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Trade and Travels in the Gulph of Guinea, Western Africa; With an Account of the Manners, Habits, Customs, and Religion of the Inhabitants
Trade and Travels in the Gulph of Guinea Western Africa With an Account of the Manners Habits Customs and Religion of the Inhabitants Author:John Smith General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1851 Original Publisher: Simpkin, Marshall, and co. Subjects: Slavery Africa, West Guinea, Gulf of Guinea History / Africa / General History / Africa / West History / United States / General Social Science / Slavery Travel / Africa / General Notes: This i... more »s a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. Excerpt: CHAPTER III. POLYGAMY. Polygamy -- Wives -- Kinj? of Ashantee -- Wives of Chief -- Most of tbe wives purchased -- Children offered for aale -- A chief perplexed with his wives -- Head slaves allowed two or three wives -- Women giving birth to twins or bearing more than four tire put to death -- Awful punishment for inconlinency -- Treatment of the old and infirm -- Woman stolen by Bosjesmans -- Treatment of captives. In no Eastern country is polygamy practised in such excess as on the Western coast of Africa, fpr there a man's desire for women is only hounded by the extent of his resources to procure them. Solomon was a King of great moderation, when compared with the King of Ashantee. who possesses no fewer than three thousand three hundred and thirty three wives, a mystical number, which on the occasion of a death, is instantly filled up out of a number of girls kept in reserre for that purpose. 46 WIVES. Higher up the Gulph of Guinea the pecuniary means of the kings and chiefs, are more limited, consequently they are obliged to confine themselves to a more moderate number. I know several residing on the banks of the rivers to the east of, and communicating with the Niger or Qurru, and of the adjacent rivers, who have from fifty to three hundred. The head wife or queen, so styled by the kings and chiefs since England has lately had a Queen for Sovereig...« less