I NS lDIES MARKETS IN AFRICAII

EDITED BY

PAULBOHANNAN AND GEORGE DALTON-

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY PRESS

n~-----------~"""""Published 1962by Northwestern UniversityPress

Library of Congress Catalog Number: 61-12383

This volume waspreparedas part of The Human Environmentsin Middle Africa Project,National Academyof Sciences-National

Research Council. It was financed by Quartermaster

Research and Engineering Command, underContract No. DA-19-129-AM-1309.

Printed in the NetherlandsbyJoh. Eriscbede en Zcnen

The ideas which are here expressed so laboriouslydyeextremely simple and should be obvious. Thedifficulty lies, not in the new ideas, but in escapingfrom the old ones, which ramify, for those brought

up as most of us have been, into everycorner of our minds.

JOHN MAYNARD KEYNES

xvinMetropolitan (old) 1'1,111("'. III 1'I~,(i. I ir, c:U.S.A.

The Ethiopian do ll.i r III l'lfiO \\,1, ("qut\Maria Theresa dollar is 11\) Illll~C"1 )cJ.{.d In 1tor evaluating livestock .u ul otlu-r c'\.}lC-O'.Vfexchange rate varied 1"1 (1111 \ 1.'1!i In :!;n

Since most 0 r til esc s I 11d 1('\ \\

. I. \ II n equalro!CONTENTS

.10 .. A. Tut was themhe black mad Preface by M. J. Herskovits.Editors' Note

List of Maps and FiguresList of Tables .Introduction by Paul Bohannan and George Dalton.

THE GUINEA COAST AND THE CONGO

I. The Rural Wolof of the Gambia.David Ames

2. African Traders in Central Sierra Leone . .

0v-..eroonR Dorjabn --------f'3. Traditional Market Economy in the South Dahomey, Claudine and Claude Tardits'1'. The Yoruba Rural Market.

B. W. Hodder'5. Afikpo Markets: 1900-1960.

Simon and Phoebe Ottenberg6. The Bulu Response to European Economy.

George R. Horner7. Trade and Markets Among the Kuba .

Jan Vansina8. Lele Economy Compared with the Bushong: A Study

of Economic Backwardness.Mary Douglas

Vll

XVll

XXI

XXll

1

1. ,lIrt h. \ been cha~or som f the curreno

29

61

I I 8

170

190 -

211

THE WESTERN SUDAN

9. Trade and Markets among the Mossi People.Elliott P. Skinner

110. Social and Economic Factors Affecting Markets in GuroLand .

~ Claude Meillassoux~ Exchange and Marketing among the Hausa .

Michael G. Smith12. Trade and Markets in the Economy of the Nomadic

Fulani of Niger (Bororo)Marguerite Dupire

THE HORN OF AFRICA

13. Trade-and Markets in Northern Somali land .I.M. Lewis

237 -

279 -

299-

33"5-

365 -

\L!lk(l (n\\11The Abyssinian

Simon D.i\lcsSllq ..!, "'"",11("111 l' (htnpl1 ~ Il\,fd)The Konso }'..,COIII)IRichard Kj ur-k holm

1''''1 \11(1( \

I \111'.11.1 l i.rd c-- The Evolut io n ()

16. 11-' I orth 111Tan-P.H.Gu rver ,I". 11."1" ..17. Livestock Mark or , .llllII11f.!,ganyika . .

E. H. WJI1ter 111.1 ~Ilnlo \'dl.l~"18. Economic E"cl"ll1g, ll}'Robert F. Gray I. I tO

IlOII II,,(.lOwllt 01 \I.u ..19.' Land Use, Trade a nrin Kipsigis CountryR. A. Manners ._Wealth and POWer in Cmlliolnd20.Robert LeVine

.......21. Zande Markets and COllln"'1l eConrad C. Rein ing da

I 1."n-h.ll,10[ '!fan~ 22. Trade and Markers arnonA' 1 re "John Middleton

/

xx

14.

