FOOTNOTES:

ENGLISH.TEMBU.TAMBU.Skysogiom.Sunwispum.Moonigodihoramb.Mannaanyummu....ibalunumero.Womanaloin.[65]Headknynooii.Footnavorreenandi.Onekuddumkaki.Twonoaleeennu.Threenodosoettee.

Againâ€”theTembuis related to the vocabulary of a language calledKouri, which theTambuisnot.

ENGLISH.TEMBU.KOURI.Sunwisnosi.Manibaluabalu.Womanaloalu.Onekuddumkotum.Twonoaleenalee.Threenodosonatisu.

Thirdly, theTjembaof Balbi's "Atlas Ethnologique" is calledKassenti.

Lastly, theGha, as far as very short comparison goes, is neitherTambunorTembu: nor yetKouriâ€”though it has a few resemblances to all.

The author of the paper alluded to above is the Rev. Mr. Hansonâ€”himself a Gha by birth. It was laid before the British Association in 1849. Two points characterize the theory that it exhibits; but as the publication of the paperin extenso, is contemplated, I merely state what they are.[66]

1. A remarkable number of customs common to theJewsand theGha.

2. The probable origin of the latter population in some part of the interior of Africa, north of their present locality, and, perhaps, in the parts about Timbuktu.

The Quaquas.â€”I am not sure that this name is the best that can be given to the class in question. Hence, it is merely provisional. The language that is spoken by them is called theAvekvom. They constitute the chief population of theIvoryâ€”just as the Krumen do that of theGrainand the Fantis that of theGoldâ€”Coast.Apolloniais the English dependency where we find members of theQuaquastock.

The Avekvom dialects of the Quaqua tribes seem to belong to a different tongue from that of the Krumen and Fantis; and I imagine that the three are mutually unintelligible. Still, it is difficult to predicate this from the mere inspection of vocabularies; the more so, as no language of the western coast of Africa is less known than the Avekvomâ€”the only specimen of any length being one in the last number of the "Journal of the American Oriental Society." With numerous miscellaneous affinities, it is more Fanti and Grebo than aught else; and, perhaps, is transitional in character to those two languages.[67]

At any rate it is no isolated tongue, as may be seen from the following table, whereYebumeans the language of the Yarriba country, at the back of Dahomey, andEfikthat of Old Calabar:â€”

ENGLISH.AVEKVOM.OTHER IBO-ASHANTI LANGUAGES.Armeboubok,Efik.Bloodevieeyip,Efik; eye,Yebu.Boneewibeu,Fanti.BoxebrubrÃ¢nh,Grebo.Canoeedietonh,Grebo.Chairfatabada,Grebo.Darkeshimesum,Fanti; ekim,Efik.Dogetyeaja, ayga,Yebu.Dooreshinaviusuny,Efik.Eareshibeesoa,Fanti.Fireeyaija,Fanti.Fishetsieja, eya,Fanti.Fowlesususeo,Mandingo; edia,Yebu.Ground-nutngetinkatye,Fanti.Hairemuihwi,Fanti.Honeyajoewo,Fanti; oyi,Yebu.Houseevaifi,Fanti; ufog,Efik.MoonefehÃ¢bo,Grebo; ofiong,Efik.Mosquitoefoobong,Fanti.Oilinyuingo,Fanti.Rainefuzumo-sohnsanjio,Mandingo.Rainy seasoneshiojo,rain,Yebu.Saltetsata,Grebo.Sandesian-nautan,Efik.Seaetyuidu,Grebo.Stonedesisia, shia,Grebo.Threadjesigise,Grebo.Toothenenanyeng,Mandingo; gne,Grebo.[68]Wateresonhnsu,Fanti.Wifeemisemuso,Mandingo; mbesia,Fanti.Cryyaruisu,Fanti.Givenaenye,Grebo; no,Efik.Goleolo,Yebu.Killbaifa,Mandingo; pa,Yebu.

There has been war and displacement here as well as in the Gha country. In the seventeenth century the parts about Cape Apollonia were contended for by two tribes called the Issini (or Oshin) and the Ghiomo. The former gave way to the latter, and having retreated to the country of the Veteres, were joined by that tribe against the Esiep.

A Quaqua prayer is given in the "Mithridates." It is uttered every morning by the tribes on the Issini, after a previous ablution in that riverâ€”Anghiume mame maro, mame orie, mame shikke e okkori, mame akaka, mame frembi, mame anguan e awnsanâ€”O Anghiume! give rice, give yams, give gold, give aigris, give slaves, give riches, give (to be) strong and swift.

What is here written about the ethnology of Apollonia is written doubtfully; since here, as at Acra, the simple ethnology of the pure and proper Fantis becomes complicated.

The Cape of Good Hope.â€”The aboriginal population[69]of the Cape is divided between two great families:â€”

1. The Hottentot.

2. The Kaffre.

1.The Hottentots.â€”Of the two families this is the most western; it is the one which the colonists came first in contact with, and it is the one which has been most displaced by Europeans. The names of fourteen extinct tribes of Hottentots are known; of which it is only necessary to mention the Gunyeman and Sussaqua the nearest the Cape, and the Heykom, so far eastwards and northwards as Port Natal. The displacement of these last has not been effected by Europeans. African subdued African; and it was the Kaffres who did the work of conquest here.

Of the extant Hottentots, within the limits of the colony of the Cape, the most remote are theGonaqua, on the head-waters of the Great Fish River; or rather on the water-shed between it and the Orange River. They are fast becoming either extinct, or amalgamated with the Kaffres; inasmuch as they are the Hottentots of the Amakosa frontier, and suffer, at least, as much from the Kaffres as from their white neighbours.

TheNamaquasoccupy thelowerpart of the Orange River, the Great and Little Namaqualand.

The Koranas.â€”This branch of the Hottentots[70]has its locality on the middle part of the Gariep, with the Griquas to the north, the Bechuana Kaffres to the east, and the Saabs in the middle of them. Their number is, perhaps, 10,000. Their exact relation to the other Hottentots is uncertain. They are a better formed people than the Gonaqua and Namaqua, but whether they be the best samples of the Hottentot stock altogether is uncertain. Probably a tribe far up in the north-western parts of South Africa, and beyond Namaqualand, may dispute the honour with them. These are the Dammarasâ€”themselves disputed Hottentots. Their country lies beyond the British colony, but it must be noticed for the sake of taking in all the branches of the stock in question. It is the tract between Benguela and Namaqualand, marked in the maps assterile country; in the northern parts of which we sometimes find notices of a fierce nation calledJagas. Walvisch Bay lies in the middle of it. Now some writers make the Dammaras of this country Hottentot; others Kaffre; and that both rightly and wrongly. They are bothâ€”partly one, partly the other; since Dammara is a geographical term, and some of the tribes to which it applies are Kaffre, some Hottentot. The Dammaras of the plains, or the Cattle Dammaras are the former; the Dammaras[19]of the hills, the latter. Between the Dammara[71]and the Korana a much nearer approach to Kaffre type is made than is usually supposed.

