TRANSACTIONS Oil' SECTION H. 805 



differs from its neighbour. No description entirely applies to more than one dis- 

 trict, thoug-h much will be common to many. Some are religious, others indiffe- 

 rent ; some are steeped in ignorance, while in others even the women learn to read. 

 Dress and food difl'er everywhere remarkably, as also do minor social customs. A 

 pall of gross superstition, nevertheless, casts its gloom over all alike. The physical 

 features of the Berbers are, on the whole, good. They are strong and wiry, with 

 much more energy than the Arab, or the mingled race of the plains. As a rule, 

 they are well-knit, and many have fine, noble figures. Their countenances are 

 often striking, and their looks keen and full of intelligence, though in cases de- 

 bauchery wrecks the system at an early age, but not so often as in the towns. 

 Their longevity is also greater, and their powers of endurance are wonderful. 



Their hospitality, if not so profuse as that of the Arab, is sufficiently extensive, 

 and regular systems for the entertainment of travellers are in force. Monogamy is 

 more common than polygamy. Drunkenness prevails in some districts, but the 

 use of strong drink at all is looked upon as a vice. Marriage customs are peculiar. 

 In some places the women are practically sold by auction on the market once a 

 year, and may be divorced by being brought back there on the anniversaiy. In- 

 termarriage among the tribes is permissible, but not general. The Mohammedan 

 laws as to the bar of relationship hold good throughout. Punishments are not, 

 as a rule, severe, though great sulieving is often inflicted upon the victims of 

 powerful members of the community by imprisonment in dungeons, and by the 

 bastiiiado. Criminals are subject to the lex talionis, which, as the source of the 

 vendetta, leads to much bloodshed and loss of life. 



The chief festivals are those of Islam, though several have survived from a pre- 

 vious creed, of which little is now really known. Some of these would pomt to a 

 Christian origin, and many perceive traces of this faith among their superstitions. 

 The festival of Midsummer (St. John's Day) is regularly observed, and it is a note- 

 worthy fact that the European calendar, old style, is still employed among them. 



The dress varies as much in the difierent localities as do the customs. In the 

 interior it is almost entirely of wool, usually unsewn, made of one piece and knotted. 

 A toga-like white blanket serves as overmantle. The most curious garment is a 

 black goat-hair waterproof hooded cloak, with an assegai-shaped yellow patch 

 behind. The manufactures, if rude in some parts, in others show a considerable 

 degree of taste, as also does the ornamentation of many of their buildings. Their 

 food is of the simplest, mostly consisting of cereals, meat being a comparative luxury. 

 Smoking is common in many parts, and the elderly men are often much given to 

 snuffing. Hemp is much used in the northern districts as a narcotic, with very 

 bad results. 



The houses of the people are as varied as their dress. It is believed that they 

 were originally nomads, and to-day they occupy tent, hut, and house in one part or 

 another. Substantial store towers dot the Atlas and serve as citadels in time of 

 war. Almost every ruin is ascribed to European builders, but of history little is 

 to be found. There have been several Berber historians of note, who have wi-itten 

 in Arabic, some being translated, and several French scholars have paid consider- 

 able attention to this interestmg people, of whom we even now know so compara- 

 tively little. 



3. On the Worship of Meteorites. By Professor H. A. Newton. 



The paper consists of a series of accounts of the worship of meteorites and of 

 myths and traditions pointing to such worship in early times. More particularly 

 are the indications of such worship that are found in Greek and llomau history 

 and literature put together. No attempt to discuss the relations of this worship to 

 the other worship of natural and artificial forms has been made. 



