Ghap. IX. 
MODE OF PREPARING SKINS. 
193 
names accordingly. One man came alone to have a quiet gaze 
at Ms own features once, when he thought I was asleep: after 
twisting his mouth about in various directions, he remarked to 
himself, “ People say I am ugly, and how very ugly I am 
indeed! ” 
The Makololo use all the skins of their oxen for making either 
mantles or sMelds. For the former, the Mde is stretched out by 
means of pegs, and dried. Ten or a dozen men then collect 
round it with small adzes, which, when sharpened with an iron 
bodkin, are capable of shaving off the substance of the sMn on 
the fleshy side until it is quite thin; when sufficiently thin, a 
quantity of brain is smeared over it, and some tliick milk. Then 
an instrument made of a number of iron spikes tied round a piece 
of wood, so that the points only project beyond it, is applied to 
it in a carding fasMon, until the fibres of the bulk of it are quite 
loose. Milk or butter is applied to it again, and it forms a gar- 
ment nearly as soft as cloth. 
The sMelds are made of Mdes partially dried in the sun, and 
then beaten with hammers until they are stiff and dry. Two 
broad belts of a differently-coloured skin are sewed into them 
longitudinally, and sticks inserted to make them rigid and not 
liable to bend easily. The sliield is a great protection in their 
way of fighting with spears, but they also trust largely to their 
agility in springing aside from the coming javelin. The sMeld 
assists when so many spears are thrown that it is impossible not 
to receive some of them. Their spears are light javelins; and, 
judging from what I have seen them do in elephant-hunting, I 
believe, when they have room' to make a run and discharge them 
with the aid of the jerk of stopping, they can tlirow them between 
forty and fifty yards. They give them an upward direction in 
the discharge, so that they come down on the object with acce¬ 
lerated force. I saw a man who in battle had received one in 
the sliin; the excitement of the moment prevented Ms feeling 
any pain; but, when the battle was over, the blade was found to 
have split the bone, and become so impacted M the cleft that no 
force could extract it. It was necessary to take an axe and 
press the split bone asunder before the weapon could be taken 
out. 
o 
