82 PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS SECTIOX E. 



The cliiei, aiitl queens and their children are all represented by 

 the various astragali of that domestic animal. 



As regards wild animals, sets of different diviners vary 

 very much. However, one will always find the diiyker, the 

 grey antelope which steals sweet potatoes in the fields at 

 night. It represents the wizards, who are also, supposed to 

 accomplish their bad deeds Avhen it is dark. The wild boar 

 has many significations. It means the doctor, the medicine 

 man who digs the earth to find his medicinal roots, as the 

 ]>ig when it searches tlie ground for food with its snout. 

 It also means the spirits of the deceased, as wild boars are 

 dwelling in the sacred wood where the ancestors were buried. . 

 By extension, this astragalus also means the old people who 

 are soon to be promoted to the dignity of gods. The baboon 

 represents the permanence of the village, because people say 

 baboons never move from the cave where they dwell. 



The leopard means rich joeople who feast on meat every 

 day; whilst hyena means the counsellors, all the legion of 

 fiatterers who follow the chief and eat what he gives them, 

 the chief himself being the lion and being rejDresented by the 

 phalanx of one of the toes of the king of animals. 



A curious bone in the set of one of my informants was 

 the astragalus of an imjDala antelope, discovered by him in 

 the stools of a hyena — a wonderful finding, indeed. It meant 

 the ancestor god, because the deceased forefather also had 

 been swallowed by the earth and he reappeared to bless or 

 to kill. 



The malumbi is a special astragalus taken from a little 

 red anteloj)e, and plays a great part in the set as lepresenting 

 everything that is violent, which is spreading blood, the 

 mysterious power of Heaven, the enemies, and occasionally 

 white people. 



Besides these astragali, there are quite a number of other 

 bones or of various objects in the diviner's basket. Pieces 

 of the carapace of a tortoise when falling on the favourable 

 side represent the peace of the village, like a tortoise walking 

 slowly and comfortably under the rays of the sun; everybody 

 perspires agreeably. 



Sea shells : The Oliva represents male attributes, military 

 courage ; whilst the Cyprea means the feminine attributes — 

 IDots, kitchen, baskets, and also pregnancy. AVhen showing 

 its opening, Cyprea indicates the open mouth, either laughter 

 or cries. 



Two stones of an abnormal form of the fruit of the 

 nkanye or marula tree represent the vegetable world, trees, 

 medicines, etc., and one always meets with two or more real 

 black stones foimd in the stomach of the crocodile (which 

 is said to swallow one each year). They represent darkness, 

 misfortune, accident, or the contrary, according to the way 

 they fall. 



These are the principal pieces of the divinatory set. There 

 are generally two of each kind, one male and one female. 

 The diviner takes them in his hands, spits on them to give 



