'The Transactions of the Bombay Geographical Society. From January 1863 to December 1864. (Edited by the Secretary.) Volume XVII.' [‎276] (453/524)

276
VISIT TO THE
WANIKA
COUNTRY.
made to pass along the street, and receive a cut with the cane from each
elder as they pass him. The sacred horn is then exhibited, and this
terminates the ceremony, which is repeated fiom time to time till the
whole of the Kawibi have become elders.
The whole power lies in the hand of the elders, and though each
tribe of the Wanika has an hereditary chief, his authority is merely
nominal.
The Mugauga or soothsayer plays an important part amongst the
Wanika. He is consulted when one is suspected of having bewitched
another. The relatives of the person afflicted, together with a near rela
tive of the suspected culprit, and two men of the tribe as impartial
witnesses, meet the Mugauga, who must belong to a different tribe, and
be unacquainted with the circumstances of the case.
This however is a mere farce, as the inquirers have already fixed
on an obnoxious individual, and they only want some kind of sanction
in order to justify their intended murder to themselves and others.
The soothsayer places himself before a wooden bowl made for the
purpose with legs; water is thrown into it and castor-oil beans are
thrown into the water while the operator holds in his hand the tail of a
giraffe. With this he strikes the water, causing the beans to revolve in
it, and fixing his eyes on them, as if reading a book, gives a description
of the desired person. He then makes the listeners retire, and consider
whether the description he has given tallies with that of the person
whom they suspect, and as there is never any difficulty on this point,
the soothsayer, after a little more incantation, walks up to the son or
near relative of the intended victim, and strikes him with the tail.
Ihe party then retires, keeping profound silence regarding the victim ;
a feast is shortly afterwards given, and when the victim has been
made drunk with palm-wine, he is seized and strangled.
Sometimes one who is supposed to be a sorcerer of the worst kind is
binned alive, the grave being dug before his eyes, and taunts of every
kind being addressed to him while the work is being carried on.
Tne punishment of death is rarely inflicted for other offences, but
fines aie levied on every conceivable pretext ; in fact the ultimate object
of all their ceremonies and laws appears to be to induce the lower orders
to give as much as possible to the elders.
'The Orestes returned to Mombassa on the afternoon of Tuesday the
5th ultimo, and on the following morning she put to sea. We spent one
da\ (the 8th) at Pemba and returned to Zanzibar this day.