GROTESQUE HEAD-DRESSES.--CURIOUS FASHIONS IN TEETH.--A VENERABLE
GRANITE BOULDER.--INTERIOR OF A HUT.--A WARLIKE RACE OF
SAVAGES.--GIVING THEM AN ELECTRIC SHOCK.
HOW strange were those Ishogos! They were unlike all the other savages
I met. What a queer way to arrange their hair! It requires from
twenty-five to thirty years for an Ishogo woman to be able to build
upon her head one of their grotesque head-dresses. The accompanying
pictures will show you how they look. But you will ask how they can
arrange hair in such a manner. I will tell you: A frame is made, and
the hair is worked upon it; but if there is no frame, then they use
grass-cloth, or any other stuffing, and give the shape they wish to the
head-dress. A well-known hair-dresser, who, by the way, is always a
female, is a great person in an Ishogo village, and is kept pretty busy
from morning till afternoon. It takes much time to work up the long
wool on these negroes' heads, but, when one of these heads of hair, or
_chignons_, is made, it lasts for a long time--sometimes for two or
three months--without requiring repair. I need not tell you that after
a few weeks the head gets filled with specimens of natural history. The
Ishogo women use a queer comb: it is like a sharp-pointed needle from
one to eighteen inches in length, and, when the insects bite, the point
is applied with vigor.
[Illustration: HORIZONTAL CHIGNON.]
[Illustration: VERTICAL CHIGNON.]
[Illustration: MALE HEAD-DRESS.]
[Illustration: OBLIQUE CHIGNON.]
A great quantity of palm oil is used in dressing the hair, and, as the
natives never wash their heads, the odor is not pleasant. When a woman
comes out with a newly-made _chignon_, the little Ishogo girls exclaim,
"When shall I be old enough to wear one of these? How beautiful they
are!"
Every morning, instead of taking a bath, the Ishogos rub themselves
with oil, mixed with a red dye made from the wood of a forest tree.
All the people have their two upper middle incisor teeth taken out,
with the two middle lower ones, and often the four upper incisors are
all extracted. They think they look handsome without front teeth. Their
bodies are all tattooed. Their eyebrows are shaved at intervals of a
few days, and their eyelashes are also pulled out from time to time.
Many who can afford it wear round the neck a loose ring of iron of
the size of a finger, and if they are rich they wear on their ankles
and wrists three or four loose iron or copper rings, with which they
make music when they dance. Not an Ishogo woman has her ears pierced
for ear-rings. This is extraordinary, for all savages seem fond of
ear-rings.
The days passed pleasantly while I was in the village of Mokenga. I
loved the villagers, and, besides, the country was beautiful. The
mountains were lovely; the streams of clear water were abundant; around
the village were immense groves of plantain-trees, in the midst of
which, giant-like, rose gracefully a great number of palm-trees; the
lime-trees were covered with ripe yellow limes; wild Cayenne pepper
grew every where; and back of all stood the great tall trees of the
forest, with their dark foliage, and with creepers hanging down from
their branches, while underneath the trees was the thick jungle, into
which man could hardly penetrate. All was romantic and wonderful.
Not far from the village stood a very large solitary boulder of
granite. How did it come there? The people looked at the huge stone
with veneration. They said a spirit brought it there long, long ago.
This boulder stood by the path leading to the spring which supplied
the villagers with drinking water, and the women of the village were
constantly going with their calabashes to get the cool water. When I
ascended the hill in returning from my walks, I was fond of stopping to
rest upon this boulder, and it was a perpetual wonder to me.
But one day there was a great excitement in Mokenga. The people would
go toward the boulder, and then come back with a frightened aspect,
and look toward my hut apparently in great fear. Indeed, they were so
alarmed that they fled from me when I looked at them. The Oguizi, they
said, had got up from his slumber during the night, and had gone to the
boulder, and taken it upon his shoulders and moved it away; for all
said it was not in the same place that it had formerly occupied. "How
strong is the Oguizi!" they said; "he can move mountains!" During the
day they came, covered with the chalk of the alumbi, and danced around
my hut while I was in the forest, shouting, "Great Oguizi, do not be
angry with us!"
