PAGANS — SUPERSTITION. 
259 
I made other inquiries about the Hazna of Zin- 
der. It seems the Sarkee himself is still half pagan, 
for at the beginning of every year he proceeds with 
his officers to a tree, the ancient god of paganism, 
and there distributes two goffas of wada (about 
100,000), three bullocks and sheep, and ghaseb, to 
the poor. These things are really offered to the 
deities of his ancestors, though the poor of the 
country get the benefit of them. There are four or 
five trees of this description, at which such annual 
offerings are made ; but there is only one Tree of 
Death where malefactors are executed, the one men- 
tioned in a former page.* The Muslim converts of 
Soudan find the R am ad h an excessively burdensome, 
as well as many other rites of Islamism, and for this 
reason the greater part of the population of Soudan, 
w r ho profess Mohammedanism, are still pagans in 
heart. It is vain to expect a nation to pass from loose 
to ascetic practices without some moral motive, 
such as that which sustained the Muslims at their 
first brilliant start in the world. 
A Tuarick came this morning and said the 
devil was in his head, and that he wanted some 
medicine to drive him out. I gave him an emetic 
of tartarised antimony, which I hope served his 
purpose. 
N.B. The news of the Sarkee having " eaten up" 
four countries of Korgum is confirmed to-day. 
* See pp. 211 and 218. Probably the second Tree of Death de- 
scribed was in reality only a fetish tree. — Ed. 
