364 



THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND 



universally; and cannibalism exists only as a 

 religious rite, as when the heart of a brave 

 enemy is eaten in order that his courage 

 may be inherited. Traces of moon-worship 

 are recorded by Ellis; while totemism, which 

 is widely distributed in Africa, is strongly 

 developed. The Tshi people are divided into 

 families, named after some animal or plant; 

 there are the Leopard Family, Bush-cat 

 Family, Dog Family, Parrot Family, Plantain 

 Family, etc. The members of these families 

 are prohibited from eating their totem, or 

 animal after which they are named, though, 

 owing to the importance of the plantain as 

 food, the coast natives do not recognise the 

 rule applying in that case. 



There are many interesting customs 

 regarding birth, marriage, and death, but 

 want of space prevents us enumerating them. 



THE EWE TRIBES. 



West of Ashanti and the Fanti is a 

 region occupied by a group of tribes who 

 speak Ewe (pronounced Efe or Ehwe). 

 Most of the Ewe tribes occupy the German 

 "Protectorate of Togoland and the French 

 territory of Dahomey; but some, such as 

 the Awuna, Agbosomi, and the Krikor, 

 dwell under British protection round the 

 mouth of the Volta Eiver. 



The Ewe-speaking tribes are more in- 

 telligent and advanced than the Tshi; for 

 in addition to local deities and spirits, like 

 those of the Tshi, there are some gods who are worshipped throughout the Ewe district. 



THE DAHOMEYANS. 



The chief people of the Ewe group are the Dahomeyans. Burton, who visited Abomey, 

 the capital of Dahomey, in 1864, describes the king, Gelele, as a tall Negro, 6 feet in height, 

 "lithe, agile, thin-flanked, and broad-shouldered, with muscular limbs, well-turned wrists, and 

 neat ankles, but a distinctly cucumber-shaped shin. His hair, generally close shaven, is of the 

 peppercorn variety; the eyebrows are scant, the beard is thin, and the moustachios thinner. 

 He has not his father's receding forehead, nor the vanishing chin which distinguishes the 

 multitude; his strong jaw renders the face 'jowly' rather than oval, consequently the expression 

 is normally hard, though open and not ill-humoured, whilst the smile which comes out of it 

 is pleasant. His nails are allowed to attain mandarin length. His sub-tumid lips disclose 

 white, strong, and sound teeth, the inner surfaces being somewhat blackened by tobacco. The 

 nose is distinctly retrousse, quasi-Negro, anti-aquiline, looking in fact as if all' the lines had 

 been turned the wrong way; but it is not much flattened, nor does it wholly want bridge." 

 He was tattooed with the Dahomeyan tribal mark three parallel cuts beside the eyebrows. 

 His dress was simple, consisting of short purple silk drawers reaching only half-way down 

 the thigh, and a loose white cotton-cloth edged with green silk. He wore gold-embroidered 



Photo tj Mr. Aldridge. 



AN UPPER MENDI CHIEF IX WAR-COSTUME. 



