Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 16, 1905.djvu/457

 Bavili Notes. 399

the eel nor the cricket are found there, but the Mpakasa is (in Loango) the greatest of the symbols entering there, and so we will commence with it.

The wild ox in the stories of the Bavili is generally- found acting as the servant or ambassador of either the leopard or some princely animal. As often as not it is sacrificed while in the discharge of some duty. Thus when Nzambi sent him for the wagtail's drum he was killed by the followers of that bird {Folklore of the Fjort, p. 125).

The wild ox is always on the alert for the slightest noise, it is peculiarly sensitive to sound. The horns and head of this animal are found in the Bibila.

The tail of the ox called Mawso is the sign of office of all the Kongozovo (district-chiefs) among the Bavili.

Bafu, the saw-fish, the snout of which the Badungu carry as their sign of office. This snout is found in the Bibila (plural of Xibila).

Nkaka, a kind of crocodile (distinct from the Ngandu or crocodile in the Kongo). This reptile is eaten by Bakuni or woodmen of the Mayomba district to the east of Maloango's composite kingdom. It digs out its home underground in the banks of rivers. The hole is of the shape of the letter )-^^, and great danger is encountered by the Bakuni in hunting and killing it. The hunter by lighting a fire at the entrance (i) drives the reptile into the bend (2, 3). He then carries stones into the hole and blocks up entrance No. 2, and lights another fire at the entrance No. 3, and so suffocates his prey. Should the hunter venture beyond No. 2 with- out having blocked it up, the Nkaka is apt to slip through it and block up the main entrance with his body, so that the hunter becomes captive and certain pr-sy. One of the scales {makii) of this reptile is to be found in the Bibila.

Beci is what the Portuguese call silver fish. It causes