A branch of the Koranasâ€”those of the valley of the Hartebeest Riverâ€”deserves particular attention. They caution us against overvaluing differences; and Dr. Prichard has quoted the evidence of Mr. Thompson with this especial object. They are Koranas who have suffered in war, lost their cattle, and been partially expatriated by the more powerful sections of their stock. Hence, want and poverty have acted upon them; and the effect has been that they have become hunters instead of shepherds, have been reduced to a precarious subsistence, and as the consequence of altered circumstances, have receded from the level of the other Koranas, and approached that of theâ€”

Saabs or Bushmen.â€”These belong to the parts between the Roggeveld and Orange River; parts which rival thesterile countryof the map in barrenness. As is the country so are the inhabitants; starved, miserable huntersâ€”hunters rather than shepherds or herdsmen.

The Lap is not more strongly contrasted with the Finlander, than the Korana with the Saab; and the deadly enmity between these two populations is as marked as the differences in their physical appearances. I think, however, that undue inferences have been drawn from the difference;[72]in other words, that the distance between the Korana and the Saab has been exaggerated. The languages are unequivocally allied.

I think, too, that a similarly undue inference has been drawn from the extent to which the Kaffre and the Korana arealike; inasmuch as an infusion of Kaffre has been assumed for the sake of accounting for it. Of this, however, no proof exists.

The Saabs are described as having constitutions "so much enfeebled by the dissolute life they lead, and the constant smoking ofdacha, that nearly all, including the young people, look old and wrinkled; nevertheless, they are remarkable for vanity, and decorate their ears, legs, and arms with beads, and iron, copper, or brass rings. The women likewise stain their faces red, or paint them, either wholly or in part. Their clothing consists of a few sheepskins, which hang about their bodies, and thus form the mantle or covering, commonly called akaross. This is their only clothing by day or night. The men wear old hats, which they obtain from the farmers, or else caps of their own manufacture. The women wear caps of skins, which they stiffen and finish with a high peak, and adorn with beads and metal rings. The dwelling of the Bushman is either a low wretched hut, or a circular cavity, on the open plain, into which, at night, he creeps with his wife and[73]children, and which, though it shelters him from the wind, leaves him exposed to the rain. In this neighbourhood, in which rocks abound, they had formerly their habitations in them, as is proved by the many rude figures of oxen, horses, serpents, &c. still existing. It is not a little interesting to see these poor degraded people, who formerly were considered and treated as little better than wild beasts in their rocky retreats. Many of those who have forsaken us live in such cavities not far from our settlement, and we have thus an opportunity of observing them in their natural condition. Several who, when they came to us from the farmers, were decently clothed and possessed a flock of sheep, which they had earned, in a short time returned to their fastnesses in a state of nakedness and indigence, rejoicing that they had got free from the farmers, and could live as they pleased in the indulgence of their sensual appetites. Such fugitives from civilised life, I have never seen otherwise occupied than with their bows and arrows. The bows are small, but made of good elastic wood; the arrows are formed of small reeds, the points furnished with a well-wrought piece of bone, and a double barb, which is steeped in a potent poison of a resiny appearance. This poison is distilled from the leaves of an indigenous tree. Many prefer these arrows to fire-arms, under the idea that they can kill more[74]game by means of a weapon that makes no report. On their return from the chase, they feast till they are tired and drowsy, and hunger alone rouses them to renewed exertion. In seasons of scarcity they devour all kinds of wild roots, ants, ants' eggs, locusts, snakes, and even roasted skins. Three women of this singular tribe were not long since met with, several days' journey from this place, who had forsaken their husbands, and lived very contentedly on wild honey and locusts. As enemies, the Bushmen are not to be despised. They are adepts in stealing cattle and sheep; and the wounds they inflict when pursued, are ordinarily fatal if the wounded part is not immediately cut out. The animals they are unable to carry off, they kill or mutilate.

"To our great comfort, even some of these poor outcasts have shown eagerness to become acquainted with the way of salvation. The children of such as are inhabitants of the settlement, attend the school diligently, and of them we have the best hopes.

"The language of the Bushman has not one pleasing feature; it seems to consist of a collection of snapping, hissing, grunting, sounds; all more or less nasal. Of their religious creed it is difficult to obtain any information; as far as I have been able to learn, they have a name for the Supreme Being; and the Kaffre wordtixois[75]derived from thetixmeof the Bushmen. Sorcerers exist among them. One of the Bushmen residing here being sick, a sorceress was sent for before we were aware of it, who pretended, by the virtue of mystic dance, to extract an antelope horn from the head of the patient."[20]

The Griquas.â€”The Griquas, called also Baastaards, are a pastoral population, upwards of 15,000 in number, on the north side of the great bend of the Orange River. They are the descendants of Dutch fathers and Hottentot mothers.

A mixture of Griquas and Hottentots occurs also on the Kat River, a feeder of the Great Fish River, in the district of Somerset, and on the Kaffre frontier. Here they are distributed in a series of district locations, amid the dales and fastnesses of the eastern frontier. A great proportion of them are discharged soldiersâ€”so that in reality, like the borderers of old, they form a sort of military colony.

2.The Kaffres.â€”The British districts in contact with the Kaffre populations are the eastern, and of these Albany and Somerset most especially. The Kaffre nation in most immediate contact with Albany and Somerset isâ€”

The Amakosa.â€”This is the population which constituted the authority of Hintza, and to which[76]Pato, Gaika, and the other chiefs of the last war belonged. To this, too, belong the troublesome chiefs of the present. Next to the Amakosa, and in alliance with them, comeâ€”

The Amatembu, orTambuki(Tambookies), occupants of the upper part of the river Kei, as the Amakosa are of the lower Keiskamma.

Between the Amatembu and Port Natal liethe Amaponda, orMambuki(Mambookies), the northern extremity of which reaches the country ofâ€”

The Amazulu, orZulu(Zooloos), the chief frontagers (conjointly with theMambuki) of Port Natal.

The last division of the Kaffres of the coast is that ofâ€”

The Fingos.â€”In 1835, a numerous population, called Fingos, was found by Sir B. D'Urban in the Kaffre chief Hintza's country, and in a state of abject servitude to the Amakosas. They were from different tribes; darker and shorter than the Amakosasâ€”but still true Kaffres. They were offered land between the lower Keiskamma and the Great Fish River, and were emancipated and brought safe into the colony to the amount of 17,000.[21]Since then, they have served as a sort of military police on the Kaffre frontier; and as shepherds in Australiaâ€”whither they have been advantageously introduced.

