LIBEKIA. 



268 



Locality. 



County of Mesurado 



North of the Vai 



North of the Bandi 



Beyond the Kisi people 



Beyond the Buzi, stretching over to the northwestern and 

 northern parts of the Republic 



Behind the De people, along the St. Pauls River at the back of 

 Monrovia 



North and east of the Gora people 



Beyond the Kpvvesi, to the west and north, are the Buzi (al- 

 ready mentioned) and the tribe known as 



To the north of the Bere 



On the coast, beyond the De people of Monrovia, begins the 

 big tribe of Basa people, and farther inland the 



South of the Basa group, along the coast from the northern 

 limits of Sino County to the Kavalli River, are the 



Behind the Kru coast are the 



Behind the Grebo, in the Kavalli region (Maryland County).. 



Approximate total of indigenous negro population of 

 Liberia. 



Name of tribe. 



Vai 



De 



Bandi 



Kisi 



Buzi 



Mandiugo 



Gora 



Kpwesib 



Bere, or Bele 



Gizima and Buni 



Basa Gibi o 



Kru tribes (i 



Putu people e 



Kelipo 



Approximate 

 numbers. 



100,000 



10, 000 



200,000 



1.50,000 



r)0, 000 



a 300, UOO 



150, 000 

 250, 000 



50,000 

 30,000 



200, 000 



« It is probable that the total population of the various Mandingo tribes considerably 

 exceeds this estimate, which is arrived at by putting together the computations of each 

 separate branch as given to me by its representatives at Monrovia. The proper pronun- 

 ciation of the well-known tribal name Mandingo appears to be " Mauding'a." or 

 " Mading"a." They are a race that will play a very notable part in the development of 

 West Africa. The whole of this tribe, which populates the hinterland of Liberia, parts 

 of Sierra Leone, and the southern part of the French " Sudan," must number one or 

 two millions. Their language is harmonious in sound and simple and logical in con- 

 struction, therefore easily acquired. They are Mohammedans to a very great extent, 

 only a few branches in the Liberian hinterland remaining pagan. In consequence they 

 dress picturesquely and suitably, like the majority of Mohammedanized Africans in the 

 Niger Basin and the nOTthern Sudan, with wide breeches, voluminous tobes, and fezes, 

 or round skullcaps. They are a fine-looking race as regards physical development, and 

 their physiognomy reveals the secret of their power, namely, the slight infusion of 

 Caucasian blood. They are, in fact, the result of an early intermingling of the Berber 

 from the Sahara Desert with the negroes of the Niger Basin. They are a very indus- 

 trious people, with a remarkable feeling for art, which is at present confined to elaborate 

 leatherwork and the shaping of picturesque garments. The principal divisions of the 

 Mandingo race in the hinterland of Liberia — proceeding from west to east — are the fol- 

 lowing : Boporo, Kwang'a, INIwela, and Dukwira. Their towns are nearly always sur- 

 rounded by clay walls, the architecture of which, judging from such photographs as I 

 have seen, is strongly reminiscent of the towns of Nigeria. 



* This is the race named on most maps in the incorrect orthography " Pessy." It 

 knows itself as Gbele, but for some reason is called by most of the surrounding tribes 

 Kpwesi, which, on various grounds, is the most convenient name. A portion of the 

 Kpwesi race is known as the Gbwalin, a name that appears incorrectly on our maps as 

 " Barline." 



'' Behind the Basa and (iibi peoples one comes again to the great Kpwesi tribe. 



"* The Kru tribes may be divided up under the following designations, but all the peo- 

 ple included under these names do not extend farther into the interior than about 60 

 miles from the coast : 



Sino people 75, 000 



Sikong (beyond the Sino) 100,000 



Kru people proper (including all isolated colonies of Krumen elsewhere in 



Liberia) 140, 000 



Grebo people 00, 000 



" The Putu people seem to include the following subdivisions or separate tribes : Tatue, 

 Nyapo, Pete, Tuo, and Gireo. 