15.I.2.3.4.5.6.

I 7.8.

CE~ rRA'

9.10,

1'11.12.n3.14.05.16.

;117.18.19.20,21.~22.23.~24.

\FIUC,

23. Rural Rhodesian Markels .Robert 1. RotbergTrade and Wealth amollg t hElizabeth ColsonBridewealth and other FormsHerero .Gordonn. Gibson

j25.

26.

24.T(lI1~ .

25.

26.CITIES AND INDU TR,I 1. O. 'I'L

28.

The Marketing of Staple Fo dA. B. MUkwayaThe Koforidua MarketDaniel F. McCall

African Markets and Trade in thMarvltl P. MiracleReferencesIndex,

p rbelt

27. in K.111

"I utlh 111 Tan

('

\1.1I Ii. I cotlOI11Y

11.1 O[ Itanda

'P rbelt

MAPS AND FIGURES

1. Location of Tribes and Areas Represented in this study2. Sierra Leone . . . . . . . .3. Kolifa Mayoso (Temne)4. AkinyeleArea (Yoruba) .5. Olusun Village and Market (Yoruba)6. SketchMap of Eke Market (Ibo) .7. AverageLength of Dry Season. .8. Population Density (Lele and Bushong)

Forest Cover (Lele and Bushong) .9. Age at Retirement from Work (Lele and Bushong)10. Period of Full Work (Leie and Bushong)

111. Economyand Social Organization12. Towns,Villages, Foreigners' Markets and Gura Markets;~13. Tribal Settlements of the Guro14. Relation of Markets to Forests (Gura) .;:15. Markets of Niger (Fulani) .16. CaravanTrails and Roads to Gondar .

;117. Koforidua and its Hinterland18. SchematicMap of Koforidua, Showing Land Use.19. Koloridua Market20. Koforidua Marketing Area.21. The Copperbelt and its Hinterland~22. Location of Tribes on the Copperbelt.23. AvcrazeSeasonal Variation in the Number 01 Sellers ino~ SelectedRhodesian Copperbelt Markets . ' ...24. Production and Net Imports 01 the Major Commodities

Marketed in the Congo Sector of the Copperbelt. . .Proportion 01Major Imports to Congo Copperbelt [romPrincipal Zones of Supply. . . .Conditions lor Barter of Fish (Copperbelt) .

xxvi6372105107136212

213231231232281282284355387668669

672-73684699704

709

718720-21

727

CHAPTERS

Lele EconomyCompared with the BushongA STUDY OF ECONOMIC BACKWARDNESS

BY MARY DOUGLAS

The Lele' and the Bushong' are separated only by the Kasai River.Toe two tribes recognize a common origin, their houses, clothes andcraftsare similar in style, their languages are closely related.' Vet theLeleare poor, while the Bushong are rich. The Lele produce only forsubsistence, sharing their goods, or distributing them among them-selvesas gifts and fees. The Bushong have long been used to pro-ducingfor exchange, and their native economywas noted for its useofmoney and its specialists and markets. Everything that the Lelehaveor can do, the Bushong have more and can do better. Theyproduce more, live better, and populate their region more densely.The first question is whether there are significant differences in

the physical environment of the two peoples. Both live in the lat.5 Degrees, in the area of forest park merging into savannah, whichborders the south of the Congo rain forest. They both have a heavyannualrainfall of 1400to 1600 mm. (40 to 60 inches) per annum. Themeanannual temperature is about 78F. (25C.).As we should expectfromtheir proximity, the climatic conditions are much the same forbothtribes.Nonetheless, a curious discrepancy appears in their respective

assessments of their climate. The Bushong, like the local Europeans,welcome the dry season of mid-May to mid-August as a cold season,Whereasthe Lele regard it as dangerously hot. The Bushong in the

. ~1)The Lele are a tribe, inhabiting the west border of the gakuba Empire. They aredlV,ldedinto three chiefdoms, of which only the most westerly has been studied. TheChIefof the eastern Lele at Perominenge apes Kuba fashions in his little capital; themen ' wear basketry hats held on with metal pins, the chief has some of the dress andparap,hernalia of the Nyirni. How much deeper this resemblance goes, it is impossible tosa~,Stnce conditions at the time of field work were not favorable for study of thischiefdom. Everything that is said here concerning the Lele refers to the western Lele,~hosechief, When visits were made in 1949-50 and 1953, was Norbert Perc Mihondo.Insrt field work was carried out under the generous auspices of the International AfricanSlllute, and of the Institut de Recherche Scientifi-que en Afrique Centrale.

