Former Native Methods. 233 



she said that she was too old to be interested at the sight 

 of naked men. As her presence interfered with the 

 operations, I told her to leave for the present and come 

 back later, when she would get plenty of meat, and she 

 departed smiling. 



Some of the natives are quite as sensitive as white people 

 in exposing their persons, especially to members of the 

 opposite sex, and it is a mistake to think that all tribes are 

 lax in this respect. Even the Angoni youngsters wear a 

 certain amount of clothing round the waist, it is only the 

 babies that are unclothed, and even they are covered at 

 times. 



In moments of distress both adults and children use the 

 word mai (mother), and they will cry " A-Mai," " A-Mai" 

 when they are hurt, meaning " oh, mother/' <l oh, mother." 

 I have mentioned that the Angoni believe in a "Mlungo" 

 (God, or supreme being) and they have a very good idea of 

 the meaning of right and wrong, and long ago they had a 

 stern code of laws. Most native tribes live in communities 

 under different headmen, who are sometimes the sons of old 

 chiefs, or men who by their own intelligence and strength 

 of body and will have been elected chiefs. In old Mpseni's 

 time he acted as an autocrat, and the power of life and 

 death rested in his hands, although he granted great 

 powers to his sons and indunas. Like Lobengula, the 

 former chief of the Matebele nation, he soon squashed any 

 chief who was getting too strong, and these old savage 

 potentates doubtless thought the proverb "A stitch in time 

 saves nine," a good one. It was the survival of the fittest, 

 and the word " fittest " not only meant a strong following 

 of warriors, but also quickness of perception. Mpseni's 

 big hut has been described to me by some of his sons. It 

 was a large round affair, full of lion and leopard skins ; on 

 the floor was laid a great pile of elephant ivory, which 

 was covered with skins and mats, on which Mpseni spent 

 most of his time, swilling large quantities of native beer 

 and hearing reports brought to him by his principal 

 indunas. 



