of its inhabitants4 ,many a time1 travelling on the river1 ,i have been about to call at a town when one of my crew in alarm has told me that there was a palaver between that town and his town and he dare not enter there4 ,at the next town another one of the crew may raise the same objection2 and another at the next4 ,after a thorough trial ,i had to depend almost entirely on men of the coast rather than the ,fang1 for at least the first two years4 ,it was not a cowardly imagination on the part of my ,fang crew2 they were in real danger4 ,on one occasion one of my ,fang boys1 ,ndong ,koni1 my best helper and most devoted friend1 accompanied me to a certain ,fang town with which his people had a palaver4 ,he had not a vestige of fear in him and he told me nothing about it1 but depended upon my presence for his safety4 ,when ,i was about to hold a service in the street ,i observed that the people were muttering in anger1 and at last there was an outburst of wrath which1 as ,i saw in a moment1 was directed against ,ndong ,koni4 ,a 8sister0 of ,ndong ,koni1 who as a matter of fact was not nearer than a second cousin1 having married a man in this town1 had recently run away from a brutal husband1 and her people had not yet made her return1 or1 unwilling to send her back1 had not yet returned the dowry4 ,the proposition was to seize ,ndong ,koni and put him in stocks until the palaver should be settled4 ,once they should lay hands upon him nothing could be done to restrain them2 for when degraded and ignorant people have committed one hostile act they become excited and violent2 they are then a mob4 ,i hurried to ,ndong ,koni's side and with him ,i stepped back from the crowd while ,i addressed them and presented various arguments4 ,illustration3 ,,ndong ,,koni4 ,the first1 the most faithful and the bravest of all my ,african friends4 ,i said first3 8,ndong ,koni while in my service does not belong to his town1 but to me2 he is my son1 and you have no palaver with me4 ,now suppose that one of your own young men should work for me--and ,i see several fine-looking young men here with strong arms to pull an oar4 ,suppose that a young man of your town should go with me to ,alum1 where you have a palaver1 and that the people of ,alum should attempt to seize him1 what would you like to have me do8 ,shall ,i say3 #8,he is only a black boy and ,i am a white man2 ,i don't care what you do with him4' ,or shall ,i say3 #8,the colour of the skin makes no difference1 so long as the blood is red4 ,this boy while he works for me is my son2 and if you should harm a white man's son you will have a palaver with me and with the white governor at ,libreville who owns the gunboat4' ,now what would you like me to say if one of these young men should go with me to ,alum and the people should want to put him in stocks80 ,they shouted in reply3 8,we would want you to say he was your son4 ,those are good words4 ,you are the father of us all40 8,yes10 said ,i1 8,i have many1 many children2 but my life is full of trouble1 for they do not obey me40 ,the chief and a few others were as hostile as ever1 but there was a marked change in the attitude of the people2 and in order to force an assertion of their friendliness ,i attempted a grand bluff1 while ,i was inwardly quaking4 ,approaching the threatening chief ,i laid my hand upon his arm and said3 8,come and seize this boy if you dare4 ,come with me and before my face put your hand upon my son40 8,no10 cried the people2 and they crowded between the chief and ,ndong ,koni4 ,the palaver was finished2 but ,i thought it well to pass on to the next town and not wait to hold a service4 ,before ,i got away however they crowded around me1 saying3 8,since you are the father of the ,fang surely you ought to give us some tobacco4 ,a father gives tobacco to his sons40 ,it is thus frequently in ,africa2 the serious ends in burlesque2 and1 perhaps as frequently1 comedy ends in tragedy4 ,the chief himself1 coming forward just before my departure1 assured me of his good will by solemnly taking my hand in his and spitting in it4 ,i know the theory of some regarding this touching demonstration of affection1--that the native means only to blow with his breath1 symbolic of imparting a blessing1 and that the spitting is incidental1 a 8by-product0--so to speak--of the blessing4 ,but as ,i looked at my hand ,i realized that it was not a theory1 but a condition1 that confronted me1 a condition that called loudly for soap and water--warm water and plenty of soap4 ,i have before this acknowledged the receipt of blessings in disguise2 but ,i would cheerfully renounce any possible benefits that might accrue from a blessing coming in such a disguise as this4 ,and if the old chief had approached me a second time with the offer of a blessing on the other hand1 ,i would have said3 8,please give me a curse instead1 by way of variety40 ,the form of 8socialism10 by which any one of a village may be seized and killed by the enemy for the wrong of any other of that same village1 is even carried further1 and to the extent that one person may be given over to the enemy for the wrong done by another person4 ,i have already said1 in reference to the ,bulu1 that at the end of a war the ordinary way of settling the palaver is that the side that has done the most killing will pay over to the other side a corresponding number of women1 who become wives or sometimes slaves in the enemy's town4 ,in war they are not careful to kill only the enemy1 but often shoot recklessly at any one in sight who might possibly belong to the other side1 not waiting to be sure about it4 ,in the dark forest they often mistake a friend for a foe1 with dreadful consequences4 ,on the river it is not so frequent4 ,one evening one of my boys1 ,amvama1 who afterwards became a catechist1 an honest and lovable boy1 was in a canoe on the river1 fishing with a net4 ,it was evening and he was in the shade of overhanging trees4 ,several canoes approached and the people mistaking ,amvama fired upon him4 ,he hastened to the bank and leaving the canoe and net fled into the forest1 while they seized all that he had left4 ,they afterwards learned who it was that they had so nearly killed4 ,amvama's people demanded his canoe and net1 which were surrendered4 ,but the civilized ,amvama cared less for the loss of these things than for the personal outrage done him in their attempt to kill him4 ,he indignantly put the question3 8,why did you fire upon me80 ,they only replied3 8,how did we know it was you80 8,how did you know it was not ,i80 responded ,amvama4 ,but it is not likely that the discussion contributed greatly to the science of ethics among the ,fang4 ,there is a strange war-custom in all the tribes of ,west ,africa unlike anything that ,i have known or heard of elsewhere4 ,often when a woman is stolen from a small and poorly defended town1 the people1 desiring to make a desperate protest1 or being unusually resentful and fierce1 will kill some person of a third town that has nothing whatever to do with the palaver1 by way of drawing attention to the fact that a crime has been committed and of impressing the community with its enormity4 ,but it seems hard that a man should be punished for a crime without having the pleasure of committing it4 ,sometimes1 however1 this is done to enlist the help of the third town4 ,for1 this third town according to custom is not supposed to retaliate directly but will unite with the town which has killed one of their people in wreaking vengeance upon the first town1 which was the original offender and therefore the cause of all the trouble4 ,imagine ,a1 ,b and ,c to be three schoolboys2 the principle of the custom then is this 7if the colloquial language may be pardoned73 ,a licks ,b2 ,b1 not being able to lick ,a1 lies in wait for ,c and licks him2 then ,c joins with ,b and they together lick ,a4 ,the moral beauty of this principle is evident3 ,a1 ,b and ,c each get licked4 ,on one occasion when holding a service in a town we heard two shots fired in rapid succession in another town close by4 ,each shot killed a man2 one of them was a chief4 ,they were unarmed and suspecting no harm2 for neither they nor their people had anything to do with the palaver which was the occasion of the killing2 nor had they even heard of it4 ,a man of the town that ,i was visiting and who was then sitting in the audience had just stolen a woman from another town1 which latter town was small and poorly defended4 ,being desperate1 and in order that they might not be a prey to stronger towns1 they resorted to this peculiar mode of justice that they might form a strong coalition against the enemy4 ,in this they succeeded and fourteen persons were killed before that palaver was ended4 ,among the ,mpongwe1 in the old days before the foreign power was established1 and among the closely related tribes south of them1 this custom prevailed in an extreme form4 ,a woman being stolen1 the people of the offended town would hurry to another town near by before the news had reached them and would kill somebody4 ,this town would then hurry to the next and kill somebody there1 each town doing likewise until perhaps five or six persons of as many different towns would be killed in one night4 ,the last town would then1 with the help of the others1 demand justice from the first4 ,it may be that the object of this frightful custom was to restrain men from committing the initial crime1 that might be attended with such widespread death1 bringing upon themselves the curses of many people4 ,for above all things the ,african cannot bear to be disliked and cannot endure execration4 ,the chief amusements of the ,fang and other tribes of ,west ,africa are music1 dancing and story-telling4 ,in these1 and at all times1 they exhibit a strong sense of humour1 truly surprising in an uncivilized people4 ,in this faculty they are next to our own race and quite unequalled by others4 ,in their survival of suffering and oppression1 in their easy forgetfulness of injury1 and their constant buoyancy of mind1 who can tell how much they owe to their keen sense of humour8 ,the pain of suffering and the weight of heavy burdens are mitigated by frequent laughter4 ,they are fond of incongruous comparisons4 ,on one occasion when we were travelling on the river there was on board a white man who was very bald1 and who attracted considerable attention from the crew because they had never seen a bald white man before4 ,one of their number cheered up a lot of tired boys by remarking that the head of that white man was like a fresh-laid egg4 ,they are passionately fond of music2 but their sense of rhythm is far more keen than their sense of melody4 ,accordingly the drum in various forms is the favourite instrument4 ,there are two principal kinds of drum1 both made from the trunk of a tree hollowed out1 and about four feet long4 ,one of these stands upright and the open end is covered with deerskin4 ,it is beaten with the palms of the hand4 ,they play remarkably well upon this drum4 ,with great variety in the beat they maintain a constant and perfect rhythm4 ,the other drum1 which is larger1 lies on its side1 has closed ends1 and a long narrow opening in the side4 ,it is beaten with two heavy sticks4 ,the wood of the drum is very resonant and it can be heard at a distance of many miles4 ,it is used as a kind of telegraph between towns1 and messages are sent upon it4 ,this is done by means of a secret language of inarticulate sounds which they are able to imitate upon the drum1 according to the part of it which they strike and the regularity of the stroke4 ,the women do not understand it1 except a few common calls4 ,neither would any one be allowed to teach it to a white man4 ,this telegraphic use of the drum is extraordinary2 messages of startling definiteness are sometimes sent ahead of a caravan over a great distance being repeated in town after town4 ,this drum1 therefore1 bulky and unlikely as it appears1 is very skillfully made1 being precise in form and with varying shades of thickness in different parts4 ,as to its musical qualities1 it may have charms to soothe the savage breast2 ,i am very sure that it could soothe no others2 and among white people it would make more savages than it would soothe4 ,besides the drums there are several other instruments1 but of less importance4 ,the most common of these is a wooden harp with strings made of a vegetable fibre1 which respond to the fingers with tinkling notes4 ,there is also a xylophone consisting of a row of parallel wooden bars1 graduated in length1 and placed upon a base of two parallel banana stocks1 which lie upon the ground4 ,banana stocks are used because they are non-conducting4 ,the wooden bars are hammered with sticks4 ,the notes are pleasant2 but the ,fang do not make much of it1 as it is not sufficiently noisy to impress them4 ,there is still another in common use2 a harp with a single string1 the sound of which is like the magnified music of a ,jew's-harp4 ,their singing1 like their instrumental music1 has not much 8tune0 to it1 but there is always a stirring rhythm and a certain weird and touching quality1 which impressed me the more because ,i could never quite understand it1--the same elusive charm that characterizes the singing of the negroes of the ,southern ,states4 ,i do not refer to the negro songs composed by white men1 which are entirely different1 but the melodies that the negro sings at his work4 ,the native songs are of the nature of chants1 and turn upon several notes of a minor scale4 ,but it is not quite our minor scale4 ,there is one prominent and characteristic note1 which ,i confess defied me1 though it may have been a minor third slightly flat4 ,i found it very difficult to reduce their songs to musical notation4 ,the words of most of the songs are improvised by the leading voice1 and have a regular refrain in which all join4 ,but if they wish to sing in chorus1 as in their dance-songs1 any words will serve the purpose and the same sentence may be repeated for an hour4 8,our old cow she crossed the road0 were luminous with propriety and sentiment in comparison with the words that they will sometimes sing in endless repetition4 8,the leopard caught the monkey's tail10 8,the roots grow underneath the ground10 are samples of their songs4 ,their canoe-songs ,i like best of all4 ,the rhythm is appropriate and one almost hears the sound of the paddles4 ,they sing nearly all the time as they use the paddle or the oar1 and on a long journey they say it makes the hard work easier4 ,if they should take a white man on a journey and1 not being his regular workmen1 should expect a 8dash0--a fee1 or present1 in ,african vernacular--the leading voice will sing the white man's praises on the journey1 alluding in particular to his benevolence1 while the others all respond1 seeking thus by barefaced flattery and good-natured importunity to shame the meanness out of him4 ,dancing1 both with old and young1 takes the place in general of our games and sports1 except that the men also hunt4 ,the music used is that of the two drums already described1 especially the upright one1 and they usually sing as they dance4 ,they can scarcely listen to the music without indulging the movements of the dance4 ,men and women never dance together2 and they have nothing like our conventional dances4 ,there is something of the freedom and unrestrained movements of the ,italian and ,hungarian peasant-dances2 yet in comparison with these latter the ,african dance is a very uncouth performance1 though frequently difficult1 and extremely grotesque4 ,its peculiar characteristic is that the feet are no more active than any other part of the body2 arms1 shoulders1 abdomen1 head--all the parts and every muscle are set in motion1 sometimes including even the eyes and the tongue4 ,their champions we would call contortionists rather than dancers4 ,sometimes famous dancers from different towns1 in fantastic and absurd decorations and dress1 will contend for the championship in a contest of several days4 ,they dance in the middle of the street before an audience of almost the entire population of the different towns seated on the ground on either side of the street4 ,the music is not adapted to the dance1 but the dance to the changing music4 ,the musicians have hard work1 and they make it harder4 ,streaming with perspiration they beat the drums with changing time and increasing rapidity until they are almost as nearly exhausted as the dancers1 and one might think that the music had gone mad4 ,without doubt the native dance is a fine bodily exercise2 and they dance so much that the exercise is perhaps the chief factor in the development of the strength and athletic form of the native4 ,the women dance on the moonlight nights1 and often through the entire night4 ,they all sing as they dance1 most of them standing in a circle while individuals one after another step into the middle of the circle and lead the performance4 ,the men are standing around looking on and when a leader finishes her part one or several of her gentlemen friends will step into the circle and embrace her4 ,these dances have always appeared innocent enough to me4 ,but the native ,christians1 who know better than ,i1 and who also know the side-scenes that invariably attend the dance though not a part of it1 uniformly condemn the dance1 and say that no ,christian ought to take part in it4 ,they dance on all festive occasions--a betrothal1 a marriage1 a victory in war1 the end of a war1 or the end of a term of mourning for the dead4 ,the men decorate themselves with paint and feathers1 and often they wear around their ankles strings of native bells1 consisting of the dried hull of a certain nut1 into which while still green they insert small stones1 which make a peculiarly metallic and pleasant noise4 ,they usually form in two long lines in the street1 with the drums across one end4 ,some great dancer will perform in the middle1 down the lines and back1 sometimes in graceful movements1 and sometimes in contortions almost fiendish until his body seems to have no shape at all 8distinguishable in member1 joint or limb40 ,sometimes they all move with him down the street and back4 ,they sing and shout as they dance1 shaking the bells on their ankles1 and occasionally all together suddenly stamping upon the ground4 ,they mark the time to perfection1 and the effect of so many men keeping the time perfectly while their movements differ1 together with the volume of wild song and shouting is quite fascinating4 ,the chief dance of the men is that of their ,secret ,society1 which is performed only on very dark nights1 the women being compelled to retire to their houses and close the door lest they see it and die4 ,in this dance they deliberately try to be unhuman and hideous in their movements4 ,i once witnessed this dance when ,i had been but a short time in ,africa and did not know the serious nature of my intrusion2 and ,i suppose ,i came much nearer suffering violence at their hands than ,i knew at the time4 ,it is the height of indiscretion to show unnecessary contempt for native customs1 or to disregard their feelings for the sake of satisfying mere curiosity4 ,but ,i was not aware of their feelings until it was too late to retreat4 ,hearing the drumming and the roar of the gorilla-man ,i knew they were having a characteristic dance and with a lantern in my hand ,i started along the bush-path to see it and entered the town before they were aware of my approach4 ,the offense was double4 ,i had turned the light upon the performance1 possibly allowing women to see the gorilla-man through the chinks of the houses2 and ,i myself had defied him by looking upon him with uninitiated eyes1 for which according to custom ,i ought to die4 ,he approached me whirling about and contorting his body1 roaring the while like a gorilla1 and brandished his sword very close to my face1 to one side and then the other4 ,but ,i was not intimidated for the sufficient reason that ,i did not believe he would touch me4 ,then1 as ,i stood my ground1 he thought to terrorize me by his supernatural powers1 which the native would fear far more than a sword4 ,he brought out a number of human bones and laying them on the ground before me he performed a ceremony which was supposed to bring down upon me the wrath of his ancestors4 ,but of the two dangers ,i was rather more afraid of the sword than the ancestors4 ,they all saw my indifference and concluded that ,i had with me some fetish stronger than theirs and powerful for my protection2 and they resumed the dance while ,i looked on1 having first accommodated them by turning down the light4 ,it was a strange sight1 these black phantom-forms darting to and fro in the dark1 like flitting shadows often with a wriggling1 reptile motion1 and shrieking the while like hobgoblins4 ,i have already spoken at length of the ,african's love of story-telling1 and have given many examples4 ,the following two stories are types of a large class4 ,the elephant and the gorilla hate each other1 for each thinks himself king of the forest4 ,meeting one day in the bush-path1 each refused to step aside to let the other pass4 8,let me pass10 said the elephant2 8for these woods belong to me40 ,the gorilla beat his breast and made a noise like the sound of a drum4 ,then he replied3 8,oh1 ,oh1 ,oh1 ,oh6 ,these woods do not belong to you4 ,i am master here40 ,the elephant would not move aside2 so the gorilla broke down a tree and beat the elephant to death4 ,and the proof of it is that the prostrate tree was found beside the body of the dead elephant4 ,the sun and moon are great enemies4 ,they are the same age but each claims to be older than the other4 ,the sun is the friend of the people and brings daylight and gladness4 ,the moon hates people and devours them like insects2 she brings darkness1 witchcraft and death4 ,one day the sun and the moon had a palaver and got very angry at each other4 ,the palaver1 as usual1 began by each one claiming to be older than the other4 ,the moon said3 8,who are you8 ,you are nobody1 for you are alone and have no family4 ,my equal8 ,indeed6 ,look at these countless stars4 ,they are all my people2 but you are alone40 ,the sun replied3 8,oh1 ,moon1 mother of darkness and of witchcraft6 ,i would have as many people as you if you had not killed them all4 ,but now ,i have taken the people of the world1 men1 women and children1 to be my family2 and ,i love them all40 ,,xii ,,fetishes ,the ,fang1 like other tribes of ,west ,africa1 have a name for ,god and they conceive that ,he is a personal being1 who made the heavens and the earth1 and created man4 ,the one thing that they will say of ,god and the only fixed idea regarding ,him is that ,he made everything4 ,the world1 even in the mind of the ,african1 is an effect which demands a cause2 and that cause is ,god4 ,but since they have no conception of ,god's eternity1 by the same principle of causality they must account for ,god ,himself4 ,so ,god has a father and a grandfather4 ,this notion of a divine ancestry is evidently an effort of the mind to grope its way back to a ,first ,cause4 ,they do not fear ,god1 and they certainly do not love or reverence ,him4 ,nor do ,i know that they ever worship ,him4 ,the transient observer among them sees wooden images1 evidently objects of worship1 and supposes that they are images of ,god2 but in most cases1 if not in all1 these are images of ancestors or imaginary personages4 ,he figures in some of their fables2 but ,his deeds are usually wanton1 wicked1 or immoral4 ,most of these fables would not bear repetition4 ,god is simply a magnified ,african chief with a great number of wives1 most of whom have been stolen in the first instance4 ,god takes no interest in the world that ,he has made4 ,he looks down with indifference upon all its cruelty1 its sorrow1 and its sin4 ,if ,he interferes in human affairs it is perhaps to make mischief1 or to confuse and distress men and women for ,his amusement4 ,the most that the natives desire of ,god is that ,he will let them alone1 and to this end they let ,him alone4 ,our teaching at this point is radical4 ,they are surprised to learn that ,god always does right2 that ,he loves right and hates wrong2 that ,he loves them as a father loves his children2 that their sins grieve ,him and that ,he will punish their cruelties4 ,we divest the character of ,god of all that is filthy and wicked1 and teach them that ,god is such a one as ,jesus was while on earth1 even as ,he said to ,philip3 8,he that hath seen ,me hath seen the ,father40 ,to them it is an entirely new conception4 ,their belief in a future life is very clear1 although there are individuals who will deny it4 ,their belief finds strong support in dreams4 ,the ,african believes in dreams as actual occurrences1 and they relate them one to another with great earnestness1 which perhaps tends to make them more vivid and possibly more frequent4 ,but no dreams are more common and none more vivid than those in which friends and loved ones appear who have recently died4 ,those who hold to the evolution of all our ideas from natural antecedents have in the dream as regarded by primitive people a plausible origin for the belief in a future life4 ,there were two ,mpongwe women of ,gaboon1 ,tito and ,lucy1 whom ,i used to invite regularly every ,saturday to come to my ,bible-class on ,sunday morning4 ,they were as regular in not coming as ,i was in inviting them1 although they invariably promised to come and their parting salutation was usually3 8,well1 good-bye1 till to-morrow morning40 ,the truth is that ,tito and ,lucy were not ,bible-class women4 ,they had been taught in our mission school in the early days before the ,french government forbade the use of ,english2 so they both spoke ,english fairly well4 ,lucy was sometimes called the ,mpongwe queen1 for she was head of the family that had ruled the entire tribe in former days4 ,she became a victim of rum1 which sent her to an untimely grave4 ,her family told me that during the last two years of her life it was doubtful whether she was ever sober4 ,tito had been the mistress of several white men in succession1 who had either died or had gone home never to return1 and as a result of her career had acquired heaps of clothes1 a miscellaneous assortment of jewelry from glass to gold1 and an awful temper4 ,at length one ,sunday morning who should come to my ,bible-class but ,tito and ,lucy6--half an hour before the time4 ,i felt something must have happened1 and probably something wrong4 ,for ,i knew that my invitation had not brought them2 still less their promise4 ,that same afternoon ,i was passing through their town and ,i stopped to ask them why in the world they had come to ,bible-class4 ,then ,tito explained that she had not had any intention of coming and that she had promised me just because 8it be proper fashion to say ,yes1 more than ,no10 but on ,saturday night she had a dream in which an angel had appeared to her or at least had spoken to her from the next room and had told her that she and ,lucy 8must go to-morrow to ,mr4 ,milligan's ,bible-class40 ,in the morning she told ,lucy the dream and they both decided at once that they would come to the class4 ,without scruple they could disobey from week to week the mandate of normal conscience1 and the moral law of truth1 but they rendered absolute obedience to the invalid experience of a dream4 ,afterwards1 however1 ,tito became a regular attendant and finally she was received into the ,gaboon ,church and became a faithful ,christian4 ,she was by nature generous and she was especially skillful and kind in caring for the sick4 ,another woman1 ,ayenwa1 lived in ,tito's town1 who had been educated in the mission school but was now living as the mistress of a white man4 ,ayenwa was a good-looking woman and she had the soft1 pleasant voice that is characteristic of the cultivated ,mpongwe woman and distinguishes her from other ,african women4 ,i had talked to ,ayenwa more than once and had remonstrated with her in regard to the life she was living4 ,but although she was troubled about it1 she had made no change4 ,at length a brother of hers died1 and she was greatly afflicted by his death4 ,he was a devout ,christian1 and before he died he had pleaded with ,ayenwa to abandon her present way of living4 ,much as she loved him she did not yield to his desire and counsel4 ,but not long after his death she came to me and said that she had left the white man and had renounced forever that kind of life2 although she was friendless since her brother's death and did not know how she would get a living4 ,it was owing to a dream4 ,she told me very earnestly and in beautiful language how that she had seen her brother in a dream4 ,she had seen him in a forest1 but the forest was very beautiful and it was like a great church4 ,he smiled when he saw her and he called her by her name4 ,she cried when she saw him and she told him how she missed him4 ,he told her not to weep for he was very happy and was never sick any more4 ,but he told her to remember his dying words to her1 and so to live that when she died she would come to him and then they would never be separated any more4 ,for several days the dream was always in her mind4 ,then she resolved that at any cost she would forsake evil and do right4 ,and surely ,god would take care of her4 ,ancestor-worship is the highest form of ,african fetishism1 and it is only called fetishism because the ancestor's skull or other part of the body is the medium of communication4 ,in general it indicates reverence towards age2 and this is a striking characteristic of the ,african4 ,yet ,i have known of an instance where an old woman was afraid that her son would kill her in order to procure the help and favour which she could render him after death4 ,it is quite likely that such things really happen4 ,at any rate love is not the apparent motive in ancestor-worship2 it is simply the hope of gain by obtaining their favour4 ,the usual fetish of ancestor-worship is the skull of the father1 which the son keeps in a box4 ,the father occasionally speaks to the son in dreams and frequently communicates with him by omens4 ,he helps him in all his enterprises1 good and evil1 and secures his success in love1 in hunting and in war4 ,all those who have these skulls are a secret society1 which1 as ,i have said1 is powerful to rule and to tyrannize over others4 ,young boys are initiated into this society by rites and ceremonies that are revolting4 ,the initiation varies widely in different tribes and even in the same town there is no uniform ceremony4 ,no white man could ever witness the ceremony1 and there are very few natives that would tell him all about it4 ,but a general idea he may get from some2 and single details from others at different times4 ,in the mild ceremony of the more civilized ,fang towns1 the boy who is to be initiated is made very drunk and taken blindfolded to the bush1 to a place set apart for the use of the society4 ,the ceremony continues several days4 ,in one part of it the bandage is removed from his eyes at midnight1 a low fire is burning which gives a feeble light1 and he finds himself surrounded by the members of the society with faces and bodies frightfully distorted and all the skulls of their ancestors exposed to view1 together with the heads of persons who have recently died4 ,some one asks him what he sees4 ,he replies that he sees only spirits and solemnly declares that these are not men4 ,boys are often initiated against their will4 ,one of my schoolboys1 a handsome lad of about fifteen1 during a vacation was initiated and died before it was over4 ,it is his initiation that ,i have just described--at least the very small part of it that ,i was able to find out4 ,his death made them more unwilling to tell me4 ,his initiation lasted several days during which he was compelled to remain in the bush4 ,further up the river a boy1 during the initiation1 is usually placed for several days in a house alone1 after being made to look at the sun so long that sometimes he faints1 and when he is taken into the house he cannot at first see anything4 ,meantime the door is closed and they all go away4 ,gradually he sees things around him and at length discovers opposite him a corpse1 in an early stage of decomposition4 ,he is kept there day and night during the ceremony4 ,the men visit him and subject him to all sorts of indignities in order to impress him with the necessity of absolute obedience to the society4 ,they defile him with filth1 and that the vilest of filth4 ,but ,i presume that the reader will gladly excuse me from any further description of this disgusting practice4 ,one cannot omit all reference to such things if he would describe the ,african as he really is4 ,they believe that the skull of the father or other ancestor when it has been properly prepared becomes the residence of the ancestor1 who1 however1 is not confined to it1 but wanders about returning to it as to his home4 ,the son1 in order to avoid the wrath of the departed father1 and to obtain his help1 will keep the skull comfortably warm and dry1 occasionally rubbing it with oil and redwood powder1 and will feed it bountifully4 ,the process of feeding it is interesting4 ,the son before going on a hunting expedition will open the box1 and addressing his father in audible words will ask his favour and will promise that in return for success he will give him a goodly portion of the game4 ,if he should neglect this duty for a length of time he may find when he meets an animal in the forest that his gun will not fire1 and he may even find himself helpless before his enemies4 ,the white man knowing the kind of guns they use1 does not think it necessary to go so far for an explanation of the fact that they often fail in a critical moment4 ,when the son returns with game he will again open the box and place the meat before the skull4 ,then he will close the house against all possibility of intrusion and he himself will go away while the father eats4 ,after a while he comes back1 and although he finds the meat exactly as he left it1 he supposes that in some mysterious way his father has eaten it and yet left it1 that is1 has eaten the spirit of it4 ,he then eats it himself1 sharing it also with