XOSA ARTS AND CRAFTS. 44/ 



skinning, and all thicknesses and roughnesses of the hide 

 itself, till the roots of the hairs began to appear. This was done 

 with the hatchet, isi-.vciigxc, and was a hard day's work for two 

 men. What was scraped oil was sometimes cooked and eaten as 

 a delicacy, sometimes made up into a hard ball, called imbiimba 

 yamanyania. ' a btuidle of bits of meat," and a symbol of the 

 strength of the union, and made into snutf-hoxes, i-qaiia. and the 

 like. ' 



The hide, now called iiiii-palaiic. ' the scra])ed,' was next taken 

 in hand by the women, who acted as fullers or curriers, aba-sitki. 

 Receiving it front the hands of the scrapers dry and ready, they 

 moistened it, trampled it with their feet, nxasha. rubbed it with a 

 rough boulder of granite or dolerite, i-nyengaiic, then stretclied 

 it out on the ground and scratched, riverwa, and rubbed, kiilila, 

 it with the dry leaves of a species of aloe, um-hlaba, which are 

 furnished with sharp little teeth, so as to bring the surface to a 

 woolly or fibrous condition. It was then hung up in a warm 

 place in the hut to dry. When dry, the surface was saturated 

 with old sour milk and again scratched and brayed with aloe 

 leaves, in doing w'hich the whole female population of the place 

 would help. When dry, it was again trampled and ruljbed till it 

 was soft and smooth, then smeared with fat on the hair-side, 

 rolled together, and tied into a tight bundle. The next day it was 

 again rubbed so that the fat might penetrate, again moistened 

 with warm water, and again rubbed with aloe leaves. When it 

 began to dry. it was for the fourth time treated with the aloe 

 leaves till it was quite woolly and soft. This smooth, woolly 

 surface was called the nap, um-hlapo. The edges, ing-qoto, were 

 now cut away, the hide once more trodden and rubbed, and it was 

 now ready for sewing. 



According to the size of the hide three or four pieces were 

 cut out of it. These were narrower at one end than at the other, 

 as the robe was made narrow at the shoulders and gradually in- 

 creased in width towards the bottom. The pieces were sewn 

 together with thread, nm-sonto, made of the tendons, um-sundulo , 

 of the ox's shoulder-blade, with the help of the lx>dkin or needle 

 already described. When the sewing was finished the robe was 

 damped and spread out so that the seams might be drawn tight. 

 It was then rubbed with the hands, smeared wdth fat, and dyed 

 to a black colour, gcaha. with a dye, which was made by burning 

 the rotten heartwood, i-hiba, of certain trees to a powder. The 

 finished robe was now called igcahe. The robe took altogether 

 two or three weeks hard work to make. The hair-side was worn 

 next to the skin. 



Women's hats, i)ni-iiq-a'aci, were made of four ])ieces of the 

 skin of the bushbuck, im-babala. After being duly fulled or 

 curried, three of the skins were sewn together into a form of 

 sack, open above and below. This sack was folded in the middle. 

 so that one-hajf formed a flap hanging; down the back of the head. 

 Out of the fourth skin a long sash, four inches broad, was cut 

 and fastened to the side of the hat. After sewine. the hat was 



