female relatives, or such messengers as he may send, and even these must communicate with them through their bamboo walls. Sometimes they go forth in a body through the streets, but are always preceded by a company of boys, who warn the people to run out of the way, and avoid the unpardonable offence of seeing the King's wives. The men especially, no matter what their rank, must get out of the way; and if they have not had sufficient time to do this, they must fall flat on the ground and hide their faces until the procession has passed. To see one of the King's wives, even accidentally, is a capital offence; and the scene of the confusion which occasionally takes place in the public market in consequence of the unexpected approach of the royal cortege, is said to be ludicrous beyond all description.
At the death of the King, it is not uncommon for his wives to fall upon each other with knives, and lacerate themselves in the most cruel and barbarous manner; and this work of butchery is continued until they are forcibly restrained. Women are amongst the most reliable and brave in the King's army, and constitute about one-third of the standing army in Ashantee and Dahomey.
One of the most influential and important classes in every African community is the deybo, a set of professional men who combine the medical and priestly office in the same person. They attend the sick and administer medicines, which usually consist of decoctions of herbs or roots, and external applications. A doctor is expected to give his undivided attention to one patient at a time, and is paid only in case of successful treatment. If the case is a serious one, he is
