As we have seen, the breaking-up and absorption of one tribe by another has gone on to such an extent that, though in some cases we might confidently pronounce a man to be a Yao or a Nyanja from his build and personal appearance generally, yet very often it would be quite impossible. A surer criterion—though even that is nowadays beginning to fail us—is that afforded by artificial deformations—such as the filing and chipping, or even removal, of the teeth, the boring of noses, lips, and ears for the insertion of ornaments, and the scarifying and tatuing of the skin. These arts seem to be resorted to all the world over by people who do not go in for much clothing—apparently on the principle that the human face and figure need some modification in order to differentiate them as such. If your teeth are not chipped, you might as well be a dog—such, in general, seems to be the native line of reasoning. [Illustration: A MNGURU, SHOWING KELOIDS DOWN CENTRE OF CHEST] The African knows nothing of tatuing proper, and the introduction of colouring matter under the skin is hardly known. For the coloured designs of Polynesia is substituted the raised scar. The process is very rough and usually consists in making cuts which heal and leave ‘proud flesh’ (_keloid_) behind. Dr. Kerr Cross says: ‘The tissues of the negro seem to have a tendency to take on a keloid growth. That is to say, the cicatricial tissue grows large. If a native gets a cut, it becomes like a tumour or a new growth. If he has been vaccinated, the mark rises up like a two-shilling piece. If he tatus (_i.e._ scars) himself, the surface becomes a series of little growths protruding above the general level of the skin.’ But in case the natural tendency should not be enough, the operator sometimes assists nature by pinching the lips of the cut away from each other. Some tatu-marks (_mpini_, _konde_) are not raised much above the level of the skin; they have a smooth surface and a dark-blue colour, which blends well with the skin, and is produced by rubbing in charcoal or wood-ash, and sometimes gunpowder. Formerly the various scars always indicated the tribe to which a person belonged, and the children were marked with the mother’s pattern; now the tribal marks are no longer strictly kept to. The distinctive Yao tatu (called _mapalamba_) was two rows of small cuts across the temples. Some have stars in dark blue on the chest and elsewhere. I have seen them on Yaos, but do not know if they are distinctive. The Nyanja women used to score long lines over shoulders, chest, and back. The Lomwe tribes have various patterns—one a crescent, turned downwards, just between the eyebrows, others a series of from three to six crescents in the same position. The Alolo have a mark on each side of the chest, consisting of a crescent turned up, and two short, vertical cuts below it. The Makua make a line of cuts above the eyes, deep enough to form ‘little pouches’ in which they keep snuff, as I hear from Mr.