THE WITCH DOCTOR 355 



more credulous person on earth than the average 

 negro, so that the village witch doctor need never 

 have any difficulty in forcing the most impossible 

 story down his patient, receptive throat. 



Then again, in certain cases, this important per- 

 sonage is confidently believed to have it in his 

 power to turn individuals into wild animals ; to 

 assemble the beasts of the forests at his will, and 

 compel them to obey him. This supposititious power 

 is one which is very widely believed, and, needless 

 to say, a person supposed to be capable of exercising 

 it is greatly feared and deferred to. Such a person 

 was pointed out to me in the Barue last year, in 

 a village near the singular, isolated mountain which 

 is called M'handa. He it was, I was informed, 

 who foretold the defeat and downfall of the last 

 Makombe in 1902. They told me that he fre- 

 quently changed himself into a lion, and once had 

 been known to assume the shape of an elephant ; 

 also that during the 1902 campaign, being anxious 

 to assist the Portuguese in compassing the Ma- 

 komb^'s defeat, he had caused the lions, leopards, 

 and other wild beasts to co-operate with the 

 Portuguese forces by harassing the enemy in the 

 night, as well as during their retreat. 



In addition to the power of the Nganga in such 

 matters, there are certain individuals who are stated 

 at times to turn into wild animals either voluntarily 

 or involuntarily. I never met with any of these 

 latter, but I was informed on several occasions of 

 their presence in the districts. I have no doubt 

 that this is a form of lunacy which may weU be 

 a dangerous one, since it is not inconceivable that, 