the men of the society4 ,but since it has been offered to the dead father it is now sacred1 and he cannot allow his wife or children to taste it under any circumstances4 ,the men1 being of a religious turn of mind1 offer to the father1 all1 or nearly all1 the game they procure1 and if women and children are left hungry they can at least admire the fervent piety of husbands and fathers4 ,it is only the skulls of men1 not of women1 that are used by the ,secret ,society4 ,but the spirits of women return after death1 like those of men1 and frequently become very troublesome4 ,on ,corisco ,island there lives a man who has been in contact with civilization all his lifetime and is fairly educated though he is not a ,christian4 ,his wife died2 and shortly afterwards she began playing pranks in his town and even in his house4 ,she broke nearly all his dishes4 ,then1 one night1 she struck him in the neck1 and he instantly recognized her4 ,his neck was stiff in the morning4 ,that proved it6 ,not being able to strike back in this unequal warfare and preferring an enemy whom he could kick 7for this individual wore shoes and scarcely anything else7 he lost spirit and finally pulled down the entire town and built in another place4 ,women and children never possess the skulls of ancestors4 ,the power of the ancestor is more often used against women than others4 ,among the ,mpongwe and some other tribes a woman may worship her ancestors2 for which purpose she uses not skulls but wooden images1 which she never exhibits4 ,the ,african conception of nature may be inferred from what we have said of their view of ,god and their worship of ancestors4 ,god having made the world seems to take no more interest in it4 ,other spirits innumerable control it and continually interfere with its normal operations4 ,since there is no single intelligence ever present and presiding it follows that there is no uniformity in nature and no reign of law4 ,those phenomena which attract the ,african's attention he ascribes immediately to a supernatural cause4 ,he does not look for a natural cause4 ,if a tree falls across his path1 somebody threw it4 ,the activity of spirits accounts for everything4 ,there is no line between nature and the supernatural2 miracles are always happening4 ,the causes of natural phenomena being supernatural are also inscrutable4 ,the study of nature and the investigation of her laws is precluded by this conception4 ,if then we would understand the ,african1 if we would distinguish between his mentality and a state of imbecility1 we must bear in mind that1 since according to his conception innumerable spirits at variance with each other preside over nature1 uniformity1 constancy and dependability are not to be expected4 ,the rainbow1 he says1 is a serpent1 which has the power of making itself visible or invisible at will4 ,if a mountain disappear behind the clouds he has no difficulty in believing that a spirit who inhabits the mountain has removed it1 and that he brings it back when the sun shines4 ,the white man who does not accept this explanation and demands a natural and knowable cause does not thereby manifest a knowledge of nature but an ignorance of spirits4 ,the canoe which carries him safely to-day may lose its buoyancy and sink beneath the waves to-morrow4 ,in some of their fables1 at the utterance of a magic word a ship may sink1 a house may fall1 a man be reduced to physical and mental impotence2 and such fables are scarcely distinguishable from fact in his conception4 ,at their first contact with the white man they suppose that the beads1 cloth and other goods which he displays are made by himself1 by some magic process1 as easy when known as the utterance of a word2 and they suppose that we could without effort make them as rich as ourselves4 ,if a house or a town should burn down there is little use in looking for the cause1 as it may have been set on fire by some ancestor who is angry at being neglected4 ,when ,du ,chaillu visited a certain town in which the people had never before seen a white man1 regarding him as a spirit1 they all declared that a great rock near the town had been moved by him and was not in the same place it had been before4 ,this inspired them with dread4 ,but when the smallpox broke out among them and the scourge followed him with the persistency of fate1 there was no doubt in their minds but that he had caused it2 and meanwhile they made not the slightest effort to protect themselves against the contagion4 ,they regarded him with increasing fear and hostility until at last his journey came to a disastrous end4 ,he and his party turned and fled while the natives pursued with poisoned arrows4 ,but they soon desisted from the pursuit2 for1 they declared1 their arrows rebounded harmless from his body1 and sometimes even passed through him and did him no injury4 ,in all this let it not be supposed for a moment that the native is a fool4 ,he is true to his philosophy of nature3 but his philosophy is wrong4 ,he knows nothing of the doctrine of ,god1--of one ,intelligence presiding over all nature1 and that natural laws are therefore persistent and uniform4 ,but to the native chaotic conception of nature we must add another idea of fearful import4 ,to the mind of the ,african nature presents a frowning aspect1 from which he naturally infers that the spirits which rule or reside within it are mostly hostile to him4 ,it is only to the reflecting mind that nature seems beneficent4 ,her greatest forces1 her constant ministry1 are not obvious4 ,that which is normal and regular does not attract attention4 ,a man thinks more of the one month of sickness than the eleven months of health2 he is more observant of the storm than of sunshine1 more conscious of adversity than prosperity4 ,the laws of growth1 seed-time and harvest1 rain and sunshine--all the kindly ministry of nature is quiet and unobtrusive1 while her cruelty thrusts itself upon the attention because it is her unaccustomed mood4 ,the conception of nature in the ,african mind is derived from the devastating tornado and the storm upon the sea that threatens to engulf him1 from the hard work necessary to procure his food and the scarcity of meat1 from sickness that disables him and death that bereaves him of his friends4 ,it is therefore a part of his philosophy that the spirits are at enmity with him4 ,his own ancestors are among them and they may be placated and even rendered favourable1 but a far greater number are hostile2 and the motive of his worship is not devotion but fear4 ,he worships the spirits of his ancestors that he may obtain their help against all other spirits4 ,contrary to all this ,jesus teaches him to call ,god1 ,father2 and ,god's ,fatherhood includes ,his care1 which at once relates ,god to nature1 for it is largely through nature that ,god's care is exercised4 ,to believe in ,god's care over us is to believe that nature's laws are the operation of ,his will4 ,the mind awakens to the beneficence of nature1 and we learn that even storm1 disease and death are under the control of a sympathetic ,power4 ,the fear of the native is changed to confidence and trust4 ,next to the ancestral relic is a lower form of fetishism in which the external object is the vessel or residence of a spirit1 which is under the control of the possessor of the object4 ,a still lower form of fetishism is pure animism1 in which the various objects of nature have each a life analogous to that of man to which their phenomena are due4 ,witchcraft is a supernatural power obtained by a person through a compact with an evil spirit4 ,in ,africa witchcraft is also fetishism inasmuch as it is usually1 and perhaps always1 supposed that there is within the witch's body a physical object which is the residence of the evil spirit4 ,the skull or other relic of the ancestor differs from the common fetish in that the possessor of the former cannot compel the ancestor to do his will2 he can only persuade him1 or induce his help and favour by offerings and kind treatment4 ,but the possessor of the common fetish does not make offerings to it2 the fetish is under his control and he can compel the spirit within it to serve him4 ,if it should disobey him he will punish it4 ,the usual punishment is to hang it in smoke4 ,fetishes have a horror of smoke4 ,i do not know that the native ever punishes his ancestor for refusing a favour4 ,if he should leave the skull in a cold or wet place1 or should neglect offerings of food1 the ancestor will suffer discomfort1 but the discomfort is slight compared with the evil that he will send upon his undutiful son as a punishment for such neglect4 ,in the proper fetish 7if the word fetish be restricted in its meaning7 the spirit resides within the object but is not a part of it1 and may leave it1 the fetish being then of no more use4 ,a still lower form of fetish1 implying animism1 is that in which the spirit of the fetish is its own life1 and is related to it as the soul to the body4 ,this latter fetish however is different from a mere amulet or charm2 for the charm operates not by any intelligence within itself but by some sympathetic influence without4 ,such1 for instance1 is the horseshoe which the negro in our ,south hangs over his door for luck4 ,the charm1 the fetish1 and the relic represent ascending grades of belief4 ,but they are all confused in the mind of the ,african1 just as we confuse them under the one term fetishism4 ,as long as we live in ,africa1 however1 we do not often speak of fetishes1 but of medicines3 for this is in strict accord with native usage4 ,the native calls his fetishes medicines1 and his medicines fetishes1 and in his mind there is no difference4 ,the remedial power of medicine is supernatural1 due either to magic or to a spirit residing within it4 ,upon swallowing the medicine1 the spirit of the medicine1 like a policeman1 chases through the body after the spirit of the disease until it strangles it or drives it out4 ,of course the white man's medicines are fetishes also4 ,the following story 7although ,i do not vouch for its truth7 illustrates very well the magical operation of medicine4 ,a certain chief1 it is said1 induced a ,german trader to order for him a chest of medicines prepared in ,germany4 ,the bottles of medicine are all numbered and the chest is accompanied by a book of directions1 competent for the diagnosis of any particular case4 ,every liable symptom and combination of symptoms is recorded together with the prescription for each4 ,the prescription refers to the bottles by their numbers4 ,one day the chief fell sick4 ,he found his symptoms accurately described in the book1 followed by the direction to take one spoonful of ,no4 #ae4 ,the bottle of that particular number was missing2 so he took one spoonful of ,no4 #g and one of ,no4 #h4 ,but the result was so alarming that as soon as he was sufficiently recovered from the shock he consigned the chest to the spirit of the deep sea with the hope that it might do ,neptune more good than it had done him2 and to this end he was careful to send the book of directions with it4 ,there is a large class of fetishes in which the ancestor is the agent4 ,if a man is expecting to ask a favour of another he will be sure of a generous compliance if he scrape the skull of his ancestor and succeed in putting a little of the powder into the other man's food4 ,du ,chaillu was highly incensed when he found that this was the explanation of a certain chief's generosity who had been feeding him lavishly for several days4 ,a man walking in the forest usually carries suspended from his neck a medicine1 contained in a goat's horn1 the effect of which is to make him invisible to an enemy if he should meet him in the path4 ,he often carries another1 somewhat similar1 which will turn the bullets of an enemy's gun into water if the enemy should see him and shoot at him2 or sometimes the bullets will pass through his body and do him no harm4 ,he wears a band1 a 8kaga10 about his neck1 which tightens at the approach of danger4 ,the explanation of the latter may be a physical fact1 namely1 that fear distends the cords of the neck so that the band would really be tighter4 ,he carries another medicine in a horn which1 if danger overtake him in the forest1 or he should be in need of help1 will whistle in his town1 however far away1 and summon the people4 ,it is obvious that several of these fetishes are quite superfluous if the others are to be relied upon4 ,the native therefore does not fully trust his fetishes2 and there is always the fear that some enemy may have a stronger fetish than his own4 ,there are fetishes to protect a man against theft4 ,one of these will cause a person who steals from its owner to 8swell up and burst40 ,indeed there are a great many fetishes used for various purposes which have this same effect of causing persons to swell up and burst4 ,another fetish is kept in the box containing the owner's cloth1 tobacco and other goods4 ,if a thief should open the box this fetish will spring out and go right through him4 ,before entering upon a war several days are sometimes spent in the preparation of war-medicine4 ,the best fetish-doctors unite their skill in the preparation4 ,it is medicine that makes the gun shoot straight2 it is medicine that makes the bullets kill2 it is medicine that makes a man fearless2 it is medicine that makes cowards of the enemy4 ,the ,french government brought into the ,congo ,franais native soldiers of ,senegal1 armed with first-rate guns and skilled in the use of them4 ,the ,fang were of course eager to know the secret of their powerful gun-medicine4 ,two of the soldiers who were in personal contact with the ,fang sold them little tin boxes filled with mud1 which they said was their gun-medicine4 ,the two enterprising soldiers were 8getting rich quick0 when the government required their prompt attendance at the capital4 ,some of the war-medicines are repulsive4 ,on extreme occasions they will sprinkle upon the forth-going warriors an admixture of the decomposing brains of men recently deceased and the blood of fowls or of animals1 with other disgusting ingredients4 ,with this medicine besides others which are suspended about his neck1 the smell of such a hero would detract somewhat from the glamour of his exploits2 and one can imagine1 upon his return from the war1 the people holding their noses and singing1 8,lo1 the ,conquering ,hero ,comes40 ,there are other fetishes which are used more commonly to avenge private wrongs4 ,when a man cuts his hair or trims his beard1 he carefully guards it and then burns it1 lest a single hair should fall into the hands of an enemy4 ,so he does with the cuttings of his nails4 ,the possession of these would give an enemy power over him2 for they are the common ingredients of a fetish-medicine4 ,a piece of his clothing may also be used in this way4 ,such medicine1 if buried before his doorway or placed beside the path where he will pass1 even without coming in contact with him1 will inflict sickness or disease1 misfortune or death4 ,most of the evils that befall the native he attributes to the power of these hostile fetishes4 ,only the most devout and consecrated ,christians are entirely freed from this superstition4 ,even in the ,mpongwe ,church of ,gaboon1 the oldest in the ,mission1 there are many cases of discipline for such beliefs4 ,there was one particular case that came up in some form at nearly every meeting of the session of the church for more than a year4 ,a young woman1 named ,anuriguli1 was married and a short time afterwards was received into the church4 ,it was said by certain of the heathen that an envious woman of a town near by1 who was also a member of the church1 had made medicine to prevent ,anuriguli from having children4 ,for this is a great affliction and reproach to an ,african woman4 ,some half dozen families1 men and women1 became entangled in this quarrel1 most of them however being heathen4 ,the ,christians among them were several times summoned before the session of the church4 ,each told his story in his own way2 the native way is to begin as far back towards the creation of the world as their knowledge of history extends1 and leave to the very last all reference to the matter in hand4 ,there is a notable absence of embarrassment in such a discussion1 even on the part of the women2 nor are they in the least forward2 in fact they are not self-conscious at all2 for no native ever hesitates for a word or experiences the slightest difficulty in expressing himself in appropriate language4 ,anuriguli declared she had never accused the other woman of making medicine against her4 ,she had heard it from others1 but she did not fear such medicines since she had become a ,christian2 although if the woman had done so it would indicate a feeling of extreme hostility towards her however powerless her efforts might be1 and this enmity was making her heart sore4 ,the other woman declared her innocence1 and that for years she had not believed in this superstition2 nor had she any hostile feelings that would prompt her to such a wicked action2 but she had heard that ,anuriguli accused her1 and the accusation was hurting both her feelings and her reputation2 and her heart was very sore1 for the heathen had cast bitter reproaches upon her4 ,having given much advice1 but too little sympathy1 ,i fear1 ,i exacted a promise from each and all of them that they would stop talking about the matter1 and ,i dismissed them2 for the session had endless work ahead of them1 some of it more serious than this4 ,the result was that it broke out afresh1 and three months later they were all before the session again1 when the matter was more complicated than at first4 ,three months later it again came before the session for the third time4 ,anuriguli's position had somewhat altered4 ,she had heard that the other woman said that she said that the other woman said that she said 444 that the other woman had made medicine to injure her6 ,and still there are those who assert that the ,african is not intellectually competent6 ,i did then what ,i wished ,i had done in the first place--gave them all the time they wanted and took time myself to realize that fetishism is a terrible reality in ,africa1 that public opinion recognizes it and can inflict as heavy penalties as anywhere else upon those who fall into disrepute2 for the ,african1 because his social instincts are strong1 is very sensitive regarding his reputation4 ,a patient and sympathetic hearing ended the whole matter4 ,the ingredients of a fetish are usually objects associated with that which is desirable or that which is fearful--the strong1 the swift1 the gruesome1 the repulsive1 the mysterious and objects associated with death4 ,the eagle's talon is commonly used1 the wing feathers of any bird1 the claw of the leopard1 the teeth of all animals and their blood1 dried bits of their flesh and their offal4 ,when ,shakespeare describes the contents of the witches' caldron and their invocation of trouble1 one might think that he had been a missionary to the ,fang4 8,fillet of a fenny snake1 ,in the caldron boil and bake2 ,eye of newt and toe of frog1 ,wool of bat and tongue of dog1 ,adder's fork and blind-worm's sting1 ,lizard's leg and howlet's wing1 ,for a charm of powerful trouble1 ,like a hell-broth boil and bubble40 8,double1 double toil and trouble2 ,fire burn and caldron bubble40 ,when the fetish is not merely for protection1 but is intended to injure a particular person1 it must include such personal ingredients as the cuttings of the hair or nails of that person1 or a shred of his clothing4 ,fetishism and witchcraft inevitably go together4 ,a witch is in league with an evil spirit by which she can leave the body1 and return to it1 for her spirit is 8loose from her body40 ,she 8eats0 the spirit1 or life1 of her enemies1 and all people are her enemies1 innocent or guilty alike4 ,she is sold to evil4 ,the ,african does not regard the spirit or soul of a person as immaterial4 ,it is a thin vaporous material which resembles the body in form and appearance4 ,this is perhaps everywhere the conception that underlies the belief in ghosts4 ,primitive people generally associate this spirit with the shadow1 and sometimes with the breath4 ,the ,african believes that a man may lose his shadow4 ,soon afterwards he will die4 ,an enemy may also injure it4 ,many an ,african has sought to kill another by driving a nail into his shadow4 ,a man's shadow is big in the morning because it is fresh and strong4 ,it shrivels up with the heat of the sun4 ,it is evident that the sun afflicts it for it always keeps on the cooler side1 away from the sun4 ,many tribes--whether all tribes ,i cannot say--believe that a person has several spirits4 ,it is always the spirit that gets sick1 and any one of a man's spirits may get sick1 or may leave him4 ,in the latter case a skillful doctor will be able to catch the spirit and put it back in the man4 ,madness is always imputed to a malignant spirit inhabiting a man's body2 such a spirit may be born with the man4 ,their chief fetishes1 however1 are for protection against witches4 ,in many houses1 immediately inside the door there hangs a fetish which at night builds a fire around the sleeping inmate1 a fire invisible to all others but witches1 and through which no witch can pass4 ,another has the power to change the bamboo cabin into a house of stone1 through which witches cannot pass4 ,it retains the appearance of bamboo in every respect1 and one can see the light between the pieces1 but in reality it is solid stone1 with no openings at all1 not even for the door4 ,we are reminded of another miracle whereby bread is changed into something which is not bread1 the change being non-apparent since it takes place not in the accidents but in the essence of the material4 ,so1 the bamboo is transubstantiated into stone4 ,one is sometimes mentally staggered and feels that he is losing his hold on reality by the stories of ,africans recounting their own experiences and what their eyes have seen1 stories told soberly and with every evidence of sincerity4 ,a man tells how that while his wife's body was in her bed he looked out into the street and saw her spirit form1 with that of others whom he recognized1 armed with knives and cutting up the form of a person and eating it4 ,the victim whose life they have eaten sickens soon afterwards and dies a lingering death4 ,one day walking along the ,batanga beach with a fellow missionary1 we passed a large1 flat rock almost submerged beneath the rising tide1 which recalled to my companion the following story4 ,some years ago at ,batanga there lived a man who had long suspected his wife of witchcraft4 ,one night he had occasion to speak to her1 but she did not answer4 ,he tried to rouse her from sleep1 but could not4 ,he concluded that she was away on some witch errand leaving her body behind her1 as witches do4 ,he himself had some knowledge of witchcraft though he employed this knowledge only in self-defense4 ,he anointed her body with red pepper4 ,witches abhor red pepper2 and they cannot renter a body thus anointed4 ,towards morning the woman returned to her body only to find that she was undone2 groans and sighs told her distress to the ear of the husband who lay quiet as if asleep4 ,she lingered until the day began to dawn4 ,now1 witches are afraid of light even more than of pepper4 ,she retired and hid herself near the house to await the next night4 ,meantime1 the husband related the whole story to the assembled people1 and they accepted it nothing doubting4 ,they resolved to burn the body immediately4 ,they dragged it through the street to the beach in the sight of her own family and her children1 amidst execrations and insults1 and burned it on the rock while the tide was low1 and soon afterwards the rising waves swept the ashes into the sea4 ,the ,africans do not say of a woman that she is a witch1 but that she has a witch4 ,she commits witchcraft by means of the witch which she possesses4 ,and since everything has a material body of some kind1 the witch can be found within the woman4 ,often a witch rebels against its possessor and 8eats0 her4 ,this is the frequent explanation of convulsions1 and a convulsion is enough to bring suspicion and a charge of witchcraft against a woman4 ,a sure way to find out the truth of the matter and relieve the strain of suspense is to kill the woman1 open the body and make a conscientious and impartial investigation4 ,in this manner1 executing the sentence first and afterwards finding a verdict of 8guilty0 or 8not guilty10 the verdict is more likely to be just1 while they also avoid a prolonged and scandalous trial1 and evince a delicate regard for the woman's reputation4 ,any old thing that they may find in the body not consistent with their ideas of anatomical propriety is identified as the witch4 ,sometimes a hen is set on eggs and the accused person is pronounced guilty1 or not guilty1 according as the greater number of chickens hatched are male or female4 ,but this kind of ordeal is more common in deciding cases of adultery4 ,more commonly in the case of witchcraft a certain mild poison is administered to the accused in a drink4 ,sometimes she vomits it1 or it passes without any serious effect4 ,but if she becomes dizzy and staggers1 they instantly leap upon her with knives and kill her4 ,there seems to be no such thing in the ,african opinion as a natural death4 ,all deaths that we call natural are imputed to witchcraft4 ,as soon as the cry of witchcraft is raised1 the people1 panic stricken with fear1 are transformed to ferocious demons4 ,with wild eyes they rush up and down the street in a body crying out for blood4 ,this is the opportunity of the witch-doctor1 either to levy blackmail1 or to rid himself of his enemies4 ,when a woman is accused by him1 no matter in what esteem she may have been held hitherto1 and regardless of her family connections1 the people turn upon her in cruel rage and can scarce wait for the ordeal4 ,such scenes1 and the violent death following are very common among them2 yet the white man rarely witnesses anything of the kind4 ,they are altogether different when he is present4 ,one of our missionaries has told me how that1 in the early days1 on ,corisco ,island1 he once saw a condemned woman1 one whom he knew1 taken out to sea in a boat4 ,a short distance from the shore they cut her throat and flung her into the sea4 ,meanwhile1 behind a rock which hid them from his view1 they burned at the stake the condemned woman's son1 a young boy1 lest growing up he should avenge his mother's death4 ,their motive in inflicting such a horrible death upon an innocent boy was probably to disable his spirit and prevent it from returning to trouble them4 ,a man's wives are the first to be suspected of having caused his death1 as they are usually supposed to have a latent desire for it4 ,as a matter of fact they are very skillful in the use of the deadly poisons which abound in ,africa1 and which they often administer in food4 ,much of the witchcraft in ,africa is straight poison4 ,a native offering you drink or food always tastes it first himself in your presence to show that it is not poisoned4 ,it is an unsavoury custom1 but it is wise to observe it strictly4 ,the use of poison is a peculiarly unpleasant habit on the part of a wife since she has a constant opportunity4 ,slaves also1 and sometimes white men's servants1 contract this same habit4 ,truly1 life in ,africa1 in its every aspect1 is a fight with death4 ,it is possible1 as some say1 that the practice of killing wives at the death of their husbands has this origin2 in any case it serves to restrict the use of poison and to induce wives to try to keep their husbands alive4 ,wives accused of having caused the death of a husband by witchcraft1 are often buried alive with his dead body4 ,a ,bulu chief near ,efulen died leaving seven wives4 ,they were charged with having bewitched him and were about to be buried alive with him when ,dr4 ,good reached the town and saved their lives4 ,a very large grave was already dug in the street and the body was laid in the middle4 ,the women lay naked and trembling upon the ground4 ,but the people would not perform the atrocious deed in the presence of the white man4 ,dr4 ,good stayed in the town even against their protest1 and would not leave it until they had filled the grave1 and he knew that the women were safe4 ,in one of the ,bulu towns1 ten women1 wives of one husband1 were buried alive with the body of the husband4 ,in another town twenty women were buried thus with the body of the husband4 ,a large grave was dug and the body placed in the middle2 the women's legs were broken with clubs and then they were flung into the grave4 ,the belief in witchcraft has been more prolific of cruelty than any other in the history of the world4 ,it dehumanizes men with fear4 ,the story of the power which a remnant belief in witchcraft has exercised in civilized and even ,christian communities is the darkest page in their history1 and we will need to remember that in ,africa there is no restraint of civilization and no light of ,christianity4 ,i am always afraid that the depiction of the diabolical cruelty incident to the belief in witchcraft may cause the civilized to recoil from the ,african as if he were less than human1 and hopelessly brutal4 ,it is therefore well that we should insistently remember the facts of history and the slow emancipation of civilization from this same belief with its horror of cruelty4 ,between the promulgation of the bull of ,pope ,innocent ,,viii against sorcery1 in #adhd1 and the last judicial execution for witchcraft1 in #aghb1 it is estimated that #cjj1jjj women perished in ,europe on this charge4 ,the last execution in ,england was that of ,mrs4 ,hickes and her nine-year-old daughter1 in #agaf4 ,since a particular incident makes a more adequate impression than a general statement1 ,i quote entire a brief story told by ,froude in one of his historical essays1 ,the ,influence of the ,reformation on the ,scottish ,character1 which he takes from the official report of the proceedings in the case3 8,towards the end of #aeic there was trouble in the family of the ,earl of ,orkney4 ,his brother laid a plot to murder him1 and was said to have sought the help of a #8notorious witch1' ,alison ,balfour4 ,when ,alison ,balfour's life was looked into1 no evidence could be found connecting her either with the particular offense or with witchcraft in general2 but it was enough in these matters to be accused4 ,she swore she was innocent2 but her guilt was only held to be aggravated by perjury4 ,she was tortured again and again4 ,her legs were put in caschilaws--an iron frame which was gradually heated till it burned into the flesh--but no confession could be wrung from her4 ,the caschilaws failed utterly1 and something else had to be tried4 ,she had a husband1 a son1 and a daughter1 a child seven years old4 ,as her own sufferings did not work upon her1 she might be touched1 perhaps1 by the sufferings of those who were dear to her4 ,they were brought into court and placed at her side2 and the husband first was placed in the #8lang irons'--some accursed1 ,i know not what4 ,still the devil did not yield4 ,she bore this2 and her son was next operated on4 ,the boy's legs were set in #8the boot'--the iron boot you may have heard of4 ,the wedges were driven in1 which1 when forced home1 crushed the very bone and marrow4 ,fifty-seven mallet strokes were delivered upon the wedges4 ,yet this1 too1 failed4 ,there was no confession yet4 ,so1 last of all1 the little daughter was taken4 ,there was a machine called the piniwinkies1--a kind of thumb-screw1 which brought blood from under the finger-nails1 with a pain successfully terrible4 ,these things were applied to the poor child's hands1 and the mother's constancy broke down1 and she said she would admit anything they wished4 ,she confessed her witchcraft--so tried1 she would have confessed to the seven deadly sins--and then she was burned1 recalling her confession1 and with her last breath protesting her innocence40 ,we civilized folk have a way of forgetting our own history1 and the pit from which we have been digged4 ,,xiii ,a ,,boat ,,crew ,the following is the beginning of a letter written to a circle of friends in ,america while ,i was in ,africa4 8,seated within the open door of my study ,i look down the hillside1 through a vista of gorgeous oleander and orange trees1 of graceful1 waving palms and the soft cascade foliage of the bamboo tossing and tumbling in the breeze1 to the blue expanse where the ,gaboon rolls out to the boundless ocean4 ,the early afternoon is quiet1 and the hazy atmosphere1 peculiar to ,africa1 blends together in gentle harmony things most diverse in form and colour4 ,but there is one object to which the mind and eye turn back yet again1 and which by associations variously tender1 pathetic1 or amusing1 lead memory off for a while to wander in the dreamy mazes of the past4 ,it is the mission boat ,evangeline1 which lies at anchor on the bay1 rising and falling with the successive waves4 ,the ,evangeline came to ,africa many years ago4 ,some of those who commanded her are now infirm with age1 and the voices of some are heard on earth no more4 ,her special work has always been that of itinerating1--carrying the ,gospel of light and peace to those who sit in darkness and sorrow1 by many waters4 ,like her namesake1 the lonely maiden of ,acadia1 she has followed the rivers of a strange land and streams unknown that wind and wander through #8forests primeval4' 8,the ,evangeline is a gig1 twenty-two feet long1 having four oars and requiring four oarsmen4 ,her lines are perfect1 and for her size she is a remarkably fine sailing-boat1 riding a rough sea with a steadiness and lightness that have drawn praise from old seamen4 ,before the strong sea-breeze she seems fairly animate and impelled by motive and purpose as she spreads her wings to the wind and speeds forward on her errand of mercy4 ,i can think also of sultry days when her sails hung loose and heavy through the whole day while tired men pulled wearily at the oars1 whistling vainly for the wind1 which ever #8bloweth where it listeth4' ,i can think of toils long and hard when we