19t) The Bushong are the ruling tribe of the Kuba Kindom: They wer~studied in3-56 by Dr. Vansina to whom I am deeply indebted for hIS collaboratIOn and for

.p I . 'P ymg unpublished information for this paper.(3) According to the Lexico-statistical survey conducted by Dr. Vansina, there is

anBOp .er cent Similarity between the two languages.

212 Mary Douglas

north tend to have a dry season ten days shorter (Bultot 1954) thanmost of the Lele, (see figure 7), and the Lele soils retain less moisture.and the vegetation is thinner, so that the impression of drought,more severe, but otherwise there seems no objectively measurabhdifference in the climate to account for their attitudes.

'0,~. OJ,.

"

BUSHONG 80LE L E

85: ', 0

o

~;; 90

95

100

FIGURE 7

. Average Length of Dry Season Expressed in Days(from: F. Buitat - "Saisonset Periodes Seches et Phwieuses

au Congo Beige." Bruxelles, 1954)

There are certain! " ' d ' ge aniveg 'T YImportant differences in the sad, ram. ,etatmn he LeI di , 'I belo,,"

t 1 e are isnncrlv less fortunate Then sal s 'o t ie most east l' . nd [",sorne s t h er y extensIOn of the Kwango plateau system, a d"

x era safe In tl 'I' . On J'"Plateau tl 'I ie sten uy characteristic of that regIOn, I"t, le 501safe t . teppe- I~vegetation' . 00 poor to support anything but a S dlpoor in assi~i~f~~e of the ample rainfall. The soils consist ai, ~~magnates or heav e mmerals of any kind, lacking altogether 11 ,hitof benefitin fr y mmerals, and so permeable that they are Incaj on:side of tire gK am Rtheheavy rainfall' (see fizure 8), On ti,e BuSle~.

asai Iver tl "I' ". d nundeposits, particularl . ie SOL IS altogether richer, an trr ii(4)We y at iron are, occur. Whereas Lele cov "

. are very gratefUl t M ' C T/110 Brl,rervurcn, for gu'd 0 ,1. Cahen , Director of the Musee du 0"

I ance on the ! .'. .P iysical environment of the tWOwbes.

.z--

.0.o

>o

oo

z~-e

;o

oZ

~

-e

=~

s ,>

~0,z

"0,

0z zz~0 ;:,.uo

>o

; v 0. .. w ::~.D

214 Mary Douglas

characterized by rolling grasslands with forest galleries along theri..banks, Bushong country is relatively well-forested, although ~,sketch map tends to exaggerate the forested area on their side orthe Kasai.'Withsuch important differences in their basic natural resource

we are not surprised that Lele country is poorer and more sparselfpopulated. But how much poverty and how Iowa density can Ixattributed to the environmental factor? Can we leave the matter here:There is no certain method of estimating the extent to whie!

environment itself limits the development of an area. The Pend,of Cungu, immediate neighbors of the Lele, inhabit an area evenpoorer in soils than the Lele area, and as poor as those worked byth,notoriously wretched Suku of Kahemba and Feshi. The Lele aTto what the potentialities of the environment might be. I