The hut which the Mokenga people gave me was quite a sight. The
furniture of an Ishogo house is unique, and I am going to give you an
inside view of it.
My own house was twenty-one feet long and eight feet wide. In the
middle there was a door, with twelve carved round spots, painted black;
the outside ring was painted white, and the background was red. The
door was twenty-seven inches in height. The house had three rooms,
and from the roof were suspended great numbers of baskets and dishes
of wicker-work, made from a kind of wild _rotang_. Baskets and dishes
constitute a part of the wealth of an Ishogo household, and great
numbers of them are given to the girls when they marry. Hung to the
roof were also large quantities of calabashes which had been hardened
by the smoke. A large cake of tobacco had also been hung up, and all
around were earthen-ware pots and jars, used for cooking purposes,
with cotton bags, several looms, spears, bows, arrows, battle-axes,
and mats.
[Illustration: AFRICAN GOAT, CHICKEN, PARROT, AND IDOL.]
The Ishogos and I gradually became very friendly. We had many nice
talks together, and I heard strange tales, and more stories about the
Dwarfs.
"Yes," said the Ishogos, "but a little while ago there was a settlement
of the Dwarfs not far from Mokenga, but they have moved, for they are
like the antelope; they never stay long at the same place."
"You are in the country of the Dwarfs, Oguizi," they continued; "their
villages are scattered in our great forest, where they move from place
to place, and none of us know where they go after they leave."
An Ashango man was in Mokenga on a visit while I staid there. An
Ishogo had married his daughter. He, too, said that there were many
settlements of Dwarfs in his country, and he promised that I should
see them when I went there. The name of his village is Niembouai, and
he said he should tell his people that we were coming; for the Ishogos
were to take me there, and leave me in the hands of the Ashangos, who,
in their turn, were to take me, as the Ishogos often say, where my
heart led me.
After a very pleasant time in Mokenga, we left that place for the
Ashango country, inhabited by the new people who were said by the
Ishogos to speak the same language as the Aponos. The villagers had
begun to love me, for I had given them many things; having too much
luggage, I was rather generous with them, and had given the women great
quantities of beads. There was great excitement in Mokenga before we
left, and, as my Ishogo porters, headed by Mokounga, took up their
loads, the people were wild with agitation.
During the day we crossed a mountain called Migoma, and saw Mount
Njiangala. From Migoma I could see the country all around. As far as
my eye could reach I saw nothing but mountains covered with trees.
"There," said the Ishogos to me, "live gorillas, chimpanzees, Dwarfs,
elephants, and all kinds of wild beasts."
The traveling was hard, but on we went, still toward the east, and
before dark of the first day we came to a mountain called Mouïda. At
its base was a beautiful stream called Mabomina. We encamped for the
night, all feeling very tired. We had to keep watch carefully over our
fires, for leopards were plentiful. The next morning we started, glad
to get out of the haunts of these animals, which had been prowling
around our camp all night.
After some severe traveling we arrived at the bank of a river called
Odiganga. After crossing the stream we came upon a new tribe of wild
Africans called the Ashangos. There was a scream of fear among them
when I made my appearance; but the Ishogos cried out, "Ashango, do not
be afraid; we are with the Oguizi." I could see at a glance that the
Ashangos were a warlike race. The village was called Magonga, meaning
"spear." Back of it was a mountain, towering high in the air, called
Madombo. We spent the night in the village, and after leaving it we had
an awful task in ascending Mount Madombo. The path was so steep that we
had to aid ourselves by using the bushes and creepers hanging from the
trees. It was all we could do to succeed. I would not have liked any
fighting at that spot.
On our journey we found that these wild Ashangos were very numerous in
these mountains. Village after village was passed by us in the midst
of a profound silence, sometimes broken by the people who had heard of
our approach, and were hiding themselves in their huts. At other times,
after we had passed, they would shout, "The Oguizi has black feet and a
white face!" (They thought my boots were my own skin.) "He has no toes!
