838 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTIILT, 



on the occasion of the periodical festival of the adde^ when, in the 

 midst of great feasts to the chiefs and their retinues, the throne is 

 brought out and two of the nobles set the new king upon it three 

 times, with the prayer : " Spirits of all the deceased kings, bless this 

 our new king ! Give him riches, health, and great honor before all 

 people and before all his fellow-kings ! " Sheep are sacrificed, court is 

 held, and the people are entertained with dancing and a great noise. 

 The " customs " for the deceased king do not take place till after the 

 ceremonies of enthronement ; and, as they involve great expense, they 

 may be postponed for months or for years. They last for eight days, 

 during which time every one in the capital must keep his head shaved 

 and wear a prescribed dress. Another sacrifice of men is made, to 

 which the chiefs must contribute in victims or money; and it is made 

 with imposing publicity, amid the firing of guns and drumming and 

 dancing. During all the ceremonials, from the death of the old king 

 down, the executioners and guests from abroad and the members of 

 the band that performed the burial of the king enjoy special privi- 

 leges of taking what they like ; and solitary persons find it prudent to 

 keep out of their way. During the "customs" a figure intended to 

 represent the deceased king is set up and honored with the charac- 

 teristic noisy ceremonial of the people. Finally, it is carried away 

 and deposited in a shrine ; and this marks the end of the whole 

 matter. 



Whenever any one among the Hereros of Damara-Land, South 

 Africa, becomes sick unto death, says the missionary C. G. Btittner, 

 it is the custom for all the relatives of the sick man and the people of 

 the vicinity to gather around his bedside, in such throngs as to fill the 

 house, and witness the death. In health the Herero is satisfied to lie 

 upon the bare ground, but, as soon as he becomes seriously ill, it is the 

 imperative duty of some one of his near relatives to sit down by him, 

 and hold his head with tender care. The people are not willing to 

 recognize that any one can die from a purely natural cause, but 

 always try to attribute the death to some external injury ; and, if 

 nothing of the kind can be detected, they will lay it to some accident, 

 even of the most trifling character, that may have occurred years 

 before ; and if any one is known who has ever attacked the deceased, 

 or struck him, he is liable to be fixed upon as the responsible agent. 

 The body is buried at some spot near the place of death, sometimes in 

 the spot itself, but, if the deceased was a very bad man, it is carried off 

 as far and to as desolate a spot as possible, so that the ghost shall not 

 come back and work mischief. Everything that belongs to the grave 

 is tabooed, and must not be taken away under any circumstances ; and 

 so strictly is this rule observed, that, although fire- wood is extremely 

 scarce, the palings that have been driven around the spot, and fallen 

 down, or the hedge-bushes that have died may rot and disappear, no 

 one will touch them. The burial is followed by a season of mourning, 



