Scope and Contents From the File: A collection of photographs on 77 loose sheets. On one sheet, in ink capitals, is written 'Photographs taken between June 18th 1934 - December 1934, in the Lamu Archipelago, Tanganyika, Kenya, Uganda, Belgian Congo, Ruanda Urundi, French Equatorial Africa, Cameroons, Nigeria, French West Africa.' The majority of the photographs have been captioned by hand, in a difficult handwriting, and some of the names of peoples and places have not been traced in works of reference. The following...

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40 x 61 mm. A Fungom woman with the blocks of bamboo stuck in the lobes of the ears which are gradually stretched during childhood.

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40 x 61 mm. A Fungom woman with the blocks of bamboo stuck in the lobes of the ears which are gradually stretched during childhood.

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40 x 62 mm. My carriers arriving at Mankon Rest House which is situated in the Chief's Compound. The entrance gate is seen with the guard houses, the juju sticks up in the centre and the plinth on the right.

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64 x 82 mm. The Chief of Babungo with his cap shaped like a horned crown. The crown band is of cotton with the tied fillet and the crown is composed of two bunches of blue-black feathers standing out on either side. [Fig. VI in West African Caps]

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62 x 40 mm. The Chief then followed by his four sons, the train bearers and the trumpeters with their elephant tusk trumpets set out to complete a tour of the compound.

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62 x 40 mm. The chief then retired for a short time only to reappear in his Native dress when he came to the Rest House to 'salute' us. He was accompanied by four of his sons, his chindas and his two train-bearers whilst behind him and a little to the left are seen two of the horn blowers who kept up an incessant trumpeting on their elephant tusks.

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62 x 40 mm. The Chief of the Ngemba Tribe at Mankon his capital which has a population of over 5000 people. He is dressed in his Silver Eagle mounted German helmet and glittering brass studded silver cuirasse, given to him when Germany ruled the Cameroon. His seat is a native stool covered with minute coloured beads and he has his carpet of leopard skin denoting his Royal rank.

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59 x 102 mm. The Chief very kindly agreed to let us photograph him in his uniform of which he is naturally extremely proud and wears on all important and official occasions when he is the centre of envy from all the other chiefs who only have their native dress.

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70 x 102 mm. Probably the last remaining specimen of Imperial Germany.

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Bamenda, Northwest Cameroon.

Scope and Contents 104 x 63 mm. The first thing that happened was the distant singing which drew nearer and then some of the wives of the chief came dancing into the compound from their quarters. They danced a sort of lunging step and were all linked hand to hand, they circled the entire compound in an anti-clockwise direction all the time chanting their dirge. Note that all native dances are in a clockwise direction except at funeral celebrations which seems to have some connection with the reversal of...

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53 x 40 mm. After the encircling of the entire compound the women formed into a long line, all the time chanting and clapping their hands to the time of the dirge. They then started a sort of 'follow my leader' all the time keeping up this peculiar skipping lunging step. They passed through many intricate patterns but always in an anti-clockwise direction.

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63 x 40 mm. After some time they broke up and stood about in groups chanting and beating time with their hands then formed up into two long lines and faced each other. The two foremost women then linked hands and there was a sort of 'tug-of-war'. This happened three times and most of the participants were the younger members of the chief's harem.

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62 x 40 mm. As many of the people had to come from a considerable distance, some had been trekking in for four days, it was about ten a.m. before the Fies began to arrive. Here is one of the Fies marching on to the ground followed by his orchestra and gunners. The orchestra consists of drummers, flute players, trumpets of elephant tusks and rattles of metal and wood.

Scope and Contents 62 x 40 mm. Soon after their arrival, despite the distance many of them had come the old Fies started to dance and were followed by their drummers and gunmen. At first each orchestra kept up the good work but as the fies came in and the orchestras increased in number they broke away and joined with the dancers leaving the Chief's orchestra in command. Here are seen some of the groups of Fies dancing the queer little shuffling steps again in an anti-clockwise direction whilst the gunmen let...

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99 x 64 mm. The Chief's orchestra stood around the two posts already mentioned and the women formed a ring and danced round the Fies and their followers who were nearer the orchestra. As before the anti-clockwise direction was adhered to all the time. As more and more people arrived from the outlying towns and isolated farms they formed outer rings until the whole compound was one mass of bobbing humanity with orchestras, singing and gunfire.

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100 x 64 mm. At different times the Orchestra would leave the juju sticks and come shuffling and lunging up to the rest house, followed by masses of the dancers who with the beat of the drums and the gallons of Mombo were getting completely abandoned, They were led usually by the Chief's sister who acts as the Queen Mother and is seen in the centre foreground dressed in coloured silks with a garland of green leaves.

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62 x 50 mm. The orchestra would after a short time back away to the Juju sticks again as they are doing here their variegated costumes of brilliant greens, blues and reds with their weird and many shaped hats making a very pretty picture. The Chief's sister and Queen Mother is seen on the left of the flute players.

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62 x 40 mm. The Fies again formed up and danced round in the centre circle next to the orchestra whilst the women formed into the outer circle all dancing and shuffling round.

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62 x 40 mm. Towards the late afternoon the large numbers dancing necessitated the ring being formed round the compound and with the drums, the flutes and the Mimbo the chief could hold his dignity no longer so left his throne and dressed in his German uniform and white suit joined the merry throng. As he shuffled round with his Fies on either side of him the chief women moved out and formed up to 'salute' him.

Scope and Contents 62 x 40 mm. The Fies on either side of the chief were so elated that they kept up an incessant gunfire with their native blunder-busses. Here they are seen shooting and reloading and in the midst of the smoke the chief can just be seen. They are all flintlock guns and much laughter greeted the fies as often they would prance forward towards the centre of the ground with great show, kneel down and press the trigger only to be rewarded with a faint 'click' as the gun misfired with damp...

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62 x 40 mm. The women advancing to salute the chief, they shuffled forwards and at times broke into a short run as they followed him round the field. All the time they let out a high pitched 'cooing' cry and tap the mouth with the closed fingers.

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62 x 40 mm. The women saluting the Chief and honouring him by bowing and bending the knees whilst the foremost dusts the leaves and twigs and even imaginary dirt from his vicinity with her bare hands. The remainder keeping up the incessant 'cooing' call and clapping their hands to the beat of the drums.

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62 x 40 mm. The women running forward and then receding after bowing to the chief whilst the eldest and most honoured wife keeps on brushing the ground in front of him.