C . Iong~ geographers have been much occupied by the quesuon 0 Ithe relation between soil and population density. The whole BelgianCongo ISan area of very low density. Fifty per cent of its surface h~a populatIOn of less than 2.4 to the square kilometer (roughly 6~.square mtle) (Courou 1955: 4). It is generally agreed (Gourou 19"CitesCohen; N rcolai 1952: 247) that there is a rough correlatIOn ~poor sandy soils with low densities, insofar as the small stretch 01,elalively more pl d betll''''opu ous Country Occurs In a favore gap .the Kwango "kalahari" plateau and sands to the north. Howeve" IIIS alsoagreed that soil poverty in itself is not an adequate explanauonof the pockets of extra low density which occur especially on tI'second a d fif h 'sa"em I . n t parallels of South latitude. Professor Gouron beI I~JatlCally and repeatedly that the sterility of the soils cannot

l~e to(5account for all the densities of less than 2 to the square k~~57

e\eO'9'N;othe square mile) in the Bela-ian Congo (Gourou 1955:. ", ,I Icola11952) InN I e lIU!lunatin.

case.The Ndemb .' Ort iern Rhodesia we have an 1 mil1in many U lIve at an average density of 6 to the squarfe I calc I' areas at a density of only 3 but according to a care u u auon of the capa' f thei . helf o'methods tl cuy 0 t ieir land, worked according to t . u 01

, ie area should b bl . pulatIOfrom 17 to 38 tie capa e of supportIng a po '1 mele[l(Turner 1957). at 'ie square mile, (6.8 to 15 per square klo

J n shOrt We can is all\, not assume, as some have done, that there

8. Lele Economy Compared with the Bushong 215

universaltendency to maximize Eood production (Harris 1959), orthatthe food resources of a region are the only factor limiting itspopulation.FortheLele and the Bushong the relative densities are as follows.

Theterritory of ]V[ weka, where the Bushong live, has an averagedensityof4-5 to the square kilometer (11 to the square mile). TheBCK railway running through the area has attracted an immigrantpopulationof Luba. If we abstract the railway zone from ourfigures,wefindthat the Bushong proper live at a density of (Gourou 1955:109)only3 or 4 to the square kilometer, (7-10 to the square mile).TheLele" inhabit Basongo territory, where the average density isfrom2to4 to the square kilometer (5-7 to the square mile), but sincetheLele account for only half the population (among recent irnmi-gramsofforeign tribesmen to work in the Brabanta oil concession,refineryand port, and among Cokwe hunters), we can suppose thatuntilrecentlyLele themselves used to live at a mere 1.7 to the squarekilometer(4 to the square mile).Whenthe geographers agree that poverty of soil is not a sufficient

explanationfor the degree of poverty prevailing in similar areas, weareJustifiedm looking for a sociological explanation to supplementtheeffectof environmental factors. For one thing, it is obvious thatthedemographic factor works two ways. Low density is partly the::SUltofinferior technology, applied to inferior resources, but it maysoinhibitdevelopment by hampering enterprises which need large-scalecollaboration.InI:lVenowconsider technology, we find many suggestivedifferences.

ertamprocesses marked superiority would be likely to increase~utput.Others are proof oEa higher standard of living. SurveyingI:ese,wefind that in hunting, fishing and housebuilding, the Bushong"rker IIsesmore specialized materials and equipment than the Lele,~m~ . .Tak uvauon he spends more energy and ume, . . .and ehuntmg first, since the Lele are passionately interested in Itth. pnde themselves on their skill (Douglas 1954). In the eyes ofel~nelghbors,it seems that they are notorious as inefficient hunters,

lpartlcularlybecause they do not use nets and only rarely make pittaps. 'mHuntingis the only occupation in which large numbers of Lelee~regUlarlycombine. They reckon that fifteen to twenty men andt)Accordin la ti f II ibeslOtthe Bas g to P. Couron, 1951, the average density of the popu auon 0 a m e

IS 3 longo-port Francqui region in which the Lele now account for only half,o 4 to tl ' . d h talnUlllb ie square kilometer. This agrees with calculations base on t e toer or Lei . . b l63hy I . e 10 that area, about 26,000, and the extent of their rerrrtory, a ou

llj. klll.IO1T1I1es,which give a Lele density of roughly 4 to the square mile. or ].7 to the

