792 NILOTIC NEGROES 



in order to kill him. If a person is thought to be bewitched, the medicine 

 man concerned is caught and forced to remove the spell, afterwards being 

 punished by a fine. This kind of witchcraft, however, is not thought to 

 be very serious. There is a deeper magic called "jamkingo." Amongst 

 the Gemi tribe this is practised by the blacksmiths. It is of the nature 

 of a secret society, and no doubt means secret poisoning. They have a 

 form of ordeal called "kiviri." A small pot of water is placed on the fire. 

 A little " wimbi " flour and a bit of " medicine " are put into the water. 

 If the water boils over, the man is guilty; if not, he is innocent. Another 

 ordeal is as follows : A gourd basin with a large hole cut in the bottom is 

 placed on a flat stone. Water is then poured into the calabash, the bottom 

 of which being, of course, not close-fitting to the stone, would permit ordinarily 

 of a leakage. But the medicine man who attends puts into the bottom 

 of the calabash crushed-up leaves of a kind of mimosa which, for a time 

 at least, stop the leakage and enable the calabash to be filled up with 

 water, the retention of the water by the calabash proving the man to be 

 innocent. Another ordeal is arranged in this way : Dry flour is given to the 

 suspected person. • If innocent, he can swallow it ; if he is unable to 

 moisten the flour with his saliva and swallow it, he is shown to be guilty. 



As regards omens : If a bird sings on the left-hand side as a man 

 is starting on a journey, the journey, if for war. will be unlucky ; but if 

 it be merely a peaceful visit, it will be a fortunate one. If the bird sings 

 on the right-hand side, it is a good omen for war, but a bad one for an 

 ordinary visit. If a cat crosses the road from right to left, it is a good 

 omen ; if from left to right, bad. If a rat is seen on the road, and it 

 runs along the road ahead of the man, it is a good omen ; but if it crosses 

 the road from one side to the other, it is an unlucky sign. If on a 

 journey a man strikes the little toe of either foot, it is a very bad sign ; 

 if he strikes the big toe, it is propitious. If the eldest child cf a man 

 is a boy, and the man sets out to travel, it will be an unlucky sign if 

 the first person he meets is also a man. On the other hand, if his eldest 

 child is a girl, and he meets a woman when he starts on a journey, that 

 is likewise a bad sign. They profess to be able to foretell events by 

 divining, and the divination is exercised on the entrails of an ox or sheep. 

 They are a good deal given to prophesying. The chief Odua when quite 

 a lad prophesied the coming of the white man, and this at a time when 

 no white man had entered the country. They believe in rain-makers. 



On the occasion of a birth the infant, if a boy, is kept inside the house 

 for four days; if a girl, for three days. When a birth takes place, the 

 female neighbours attend, and a goat is killed for the mother and the 

 other women. No man is allowed in the hut until three or four days 

 have elapsed. The father of the child does not eat or sleep again in the 



