Natives 



ashore at one or other of the various Consulate 

 houses we visited, dining in the mess. We were 

 met by the local chiefs, who came to have 

 various grievances redressed or looked into. 

 Some of these men are worth describing. When 

 they shake hands with you, they seize your hand 

 and snap fingers, as it were, which is a curious 

 custom. They use the thumb and second finger 

 of the right hand, holding your second finger 

 between them. They then snap their fingers 

 together, the stranger's or friend's finger between 

 their fingers. This is not an easy manoeuvre to 

 describe, but is a trait that distinctly surprises 

 the new-comer to the country. 



One of the head-men at Degama was piebald. 

 He had some sort of skin disease, which made 

 him an extraordinary sight a black-and-white 

 patchwork sort of man. Another boy was an 

 Albino nigger, the only one I have ever seen. 

 His skin was a pale yellow, his eyes, when you 

 could see them, for they were generally screwed 

 up tight I suppose because the light hurt them 

 were of a pinkish hue, whilst the wool on his 

 head was a sort of dirty yellow colour. I heard 

 there was another Albino native in the Pro- 

 tectorate a girl but I did not have the oppor- 

 tunity of seeing her. The boy was an unusual 

 enough sight, so what must the female have 

 been! 



I saw one man at Sapele whose costume 



E 49 



