CHAPTER XXVI 



MOKE DETAILS OF THE ARABS AND ZANZIBAR 



Characteriatics — intermural burial — the Siku Kuu — curios to 

 collect — Lamu — its china industry — the cocoanut — climate 

 — neighbouring islands. 



So far I have mentioned Arabs often enough, but 

 said nothing about their particular characteristics. 

 To begin with they do not seem to be made for 

 the bustle of the everyday life of to-day, as they 

 solemnly strut along, in their quaint clothes. 



They are always spoken of as " gentlemen," so 

 courteous are they in their manners and very in- 

 telligent, but sensual, treacherous, and cruel. They 

 lack most of the good qualities of the Parsis, their 

 want of initiative, and the slowness of their south- 

 ern nature is against their being good merchants. 

 Arabs possess no commercial enterprise, now that 

 they have lost their slaves ; only when they could 

 run their shambas and clove plantations with many 

 slaves and much waste of labour, could they com- 

 pete with the wily Indian. In fact, now their land 

 is heavily mortgaged to the Indians, and it is the 

 latter people who are the moneyed ones in Zanzibar. 



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