South African Memories: Social, Warlike & Sporting from Diaries Written at the TimeWilson, Sarah Isabella Augusta, Lady
History
South African Memories: Social, Warlike & Sporting from Diaries Written at the Time
Wilson, Sarah Isabella Augusta, Lady
South Africa -- Description and travel; South African War, 1899-1902 -- Personal narratives
The second in importance are the Mushukulumbwe, which, translated
literally, means "naked people." This designation was given them as a
reproach by their friends, as the male element wear no clothes; and
should they possess a blanket, they would only throw it round their
shoulders whilst standing still or sitting down. When remonstrated with
by the well-meaning missionaries on the absence of any attire, they are
wont to reply: "Are we women or children, that we should fear the cold?
Our fathers needed no clothes, nor do we." They are keen hunters and
trackers, essentially a warlike people, tall and good-looking, while the
women also are of more than average height, and gracefully made. What
the men lack in clothes they make up for in their head-dress, which has
been so often illustrated, and which is sometimes 5 feet in height. It
is the result of much care and trouble, and the cause of great pride to
the wearer. Ruled over by a number of small chiefs, they mostly own
Lewanika as their paramount chief, and to him they pay tribute. They are
withal a curious, wild kind of people, but are now becoming less afraid
of, and in consequence less hostile to, the white man, the first of
whose race they saw in 1888, when Mr. Selous[48] penetrated into their
country, and very nearly lost his life at their hands. Now they are
well-disposed, and it is safe to travel through their land with a
comparatively small escort.
Thirdly, the Batokas. These are, and always have been, a servile race.
They are lazy in disposition, for the most part of unprepossessing
appearance, and their country has the Kafue River on the east, and the
Zambesi on the south, as natural boundaries. As carriers they do fairly
well, and, while also owning Lewanika's authority, they are well aware
of the fact that this chief only rules in virtue of the support of the
"Great King" in a far-off land, whom they often hear of, but can never
hope to see.
In consequence of having lived for so many generations in terror of
being raided by their more bellicose neighbours, all these tribes
acclaimed with joy the advent of their English protectors, and their
demeanour is strikingly expressive of gratitude and respect. This is
evinced by their native greeting, which consists of sitting down and
clapping their hands together in a slow rhythm whenever a white man
passes. Sometimes a traveller hears this clapping proceeding out of the
immensely high and thick grass which encloses the road, and he is by
this sound alone made aware of the presence of a human being. Their food
consists entirely of grain, which they greatly prefer to meat, even when
this is offered to them. They boil this grain, which resembles millet or
canary seed, into a sort of porridge, which they eat with the greatest
gusto, and one meal a day seems to suffice them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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