IN AFRICAN FOREST AND JUNGLE 



guilsi any more, we shall never see Obindji any more," 

 they sang over and over. These were the names of 

 the two men who had died. They sang for about half 

 an hour. After a while I saw the people leading 

 about through the dim light what I thought to be a 

 naked white man. I could not believe my eyes, but 

 as he came near me I kept cool and did not show my 

 astonishment. When he came in front of me I recog- 

 nized the man to be a negro albino, for his features, 

 though his skin was white, were those of a negro. 

 His hair was woolly, his eyes pinkish. 



Later in the evening, an idol, called Makambo, was 

 brought out into the street, to remain there all night. 

 It represented a woman, and was of the size of life. 

 She had cloven feet ; her eyes and tongue were of 

 copper ; she wore bracelets around her arms and rings 

 of copper around her ankles. She had around her 

 neck a necklace of leopard's claws, and as a pendant 

 wore the canine of a leopard also. The skin of a snake 

 was wound around her legs. 



That night nobody came out in the street, and no- 

 body talked in the village, for fear of displeasing 

 Makambo. The people expected her to talk to 

 them that night and to give some advice. The 

 medicine man or the chief of the village interprets 

 to the people what the idol says. 



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