[77]

But, besides the Kaffres of the coast there are those of the interior. These speak a modified form of the Kosa (or Amakosa), called Si-chuana, the name of the people being Bi-chuana. They lie due north of the Koranas; beyond the boundaries of the colony; but not beyond the influence of its missionaries, or the range of its explorers. Litaku, Kurrichani, and other similartownsareSichuana; the Kaffre civilization being said to attain itsmaximumhereabouts.

There are plenty of points of contrast between the Kaffre and the typical Negro; so many indeed as to have suggested the doctrine that the former class belongs to some division of the human species other than the African. And these points of contrast are widely distributed,i.e., they appear and re-appear, whatever may be the view taken of the Kaffre stock. They appear in the descriptions of their skin and skeletons; they appear in the notice of their language; and they appear in the history of the Kaffre wars of the Cape frontierâ€”wars more obstinate and troublesome than any which have been conducted by the true Negro; and which approach the character of the Kabyle struggle for independence in Algeria. In investigating these differences we must guard against the exaggeration of their import.

Physically, the Kaffre has the advantage of the Negro in the conformation of the face and skull.[78]His forehead betokens greater capacity; being more prominent, more vaulted, and with a greater facial angle. His teeth, too, are more vertically inserted, and the nasal bones less depressed. I have not heard of aquiline noses in Kaffraria; but should not be surprised if I did.

The cheek-bones of the Kaffre project outwards; and where the cheek-bones so project beyond a certain limit, the chin appears to taper downwards, and the vertex upwards. When this becomes exaggerated we hear oflozenge-shapedcrania; the Malay skulls being currently quoted as instances thereof. Be this as it may, the breadth in the malar portion of the face is a remarkable feature in the Kaffre physiognomy. This he has in common with the Hottentot. His hair is also tufted like the Hottentot's: while his lips are thick like the Negro's. Tall in stature, wiry and elastic in his muscles, the Kaffre varies in colour, through all the shades of black and brown; being, in some portions of his area nearly as dark as the Negro, in others simply brown like the Arab. The eye is sometimes oblique; the opening generally narrow.

An opinion often gives a better picture than a description. Kaffres, that have receded in the greatest degree from the Negro type, have been so likened to the more southern Arabs as to have[79]engendered the hypothesis of an infusion of Arab blood.

The manners of the Kaffres of the Cape are those of pastoral tribes under chieftains; tribes which, from their habits and social relations, are naturally active, locomotive, warlike, and jealous of encroachment. Next to marauding on the hunting-grounds of an American Indian, interference with the pasture of a shepherd population is the surest way to warfare.

It would be strange indeed if the Kaffre life and Kaffre physiognomy had no peculiarities. However little in the way of physical influence we may attribute to the geography of a country, no man ignores them altogether. Now Kaffreland has very nearly a latitude of its own; inhabited lands similarly related to the southern tropic being found in South America and Australia only. And it has a soil still more exclusively South-African. We connect the idea of thedesertwith that of sand; whilststeppeis a term which is limited to the vast tracts of central Asia. Now the Kaffre, and still more the Hottentot, area, dry like the desert, and elevated like the steppe, is partially akarro. Its soil is often a hard, cracked, and parched clay rather than a waste of sand, and it constitutes an argillaceous table-land. Its vegetation has strongly marked characters. Its Fauna has the same.[80]

The language is peculiar. If English were spoken on Kosa or Sichuana principles we should say

bun beaminstead ofsun beam.loon light...moon light.srand-son...grand-son, &c.,

since, in the Kaffre languages throughout, subordinate words in certain syntactic combinations, accommodate their initial letter to that of the leading word of the term.

Their polity and manners, too, are peculiar. The head man of the village settles disputes; his tribunal being in the open air. From him an appeal lies to a chief of higher power; and from him to some superior, higher still. In this way there is a long chain of feudal or semi-feudal dependency.

But the power of the chief is checked by that of the priest. A supposed skill in medicine, imaginary arts of divination, and an accredited power over the elements are the prerogatives of certain witches and wizards. Thus, when a murrain among the cattle, or the death of an important individual has taken place, the blame is laid upon some unfortunate victim whom the witch or wizard points out. And the ordeal to which he must submit, is equal in cruelty to those of the Gold Coast. He is beaten with sticks, and then pegged down to the ground. Whilst thus[81]helpless, a nest of venomous bush-ants is broken over his racked and quivering body. If this fail to extort a confession, he is singed to death with red-hot stones.

This tells us what is meant by Kaffre chiefs and Kaffre wizards.

The wife is the slave to the husband; and hebuysher in order that she should be so. The purchase implies a seller. This is always a member of another tribe. Hence the wish of a Kaffre is to see his wife the mother of many children, girls being more valuable than boys.

Why a man should not sell his offspring to the members of his own tribe is uncertain. It is clear, however, that the practice of doing so makes marriage between even distant relations next to impossible. To guard against the chances of this, a rigid and suspicious system of restraint has been developed in cases of consanguinity; and relations must do all they can to avoid meeting. To sit in the same room, to meet on the same road, is undesirable. To converse is but just allowable, and then all who choose must hear what is said. So thorough, however, has been the isolation in many cases, that persons of different sexes have lived as near neighbours for many years without having conversed with each other; and such communication as there has been, has[82]taken place through the medium of a third person. No gift will induce a Kaffre female to violate this law.

Is the immolation of human beings at the death of chieftains a Kaffre custom, as it was one of western Africa? The following extract gives an answer in the affirmative, the only difference being thepretextof the murders. On the "death of the mother of Chaka, the great Zulu chief, a public mourning was held, which lasted for the space of two days, the people being assembled at the kraal of the chief to the number of sixty or eighty thousand souls. Mr. Fynn, who was present, describes the scene as the most terrific which it is possible for the human mind to conceive. The immense multitude were all engaged in rending the air with the most doleful shrieks, and discordant cries and lamentations; whilst, in the event of their ceasing to utter them, they were instantly butchered as guilty of a crime against the reigning tyrant. It is said that no less than six or seven thousand persons were destroyed on this occasion, charged with no other offence than exhausted nature in the performance of this horrid rite, their brains being mercilessly dashed out amidst the surrounding throng. As a suitablefinaleto this dreadful tragedy, it is said that ten females were actually buried alive with the royal corpse; whilst all who witnessed the[83]funeral were obliged to remain on the spot for a whole year."

Details of Kaffre manners may be multiplied almostad infinitum; and as their history and habits are likely to fill a Blue Book, a short treatise can only notice their more prominent peculiarities.

However, lest an undue inference be drawn from their contrast to the Hottentot, we must remember that the former has encroached upon the latter, and that such transitional populations as existed have been swept away.

Now comes a coloured populationâ€”not indigenous, but the descendants of theslavesof the colony. This consists ofâ€”

1. Negroes.

2. Malays from the Indian Archipelago.

3. Malagasi from Madagascar.

To which we must add, as of mixed blood, the offspring ofâ€”

1. Negroes and Dutch, English, &c.

2. Malays and Dutch, English, &c.

3. Malagasi and Dutch, English, &c.

This seems to be the limit of the intermixture; since, between the Malays and Negroes, &c., there is but little intermarriage. Thepossibleelements, however, of hybridity are numerous,e.g., Griquas and Negroes, Griquas and Malays, Malays and Kaffres, &c.