What queer feet the Oguizi has!"
My seven Commi were perfectly delighted with their journey; our
misfortunes were forgotten.
After a long journey over the mountains and through a wild region,
we came at last to the village of Niembouai. I was glad to reach it,
for there seemed to be no dry season in that part of the world. It
rains all the year round. The people, though shy, did not run away,
but were very difficult of approach. Our Ashango friend, whom we had
met at Mokenga, had done his best to allay their fears, and he and a
deputation of the Niembouai had come to Magonga to meet us, and to take
us to their own country. So every thing was ready for my reception.
When I reached Niembouai the best house of the village was given to me.
It belonged to the elder who had seen me at Mokenga, and who claimed
the right to have me as his guest.
The next day after my arrival the supposed chief came. I had no way of
knowing if he was the true chief. A grand palaver was held, and I gave
presents of beads, trinkets, etc., to him and to forty-three elders,
and to the queen and other women. After the presents had been given I
thought I would show them my power, and ordered guns to be fired. This
filled them with fear. "He holds the thunder in his hand!" they said.
"Oh, look at the great Oguizi! look at his feet! look at his hair!
look at his nose! Look at him! Who would ever have thought of such a
kind of oguizi, for he is so unlike other oguizis?"
[Illustration: SHOCKING THE ASHANGOS.]
After the excitement was over I told the Ashangos to keep still. I then
went into my hut and brought out a Geneva musical box of large size,
and when I touched the spring it began to play. I moved off. A dead
silence prevailed. By instinct the Ashangos moved off too, and a circle
was formed by them around the box. They all listened to "the spirit,"
to "the devil that was inside of that box" talking to me. Fear had
seized upon them. I walked away. They stood like statues, not daring to
move a step. They were spell-bound.
After a few moments I took the box back into my hut, and brought out a
powerful electric battery. Then I ordered the forty-three elders and
the king to come and stand in a line. They came, but were evidently
awed. The people dared not say a word. Every thing being ready, I told
them to hold the ninety feet of conducting wire. "Hold hard!" I cried.
The people looked at the old men with wonder, and could not understand
how they dared to hold that charmed string of the Oguizi. The Ishogos,
my guides, were themselves bewildered, for they had not seen this thing
in their village. My Commi men did not utter a word, but their faces
were as long as if they never had seen any thing.
"Hold on!" I repeated; "do not let the string go out of your hands." I
then gave a powerful continuous shock. The arms of the elders twisted
backward against their will, and their bodies bent over; but they still
held the wire, which, indeed, now they had not the power to drop. Their
mouths were wide open; their bodies trembled from the continuous
electric shock; they looked at me and cried "Oh! oh! oh! Yo! yo! yo!" I
had really given a too powerful shock. The people fled.
In an instant all was over. I stopped the current of electricity. The
wire fell from the elders' hands, and they looked at me in perfect
bewilderment. The people came back. The elders explained their electric
sensation, and then a wild hurra and a shout went up. "There is not
another great oguizi like the one in our village," was the general
exclamation; and they came and danced around me, and sang mbuiti songs,
bending their bodies low, and looking at me in the face as if I had
been one of their idols. "Great Oguizi, do not be angry with us," they
cried repeatedly.
"Don't be afraid, Ashangos," I said. I then ordered my men to fire
their guns again, and, to add to the noise, our dogs began to bark; so
that, with the barking, the shouting, the firing, and the beating of
drums by the natives, Niembouai was very lively for a few minutes.
"Come again!" shouted the Ishogos. "The Oguizi we brought to you has
more things to show you." Then I came out with a powerful magnet, which
held many of the implements of iron used by the Ashangos. Up and down
went the knives; the magnet sometimes held them by the end, sometimes
by the blade. The people were so afraid of the magnet that not one of
them dared to touch it when I asked them to do so.
That night I hung a large clock under the piazza, and the noise it made
frightened the Ashangos very much.
My power was established. The electric battery had been effective.
How droll the sight was when they received the shock! You would have
laughed heartily if you could have seen them.
[Illustration]