wound wearily through mangrove swamps1 by fetid banks1 under the relentless heat of a tropical sun4 ,but these experiences belong to the past and ,i can forget them now4 ,for it is one of the touching frailties of human nature that as the past recedes into the obscure distance we magnify its fond and pleasant memories and forget the evils that we no longer feel4 8,my long journeys in the ,evangeline are probably past2 for a naphtha launch1 the ,dorothy1 has arrived1 dispensing with the toil of oars and the aid of the fickle wind1 perfectly protected from sun and rain and fitted with every comfort for day and night4 ,but the ,evangeline1 though her name designates her as feminine1 belongs to the ordained clergy of the ,presbyterian ,church and has not yet passed the dead-line4 ,we will find for her some field in which a few years longer she may exercise her talents4 8,this afternoon as ,i look at her ,i seem to see the faces of faithful boat-boys who journeyed with me by day and by night1 and my mind is filled with recollections of experiences and incidents by the way4 ,there are none in ,africa whom ,i know better than those boat-boys2 and through them ,i probably know all ,africans better and love them more4 ,for when sails are set before a good wind and the bow tosses the waves aside1 the music of the plashing water1 the mutual dependence and isolation from others1--the delight of it all makes social freedom and comradeship peculiar to such life2 and again1 when they toil at the oars hour after hour without complaint1 sympathy breaks down all barriers4 ,if you should laugh at these boys let your laughter be sympathetic2 they are worthy of sympathy4 ,life is so hard for the ,african1 so bare and comfortless6 ,and when he would fain seek the road to the ,better ,land so many forces conspire against him that1 apart for our faith in ,god and the love of ,god1 one might think that the world around him was contrived for his defeat4 ,in this dark land one catches only an occasional glimpse of the all-ruling and kindly ,providence in which we believe4 ,it would seem rather that the fabled goddess of fortune1 blind and turning her wheel in the darkness1 dispenses at random the destinies of men40 ,the captain of the ,evangeline was ,makuba1 a man of ,benito1 one hundred miles north1 one of the ,kombi tribe1 the remnant of a proud and capable people who for many years have been in contact with the civilization of the coast4 ,the ,kombi know the sea and are excellent boatmen1 strong and daring4 ,in travelling in their own canoes even on the sea1 they commonly stand up in the canoe1 using long paddles4 ,when there are five or six men in the canoe1 or the sea is rough1 it is interesting to watch them4 ,makuba was a man of splendid physique and very strong1 and as bold as a lion4 ,shortly after ,i went to ,africa1 when for a while ,i lived entirely alone1 at ,angom ,station1 seventy miles up the ,gaboon ,river1 a serious palaver occurred in which ,makuba took a prominent part4 ,the ,fang of the adjacent village stole some goods from him4 ,he and several other workmen1 being coast men1 were regarded by the interior ,fang as natural enemies4 ,i was morally responsible for the safety of these coast men and ,i regarded myself as responsible also for the stolen goods4 ,moreover there was a mission store at that station and the sight of our goods was a continual challenge to the passionate greed of the ,fang1 who therefore must not be allowed to think that they could steal anything from the premises with impunity4 ,indeed1 our very reputation and evangelistic success were involved2 for it was plain that the ,fang had been mistaking forbearance for cowardice1 and in their esteem there is nothing so contemptible as a coward4 ,on this occasion ,i followed strictly the native mode of obtaining justice1 and that which the native1 with his idea of the solidarity of a community1 recognizes as fair4 ,a few minutes after the theft a man from the same town to which the thief belonged passed through the mission premises4 ,i gave the order to the workmen to capture him and take his gun4 ,makuba1 without assistance1 executed the order4 ,the man fought him violently1 but being overcome was at length reduced to cursing him and predicting the various horrible deaths by which he would die1 not to speak of everlasting torment that would be sure to follow4 ,the indignant ,makuba in reply tore open the front of his shirt and exposed an ugly scar upon his breast4 8,am ,i afraid of the ,fang80 he cried4 8,do you see that scar8 ,a ,fang knife did that in an attack upon my tribe1 and ,i alone killed the man who carried it and two of his friends40 ,i then took charge of the gun and told the man that ,i would return it as soon as his people would bring me the stolen goods1 and then ,i released him4 ,illustration3 ,,makuba1 ,,captain ,,of ,,the ,,boat-,,crew4 ,in a tornado his chief anxiety was always for the white man1 that he might not get wet1 and it was a part of politeness not to protect himself4 ,an hour later some thirty or forty very angry men1 armed with knives and guns1 and shouting their war-cry1 rushed into the yard4 ,they did not yet realize that ,i was going to take up the palaver1 but thought they had only to deal with the workmen1 who were unarmed4 ,their intention was to kill ,makuba and take the gun1 which they supposed was in his possession4 ,they ran past the end of my house towards the workmen's house shouting the name of ,makuba4 ,but it chanced that he was at the other end of my house1 so they missed him4 ,immediately returning they saw him but before they reached him ,i pushed him into the house and closing the door myself confronted them and addressed them from the porch1 explaining that since ,makuba was in my employ ,i was bound to protect him2 that the palaver was therefore mine1 and they would have to fight me first4 ,they first demanded that ,makuba be delivered to them1 but at length proposed to accept the gun as a compromise4 ,i of course declined the compromise and demanded the stolen goods for the gun4 ,finally one of them raised the cry3 8,let us kill the white man and take the store40 ,this may have been a mere bluff4 ,i am disposed to think that it was2 but ,i did not think so that day1 and one cannot be sure4 ,it was in a ,fang town much nearer to the coast and to the ,french government that ,mr4 ,marling was once robbed of his very clothing and left naked in the street of the village4 ,the idea of killing the white man for the goods in the store became uncomfortably popular4 ,they recounted all the grievous wrongs they had suffered at the hands of white men1 and missionaries in particular1 from the discovery of ,africa down to the present moment4 ,they had at various times respectfully advised that the church be closed and the store kept open all the time1 and had been told in reply that the church was more important than the store1 and that preaching the ,gospel was our chief work4 ,they had come to buy goods and had found the store closed and the missionaries holding prayers with the people4 ,they had advised that we must sell goods only to them and not to their enemies and had been told that we loved their enemies4 ,they had advised that we lower our prices on all articles except those that they did not want and we had seen fit to fix our own prices regardless of their feelings4 ,they had frequently come to the station to beg a little present and the missionaries had affronted them by offering them work4 ,they had requested tobacco of this present white man and in reply he had invited them to ,sunday-school4 ,the situation had become intolerable and they proposed to recompense full vengeance upon the aforesaid white man4 ,the older men1 however1 advised that if they should attack the white man and the mission it ought not to be done by one town1 but that all the adjacent towns ought to be engaged in it so as to spread the responsibility4 ,this advice prevailed and they decided upon an attack that night1 and sent messengers to two large towns some distance in the forest1 telling them to come armed for an attack on the mission4 ,i did not suppose at the time that we had a single weapon of defense except the old gun that we had captured4 ,it was already loaded1 but as far as ,i knew we had no ammunition4 ,i immediately set out to search the premises1 and to my great joy found a rifle1 which had accidentally been left there4 ,we found plenty of ammunition both for the rifle and the gun which we had seized4 ,i also ordered the men to catch any native that might come near the premises and to take his gun4 ,they were greatly surprised when they heard the report of the rifle and immediately recognized it as 8a white man's gun10 of which they have a wholesome dread1 believing also that the white man has medicine which will make his gun shoot straight and absolutely sure4 ,i was very careful to conceal the fact that ,i had only one rifle1 and they were quite deceived1 supposing that ,i had a sufficient number for all of us4 ,they dispatched messengers a second time to the forest towns to tell them of our preparations4 ,they all came together that night armed for war1 and shots were fired continually during the night1 but no attack was made4 ,when ,i afterwards learned how prone they are to experimentation with a new comer1 ,i realized that it might have been a mere bluff4 ,no one can tell2 but ,i had no such thought at the time4 ,neither did ,makuba nor any of the workmen regard it as a bluff4 ,all the workmen excepting ,makuba besought me to give back the captured gun and stop the palaver4 ,i brought them into my house that night2 but ,makuba with the rifle in his hand insisted upon keeping watch1 and walked before my door the whole night4 ,the matter of his stolen goods and his personal danger were quite forgotten in absorbing anxiety for the white man's safety4 ,i may add that ,i cut off all communication with the people1 refusing to buy their supplies of food1 or to open the store1 until after several days they returned the stolen goods1 and the palaver was finished4 ,a short time after this ,i made ,makuba the captain of the boat crew4 ,he knew the sea1 and everything about boats and was perfectly trustworthy4 ,but these qualifications are more common in ,africa than the faculty of discipline and command which is by no means common4 ,makuba was not altogether wanting in talent for discipline1 but when this proved insufficient he procured obedience to his orders by diplomacy and argument2 and for that matter1 the greatest sea-captain dispenses with argument only because he is given authority to punish and to put in irons1 which requires no talent at all4 ,but all ,makuba's resources of discipline and diplomacy were taxed when ,i hired ,obianga1 a young man of the ,fang1 whose home was near ,angom4 ,poor ,obianga is dead2 and ,i would not make cheap jokes at his expense4 ,he was like a wild unbroken colt1 full of life1 willing to work1 and not lazy1 but resentful of the bit and reins of authority4 ,for any man1 especially one of another tribe1 to give him an order was equivalent to calling him a slave2 and1 representative of his tribe1 he seemed ever to be saying3 8,we were never in bondage to any man40 ,when ,makuba would shout an order to him1 however urgent1 even if a tempest were approaching1 ,obianga would perhaps tell him to 8shut up40 ,then we usually improvised a little tempest on our own account1 ,makuba's indignation being the turbulent factor4 ,but in milder weather he would try persuasion and various expedients1 old and new1 always prevailing in the end4 ,i never interfered in these altercations1 though ,i sometimes reckoned with the offender when the journey was over4 ,more than once ,makuba asked me to dismiss ,obianga1 but ,i would not2 for ,i liked him and felt that there was in him the raw material for an excellent man4 ,then1 too1 ,i remembered that ,i once dismissed another man upon ,makuba's urgent and repeated request1 and no sooner did ,makuba hear of it than he came to me begging me to take the man on again1 saying that he himself had been too impatient1 reminding me also that the man had a wife and child1 and promising that if ,i would take him back he would not complain of him again4 ,of course ,i took him back2 and ,makuba kept his word4 ,the worst disputes between ,obianga and ,makuba took place when they supposed that ,i was asleep4 ,the native when he lies down anywhere sleeps immediately4 ,whenever ,i was lying in the bottom of the boat they always supposed that ,i was asleep and that no conceivable noise could waken me4 ,during one of their quarrels ,makuba1 with a voice like a thunderbolt1 roars3 8,if you don't do what ,i say ,i will tell ,mr4 ,milligan that you have two wives40 8,sh--sh6 ,makuba10 says ,obianga4 8,what did you tell me to do80 ,such altercations as the following were not uncommon3 ,captain ,makuba orders ,obianga to 8haul away on the peak halliards02 to which ,obianga promptly replies3 8,do it yourself40 8,i won't do it3 you will do it10 says ,makuba in a threatening tone4 8,are you my father80 says ,obianga4 8,no10 answers ,makuba with infinite scorn4 8,how could a ,kombi man be the father of an animal like you80 8,then stop giving me orders10 says ,obianga with rising wrath4 8,it is not the first time you have tried it1 and one of these days you will find out that it won't do40 8,one of these days you will find out that ,i am the captain of this boat and that you will have to obey me10 says ,makuba4 8,not as long as ,i can carry a gun10 answers ,obianga4 ,by this time they are standing up and looking hard at each other4 ,but ,makuba would not think of striking a man in a mission boat4 ,he therefore becomes diplomatic4 ,suddenly in a tone altogether different he says3 8,obianga1 the trouble with you is that you are just a bush man2 you don't know anything about civilization4 ,on every big ocean-steamer there is a captain1 and every man on board1 no matter what tribe he belongs to1 obeys the captain40 ,obianga becomes instantly curious and asks3 8,is he rich60 8,yes10 says ,makuba1 8he gets big pay1 and so do ,i get big pay40 8,how much do you get1 ,makuba80 8,how much do you think80 ,obianga thinks1 as well as he knows how1 his countenance distorted with the effort1 and at length answers reflectively3 8,two dollars a mouth40--,he himself gets a dollar and a half4 ,a broad smile engages ,makuba's features as he slowly answers3 8,five dollars a month40 ,obianga gives expression to his surprise in a long1 low whistle4 ,it is quite evident to him that no ordinary person could command such wages2 and in a tone of utmost compliance he says3 8,what was it you told me to do1 ,makuba8 ,i forget40 8,i forget too10 says ,makuba4 8,o1 yes10 he adds1 8,i told you to haul on the peak halliards40 ,again1 it is night1 dark and stormy3 a tornado seems to be approaching4 ,captain ,makuba shouts the order to ,obianga1 to 8make fast the jib-sheet40 ,obianga1 who is no more afraid of a tornado than anything else1 and whose head is nodding with sleep1 tells him to mind his own business4 ,makuba1 losing his patience1 of which he has not a large stock1 calls him a cannibal--the worst insult he could offer him1 and adds3 8,you especially like to eat us ,kombi people3 you say our flesh is the best40 8,you lie10 says ,obianga 7the current form of polite contradiction71 8we like the ,bekeli people better than the ,kombi2 there is more salt in the ,bekeli40 ,do not conclude from this that ,obianga himself is a cannibal4 ,he probably never tasted human flesh2 but it is not so long since his fathers emerged from cannibalism but that tradition still distinguishes between the flesh of the surrounding tribes2 nor was ,obianga at this moment disposed to admit that ,makuba would make a more savoury dish than any of the rest of us4 ,in spite of ,makuba's anger it strikes him as very funny that his intended insult should fall so wide of the mark1 and he laughs 8in linked thunder long drawn out40 ,there is nothing more contagious in ,africa than laughter1 and ,obianga joins in it2 and then of course he obeys the order4 ,soon after this1 the storm having passed1 they are singing together 8,i have a ,father in the ,promised ,land10 singing it well1 too2 and while they sing ,i fall asleep4 ,but if a tornado should swoop down upon us1 as it happens so often1 or a drenching rain should catch us1 the half child nature in ,makuba would disappear immediately and reveal a whole man1 strong1 fearless and resourceful4 ,in a tornado no man knew better than he just what to do for safety2 and in a rain-storm his only anxiety seemed to be for the health of the white man--lest he should get wet1 while at such times it was almost a matter of politeness with him not to protect himself4 ,once on a journey of three days on the open sea1 from ,benito to ,gaboon1 ,i was miserably sick the second day and could not eat4 ,neither would ,makuba eat1 because ,i did not4 ,the wind was contrary1 and he sat at the stroke oar pulling hard until two o'clock in the afternoon without food4 ,at last almost in tears 7speaking in ,kru ,english in which he and ,i always conversed7 he said3 8,mr4 ,milligan1 hunger no catch you8 ,all this day ,i look you and you never chop4 ,suppose you no chop you go die40 ,observing for the first time that his own food had not been touched1 ,i said in surprise3 8,what for all them chop live same as morning-time8 ,yourself you never chop all this day80 ,he replied3 8,suppose you no be fit for chop then ,i no chop2 ,i wait you1 ,mr4 ,milligan40 8,but ,makuba10 ,i said1 8suppose me and you1 all two1 be sick1 then what man go take care of me8 ,i no want other man2 ,i want you40 8,ah1 ,mr4 ,milligan10 he replied with a smile1 8white man have plenty sense all same as ,god2 black man be same as piccaninny40 ,thereupon he took food and ate heartily1 for he was very hungry4 ,i received ,makuba into the church and baptized him4 ,he was an honest man and a faithful ,christian4 ,he had a mind of his own too1 and was quite original in some of his opinions4 ,he detested every form of affectation and was fond of saying that the black man must adhere to his own habits1 customs1 and fashions1 in so far as they were not sinful1 instead of imitating the white man4 ,nor had he any respect for the white man1 whether missionary or trader1 who would fall into the ways of the black man1 in speech1 or dress1 or manners4 ,i quite agree with him as to the principle1 but ,i sometimes was at variance with him in the practice4 ,for instance1 when ,makuba used the boys' bread-knife to trim his toe-nails1 and they objected1 he invoked this favourite principle of loyalty to his race and their customs1 and wanted to know why they affected white man's ways so long as they could not change their skins4 ,without violating the delicate sentiment attaching to this custom ,i tried to convince ,makuba that there were many black people in the world who would not think of trimming their toe-nails with the bread-knife4 ,if ,i might judge by his polite but incredulous smile1 he probably thought that ,i was mistaken on this point4 ,but if ,makuba were preparing my dinner he would do it with scrupulous cleanliness1 not forgetting that ,i am a white man4 ,one day we went in the ,evangeline to a town some thirty miles distant1 where there was a ,christian1 ,mba ,obam 7usually contracted to ,mb',obam7 who was the uncle of one of my boat-boys1 ,ndong ,koni4 ,shortly after our arrival ,ndong ,koni advised that we should hold our service before night1 as the town was preparing for a great celebration 7that is to say1 a great dance7 that night1 to which they had invited the people of an adjacent town4 ,the occasion of all the revelry was the end of the term of mourning for a prominent man of the town1 who having been dead a whole month had been sufficiently lamented4 ,it remained only to give him a good 8send-off10 and to release his friends from any further obligations4 ,during the month of mourning the women wail every night1 and there is no dancing4 ,towards evening the men of ,ndong ,koni's town began to adorn and decorate themselves for the fancy un-dress ball1 using paint and powder1 and wearing round their ankles strings of native bells4 ,the women take no part in these celebrations except to look on and to add to the noise4 ,when they were all ready the men formed themselves into two long lines in the street1 with the drums and other wooden instruments across one end4 ,a certain famous dancer performed in the middle1 down the lines and back1 to the beating of the drums4 ,he seemed to be all joints1 and he passed from shape to shape so rapidly that at times he seemed to have no shape at all4 ,at intervals all the men danced1 keeping their places in the line1 but at certain changes in the music whirling to the other end of the street1 and back1 adding also a wild song to the beating of the drums1 and furiously shaking the bells on their ankles1 by which means together with a sudden stamp upon the ground they managed to mark time1 which they did to perfection1 and to add rhythm1 which was quite fascinating in such a volume of noise4 ,among the tribes which have been longer at the coast such celebrations are attended with rum-drinking2 they are also continued all night1 and before morning the scene is a hideous debauch4 ,but the ,fang have not yet become victims of the white man's rum1 and ,i know of no wrong attaching to these dances of the men except that they sometimes get excited almost to frenzy2 when this occurs they are not unlikely to draw their knives on each other upon the slightest provocation1 thus closing the celebration in a free-for-all fight and the spilling of blood4 8,where is the man who hath not tried ,how mirth doth into folly glide1 ,and folly into sin80 ,ndong ,koni had joined in the frolic4 ,in one particular dance they used firebrands which they waved before them4 ,next to ,ndong ,koni stood a man of giant size who thought he had a grudge against one of the family4 ,when the excitement was at its height he suddenly threw fire in ,ndong ,koni's face4 ,ndong ,koni was only a boy of about nineteen years and not large2 but quick as a flash he struck the fellow a blow in the face4 ,the man1 instantly drawing his sword1 sprang at him2 but ,ndong ,koni had already drawn his sword and was on his guard4 ,in a minute1 as it seemed1 the men of the two towns separated and stood facing each other1 a sword in every man's hand4 ,then1 thrusting and parrying1 they circled around and drifted down the street towards the place where ,i was sitting4 ,before any serious wounds were inflicted1 the chief1 ,mb',obam1 hearing the clash of swords1 came from his house1 and running between them at considerable risk to himself begged them not to fight1 especially1 he added1 when the white man was visiting their town4 ,he soon succeeded in quieting them4 ,meantime ,i had been occupying a seat of honour1 a real chair1 or the venerable remains of one 7probably the only chair in the town71 infirm and unstable1 and with one leg missing4 ,here ,i was maintaining a feeble existence against a fearful onslaught of mosquitoes4 ,another of my boat-boys1 an old man of ,liberia1 named ,benjamin1 was near me when the quarrel occurred at the other end of the street4 ,benjamin did not understand the ,fang language very well4 ,he heard their angry voices and saw the flash of their swords as they were moving towards us4 ,hearing them also call out the name of the white man1 ,benjamin reached the extraordinary conclusion that they were going to kill me4 ,quite terrified1 the old man rushed towards me with the cry1 8,o my master1 my master60 and flung his arms around me1 probably with the benevolent intention of dragging me off into the thicket1 or hiding me in some hole2 but the chair on which ,i was sitting1 being a delicate piece of furniture and lacking a leg1 as ,i have said1 was overturned1 and ,i went sprawling on the ground all mixed up with ,benjamin1 and wondering whether the man had gone mad4 ,by the time ,i gathered myself up and got my parts together the quarrel in the street was quieted and ,benjamin saw his mistake4 ,no further misadventures occurred during the remainder of this pleasant evening4 ,poor ,benjamin6 ,we shall not hear of him again1 and we may dismiss him with a word4 ,that was the last journey he made in the ,evangeline4 ,he was a capable1 hard-working and kind-hearted old man1 and we were all attached to him4 ,but rum was his besetting sin and finally his ruin4 ,after a long hard struggle against it he at last gave up the fight and became a helpless and hopeless victim4 ,i had to dismiss him4 ,when ,i left ,africa he was in a native town near by1 drinking himself to death2 nor could he live long4 ,but so great is the multitude hurrying down this same broad road to destruction that one more old man would never be noticed in the crowd4 ,ndong ,koni who figured in the fire-dance1 was the one ,i have known most intimately of all ,africans1 and the one who made the strongest appeal to my affections4 ,he was a handsome boy1 as light in colour as a mulatto1 of gentle manners and affectionate disposition4 ,he came to me and engaged as a boat-boy shortly after ,i began work among the ,fang4 ,i taught him constantly4 ,he served in many capacities varying from boat-boy to catechist4 ,soon after ,ndong ,koni began to work for me1 ,i visited a group of towns in the interior accompanied by him and several other natives4 ,we walked nine miles by a good forest path and then travelled twelve hours by canoe4 ,i recall that on that journey ,i was preaching in a certain town to a good-sized audience who were gathered in the palaver-house1 when an old man1 seated directly in front of me and beside an anvil upon which he had been hammering1 became tired of my sermon and deliberately took up his heavy hammer and resumed his work1 pounding the anvil with a deafening noise against which ,i could not proceed4 ,the joke was plainly on me4 ,addressing a young man1 ,i asked him if he would help me to carry the anvil outside1 which we proceeded to do1 before the old fellow realized what we were about1 taking it to a safe distance1 and leaving him sitting there with his work all around him4 ,thereupon ,i proceeded with 8secondly10 and 8thirdly40 ,in returning1 two days later1 we started in the canoe at five o'clock in the morning and the boys paddled until seven at night1 when we again took the forest path4 ,we had expected upon leaving the canoe to stay all night in a native town at that place2 but sure symptoms of approaching fever warned me that ,i had best get home as soon as possible1 which necessitated a walk of nine miles by night through the forest4 ,the road was somewhat open1 however1 and the path well cleared1 so that the journey was quite possible4 ,the men were worn out after their long day's work4 ,when ,i told them that ,i wished to go home that night their first exclamations of surprise were followed by profound silence4 ,i said3 8,i know you are tired and it is not necessary that you should go on with me2 but ,i ought to have one boy1 for ,i am not sure of the road40 ,before ,i had finished1 ,ndong ,koni1 although the youngest of the party1 had my food-chest on his head1 and starting off said3 8,mr4 ,milligan1 ,i too1 ,i go with you40 ,in all my journeying in the ,evangeline ,ndong ,koni was with me4 ,he was my best helper in the religious services in the towns4 ,he was boat-boy and preacher and often cooked my meals besides1 for he was always willing to be called upon for extra service4 ,upon reaching a town he would take the organ on his head and carry it into the town1 where he would find the best place to hold a service1 and he and ,i would go through the town and call the people4 ,after singing a few hymns1 in which all the boat-boys joined1 ,i would speak to the people a while and then ask ,ndong ,koni to speak4 ,i have learned my best lessons from him4 ,not only was he fluent in speech1 but with lively intelligence and unfailing sympathy he adapted his subjects and his words perfectly to his hearers4 ,a more kind-hearted boy ,i have seldom known in any land1 although cruelty was the most prominent characteristic of the heathen around him1 of whom were his own people4 ,the only reason ,i can give for this contrast is simply that ,ndong ,koni was a ,christian4 ,he had faults1 ,i well know4 ,but ,i am not the one to mention them1 so much do ,i still feel my indebtedness to him for innumerable kindnesses through all those years1 in which he journeyed with me sharing exposure and hardship1 sharing also the joy of preaching the ,gospel4 ,on one occasion ,ndong ,koni went into a ,french trading-house and asked for something which he wanted to buy4 ,the white man behind the counter told him that he did not have the article4 ,ndong ,koni turned to go out1 but the white man called to him and said3 8,why don't you buy rum instead80 8,because ,i am a ,christian10 answered ,ndong ,koni4 ,the white man railed at his belief and told him his own anti-,christian beliefs4 8,well10 said ,ndong ,koni1 8if ,i believed as you do ,i would drink rum and do a great many other things that ,i do not do4 ,but as long as ,i am a ,christian ,i shall not do those things40 ,once at the close of a school term when ,i was taking the schoolboys home1 ,i had seventeen boys in the ,evangeline1 which ,i was towing behind the ,dorothy4 ,we had gone about twenty miles when the engine of the ,dorothy suddenly stopped and refused to go in spite of all my efforts4 ,i found afterwards that the benzine which had been sent me from ,germany was not the quality which the engine required4 ,i had this same experience frequently during the next several months1 and after starting out with the ,dorothy towing the ,evangeline we would return to port a few days later with the little ,evangeline towing the ,dorothy4 ,but this time ,i had first to take the boys to their homes leaving the ,dorothy at anchor4 ,the ,evangeline with seventeen boys in it was already crowded1 but myself and the crew of five men squeezed into it1 and room was also made for the men to use the oars4 ,there was a good wind but we had no sails4 ,the tide had just turned and was against us1 the current was strong1 and we sat in that cramped position for ten hours1 while those faithful boys pulled hard at the oars without relief4 ,at midnight we reached the first town1 twenty miles beyond where the ,dorothy had stopped4 ,here we remained until morning4 ,three of the schoolboys lived in this town4 ,the other fourteen lived in several different towns on other rivers4 ,morning found me with fever1 due to the long exposure to the sun1 for which ,i was not prepared1 not having expected it4 ,it was necessary that ,i should start for home immediately in the ,evangeline4 ,but what was ,i to do with the schoolboys8 ,in the emergency ,i called ,ndong ,koni1 who looked tired enough from the long pull at the oar2 but he said that he would take them through the bush to their homes4 ,of all the boys who have worked for me in ,africa there was none excepting ,ndong ,koni and perhaps ,makuba to whom ,i would have committed the care of so many boys in such a situation4 ,the roads which are but poorly beaten paths lay through swamp and jungle all the way1 and at the close of the wet season they were at the worst4 ,the ,fang of this region seldom use the bush-path1 their towns being all on the watercourses4 ,but the chief difficulty was the danger of meeting enemies on the way1 and the fact that certain boys must avoid certain towns4 ,ndong ,koni got them all safely to their homes4 ,but immediately after starting he found that the smallest boy had a sore foot and walked with difficulty4 ,i too recalled this after they had gone and ,i was very anxious about the boy4 ,ndong ,koni1 however1 instead of letting him walk1 or of sending him back to me1 carried him on his shoulders all the way to his town1 more than ten miles distant4 ,the sequel may be of interest to my readers4 ,before ,ndong ,koni left me ,i had engaged a man to take his place at the oar4 ,knowing from dire experience the unreliability of the native and the ease with which he absolves himself from the solemnest engagements1 ,i told this man that he might change his mind and cancel the engagement if he chose to do so before ,ndong ,koni should leave me1 but that after ,ndong ,koni had gone he would not be at liberty to change his mind1 but would be obliged to accompany me even if it should require a flogging to persuade him4 ,he protested that his feelings were badly hurt at the suggestion that he would be capable of breaking his promise and of leaving the white man in such a distressing predicament1 especially this particular white man1 to whom he owed every virtue that he possessed1 and any of his neighbours would be glad to testify to his stainless reputation and the purity of his life4 ,nevertheless1 half an hour after ,ndong ,koni had gone1 when ,i was ready to start1 this saint among savages was missing4 ,i called him and hunted for him in vain2 nor could ,i get a man to take his place4 ,the people told me that he had gone ahead of me in a canoe and was waiting for me at their fishing-camp a short distance down the river--which ,i knew to be false for the simple reason that they said it was true4 ,i asked them to show me the man's house1 but no one seemed to know in which house he lived4 ,his own brothers could not tell me4 ,a bribe of a dose of salts was sufficient to induce the chief to lead the way to the man's house4 ,the door was a large piece of bark propped from the inside4 ,it yielded to a vigorous push so easily that ,i was precipitated into the house headlong1 my feet catching as ,i passed through the door and my helmet as usual rolling into the ashes4 ,the man1 ,i believe1 was hidden within1 but ,i did not search for him4 ,i seized a large earthen jug1 used by the women for carrying water and counted a valuable possession1 and started off for the river1 the whole town at my heels1 making a deafening uproar4 ,many were in violent remonstrance and others were laughing4 ,i took the jug aboard the boat and ordered the boys to push off4 ,we were getting under weigh when the missing man appeared upon the bank4 ,but the saint had reverted to the savage1 