84 A DESCRIPTION OF THE WANYORO.

bings over the region of the uterus. If the head presents, it is considered a good sign; if the feet present, it announces misfortune to the family. Should an arm presentation occur, it is replaced, and an attempt is made to turn; this operation is performed by men who receive special presents for the service. Should a woman die in child-birth, abdominal section is at once performed, and the child, whether lving or dead, removed. ‘The omission of this operation is punished by the chief with heavy fines of cattle, goats, and even women, for it 1s an exceedingly bad omen for the village. Many women die of flooding, probably arising from attempts to remove the placenta. The umbilical cord is cut with a sharp splinter of reed at a considerable distance from the navel, and is tied to the body of the child until 1¢ shrivels and falls off, which is hastened by frequent rubbings with fat. Ligature is quite unknown. ‘The placenta of a male child is buried in the house on the inner, right-hand side of the door ; that of a female child on the inner, left-hand side. Neither mother nor child may leave the hut before the cord has fallen off, nor may the mother shave herself. ‘The new-born child is washed in tepid water, and then rubbed with red clay and fat.

The mother takes her child on the fifth day after the birth, and sits with it on the threshold, a sheep is killed, and the grandfather on the father’s side, or, if he be dead, the grandmother on the mother’s or father’s side, gives the names. ‘There are usually two, one of which is chosen at pleasure, while the other is connected with some bodily peculiarity. The skin of the sheep slain at the naming of the child is used to carry it in; the child is laid on the mother’s back, and the skin placed over it in such a manner that its fore-legs are tied together over the mother’s shoulders, its hind-legs round her waist. The child is suckled by the mother for eighteen months, and is then weaned by rubbing bitter juices on the breasts. During this time the woman lives apart from her husband. The women here grow old quickly; many are barren; most of them have only two or three children. Hermaphroditism is rather common. The practices connected with the birth of twins are very singular. Universal festivities are held in the village, and rich gifts are brought to the mother from all sides. The first-born