IN WESTERN AFRICA. 
49 
ing and looking upon the wall of his hut just 
after saying this, he continued, ^^No, not to-mor« 
row, for that is Sunday-day, and mission no trade 
on that day.’’ * 
Upon casting my eyes around I saw a flat piece 
of wood with seven holes in it, hanging on the 
wall, and a peg in the lowest. The topmost hole 
in his almanac was Sunday, and by moving the peg 
every day he knew when it came. Whether he 
had ever been at the mission-station I do not 
know, but from some source he had learned that 
missionaries kept one day out of seven sacred, 
and that it would be useless to bring cocoa-nuts 
to sell on that day. • 
Many of the Sherbro people can count no high- 
er than ten, and can not do that without splicing 
words together, thus: ‘^Bull — one. Ting — two, 
Errah — three, Heall — four, Maan — five.” Then 
they take one and put it to five to make six, thus : 
Maan-bull — six, Maan-ting — seven, Maan-errah 
— eight, Maan-heall — nine, and Wang — ten.” 
Here the counting process stops with many of the 
Sherbros ; but the Mendi and Timiny tribes can 
eount higher, even to hundreds. 
They are assisted very much in communicating 
ideas by the great variety of gestures which they 
use in conversation. Their gestures are very ap- 
propriate and significant, and by no means con- 