and was nothing but an ordinary cannibal threatening to cut me into small pieces and eat me4 ,while the boat moved slowly towards the middle of the river ,i talked with him and told him that if he wanted the jug he would have to keep his agreement4 ,he at length offered to go on condition that ,i would send the jug ashore as soon as he came aboard and not take it to ,gaboon1 for it belonged to his wife4 ,i agreed to this proposition4 ,he probably intended1 when the jug was at a safe distance1 to leap overboard and swim ashore4 ,but once ,i had him in my grip ,i decided to take no chances lest his noble character might suffer another relapse4 ,i made him lie down on his back in the bottom of the boat beneath the thwarts1 and ,i seated myself on his stomach4 ,the whole population of the town was on the bank1 and rending the air with laughter1 in which even the man's wives joined4 ,so we put off down the river4 ,after a while he respectfully advised that it was no longer necessary for me to sit on him2 that he could not possibly swim back to his town1 nor walk through the mangrove swamp on either side of the river1 and besides he was needed at the oar for he knew that the white man was in a hurry to reach ,gaboon4 ,as to the proposal that ,i change my seat ,i told him that what was at first a matter of necessity was now a matter of choice and that ,i could not be as comfortable sitting on a thwart4 ,but one oar was idle2 and besides ,i was deeply moved by his anxiety to get me to ,gaboon as quickly as possible4 ,so ,i relented and changed my seat1 while he crawled out and took the oar4 ,i had a few choice bananas1 which ,i asked him to eat with me1 and before he had finished eating we were the best of friends2 and so we were ever afterwards4 ,the launch ,dorothy 7which succeeded the ,evangeline7 ,i usually kept anchored well out on the bay1 giving her plenty of cable4 ,it was always hard to get out to her in the evening and ,i preferred to start up the river in the quiet of the morning but that was not always possible4 ,one evening we were going out to her in a canoe1 preparatory to a journey1 when the sea was rougher than usual1 and we had a misadventure that was no joke at the time4 ,in the canoe were eight natives and several trunks and other baggage4 ,ndong ,koni was in the stern4 ,we soon saw that we were overloaded but we went on1 the canoe taking water more and more rapidly4 8,we can't make it10 said some one2 8let us turn back40 ,but to attempt to turn in such a sea would surely have swamped us2 besides1 we were more than half-way to the launch4 ,i gave the order to go on1 and every man to pull for his life4 ,i stood up and urged the men to their best4 ,but it was in vain4 ,the canoe settled deeper in the water1 which soon came almost to my knees4 ,at last it went under1 in eighteen feet of water1 and a rough sea that no white man could swim in4 ,dear reader1 if you should ever find yourself in such a situation1 a hopeless distance from the shore and the craft sinking into the depths beneath your feet1 let me advise you above all things to be perfectly calm4 ,don't worry4 ,worry will not help in the least4 ,i turned to ,ndong ,koni and said3 8,ndong1 if my life is to be saved ,i guess it is up to you to do it40 ,there was no need to speak to him4 ,he sprang over the heads of several boys and into the water after me1 and catching me by the shoulder1 fought the sea with the other arm4 ,the canoe came to the surface bottom upwards4 ,the natives old and young swim marvellously1 and are at home in the roughest water4 ,we tried to get to the canoe but a wave swept it away2 then another dashed it towards us and against us4 ,we clung to it as best we could but again and again we were separated from it1 and again dashed against it4 ,there was a canoe with several natives in the distance2 but they either did not see us1 or they were disposed to let nature take its course4 ,we might have been devoured by sharks but for the fact that there were a number of us1 and we were making plenty of noise4 ,but some men on the shore saw us1 and calling loudly for help they at last pushed off a large canoe and came towards us1 the captain yelling at the men to pull and pull harder4 ,when they reached us we had been twenty minutes in the water1 and were taken out not so much the worse except ,ndong ,koni1 who was exhausted and bruised by the canoe striking him1 from which he had each time saved me4 ,when we reached the beach ,i am sure no one will wonder that ,i said to him3 8,ndong ,koni1 if ,i had a son of my own ,i could only wish that he were as brave and unselfish as you are40 ,i asked him what he would have as salvage for saving my life4 ,he replied3 8,a tin of corned beef for supper40 ,he seemed to think that was enough4 ,while we were struggling in the sea fifty schoolboys had reached the beach in a state of panic4 ,the crying of the smaller boys was hysterical and they could not stop even when ,i was safe on land4 ,they continued to cry1 saying the while1 8,o ,mr4 ,milligan1 what would we have done8 ,for you are our father40 ,at last ,i dried their tears by saying3 8,look here1 boys1 ,i know what you are crying for3 you are sorry that ,i was not drowned40 ,every face was for a moment transfixed with amazement1 as they stared at one another4 ,then they all laughed4 ,next day they dragged for my trunk which contained most of the useful things that ,i had in ,africa4 ,at last when the tide was at the ebb they found it4 ,among other things which lay in the sea over night was a ,french ,testament that ,i used to carry with me4 ,i still have this relic4 ,the kindness of such a boy as ,ndong ,koni is only appreciated when contrasted with the awful cruelty which is the outstanding feature of all heathenism4 ,and the cruelty of anger or fear is not so revolting as that of their deliberate practice and ordinary customs1 dissociated from passion4 ,in a certain town at which we anchored the ,evangeline one day while we waited for the turn of the tide1 we found a woman sick and evidently dying1 whose wasted form suggested long suffering4 ,ndong ,koni knew her history and repeated it to me4 ,she did not belong to the town1 but had been a prisoner there for five years4 ,a petty war had taken place between this town and the one to which she had belonged4 ,a woman1 ,i believe1 had been stolen1 and then some killing followed4 ,at the close of the war the people of her town had to pay a dowry and they agreed to send a woman as hostage until it should be paid4 ,this poor woman who had nothing whatever to do with the palaver1 was taken from her family and given as a prisoner to the other town1 while the guilty man and woman enjoyed themselves and paid no penalty4 ,her husband had probably married other wives and had ceased to care for her1 and he was willing that she should be sent4 ,they never ransomed her1 but left her there1 a prisoner and slave in the town1 with no protection and no rights1 until at the end of five years she died4 ,to many such have ,i tried to tell the story of the ,son of ,man1 who came to give ,his life 8a ransom for many40 ,one day we visited a certain town which was not far away4 ,expecting that we would return that evening ,i took no extra clothing4 ,on the way we were caught in a storm and my clothes were drenched with rain4 ,i could hot spend the afternoon in these wet clothes1 and the town possessed no clothes that ,i could wear4 ,but the chief had a table and a table-cloth4 ,he kindly loaned me the latter and a pair of shoes that had perhaps been discarded by some white man4 ,i did not preach in a table-cloth and a pair of shoes1 but ,i sat and visited with the people4 ,mb',obam1 ,ndong ,koni's uncle1 died not long after the visit to his town1 the incidents of which ,i have recounted4 ,he and his wife1 ,sara1 had for a long time lived a pure and exemplary life in the midst of the darkest heathenism4 ,when he died the people accused ,sara of having made medicine to kill him4 ,this medicine is a fetish and acts supernaturally3 it is not necessary that it should come in physical contact with the victim4 ,mb',obam had died of a lingering disease well known to them4 ,but such is the mental degradation incident to the belief in magic and witchcraft that effects are referred to a supernatural cause even when the natural and physical cause is before their eyes4 ,every death is attributed to magic or witchcraft1 and if they are not forward in avenging it the spirit of the dead one will inflict misfortune and even death upon them4 ,mb',obam had completely broken with fetishism and had discarded all these beliefs and had bravely defended the victims of native cruelty4 ,at his approaching death he charged the people not to touch ,sara nor to charge her with witchcraft1 reminding them what a faithful wife she had been and how differently they both had lived since they became ,christians4 ,but though they had regarded him with respect and reverence during his life1 yet at his death old customs and beliefs asserted tyrannous authority1 and they charged ,sara with having killed him4 ,it fell to ,esona1 the succeeding chief1 to decree the punishment of ,sara4 ,in the vicinity of the ,french government he would not dare to kill her4 ,so he led her into the middle of the street before all the people1 placed her on her hands and knees1 and bound upon her back a heavy load of plantain-stocks4 ,then two men sat upon the load1 on her back1 and all the men of the town drove her thus up and down the street on her hands and knees until they nearly killed her4 ,as soon as she had sufficiently recovered from the effect of the awful ordeal they repeated the performance1 and repeated it again1 until ,sara managed through a ,christian boy to get a message to me4 ,leaving the school ,i made ready the ,evangeline and went with all haste to the town1 thirty miles distant1 where ,i arrived just in time to stop another repetition of the outrage4 ,the sight was too much for me4 ,mb',obam and ,sara had been the very first of my ,fang friends4 ,whether the impulse was noble indignation or a very mortal temper1 the reader may decide4 ,with a stick which ,i carried ,i flogged ,esona the chief before all the people1 and there was blood on the stick when ,i got through4 ,one may wonder how a white man could do this in a town of savages without sacrificing his own life4 ,i may say that there was perhaps not another town on the river in which ,i could have done any such thing and have escaped with my life4 ,safety in such a situation depends upon the extent of a man's influence and personal authority in the particular town4 ,it is the part of wisdom for him to know the extent of his influence in each town and the part of discretion never to overreach it4 ,in this instance ,esona1 breaking away from me like an animal frantic with rage1 shouted for his gun and ran towards his house to get it4 ,but a cry of alarm was raised1 as ,i expected1 and half a dozen men rushing upon him1 held him fast4 ,he broke loose from them and others joined him4 ,for a moment it looked as if my own life and that of the crew 7except ,ndong ,koni1 who was related in the town7 were forfeited1 and the fate of the ,evangeline were like that of the famous ship which was left-- 8,with one man of her crew alive1 ,what put to sea with seventy-five40 ,but they caught ,esona again and threw him to ground1 shouting at me the while to leave the town as quickly as possible4 ,to their mingled entreaties and curses ,i yielded a tardy compliance1 which however was not nearly as reluctant as it seemed4 ,there is a sequel to this story also1 which ,i shall relate4 ,this chief ,esona1 whom ,i flogged1 announced a few days later that he was going to marry ,sara4 ,he already had seven wives1 and the thought of such a marriage was repugnant to ,sara4 ,but she had no choice in the matter and was compelled to marry him4 ,polygamy is not always a happy institution1 even in ,africa4 ,the seven wives were angry and jealous4 ,being powerless to injure ,esona they avenged themselves upon ,sara4 ,one day shortly after the marriage1 as she was walking along the street1 they suddenly came running from their houses with knives and attacked her4 ,they wounded her and would have killed her but she was rescued by some men who happened to be near4 ,a woman costs money and her life may not be sacrificed wantonly4 ,then these wives tried another expedient4 ,four women in succession1 coming from different towns1 visited ,esona and solemnly told him that they had had a dream concerning him--all four of them in succession relating the same dream4 ,they had seen ,mb',obam1 ,sara's dead husband1 who was very angry that ,esona had married ,sara1 and threatened all kinds of plagues and finally death1 if he would not put her away4 ,a few days later their word was confirmed when five houses belonging to ,esona were burned to the ground4 ,they were perfectly aware that a certain young man of the town had accidentally let some live coals fall upon some dried thatch and the fire had started forthwith4 ,nevertheless1 with one voice the people attributed the fire to ,mb',obam1 and ,esona in great fear1 believing that his life might be the next forfeit1 let ,sara go4 ,after a period of various trials and sorrows dire fortune at last relented and ,i was glad to learn that ,sara was comfortably married to a ,christian man4 ,one quiet day1 as we were pulling up the river in the ,evangeline1 seventy miles from the coast1 a man suddenly emerged from the forest and came rapidly towards us in a canoe4 ,when he came near ,i recognized a ,fang friend1 a young man about twenty years old1 named ,ingwa1 who had been one of my first boat-boys in the ,evangeline1 and who was a ,christian4 ,after a hearty greeting ,i said3 8,i am surprised to see you1 ,ingwa2 ,i sent word to you long ago that ,i would like to have you again in the ,evangeline1 and ,i have not heard a word from you40 ,but1 observing that he looked worn and sick1 ,i asked him what was the matter2 and he told me the following story3 8,a year ago ,i was married to a woman whom ,i had loved for a long time and who loved me4 ,i paid the dowry and took my wife home4 ,we both were very happy1 for ,i loved only her and she loved only me4 ,after six mouths her father and brothers agreed with another man to take her from me and give her to him1 wishing to make friendship with his town4 ,her father invited her and me to visit him4 ,during the night they suddenly rushed in upon us and made us prisoners4 ,they tied my wife's hands and led her away4 ,then they bound me1 hands and feet1 and put me into a canoe and pushed the canoe out into the current of the river4 ,far down the river towards the sea ,i was picked up by some people who knew me and were friendly4 ,they set me free and ,i borrowed a paddle and reached my own town4 ,but ,i could not stay there1 it was so lonely2 for my wife was gone and my heart was sick4 ,they sent her to the other man's town1 but ,i knew that she loved only me4 ,i hid in the forest near that town1 but ,i could never see her4 ,six months ,i have been hiding in the forest1 night and day1 and ,i have been hungry1 and sometimes sick4 ,they know ,i am there and are trying to kill me4 ,her father sent word to me that he would pay me back the dowry2 but ,i want only my wife4 ,and surely ,god will help me2 ,i will meet her again1 and she will go with me4 ,for ,i love only her1 and she loves only me40 ,the story ended in a sob4 ,with a hasty good-bye he turned and sped towards the shore1 while ,i sat1 silently and with aching heart1 watching1 till the dark form was merged into the darkness of the forest and we saw him no more4 ,but how changed was nature's aspect6 ,how different the impression of the hazy1 languid atmosphere1 the torpid life of bird and beast1 the deep mystic forest with dark forms moving like phantoms to and fro1 screened from the river by a heavy veil of vine and flower that hung from the tops of the trees and lay upon the water below2 and behind the veil a real and tragic world of human suffering and breaking hearts6 ,not long after this ,ingwa1 still watching and waiting in the forest1 met his wife4 ,they fled together1 days and nights through the forest1 until they reached a town far away1 which ,ingwa had once visited in trading for rubber and ivory and where he had made friends4 ,there they were still living when ,i left ,africa4 ,a native trader afterwards visited that far distant town of the forest1 and returning1 brought me a message from ,ingwa4 ,the trader informed me also that he found the people of the town singing ,christian hymns and praying1 and that through the influence of ,ingwa many had thrown away their fetishes and were followers of ,christ4 ,,xiv ,a ,,school ,the schools of the ,congo ,franais are under the inspection of the government1 and there is a law that the ,french language shall be the language of the school4 ,it has been very difficult for an ,american mission to comply with this law1 and when it was first enforced some of our schools had to be closed4 ,it was mainly because of this difficulty that several stations on the ,ogow ,river were transferred to a ,french ,protestant missionary society4 ,our missionaries then enlarged their work at ,batanga1 which is in ,german territory1 and opened the several stations among the ,bulu of the interior1 a work that has greatly prospered4 ,it was only a few years1 however1 until they were required to teach the ,german language in the schools2 and the ,german law was as rigidly enforced as the ,french4 ,there was also a similar law in the ,english colonies4 ,this requirement had been regarded as unjust and as a great hindrance to the success of missionary work4 ,personally ,i have no quarrel with it in either respect1 and ,i think that the mind of the whole mission in late years has undergone a change on that subject4 ,even if there were no such law1 ,i believe that the ultimate success of the work would necessitate a ,european language2 and that language must be and ought to be that of the governing power4 ,of course the people of the various tribes must hear the ,gospel preached in their own native tongue2 as it was on the day of ,pentecost1 when every man heard the word in the language in which he was born4 ,the itinerating missionary must use the native dialects4 ,but when the native becomes a student1 seeking more extensive and more accurate knowledge1 the native dialect is beggarly and wholly inadequate4 ,if ideas require words for their conception1 then the paucity of words and the poverty of expression make it impossible for the student using the native language to think as it would be required of him in the class-room4 ,the acquisition of ,french is a cultural factor to the ,african in a sense that it is not to the ,american4 ,for most of the ,french words have no exact equivalent in his own language1 and such words present new thoughts4 ,moreover1 education introduces him to the world of books1 and without the foreign language he is confined to the very few and meagre translations that missionaries may make into an obscure dialect of a small tribe4 ,the future of the boys also1 their material welfare1 depends largely upon the knowledge of a ,european language4 ,it is not to be expected1 and is no way desirable1 that the boys of the schools should return home only to 8sit for town0 all their lives according to native fashion4 ,idleness is the devil's opportunity2 and those who have been in the schools invariably desire to work4 ,for most of those in the ,french ,congo work means employment with white men--the government officials or the traders--and in either case the knowledge of ,french is necessary4 ,but others of these boys become catechists and ministers in after years and1 as ,i have said1 if these are to be educated they must know ,french4 ,it is fortunate for the missionary teacher that the ,africans are very apt linguists4 ,they have but small talent for some studies2 in mathematics they are usually stupid1 but in the acquisition of languages they are scarcely surpassed4 ,during my second year in the ,french ,congo ,i opened a school at ,baraka with a small class of boys1 and gradually enlarged it until in my last year there were seventy-five boys4 ,the whole plan as projected in my mind1 which it took several years to establish1 was to have one central boarding-school at ,baraka1 with primary day-schools in many of the towns4 ,in these latter the people1 old and young1 boys and girls1 as many as wished1 were taught to read in their own language4 ,boys were required to be able to read in their own language before being admitted to the boarding-school4 ,religious teaching was an important part of the curriculum4 ,some of the most advanced ,christian boys of the boarding-school became catechists and were sent to those towns where there were groups of professing ,christians 7catechumens7 awaiting a course of instruction before being received into the church4 ,for no converts were baptized inside of two years1 during which time they received a careful course of instruction as nearly continuous as possible4 ,ultimately some of these catechists1 ,i hoped1 would become ministers4 ,the government inspection of the mission schools and the strictness of the law's enforcement in regard to the language1 depended1 as ,i found1 not much upon the amount of ,french taught in the school1 but upon the good or ill will of the inspector4 ,shortly after ,i went to the ,french ,congo the missionaries withdrew from the interior station1 ,angom1 but a day-school in charge of a native teacher was kept open for some time afterwards1 which was quite outside the theory of the plan ,i have outlined for the town schools4 ,it was a regular primary school in hours and curriculum and was not taught by a catechist as a mere adjunct to his religious work4 ,this school therefore came under the government inspection4 ,it had been exceedingly difficult to keep a competent teacher in charge of it1 as the government required4 ,those who knew sufficient ,french to teach were few and in great demand for the government service1 in which they received higher wages than we could afford to pay4 ,a certain ,mpongwe man1 ,remondo1 was left in charge of the school when the missionaries withdrew1 but only as a temporary expedient1 that the pupils might be kept together until a competent teacher could be procured4 ,remondo was a ,roman ,catholic1 but he was quite willing to lay aside his scapulary1 and his conscience for that matter1 for the slight remuneration incident to the position4 ,remondo nearly always had a rag on his toe4 ,some of his pupils had not even that much clothing4 ,he wrote his name without a capital letter1 and in a line as nearly vertical as horizontal2 and the obliquity of his writing was equalled by the iniquity of his ,french2 while there was such an uncertainty about his addition that ,i used to say that mathematics was not an exact science in ,remondo's hands4 ,finally1 not being able to procure a competent teacher1 ,i decided to close the school4 ,remondo was amazed and he firmly protested4 ,the fact that he was not doing the work made the position all the more congenial to his temperament1 and made it also1 in his opinion1 the more ungenerous to disturb him4 ,why close the school8 ,was not the attendance good8 ,was not the discipline perfect8 ,i admitted that he had all the accessories of a good teacher and lacked nothing but the essentials4 ,nevertheless1 my mind being set upon it1 ,i closed the school4 ,during this interval while ,remondo was in charge1 ,i was in constant dread of an official visit from the chef de poste of the district1 who would naturally be the government inspector for that school4 ,this dread had become chronic when one day ,i was amazed at the receipt of a very kind letter from the governor himself1 informing me that the chef de poste1 whom he had directed to visit the school at ,angom1 had reported that he had examined the pupils and conversed with the teacher and that the school was highly satisfactory in every way and a credit to the mission4 ,the governor hoped that we might open other schools of the same kind6 ,goodness gracious6 ,i lost no time in making inquiry of a certain official as to who was the chef de poste of that district--for ,i knew there had been a change lately4 ,he replied3 8,m4 de la ,r40 ,then ,i understood it all4 ,the late ,m4 de la ,r had already been in the service of the ,congo ,franais for thirteen years when ,i first met him4 ,he endured the climate remarkably well and only at long intervals returned to ,france on furlough4 ,he belonged to a good family4 ,he also had a wife and children in ,france4 ,his wife once went to ,africa with him but she soon returned home2 ,i was told that she was a fine woman2 he himself when ,i met him was the pitiful remains of a gentleman who had been ruined by the two vices which have made ,west ,africa in many minds a synonym for perdition4 ,during his first years he was faithful in his official duties and he rose in the service4 ,he was at one time administrator at ,bata1 not far from our mission station1 ,benito4 ,it was under the administration of this very man that our long-established schools at ,benito were closed by the government on the ground that the law in regard to the ,french language was not being strictly observed4 ,but our missionaries of that station believed that the action of ,m4 de la ,r was due to the influence of the ,french priests4 ,after many years of increasing dissipation he was dismissed from the service for various discrepancies4 ,his health was not good1 and he was prematurely old4 ,he had not been in ,france for many years1 and he said that he would never go there again4 ,thus he was an outcast and without means of support in a foreign and hostile climate4 ,at length a certain trader of ,libreville took pity on him4 ,eight miles back in the bush1 the trader had a coffee-farm that had about petered out2 and there he sent the ex-administrator1 and gave him employment for which he paid him enough to keep him alive4 ,he lived alone there for more than a year1 separate from all white men1 a black mistress his only companion4 ,one day visiting some interior towns1 ,i followed a road that passed through the farm4 ,i was greatly surprised at seeing a white man there1 but not at all surprised that in such a place he was dressed only in pajamas4 ,leaving the road ,i went to the house to salute him4 ,he told me who he was and urged me not to hurry on but to stay with him awhile2 it was so good to see a white man4 ,i felt so sorry for him that ,i thought ,i could do no better missionary work for that day than to visit with him2 so ,i changed my plans accordingly1 remained with him all morning and ate dinner with him1 the table being served by his black mistress4 ,i thought he would probably live but a short time and ,i felt as if ,i were performing his obsequies4 ,it is strange how a man whose dignity resides not within himself1 but wholly in outward circumstances1 in social position1 in pecuniary abundance1 or the tawdry pomp of authority1--it is strange how such a man1 when these all fail1 sinks in his self-respect to the level of abject prostration4 ,m4 de la ,r had been fastidiously regardful of his dress and his personal appearance2 but now he spent his days in shabby pajamas and even shunned the acquaintance of soap and water4 ,he spent the whole time of my visit in telling me of the wrongs done him by fellow officials1 that had culminated in his dismissal from the government service4 ,he shed some tears and ,i fancied that they made clean streaks down his face4 ,he told me what a respectable life he had lived2 and ,i declare that ,i should never have suspected it4 ,but when he also claimed sobriety as one of his chief virtues1 nothing but the odour of his breath kept me from becoming an anti-temperance fanatic on the spot4 ,several of the men who had informed against him had since died1 and in this he saw the finger of ,god2 for of course they would never have died if they had not been his enemies4 ,he1 the animated remains of ,m4 de la ,r1 was still the centre and explanation of the government of the universe1 and ,god was simply a convenient instrument of vengeance4 ,to that extent he was quite religious4 ,and ,i ought to add that he believed in forgiving his enemies--but only after they were dead4 ,but ,i pitied him greatly1 and stayed with him most of the day4 ,when ,i left him ,i had not the least expectation that ,i would ever see him again4 ,a year after this1 by a strange turn of the wheel of fortune1 this man was reinstated1 and was appointed a chef de poste4 ,he easily resumed his former dignity of manner and care of dress4 ,but he lived only a few months to enjoy his recovered prestige4 ,during those months1 however1 he was appointed to inspect the school at ,angom and his enthusiastic report 7for which ,i hope he may have been forgiven7 was the expression of his gratitude for the visit ,i had made him when he was without position1 without money and without friends4 ,thus the bread of a little kindness cast upon the waters returned after many days multiplied into loaves4 ,and he was the man who1 years before1 had closed our splendid school at ,benito1 because1 forsooth1 the missionaries were not diligent enough in teaching the ,french language4 ,i also learned from ,remondo that at the close of his inspection of the school at ,angom he gave each of the little boys and girls a present of some tobacco4 ,when ,i opened the school at ,baraka ,i found it very difficult to procure boys4 ,there were many boys who desired to come1 but their parents would not consent4 ,at the beginning of the term ,i gathered the boys with the launch1 ,dorothy4 ,the red-hot contentions between me and the fathers and mothers made this work of opening the school the most exhausting and trying of the whole year4 ,often ,i was constrained to regard the parental institution as an intolerable nuisance and the orphan estate as a consummation that the ,african child might devoutly wish for4 ,in one town a handsome boy was determined to come with me1 and by prolonged talking ,i had subdued his father and was hurrying away when suddenly the mother appeared upon the scene1 cursing me1 and threatening to take the boy's life4 ,another contention followed1 which ,i won by many words and a small piece of laundry soap4 ,the victory seemed complete2 the father and mother were sending the boy away with their blessing1 and speaking kind words to me2 we were about to get into the canoe to go to the launch1 which was in the middle of the river1 when an old and very ugly woman1 grand-aunt or something of that sort1 came rushing towards us1 shrieking and flinging her arms about her1 cursing me1 and altogether presenting such a spectacle as might suggest that one of ,macbeth's witches had escaped from the underworld4 ,quickly1 and in great alarm1 we sprang into the canoe and pushed off2 for ,i would rather fight with ten men than one woman4 ,but there were many of us1 we were standing up in the canoe1 and before we had sufficient way on she had waded after us up to her neck in water1 and laying hold of the canoe with both hands1 she tried to capsize it--which would be easily done4 ,the state of my health made it advisable that ,i should try to avoid being thrown into the river4 ,besides1 the whole town was now gathered on the bank1 rending the air with laughter1 and if ,i failed they would continue to laugh for a year or two4 ,i caught her hands and tried to wrench them from the side of the canoe2 but ,i did not wish to use all my strength against an old woman1 and moreover she had the advantage of standing on the ground1 while ,i had to balance the canoe2 so ,i failed in the effort4 ,a second more and we would have been in the river1 when ,i caught her by the back of the neck1 and1 ducking her head under the water1 ,i held her there as solemnly as ,i could until she so far weakened as to let go her hold on the canoe1 and we moved on1 while the audience on the bank cheered4 ,but ,i had a most unheroic feeling all the rest of that day4 ,in another town1 a father who refused to let his boy go1 said3 8,i don't want my boy coming back here knowing more than his father1 his skin all clean1 while his old father sits around with the itch scratching himself4 ,why1 the boy would despise me6 ,i won't let him go40 ,for more than a year ,i taught the school daily without any assistance except that one or two of the advanced boys sometimes taught the junior classes4 ,then ,i engaged1 as an assistant1 a ,mpongwe1 named ,nduna1 a boy of seventeen years1 whose father1 ,rekwangi1 was quite civilized and an old friend of our mission4 ,poor ,nduna's life ended very tragically less than two years later4 ,he was a handsome boy1 of quiet disposition and kind-hearted4 ,he was with me so much in the schoolroom and was so faithful in his work that ,i came to know him well and to like him4 ,at the end of the year he told me that he had the offer of a better-paying position in one of the bureaus of the government at ,libreville and ,i advised him to accept it4 ,i understood that he gave good satisfaction to his employer4 ,after several months a sum of money was stolen from a safe that had accidentally been left open4 ,there were ,french clerks in the same office1 but ,nduna was the only native4 ,he was immediately arrested4 ,there was not a shred of evidence against him except that the money had been stolen from that particular office and that he was the only native there4 ,it was hard for me to believe that he was guilty even before ,i had heard the evidence1 and when ,i supposed that it must be strongly against him4 ,but when upon inquiry ,i learned all that was known1 ,i concluded with a great many others that he was innocent4 ,and the others did not know him personally as ,i did4 ,a native may be capable of committing a very clever theft1 but ,i never knew a native who could cleverly conceal it4 ,a certain workman1 ,ndinga1 stole a coat from me1 and a few days later walked into the yard with it on4 ,ndinga was not intelligent like ,nduna4 ,but ,i knew another boy who about the same time stole a considerable amount of cash from a white man4 ,he was a very clever rascal1 and proved himself so