216 Mary Douglas

lendogsare necessary for a goodhunt. Using nets, the Bushong netda teamof only ten men, and can hope to do well with five. In shontheBushong hunter uses better capital equipment, and his hoursolhuntingare more productive.Whyshould the Lele not have nets? The materials are presemin

the foreston both sides of the river, and the Lele know what netsartMakinga net is presumably a long task. In view of the local delores.ation and the resulting paucity of game, it may be a case in whichcostlycapital equipment is simply not worthwhile. Bushong netsorrmade by their women. Perhaps the rest of the answer lies in w.differentdivision of Jabor between men and women in each tribeand the larger proportion of the total agricultural work which lei.leaveto their women. Whatever the reason, we note that the absencof netsis consistent with a general Lele tendency not to invest tim.and labor in long-term equipment.The same applies to pit-traps.Lele know how to make these,and

frequentlytalk about them. The task requires a stay in the forest01severaldays and nights, or regular early dawn journeys and latereturns.The traps are hard work to dig with only a blunt matcher forspade,and once set, they need to be watched. In practice fewmenever trouble to make them. I suspect that the reason in this case'again that the amount of game caught by pit-traps tends to be ell>appomtmgm relation to the effort of making them, and that theLekhave felt discouraged when using a technique which is more productivem the thicker forestson the other side of the river.Lest it be. thought that the Lele neglect capital.intensive ai~

becausehunting ISa Sport, a pleasure, and a religious aetlvlty, JetDldenyany parallel WIth English fox-hunting. The Lele would hal'applaudedthe French Brigadierof fiction who used his sabre to sialthe lox.Their eager purchase of firearms whenever they can getW' Imoneyand the license showsthat their culture does not restrict thelJlto mlenor techni I . coJlal>. iques wlen these do not reqmre long-termoranonand effort.In fishingthe L I I" . 11 vaterolbee area so interior Their country IS we' .

a~~trea~s and rivers, and bounded ;n two sides by the great K;':.K on t e west by the SWift-flowingLoange Along the banks aas" are fishmg villages, whosemen dot the river with elabaI'lt'

traps and fishing plat! T I Ding>!,01Bushong d arms. hese fishermen are most y Kasai.Lelewo~~~ u~~~often Lele.In one northern village,near theviJlagtwhere lack' I to go every two days to the nearest Dmga rill!mania'c Comg c alms of kinship, they obtained fish by barte n~gooda; Ii I mpared with the Bushong the. Lele as a whole are 'b< Is ling, nor at d deser'canoemakmg. There is no nee to

8. Lele Economy Compared with the Bushong 217

indetailthe diversity and elaborate character of Bushong fishingequipment,but it is worth noting that in some types of fishing, usingseveralcanoes trailing nets, the team may consist of twenty men ormore.These skills may be a legacy from their distant past, since theBushongclaim to have entered their territory in canoes along theKasairiver,while the Lele claim to have travelled overland (Vansina1955)andto have found the river banks already occupied by Dinga6shingvillages.It theLelewere originally landsmen, and the Bushong originally

fishermen,this might account for more than the latter's present tech-nicalsuperiority in fishing. For primitive fisherman are necessarilymoreheavilyequipped than are primitive hunters and cultivators.Theneedfor fishing tackle, nets, lines, hooks, traps, curing platforms,a~dforwatercraft as well as for weirs and dams makes quite adifferentbalance in the allocation of time between consumer's andproducers'goods. If they started in this area with the typical balanceofa fishingeconomy, this may have meant an initial advantage fortheBushongin the form of a liabit of working for postponed con-sumption.. Bethatas it may, Lele mostly leave fishing to their women. TheirSimplemethod is to block a slow-moving stream, so as to turn then"restvalleyinto a marsh. In this they make mud banks and ponds,~h~retheyset traps for fish scarcely bigger than minnows. A morn-mgs"orkdraining out such a pond and catching the fish flounderingmth . 0e mudYields a bare pint or so of fish. In the dry season they makea twodayexpedition to the Lumbund ji, where they spread a sapona-~~u:vegetablepoison over the lowwaters, and pull out the suffocated