The so-called yellow men.â€”On the 4th of[84]August, 1782, the "Grosvenor" Indiaman was wrecked on the coast of Natal. Of the crew who escaped, some reached the Cape and others remained amongst the natives. In 1790, an expedition was undertaken in search of them.

In this expedition, Mr. Van Reenens, considered that he had discovered a village where the people were descended from the whites, and in which there were three old women who had been wrecked when very young. They could not tell to what country they belonged; were treated as superior beings; and, when offered a safe convoy to the Cape, were at first pleased with the prospect, but eventually refused to leave their children and grandchildren. Now, whatever these old women were, they were not of the crew of the "Grosvenor," and I doubt whether they were Europeans at all.

Againâ€”Mr. Thomson, when at Litaku, heard of yellowcannibals, with long hair, whose invasions were the dread of the country; a statement which merely means that some tribes of South Africa, are lighter coloured, and more savage in their appetite than others.

Lastly, Lieutenant Farewell saw one of these yellow men at Natal, who was described as a cannibal, andwho shrunk abashed from the lieutenant.

Be it so. The evidence that "there are descendants of Europeans and Africans now widely[85]diffusing their offspring throughout the country; whose services might be turned to good account in civilizing the native tribes," is still incomplete.

Mauritius.â€”The coloured population, which is far greater than that of the white, consists in the Mauritius ofâ€”

1. True Africansâ€”chiefly from the east coast, and, consequently, of the Kaffre stock; the word being used in its most general sense. Darker than the Kaffres of the Cape, they, nevertheless, recede from the Negro type in the shape of the jaw, lips, and forehead. The hair also is less woolly. They are strong and powerful individuals.

2. Malagasi, or natives of Madagascar.â€”These arenotAfricans to the same extent as the Kaffres of the coast. As far back as the time of Reland it was known that the affinities of the Malagasi language were with the Malay and Polynesian tongues of Asia; but it was also known that the similarity in physiognomy was less than that of language. Hence came a conflict of difficulties. The speech indicated one origin, the colour anotherâ€”whilst the fact of an island so near to Africa, and so far from Malacca, as Madagascar, being other than what its geographical position indicated, is, and has been, a mystery. Some writers have assumed an intermixture of blood; others have limited the Malay element to the[86]dominant population. Lastly, Mr. Crawfurd has denied the inferences from the similarity of languagein toto; considering that there is "nothing in common between the two races, and nothing in common between the character of their languages." The comparative philologist is slow to admit thisâ€”indeed, he denies it.

The blacks form the great majority of the coloured population. Besides these, however, there areâ€”

3. Arabs.

4. Chinese.

5. HindÃºs, from the continent of India; convicts being transported to the Mauritius for life, and worked on the roads of the colony.

6. Cingalese from Ceylonâ€”the Kandian chiefs whose presence in their native country was thought likely to endanger the tranquillity of the island, were sent hither.

The whites of the Mauritius are chiefly French; though not wholly of pure blood. The first settlers took their wives from Madagascar. The English form the smallest part of the population.

Rodriguesâ€”occupied by a few French colonists from the Mauritius.

The Seychellesâ€”The same; the coloured population outnumbering the white in the proportion of ten to one. Here there is a Portuguese admixture. From Maha, the chief town of the Seychelles,[87]to Madagascar, is five hundred and seventy-six milesâ€”a fact to be borne in mind when we speculate upon the origin of the population of that island.

The Africans of British America.â€”Honduras, Belize, the West India Islands, and Demerara.â€”The usual distribution of the population of these parts isâ€”

WHITE.

1. European whites, born in Europe.2. Creoles, or whites born in the island.

1. European whites, born in Europe.

2. Creoles, or whites born in the island.

COLOURED.

a. Pure Blood.1. Mandingos, from the river-systems of the Senegal and Gambia.2. Coromantinesâ€”from the Ivory and Gold Coast.3. Whydahsâ€”from Dahomey.4. Ibosâ€”from the Lower Niger.5. Congosâ€”from Portuguese Africa.

a. Pure Blood.

1. Mandingos, from the river-systems of the Senegal and Gambia.

2. Coromantinesâ€”from the Ivory and Gold Coast.

3. Whydahsâ€”from Dahomey.

4. Ibosâ€”from the Lower Niger.

5. Congosâ€”from Portuguese Africa.

b. Mixed Blood.

1. Sambos, intermixture of the Negro and Mulatto.2. Mulattoesâ€”Negro and white.3. Quadroonsâ€”Mulatto and white.4. Mestisâ€”Quadroon and white.

1. Sambos, intermixture of the Negro and Mulatto.

2. Mulattoesâ€”Negro and white.

3. Quadroonsâ€”Mulatto and white.

4. Mestisâ€”Quadroon and white.

[88]

Such is what I find in Mr. Martin's valuable work on the Colonies, and it is, undoubtedly, a convenient and practical classification. Yet for the purposes of ethnology, it is deficient in detail. Without even guessing at the proportion of American slaves which the different parts of the western coast of Africa may have supplied, I subjoin a brief notice of tract between the Senegal and Benguela.

1. First come theWolof, between the Senegal and Cape Verde. To the back of these lieâ€”

2. TheSerawolliâ€”and around Cape Verdeâ€”

3. TheSereresâ€”none of these are truly Mandingo; nor is it certain that many slaves have come from them; such as do, however, are probably Mandingos in the current classification.

4. The Fulahs of Fouta-Torro and Fouta-Jallo possess the higher part of the Senegambian system. Imperfect Mahometans, they are lighter-coloured than either the Wolof or the Mandingo. Notwithstanding the great Fulah conquestsâ€”for under a leader named Danfodio this has been one of the encroaching and subjugating families of Africaâ€”there are still American slaves of Fulah bloodâ€”though, perhaps, but few. Mr. Hodgson procured his vocabulary from a Fulah slave of Virginia; and what we find in the[89]United States, we may find in the British possessions also.

5. The Mandingos Proper are the Negroes of the Gambia; but the following Africans, all within the range of the old slave trade, belong to the same class.

a.The Susu; whose language is spoken from the River Pongos to Sierra Leone.

b.The Timmani.

c.The Bullomâ€”each in contact with that settlement.

d.The Veyâ€”the written language already noticed.

e.The Mendiâ€”conterminous with the Vey.

f.The Kissiâ€”like the last two, spoken in the country behind Cape Mount, and on the boundaries of Liberia.

South of the Gambia and north of the Pongos, the Mandingo tongues, though spoken in the interior, do not reach the coast. On the contrary, they encircle the populations on the mouths of the Cacheo, Rio Grande, and Nunâ€”and truly barbarous populations these are. Of these the most northern areâ€”

6.The FelÃºp(Feloops)â€”between the Gambia and Cacheo.

