Chap. XIII. VILLAGE OF MOKABA. 259 



several houses are connected so as to form a square, 

 with a common yard or garden in the middle, in which 

 grow magnificent palm-trees. Behind the houses, 

 too, are very frequently groups of plantain and lime- 

 trees. The village being thus composed of a series 

 of small quadrangles and back-gardens containing 

 trees with beautiful foliage, the whole effect is very 

 charming. In the rear of the houses, amidst the 

 plantain-groves, they keep their goats, fowls, and 

 pigs. This was the only village where I saw tame 

 pigs. I was struck with the regularity of the main 

 street ; but, besides this, there was another narrower 

 street on each side of the village, lying betw^een the 

 backs of the houses and the plantain-groves, and 

 kept very neat and closely-weeded. Each house has 

 in front a verandah, or little open space without 

 ^all, occupying half the length of the house ; the 

 other half, in equal portions on each side, forms 

 apartments in which the owners sleep and keep their 

 little property. When a man marries, he imme- 

 diately builds a house for his new wife ; and, as the 

 family increases, other houses are built ; the house 

 of each wife being kept separate. The palm-trees 

 in the quadrangles are the property of the chief 

 man of each group of houses ; and, being A^aluable 

 property, pass on his death to his heir, the next 

 brother or the nephew, as in other tribes. Some of 

 these palm-trees tower up to a height of 50 feet, and 

 have a singular appearance in the palm-wine season 

 from being hung, beneath the crown, with hollowed 

 gourds receiving the precious liquor. 



