1. 4. VIII. THE NON-ARAB RACES OF DARFUR 73

They have a shrine for their deity whom they supply very freely with

merissa, and the ministers of the sanctuary do not fail to profit by this

lucky fact. They have also a sacred tree which they similarly water with

merissa, and a holy stone. Death is seldom attributed to natural causes

or the will of a Supreme Being, but as a rule to the evil eye of a magician^.

If by the help of the Gods and by means of some tricks of magic some of

these sorcerers are discovered they are massacred without pity, their goods

are seized, and their households sent in slavery to Wadai.

The "sacred tree" and the "holy stone" at once recall Bruce's

description^ of the Nuba slaves, captives from Daier and Tekali in

Kordofan, whom the traveller met in Sennar and who adored the moon and trees and stones "though I could never find out what tree

or what stone it was, only that it did not exist in the country of

Sennar but in that where they were born." But as a matter of fact,

as has already been noted in dealing with the Berti and the people

of Midob, this cult is so widespread as to be almost universal in

Darfur. Some account of its practice by the Fur is also given later. With them, as with the Zaghawa it is associated with the idea of

placating some evil being, generally in the form of a snake, believed

to live beneath the tree or stone. The spread of Muhammadanism

has, needless to say, wrenched the ancient superstition from its

original setting and re-set it in a modified form among the un-

objectionable, if not quite orthodox, observances of the local True

Believers; and the latter would never fail to represent their prayers

as directed to the One God, however much their fears might really

centre upon the hidden demon known to their forefathers. The

position, from the point of view of the educated native of Darfur,

is perhaps expressed most easily by repeating the gist of a dialogue I had with the Makdum Sherif, lately the Sultan's viceroy in northern Darfur

:

Ques. Have the Zaghawa any holy places in their country? If so of what kind ?

Ans. Yes, if anyone wants anything, or is undertaking any venture, he

visits some rock or tree and makes the usual offerings of meat and dihn

(grease) and voices his appeal.

Ques. Would any rock or any stone be good enough? Ans. No. There are certain definite ones, three or four in Dar Zaghawa.

Ques. To whom does he appeal ? Ans. To God, of course. . Ques. Does he have no local demon also in view ?

^ Cp. Roscoe, Baganda, p. 98.

^ See Bruce, iv, 420 ff. ; and cp. Roscoe, Baganda, p. 271.