academy of sciences SURVEY OF MATERIAL AND SOCIOLOGICAL CULTURE 23 



himself invisible are matters of general belief. In his character as a priest, he performs cere- 

 monies for the cure of diseases in which fluxes of blood occur. 



Methods of warfare. — There is no military organization in Man6boland. The greater part 

 of those who form a war party are relatives of the aggrieved one, though it is usual to induce 

 some others of acknowledged prowess to take part. No resentment is harbored by the oppos- 

 ing party toward paid warriors. 



Vendettas and debts are the most usual cause of war, and not, as has been reported, glory 

 and the capture of slaves. There is never wanting on the part of those who originate the war a 

 reasonable motive. The vendetta system is not only recognized, but vengeance is considered 

 incumbent on the relatives of one who has been lolled, and, as a reminder, a piece of green rattan 

 is sometimes strung up in the house. The rattan suggests that until it rots the wrong will not 

 be forgotten. If the father is unable to avenge the wrong, he bequeathes the revenge to his 

 son as a sacred legacy. Sometimes another person is deputed to take vengeance, in which 

 case no blame is attached to him. 



The peculiar custom prevails of killing a third party who may be neutral, or of seizing his 

 property, but I have known such an act to be resented. As a result of this custom a war party 

 returning from an unsuccessful raid is dangerous. 



There is usually no formal declaration of war. In fact, the greatest secrecy is generally 

 observed, and in urgent cases a body of ambushers proceed at once to kill the first one of the 

 enemy that happens to pass their lurking place. As a rule, the enemy's house and his actions 

 are watched for weeks, perhaps for years, until a favorable opportunity for attack presents 

 itself. 



The usual times for undertaking an expedition are during the rice harvest and after a deatn. 

 The preparation consists in acquiring a thorough knowledge of the enemy's house and of its 

 environment. Everything being ready, the warriors assemble, a sacrifice is made, omens are 

 taken, and the band starts out at such an hour as will enable them to reach the vicinity of the 

 enemy about nightfall. From the last stopping point a few warriors make a final reconnais- 

 sance in the gloom of the night, release the enemy's traps, and return. The whole band, 

 numbering anywhere from 10 to 100, advance and, surrounding the house, await the dawn, for 

 it is at the first blush of the morning that sleep is supposed to be heaviest. Moreover, there is 

 then sufficient light to enable the party to make the attack. Hence the peep of dawn is almost 

 always the hour of attack. 



If the enemy's house is within spear reach, it is usually an easy matter to put the inmates to 

 death, but if it is a high house, and, especially, if the inmates are well prepared, a warrior climbs 

 up silently under the house and spears one of them. This, followed by the killing of pigs and by 

 the battle cry, usually causes consternation. A battle of arrows then takes place; there is a 

 bandying of fierce threats, taunts, and challenges, and the attacking party endeavors to set the 

 roof on fire with burning arrows. If they succeed the inmates flee from the flames, but only the 

 children, as a rule, escape the bolo and the spear. 



It is seldom that the attack is prolonged more than a few hours, and it is seldom that the 

 attack is unsuccessful, for if other means fail, hunger and thirst will drive the besieged ones to 

 flight, in which case they become the victims of the besieging warriors. If one of the latter is 

 wounded or killed, the attack is abandoned atonce,such an occurrence being considered extremely 

 inauspicious. 



Each warrior gets credit for the number of people whom he kills, and is entitled to the slaves 

 that he may capture. The warrior chiefs open the breasts of one or more of the headmen of 

 the slain, insert a portion of their charm collars into the openings, and consume the heart and 

 liver in honor of their war spirits. 



During the return home the successful warriors make the forest resound with the weird 

 ululation of the battle cry, and adorn their lances with palm fronds. Upon arrival at their 

 settlement they are welcomed with drum and song and loud acclaim. A purificatory bath is 

 followed by a feast in which each one recounts the minutest details of the attack. After the 