in the procuring of the money4 ,yet he carried it in his pocket as long as it lasted 7which was only a few days7 and treated all his friends with lavish generosity4 ,among themselves the detective faculty is dull4 ,and this is probably because they so readily resort to supernatural means of discovering a criminal1 instead of following a natural clue1 or weighing the evidence of circumstances against a suspected person4 ,while the white man racks his brains with mere probabilities1 the native goes to the witch-doctor1 who promises him certainty4 ,the witch-doctor names several persons1 often personal enemies to himself1 and they are forced to undergo some ordeal1 such as dipping their hands in boiling oil1 which will burn only the guilty4 ,it is an easy and expeditious method1 and especially remunerative for the witch-doctor4 ,but it involves none of those mental operations whereby facts are weighed1 comparisons made and conclusions reached4 ,the judgmatical faculty lies dormant4 ,it would not therefore be expected that the thief would be as careful of his tracks as if he lived in the land of ,sherlock ,holmes4 ,in the case of ,nduna no money was found either with him or his relations4 ,neither had he spent an extra centime4 ,the natives themselves never believed ,nduna guilty1 and there were others also who thought him a victim of foul play4 ,the natives of ,libreville and the immediate vicinity are treated with humanity and justice1 as a rule2 but there have been exceptions to the rule4 ,nduna was tried and sentenced to imprisonment4 ,i have forgotten the term of his sentence4 ,he was not strong2 his lungs were weak1 and after several months in the noisome prison he developed tuberculosis4 ,he failed rapidly1 and when several more months had passed it was very plain that he had not long to live4 ,his father1 ,rekwangi1 and his mother1 ,aruwi1 pleaded piteously for his release1 but the request was sternly refused4 ,i shall never forget the grief of those unhappy parents1 grief mingled inevitably with bitterness against the white man2 for they had no doubt that their boy was innocent4 ,the weeks passed and still the same message came3 8,a little worse to-day40 ,at length one night some one brought word to ,rekwangi that ,nduna was dying4 ,the father hurried to the prison1 two miles away4 ,but the guard told him that the white man would not admit him4 ,if ,i had only known it in time ,i could probably have procured his admission4 ,or if not1 ,i at least might have afforded the parents some relief by going in myself and staying with ,nduna4 ,for many of the officials who are bold in dealing with defenseless black people are abjectly compliant when they confront a white man4 ,for hours that night the father walked outside the prison wall crying aloud3 8,o ,nduna1 ,nduna1 my only son1 how can ,i give you up6 ,it is not ,god1 but the white man who has taken you from me4 ,is he still living8 ,tell him that his poor old father is close to him1 standing just outside the prison wall4 ,o ,nduna1 my son1 my son60 ,at last1 towards morning1 the guard cried out3 8,your son is dead40 ,then the wretched man1 overwhelmed with grief and frenzied with bitterness1 gave way to doubt of the ,christian's ,god1 and running to the house of a friend near by asked for rum4 8,give me rum10 he cried1 8lest ,i kill myself40 ,the rum was given him and he drank till he was drunk4 ,that morning ,nduna's body was carried home4 ,all the family and many friends were gathered together4 ,they laid him on a pile of mats on the floor of the room1 with his feet towards the door1 and covered him completely with a coloured robe4 ,as soon as ,i heard that the body had come ,i went to the house4 ,while ,i was yet a great way from the town ,i heard the wail of their mourning dirge2 that weird1 unceasing cry of hopeless grief1 which ,i had heard so often1 but never before under such harrowing circumstances1 and it smote upon my heart4 ,as many as could enter the house were sitting on the floor and many on the ground outside4 ,all the women who were in civilized dress had turned their clothes inside out as a sign of grief4 ,aruwi sat on the floor at ,nduna's head1 piteously sobbing4 ,as ,i entered the door they all stopped mourning and there was a deep silence4 ,for once1 in ,africa1 ,i felt that ,i could not speak4 ,no words could do justice to that heartrending scene4 ,i stood a long time before the covered body1 as silent as themselves4 ,at last ,i said3 8,aruwi1 ,i want to see ,nduna's face40 ,she turned down the covering and when ,i had looked at him a while ,i said3 8,it is a good face1 ,aruwi1--a beautiful face4 ,nduna was a good boy4 ,you will not forget1 ,aruwi1 that there was one white man who knew him and who loved him40 ,they remained silent as ,i withdrew1 until ,i reached the end of the village street1 and then again1 they all began to chant the mourning dirge4 ,when the members of the ,gaboon ,church die they are buried in the mission graveyard on ,baraka hill4 ,the reason of this concession on the part of the mission was probably to enable them to control the burial service of ,christians that it might be a ,christian and not a heathen ceremony4 ,they regard it as a sacred privilege4 ,nduna was not a member in the church1 and none but members had ever been buried at ,baraka4 ,but ,i broke the rule1 and told ,aruwi that1 if she wished1 ,nduna would be buried at ,baraka4 ,and there we buried him that evening4 ,the civilized ,mpongwe have a funeral custom that ,i like4 ,when the casket is lowered and immediately after the benediction1 coming forward1 they drop a handful of earth into the grave4 ,it is a simple and affecting ceremony and has no superstitious significance4 ,but during all my years at ,gaboon there was no other funeral at which so many came forward in silence and dropped a handful of earth into the grave as they seemed to say3 8,good-bye1 ,nduna2 you suffered greatly2 may you rest in peace40 ,illustration3 ,,bojedi1 ,,teacher ,,of ,,fang ,,school4 ,he frankly admits the superiority of the white man1 but thinks that the black man is far better-looking4 ,but by far the best teacher ,i ever had in the school1 and without doubt the best native teacher in the entire mission1 was ,bojedi1 a ,kombi of ,benito1 to which tribe ,makuba also belonged4 ,bojedi was twenty years old when ,i engaged him as a teacher and he stayed with me two years1 until ,i left ,africa4 ,he was so well qualified by education and so competent in mind and disposition that ,i gradually put the whole work of the school upon him1 except the religious teaching1 which left me more time for itinerating and the oversight and care of the ,christians scattered in many towns4 ,bojedi had faults that ,i do not mean to pass by1 but without him the greatly enlarged work of those last two years could never have been done2 and there was probably not in ,west ,africa a native who could have taken his place4 ,of all the natives who taught or assisted in the school he was the only one whom the schoolboys respected and obeyed as they would a white man4 ,his interest and his efforts far exceeded his prescribed duties4 ,he had charge of the seventy-five boys1 both in the schoolroom and out of it1 twenty-four hours a day4 ,he was there when they rose and when they went to bed4 ,he insisted upon cleanliness as to their persons1 their beds1 their food and the manner of eating it4 ,he oversaw their work in the yard1 chiefly that of cutting grass1 and would not allow any boy to shirk his work4 ,their most serious disputes he referred to me1 but most of them he settled himself1 to my immense relief1 and they all recognized him as fair4 ,under his constant supervision these boys1 fresh from the worst heathenism1 were compelled to live a civilized life4 ,and this he accomplished without force4 ,i never knew him to strike a boy1 nor ever did ,i know him to lose his temper4 ,if he kept a boy in school after hours for not knowing his lesson he stayed with him himself and helped him with his study4 ,without my asking it he gathered them into the school in the evening for an hour's study1 himself helping the duller boys4 ,he had faults1 as ,i have said1 but there were none in his teaching or his discipline of the boys4 ,bojedi was educated in our mission school at ,benito4 ,among the missionaries of that station there was a ,french teacher1 ,mr4 ,presset1 from whom ,bojedi received much of his education4 ,unlike most ,africans he was a student by nature1 and afterwards while he was so busy teaching in my school he was also pursuing his studies in mathematics and astronomy4 ,the most that he got from me was music1 which was always his pastime4 ,he had received some instruction in music from ,mr4 ,presset1 who gave him access to his organ4 ,when he came to ,gaboon ,i placed in his house a baby-organ of my own1 and finding that he had unusual musical talent ,i began to give him occasional lessons4 ,he made much progress and played so well that when ,i was leaving ,africa ,i left the organ and most of my organ music with him4 ,he played for the singing in school and also in the ,mpongwe ,sunday-school4 ,while ,bojedi was still in the school at ,benito he was brought into undue prominence with the ,french government in a way that reflected credit upon his scholarship and incidentally landed him in jail with hard labour4 ,france1 it is said1 rules for revenue1 and this would seem to be her policy in the ,congo ,franais4 ,a heavy duty is levied on imports and exports for the purpose of revenue1 resulting soon in commercial stagnation--and no revenue4 ,the ,congo ,franais is a large and increasing expense to ,france4 ,the natives pay taxes upon their houses according to the size and improvements4 ,each door and each window is taxed4 ,a certain native of ,gaboon1 an enterprising young man1 who wished to live in civilized fashion1 put a floor in his house4 ,but he was taxed so much for it that he took it out and went back to the earth floor4 ,the taxes at ,benito were heavy enough1 but the local chef de poste had been collecting far more than was required4 ,the man was probably full of malaria and had become very irritable2 like many of the government officials he was in need of a long furlough home4 ,burning native towns was a favourite pastime4 ,if the people did not pay their taxes promptly he burned their towns1 leaving men1 women and children without shelter4 ,if they paid promptly he required more and when it was not immediately forthcoming he burned their towns4 ,if he called them to him1 and they were afraid to come1 he burned their towns4 ,if for any reason1 or no reason1 he doubted that they loved him dearly1 he burned their towns4 ,the illumination was a superb entertainment for his friends4 ,he burned towns not in the execution of law1 but of his own degenerate will1 governed only by a malarious temper4 ,at last a number of local chiefs addressed a complaint to the administrator at ,bata1 who was superior to the chef de poste4 ,bojedi1 at the request of the chiefs1 composed and wrote the letter1 which ,i believe they signed4 ,the administrator sent the letter to the chef de poste who upon reading it did not think for a moment that any native could have written it4 ,there was only one white man in the region of ,benito to whom it could possibly be attributed2 and that was ,mr4 ,presset of our mission at ,benito4 ,to make sure of the matter he compared the writing with that of ,mr4 ,presset1 from whom he had received letters1 and found that it was the same4 ,the result was that our mission at ,benito suffered considerable ill-treatment at his hands4 ,at length1 one day1 he referred to the letter in speaking to ,mr4 ,presset1 and was surprised and almost affronted when the latter denied all knowledge of it4 ,mr4 ,presset asked to see it1 and upon looking at it immediately recognized ,bojedi's writing4 ,bojedi was arrested and sent to jail1 although he was only a boy who had done what the chiefs had required of him2 the letter was theirs1 not his4 ,for months 7or perhaps only one--,i have forgotten the length of time7 he remained in jail and worked at hard labour carrying stone4 ,when at last one morning he was released he had scarcely a stitch of clothing on him and he hid in a bush all day1 and walked home to ,benito1 twenty miles1 during the night4 ,this latter story also has a sequel4 ,while ,bojedi was teaching school in ,gaboon1 this same chef de poste who had put him in jail1 was there in ,gaboon a few days before sailing for ,france4 ,bojedi went to see him1 and did him several kindly services4 ,the day he sailed 7it happened to be ,saturday72 ,bojedi took charge of all his baggage and saw it safely placed on the steamer1 which took the whole afternoon4 ,thus easily does the native forgive and forget4 ,bojedi was very simple in manners and direct in speech4 ,it never occurred to him that the purpose of language was 8to conceal thought40 ,one day shortly before ,i left ,gaboon he remarked that the schoolboys would miss me greatly4 ,i expressed a doubt on that subject4 8,o yes1 ,mr4 ,milligan10 said he1 8they will feel badly2 for ,i remember that when ,i was a schoolboy and ,mr4 ,x4 left us1 we all felt sorry and some of us cried1 although we had called him a beast every day40 ,i have said that to commiserate the ,african for his colour is a waste of sympathy4 ,one day when ,i was talking to ,bojedi something in the course of the conversation prompted me to ask him whether he would like to be a white man4 ,he replied respectfully but emphatically in the negative4 ,i wished to know his reason2 for he acknowledged and fully appreciated the white man's superiority4 ,he hesitated to tell me2 but ,i was insistent1 and at length he replied3 8,well1 we think that we are better-looking40 ,i gasped when ,i thought of some of the vastly ill-looking faces ,i had seen in the jungles1 and in apology for myself 7and for my race1 by implication7 ,i said3 8,but you have not seen us in our own country1 where there is no malaria1 and where we are not yellow and green40 ,he quietly asked what colour we were in our own country2 to which ,i promptly replied3 8,pink and white40 ,looking at me steadily for a moment he remarked3 8,mr4 ,milligan1 if ,i should see you in your own country ,i am doubtful whether ,i should know you40 ,the moral weaknesses of the black race are salient and uniform and ,bojedi was far from being an exception to the rule4 ,an imperious sexual impulse is the racial characteristic2 and their surroundings are such that they cannot escape the temptation4 ,one might think that ,african society1 with all its tyranny of social law and custom1 were contrived with the sole purpose of immoral indulgence4 ,many wives is much wealth4 ,courage1 which is held in highest esteem1 is displayed chiefly in stealing other men's wives4 ,and under certain circumstances this immorality is even a part of hospitality4 ,the women are more licentious than the men4 ,a woman boasts of her elopements4 ,to become the mistress of a white man is a matter of honour and gives social prestige4 ,the wife of an elder in the ,gaboon ,church1 speaking of a certain young woman1 the daughter of a friend1 said3 8,iga is so #8stuck up' that she scarcely speaks to me now because she is living with a white man40 ,the more glory therefore to missions1 that it is able to establish purity and honour in all the social and domestic relations of native converts6 ,even in half-,christian communities those heathen standards do not entirely prevail4 ,the ,mpongwe women of ,gaboon who have long been in contact with the ,french are without comparison the most cultivated1 best-looking1 most artful1 and most dissolute women of the entire coast4 ,the story of their licentiousness1 as ,tertullian once said of the women of the ancient stage1 had best remain hid in its own darkness lest it pollute the day4 ,most young men of other tribes coming among them as ,bojedi did are like country boys arriving in the city1 and are easy quarry4 ,he was especially an object of pursuit because1 having a good position1 he had money2 and their need of money is equal to their love of it4 ,it was during ,bojedi's second year as teacher that ,i found that he was living in illicit relations with a certain woman4 ,it was a grief to me4 ,he was a lovable boy2 excepting ,ndong ,koni and ,amvama1 none were nearer to me than ,bojedi4 ,i had come to expect almost as much of him as a white man4 ,moreover the matter was fraught not only with possible ruin to himself but also with evil influence for the school4 ,for although it was only lately that he had made any profession of being a ,christian1 he stood before the boys as a ,christian in a marked way2 had offered a prayer each morning in opening the school2 had talked with them personally2 and had exercised an influence for good that was the more profound because of their love of him4 ,i wailed until night1 after hearing this report1 and then called him into the schoolhouse1 where we would not be disturbed1 and there we talked for hours4 ,i said3 8,bojedi1 is it true that you are living with ,antyandi80 ,he replied3 8,it is true that ,i am married to ,antyandi40--,so he had tried to make himself believe4 ,antyandi would be regarded by any native as a very attractive woman4 ,although she looked younger than ,bojedi she was really several years older and was artful according to her years4 ,she had some education and spoke and wrote ,french4 ,she could boast of having lived with several white men1 one of them at least of high rank in the government1 and from these associations she had acquired a manner that was decidedly smart and foreign1 not to speak of trunks filled with fine clothes4 ,she was girlish in form and light in motion and had the reputation of being a great dancer4 ,it happened once that she danced before ,king ,adandi2 not however for the head of a missionary on a charger1 although afterwards she would doubtless have been glad to have had my head thus presented to her4 ,a bottle of champagne was all she asked4 ,adandi was head of the whole ,mpongwe tribe4 ,he was dressed when ,i saw him last in white shoes1 white flannel trousers and shirt1 black velvet coat with a heavy gold chain suspended from his neck1 and a white hat4 ,he had received part of his education in ,france4 ,he claimed the dignified distinction of martyrdom1 having been twice imprisoned by the ,french and once exiled4 ,he was a convert of the ,jesuits and was profoundly religious--barring such discrepancies as drunkenness1 gambling and adultery4 ,king ,adandi saw ,antyandi dance and he declared that he would die if he could not add her to the number of his wives4 ,she refused him however on the ground that ,adandi being a king the relation would involve a degree of constancy on her part to which she was not accustomed4 ,then he organized a band of young men to seize the lady and carry her off1 as they do in books4 ,this had a fine flavour of romance about it4 ,but the chocolate heroine had two invisible leopards1 according to her claim1 which attended her day and night1 and with these she dispersed the brigands4 ,but ,bojedi is still in the schoolhouse making a passionate but sorry defense4 ,he really loved the woman with a fatuous regard1 and ,i believe she was in love with him4 ,he had first asked her uncle if he could marry her1 and the uncle1 the head of her family1 although he was supposed to have absolute authority over her1 replied that he had nothing to say in the matter1 for ,antyandi would do as she pleased anyway4 ,others of her relations had said that no ,mpongwe woman would ever be allowed to marry a ,kombi 7to which tribe ,bojedi belonged7 and that the whole ,mpongwe tribe would rise to prevent it4 ,an open marriage was therefore impossible4 ,and1 on the other hand1 mere publicity is the only marriage ceremony there is among ,christians of ,gaboon1 and to forego publicity was to dispense with all ceremony4 ,but how could a public announcement be called a ceremony8 ,and how could mere publicity constitute a marriage bond8 ,this latter is in need of some explanation4 ,everybody knows that in ,france only those marriages are legal which are made by the state4 ,the ,roman ,catholic ,church insists upon a church marriage also1 but it must follow that of the state1 and cannot precede it1 the one being a legal and the other a religious ceremony4 ,in the colonies this same law is enforced1 and the church is not allowed to perform a marriage ceremony until after the legal ceremony of the state4 ,it happens also that there are serious impediments to the legal ceremony and sometimes deplorable consequences4 ,the contracting parties must know their ages--which the ,african never knows2 must know where they were born--which they have never thought of asking and everybody has forgotten2 must know their parents1 both father and mother4 ,the ,african knows his mother2 but as for his father1 he may never have asked his mother that personal question4 ,they could easily have recourse to lies and invent a father1 but unfortunately they are required to produce the parents that their verbal consent to the marriage may be obtained4 ,if the parents are not in the country a written consent is required2 and if they are dead the proofs of their death must be produced in the form of a burial certificate4 ,these and other requirements may be good for ,france1 but in ,africa they are puerile nonsense4 ,moreover1 these legal bonds are very hard to break2 and that were well enough if only the moral bonds were strengthened thereby1 but they are not1 and in the case of marital infidelity the law binds only the innocent4 ,for instance two of the very best women in ,gaboon1 or in ,west ,africa for that matter1 were thus bound to husbands who deserted them4 ,one of those men took six other wives in utter disregard of the legal marriage1 but that outraged woman could not get a divorce from him without a difficult and expensive process of law2 nor1 being a ,christian1 was she willing to marry without a divorce4 ,we could not therefore advise1 still less insist1 that the ,christians be married by the state1 though of course we did not advise to the contrary4 ,and without the legal marriage we were not allowed to perform the religious ceremony4 ,i performed a few such ceremonies for those who had already been married by the state official4 ,on one occasion the young couple had decided to be married with a ring4 ,but ,i knew nothing of their intention1 and ,i was surprised when the groom1 after the ceremony was entirely ended1 produced the ring and asked me what he was supposed to do with it4 ,the bride on that occasion was dressed in a ,mother ,hubbard of bright blue calico decorated with white lobsters4 ,but ,i officiated at another marriage in which the bride was beautifully attired1 and in good taste that would have done credit to any white woman4 ,as the natives objected to the legal form of marriage1 and we could not conscientiously urge it upon them1 there was no recognized or satisfactory form4 ,of course there are heathen ceremonies1 but some of them are drunken orgies which the ,christian conscience cannot allow2 and others are so silly that the civilized natives would regard with abhorrence any suggestion of their observance4 ,it is said that in some of the tribes far east of us the bride and groom are required to climb two young saplings1 which are then swayed back and forth until their heads knock together1 whereby the marriage is constituted4 ,one wonders what the form for divorce would be like6 ,the want of a fixed form is very unfortunate4 ,for it is only in such a chaotic period of social transition that we learn the moral value of the so much derided forms and ceremonies1 and that without them the marriage tie becomes so loose that it is practically abandoned by many4 ,gradually it came to be recognized that the payment of the dowry constituted the marriage4 ,for there must be something to differentiate marriage from unlawful relations4 ,this served1 though poorly1 until the enlightened ,christian conscience pronounced against the dowry1 and the best people voluntarily refused to accept it and abandoned the custom4 ,since that time there is no distinct ceremony among the ,christian natives at ,gaboon1 which is deplorable4 ,in lieu of a ceremony a useful custom has been introduced into the church1 namely1 that shortly after marriage the man and woman shall rise in their places in the weekly prayer-meeting1 voluntarily1 and without the minister saying a word shall announce their marriage1 the man saying that he has taken this woman to be his wife and promising to be faithful to her2 likewise the woman4 ,well do ,i remember one night in the ,mpongwe ,church when ,barro and ,anuroguli came to the prayer-meeting which ,i was conducting1 expecting to announce their recent marriage4 ,barro rose at the end of the service and without the least embarrassment announced his marriage and made his vows in most appropriate words4 ,but ,anuroguli1 sitting on the other side of the house1 was seized with panic and sat motionless with her finger in her mouth4 ,barro stood waiting for her response while the women near her motioned to her1 pulled her dress1 punched her in the ribs1 until gradually the whole congregation was remonstrating in loud whispers1 which only increased the poor little woman's embarrassment1 until1 seeing that it would be a physical impossibility for her to make her announcement1 ,i took the risk of the law1 and rose and said3 8,anuroguli wishes to announce10 etc42 and having made her announcement for her1 ,i closed the meeting4 ,but1 while all recognize the propriety of this custom1 it does not constitute the marriage2 for it takes place after marriage1 sometimes long afterwards1 and it is not possible unless both parties are ,christians4 ,bojedi's argument therefore was not without plausibility1 and all these facts that ,i have related he marshalled to his defense very ably and with intense feeling1 as we sat there in the dark schoolhouse4 ,it was plain that he had thought of all this before1 and that before entering on this relationship he had argued long with his conscience as he now argued with me4 ,but it was also plain that he argued in his defense and not his justification1 and that he had allowed his reason to coerce his conscience4 ,i replied that where there was nothing outward except a public announcement to distinguish marriage from an illicit relation1 then the announcement became a duty binding on the conscience quite as much as a ceremony2 and that if marriage be not so distinguished we have a society of 8free love40 ,and again1 as to the inwardness of the marriage relation1 upon which he dwelt1 that it implied always1 whether with or without a ceremony1 a sincere intention of permanency4 ,i added3 8,from the regard that you have expressed for ,antyandi you would probably desire that your present relation be permanent4 ,but desire is not sufficient without expectation also2 and you know as well as ,i do that when you leave ,gaboon to return to your own people ,antyandi will never go with you1 and even if she should remain here she would not be true to you4 ,you have therefore1 with full knowledge1 entered into a temporary relationship2 which is no marriage in any sense that a ,christian can admit40 ,as repentance is the chief act of man1 so it is also the hardest4 ,to make the admission of wrong to me was not so hard as to admit it to himself1 with all its consequences4 ,but at last the admission came3 a moment later he was on his knees1 in tears and sobs4 ,he said3 8,it is not that ,i cannot give up ,antyandi2 it will be hard enough1 but ,i'll do it4 ,but it is the wrong ,i have already done and the loss to myself that ,i feel4 ,these two years while ,i have been teaching your school ,i have lived differently from all the other years of my life4 ,many things that ,i used to do ,i had stopped doing4 ,i was happy because my heart was clean1 and because the schoolboys all loved me and believed in me4 ,and now all that ,i have built up in these two years is pulled down4 ,and what will the boys think of me80 ,it would be cruel to repeat all that was said in that conversation4 ,he wept until ,i felt that tears could do no more1 and then ,i tried to quiet and comfort him4 ,it was midnight when ,i left him4 ,next day he sent a brief letter to ,antyandi telling her that he had done wrong1 that he was very much ashamed1 and that she must not expect him ever to enter her house again4 ,he fully realized that there was a hard fight ahead of him and he thought best not to see her at all4 ,she made many attempts and plied her arts to get him again in her power4 ,she wrote him letters in which she professed to be dying for love of him4 ,i went to her and ordered her not to set her foot on the mission premises4 ,she regarded the order by day1 but she came at night4 ,she came to his window waking him suddenly out of his sleep4 ,she tried his door4 ,she came at all hours of the night4 ,one night he found that he could not lock his door4 ,she had probably tampered with it2 but he did not think of that1 for she had not been there for several nights4 ,that night at midnight she came4 ,he broke loose from her and ran straight for my room1 where ,i was in bed asleep4 ,he knocked and entered2 then told me what had happened and begged me to protect him4 ,i told him he must stay in my room the rest of that night2 which he did1 and slept on the floor4 ,i kept him there every night for a week2 for more than once he had wavered though he had not fallen4 ,thus she continued to do for two months2 but the subject is not a pleasant one1 and we need not follow the course of events during that period4 ,after two months we heard that she was in ,libreville1 the mistress of a dignitary of the government1 and ,bojedi supposed that that would be the last of her2 but it was not4 ,a month later the white man suddenly left ,libreville or died--,i have forgotten which--and ,antyandi returned home4 ,a few days afterwards1 returning from the beach one morning1 ,i observed that in my absence some one had closed the door of my study which ,i had left open2 the windows also were closed and the blinds down4 ,i hurried in with a vague apprehension of something wrong4 ,there sat ,bojedi in the darkened room1 his face buried in his hands and sobbing as if his heart would break4 ,i knew instantly what had happened4 8,how can ,i tell you60 8,there is no need to tell me10 ,i replied2 8go to your own house1 ,bojedi1 and ,i shall follow you in a little while40 ,i went to his house and he told me the whole story of his temptation and fall1 a story that ,i cannot repeat here4 ,he told it with a broken voice and crying all the time4 ,the school had been closed two weeks before1 the boys were all gone and nobody around4 ,bojedi was waiting for the ,english steamer1 on which he was going home4 ,this complete idleness after his responsible and constant work was perhaps the devil's opportunity4 ,still crying he rose at length and opening a box took out all sorts of native riches1 presents from ,antyandi1 native robes which must have been paid for by white men1 a fancy bed-quilt and embroidered pillow-covers4 ,without saying a word1 but still sobbing1 he made a pile of these things just outside his door1 while ,i looked on not knowing what he was going to do1 until he struck a match and set fire to them4 ,then he remarked3 8,i should have done that long ago20 which ,i fully admitted2 or else he should have returned them1 which would have been better4 ,the next day he left for home4 ,i felt that this moral fall was peculiarly serious1 much more so than some sin of sudden impulse4 ,it was no doubt the very crisis of his life1 a long deliberate battle in which all his moral resources were called out and all his moral energy engaged4 ,victory in such a fight transforms temptation into a purifying alembic2 but to fall in such a fight means usually to be maimed for life4 ,very soon after this ,i left ,africa4 ,bojedi remained at home the following year4 ,he was married during the year4 ,the last letter that ,i received from him was dated at ,brazzaville1 in the very heart of ,africa1 on the ,upper ,congo1 where he had a good position with the ,commissaire ,gnral4 ,he says3 8,your letter dated at ,lebanon1 ,indiana1 ,august #ba1 #aijf1 was received ,march #bj1 #aijg10 after which he tells me that just before he left his home in ,benito a son was born to him1 whom he has named ,robert ,milligan6 ,may his tribe increase6 ,,xv ,a ,,little ,,scholar ,the following letter1 with some slight omissions and alterations1 was written on board the ,english steamer ,volta to a little circle of friends in ,america3 ,s4 ,s4 8,volta10 ,aug4 #g1 #aijj4 ,it is three months since ,i left ,gaboon for a health-change on the sea1 and ,i am just now returning4 ,i had supposed that ,i would be away only a few weeks2 but the time was prolonged by the sickness and death of an ,african boy whom ,i called my little scholar1 of whom it is the purpose of this letter to give you some account4 ,since the regretted resignation of ,mr4 ,boppell on account of ill-health1 ,i have had charge of the ,gaboon ,church at ,baraka1 with the work among the ,mpongwe1 besides my work among the ,fang4 ,you will remember that the ,mpongwe is a coast tribe1 among whom our church has had a mission-work for many years1 while the ,fang is the interior tribe 7now1 however1 extending to the coast71 among whom the work is quite new4 ,the strain of so much additional work in such a climate greatly overtaxed me1 and after four months it became necessary either to take a furlough home1 or a health-change on the sea4 ,the furlough was out of the question1 for there was no one to take my place4 ,accordingly on the #afth of ,may ,i left ,gaboon on this steamer expecting to go north as far as ,fernando ,po and return on the next south-bound steamer1 which would give me a vacation of a month4 ,being in miserable health1 ,i took along with me one of my ,fang schoolboys1 ,ndong ,mba1 the smallest and brightest of his class4 ,i thought ,i needed him to wait on me4 ,and besides ,i intended to improve the idle hours in talking ,fang with him4 ,but a week after we had left ,gaboon ,ndong ,mba was the patient and ,i was the nurse4 ,the