7.The Papelâ€”south of the Cacheo.

8.The Balantesâ€”south of the Papel.

9.The Bagnonâ€”on the Lower Cacheo.[90]

10.The Bissagoâ€”islanders off the Cacheo.

11.NalÃº(Naloos)â€”on the Lower Nun.

12.Sapiâ€”ibid.

After these come the Susu, &c.; down to the tribes about Cape Mount and Cape Mesurado.

Between Cape Mesurado and Cape Palmas comeâ€”

13.The Krumen.Next to themâ€”

14.The Quaquas, of the Ivory Coast; speaking different Avekvom dialects.

Somewhere hereabouts come theâ€”

15, 16, 17. Kanga, Mangree, and Gien; three undetermined vocabularies of the "Mithridates." Thenâ€”

18, 19, 20. The Fanti, Gha, and Adampi (?) of the Gold Coast. We now approach the great martsâ€”

21, 22. Benin and Dahomey; andâ€”almost equal in infamous notorietyâ€”the countries of the Delta, of the Niger, or of theâ€”

23, 24, 25. Ibu, Bonny, and Efik (Old Calabar) Africans; at the back of which lieâ€”

26, 27. Yarriba, and the Nufi country. In Fernando Po the population isâ€”

28. Ediya. About the Bimbia river and mountainâ€”

29. Isubu.

30, 31, 32. TheBanaka(orBatanga), thePanwi, and theMpoongwetake us from the[91]Gaboon to Loango; forming a transition from the true Negroes to the Kaffres.

33, 34, 35, 36.Loango,Congo,Angola, andBenguelaâ€”the Kaffre type, both in form and language, is now more closely approached. Below Benguela there has been little or no exportation.

FOOTNOTES:[12]"Journal of the Geographical Society," 1850.[13]"United Service Magazine," Dec., 1850.[14]"United Service Journal," Nov., 1850.[15]Daniell in "Transactions of the Ethnological Society."[16]"United Service Journal," Nov., 1850.[17]Dr. Daniell on the Natives of Old Calabar, "Transactions of the Ethnological Society."[18]Rask.â€”Vejledning tel Acra-sproget, paa Kysten Ginea, med et Tillaeg om Akvambuisk.â€”Copenhagen, 1828.Introduction to the Acra Language, on the Coast of Guinea, with an Appendix on the Akvambu.[19]"Journal of the American Oriental Society," vol. i. no. 4.[20]"British Colonies." By M. Martin.[21]"Journal of the Geographical Society," vol. v. p. 319.

[12]"Journal of the Geographical Society," 1850.

[13]"United Service Magazine," Dec., 1850.

[14]"United Service Journal," Nov., 1850.

[15]Daniell in "Transactions of the Ethnological Society."

[16]"United Service Journal," Nov., 1850.

[17]Dr. Daniell on the Natives of Old Calabar, "Transactions of the Ethnological Society."

[18]Rask.â€”Vejledning tel Acra-sproget, paa Kysten Ginea, med et Tillaeg om Akvambuisk.â€”Copenhagen, 1828.Introduction to the Acra Language, on the Coast of Guinea, with an Appendix on the Akvambu.

[19]"Journal of the American Oriental Society," vol. i. no. 4.

[20]"British Colonies." By M. Martin.

[21]"Journal of the Geographical Society," vol. v. p. 319.

[92]

ADEN.â€”THE MONGOLIAN VARIETY.â€”THE MONOSYLLABIC LANGUAGES.â€”HONG KONG.â€”THE TENASSERIM PROVINCES; MAULMEIN, YE, TAVOY, TENASSERIM, THE MERGUI ARCHIPELAGO.â€”THE MÃ”N, SIAMESE, AVANS, KARIENS, AND SILONG.â€”ARAKHAN.â€”MUGS, KHYENS.â€”CHITTAGONG, TIPPERA, AND SYLHET.â€”KUKI.â€”KASIA.â€”CACHARS.â€”ASSAM.â€”NAGAS.â€”SINGPHO.â€”JILI.â€”KHAMTI.â€”MISHIMI.â€”ABORS AND BOR-ABORS.â€”DUFLA.â€”AKA.â€”MUTTUCKS AND MIRI, AND OTHER TRIBES OF THE VALLEY OF ASSAM.â€”THE GARO.â€”CLASSIFICATION.â€”MR. BROWN'S TABLES.â€”THE BODO.â€”DHIMAL.â€”KOCCH.â€”LEPCHAS OF SIKKIM.â€”RAWAT OF KUMAON.â€”POLYANDRIA.â€”THE TAMULIAN POPULATIONS.â€”RAJMAHALI MOUNTAINEERS.â€”KÃšLIS, KHONDS, GOANDS, CHENCHWARS.â€”TUDAS, ETC.â€”BHILS.â€”WARALIS.â€”THE TAMUL, TELINGA, KANARA AND MALAYALAM LANGUAGES.

Aden.â€”The ethnology of the Arab stock would fill a volume. It is sufficient to state that the British political dependency of Aden is, ethnologically, an Arab town.

Far more important possessions direct our attention towards India. Nevertheless, there are certain preliminaries to its ethnology.[93]

Mongolia and Chinaâ€”each of these countries illustrates an important ethnological phenomenon.

The first is a physical one. Cheek-bones that project outwards, a broad and flat face, a depressed nose, an oblique eye, a somewhat slanting insertion of the teeth, a scanty beard, an undersized frame, and a tawny or yellow skin, characterize the Mongol of Mongolia.

The second is a philological one. A comparative absence of grammatical inflexions, and a disproportionate preponderance of monosyllabic words, characterize the language of China.

So much for the simple elementary facts; the former of which will be spoken of under the designation ofMongolian conformation; the second under that ofmonosyllabic language.

Neither term is limited to the nation by which it has been illustrated. Plenty of populations besides those of Mongolia Proper are Mongol in physiognomy. Plenty of nations besides the Chinese are monosyllabic in language.

All the nations speaking monosyllabic tongues are Mongol in physiognomy; though all the nations which have a Mongol physiognomy donotspeak monosyllabic tongues. This makes the latter group, which for shortness will be called that of themonosyllabicnations or tribesâ€”a section, or division, of the former.

Little Tibet, Ladakh, Tibet Proper, Butan, and[94]China, are all Mongol in form, and monosyllabic in language. So are Ava, Pegu, Siam, Cambojia, and Cochin China, the countries which constitute the great peninsula, sometimes calledIndo-Chinese, and sometimesTransgangetic.

The extremity howeverâ€”the Malayan peninsulaâ€”isnotmonosyllabic.

The British possessions of Hindostan are monosyllabic on their Tibetan and Burmese frontiers.

