The Virgins Collect Their Locks, Which Are Generally Wavy Not
Wiry, And Grow Long As Well As Thick, Into A Knot Tied _A La Diane_ Behind
The Head:
A curtain of short close plaits escaping from the bunch, falls
upon the shoulders, not ungracefully.
Silver ornaments are worn only by
persons of rank. The ear is decorated with Somali rings or red coral
beads, the neck with necklaces of the same material, and the fore-arms
with six or seven of the broad circles of buffalo and other dark horns
prepared in Western India. Finally, stars are tattooed upon the bosom, the
eyebrows are lengthened with dyes, the eyes fringed with Kohl, and the
hands and feet stained with henna.
The female voice is harsh and screaming, especially when heard after the
delicate organs of the Somal. The fair sex is occupied at home spinning
cotton thread for weaving Tobes, sashes, and turbans; carrying their
progeny perched upon their backs, they bring water from the wells in large
gourds borne on the head; work in the gardens, and--the men considering,
like the Abyssinians, such work a disgrace--sit and sell in the long
street which here represents the Eastern bazar. Chewing tobacco enables
them to pass much of their time, and the rich diligently anoint themselves
with ghee, whilst the poorer classes use remnants of fat from the lamps.
Their freedom of manners renders a public flogging occasionally
indispensable. Before the operation begins, a few gourds full of cold
water are poured over their heads and shoulders, after which a single-
thonged whip is applied with vigour. [25]
Both sexes are celebrated for laxity of morals. High and low indulge
freely in intoxicating drinks, beer, and mead. The Amir has established
strict patrols, who unmercifully bastinado those caught in the streets
after a certain hour. They are extremely bigoted, especially against
Christians, the effect of their Abyssinian wars, and are fond of
"Jihading" with the Gallas, over whom they boast many a victory. I have
seen a letter addressed by the late Amir to the Hajj Sharmarkay, in which
he boasts of having slain a thousand infidels, and, by way of bathos, begs
for a few pounds of English gunpowder. The Harari hold foreigners in
especial hate and contempt, and divide them into two orders, Arabs and
Somal. [26] The latter, though nearly one third of the population, or 2500
souls, are, to use their own phrase, cheap as dust: their natural timidity
is increased by the show of pomp and power, whilst the word "prison" gives
them the horrors.
The other inhabitants are about 3000 Bedouins, who "come and go." Up to
the city gates the country is peopled by the Gallas. This unruly race
requires to be propitiated by presents of cloth; as many as 600 Tobes are
annually distributed amongst them by the Amir. Lately, when the smallpox,
spreading from the city, destroyed many of their number, the relations of
the deceased demanded and received blood-money:
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