weeks and months that have intervened1 instead of being a period of rest and pleasure1 have been the most trying in all my ,african experience4 ,ndong ,mba was born in a town not far from ,angom4 ,while he was yet a mere baby his father and mother died leaving him to the care of their relations4 ,however willing such relations may be to assume parental authority over a child1 they are not so willing to assume responsibility for his care1 for the parental love is absent4 ,moreover1 ,ndong was very frail2 and such a child is not attractive to the ,african woman1 except his own mother4 ,he was therefore heartlessly neglected1 until my predecessor1 ,rev4 ,arthur ,w4 ,marling1 finding him hungry and crying1 and knowing his miserable plight1 took pity on him and carried him in his arms to the mission4 ,ndong often told me about the kindness of the missionaries4 ,but there was a long interval when ,mr4 ,marling was away on furlough2 and then he was dependent upon distant relations who made him thoroughly acquainted with hunger and hard work4 ,he continued frail and was very small1 appearing1 when ,i afterwards knew him1 several years younger than he was really was4 ,he attended the school at ,angom which was well kept and well taught under ,mr4 ,marling's administration2 and at an age when most children do not know their letters he could read4 ,i1 who did not know him until the beginning of this present year1 have regarded him as an intellectual prodigy4 ,his knowledge of the ,scripture and his understanding of it was astonishing in one so young4 ,the whole ,gospel of ,matthew1 the only one which has been translated into the ,fang1 he knew almost by heart1 besides a considerable acquaintance with the other ,scriptures through the ,mpongwe translations2 for he knew ,mpongwe almost as well as ,fang4 ,he was baptized and received into the church at a younger age perhaps than any other child has ever been received in our mission2 and through the years that have since passed1 amidst degrading surroundings of which you in the homeland can scarcely conceive1 this little boy kept the faith which he then professed1 and grew up pure1 truthful1 unselfish and affectionate4 ,mr4 ,marling died in the fall of #ahif1 ,ndong ,mba being then1 probably1 seven or eight years old4 ,long before this1 however1 the people of his town had moved far away1 leaving him behind1 and were quite lost sight of4 ,he was now without friends1 white or black1 at the age of eight4 ,in a distant bush-town there was a woman who had formerly lived in ,ndong's town3 he made his way to her and begged her to take him in4 ,there1 in a town remote from missionary influence1 in which there was not one person related to him1 the poor little stranger lived for three years1 during which no missionary either saw him or heard of him4 ,his position in the town was not much better than that of everybody's slave4 ,his frailty1 instead of insuring greater kindness1 only made him contemptible4 ,whenever he spoke of those three years it was always of his sufferings there1 and his back was injured by the heavy loads that had been put upon him4 ,he was the only ,christian in the town2 but there is no doubt that through those hard and lonely years the little ,christian was constant and faithful in profession and practice2--as strange1 upon its human side1 as that a lighted candle should withstand a winter's storm4 ,at the end of this time a long-wished-for opportunity came2 he joined a company of travellers and again reached ,angom1 hoping to find a missionary there4 ,there was no missionary there at the time and he found the station closed2 but1 in a town close by1 a woman was visiting who years before had lived in ,ndong's town4 ,she was probably a ,christian woman1 for she was compassionate4 ,her heart was touched and she took him with her to her home near the coast4 ,it was only a few weeks after this that ,i met him1 at the beginning of this year4 ,i was gathering a class of ,fang boys who had already received a primary education in the school at ,angom1 hoping that with time and training they might become teachers1 and later on1 in the providence of ,god1 perhaps preachers4 ,i heard of this boy1 and immediately ,i visited the town where he was staying4 ,the name of the town was typical1 ,ebol ,nzok3 ,rotten ,elephant4 ,it seems that when the people of this town still lived in the interior bush they sent a delegation down the river to choose a site for a new town near the coast4 ,the delegation selected a beautiful site1 where the river broadens out into the great estuary4 ,they returned and reported their success1 and the whole large town at once prepared to move4 ,as they approached the chosen site1 and while they were still at a distance1 they found the atmosphere of the new country pervaded with a most disagreeable smell which grew worse and worse1--a horrible stench which made them hold their noses1 a breath from ,gehenna1 almost palpable4 ,they forced a passage through it and went on until they reached the middle of the chosen site1 where they found the huge carcass of an elephant in an acute stage of decomposition4 ,they thought it proper to commemorate this historical incident in the name of their town1 which they called ,rotten ,elephant3 ,ebol ,nzok4 ,when ,i visited ,ebol ,nzok and asked for ,ndong ,mba they told me he was away in the distant gardens at work2 so ,i left word that ,i would like to see him at ,baraka as soon as he could come4 ,one morning1 not long after1 a tiny little boy came into my study and stood before me1 his body thin and frail1 but unusually clean1 and with extraordinary eyes1 dark and sparkling beneath long black lashes4 ,looking up eagerly into my face and very much excited1 he said3 8,i'm ,ndong ,mba2 ,i've come2 and ,i'm so glad you sent for me4 ,i have not seen a missionary since ,mr4 ,marling died2 and ,i've not been to church1 and ,i've not been to school1 and ,i thought the missionaries had thrown me away4 ,and there were no ,christians where ,i live4 ,i was alone2 and ,i prayed and prayed all the time to come back to the mission2 and now ,i'm here2 and ,i'm so glad2 and ,i will do anything you ask if you let me stay here2 for ,i can work1 and you won't be sorry if you let me be your boy40 ,thus he went on with his pathetic appeal4 ,and this was really ,ndong ,mba1 of whom ,i had so often heard6 ,the unusual intelligence of the eyes that looked into mine1 eyes in which the tears were now quivering1 the faded rag--but very clean--which was the sum of his clothing1 and other marks of neglect and suffering1 moved me deeply4 ,drawing the poor little waif close to me ,i said3 8,i am glad to see you1 ,ndong ,mba10 which he accepted as a sufficient answer4 ,i took him into my class and also assigned him certain work for which ,i said ,i would pay him1 so that he could buy the little clothing and other things that he needed4 ,he replied3 8,little boys don't need money2 ,i only want a father to take care of me1 and ,i'll work for him all the time40 ,i thought best1 however1 to insist upon paying him1 but at the same time ,i told him that ,i would take care of him as long as we were together4 ,all that day1 throughout its duties and its noise1 those wonderful appealing eyes seemed still to be looking up into mine4 ,i felt that ,god had given into my charge one of ,his little ones1 that ,i might help to fit him for a great service to his people in years to come4 ,through all the weeks and months that followed1 during which he was continually with me1 he fully justified my first impression of him4 ,this is the little boy that ,i took with me from ,gaboon in ,may4 ,the second day he had what seemed to be a light attack of malarial fever4 ,the ship's doctor said that he had only caught cold1 and assured me that he would be better next day4 ,but the next day he was worse1 and the next still worse4 ,one of our missionary physicians came on board at ,batanga1 going home on furlough4 ,he found ,ndong ,mba very sick indeed4 ,he had pneumonia--a very severe attack--and pleurisy with it1 causing him great pain2 this1 together with a hard fever4 ,the situation was distressing4 ,i was sick myself and scarcely able to be out of bed1 and had brought ,ndong along to wait on me4 ,but now he was worse than myself and ,i was waiting on him4 ,when we reached ,fernando ,po1 where ,i had expected to land and to wait for the south-bound steamer1 there was scarcely a hope that he would live2 and whatever small hope there was would have been cut off by moving him and taking him away from the doctor's care4 ,i had therefore no choice but to remain on board2 and ,i went on to ,teneriffe1 where ,i waited three weeks1 until the return of this same steamer from ,england4 ,indeed1 on my own account it would not have been advisible to land at ,fernando ,po4 ,for ,i had been attending ,ndong almost day and night1 and my health-change had thus far been only a change for the worse4 ,others on board1 fellow missionaries1 had been kind in trying to relieve me2 but as ,ndong suffered more1 and the fever raged1 they could not control him2 and after a few minutes they would be obliged to call me4 ,but they remarked that when ,i came ,i had only to speak his name1 and he was quiet2 and the brave little man even tried not to let me see how sick he was4 ,i greatly regretted the necessity of going on to ,teneriffe2 for ,i had expected to be away from my work only one month and had arranged it accordingly1 and this extension of my trip would keep me away three months and the consequences to the work distressed me4 ,i no more enjoyed the trip than if ,i had been a prisoner in irons4 ,besides1 there was difficulty in regard to my accommodations on board1 a difficulty that was increasing at each port as we took on more passengers4 ,i had engaged only a deck-passage for ,ndong2 but ,captain ,button whose kindness ,i can never forget1 had told me to take him into my cabin4 ,thus far ,i had occupied the cabin alone1 but ,i could not expect that favour to continue longer1 as other passengers were coming onboard1 and already there were two persons in each of the other cabins4 ,the full price of the cabin for myself and ,ndong to ,teneriffe and return would have been about five hundred dollars4 ,it was therefore a considerable favour that ,i was accepting from the captain1 and it was now at the cost of possible discomfort to others4 ,but this difficulty1 ,i thought1 would not last long1 for it did not seem that ,ndong would live more than a few days4 ,the captain told me not to think of the matter of accommodations at all2 that he would leave me that cabin as long as he possibly could1 and if it should become impossible1 he actually said that ,i should bring ,ndong up to his own cabin and occupy it4 ,one would need to have been on the coast to have any just appreciation of such extraordinary kindness towards a little black boy4 ,moreover1 almost every morning the captain came to my cabin door and asked for the boy4 ,again the unexpected happened4 ,ndong1 one might almost say1 neither died nor lived4 ,he simply lingered1 and lingered on1 through weary weeks4 ,after a while the worst of his suffering was past1 but in his extreme weakness he required almost as much attention as ever4 ,he was quite unable to walk and could only leave his bed as some one carried him1 but it was no difficult matter to carry him for he had rapidly wasted away until he was no heavier than a baby4 ,i need not relate the history of those weeks2 there were few incidents to recount2 but ,i wish that you might have witnessed the patience of the poor little sufferer4 ,he had his moments of doubt too4 ,one day when he was talking to me1 as ,i lay in the adjoining berth1 ,i told him that we must try to sleep because that we both were sick4 8,you sick80 he asked4 8,you sick1 too80 ,he partly rose in his bed1 and leaning his head on his hand1 looked long and wistfully at me4 ,after a while ,i asked him what he was thinking of4 8,i am wondering10 he replied slowly1 8why we two should be sick4 ,we are both ,christians and you are a minister1 and there are so many on board who do not try to do right4 ,i hear them cursing ,god all the time as they pass up and down the gangway4 ,and they are all well4 ,i have often thought of it2 but ,i do not understand40 ,a little boy from the depths of the ,african jungle struggles with the same question which sorely tried an ancient sufferer1 and to which his friends gave but vain answers4 ,there was among the deck-passengers a woman whose language ,ndong knew1 although it was not his own4 ,before his sickness reached the worst ,i sometimes asked this woman to sit with him while ,i sat on deck4 ,one day he said to me3 8,mr4 ,milligan1 we must pray for that woman4 ,she is in great darkness4 ,she talked about things she ought not to mention2 and ,i told her about ,jesus40 ,we called at many ports along the way2 but ,i did not leave the ship4 ,on the fourth ,sunday we reached ,sierra ,leone1 usually the last ,african port for these ships of the southwest coast4 ,in this splendid and beautiful harbour with its amphitheatre of hills1 there were more vessels together than ,i had seen in years4 ,but the most interesting of all was a ,british man-of-war4 ,i heard the singing at the 8divine service0 which is held every ,sunday morning on all ,british war-ships4 ,all the passengers excepting myself had gone ashore1 and ,i was alone on the deck1 and not only alone1 but lonely and tired4 ,ndong was sleeping in a chair beside me4 ,it was then that the first hymn from the war-ship rang clear across the still water1 sung in perfect time by that large chorus of strong men's voices1 the harbour forming a perfect acoustic chamber4 ,the tune was the old classic1 8,st4 ,anne40 ,the words were those usually sung to this tune in our own churches1 8,our ,god1 our help in the ages past60 ,i have never heard anything more beautiful and impressive2 and after my long exile in the jungle my mind was susceptive to the influence of its power and beauty4 ,the hymn1 both words and music1 had always been a favourite1 answering1 as it seemed to me1 to something fundamental in our nature2 but from this time it became the favourite4 ,and since that time1 whenever ,i ask choirs and congregations to sing it ,i am always hearing within and beyond their voices1 the music of that chorus of men in the far off ,african harbour4 ,i cannot forbear to quote the words4 8,our ,god1 our help in ages past1 ,our hope for years to come2 ,our shelter from the stormy blast1 ,and our eternal home6 8,under the shadow of ,thy throne1 ,thy saints have dwelt secure2 ,sufficient is ,thine arm alone1 ,and our defense is sure4 8,before the hills in order stood1 ,or earth received her frame1 ,from everlasting ,thou art ,god1 ,to endless years the same4 8,time1 like an ever-rolling stream1 ,bears all its sons away2 ,they fly1 forgotten1 as a dream ,dies at the opening day4 8,our ,god1 our help in ages past1 ,our hope for years to come1 ,be ,thou our ,guard while troubles last1 ,and our eternal home40 ,at the end of five weeks we reached ,teneriffe ,island1 where ,i waited three weeks for the return of the ,volta from ,liverpool4 ,as we approached the harbour of ,santa ,cruz the captain called me to the bridge to see an ,american flag which waved from a mast among the flags of all nations4 8,come10 said he1 8and feast your eyes on your ,american gridiron40 ,it did not take me long to get to the bridge4 8,don't point it out10 said ,i1 8let me find it myself40 ,those who have wandered much in foreign lands are more deeply imbued with the sentiment of the flag4 ,but to feel it to the full one must have lived for years in an uncivilized land1 where liberty is not yet born4 ,the sight of the flag to me that day was like hearing ,madam ,patti sing ,home ,sweet ,home4 ,i landed at ,santa ,cruz and remained there four days--days of unpleasant recollection4 ,it was thought best to keep ,ndong as much as possible in the open air4 ,though very weak he could walk1 and ,i led him by the hand4 ,one would think that these ,spaniards of ,santa ,cruz had never seen a black skin before2 the poor emaciated form added greatly to their curiosity2 and above all1 the novelty of a white man caring for one who to them was only a 8little black nigger40 ,i no sooner appeared with the child than a crowd gathered around me1 and ,i found myself the centre of a dirty procession of all ages and genders1 that followed me round and round the block in increasing numbers2 large girls walking backwards in front of me2 women with baskets of clothes on their heads going out of their way to walk by my side and staring with open mouth1--all of them staring4 ,the slightest betrayal of irritation on my part would have served only to increase the crowd1 and ,i tried to look perfectly composed and good-natured4 ,but now and then there was an inward rise of unsaintly feeling that resembled that of the two she-bears of ,holy ,scripture that rudely scattered a crowd of young ,spaniards following hard upon the heels of an ancient prophet4 ,ndong was at first exasperated by this unwelcome publicity2 but later his feelings were relieved by an inadvertent remark4 ,before reaching ,teneriffe1 two missionary ladies1 to whom ,i am grateful for many kindnesses1 had made a little suit for him out of some of their own clothes4 ,this suit was far beyond anything he had ever hoped to possess4 ,and in addition to this ,i bought him a pair of shoes at ,santa ,cruz--little canvas shoes with hemp soles1 for which ,i paid a peseta4 ,when he protested against the rude staring of the ,spaniards1 and was about to cry1 ,i remarked that perhaps these poor ,spanish children were only admiring his fine clothes4 ,he took me more literally than ,i had expected1 and from that time made no more complaint4 ,after four days ,i left ,santa ,cruz by a stage-coach1 travelling directly across the middle of the island to ,orotava1 a small port on the other side4 ,orotava is situated at the base of the great ,teneriffe ,peak1 one of the greatest in the world1 which rises to a height of #ab1ejj feet above the sea and is supposed to be the ,mt4 ,atlas of ancient fable4 ,above the town the broad landscape1 on which the quaint hut of the toiling peasant contrasts with stately ,english homes1 rises at first slowly and then more rapidly1 until at last it sweeps upward far above the clouds4 ,on a hill three miles from the town towards the ,peak stands the magnificent ,english hotel1 where ,i stayed1 surrounded with many acres of the loveliest flowers in terraced gardens4 ,it is a perfect fairy-land4 ,the hotel is immense in size1 and in winter it is filled with ,english guests2 but ,i was there in summer and ,i was the only guest4 ,the hotel commands the finest view of the ,peak4 ,it is usually hidden behind the clouds by day1 and is visible in the evening4 ,as one sees it first1 in the late afternoon1 a white cloud is stretched across its middle height1 concealing the mountain all but the very summit which appears like a celestial island floating upon radiant clouds in the high heavens4 ,it is fifteen miles to the summit4 ,there is a good road and one can make the ascent on a donkey1 all but the last three miles1 which most people prefer to walk4 ,near the summit the ground is hot a few inches below the surface1 which is usually the only evidence that it is still an active volcano4 ,but two years ago there issued from the crater for several mouths a volume of smoke which at the distance of the hotel1 fifteen miles1 appeared as large as the funnel of an ocean steamer4 ,the distance from ,santa ,cruz to ,orotava is twenty-six miles2 and the road of course passes up and down the mountain grades1 in some places very steep4 ,we were nine hours on the way4 ,the old coach1 a relic of bygone ages1 was so 8romantic0 that ,i doubted whether it would ever reach its destination4 ,it was drawn by three scraggy horses1 a little older than the coach1 at whom the driver never ceased shouting1 as he cracked his long-lashed whip about their heads4 ,the harness was of sundry materials1 leather straps1 ropes and chains1 tied and knotted any place and everywhere4 ,and they were continually parting1 especially in critical ascents of the road1 at which the driver would spring from his seat in a panic1 as if such a casualty had never happened before1 notwithstanding the evidence of many previous knots4 ,then seeing the excitement of the passengers1 who were trying to scramble out1 but in such disorder that they jammed together and each one prevented the others1 he would block the coach and proceed to repair the harness1 in which art he ought to have been an expert1 if practice makes perfect4 ,no sooner did we reach the next ascent1 however1 than as if by the spell of some malignant sprite all the knots untied at the same moment1 and again the passengers were thrown into a state of panic4--,but one gets used to being killed4 ,we had two relays of horses on the way4 ,the coach was apparently intended for four persons1 but for a considerable part of the distance was occupied by seven1 four of whom smoked cheap cigars1 although the windows were closed much of the time4 ,for we ascended the mountain to a great height1 and night coming on at the same time1 it was very cold1 much more so than ,i had prepared for1 and being fresh from the equator1 ,i suffered as if ,i had been thrust into the ,arctic zone4 ,ndong had a high fever1 and ,i had to wrap my travelling-rug around him4 ,the result was that for the next ten days ,i had one of the severest colds ,i have ever had in my life4 ,the coach was so crowded that ,i could only save ,ndong from being crushed or sat upon by holding him on my knee1 but he was very much exhausted by the journey4 ,before reaching ,orotava ,i left the coach which did not pass the ,grand ,hotel1 to which ,i was bound4 ,i took a carriage1 which carried some of the mails from that point1 and which passed the hotel4 ,the driver was told to leave me at the hotel4 ,but he forgot and took me on down the steep grade1 a mile further towards the town4 ,then1 recalling the order he had received he suddenly stopped1 and pointing to the lights of the hotel up the steep height behind us invited me to get out4 ,i kept my seat and requested him to drive me back to the hotel4 ,a 8palaver0 ensued in which neither of us understood in particular what the other was saying4 ,for he spoke only ,spanish1 of which ,i did not know a sentence4 ,i had no money accessible before reaching the hotel4 ,i tried to tell him that ,i would pay him2 but he probably did not understand4 ,then ,i thought that the matter might as well be cut short2 so pointing to the hotel ,i gave him a peremptory order in the ,english language1 but the accent was universal4 ,in reply he whipped his horses and drove straight on to the town4 ,reaching his destination1 on the main street1 he jumped down and with violent gesticulation proceeded to throw all my baggage into the street1 which was a sufficient inducement for me to follow2 and ,i found myself1 at eleven o'clock at night1 miserably cold1 with a sick child in my arms1 and with all my baggage1 in the street of a foreign town where there was no person with whom ,i could speak a word4 ,several loafers who were still abroad gathered around1 and recalling by mere chance the name of a ,spanish hotel in the town1 ,i directed them to carry my baggage and the child1 and show me the way to it4 ,fortunately it was quite near4 ,i remained there that night1 and next day went to the ,grand4 ,in the community there was a physician1 whose services ,i requested1 ,dr4 ,ingram1 a ,scotchman1 who was residing there for his health4 ,he found that one of ,ndong's lungs was completely congested1 and he advised that ,i should send him to a hospital three miles further up the mountainside and close to his home4 ,accordingly ,i took ,ndong to the hospital where he remained for a week4 ,i went every day to see him1 riding the six miles1 to the hospital and back1 on a donkey1 which added another chapter of novel experience4 ,the ,canary ,island donkey is a very diminutive quadruped1 the colour of a mouse and as innocent looking as a lamb4 ,its ears are about as long as its legs4 ,the price of the donkey's hire includes the owner1 who runs behind and shouts1 and prods him with a stick4 ,after two days' experience ,i concluded that shouting and prodding were of no use whatever1 and realizing that the moral man in me was rapidly degenerating1 ,i decided on the third day to leave the driver at home and even pay a higher price if necessary for the donkey without a driver1 intending myself to assume the management of this soft-eyed creature1 who perhaps only needed a little petting1 for those eyes bespoke a peaceful temper4 ,the owner readily assented to the proposition and very wisely requested me to pay in advance4 ,in a few minutes ,i had experienced to the full the pain of misplaced confidence4 ,my donkey was a facsimile of the immortal ,modestine4 ,having patted the donkey kindly and exchanged with her a long look of mutual regard1 ,i mounted4 ,she started off on an easy trot until the owner was out of sight4 ,then she stopped and stood still and declined to go on in spite of coaxing1 kicking and whipping1 until ,i seriously thought of building a fire under her to get her to move4 ,while ,i was reflecting upon the adaptation of means to ends and for the time had ceased from all measures of coercion1 she started as suddenly as she had stopped and with as little reason4 ,she seemed to be clear outside the principle of causality that inheres in the universe4 ,and having started1 she ran anywhere and in every direction1 evincing neither purpose nor method in her going except a marked predilection for hedges and brambles4 ,in less than two minutes1 however1 she reverted to her natural gait1 which1 like that of ,modestine1 was something as much slower than a walk as a walk is slower than a run4 ,under cruel and continuous beating ,i forced her to maintain a gait that ,i hoped would carry me to the hospital and back before night1 six miles in an entire afternoon4 ,occasionally my spirit revolted from the ignoble occupation of so maltreating a poor dumb animal4 ,but the moment ,i relaxed she turned aside from the road and began to browse4 ,each peasant that passed me threw back his head and laughed4 ,an inward consciousness that ,i would have laughed myself if ,i had been in their place only added to my misery4 8,but ,o1 what a cruel thing is a farce to those engaged in it60 ,under the influence of their laughter and the perversity of ,modestine humanity died in my heart and ,i belaboured her with all the strength and vivacity that my health would allow1 stopping only to get my breath and to mop the perspiration from my superheated brow4 ,of course1 ,i might better have walked the rocky ascent2 but in one thing ,i was as obstinate as the donkey--,i would not give up my undertaking to ride her to the hospital and back4 ,besides1 ,i kept hoping that1 as she could not do worse1 she might possibly do better2 otherwise my arm should have failed me for despair4 ,and to think that ,i was paying for all this disservice6 ,by some strange fortuity of circumstances we actually reached the hospital1 and afterwards the hotel1 where ,i took final leave of her1 a weary but a wiser man4 ,at parting she again turned to me with an affectionate look of lamb-like innocence2 but a deep sense of injury together with aching limbs rendered me insensible to her magnanimity4 ,the people of ,teneriffe are so far behind modern times that the barbers are still the surgeons4 ,dr4 ,ingram blistered ,ndong's congested lung and the barber was afterwards called in daily to dress the wound4 ,after six days ,i took ,ndong back to the hotel4 ,he seemed on the way to recovery1 and was much stronger on his feet4 ,under ,mr4 ,marling's teaching he had acquired a habit of prayer morning and evening to which he had ever been faithful4 ,nothing could surpass the pathos of the prayers that he offered thanking ,god for every kindness that he had received from anybody and pleading for his complete recovery4 ,he knew that he was a great care to me and it troubled him4 ,on one occasion he entreated3 8,o ,father in heaven1 please make me well2 for ,i've been sick so long2 and ,i'm so little2 and ,i have no father nor mother40 ,the day after he returned from the hospital ,i observed that he was inclined to be impatient2 the next day he was more impatient1 and was positively disobedient4 ,i was surprised and pained2 and ,i wondered whether it could be possible that my constant care had in any way spoiled a disposition which years of neglect and adversity had only sweetened4 ,but it was soon explained4 ,that evening while he was eating his dinner1 in a little room next the dining-room where ,i was eating mine1 ,i heard him talking excitedly to the waiter4 ,i immediately went to him and carried him to my room4 ,he sat down and covering his face with both his hands held them there without moving4 ,i spoke to him but he did not answer4 ,then removing his hands from his face1 ,i called him by name4 ,he turned his eyes towards mine in an agony of fear3 it was his last sane moment4 ,he uttered a loud shriek1 and another1 and another4 ,i caught him in my arms as he went into a convulsion and laid him on my bed4 ,but ,i knew that upon this poor little boy1 from his birth marked out for misfortune1 and who had now suffered so long1 had at last fallen the most terrible of human calamities--insanity2 and that1 too1 just when his recovery seemed hopeful4 ,all night he continued talking wildly1 and shrieking at intervals4 ,in the morning he was more quiet1 though not more sane4 ,nor was there any marked change during the ten long weary days that we still remained in the hotel4 ,he gradually became weaker and more insane4 ,i did not let him out of my sight except when ,i went to my meals1 and then ,i locked him in my room4 ,once when ,i returned from dinner ,i found him dressed in a suit of white pajamas of mine4 ,he said to me3 8,that woman who comes in to attend to the room while you are at dinner is a very foolish person4 ,she came in this evening and looked at me and laughed1 and laughed4 ,but all ,spaniards seem to be foolish40 ,on the #ajth of ,july ,i returned to ,santa ,cruz4 ,the next day the ,volta arrived and ,i immediately went on board4 ,i looked forward with dread to the long journey on the steamer with an insane child4 ,i engaged a second-class cabin 7although ,i was a first-class passenger7 that ,i might be removed from the white passengers2 for on these steamers there are seldom any white men travelling second-class4 ,again1 by the kindness of the captain1 ,ndong occupied the cabin with me4 ,he was determined to go all over the ship1 but it was more than ever necessary that ,i should restrain him4 ,he became impatient of the restraint1 and regarded me as his prison-keeper4 ,it made a great difference when this child1 who had loved me with the utmost devotion1 now turned against me4 ,but his own suffering was increased by this feeling2 nor was there anything ,i could do to relieve it4 ,i simply waited for the end and prayed to ,him who tempers the wind to the shorn lamb4 ,there were on board sixteen officers of the ,english army who were expecting to debark at ,cape ,coast ,castle and were bound for the ,ashantee territory of the interior1 which1 as you probably know1 has been for several mouths the scene of another great uprising of the natives almost as formidable as that of thirty years ago4 ,when we reached ,sierra ,leone1 we also took on board more than two hundred native soldiers1 as deck-passengers4 ,i am glad to testify that among these sixteen officers there were several real gentlemen1 in the ,american sense2 others were tolerable2 and there were still others4 ,they were not pleasant fellow passengers4 ,we were looking forward with some dread to their last night on board2 and they also were looking forward to it1 but with feelings entirely different from ours4 ,we were expecting to reach ,cape ,coast ,castle on ,thursday4 ,but for the last sixty hours the captain1 without telling anybody1 used the reserve power of two knots an hour1 increasing our full speed from ten to twelve knots4 ,accordingly1 it was with astonishment and unmixed joy that on ,wednesday morning1 coming on deck1 we read on the bulletin3 8,cape ,coast ,castle this morning at eight o'clock60 ,they had not time to get drunk4 ,but1 in any case1 the heartrending scene which we witnessed soon after we had anchored would probably have sobered them4 ,five missionaries of the ,swiss ,basle ,mission were brought on board in a most pitiful and awful condition4 ,among them was that great and widely-known veteran1 ,mr4 ,ramseyer1 whom ,i had long wished to meet4 ,mrs4 ,ramseyer was also in the party1 besides two other younger women and another man4 ,at the outbreak of the war these missionaries had fled to ,kummassi1 the seat of the ,english government1 and were there when that city was besieged by the natives4 ,the ,english governor was also in the city4 ,for several months they had lived on half-rations1 until they were so reduced in flesh that their friends would not have recognized them4 ,all this time they were waiting and watching for the arrival of reinforcements from the ,english army4 ,at last1 having waited for the expected relief until their supplies were nearly exhausted1 they broke through the lines of the enemy and made a desperate effort to reach the coast4 ,the governor escaped at the same time and with his retinue started for the coast by a different road4 ,along the main road the enemy was strongest so that it was impassable2 therefore the missionary party of six persons1 three men and their wives1 together with their fifty carriers1 took a most circuitous road1 and indescribably bad4 ,they all walked but ,mrs4 ,ramseyer who was carried in a hammock4 ,many of their carriers were shot down by the enemy and others died by the way1 being exhausted by famine4 ,i think it was only fifteen carriers that reached the coast4 ,one man of the missionary party died when they had been a week on the way4 ,they walked for twenty-five successive days before they reached the coast4 ,one woman1 the wife of the man who died