82 
WAAI — COSTUMES. 
special dress, except on Sundays, To-day we 
had the honour of seeing the potentate of Waai 
proceed to church in state. Tie was attired in 
black trousers — which, being rather short, dis- 
played a length of white cotton stocking — black 
“ swallow-tail ” coat, made for a stouter and 
taller individual than himself, probably his 
father, and a beaver hat, tall and narrow, of an 
ancient pattern, while over his head a youth 
carried his gilded state umbrella. The whole 
population attended the service, all of them in 
black calico attire. 
This black dress is a relic of Portuguese influ- 
ence, The Rajah of Paso informs us that the 
garments pass from one generation to another, 
being w T orn only on Sundays and holidays. 
The freshness is renewed at will by dipping in a 
dye of their own making, after which the 
garment is bung in the breeze and repeatedly 
brushed one way to bring on the pretty gloss. 
Some women wear a beaded belt, and we learn 
that these are wives of burghers — i.e ., men who 
do no forced labour. A soldier who has served 
a long term is made a burgher, and his wife 
wears a beaded belt. Wives of non-burghers 
wear combs, which mark their position. The 
women’s dress, you must remember, is in the 
