when wantonly cut down.[1] A curious and suggestive description bearing on this point is given in Friar Roman Pane's account of the religion of the Antilles islanders, drawn up by order of Columbus. Certain trees, he declares, were believed to send for sorcerers, to whom they gave orders how to shape their trunks into idols, and these 'cemi' being then installed in temple-huts, received prayer and inspired their priests with oracles.[2] Africa shows as well-defined examples. The negro woodman cuts down certain trees in fear of the anger of their inhabiting demons, but he finds his way out of the difficulty by a sacrifice to his own good genius, or, when he is giving the first cuts to the great asorin-tree, and its indwelling spirit comes out to chase him, he cunningly drops palm-oil on the ground, and makes his escape while the spirit is licking it up.[3] A negro was once worshipping a tree with an offering of food, when some one pointed out to him that the tree did not eat; the negro answered, 'O the tree is not fetish, the fetish is a spirit and invisible, but he has descended into this tree. Certainly he cannot devour our bodily food, but he enjoys its spiritual part and leaves behind the bodily which we see.'[4] Tree-worship is largely prevalent in Africa, and much of it may be of this fully animistic kind; as where in Whidah Bosman says that 'the trees, which are the gods of the second rank of this country, are only prayed to and presented with offerings in time of sickness, more especially fevers, in order to restore the patients to health;'[5] or where in Abyssinia the Gallas made pilgrimage from all quarters to their sacred tree Wodanabe on the banks of the Hawash, worshipping it and praying to it for riches, health, life, and every blessing.[6]
- ↑ Bastian, 'Der Baum in vergleichender Ethnologie,' in Lazarus and Steinthal's 'Zeitschrift für Völkerpsychologie,' &c., vol. v. 1868.
- ↑ Chr. Colombo, ch. xix.; and in Pinkerton, vol. xii. p. 87.
- ↑ Burton, 'W. & W. fr. W. Afr.' pp. 205, 243.
- ↑ Waitz, vol. ii. p. 188.
- ↑ Bosman, letter 19, and in Pinkerton, vol. xvi. p. 500.
- ↑ Krapf, 'E. Afr.' p. 77; Prichard, 'N. H. of Man,' p. 290; Waitz, vol. ii. p. 518. See also Merolla, 'Congo,' in Pinkerton, vol. xvi. p. 236.
