PEPPERS IN BEER

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25089, 22 January 1947, Page 6

PEPPERS IN BEER

NATIVE CUSTOMS IN NIGERIA

'Hie drinking habits of natives of northern Nigeria were described yes* t ®S?. y . ? y Michael Macdonald; an administrative officer with the Colonial Service in Nigeria, in an interview m2 ” ¥ r Macdonald, a Sy in Z 1939 d ’ WaS !aSt this cou «- In northern Nigeria a large part of thev po ,? ulatl ? n were Moslem?, and they, theoretically, were total ah w?rp ei f ’ Ma E donald said. They XSX forbidden, by Koranic law, to drink anything alcoholic. There were however, quite a number of “backsliders. In the south, palm wine was a common drink. This was hamlew rwa* save the p ° iice quite h™ , there were, in addithe _ Moslems, large groups of HHnJSc were J enthusiastic i f a beer ™ ade from millet, £ b L ch Th° £ ave their staple riSJk 3 h b 5 e^ r . tbey brewed had £ ody A* Mr Macdonald S/’teStlm necertamiy could not see hkert m natives Jim* m H uf) - though that P e PP ers - Pagan Jl? d fu rather Perverting influence on the surrounding Moslems, trekking across country, his Moslem carriers had joined the Pagan villagers in their drinking, and the carriers invariably showed signs of suffering on the following morning.