I do not think that, as a rule, the Bantu have much notion of anything that can be called a devil, or, indeed, of evil spirits as such; the spirits of the dead seem to be thought of as beneficent or hostile, according to their dispositions when alive, or the behaviour of the survivors. Dr. Hetherwick says, ‘While there is no trace of a devil in the Mang’anja faith, they have the _ziwanda_, who are ... the _mizimu_ of men and women, but who work only ill. They are always feared. Their nature is that of the other _mizimu_, but they have only the wish to do harm.’ The Wankonde, however, according to Dr. Kerr Cross, ‘firmly believe in a spirit of evil’—Mbasi. ‘In one place Mbasi is a person, an old man, who exercises extraordinary power. He only speaks at night, and to the head-men of the tribe, and during the interview every other voice must be silent and every light extinguished. In Wundale the people believe in such a person as having the power to make lions, and being able to send them off as messengers of evil ... against whom he chooses. His house is surrounded with long grass, in which he keeps his lions as other men keep dogs.’ Coming back to the spirits of the dead, we find that the Yaos use the word _lisoka_ to express that part of a man which survives when he dies; when it is an object of worship, it is called _mulungu_. These spirits, as we have already seen, are frequently prayed to, and may give evidence of their existence in three ways—by answering the prayers addressed to them, in dreams, and through the prophetess. There are also various means of divination (such as that of the flour already mentioned) and omens, which may be consulted and interpreted by professional diviners. Every village has its ‘prayer-tree,’ under which the sacrifices are offered. It stands (usually) in the _bwalo_, the open space which Mr. Macdonald calls the ‘forum,’ and is, sometimes, at any rate, a wild fig-tree.[11] The Wankonde offer prayers—at least their priests (_waputi_) do—in the sacred groves where the dead are buried. The nearest approach to a temple among the Anyanja is a small hut called _kachisi_, which is sometimes built near the house of the village chief, if not actually under his eaves—sometimes in the bush, at a short distance from the village. ‘The chief utters the prayers in the house himself, alone, while the people answer by chanted accompaniments and clapping of hands at the door.’ The same sort of ritual was observed in the prayers for rain described by Mr. Rowley. The shower which fell on that occasion was, of course, accepted as an answer to the people’s supplications.