Wonders of the tropics; or, Explorations and adventures of Henry M Stanley and other world-renowned travelers, including Livingstone, Baker, Cameron, Speke, Emin Pasha, Du Chaillu, Andersson, etc., etc .. . over which it ispressed by two men who stand in the grave for that purpose. More andmore clay is handed down in wooden bowls, and stamped firmly down,the operators raising the mat in proportion as the earth rises. They takeparticular care that not even the smallest pebble shall mix with the earththat surrounds the body, and, as the clay is quite free from stones, it isthe fittest material f
Wonders of the tropics; or, Explorations and adventures of Henry M Stanley and other world-renowned travelers, including Livingstone, Baker, Cameron, Speke, Emin Pasha, Du Chaillu, Andersson, etc., etc .. . over which it ispressed by two men who stand in the grave for that purpose. More andmore clay is handed down in wooden bowls, and stamped firmly down,the operators raising the mat in proportion as the earth rises. They takeparticular care that not even the smallest pebble shall mix with the earththat surrounds the body, and, as the clay is quite free from stones, it isthe fittest material for their purpose. How Cliiefs are Buried. As soon as the earth reaches the mouth, a branch of acacia is placedin the grave, and some roots of grass laid on the head, so that part of thegrass projects above the level of the ground. The excavated soil is thenscooped up so as to make a small mound, over which is poured severalbowlfuls of water, the spectators meanwhile shouting out, Pula! Pula! as they do when applauding a speaker in parliament. The weapons andimplements of the deceased are then brought to the grave, and presentedto him, but they are not left there, as is the case with some tribes. The. (73) 74 WONDERS OF THE TROPICS. ceremony ends by the whole party leaving the ground, amid the lamenta-tions of the women, who keep up a continual wailing cry. These are the full ceremonials that take place at the death of a chief—at all events, a man of some importance, but they vary much accordingto the rank of the individual. Sometimes a rain-maker has forbidden allsepulchral rites whatever, as interfering with the production of rain, andduring the time of this interdict every corpse is dragged into the bush tobe consumed by the hyaenas. Even the very touch of a dead body is for-bidden, and, under this strange tyranny, a son has been seen to fling aleathern rope round the leg of his dead mother, drag her body into the bush,and there leave it, throwing down the rope and abandoni
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