376 KABAYENDI AND THE MAKRAKA. 



and the Iddio, on the other hand, maintained their separate 

 existence as distinct tribes, as also their tribal peculiarities, and 

 form to-day, the former nnder their own name, and the latter 

 under the name Makraka, a most valuable portion of our popu- 

 lation, owing to their industry and trustworthiness. 



The Iddio (Makraka) living in the province of Makraka, 

 include ten divisions, each ruled over by an hereditary chief, 

 namely, the Akbaya, Ndabiri, Rembete, Wamberi, Bondua, 

 Agbatu, Mbedimo, Abate, Akudeli, and Aviingodi. These 

 divisions have many subdivisions (the Agbatu, for instance, 

 counting ten), each of which is ruled by an hereditary sub-chief, 

 in addition to whom each village has its superintendent, who is 

 appointed by the chief of the district, and can be deposed by him 

 at pleasure. The Iddio do not recognise any universal chief; 

 disputes are settled by the superintendents of the villages, and 

 questions of great importance by the superior chiefs. I can- 

 not say whether any other relation exists besides their common 

 origin between our Iddio and those who live far to the south- 

 west. The Iddio-Makraka are still a hardy hunting people ; 

 they have, however, in the course of time, improved their 

 methods of agriculture in a way hardly seen in any other tribe. 

 The plants which they brought from their own country form 

 even now their staple crops ; two of them, the Colocasia and 

 manioc, give to the Nyam-Nyam villages a very characteristic 

 appearance. Throughout this region these two plants are only 

 extensively cultivated in Uganda and by the Zande tribes, and 

 if specimens are met with in other places, it is, as a rule, easy 

 to say where they come from. 



My endeavour to introduce cattle-breeding amongst the 

 Makraka only led to one result — they immediately ate all the 

 cows I gave them. The true Makraka will eat everything, it 

 matters not what it be, from the elephant to the wild cat, from 

 the enormous python down to the fat grubs in the rotten wood 

 of a dead tree ; everything that moves is eaten. Our porters 

 carried with them on the march (hanging to their arms) mouse- 

 traps made of twisted split reeds, and when we reached our 

 night quarters they had no sooner laid down their loads than 

 each man was busily engaged setting his trap. Although the 

 Makraka often marry women from the neighbouring tribes, 



