THE SAND ORACLES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18275, 16 December 1922, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE SAND ORACLES.

STRANGE FORTUNE-TELLERS. Fortuno-telling and divination are everywhere at home in Africa ; they are carried on in the Eastern Soudan by * manipulation of sand (dharber-ramle). This is the art of reading the secrets of the future and predicting distant events from signs and impressions made with the fingers at haphazard on loose sand. lit Eordofan and Darfur nobody 'will start on a long journey or undertake any matter of importance without first consulting the local sand-oracle upon the result of his enterprise. An Arab merchant who had travailed long in the Darfur, relates the following incident referring to the art of reading in the aand. It had come to the ear oi the Turkish Governor oi : a province thai an old man in the neighbourhood waa astonishing everybody by the, exactness of his divinations. The Governor ordered this man to be brought before him, as h» ■wished to submit him to a test. As soon as his messengers had gene ha had two hares placed by the side of him under a "tabaga" (a large basket-like cover made of differently coloured reedß and used' for covering The m»sengers, however, did not find the old man at home. His nephew, who. but » boy, was already well known for Mjjcleverness in the mysterious craft, offerea to go to the Governor in his uncle's plaafc and returned with the messengers. The Governor looked at him with diiK believing eyes and said, '"My son, u yott can read secrets in the sand, teU. me what is under this tabaga." . The youth shook up the sand which h« had brought with him in a corner of W« gown. He sat himself on the ground. made hia manipulations and aigna. an« replied, after short meditation, "There, under the tabaga, is wool like the wool of newly-born camels, there are also ears like thooe of donkeya; if my uncle were here, he would; say that thera are hare* underneath that cover."