on the way1 walked all the last day without shoes4 8,that day1 as well as others10 said ,mr4 ,ramseyer1 8we waded in water to our waists1 and sometimes almost to the women's shoulders40 ,the collapse came when they reached the coast2 at least for all but ,mr4 ,ramseyer1 a man of iron constitution4 ,the next day the ,volta called and they were brought on board and were laid upon the deck like corpses2 all but ,mr4 ,ramseyer4 ,the captain1 whose humour and inexhaustible anecdote were usually an antidote for the tedium and weariness of so long a journey1 was overcome by the scene on deck to the extent that ,i saw him brush a tear away4 ,and then1 finding it absolutely necessary to do something1 as a vent to his feeling of sympathy1 and supposing that the very best thing for the missionary party all round would be a strong stimulant1 he stepped to the skylight and shouted3 8,whisky6 ,whisky60 ,then1 evidently reflecting that if a little whisky were good1 more would be better1 he circulated about the deck shouting1 8,whisky60 at every steward who put his head out of a port-hole4 ,it sounded like an invocation to some favourite fetish2 and for that matter whisky is the fetish of many white men in ,west ,africa4 ,they invoke its aid in all their troubles4 ,if there had been many more stewards around1 ,i am afraid there would have been a serious shortage of whisky for the rest of the voyage1 and such an event would have created greater consternation on the coast than the ,ashantee war itself4 8,great ,scott60 exclaimed a man in the saloon who had been occupied with writing and did not know what was occurring on deck1 8where is all that whisky going at this hour of the morning8 ,what's come on board8 the ,english army80 8,no10 replied the steward1 8it's a party of missionaries40 ,the man went up the companionway two steps at a time to see the party of missionaries who could drink so much whisky4 ,i do not remember whether the missionaries drank any of the whisky2 but it may be taken for granted that it was not wasted4 ,while they still lay on the deck1 ,mr4 ,ramseyer1 standing up1 told the story of their sufferings to the shocked and eager passengers assembled about him4 ,until this morning the war had been a kind of a jest to these officers of the army2 but now it became a stern reality1 and the change in their behaviour was noticeable4 ,one of them1 by the way1 was shot by a native and instantly killed a few days after landing4 ,that same evening ,mr4 ,ramseyer told me of the experience of himself and ,mrs4 ,ramseyer in the former ,ashantee war1 thirty years ago4 ,in that war they were captured by the natives and held for ransom4 ,five long years1 from #ahfi to #ahgd1 they were prisoners1 carried about from place to place to escape the pursuit of the ,english4 ,they were told that they would be killed rather than given up4 ,during the first year their feet were put in stocks at night to prevent their escape4 ,but they made friends of their captors1 who finally gave them up without ransom4 ,they went to ,switzerland for a long rest1 and then returned again to their work4 ,mr4 ,ramseyer closed his story of this latest war by declaring triumphantly that the ,christian natives had not taken part in the rebellion2 though their loyalty had cost many of them their lives4 ,i have digressed at length from my subject and am several days ahead of my story2 but ,i am glad to have this opportunity of recording the heroism of this grand old man1 great alike in counsel and in action2 whose advice successive governors of ,ashantee for many years have sought2 and the equal heroism of his noble wife1 and the devotion of the other missionaries of the party1 who might have escaped safely at the outbreak of this war1 but that they chose rather to suffer with their people4 ,i said that from the time we came on board at ,santa ,cruz ,ndong was disposed to wander over the ship1 and ,i had to watch him closely4 ,several times he escaped from me4 ,on one occasion ,i had been up with him until about three o'clock in the morning4 ,he was then asleep and ,i also lay down and slept soundly for a little while4 ,but during this time he had wakened and was gone4 ,the door was fastened at the first hook and ,i did not suppose that he could pass through4 ,he went on a tour of inspection around the ship2 but in a few minutes he was tired and wished to return4 ,he became confused and wandered into the saloon1 at the other end of the deck1 and from the saloon into the cabin which he had occupied with me when we went north4 ,one of the army officers1 a captain1 an entire stranger to me at the time1 occupied the cabin4 ,imagine his surprise when he was awakened in the dark by a strange hand upon his face4 ,supposing it to be the hand of a robber1 he seized it2 but finding how very1 very small it was1 he concluded that his life was not in immediate danger4 ,he remembered the little boy whom he had seen with me1 and calling a steward he sent him to me4 ,i apologized to the gentleman next morning as best ,i could4 ,his generosity relieved my humiliation4 ,all the way to ,teneriffe ,ndong had been getting weaker each day4 ,one morning ,i took him on deck as usual1 but in a little while he asked to be carried back to bed4 ,all that day and the next he lay quietly repeating stories from the ,gospel1 one after another4 ,he was again patient and loving as before1 and his mind was clearer4 ,on ,thursday morning1 ,july #aith1 about three o'clock he wakened1 and ,i rose and sat beside him4 ,he was very weak and spoke with effort4 ,but after a while he talked more1 and without difficulty4 ,i had partly raised him in the bed and he lay on the pillows with his arm around my neck4 ,at last1 with eyes dilated and aglow with the beauty of another world1 he said3 8,i see ,mr4 ,marling2 he comes towards the door2 and beyond him ,i see the ,city of ,god2 and ,jesus is there4 ,do you not see1 ,mr4 ,milligan80 8,no1 ,ndong10 ,i said4 ,after a while he fell asleep2 and some hours later he passed into the deeper sleep in which there is 8no more pain02 for he had gone to be with ,jesus1 8which is far better40 ,that same day at noon we buried him at sea1 two hundred miles west of ,sierra ,leone4 ,only those who have witnessed a burial at sea know how it affects the mind with a nameless depression and spreads a gloom over all on board4 ,it is perhaps the awful vastness of the ocean grave that imparts this sense of desolation4 ,the sailors have many superstitions regarding death on shipboard4 ,for instance1 they say that sharks invariably follow the ship for twenty-four hours before a death takes place4 ,i have several times conducted burial services at sea2--once1 on a ,french steamer1 the burial of a deputy-governor of ,senegal4 ,the body wrapped in canvas1 and with heavy weights at the feet1 is placed upon a plank at the open gangway1 with the feet towards the sea1 ropes being attached to the inner end of the gangplank4 ,after the service1 at the signal of the captain1 the engines are stopped1 whose ceaseless beating1 night and day1 the ear had not seemed to hear until it stopped4 ,the ensuing stillness is like the sudden suspension of nature4 ,at this moment the sailors standing by lift the ropes and draw the gangplank over the ship's side until it tilts and the body slides into the sea4 ,a momentary circling of the water1 and nothing more remains to mark the place4 ,another signal1 the engines again commence the ceaseless beating1 and the effect is even more depressing2 it is like the sudden knocking at the gate after the murder in ,macbeth4 ,death is only realized in contrast to the world's activity4 ,on these ,african steamers which so often have the sick on board1 especially on the homeward voyage1 deaths are often kept secret and the burials performed at night1 for the sake of the passengers2 and it is a kindly custom4 ,the bodies of natives dying on board are often flung overboard without even being wrapped1 and there is never any formal service4 ,but the captain of the ,volta to all the rest of his kindness added this also1 that he gave little ,ndong a white man's burial4 ,the boatswain wrapped the body in its canvas shroud and laid it upon the gangplank with the ,british flag thrown over it4 ,as ,i took my place at the side1 the captain stepped forward and stood beside me4 ,a missionary brother read some verses of ,scripture2 another missionary1 of ,ndong's own colour1 offered a prayer4 ,the captain gave the signal and the body1 wrapped in its 8heavy-shotted hammock-shroud1 dropped in its vast and wandering grave40 ,i have said little of his passionate love for me2 but it will ever be one of the sweetest memories of my life in ,africa4 ,and when my own time comes and ,i shall see with unholden eyes the land that is fairer than day1 ,i am thinking that among those who first shall greet me will be ,ndong ,mba1 the little scholar4 ,,xvi ,a ,,church 8,ethiopia shall haste to stretch out her hands unto ,god40--,psalm #fh3ca4 ,there are many who seem to think that the heathen1 the world over1 are reiterating the ancient cry of ,macedonia1 8,come over and help us10 and that multitudes are converted to ,christianity at the first hearing of the ,gospel2 notwithstanding that in our own land those who know its transcendent import and ample evidence1 and those who have even been trained in ,christian households1 are not so easily won4 ,degradation and ignorance are a poor preparation for ,christian faith4 ,to the cultured heathen of old the ,gospel was foolishness1 and it is not less foolish to the uncultured heathen4 ,the inspiring vision of a nation in a day is more poetic than factual4 ,neither the nation nor the individual is won in a day4 ,evangelism would be a simple process if it were only to say1 as ,philip said to ,nathanael3 8,come and see40 ,nathanael1 however1 was not a bloodthirsty savage1 but a pious ,jew4 ,it is certain that our duty does not end in merely announcing the ,gospel to the heathen1 and giving them the opportunity to hear1 while we pass the word on to others2 for this does not evangelize1 nor accomplish anything else worth while4 ,the watchword1 lifted with battle-cry fervour1 that appeals for the evangelization of the world in this generation1 has inspired the zeal of many and has thereby done good service2 but it is liable to look for geographical rather than moral results1 and the policy of missions1 if it respond to this exigent desire1 becomes spectacular1 the aim being to cover the utmost territory4 ,new work is begun before the old is half done1 with a consequent waste of the labour already expended4 ,new stations are opened before the old are half manned for thorough work2 and since only a thorough work can ever become self-sustaining and be left to take care of itself1 it follows that this principle of forced extension defeats every other principle1 and in the end defeats itself4 ,i know eleven missionary societies working in ,west ,africa1 and in most of those societies there is need of a policy based upon reality versus romance4 ,in most of them the missionaries agree that the stations are seriously undermanned4 ,i know one mission station at least which has been opened for more than sixty-five continuous years1 and missionaries are still there without the least likelihood of their moving on2 for the simple reason that the station has been so undermanned in all these years that they have not yet trained a native ministry2 whereas1 if instead of making haste to open new stations they had concentrated their forces there in sufficient numbers to do a thorough work1 they might have left it long ago to the care of the natives themselves1 and the missionaries might have opened new fields1 with the likelihood that those also would in a reasonable length of time be sufficiently evangelized to be left to themselves4 ,nothing retards progress like too much haste4 ,the cause of the undermanned stations and the resultant crippled work is not1 as many will say1 that there are not enough missionaries1 but that there are too many stations4 ,the policy cannot make missionaries1 but it does make stations1 and a wise policy will adapt the number of stations to the number of missionaries1 instead of so scattering the missionaries that not one of them can do a work that will remain4 ,in the arithmetic of missions two men can do not only twice as much but ten times as much as one4 ,the ,french ,protestant ,society1 whose work on the ,ogow ,river in the ,congo ,franais is without doubt the most successful work in all ,west ,africa1 have only two stations1 but have ten missionaries at each station4 ,neither can it be said that the crippled force at work in most of the missions is due to the hostile climate1 inasmuch as every year1 and almost every month1 the unexpected happens1 and missionaries are obliged to lay down their work suddenly and go home4 ,i reply that elsewhere 7as ,i have said before7 it is the unexpected that happens1 but in ,africa it is the unexpected that we expect4 ,we know the climate4 ,it is one of the exigencies of the situation1 and since the policy cannot change the climate1 the climate ought to change the policy4 ,a policy of true evangelism must aim to establish a self-sustaining church1 that is1 a church which is independent of foreign money1 and which is manned with its own ministry2 and this is a slow process4 ,it involves a threefold work1 that of preaching 7not on ,sunday only1 but daily1 probably itinerating7 that of teaching 7at least in ,africa1 where there are no native schools7 and the higher training for the ministry4 ,if any one of these departments is wanting1 the work is not progressing towards a self-sustaining church1 and the policy is so far defective4 ,but here is work for several men1 at least1 at one mission station4 ,to place them at several stations means that no thorough or progressive work can be done at any station4 ,and as such scattering of forces is poor policy it is also poor economy4 ,for a station is usually an extensive property1 expensive to build and expensive to maintain4 ,the unnecessary multiplying of stations is extravagance4 ,in our ,presbyterian mission these considerations are being fully realized1 and the present policy evinces a determination to do thorough work in the field already occupied rather than to enlarge our territory at the expense of crippling the established work4 ,we have learned by our failures as well as by our successes4 ,the result of an inadequate force of missionaries at a station is not so much that the missionary is overworked--most missionaries are not making any such complaint--but that the work is not adequately done4 ,and this wears on mind and heart2 for the work is one1 and if a part of it be neglected the whole must suffer4 ,it is not the work that the missionary actually does that wears him out1 but that which he does not do and cannot do1 although perhaps his success depends upon it4 ,the ,fang work included itinerating over a field more than a hundred miles by fifty miles1 and the charge of a school in which ,i had no adequate assistant for two years4 ,to this was added the ,mpongwe work when ,mr4 ,boppell's health compelled him to leave the field4 ,the ,mpongwe work included the charge of the church at ,baraka with its regular ,sunday and mid-week services1 and the pastoral work1 a class in the ,sunday-school1 a teachers' meeting1 and the instruction of a candidate for the ministry4 ,at such a station there is also a great deal of secular work2 the care of the premises and the buildings1 which are in constant need of repair1 the care of several boats1 the buying of building material1 the charge of a store1 ordering and receiving our own supplies1 the treasurership--the latter a large work1 because all purchases of goods and food were made in ,europe and ,america4 ,i suffered some under the strain1 and the work1 of course1 suffered more than ,i did4 ,my day and evening were laid out by the hour in a routine that was fixed as far as circumstances would allow4 ,the arrival of an ,english steamer1 once a month1 deranged all plans2 but it was a welcome interruption1 chiefly because it brought the mail4 ,it is a pathetic instance of the white man's interest that the natives everywhere1 even if they know no other word of ,english1 have learned to call the steamer1 8the mail10 because this is what they hear the white man say when he sees it4 ,the steamer nearly always came in the morning4 ,while it was still fifteen miles away we could see the smoke on the horizon4 ,there was always a strife among the boys and the men for which of them would be the first to announce it4 ,at the sight of it they all came running and shouting1 8,mail6 ,mail60 ,if ,toko made the announcement he would say3 8,mr4 ,milligan1 mail live for come2 ,i look him40 ,immediately ,i call ,ndong ,koni and tell him to call the crew1 get out the ,evangeline1 and see that they all have their uniforms4 ,meanwhile ,i put on a suit of white drill1 such as ,i have described1 a white helmet1 and white shoes4 ,thus attired in the regulation best ,i go aboard and take breakfast with the captain1 who gives me all the news of the coast4 ,if he has cargo for the mission ,i wait until it is discharged on the beach1 and then go ashore and have it carried up to the mission storeroom4 ,when this is done ,i read my letters4 ,but ,i sometimes carried the bundle of them around with me full half a day before reading them2 and ,i always waited until ,i could close the door of my study and give the order that ,i was not to be disturbed4 ,but an urgent duty awaits me4 ,a technical and minute declaration in ,french must be made of any and all the goods that have arrived4 ,in declaring provisions1 for instance1 the different provisions in a given box must be declared separately1 with the weight of each4 ,the boxes1 of course1 could not be opened under any circumstances until everything was declared and a permit received4 ,but if the bills of lading should be delayed1 or if they were not made out with all the particular weights1 there was endless trouble4 ,i could not open the boxes until ,i made the declaration1 and ,i could not make the declaration until ,i opened the boxes4 ,in such a case1 after much waiting and annoyance1 an officer would come and ,i would open the boxes in his presence4 ,sometimes these declarations were very troublesome4 ,in one instance there was malted milk in one of the boxes4 ,i did not know how to declare it2 for ,i could not imagine under what class it would come4 ,that ,i might make no mistake1 and run the risk of a fine1 ,i sent some malted milk that ,i had already on hand to the chef of the douanes telling him what it was and how it was made1 and asking him how ,i should declare it4 ,after a day's consideration he wrote advising me that malted milk should be declared as pain d'pice--spiced bread4 ,but if the rules and regulations bothered me1 ,i must say that the ,french custom-officers are1 ,i believe1 the most courteous and obliging in the world1 and a striking contrast to ,american custom-officers4 ,but besides the arrival of the steamer there are other interruptions less welcome4 ,while ,i am busy preparing my sermon for ,sunday1 in time stolen from other duties1 a man appears at the door1 and without waiting for recognition asks me to go with him to the mission store and get him a package of rat-poison--price about five cents4 ,shall ,i1 or shall ,i not1 go to the store8 ,we are owing him this amount for produce he has sold us1 and he holds a 8bon0 for it1 which he can negotiate only at our store4 ,he lives far away1 and his friends are waiting for him4 ,besides1 rat-poison itself is a kind of ,gospel in this rat-ridden land4 ,it ranks about next to soap4 ,i get him his rat-poison4 ,but ,i do not believe in mission stores4 ,at some stations1 of course1 they are a necessity3 at some1 ,i know they are a serious hindrance to the real work of the missionary4 ,it is vain to answer that some money 7a small amount at the most7 is thus turned into the mission treasury4 ,i reply that missionaries are not sent out to make money2 let those who stay at home do that3 they are sent to spend it4 ,i am glad to say that if ,i accomplished nothing else in ,africa ,i finally sold out that mission store1 and gave our trade to one of the trading-houses4 ,and ,i am glad also to add that instead of a financial loss1 we actually gained by dealing with the traders1 not to speak of the great saving of time for the serious work of the missionary4 ,the work of itinerating ,i regarded as my chief work1 however much detained from it4 ,for most men it is also the most interesting work1 inasmuch as it brings one into contact with the people in their native condition4 ,with all their savagery there is really very little danger of violence at their hands4 ,but a drunken savage is to be feared4 ,not that he is much more bloodthirsty2 but his greed overmasters him1 and he might easily be tempted to kill for plunder4 ,for if the white man had nothing but the suit of clothes which he had on him he would still be rich enough to inspire native cupidity4 ,one ,sunday at ,nenge ,nenge1 a town sixty miles up the river1 ,i left the launch at anchor and went on up the river several miles in a canoe borrowed from a trading-house located at ,nenge ,nenge4 ,it was a very large canoe2 and since the workmen were all idle1 the trader gave me a crew of fifteen men4 ,the ,west ,african trader is supremely generous in granting all such favours4 ,it happened that a short time before this a white trader of ,gaboon1 a young man whom ,i knew very well1 who had been in ,africa less than a year1 returning one night by boat from ,elobey ,island to the mainland1 was drowned4 ,the body was never recovered1 and indeed1 it is not unlikely that he was immediately seized and devoured by the sharks4 ,not one of the crew was lost1 and although we could not formulate a charge against them1 we more than suspected foul play on their part4 ,no one will ever know the tragedy of that young man's last hour4 ,the recency of this occurrence made me1 perhaps1 more suspicious than usual1 or qualified my courage1 on the occasion of the canoe ride at ,nenge ,nenge4 ,the men had all been drinking1 which ,i did not observe until we had started1 and they were all of one tribe1 a distinct disadvantage to me if they should mean mischief4 ,and what was worse1 they were just fresh from a distant bush town1 and never had been in contact with white men4 ,the river is broad at this place1 and the current is very swift4 ,they first started to sing one of their wild and fascinating boat-songs1 keeping time with the paddles4 ,then the leader began improvising1 according to their custom1 on the theme of the white man and the white man's riches1 the others responding with a refrain4 ,they were gradually getting excited1 and were swaying their bodies from side to side1 so that ,i feared continually that the canoe would be capsized4 ,then the song became a yelling-match1 and they were getting still more excited4 ,i had never at any time had a more distinct feeling that ,i was in a dangerous company of real savages1 fifteen to one1 and if ,i had been in their musical mood ,i should have been singing ,robert ,louis ,stevenson's immortal buccaneer song3 8,fifteen men on the dead man's chest-- ,yo-ho-ho1 and a bottle of rum60 ,before we reached the most secluded part of the river1 and while there was still a small town to be passed1 ,i ordered the headman to go close into the bank away from the current until we should pass a turn in the river4 ,when ,i came close to the bank ,i said ,i would land here4 ,they knew1 of course1 that this was not my destination1 and they supposed that ,i would continue the journey in a few minutes4 ,but as soon as ,i had landed ,i ordered them back to ,nenge ,nenge1 and ,i proceeded in a small canoe which ,i hired at the town near by4 ,thus ,i avoided the possibility of being cut off in the flower of my youth4 ,or1 it may be that ,i missed an adventure that ,i should have been proud to tell afterwards4 ,i often found the whole town engaged in dancing1 of which they are passionately fond4 ,it is not only their chief amusement1 but also serves for physical culture1 and accounts for their well-developed forms and graceful carriage4 ,a great dancer among them becomes widely known1 and is as highly esteemed as a virtuoso among us4 ,i was one day teaching the people in a town where there were four ,christians1 when my attention was arrested by a good-looking and singularly well-developed man coming towards us down the street4 ,i had not seen in ,africa nearly so fine a form4 ,he was graceful as he walked1 and much more so when he threw himself down on the ground4 ,he seemed to me a very ,apollo ,belvidere in ebony4 ,they told me that he was a famous dancer4 ,he had applied himself with diligence and extraordinary perseverance to the practice of all the difficult movements of the native dance until he was the envy of the men of his tribe4 ,it was probably his persistent application to this practice1 and his constancy of purpose1 that gave to his face an unusual expression of gravity and strength4 ,i was reminded of the story told by ,addison of a shepherd who used to divert himself by tossing up eggs and catching them again without breaking them2 in which he became so skillful that he could keep up four at a time for several minutes together2 and who1 by his perseverance and application had contracted the utmost severity and gravity of countenance4 8,that same attention and perseverance10 says ,addison1 8had they been rightly applied1 might have made him a greater mathematician than ,archimedes40 ,my native friend1 for such he became1 remained after the service to talk with me4 ,he had come from his town five miles through the bush on purpose to meet me4 ,he said he had been in this town frequently1 and had heard those four ,christians telling the people about ,god and the salvation of ,christ1 and he desired to be a ,christian4 ,he afterwards put away an extra wife1 and he also renounced his dancing1 for their dances are associated with certain immoralities4 ,we never know in what unlikely place the ,shepherd will find ,his sheep4 ,our duty is to declare ,his ,word in every place1 and ,his sheep will hear ,his voice and follow ,him4 ,but if ,i frequently found the people engaged in the noisy dance1 ,i sometimes found the whole town steeped in sleep4 ,one day ,i entered a town that was like a city of the dead2 absolutely quiet1 and no one to be seen4 ,i walked the length of the town1 thrusting my head in at every door1 and asking the people to come out and hear ,god's message2 but only one man came4 ,at last ,i asked this man if he would go and call the people4 ,he started down the street1 calling men and women by name as he passed1 telling individuals in aloud voice their particular need of this preaching service1 because of their personal sins1 which he forthwith enumerated and charged upon them1 exposing the private wickedness of men and women in brief biographical sketches1 which it might be interesting but not edifying to repeat4 ,i need not say that they responded to this urgent invitation4 ,in a few minutes the whole population was in the street1 eloquent with resentment4 ,one might think that they had the tenderest reputations to sustain4 ,i would not commend to my fellow ministers in ,america this novel method of securing a congregation4 ,but how would one preach to such an audience8 or what would one say8 ,i am often asked4 ,well1 that day ,i asked the people what kind of a king they would choose1 if ,god should give them their choice4 ,after some discussion they settled upon the idea of power4 ,they would like a king who would be stronger than all their enemies1 and especially stronger than the ,mpongwe people4 ,then ,i taught them that ,jesus whom ,god had sent is such a one2 and ,i told them how ,he stilled the storm4 ,next1 ,i asked them whether power alone would be sufficient4 ,they first thought it would4 8,but10 ,i said1 8suppose your king had no sense4 ,do you put a gun into the hands of a child8 ,and would you like to see a foolish person armed with power that none of you could resist80 8,oh10 they said1 looking at one another1 8we never thought of that10 and it was soon agreed that the king of their choice must be wise as well as powerful4 ,then ,i said that ,jesus was wise with the wisdom of ,god1 knowing all our needs and how to supply them4 ,again ,i asked if this was all they would desire in their king1 that he be powerful and wise4 ,they were quite sure4 8,but10 ,i said1 8suppose he were bad8 that he loved only himself and robbed and killed you80 ,just at this moment a little child began to cry1 and all the child's numerous parents1 a considerable part of the audience1 turned upon it with such a howl of remonstrance that the frightened child ran for the bush4 8,suppose10 ,i continued1 when they were again quiet1 and looking as if they had done a good work1--8suppose your king were like yourselves 7for you are cruel as beasts7 and that he should howl at you and frighten you just as you did that child80 ,that would be a calamity indeed4 ,they soon agreed that their king ought also to be good2 and that this was the principal thing1 although they had not thought of it before4 ,and again1 ,i told them of the love and sacrifice of ,christ4 ,but do ,i really think that they heeded this ,gospel8 ,i think that as ,i left them talking together some probably laughed at the message1--in fact ,i heard them1--some doubted1 and some perhaps pondered these things in their hearts1 to whom they may afterwards have become the words of eternal life4 ,one often must turn aside during the service to answer irrelevant remarks4 ,i was once preaching in a town where the white man had only been seen a few times1 and was still an object of as much curiosity as would be an inhabitant of ,mars1 if he should make his advent among us1 when a woman in the audience tried to attract my attention by repeating1 8,i say1 white man6 ,i say6 ,i say60 ,at last ,i asked her what she wanted4 ,she said3 8,i want to ask you a question40 ,i told her to wait until ,i had finished talking4 ,but she could not wait1 and she kept on interrupting me1 until at length ,i said3 8,what is your question80 ,she said3 8,i want to know if your feet are as white as your hands and face80 ,o shade of ,saint ,paul1 who commanded that women keep silence in the churches1 and if they wanted to know anything to ask their husbands at home1 how well ,i now understand that injunction6 ,i answered3 8,yes1 my feet are as white as my hands and face10 and ,i tried to proceed with the sermon4 ,i had on black socks1 and it seems that some of the women1 observing them1 declared that the white man was not all white2 that only his hands and face were white1 and that the rest of him was as black as themselves4 ,my answer1 therefore1 did not satisfy them all4 ,some said1 8,you lie1 white man4 ,we have eyes2 you lie40 ,i was well used to this inartistic form of contradiction1 and ,i did not object4 ,they kept on disputing about the socks4 ,but again the same woman said3 8,well1 white man1 we want to see for ourselves40 ,i could not lose the opportunity of a service merely for the sake of my dignity2 so ,i slipped off a shoe and a sock and showed the audience a white man's foot1 and they all agreed that it was beautiful4 ,was ,i speaking of dignity8 ,ah me6 ,dignity fades away to a vague impalpability1 and finally becomes a cherished memory4 ,i have already said that the ,gospel at first hearing is scarcely intelligible1 and time alone brings moral results4 ,i distinctly recall the first religious service that ,i attended among the ,bulu4 ,to them also it was the first service4 ,it was conducted by ,dr4 ,good4 ,before he got to the sermon he asked me to offer a prayer4 ,after a word of explanation1 through an interpreter1 about the nature of prayer1 ,i requested the people to close their eyes1 and ,i proceeded to pray in ,english4 ,now1 this closing of the eyes had very uncanny associations in their minds4 ,i have already told of the ,ngi 7gorilla7 ,society1 the head of which assumes the form and disposition of a gorilla4 ,he approaches the town roaring like a gorilla1 and women and children shut their eyes until he passes2 for if they see him they will die4 ,when ,i asked the people to close their eyes it at once suggested to them some demon spell like that of ,ngi1 but probably more terrible4 ,all of them1 men and women1 snapped their eyes shut1 and kept them closed tight4 ,and the terrified women1 grabbing the babies from their backs 7every ,bulu woman has a baby on her back71 held their hands over the babies' eyes1 and with such pressure that the poor babies simultaneously raised a howl of remonstrance1 which in turn frightened the dogs 7who made a considerable part of the audience7 and they began to bark4 ,a panic ensued1 in which the people1 keeping their eyes tight closed1 tumbled pell-mell out of all sides of the house4 ,i was struggling with a horrid and profane impulse to laugh2 but ,i was a little afraid of ,dr4 ,good2 for ,i had not known him long1 and he was my senior4 ,when ,i turned1 however1 ,i saw him fairly doubled with laughter1 and ,i experienced a delightful sense of freedom1 and let nature take its course4 ,on one occasion ,i preached to a large audience a sermon that seemed to me quite practical1 telling them that their chief troubles were within1 or 8inside10 as ,i said it in ,fang4 8,your chief trouble10 ,i said1 8is not the ,french government1 against which you are always complaining2 nor is it these other tribes with whom you are always at war2 but your chief trouble is inside of you1 in your own hearts40 ,when ,i had finished1 a leading man arose1 and with a grand air took up the theme4 8,the white man is right10 he said2 8our worst suffering is inside of us4 ,it is not war--nor witchcraft--nor itch--nor flies--but worms inside40 ,he thought ,i had preached a very helpful sermon1 and invited me to come back again4 ,at this distance of time ,i can smile2 but such a response is a great trial of faith to a new missionary1 especially if he has been led to expect startling results and many conversions attending the very first preaching of the ,gospel4 ,at first ,i