As yhand,or in baskets.I tohousing, Lele and Bushong huts look much alike. They are~wlrectangularhuts, roofed with palm thatch. The walls are covered1111 I ro"s f I' f II f a sp It bamboos or palm ribs, lashed onto layers a pa m-h'" on a frame of strong saplings. Deceptive in appearance, LeleIl~when I . . I bin . new oak much sturdier than those of the Bus long, utqUi:~ctlCethey last less well: the Lele hut is more rou.ghly andpa' Ymade. A well-built one will last about six years WIthout re-su:'and, as they are capable of being renewed piecemeal, by thetheStlhtlltIonof new walls or roof thatch, they are not replaced untilWalevill . d id h theh age ISmoved to a new site, and the owner ecr es t a

hUtas neglected his hut so long that it will not stand removal. Aeigh:ngoodcondition is transported to a new site, with from six toBu~encarrying the rooE,and four at a time carrying the walls.

diffeSong huts are also transportable They are made with slightlyrent m . . f hatenals. For the roof thatch, they use the leaves ate

218 Mmy Douglas

raffiapalm, as do the Lele.For the walls, they use the reputedlymwaterproof leaves of a dwarfpalm growing in the marshes. Overinsteadof palm ribs split in half, they sew narrow strips of bam'where available. Lele consider bamboo to be a tougher wood'palm, but it is rare in their region. The narrow strips are heldplaceby stitching in pleasinggeometric patterns (N icolai & Ja~1954: 272ff). A rich Bushong man, who can command labor,"build a hut that will lastmuch longer than the ordinary man'r]up to fifteen years without major repairs. The palace of the NyimiMushenge, which was stilJ in good condition in 1956, hadoriginally built in 1920.

The Bushong use an ingenious technique of ventilation, a mO.\'abnap between the roof and the walls, which lets out smoke. It IS"possible to say whether they do this because their building istsolid to let the smoke filter throuzh the walls or whether dle)'o 'morefastidious and painstaking about their comfort than the lrwhosehuts do certainly retain some of the smoke of their fires.Within the hut, the furnishings illustrate the difference in mate

wealth,for the Bushong havea much greater refinement of dam..goods.They Sit on stools,lay their heads on carved neck rests (oftnecessaryto accommodate an elaborate hair style). They eatbasketryplates, with ironor wooden spoons. They have a biggerntof specialized basketry Orwooden containers for food, clotlUng'drneucs. A man who hasmore than one hat needs a hat box anplacefor his metal hat pins. Lele do not make fibre hats, and ani'fewmen III a village maypossess a skin hat. The beautiful Bushcasketsfor cosmetics are prized objects in many European museuWhena Lele woman hasprepared some cosmetic [Tomcamwood,'usesn at once, and there is rarely enouzh left over for it to bewof.stormgm . I' 0 bei car'a specia Colltamer.Only a young mother who, erngfor byher own mother after her delivery has nothing else to do~m~ camwood for herselfand the baby, s;ores the prepared oinu;'"III~ It~e hangmg baskethooked into the wall, enough for a fewf .B Ir. ansma Was Impressedwith the high protein content a "liSlong diet, "tl I I the)a,

d . ' ~l 1 t ie aycrequantities of fish and meatan the vanety hei f 0 . f ah,'bei I ill t eir ood. The Lele give an impreSSiOn0 .ern' lungry al d . b d las"b 0 .' ways reammg of meat often aoing to e Tecause theIr sto h 'tl rtalka lot b hun revoltsat the idea of a vegetable suppe :me>lessnessa~dO~~hrnger, and ihiobe, an untranslatable word 1~ln.ecrops and I essness.The Bushong cultivate a WIder r '""

a so QTow Cit fr ws Ula.il"Sligarcane and b rus. 1I1ts, pineapples, pawpa , ab~in the L I ananas, which are either rare or completelye e economy.