Hong-Kong.â€”Aden was disposed of briefly. So is Hong-Kong; and that for the same reason. Politically, British, it is ethnologically Chinese.

Maulmein, Ye, Tavoy, Tenasserim, and the Mergui Archipelago.â€”These constitute what are sometimes called theceded, sometimes theTenasserimprovinces. They came into possession of the British at the close of the Burmese war of 1825. Unlike our dependencies in Hindostan, they are cut off from connection with any of the great centres of British power in Asiaâ€”in which respect they agree with the smaller and still more isolated settlements of the Malaccan Peninsula. The power that ceded them was the Burmese, so that it is with the existing subjects of that empire that their present limits are in contact; though only for the northern part. To the south they abut upon Siam.

The population throughout is monosyllabic; except so far as it is modified by foreign intermixtureâ€”of[95]which by far the most important element is the Indian. Everything in the way of religious creed which is not native and pagan is Indian and Buddhist. The alphabets, too, of the lettered populations are Indian in origin.

The population of thecontinentalpart of these British dependencies is referable to four divisionsâ€”of unequal and imperfectly ascertained value. 1. The MÃ´n. 2. The Siamese. 3. The Avans. 4. The Kariens.

1.The MÃ´n.â€”MÃ´n is the native name of the indigenous population of Pegu, so that the MÃ´n of Maulmein, or Amherst, the most northern of the provinces in question, on the left bank of the lower SalwÃn, are part and parcel of the present occupants of the delta of the Irawaddi, and the country about Cape Negrais. The Burmese call themTalieng, and under that designation they are described in Dr. Helfer's Report.[22]The Siamese appellation isMing-mÃ´n; apparently the native name in a state of composition. In the early Portuguese notices a still more composite form appearsâ€”and we hear of the ancient empire ofKalamenham, supposed to have been founded by thePandalÃºsof MÃ´n or Pegu.

None of theletteredlanguages of the Indo-Chinese peninsula are less known than that of[96]Pegu. At the same time its unequivocally monosyllabic character is beyond doubt. The alphabet is a slight variation of the Avan.

The geographical position of the MÃ´n at the extremity of a promontory, and on the delta of a river, taken along with their philological isolation, is remarkable. They have evidently been encroached upon by the Avans in latter times; whilst, at an earlier period, they themselves probably encroached upon others. Whether they are the oldest occupants of Maulmein is uncertain; it is only certain that they are older than their conquerors.

To the MÃ´n of Pegu the exchange of Avan for British rule, has been a great and an appreciated advantage.

2.The Siamese.â€”The native name for the Siamese language isTha'y, andTha'yis the national and indigenous denomination of the Siamese. It is the Avans who call themSianorShan; from whence the European term has been derived through the Portuguese.

The Siamese population is of course greatest on the Siamese frontier; so that, increasing as we go south, it attains itsmaximumin Tenasserim just as the MÃ´n did in Maulmein. It seems, also, to have been introduced at different times; a fact which gives us a distinction between the native Siamese and the recent settlers.[97]

Like theMÃ´n, the Tha'y, at least in its more classical dialect, is a lettered language; the alphabet, like the Buddhist religion, being Indian. Unlike, however, theMÃ´n, which is the only representative of the family to which it belongs, theTha'ytribes constitute a vast class, falling into divisions and subdivisions, and exceedingly remarkable in respect to its geographical distribution.

The Siamese of Siam, the kingdom of which Bankok is the capital, form but a fraction of this great stock. Theupperhalf of the river Menam is occupied by what are called theLaÃº, orLaos. These are partly wholly independent, and partly in nominal dependence upon China; and proportionate to their independence is the unlettered character of their language, and the absence of Indian influences. Nor is this all. The Menam is pre-eminently the river of the Tha'y stock, and along the water-system of the Menam its chief branches are to be found; their position being between the Burmese populations of the west, and the Khomen of Cambojia on the east. This distribution isvertical,i.e., it is characterized by its length, rather than its breadth, and runs from south to north. So far does it reach in this direction that, as high as 28Â° North lat., in upper Assam we find a branch of it. This is theKhamti. In a valuable comparison of languages, well-known[98]as "Brown's Tables,"[23]the proportion of the Khamti words to the South Siamese is ninety-twoper cent.

Of the physical appearance of the Siamese, we find the best account in "Crawfurd's Embassy," the classical work for the ethnology of the southern part of the Indo-Chinese peninsula. Their stature is low; the tallest man out of twenty having been five feet eight inches, the shortest five feet three. The complexion, darker than that of the Chinese, is lighter than that of the Malay; the eye oblique; the jaw square; and the cheek-bones broad.

Tha'yis an ethnological term, and denotes all the nations and tribes akin to the Siamese of the southern, the Khamti of the northern, or the LaÃº of the intermediate area. The difference between the first and the last of these three should be noticed. Some members of the family are Indianized in religion, and organized in politics. Such are the Siamese of Bankok. Others retain both their independence and their original Paganism. Such are some of the LaÃº.Mutatis mutandis, the same applies to the next family.

This is theBurmese, to which both the Avans and the Kariens belong; but as it has been already stated that the divisions under consideration[99]are by no means of equal value, the two branches will be considered separately.

3.The Avans.â€”Avanis a more convenient term thanBurmese, inasmuch as it is more definite; theBurmese Empirecontaining not only very distant members of the greatBurmesefamily, but also populations which belong to other groups.Ava, on the other hand, is the centre of the dominant division.

Whether theMÃ´n, or a family yet to be mentioned, represent the aborigines ofMaulmein, it is certain that the Avans of that country are of comparatively recent introduction.

Again, whether theTha'y, or a family yet to be mentioned, represent the aborigines ofTenasserim, it is certain that the Avans of that country are of comparatively recent origin.

Nevertheless, there are Avans in each; and in Maulmein, although the MÃ´n preponderate in number, they all are able to speak the language of their conquerors. I sayconquerors, because the Avans are for all the parts south of 18Â° North lat., an intrusive population: the end of the eighteenth century being the date, when, under Alompra, an Avan or UmerapÃºra dynasty broke up and subjected, in different degrees, the MÃ´n and Tha'y populations to the south, as well as several others more akin to itself on the east, west, and north.[100]

The kingdom of Ava, next to those of China and Siam, best represents the civilization of those families whose tongue is monosyllabic. This implies that it has an organized polity, a lettered language, and a Buddhist creed; in other words that the influences of either China or India have acted on it. Of these two nations it is the latter which has most modified the Indianized members of the great Burmese stock. In strong contrast with these is the fourth and last branch of thecontinentalpopulation for the provinces in question, the

4.Karien.â€”The Kariens are partially independent; chiefly pagan; and their language, belonging to the same class with the Avan, is unlettered. They are the first of a long list.

