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are not only disagreeable, but injurious to health. The lips crack, and the skin feels dry and harsh. Occasionally, at this time, tropical rains fall, but they do more harm than good, as a sudden cold which annihilates vegetation is invariably the result. In July and August the nights are the coldest, and it is then no unusual thing to find ice half an inch thick. Snow is of rare occurrence.

The Damaras and the Bechuanas have nearly the same notion as to their origin. Thus the latter believe that the founders of their nation and the animals of the country emerged from a cave, while the former declare that they sprung from a tree. When men and beasts first burst from the parent tree—so runs the tradition—all was enveloped in profound darkness. A Damara then lit a fire, which so frightened the zebra, the giraffe, the gnoo, and every other beast now found wild in the country, that they all fled from the presence of man, while the domestic animals, such as the ox, the sheep, and the dog, collected fearlessly round the blazing brands.

The tree from which the Damaras are descended is to be seen, they say, at a place called Omaruru. But somehow there must be more than one parent tree, for both in going and coming we met with several Omumborombongas, all of which the natives treated with filial affection.†

The chief deity of the Damaras is called Omukuru. His abode is said to be in the far north; but it would be somewhat difficult to specify his attributes. Each tribe is supposed to have its own Omukuru, to whom it ascribes all its superstitious habits and customs, peculiarities, &c. The tribe is divided into castes or "eandas." Thus there are Ovakueyuba, those of the sun, or related to the sun, and Ovakuenombura, those related to the rain, &c., each of which has

* Some Damaras attribute the origin of the sheep to a large stone. †The grain of this tree is so very close, and the wood so exceedingly weighty, that we gave it the name of the "iron tree.”

RELIGION—WITCHCRAFT-SUPERSTITIONS.

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its peculiar rites and superstitions. These, moreover, are derived from the mother, and not from the father. If a man of the Ovakueyuba marries a woman of the Ovakuenombura, their offspring adopt the notions, &c., peculiar to the latter, and vice-versa. They can not account for this division of castes; they merely say it is derived from the "wind." Some religious notions, no doubt, lie at the bottom of this.

Though the Damaras do not profess absolutely to believe in a life hereafter, they have a confused notion of a future state. Thus they not unfrequently bring provisions to the grave of a deceased friend or relation, requesting him to eat and make merry. In return, they invoke his blessing, and pray for success against their enemies, an abundance of cattle, numerous wives, and prosperity in their undertakings.

The spirits of deceased persons are believed to appear after death, but are then seldom seen in their natural form. They usually assume on such occasions the shape of a dog, having, not unfrequently, the foot of an ostrich. Any individual to whom such an apparition (Otjruru) might appear, especially if it should follow and accost him, is supposed to die soon after.

Individuals

The Damaras have great faith in witchcraft. versed in the black art are called Omundu-Onganga, or Omundu-Ondyai, and are much sought after. Any person falling sick is immediately attended by one of these impostors, whose panacea is to besmear the mouth and the forehead of the patient with the ordure of the hyena, which is supposed to possess particularly healing virtues. The sorcerer, moreover, makes signs and conjurations.

Some very singular superstitions about meat exist among the Damaras. Thus a man will perhaps not eat the flesh of an ox which may happen to be marked with black, white, or red spots. Others refuse to partake of a sheep should it have no horns; while some would not touch the meat of draft-oxen, according to the rule of the "eanda" to which

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POLYGAMY-SINGULAR CUSTOMS.

kept in readiness for such occasions, and for a certain time hides her face by means of a piece of thin, soft skin attached to the front of the "casque," which she can raise or let fall in much the same manner as a curtain.

Polygamy is practiced to a great extent, and, as has been said elsewhere, women are bargained for like merchandise, the price varying according to the circumstances of the husband. Yet, though a man may have as many wives as he likes, I never knew one to have more than twenty !—a pretty good supply, however, it must be admitted.

The favorite wife always takes precedence of the rest, and, if she should have a son, he succeeds to his father's possessions and authority.

Each wife builds for herself a hut of a semicircular form, the walls of which consist of boughs, sticks, &c., the whole being plastered over.

Twins are not uncommon with the Damaras. Children are, During infancy, sheep's Their heads are more or

generally speaking, easily reared. milk constitutes their chief diet.

less deprived of hair; the boys are shaved, but the crown of the head of the girls is left untouched. Even grown-up females follow this custom. To the hair thus left they attach -not very unlike the Ovambo - thin strings, made from some fibrous substance.

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All males are circumcised, but no particular period of life is prescribed for this operation, which usually takes place when any event of national interest occurs.

Children are named after great public incidents; but, as they grow up, should any circumstance arise of still greater importance to the community, they are renamed, retaining, however, the original appellation; and, since there may be no limit to remarkable transactions, it follows that an individual may have more names than any Spanish hidalgo can

boast.

Between the age of fifteen and twenty, both sexes chip a

BURYING THE DEAD.

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wedge-shaped piece of the two centre teeth in the upper jaw, and at a later period they extract entirely from the lower two or three teeth. The first operation is usually performed by means of a piece of iron, a flint, or simply a stone.

The Damaras bury their dead. Immediately after dissolution, the back bone of the corpse is broken with a stone,* and it is then bent together with the chin resting on the knees. Afterward it is wrapped in ox-hides, and deposited in a hole in the ground dug for the purpose, care being taken to place the face toward the north. This is done, they say, to remind them (the natives) whence they originally came. The Bechuana mode of disposing of the dead is very similar. Upon the death of one of the tribe, the whole population of the place assemble to deplore the event. The howlings and lamentations on such occasions are most discordant and dreadful. Tears are considered favorable signs, and the more plentifully they fall on the corpse the better. Two months is the usual period for a son to mourn his father, but the time is modified according to circumstances. The wealthier the deceased, the greater the outward signs of sorrow -a kind of feeling which, at any rate, bears some approximation to that of civilized life. During the season of mourning, the mourner wears a dark-colored skin cap, conically shaped on the top, with certain ornaments affixed to it. Round the neck is suspended a "riem," to the two extremities of which is attached a small piece of ostrich egg-shell. In case of the death of a valued friend, the adults will occasionally shave the head completely, and keep it in that state for years.

When a woman in reduced circumstances dies and leaves a child, it is not unfrequently buried alive with its mother. Mr. Rath was once fortunate enough to be the means of

* I am told that this is not unfrequently done before life is quite extinct! It is moreover affirmed, that when the sick man begins to breathe hard a skin is immediately thrown over his face, which, no doubt, often causes premature death.

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saving a child that was about to be destroyed in this barbar

ous manner.

After having consigned the remains of a chief to his last resting-place, they collect his arms, war-dress, &c., and suspend them to a pole or to a tree at the head of the grave.

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The horns of such oxen as have been killed in commemoration of the occasion are hung up in like manner-a custom also found among the natives of Madagascar. The tomb consists of a large heap of stones, surrounded by an inclosure of thorn bushes, no doubt to prevent hyænas and other carnivorous animals from extracting the corpse. Sometimes,

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