8. Lele Economy Compared with the Bushong 219

Inshort,the Bushong seem to be better sheltered, better fed, bettersuppliedwith goods, and with containers for storing what they donotimmediately need. This is what we mean by saying that theIlu,hongare richer than the Lele. As to village-crafts, such as carvingandsmithing, the best 01 the Lele products can compete in qualitywilhBushong manufacture, but they are much scarcer. The Lele aremoreusedto eating and drinking out of folded gTeen leaves tbanIromthe basket plates and carved beakers common among theBn,hong.Their medical instruments, too, are simpler. If, instead 01cutting down a gourd top, they carve a wooden enema funnel for ababy,theymake it as fine and thin as tbey can, but do not adorn itWilhtheelaborate pattern lound on some Bushong examples.Beforeconsidering agriculture, we should mention the method of

storinggrain, for this is a rough index 01 output. Both Lele andBushonghouses are built with an internal grain store, suspendedfromtheroof or supported on posts over the hearth. Here grain andevenfishand meat can be preserved from the ravagesof damp and 01msectsbythe smoke 01 the fire. Most Lele women have no other grain'tore.Bushong women find this too small and use external granaries,builtlike little buts, raised a lew leet above ground. These granaries,ofwhich there may be one or two in a Lele village, are particularlycharacteristicof the southern Bushono- villages, while in tbe north thehuts whichare built in the fields fo~ a man to sleep in during the~nodofheaviest agricultural work are used as temporary granaries.hheLeleare not in the habit 01 sleeping in their fields, except to, OatWIldpig while the grain is ripening. This may be anothermdlCatioI I' h B hn t rat t ley do less agncultural work than t e us ong.Whenwe examine the techniques of cultivation, we find many

Contrasts.The Bushong plant five crops in succession in a system 01rotatonthat covers two years. Tbey

220 Mary Douglas

Lele, enduring the sun heating on them from a cloudless sky whil,they are trying to do enough agricultural work for the whole year.suffermore from the dust and impurities in the atmosphere and fromtile greatly increased insolation. The relatively cooler nights rna)make them feel the day's heat even more intensely.Apart [Tom the differences in crops cultivated, we may note sam'

differences in emphasis. Lele give hunting and weaving a highpriority throughout the year, while the Bushong think of them aprimarily dry-season activities. Traditionally, the Lele used to bumthe grassland for big hums (in which five or six vi1lages combined forthe day) at the end of the dry season, when the bulk of their agri.cultural work was done. If the first rains had already broken, so muchthe better for the prospects of the hunt, they said, as the animals wouldleave their forest watering places to eat the new shoots. As the endof the dry season is the time in which the firing could do the maximumdamage to the vegetation, it has been forbidden by the administration,and if permission is given at all, the firina must be over by the beginning of July. The Bushong used to bur; the grassland in mid-Malor early] une, at the beginning of the dry season, when the sap hadno;!ll.ogether died down in the grass.

I he cycle of work described for the Lele is largely what the oldmen descr-ibe as their traditional practice. It was modified by theagricultural officers of the Belgian Congo. Lele are encouraged"~ow malZ~ twice, for harvesting in November, and in April. Ma.01OCIS nowmamly grown in the grassland, instead of in the forest clearJl1~'There are some changes in the plants cultivated. Voandzeia has beenreplaced by groundnuts, some hill rice is sown, and beans m someparts. These are largely treated as cash crops by the Lele, who sellthem to the Europeans to earn money for tax. The other occupallO'which competes for their time is cutting oil-palm fruits to sell to theHUllenes du Co B I . kl fr ni the'11 ngo e ge, whose lorries co1lect wee Y a~If ages.Lele complain that they are now made to work harder thane or~, to clear more land, keep it hoed grow more crops. They ne\'t~

camp am that cutting oilpalm fruits iruerferes with their agricultll":PI rogram, only that the total of extra work interferes with thtIflUntlOg.

