Among the Zulus the lightning and thunder were represented as coming from “The Lord in Heaven.” If lightning struck and killed the cattle the people were not distressed. It was said “The Lord has slaughtered for Himself among His own flock. Is it yours? Is it not the Lord’s? He is hungry; He kills for Himself.” If a village is struck with lightning and a cow is killed, they say “This village will be prosperous.” If a man is killed, thus they said, “The Lord has found fault with him.” When they pray for rain, the heads of the village select some black oxen (like the black clouds which bring rain) and one is killed in sacrifice. Its flesh is eaten in the house in silence. The bones are burnt outside of the village. After this a song is sung, or hummed, for no words are used. THE HOTTENTOTS’ GOD, GOUNJA GOUNJA. The Hottentots call God “Gounja Gounja” or “Gounja Ticquoa.” They are said to have no divine worship, and few, if any, religious ceremonies, and, in their savage state, appear a very stupid race, almost void of the power of reason, without any knowledge of divine subjects, and but a vague notion that there is one great Lord of all, and likewise an evil spirit, a devil. They observe a yearly festival when the seven stars appear together, at the beginning of summer. The parents wake their children when these stars appear, and go with them into the fields, where they dance and sing. Their song is, “O Ticquoa, thou Father over our heads, give us rain, that all our fruits may ripen and we may have food in plenty.” THE BUSHMEN’S GOD. The Bushmen believe that there is a god in the sky, whom they call Kaang, or chief. One of the Bushmen says of his countrymen: “They perform a kind of religious worship to two rocks, the one representing a male, and the other a female. When going out to hunt, they implore the aid of these deities to provide them with food. First they go to the male rock, and strike it with a stick. If it sounds, they believe the report is heard in _Heaven_, and they will have success; but if they get nothing, they repair to the female rock, which they think is inhabited by a malicious spirit, and beat it well, upbraiding it, saying: ‘Why do you by your hidden arms cause all the game to be shot dead so that we can find none.’” [Illustration: KING COFFEE’S PROTECTING GOD.] All the tribes of Western Africa show some belief in gods. The Mohammedans and the Portuguese and English traders have of late years affected the peoples’ notions to some extent; but from the descriptions of earlier travelers we can see what their belief was. In Sierra Leone they called God “Canou;” on the Gambia River, they called their god “China.” The Niam-Niams call their god “Noro.” Among the Africans are found many traditions of the origin of the world and of men. Among the Zulus, the following tradition is held, which will serve as a specimen: ZULU TRADITION OF THE ORIGIN OF MEN.