THE “JU-JU” TERROR

Greymouth Evening Star, 27 April 1935, Page 10

THE “JU-JU” TERROR

[ A NATURAL EXPLANATION. The Elder Dempster royal mail ' steamer Adda at anchor in Freetown ' harbour in an atmosphere of almost unbearable heat and noise. Fussy . little tugs towing enormous lighters ! from the shore sounded their sirens in discordant rivalry in an endeavour ■ to bring their unwieldy charges alongi side to be laden with cotton goods from Lancashire, woollens from Yorkshire, machinery from the Midlands, and the various other odds and ends which make up the cargo of an out-waid-bound West Coast liner. In the smokeroom on the upper deck five perspiring British passengers bound for Lagos were endeavouring to catch such breeze as can be set in motion by an electric fan. Three of these were men in the early twenties, and were as obviously first-j timers to the other two as the latter wore obviously “Old Coasters” to anybody familiar with the-appearance of | the West African official. Ono of! these, a Commissioner of the Nigerian Police, rose with a yawn and announced his intention of going below to endeavour to get a little “shut-eye" before sunset, and his place was immediately taken by another old-timer who had strolled into the room.

BELIEVE IT DR NOT. As the policeman disappeared, Brown, one of the younger men. turned to one of his fellows, Jackson, and remarked, "Well, wo must look the greenest of the green if lie expects us to believe a yarn like that!”

"Oh, undoubtedly,” said his friend, “but it is all very interesting, and I don’t suppose, he really cares whether . we believe it or not.” “What paiticular yarn has our genial friend been weaving for your edification?” asked the latest arrival, a grey-haired political officer of about fifty. “Oh. about his usual subject ‘juju,’ ” answered Brown. “And what particular aspect of that illusive subject was ho discussing?" “He was telling us a story about a man who was arrested for murder and was awaiting trial in a prison in one of the outlying bush districts. The man had an accomplice in his crime who made his escape and successfully evaded all attempts to discover him. One evening, the captured murderer approached the native warder in cnaige and said that if he was allowed to make a strong ‘juju’ he could prevail upon the missing man to give himself up to the police. The wardor-iu-charge thought there could be no

harm in reporting this to his district I officer, and the district officer thought there could be no harm in letting the man have a try. Accordingly the latter was supplied with the things for which he asked —a dead chicken, a few bad eggs, some palm oil. a cowrieshell, or two, and the other things, •whatever ‘jujus' are made of. The prisoner duly prepared his foul mixture and placed it in a calabash by the main prison gate before ho was! :< d up for the night. At noon next! day his accomplice presented himself to the native sergeant of police, confessed his share in the jnurder. and delivered himself up for justice. That, baldly, is the story your police friend invited us to believe.” ABSOLUTELY TRUE. “Interesting too.” said the new-

comer, “and it should not unduly tax your powers of belief, because it is absolutely true. It happened at Quanpa. in the Quigil Province, when I was Acting Resident there in ’29.” His listeners regarded each other with some concern —one would naturally expect a little harmless leg-pull-ing from the genial policeman who had just left them, but hardly from this grave-looking senior official. "Then,”-said Brown, "these natives really possess some occult powers which we have not been able to understand or explain?” "No,” answered the Resident, "there is actually a quite natural explanation of the story. The unknown terror of [the ‘juju’ is far greater than any I known penalty which humanity — I black or white —can inflict, not even (excluding the penalty of death. I have very little doubt that the native warders, on going off duty, told their wives of the preparation of the ‘juju and its purpose, with the result that j this was ordinary market place chatter within a very short time and I must undoubtedly have been conjveyed in fear -and trembling to the) [wanted man in his hiding-place. The latter would not take very long to decide that merely to be hanged by the neck would be a pleasant alternative to the supreme mental and physical torture to which the ‘juju’ would subject. him for the rpst of his life if he disobeyed. There are many authenticated cases in Nigeria, and. in fact, the whole West Coast, of natives who have been driven to suicide by the threats of these ‘juju’ men." “Has one of them over threatened you?" blurted (mt Brown. “Not twice!” said the Resident grimly, as ho rose to go below.— (J. H. D. in the Manchester Guardian).