BANTU NEGROES 



743 



and their warfare was 

 almost entirely defensive 

 and inter-tribal, this last 

 taking the form of a 

 Corsican vendetta. If one 

 man murdered another, 

 he took care to flee as 

 fast as he could to the 

 country of another clan, 

 since he would have been 

 promptly waylaid and 

 despatched by the rela- 

 tions of his victim if 

 he remained in his own 

 district. If this had been 

 done, the incident was 

 regarded as closed ; but, 

 supposing the murderer 

 to have run away and 

 to have remained out of 

 reach, the friends and 

 relations of the dead man 

 took no further steps to 

 avenge him — rather, in 

 fact, allowed the matter 

 to fall into oblivion. 

 They waited for the sons 

 of the fugitive (assuming 

 the murderer to have run 

 away before his boys had 

 attained manhood) to grow 

 up. When the eldest of 

 these reached the age of 

 puberty he would be 

 waylaid, and either speared 

 or beaten to death with 

 clubs. Should the 

 murderer, however, leave grown-up sons, there might still be a little delay 

 in striking the return blow; but eventually one of these would be 

 selected for killing as a close to the vendetta. 



When a man has killed an enemy in warfare he shaves his head on his 

 return home, and his friends rub ••medicine" (generally the dung of goats) 

 VOL. II. 18 



399- 



WARRIORS AND 



