THE AFRICAN HUT. 275 



miasmatic air. The roof and walls are smoke-dried, 

 but clean ; in one corner is a pile of wood neatly cut 

 up into billets, and in another is a large earthen jar 

 filled with water, on which floats a gourd or calabash, a 

 vegetable bowl. Spears, bows, quivers, and nets hang 

 from pegs upon the walls. Let us suppose that it is 

 night ; four or five black forms are lying in a circle with 

 their feet towards the fire, and two dogs with pricked 

 up ears creep close to the ashes which are becoming 

 grey and cold. 



The day dawns ; a dim light appears through the 

 crevices and crannies of the walls. The sleepers rise 

 and roll up their mats, which are their beds, and place 

 on one side the round logs of wood which are their 

 pillows. The man takes down his bow and arrows 

 from the wall, fastens wooden rattles round his dogs' 

 necks, and goes out into the bush. The women replen- 

 ish the fire, and lift up an inverted basket whence sally 

 forth a hen and her chickens, which make at once for the 

 open door to find their daily bread for themselves out- 

 side. The women take hoes, and go to the plantation, 

 or they take pitchers to fill at the brook. They wear 

 round the waist, before and behind, two little aprons 

 made from a certain bark, soaked and beaten until it 

 is as flexible as leather. Every man has a plantation 

 of these cloth trees round his hut. The unmarried 

 girls wear no clothes at all ; but they are allowed to 

 decorate themselves with bracelets and anklets of iron, 

 flowers in their ears, necklaces of red berries like coral, 

 girdles of white shells, hair oiled and padded out with 

 the chignon, and sometimes white ashes along the 

 parting. 



The ladies fill their pitchers, and take their morning 

 bath, discussing the merits or demerits of their husbands. 



