tSliilliih \m are more clothed. A large proportion of the Sudanese battalions are drawn from Shilluks, though no conscription is enforced.

The legendary history and the religion of th"; Shilluks are related on page l!)7. History and religion.

In character they are haughty and independent, and hate foreigners, according to the lessons instilled by tlic Cliaracter.

older men who suffered under the " Turks," the Danagla slave-dealers, and the Dervishes. Under the present regime it is hoped that this feeling will die out. They are also crafty, quarrelsome, and untrustworthy as a rule ; at the same time they are thick-headed and obstinate ; but, as aforesaid, their morals in relation to women are very good ; they have a fine senss of discipline, and become very much attached to their leaders, whether black or white ; they are exceedingly plucky, and they are the finest warriors in the Sudan.

The country is thickly populated for its size. Right away from Kaka to Lake No is a continuous string of villages Population, lying about a mile from the river. There are only two points in the whole of this distance at which the interval between villages exceeds two miles, and these are at the points where grazing is bad (between Akurwa and Nun, and between Nielwag and Nyagwado). There are, in addition, eight groups of villages which lie 12 to 22 miles inland, away from the river.

A careful census of the river villages in 1903 gave a result of 1,010 villages, 8,693 domiciles, and 39,312 souls. Villages. Shilluk villages are invariably built in a circle, the open space in the centre containing nothing but a meeting-house for men only, and almost invariably a temple erected to a grandfather or great-grandfather of the reigning chief. Each domicile consists usually of three or four tukls, enclosed by a dura stalk fence. The houses are kept scrupulously clean by the women. A family occupies two or three huts ; one is reserved for the householder with his wife, another as a cook-house, where merissa is also made, and the third is occupied by the retainers and children of the house. Dr. Schweinfurth records the existence of Shilluk villages of 200 huts. The largest village is Atwadoi, consisting of 120 domiciles, in a district of the same name north of Kodok. The constitutional laziness of the tribe does not prevent their erecting very well-built tukls, and many men are most proficient in thatching the roofs. The crest or peak of the tukl being completed, the workman descends, and a sheep is at once killed by the future occupant and eaten by the workmen, whose reward is completed by a further donation of two sheep.

A wife can be had for a milch cow and four to five oxen, but this is a high price to pay at present. This purchase Jtomestic money cannot be collected by many all their lives. The Shilluks keep one, two, or three wives ; a very few exceed life, this number.

The Shilluk woman is fruitful ; there are some with eight or nine children ; three, four and five children seem to be the average issue. In former times, it is said, the number of children was much larger.

Having cost the man much money and trouble the woman is well looked after and treated. Aided by the girls she has she does her house work. She helps her husband honestly in the field. She is permitted to rem&in for weeks; on a visit to her relatives. If disobedient the man gives her a thrashing on the back with a rope end, but this occurs very seldom.

The education of the children consists practically of the phrase, "' Do just the same as you see me doing. ' The native at home knows of no science or profession, hence schools and house tasks are out of the question. Girls learn from their mothers house, field and plaiting work. The boys are all cattle-tenders. At the age of 13 to 15 years they start the cultivation of a small iield, and grow up to manhood by degrees, acquiring the means for a house and a wife.

As long as they are young, children are obedient, but they take no notice of what the parents say as soon as they are able to carry out any work by themselves.

The cultivation carried on during the rainy season requires hard vork, which the Shilluk is not inclined to give CnUivation. except for short periods at a time. The soil is, along the river, very rich and black, about 12 feet thick, and is named " do do " ; inland it is poorer. Owing to the richness, weeds grow apace, and the land has to be weeded two or three times to avoid the young dura being choked. When gathered, thieves, mice, and elephants reduce the stock considerably, and even when he has produced, by dint of hard work, a fair pile of dura the native does not use it economically, for he eats a great deal at a time, gives generously to his poorer friends, and sells it badly.

Maize, beans, melons, f ul (ground nuts), sesame, and cotton are also grown, but in only sufficient quantities for local wants. The cotton cultivation could probably be extended.

The chief occupation of the Shilluk is, however, cattle breeding. To him it represents property and wives. The [l",, amount of cattle in the country is unfortunately smaller than formerly, for it has been reduced largely by the depredations ' ' =■ of the Danagla, the Dervishes, and even their own kings. In comparison with the Dinkas they are poor indeed, for a Dinka will willingly part with 20 or more oxen and cows for a wife, whereas the Shilluk can only pay one cow and three or four oxen with difficulty.

The cattle census of 1903 amounted to only 12,173 head of cattle and 63,473 sheep and goats in tlie whole country,