Their geographical distribution is remarkable, like that of the Tha'y. Its direction is north and south; its dimensions linear, rather than broad; and it bears nearly the same relation to the water-system of the SalwÃn that that of the Siamese does to the river Menam. There are Kariens as far south as 11Â° North lat. and there are Kariens as far north as 25Â° North lat. Hence we have them in Maulmein, and in Tenasserim, and in the intermediate provinces of Ye and Tavoy as well. All these, like the MÃ´n, have been eased by the transfer from Avan oppression to British rule; though this says but little. Hence, with one exception,[101]the other members of their family are decreasing; the exception being the so-calledRedKarien.

This epithet indicates a change in physiognomy; and, indeed, the physical conformation of the Burmese tribes requires attention. It is Mongolian in the way that the Siamese is Mongolian; but changes have set in. The beard increases; the hair becomes crisper; and the complexion darkens. The Kyo,[24]the isolated occupants of a single village on the river Koladyng, are so much darker than their neighbours as to have been considered half Bengali; and, as a general rule, the nearer we approach India, the deeper becomes the complexion. The MÃ´n, too, of Pegu, are very dark. What is this the effect of? Certainly not of latitude, since we are moving northward. Of intermarriage? There is no proof of this. The greater amount of low alluvial soils, like those of the Ganges and Irawaddi, is, in my mind, the truer reason. But this is too general a question to be allowed to delay us. The Red Kariens are instances of an Asiatic tribe with an American colour; just as the Red Fulahs were in Africa. Such are the occupants of thecontinent.

5.The Silong.â€”In theislandsof the Mergui Archipelago, there is another variety; but whether[102]it form a class itself, or belong to any of the previous ones, is uncertain. Their language is said to be peculiar;[25]but of this we have no specimen. As it is probably that of the oldest inhabitants of the continent opposite, this is to be regretted.

They are calledSilong, are a sort of sea-gipsy; and amount to about one thousand. Of all the creeds of either India or the Indo-Chinese peninsula theirs is the most primitive; so primitive as to be characterized by little except its negative characters. They believe that the land, air, trees, and waters are inhabited byNat, or spirits, who direct the phenomena of Nature. How far they affect that of man, except indirectly, is unascertained. "We do not think about that," was the invariable answer, when any one was questioned about a future state. Too vague for monotheism, the Silong creed is also said to be too vague for idolatry, too vague for sacrifices.

The Kariens, also, believe inNat, but, astheybelieve in their influence on human affairs, they sacrifice to them accordingly.

Little, then, as we know, respecting these two families, we know that the common practice ofNatworship connects them; and this worship connects many other members of theBurmesestock. Consequently it helps us to place[103]the Silong in that group. It also favours the notion of the Tenasserim aborigines being Burmese.

It is the delta of the Irawaddi which isolates theTenasserim provinces; and the British dependency from which it separates them isâ€”

Arakhan.â€”We are prepared for the ethnological position of the Arakhan populations. They areBurmese.

We are likewise prepared for a division of them; there will be the Indianized and the Paganâ€”paganism and political independence going, to a certain degree, together.

We are prepared for even minuter detail; the paganism will be Nat-worship; the Indian creed Buddhism: the alphabet also, where the language is written, will be Indian also. In Captain Tower's vocabulary,[26]only seven words out of fifty differ between the Burmese of Arakhan, and the Burmese of Ava; and some of these are mere differences of pronunciation.

The language itself is calledRukhengby those who use it; but the Bengali name isMug.

This applies to the Indianized part of the population, the analogues of the Avans and Siamese of Tenasserim, and of the MÃ´n of Maulmein. What are the Arakhan equivalents to the Karien?

The Khyen.â€”These inhabit the Yuma mountains[104]between Arakhan and Ava. A full notice of them is given by Lieutenant Trant, in the sixteenth volume of the "Asiatic Researches." But as they are chiefly independent tribes, it is enough to state that they form the Anglo-Burmese frontier. It is also added that there are numerous Khyen slaves in Arakhan.

Farther notice of them is the less important, because a closely allied population will occur amongst the hill-tribes ofâ€”

Chittagong.â€”HindÃº elements now increase. Even in Arakhan, Buddhism had ceased to be the only creed of western origin. There were Mahometans who spoke a mixed dialect called theRuinga;[27]and Brahminical HindÃºs who spoke another called theRosawn. In Chittagong, then, we must look about us for the aborigines; so intrusive have become the HindÃº elements. Intrusive, however, they are, and intrusive they will be for some time to come.

The foot of the hill, and the hill itself, are important points of difference in Indian ethnology. On thelowerranges of the mountains on the north-east of Chittagong are theKhumia(Choomeeas) orvillagers;khum(choom) meaningvillage. These are definitely distinguished from the HindÃºs, by a flat nose, small eye, and broad round face, in other words by Mongolian characteristics[105]in the way of physiognomy. But theKhumiaare less perfect samples of their class than the true mountaineers. These are theKuki,[28]â€”hunters and warriors, divided into tribes, each under elective chiefs, themselves subordinate to a hereditaryRaja,â€”at least such is the HindÃº phraseology.

Their creed consists in the belief ofKhogein Pootteeangas a superior, andSheem Saukas an inferior deity; the destruction of numerous enemies being the best recommendation to their favour. A wooden figure, of human shape, represents the latter. The skulls of their enemies they keep as trophies. In the month of January there is a solemn festival.

Language and tradition alike tell us that the Kuki (and most likely the Khumia as well) are unmodified Mugs. The displacement of their family has been twofoldâ€”first by HindÃºs, secondly by Buddhist (or modified) Mugs at the time of the Burmese conquest. The Kuki population extends to the wilder parts of the district ofTippera.

Sylhet.â€”On the southern frontier we have Kukis; on the eastern Cachari; on the northern Coosyas (Kasia). Due west of these last lie the Garo. I imagine that both these last-named populations are members of the same groupâ€”but cannot speak confidently. If so, we have departed[106]considerably from the more typical Burmese of Arakhan and Ava. Still we are within the same great class. The Garo will command a somewhat full notice.

The Cachars depart still more from the more typical Burmese; the group to which they most closely belong being one which will also be enlarged on.

North of the Kasia we reach the western portion of the southern frontier ofâ€”

Assam.â€”Here it will be convenient to take the whole of the valleyâ€”Upper as well as Middle and Lower Assamâ€”although parts of the former are independent rather than Britishâ€”and to go round it; beginning with the Kasia country and the Jaintia mountains on the south-west. I imagineâ€”but am not certainâ€”that the Kasia and Jaintia mountaineers are very closely allied.

Next to the Cachars on the southern, or Manipur, frontier areâ€”

The Nagas.â€”These are in the same class with the Kuki;i.e., the wild tribes of Manipur, speaking a not very altered dialect of the Burmese.

The Singpho.â€”This people is said to have come from a locality between their present position and the north-eastern corner of Assam and the Chinese frontier. An imperfect Buddhism, and an unappreciated alphabet of Siamese origin, are the chief phenomena of their civilization.[107]

The Jili.â€”These are conterminous with the Singpho; to whom they are closely allied, in language, at least; seventy words out of one hundred agreeing in the two vocabularies.

