DABITS AND CUSTOMS. 63 the manner above described. The girl, who had been the cause of all this broil and warfare, is not drawn into the affair, but is generally considered innocent, or pitied as seduced.

As a general rule, the women are far more industrious than the men ; for, besides attending to their domestic occupations, they employ themselves more especially with plaiting straw-mats, making baskets to hold milk, and funnels for filtering merissa.

They perform, moreover, other business, which should more properly be considered as the duty of the men. I have even seen them tanning leather, whilst their husbands were quietly looking on, smoking their pipes, and indulging in idleness.

The women are, generally speaking, regarded as servants. Their degradation is yet greater, if they should unfortunately happen not to have children.

In this case they are quite despised by their lords, if they were ever so fond of them before, and the husband indemnifies himself with a female slave.

Should this woman bear him a child, which is generally the case, she is immediately raised to the rank of his wife, and his former spouse is either sent away, or totally neglected. Among the more opulent natives, the custom prevails of making the wife a small allowance after the birth of the second child, and giving her a separate hut as a place of residence; for they grow old very raj)idly, and a woman in her twenty-fourth year is considered passee.

Hence it is that many women may be seen running