This is not th If' Iture.It . e I' ace or a detailed study of Bushong agriCtl dIS enough to hav h . . ed anis . e s own that It IS more energetically pursu ..

dmore productIve. One or two details of women's work are useful I'icauon, of a diffe . I like 10

eat twice a da . i rent attitude to time, work and food: Le e dinthe e . y. n the mornmg at about II o'clock or mIdday, an '"

venmg. They Com I' h d only toften the ill' I' am t at their wives are lazy, an '001

Ol'Olllg meal . h prev'conSIsts of cold scraps horn t e

8. Lele Economy Compared with the Bushong 221

night;theycompare themselves unfavorably with Cokwe, who arereputedtohave more industrious wives. In practice the Lele womenseem to hevery hard-working, but it is possible that the absence oflabor.savingdevices may make their timetable more arduous.

TABLE 28

Annual Cycle ot Work

Bushong Lele

DrySeason\lid May Hunt, weave Clearforest for

draw wine maizeHarvest beans, maize II, yams.Clear

forestBurn grassland for huntHunt, fish, weave, repair hutsBurn forest clearings, gather bananas

arid pineapple. Plant hempHunt, fish, plant sugarcane and

bananasSend tribute to capitalperiodof

plenty

Women fish in lowwaters

Burn forest clearingsSow maize

JuneMid'July to

Aug.15th

WCI Season,IUdAugust Lift ground nuts Fire grassland for

huntingSowvoandzeia, plantmanioc, bananas,peppers; sugarcane. pineapples(occasional) andraffia palms inforest clearings,with maize

On,

Sowground nut. Sow MaizeICollect termites

Nov,

MidDec,

Lillit Dry SeasonMidDec. Greenmaize can

be pluckedMaize harvest

Sowmaize II; sowvoandzela

J~. Sowtobacco, sowmaizeII

Lift voandzeiaLift ground nuts, sowbeans collecttermites and grubs' '

Reap maize 1 (Main crop)Reap maize 1. Sowtobacco,beans,

Aprillo yams, maniocMid.May Gather beans, sowvoandzeia and

tobacco---------------------Forexa 1 fr hItte mp e, one of their daily chores is to fetch water am t e

rooam. At the same time they carry down a heavy pile of manioc~to So k f' h '11a Or a few days before carrying them back to t e VI age.

March

222 Map)' Douglas

Bushong women, on the other hand, are equipped with woedetroughs,filled with rain water from the roofs, so that they cansoaktheir manioc in the village,without the labor of transporting it badand forth. Bushong women also cultivate mushrooms indoors 1moccasional relish, while Lele women rely on chance gathering.Bushong women find time to do the famous raffia embroider

perhapsbecause their menfolk hel p them more in the fields. Lekmen admiring the Bushong Velours) were amazed to learn thatwomencould ever be clever enough to use needle and thread, stillessmake this eleborate stitching. The Bushong culinary tradition'mare varied than that of the Lele. This rough comparison sugg"'that Lele women are less skilled and industrious than Bushon1women,but it is probable that a time-and-motion study of womensand men's work in the two economies would show that Lele menleavea relatively heavier burden of aar icultural work to their women. 0for reasonswhich we shall showlater.Another difference between Bushong and Lele techniques isin

the exploitation of palms for wine. Lele use only the raffia palmforwine.Their method of drawing it kills the tree; in the processcltapplllg,.they Cut out the wholeof the crown of the palm just at thltimeof Its first flowering. During the few years before the palmh~maturedto this point, they take the young yellow fronds for weavmgandafter drawmg the sap for wine, the stump is stripped and lefttorot down. Lele have no use for a tree which has once been allo\\'~to flower,except for fuel anelbuilding purposes. The life of a palmused111 this way, is rarely more than five years although there seelmto be some range in the different times at which individual palmimature.

I The Bushong also use this method on raffia palms, but they halle~Inlto tap all palms bymaking an incision at the base of the larg