TheKhamticome in now. These have been mentioned as Tha'y in their most northern localities. They occupy north-eastern Assam, and are conterminous with the Singpho. The Khamti language, with its per-centage of ninety-two words common to it and the Siamese of Bankok, ten degrees southwards, has only three out of one hundred that agree with the Singpho, and ten in one hundred with the Jili. This shows the remarkable character of their ethnological distribution, and, at the same time, suggests the idea of great displacement.

The Mishimi.â€”These occupy the north-east extremity of Assam. With the Mishimi we turn the corner, and find ourself on the northern or Tibetan frontier. Here it is the most western tribes which come first; and these areâ€”

The Abors and Padam Bor-Abors.â€”The first, like the Kuki, on the mountain-tops; the latter, like the Khumia, on the lower ranges.

The Dufla.â€”Mountaineers west of the Abors, with whom they are conterminous in about 94Â° East lon.

The Aka.â€”Mountaineers west of the Dufla, with whom they are conterminous in about 92Â°[108]East lon. The Akas bound Lower Assam, the eastern part of which lies between them and the Cachari country.

The tribes hitherto mentioned, although sufficiently numerous, represent the mountaineers of the Manipur and Tibetanfrontiersonly. The native tribes of the valley still stand over. These areâ€”

1. TheMuttuckorMoa Mareya,southof the Brahmaputra, and so far Indianized as to be Brahminical in religion. Their locality is the south bank of the Brahmaputra; opposite to that ofâ€”

2.The Miri, on thenorth.â€”The Miri are backed on the north by the Bor-Abors.

3.The Mikir.â€”Mr. Robertson looks upon these as an intrusive people from the Jaintia hills: their present locality being the district of Nowgong, where they are mixed up withâ€”

4.The Lalong.â€”I cannot say whether the Lalong speak their originally monosyllabic tongue, or have learnt the Bengaliâ€”a phenomenon which does much to disguise the true ethnology of more than one of the forthcoming tribes; one of which is certainlyâ€”

5.The Dhekra, occupants of Lower Assam and Kamrup, where they are mixed up with other sections of the population.

6.The RabhÃ¡.â€”Like the Dhekra, these are[109]HindÃºs. Like the Dhekra they speak Bengali. Hence, like the Dhekra, their true affinities are disguised. It is, however, pretty generally admitted by the best authorities that what may be predicated of the Garo and Bodoâ€”two families of which a fuller notice will be given in the sequelâ€”may be predicated of the sections in question, as also ofâ€”

7.The HajongorHojai.â€”HindÃºs, speaking a form of the Bengali at the foot of the Garo hills; and who join the RabhÃ¡, whose locality is between Gwahatti and Sylhet,i.e., at the entrance of the Assam valley.

TheGaroof the Garo hills to the north-east of Bengal now require notice. A mountaineer of these parts has much in common with the Coosya; yet the languages are,perhaps, mutually unintelligible. In form they are exceedingly alike.

Now, a Garo[29]is hardy, stout, and surly-looking, with a flattened nose, blue or brown eyes, large mouth, thick lips, round face, and brown complexion. Theirbuniahs(booneeahs) or chiefs, are distinguished by a silken turban. They have a prejudice against milk; but in the matter of other sorts of food are omnivorous. Their houses, calledchaungs, are built on piles, from three to four feet from the ground, from ten to forty in breadth, and from thirty to one hundred and fifty[110]in length. They drink, feast, and dance freely; and, in their matrimonial forms, much resemble the Bodo. The youngest daughter inherits. The widow marries the brother of the deceased; if he die, the next; if all, the father.

The dead are kept for four days; then burnt. Then the ashes are buried in a hole on the place where the fire was. A small thatched building is next raised over them; which is afterwards railed in. For a month, or more, a lamp is lit every night in this building. The clothes of the deceased hang on polesâ€”one at each corner of the railing. When the pile is set fire to, there is great feasting and drunkenness.

The Garo are no HindÃºs. Neither are they unmodified pagans. Mahadeva they invokeâ€”perhaps, worship. Nevertheless, their creed is mixed. They worship the sun and the moon, or rather the sunorthe moon; since they ascertain which is to be invoked by taking a cup of water and some wheat. The priest then calls on the name of the sun, and drops corn into the water. If it sink, the sun is worshipped. If not, a similar experiment is tried with the name of the moon. Misfortunes are attributed to supernatural agency: and averted by sacrifice.

Sometimes they swear on a stone; sometimes they take a tiger's bone between their teeth and then tell their tale.[111]

Lastly, they have an equivalent to theLycanthropyof the older European nations:â€”

"Among the Garrows a madness exists, which they call transformation into a tiger, from the person who is afflicted with this malady walking about like that animal, shunning all society. It is said, that, on their being first seized with this complaint they tear their hair and the rings from their ears, with such force as to break the lobe. It is supposed to be occasioned by a medicine applied to the forehead; but I endeavoured to procure some of the medicine thus used, without effect. I imagine it rather to be created by frequent intoxications, as the malady goes off in the course of a week or fortnight. During the time the person is in this state, it is with the utmost difficulty he is made to eat or drink. I questioned a man, who had thus been afflicted, as to the manner of his being seized, and he told me he only felt a giddiness without any pain, and that afterwards he did not know what happened to him."[30]

In a paper of Captain C. S. Reynolds, in the "Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal,"[31]we have the notice of a hitherto undescribed superstition; that of theKorah. AKorahis a dish of bell-metal, of uncertain manufacture. A small kind, called Deo Korah, is hung up as a household[112]god and worshipped. Should the monthly sacrifice of a fowl be neglected, punishment is expected. If "a person perform his devotion to the spirit which inhabits the Korah with increasing fervour and devotion, he is generally rewarded by seeing the embossed figures gradually expand. The Garos believe that when the whole household is wrapped in sleep, the Deo Korahs make expeditions in search of food, and when they have satisfied their appetites return to their snug retreats unobserved."

The Miri are supposed to believe the same of what are calledDeo Guntas, brought from Tibet.

Now what is the classification of all these tribes? Preliminary to the answer on this point, there are eleven dialects spoken in the parts about Manipurâ€”besides the proper language of Manipur itselfâ€”to be enumerated. These are as follows:â€”1. Songpu. 2. Kapwi. 3. Koreng. 4. Maram. 5. Champhung. 6. Luhuppa. 7, 8, 9. Northern, Central, and Southern Tangkhul. 10. Khoibu; and 11. Maring. Now these twelve (the Manipur being included) have been tabulated by Mr. Brown, in such a way as to show the per-centage of words that each has with all the others; and not only these, but nearly all the tongues which we have had to deal with, are similarly put in order for being compared. The part of the table necessary for the present use is as follows:[113]â€”

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