was disheartened at the carnality and ignorance depicted in the faces of such audiences4 ,yet1 after a few years of persistent work and patient waiting1 ,i saw scores and scores of just such people spiritually and morally transformed2 and more marvellous was the result from such a beginning4 ,a certain old chief responded to a sermon on future punishment by saying that he would send one of his wives to hell in his place1 and when ,i suggested that such an arrangement might be attended with serious difficulties he said he would send two of them4 ,then1 when ,i told him that judging by the history he gave of his wives they would probably be going there on their own account1 he said he supposed he would have to give ,god a couple of ivories for his ransom4 ,one day ,i went to a new ,fang town1 ,yengal1 about two miles along the beach from ,baraka4 ,the tide was rising1 and ,i had to wade through water for some distance2 at one place it was to my waist4 ,i preached in those dripping clothes4 ,on the way to the town ,i overtook the chief and his head wife4 ,he was very much pleased when he found ,i was going to his town1 and he walked ahead of me1 wading into the deeper streams to see whether or not they were too deep for me to wade2 for they were rising fast with the tide4 ,if ,i had not been already wet1 he would have carried me over the streams1 and all the deeper places4 ,by the time we reached the town we were good friends4 ,he called the people together1 and they all came and gave me their attention during the service4 ,i told them of a way that leads to eternal life1 and a way that leads to destruction4 ,when ,i had finished speaking1 this chief said to me in a most earnest manner3 8,now tell me plainly1 white man1 which road to take when ,i die8 ,if you will tell me whether to take the road on the right1 or the one on the left1 ,i shall remember40 ,that he had been kind and courteous to me on the way1 made me feel but the greater compassion that his mind was an abyss of darkness4 ,i have sometimes found a town in a state of preparation and eager inquiry through their casual meeting with native ,christians4 ,one day ,i sailed with the ,evangeline to a town fifteen miles away1 called ,elen ,akidia--,dawn of the ,morning2 for it is built upon a hill that rises above the surrounding bush so that they can see the first light of day4 ,i stayed in the town over night4 ,in the evening a large audience gathered in the palaver-house1 which was lighted by a tiny lamp4 ,it had no chimney1 to be sure1 but still it was the boast of the town4 ,they had been learning for several years of the ,christian religion from ill-instructed natives1 but ,i do not know that any ,protestant missionary had ever preached there4 ,they listened so attentively and earnestly that ,i talked to them for more than an hour4 ,then1 being tired1 ,i went out and sat near by in the dark1 but they remained1 gravely discussing what they had heard4 ,the chief in closing said3 8,we have done all these things that ,god hates4 ,we have beaten our wives and made them work like slaves4 ,we have been cruel to children1 and we have neglected the sick4 ,but ,i think ,god will forgive us when we tell ,him we did not know4 ,we have lived in great darkness2 but now the light has come2 we must change our ways4 ,and you women1 you need not be puffed up because the white man took your part2 for you are the cause of most of our troubles4 ,we must all change our ways4 ,i hope the white man will come back soon and help us2 for we need help40 ,the grave tone and serious manner of the speaker1 with the dark and silent night surrounding1 all deepened the impression of his words1 which seemed the most pathetic ,i had heard from heathen lips2 and often again ,i went to ,elen ,akidia--,dawn of the ,morning4 ,i once visited a town where there was a sick woman1 close to death and in great agony4 ,she had become ill suddenly1 and the people1 not knowing the cause1 concluded she was a witch1 or rather that she had a witch4 ,the witch in her had turned on her1 and was eating her4 ,for the woman had convulsions1 and that was a sign that the witch was eating her4 ,they were now able to account for the death of several children in the town2 this woman had1 without doubt1 bewitched them4 ,her spirit1 being 8loose from her body10 had gone out in the night1 and while the children were sleeping1 had eaten them4 ,next morning the children appeared to be well1 but they immediately began to fail1 and after a while they sickened and died4 ,i found the woman lying on a bed1 consisting of nothing but poles laid upon the ground1 although the town was near the coast1 and they were long accustomed to better beds4 ,the town was built in a mangrove swamp1 and the mosquitoes were so thick that to be exposed to them was torture that one could not long endure4 ,but this woman's bed had no mosquito net1 although all the other beds in town were thus furnished4 ,every little while her body was convulsed1 and her features distorted with pain4 ,i gave her some medicine1 although ,i had no idea what was the matter with her2 for ,i had only been in ,africa a short time4 ,i was sure that the medicine did her no harm1 however1 and that is the principal consideration4 ,but it served to teach a moral lesson4 ,i told my boys to make a fire in her house1 and ,i tried to make her comfortable4 ,her friends refused to help me4 8,the woman is a witch10 they said1 8and the sooner she dies1 the better40 ,when ,i had made her more comfortable ,i began to talk to her about ,god and her need of pardon4 ,at first she seemed destitute of any spiritual instinct4 ,the chief regret that she had about dying was that she did not want to leave her goods4 ,her goods6 a brass bracelet and leg ring2 a few yards of calico1 perhaps2 a little oil for the body1 and what else but mosquitoes8 ,but there are crises in which the mind is not subject to the ordinary limitations of time1 but in a few hours lives through the experience of years4 ,the woman gradually grasped the idea of ,god's love and the possibilities of the future4 ,a great and mysterious change came over her1 and she said3 8,i have been a wicked woman4 ,what shall ,i do80 ,i told her of the cross of ,christ4 ,and1 like the penitent thief1 in agony and pain1 she too ceased cursing and began to pray4 ,that night1 as ,i lay in a house near by1 ,i heard her repeating in broken sentences3 8,me ne ye mam ab4 ,me ne ye mam ab4 ,atat1 kwege me ngongol1 ,atat4 ,m'abune ,jsu4 ,m'abune ,jsu40--,i am sinful4 ,i am sinful4 ,father1 have mercy on me4 ,i believe in ,jesus4 ,i believe in ,jesus4 ,i left the town before morning1 and two days later she died1 still saying3 8,atat1 kwege me ngongol4 ,m'abune ,jsu40 ,even the sincerest converts have need of the most patient instruction in the morals of ,christianity4 ,many white men seem to make a business of scoffing at the moral attempts of the native1 when ,god1 who looks upon the heart1 probably approves4 ,the first earnest inquirer among the ,bulu at ,efulen was a man named ,zanga1 whom ,dr4 ,good was daily instructing4 ,one ,sunday1 when ,dr4 ,good was in ,zanga's town1 he found him working1 and he told him the law of the ,sabbath day4 ,zanga had already learned of it1 but he did not think that the work he was doing was forbidden1 because ,dr4 ,good had not mentioned that particular work4 ,he at once stopped1 and promised that henceforth he would keep the ,sabbath in all reverence4 ,the next ,sunday ,dr4 ,good found him again at work1 putting a thatch roof on a house1 and he again corrected him4 ,zanga replied3 8,why1 you don't call this work1 do you80 ,but he stopped it1 as before4 ,the next ,sunday ,dr4 ,good again entered ,zanga's town4 ,zanga saluted him1 exclaiming enthusiastically3 8,ah1 ,ngoot1 ,i am keeping the ,sabbath fine to-day4 ,i have hired two men to make the roof1 and ,i am just sitting here giving them orders40 ,he was doing as well as he knew2 and most of us know far more than we do4 ,god knows our thoughts and intentions4 ,at the beginning of my third year among the ,fang1 ,i began to feel that the time of harvest was drawing near4 ,people from towns far and near began to bring their fetishes to me1 laying them at my feet1 and renouncing them2 and the surrender of their fetishes was a better confession than could have been made in words4 ,i especially required the surrender of the father's skull1 the most sacred fetish of the men4 ,i soon had so many of these uncanny things that the question what ,i should do with them became urgent4 ,when ,i was leaving ,africa1 a ,christian native1 who had heard that ,i was taking some of these skulls with me1 came to me in great anxiety and asked me whether ,i had considered the confusion that might take place at the resurrection if those skulls were on the other side of the sea4 ,sure enough1 ,i had never thought of that4 ,i scarcely realized the degradation of their beliefs until men and women brought their fetishes to me1 and explained them fully as they renounced them4 ,one day ,i visited a town in which twenty-two persons1 five men and seventeen women1 stood up in a line in the street1 and delivering up all their fetishes1 renounced them1 and said that they would follow ,christ and worship only the true ,god4 ,this was the first large group of ,christians in one town1 and when a church was afterwards organized ,i gave it the name of that town1 ,ayol1 which is still the name of the ,fang church4 ,the ,ayol ,church belongs to ,corisco ,presbytery1 and to the ,synod of ,new ,jersey4 ,in a few months there were a hundred ,christians1 and at the end of a year1 two hundred1 scattered over the large ,fang field in groups of six1 eight1 or ten persons in a town4 ,they had all discarded their fetishes1 and they were meeting together every evening to sing and pray in the hearing of all the people4 ,the fact that those ,christians were not in a single community1 but scattered over extensive territory and in widely separated towns1 greatly enlarged the outlook for the future4 ,in a single community1 it sometimes happens that when a few persons of influence and decision become ,christians they make ,christianity popular1 and the thoughtless crowd follow their lead1 but never exhibit a strong type of ,christian character4 ,and this suggests another objection to the small1 undermanned station4 ,its work is usually restricted to the vicinity of its location1 where the tremendous prestige of the white man makes ,christianity dangerously popular1 and where the ,christians are near enough to the missionary to lean upon him for spiritual support1 and perhaps for worldly support also if they are very poor4 ,but these small groups of ,fang ,christians1 scattered in towns far apart1 were leaders1 not followers1 of others4 ,they became ,christians when ,christianity was not popular1 and had no artificial prestige4 ,they were far enough away from the mission for wholesome independence1 and near enough for the help which they really needed4 ,they also had a field of opportunity immediately around them1 and the whole number brought into contact with the ,gospel was very great4 ,these ,christians in saluting each other invariably use the term1 8,brother10 though they may belong to hostile and warring clans1 and before they became ,christians might not have been able to pass each other without fighting4 ,and1 strange enough1 ,i did not teach them this salutation2 for ,i never used it myself until they established it4 ,flesh and blood did not reveal it to them1 but the ,spirit of ,god2 for where ,christ is1 there is the instinct of brotherhood4 ,the number of ,christians gives no idea whatever of the whole effect of ,christian influence4 ,between ,african heathenism and ,christian faith there is an immense interval2 and multitudes1 while not professing to be ,christians1 were yet far removed from their former heathenism4 ,old beliefs were all unfixed1 with a corresponding change in morals4 ,cannibalism almost ceases at the first sound of the ,gospel1 and wars become less frequent4 ,one day two men called upon me1 who were not to be suspected of any inclination to ,christianity4 ,they told me that the sea had been dreadfully rough during the whole night in which they were on their way to ,gaboon4 ,they thought they would all be lost4 ,one of these two men said to the others3 8,we have been sinning against ,god1 for we have been travelling to the market all this ,sabbath day1 and we know that it is wrong40 ,then they all prayed to ,god1 as the ,christians pray1 asking that ,he would forgive them and save them4 ,i asked him why he did not trust his fetishes in the hour of need2 for he had enough of them on him4 8,fetishes are nothing10 he replied2 8it was only an angry ,god that we feared40 ,there was a great deal of ignorance in all this2 but it showed that they were far removed from their former faith in fetishes2 for in the crisis they forsook the fetishes1 and turned to ,god4 ,the care of all these new converts1 or catechumens1 added an entirely new department to my work1 and already the departments were numerous4 ,a convert is baptized and received into the church only after he has been two years on probation2 and during those two years he is supposed to receive a regular course of instruction4 ,these ,christians were now asking for such instruction that they might be received into the church4 ,my purpose had been to form a class in each of the towns where ,christians resided1 and to place a catechist in charge of several adjacent towns1 who would live among the people1 and teach them daily4 ,but my catechists were not yet ready1 though for some time ,i had been preparing for the emergency4 ,in connection with the school ,i had a class of young men1 to whom ,i had been giving special attention1 in the hope that they might be fitted for the work of catechists4 ,yielding to the exigency of circumstances1 ,i placed three of these1 ,amvama1 ,obiang1 and ,eyena1 in three principal towns to teach the people4 ,it was a mistake1 however1 and ,i soon recalled them4 ,during the next year ,i concentrated my efforts upon this class of catechists1 and meanwhile1 ,i visited these groups of ,christians as often as possible1 just to keep up their courage4 ,my catechists accompanied me in my itinerating1 and much of their training was in the actual work of preaching and teaching1 and in discussions and criticisms as we travelled between the towns4 ,but occasional and desultory teaching did not answer the needs of these new converts4 ,it was hard to keep them waiting2 for they had delivered up their fetishes1 and were helplessly asking1 8,what shall we do next80 ,i kept them waiting a whole year before ,i sent out the catechists4 ,those were strainful as well as joyful times1 and it was then that ,i received the name by which all the ,fang came to know me1 8,mote ,ke ,ye10--,man who doesn't sleep4 ,in one of my towns six persons who had professed their faith in ,christ became weary of waiting1 and went over to the ,roman ,catholics4 ,for a ,jesuit priest of the ,french mission had visited them1 and offered to teach them at once4 ,i need not say that it hurt to have the ,jesuits gather the harvest for which ,i had waited so long4 ,i should have welcomed their help if ,i believed that they had a real ,gospel for the people4 ,there were so many towns in which no missionary work whatever had been done that ,i had always been sufficiently courteous to pass by those towns where they were working1 and go on to those which were utterly heathen4 ,but the ,jesuits did not reciprocate this courtesy4 ,usually1 as soon as they heard that ,i had placed a catechist in a certain town1 they immediately sent one of their catechists to that same town4 ,a priest visited ,ayol1 where1 as ,i have said1 there were twenty-two ,christians4 ,he knew that they had been waiting long for instruction4 ,he first tried to impress upon them that baptism was necessary to salvation2 and he told them that the reason 8,mr4 ,milligan0 did not baptize them was that he was their enemy1 and was trying to keep them out of heaven4 ,then he said that he himself was willing to baptize them then and there1 and receive them into the church4 ,there were several shrewd men among the ,christians who kept them all loyal4 ,they said3 8,we are not ready to be baptized4 ,we have not been taught40 ,then the priest offered to stay there a week and teach them every day4 ,but they refused outright1 and said they would not be baptized by anybody but myself4 ,there were many strings to this man's fiddle4 ,when he went into a town where he perceived that there was a strong tie between the people and me1 he would assume a most friendly and even affectionate attitude towards me4 ,in one such town he found one of my catechists1 ,eyena1 who had a large class of thirty-one persons1 some of whom were only inquirers and not converts4 ,the priest told the people that he and ,i were the best of friends1 and that they ought to treat us both alike2 that this large class ought to divide into two parts1 and he would place a catechist there who would teach half of them4 ,they did not waver4 ,but finding that there were several men in the class who were not yet converts1 but inquirers1 and who were living in polygamy1 he at last told those men that if they would enter his class they could be ,christians without putting away their wives4 ,this inducement enticed four men out of the class4 ,he could the better take advantage of me because ,i made it a point never to refer to him among the people4 ,when ,i was once away for a health-change1 he visited one of my towns where there were sixteen newly converted ,christians4 ,with great enthusiasm he made the bold announcement that ,mr4 ,milligan had been converted to the ,roman ,catholic faith and that he had come to baptize them and receive them into the only true ,church4 ,they were staggered4 ,i do not know what might have happened had it not been for a certain man1 ,angona4 ,angona stepping forward1 said3 8,if ,mr4 ,milligan is a ,catholic we will all become ,catholics4 ,but we will only be baptized by him4 ,so we will wait until he comes40 ,despite this opposition this ,jesuit and myself always seemed to be good friends when we met4 ,one day ,i walked to an island town six miles away4 ,it was a new town2 the people had recently come from the bush4 ,the road1 being also new1 was very bad3 we sometimes waded in mud to our knees4 ,ndong ,koni called it ebol nzen--a rotten road4 ,while ,i was speaking to the people of the town1 on the subject of a future life1 endeavouring to awaken their interest by asking questions as to what they knew and believed regarding it1 ,i observed in the audience two persons1 a man and a woman1 wearing a ,roman crucifix1 and ,i addressed my question to them4 ,i found them quite as ignorant as any of the others4 8,most of us10 they said1 8have some belief in a future life2 but we really do not know40 8,for my part10 said the man1 8,i believe that death finishes everything40 ,pointing to the crucifix which he wore1 ,i asked him what it meant4 ,he replied3 8,this is a ,catholic fetish4 ,a priest came into this town when ,i was very sick and put this thing on me4 ,i suppose it is a health-fetish1 for ,i soon got well and ,i have not been sick since40 ,the woman was as ignorant as the man1 and they represent a large class who have been baptized and are wearing the crucifix without any idea of its meaning4 ,thus is the cross of ,christ degraded to the level of an ,african fetish4 ,i would not say1 however1 that this is the rule4 ,i am sure it is not4 ,the ,jesuits instil a certain idea of morality2 but it leaves much to be desired4 ,one day a girl who had just come from confession was quarrelling with a male cousin1 or more likely he was quarrelling with her1 when in reply to some scurrilous observation1 she said to him3 8,i would half kill you if ,i were not in a state of grace4 ,but you just wait60 ,time passed1 and ,i had five catechists in the field4 ,at last some of the catechumens were ready to be baptized4 ,then the church was organized at ,ayol1 with fourteen members4 ,they were not likely to confound the church of ,christ with any mere building made with hands2 for as yet there was no building4 ,we organized the church and held the first communion service in the street4 ,the second communion service was held in another town called ,makwena1 ,ndong ,koni's town1 where his uncle was chief4 ,the ,christians of ,makwena had built a beautiful chapel of bamboo1 with doors and windows on hinges4 ,ndong ,koni had worked in the yard at ,baraka in order to buy those doors and windows for the church4 ,illustration3 ,,three ,,fang ,,boys4 ,after several years in the school2 also among the first ,christians4 ,on the occasion of this second communion service ,i spent the preceding ,saturday in going to ,ayol and several other widely separated towns with the ,dorothy1 gathering the people for the service4 ,early ,sunday morning ,i pulled into ,makwena with sixty people in the launch1 on top of it1 and in a big canoe behind4 ,they were singing hymns1 and singing them beautifully1 for there were enough of my schoolboys there to take the parts4 ,between the hymns they occupied the time with the praises of ,dorothy1 the like of which1 for comfort and for speed1 they had never dreamed of4 ,upon our arrival a large number of people came down to welcome their fellow ,christians4 ,they wore more clothing than the whole town had formerly possessed4 ,these ,christians were of various tribes who in former times had been continually at war with each other4 ,and ,i could imagine such a company coming together and making the little river run red like crimson with each other's blood4 ,but now they were all saluting each other as1 8,brother0 and 8,sister02 and there was such hand-shaking and social palaver that it scarcely seemed possible there could be so much happiness in that land of cruelty and tears4 ,and as ,i reflected that these were but the first-fruits of a great harvest1 all the labour1 the trials1 the perils1 the sickness of the years that had passed seemed as nothing4 ,among those who were baptized that day ,i distinctly recall a certain old woman who had probably lived long enough to have experienced all the evils and the suffering of heathenism4 ,her face was almost beautiful with the light of joy that shone in her eyes4 ,her paltry garment was so scrappy and so scanty that ,i wondered whether there was enough of it to meet the requirements of propriety4 ,but when she came into the service she was dressed in a pure white robe that came up to her shoulders and reached to her feet1 and was held with a black sash4 ,i baptized thirty-seven persons and received several whom ,i had already baptized at ,baraka1 making in all fifty-five members in the ,ayol church at the end of that year2 and besides there were nearly two hundred catechumens4 ,all those whom ,i baptized had been on probation and under instruction for two years or more4 ,it was a long service1 but the time passed quickly for us all1 and more so because we sang many hymns4 ,at length we closed the service by repeating all together the ,lord's ,prayer3 8,tate wa a n' ey1 e jui die e bo ki4 ,ayo die nzak4 ,mam w' a nyege1 be boe mo e si ene1 ane b' a be ey4 ,vage bie biji bi a kge bie emu4 ,zamege bie mam ab bi a bo1 ane bi a zam ab bt b' a bo bie4 ,ke lte bie nzn meko4 ,kamege ne bie mt a n' a b4 ,togo na1 ne y' ayo1 ye ki1 y' wge1 mb mb1 ,amen40 ,a few mouths later ,i held a communion service in one of the up-river towns1 in which were gathered all the ,christians from the upper towns4 ,there ,i baptized sixty-five persons1 making in all one hundred and twenty members in the ,ayol ,church4 ,and1 besides1 there were nearly three hundred catechumens4 ,when ,i reflect on the kind of men and women that these ,christians are1 and consider the savages they might have been2 when ,i realize the surroundings of darkest ignorance1 revolting degradation and horrible cruelty in the midst of which they walk in ways of righteousness and truth2 when ,i think how rough that way is and how very dark the night of ,africa1 my heart goes out to them all in eager sympathy and solicitude4 ,may the 8kindly light0 of ,god's love1 seen in the face of ,his ,son1 shine more and more upon their path1 and lead them on 8o'er crag and torrent till the night be gone40 ,,the ,,end ,printed in the ,united ,states of ,america ,,light ,,on ,,the ,,great ,,war ,,james ,a4 ,,macdonald1 ,,ll4,d4 ,editor ,toronto ,globe ,the ,north ,american ,idea ,the ,cole ,lectures for #aiag4 #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4be4 ,the famous ,canadian editor enjoys an established and justly-earned reputation4 ,in trenchant and stirring phrase ,dr4 ,mc,donald discusses the growth and development of that spirit of liberty1 just government1 and freedom of individual action1 in the light of its relation to the ,great ,world ,war4 ,,edward ,,leigh ,,pell1 ,d4,d4 ,author of 8,troublesome ,religious ,questions0 ,what ,did ,jesus ,really ,teach ,about ,war8 #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4jj4 ,unquestionably war is a matter of conscience4 ,but in ,dr4 ,pell's opinion what ,america is suffering from just now is not a troubled conscience so much as an untroubled conscience4 ,that is why this book does not stop with clearing up troublesome questions4 ,,arthur ,j4 ,,brown1 ,d4,d4 ,author of 8,unity and ,missions10 8,the ,foreign ,missionary10 etc4 ,russia in ,transformation #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4jj4 ,years may pass before ,new ,russia will settle down to stability of life and administration4 ,meanwhile we may be helped to understand the situation and have a deeper sympathy with ,russian brethren1 if we study the conditions leading up to the ,revolution and mind ourselves of fundamental characteristics which will undoubtedly affect ,new ,russia regardless of the immediate outcome4 ,the book is most timely4 ,r4 ,a4 ,,torrey1 ,d4,d4 ,supt4 ,los ,angeles ,bible ,institute ,the ,voice of ,god in the ,present ,hour #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4be4 ,a new collection of sermons by the famous pastor-evangelist4 ,they contain stirring gospel appeals and also special messages or enheartenment for those who find themselves perplexed and bewildered by the war conditions existing in this and other lands4 ,,james ,m4 ,,gray1 ,d4,d4 ,dean of the ,moody ,bible ,institute1 ,chicago ,prophecy and the ,lord's ,return #abmo1 cloth1 net #ge;c4 ,what is the purpose of ,god in connection with the present international cataclysm4 ,does prophecy deal with the world to-day4 ,the author1 ,dean of the ,moody ,bible ,institute1 of ,chicago1 is well-known as a ,bible student and expositor1 whose writings find appreciation throughout the ,christian world4 ,dr4 ,grey's chapters have unusual interest at this time4 ,,missions ,,andrew ,f4 ,,hensey1 ,d4,d4 ,of the ,congo ,mission ,a ,master-,builder on the ,congo ,a ,memorial to the ,service and ,devotion of ,robert ,ray ,eldred and ,lillian ,byers ,eldred4 ,illustrated1 #abmo1 cloth1 net #ge;c4 ,a graphic and spirited record of the labors of those devoted missionaries to the ,congo1 ,robert ,ray ,eldred and his wife4 ,mr4 ,hensey displays his historical instinct1 and has been enabled to produce a book calculated to both find and retain a prominent place in contemporary missionary literature1 not only as the fascinating story of selfish and untiring service1 but as an informative work of reference concerning that part of the ,dark ,continent in which his subjects lived and labored4 ,,gertrude ,r4 ,,hance ,the ,zulu ,yesterday and ,to-,day ,twenty-five ,years in ,south ,africa4 ,introduction by ,edgar ,l4 ,vincent4 ,illustrated1 cloth1 net #a4be4 ,the author knows the ,land of the ,zulus1 as it was1 as it is to-day1 and what she knows she tells in a charming frank and interesting fashion4 ,due credit is given in this volume to civilization 7considered merely as such7 for the wonderful advance made in late years in the condition of the native tribesman of ,south ,africa2 yet there is nowhere any doubt in the mind of its author as to the ,gospel of ,christ having been the chief1 and primal cause of his uplifting4 ,,samuel ,,graham ,,wilson1 ,d4 ,d4 ,thirty-two ,years ,resident in ,persia ,modern ,movements ,among ,moslems #abmo1 cloth1 net1 #a4ej4 8,not often does there appear a more important work in a special department than this of ,dr4 ,wilson4 ,dr4 ,wilson's thirty-two years of residence in ,persia and his earlier studies in ,bahaism have prepared him for authoritative speaking here4 ,it constitutes an excellent argument against those who think of missionaries in petty terms4 ,here is the book of statesmanlike thinking40--,the ,continent4 ,s4 ,m4 ,,zwemer1 ,d4,d41 ,f4,r4,g4,s4 ,the ,disintegration of ,islam ,illustrated4 #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4be4 ,dr4 ,zwemer traces the collapse of ,islam as a political power in ,europe1 ,asia and ,africa1 as well as the inevitable effect the impact of ,western civilization has had1 and is still having1 on the countries over which it still holds sway4 ,all this tends to the final disintegration and overthrow of ,mohammedanism in fulfilment of a ,divine plan of preparedness for the evangelization of ,moslem lands4 ,,foreign ,,missions ,,arthur ,j4 ,,brown1 ,d4,d4 ,author of 8,the ,foreign ,missionary0 etc4 ,unity and ,missions ,can a ,divided ,church ,save the ,world8 #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4ej4 ,an able treatise1 reflecting the thorough knowledge and broad catholicity of its author4 ,dr4 ,brown writes of things he knows1 and presents a lucidly written1 often passionate appeal for unity in missionary endeavor4 ,there can be little doubt that this discussion will make a valuable addition to contemporary missionary literature4 ,,jesse ,,page ,judson1 the ,hero of ,burma ,the ,stirring ,life ,story of the ,first ,missionary to the ,burmese told for ,boys and ,girls4 ,illustrated1 #hvo1 cloth1 net #a4jj4 8,in this volume ,mr4 ,page tells for boys and girls the stirring life story of the first missionary to the ,burmese4 ,mr4 ,page's story is told in a way that will hold the interest of the reader to the very end4 ,there is not a dull page in the whole book4 ,it stirs the imagination and moves the heart40--,life of ,faith4 ,,alice ,m4 ,,pennell ,a ,hero of the ,afghan ,frontier ,the ,splendid ,life ,story of ,t4 ,l4 ,pennell1 ,m4,d41 ,b4,sc41 ,f4,r4,c4,s4 ,retold for ,boys and ,girls4 ,illustrated1 #hvo1 cloth1 net #a4jj4 8,of the many noble men who have helped to make the name of ,britain honored in ,north ,western ,india1 ,dr4 ,pennell1 of ,bannu1 holds a foremost place4 ,as a medical missionary among the wild border tribes1 his fearless courage1 his sympathy1 his self-sacrificing devotion1 gradually won their hearts40--,educational ,news4 ,,rev4 ,w4 ,,pakenham ,,walsh ,early ,heroes of the ,mission ,field ,new ,edition4 ,with ,frontispiece4 ,cloth1 net #ej;c4 8,dr4 ,walsh has not only carefully studied the records of ,christian life preserved by the best ,church historians1 but he has also reproduced in a form at once reliable1 instructive1 and interesting1 the diverse conditions and heroic endeavors for the furtherance of the kingdom of ,god that characterized different eras40--,christian4 ,,rev4 ,w4 ,,pakenham ,,walsh ,modern ,heroes of the ,mission ,field ,new ,edition4 ,with ,frontispiece4 ,cloth1 net #ej;c4 ,continuing his sketches of ,missionary ,heroes1 the author has chosen typical as well as representative pioneers of the nineteenth century such as3 ,henry ,martyn1 ,william ,carey1 ,adoniram ,judson1 ,robert ,morrison1 ,samuel ,marsden1 ,john ,williams1 ,william ,johnson1 ,john ,hunt1 ,allen ,gardiner1 ,alexander ,duff1 ,david ,livingstone1 ,bishop ,patteson4 ,,travel ,,and ,,description ,s4 ,,hall ,,young1 ,d4,d4 ,alaska ,days with ,john ,muir ,illustrated1 #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4jj4 ,men who knew ,john ,muir1 the explorer and naturalist1 counted that privilege as among the best life had to offer4 ,the author not only knew him but accompanied him on his journeys and exploration trips through the frozen country of ,alaska4 ,the book gives a graphic picture of this life1 which is full of thrills which a writer of fiction might well envy4 ,,francis ,e4 ,,clark1 ,d4,d4 ,the ,continent of ,opportunity ,the ,south ,american ,republics--,their ,history1 ,their ,resources1 ,their ,outlook4 ,new and ,revised ,edition4 ,profusely ,illustrated4 #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4ej4 ,a new edition of ,dr4 ,clark's vivid account of his ,south ,american journey1 which1 in view of the present interest in these tropics will meet an increased demand4 ,,samuel ,m4 ,,zwemer1 ,f4,r4,g4,s4 ,author of 8,arabia10 etc4 ,childhood in the ,moslem ,world ,illustrated1 #hvo1 cloth1 net #b4jj4 ,the author of 8,arabia1 the ,cradle of ,islam10 has written a plea for ,mohammedan childhood4 ,the illustrations1 made from a remarkable collection of photographs1 are profuse and of splendid quality4 ,the claims of millions of children living and dying under the blighting influence of ,islam are set forth with graphic fidelity4 ,both in text and illustrations1 ,dr4 ,zwemer's new book covers much ground hitherto lying untouched in ,mohammedan literature4 ,,herbert ,,pitts ,children of ,wild ,australia ,childrens' ,missionary ,series4 #abmo1 cloth1 ,illustrated1 colors1 net #fj;c4 ,a new volume of the familiar ,childrens' ,missionary ,series4 ,it deals with the uncivilized portion of ,australia1 and like the other volumes in the ,series1 it is written by one who knows how to tell a story that will both entertain and instruct children4 8,,the ,,stranger ,,within ,,our ,,gates0 ,,edward ,a4 ,,steiner ,author of 8,on the ,trail of the ,immigrant0 ,introducing the ,american ,spirit #abmo1 cloth1 net #a4jj4 ,a series of pilgrimages undertaken by an educated ,european and the author1 in search of the real ,american ,spirit4 ,professor ,steiner presents an able analysis of what he conceives that spirit to be and how it finds manifestation in aspiration and ideal1 and of how it is revealed and expressed in its attitude to certain pressing national and international problems4