vomiting, but no lasting effects other than a headache 
which normally lasted for several hours after the test. 
There were a number of variable factors which influ- 
enced the outcome of each ordeal. Primary among these 
was the inherent physical condition of each participant. 
If his digestive system were sensitive, the poison imme- 
diately irritated it to the point of causing him to vomit, 
thus saving him. However, if he were strong, robust, 
and had a good digestion, the poison probably was re- 
tained, bringing death. Even if this unfortunate did re- 
cover, the negative verdict of the ordeal was sufficient 
to warrant a sentence of death in some other fashion. An 
equally important factor in determining the outcome of 
the test was the degree of corruption of the medicine 
man in charge. It was possible for him to influence the 
results ina number of ways, such as regulating the num- 
ber of beans, using the more poisonous mature beans, or 
altering the method of preparation to increase the con- 
centration and hence the toxicity of the poison. How- 
ever, as might not be expected, a large number of beans 
was not necessarily more toxic than a smaller number, 
for the greater amount of poison would usually irritate 
the lining of the stomach and cause rejection of the poi- 
son before it had reached a fatal concentration in the 
blood. The maximum number of beans which have been 
eaten without fatality in a single ordeal is listed as 35. 
Often, if the witch doctor were the accuser, both he and 
the accused had to take the test. 
The ordeal by Calabar Bean, in addition to being used 
on criminals and sorcerers, was often given to warriors to 
test their fitness, and to children to see if they were go- 
ing to grow up into virtuous, brave, and capable people. 
The bean was administered either in the natural state 
or as an infusion in water. Boiling this water decreased 
the toxicity. 
[ 309 | 
