FOUK WEEKS IN FIKA 281 



almost as young a man as his son-in-law, who was 

 magnificently arrayed in a bright apricot-coloured robe, 

 and was mounted on a well-accoutred horse with silver 

 saddle-cloth. 



Presently a body of women approached the chief, and 

 saluted and knelt before him. They then retired, and 

 were followed by others, who bore on their heads pres- 

 ents from the bride's parents to the chief. Pots, pans, 

 and calabashes full of food, and sixteen head of cattle 

 were herded into the palace compound. After standing 

 a while till the richness of the gifts was fully realised, 

 the women turned and marched back with them. They 

 were taken to the bride's house, but whether they con- 

 tributed to a feast there we never discovered. 



Perhaps they were carried back to the palace at 

 dusk, when the bride was brought to her husband. 



Long after the horse-play had ended strains of music 

 were heard outside the girl's house — a bride-song on 

 guitars, — which no doubt continued until she left for 

 her new home. 



There is, I believe, a ceremony we did not see, when 

 the Mallam offers up a prayer, and makes an exhorta- 

 tion in which he says to the bride, " May you stop long 

 with this man in his house." For this he receives a fee 

 of 3d., and generally a good " dash " (present) besides. 



In ordinary cases a man selects his wife when she is 

 still a child, and he sends an intermediary to her mother 

 with a dash of four gabiga and a 6d. A gabiga is a 

 length of cloth, two or three inches in width, and is 

 often used in place of small coin. Each year he brings 

 the mother another gabiga, and when the girl is grown 

 up he presents cloth and ornaments to her, and 5s. to 

 20s., together with fine cloths to her mother, according 



