woman's rights. 40] 



inquiries among the people, and had found that the 

 women indeed possessed a great deal of influence. TVo 

 questioned the guide whom we finally got from Nya- 

 koba, an intelligent young man, who had much of the 

 Arab features, and found the statements confirmed. 

 When a young man takes a liking for a girl of another 

 village, and the parents have no objection to the match, 

 he is obliged to come and live at their village. He has 

 to perform certain services for the mother-in-law, such 

 as keeping her well supplied with firewood; and when 

 he comes into her presence he is obliged to sit with his 

 knees in a bent position, as putting out his feet toward 

 the old lady would give her great offence. If he becomes 

 tired of living in this state of vassalage, and wishes to re- 

 turn to his own family, he is obliged to leave all his chil- 

 dren behind : they belong to the wife. This is only a 

 more stringent enforcement of the law from which ema- 

 nates the practice which prevails so very extensively in 

 Africa, known to Europeans as "buying wives." Such 

 virtually it is ; but it does not appear quite in that light 

 to the actors. So many head of cattle or goats are given 

 to the parents of the girl. " to give her up," as it is termed, 

 — i.e. to forego all claim on her offspring and allow an 

 entire transference of her and her seed into another family. 

 If nothing is given, the family from which she has come 

 can claim the children as part of itself: the payment is 

 made to sever this bond. In the case supposed, the young 

 man has not been able to advance any thing for that pur- 

 pose; and, from the temptations placed here before my 

 mrm, I have no doubt that some prefer to have their 

 daughters married in that way, as it leads to the increase 

 of their own village. My men excited the admiration 

 of the Bambiri, who took them for a superior breed on 

 account of their bravery in elephant-hunting, and wished 

 to get them as sons-in-law on the conditions named; but 

 pone yielded to the temptation. 



We were informed that there is a child belonging to a 

 2 A u* 



