Chap. IX. WITCHCRAFT ORDEAL. 173 



disease after I had left. I had succeeded in prevent- 

 ing the news from spreading in Mayolo, for my men 

 had the good sense never to say a word about any- 

 thing that might retard my progress; but it filled 

 me with grief to think that I should be thought to 

 bring nothing but death to so many poor, kind- 

 hearted people. 



The "finding out" or trial in the witchcraft case 

 came off on the 27th of April ;* Mayolo being con- 

 vinced that neither himself, his w^ife, nor his nephew, 

 would have been ill if some one were not bewitching 

 them, and seeking to cause their death. A cele- 

 brated doctor had been sent for from a distance, and 

 appeared in the morning decked out in the most fan- 

 tastic manner. Half his body was painted red and 

 the other half white, his face was daubed with streaks 

 of black, white, and red, and of course he wore around 

 his neck a great quantity of fetiches. The villagers 

 were assembled and the doctor had commenced his 

 divinations when I arrived at the place, a witness 

 once again of this gloomy ceremony, which was dif- 

 ferent from that of the Commi people seen formerly 

 by me, as related in ' Adventures in Equatorial 

 Africa.' The doctor counterfeited his voice when 

 speaking, in order to impress on the people a due 

 sense of his supernatural powers of divination ; all 

 the painting, dressing and mummery have the same 

 object in view, namely to strike awe into the minds 

 of the people. A black earthenware vessel filled 

 with water, and surrounded by charmed ochre and 



* This ordeal — the pona oganga of the Commi — is here called oyambif 

 or oyambe. 



