This Man, For Instance, Is Still A Sova Or Chief,
Has His Councilors, And Maintains The Same State As When The Country
Was Independent.
When any of his people are guilty of theft,
he pays down the amount of goods stolen at once, and reimburses himself
out of the property of the thief so effectually as to be benefited by
the transaction.
The people under him are divided into a number of classes.
There are his councilors, as the highest, who are generally
head men of several villages, and the carriers, the lowest free men.
One class above the last obtains the privilege of wearing shoes
from the chief by paying for it; another, the soldiers or militia,
pay for the privilege of serving, the advantage being that
they are not afterward liable to be made carriers. They are also divided
into gentlemen and little gentlemen, and, though quite black,
speak of themselves as white men, and of the others, who may not wear shoes,
as "blacks". The men of all these classes trust to their wives for food,
and spend most of their time in drinking the palm-toddy. This toddy
is the juice of the palm-oil-tree (`Elaeis Guineensis'), which, when tapped,
yields a sweet, clear liquid, not at all intoxicating while fresh, but,
when allowed to stand till the afternoon, causes inebriation and many crimes.
This toddy, called malova, is the bane of the country. Culprits are
continually brought before the commandants for assaults committed
through its influence.
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