Collecting Butterflies 



town, prettily situated on a rising bit of land. 

 Native Calabar is very famous for its wrestlers, 

 and here at all hours of the day a group of 

 athletes might be seen striving with one another. 

 They will wager on themselves or their fancies all 

 their worldly possessions in their passion for 

 gambling over these contests. 



Calabar was the head-quarters of the " Egbo," 

 a mysterious secret society, a new member of 

 which had to pay a heavy fine or premium by 

 way of entrance fee. Before Sir Claude Mac- 

 donald took the matter in hand, the cult was 

 responsible for various forms of barbarities and 

 atrocities, which he was instrumental in modi- 

 fying and suppressing. The " Egbo " has its 

 uses, in that it is a means of conveying laws 

 and instructions to the surrounding district, 

 and prevents, in a great measure, the undue 

 usurpation of power in one king's hands. 



A bell is rung when the secret society is in 

 congress, and formerly, as the procession of 

 " Egbo " men passed through the town, every 

 one not of the persuasion ran into their houses, 

 or death might have been their portion. Only 

 one white man has been admitted into the 

 sacred circle. He was a well-known trader of 

 the place, much respected by the natives. 



I employed, during the time I was in Calabar, 

 two native boys to catch butterflies, beetles, 

 moths, etc., for me, supplying them with killing- 



39 



