Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review Volumes 32 and 33.djvu/684

374 of a comet and war, sickness and other evil happenings. On one occasion when a meteor appeared there was a great epidemic of dysentery. This happened at the time of the harvesting of new corn, and the real reason for the outbreak of illness was that the people had eaten too much of it. It is also said by some that a comet is a new moon in the making, and by others it is thought to be the soul of a departed head-chief smoking his ceremonial pipe.

Lightning (fang mbane) is believed to be a messenger of Mbomvei, and is used to convey his messages with rapidity. On the banks of the Nun River there are some huts erected to serve the lightning, and offerings of palm-wine, palm-oil, fowls and so on are made to it. Three men were struck by lightning on the banks of this river while they were fishing, in 1917, and I was informed that these messengers had been sent by Mbomvei to show his displeasure.

Striebel relates a myth which was told to him about the offering of a dog to the lightning. In very early times there was a tremendous downpour of rain. A man saw a small dog standing in the path and called it to him, took it into his warm hut, and dried it by the fire. The dog then went outside in the rain again, and immediately there was a heavy roll of thunder, and the man dropped dead. Mbomvei was very much displeased at this, and directed the dog to restore the man to life again.

Prayers are often made to the lightning to increase a man's prosperity or to destroy his enemies. If anything has been stolen, a piece of stick whittled with a knife is thrown into the lightning hut, the man making a wish as he does it. The lightning will then strike the hut of the thief and kill him. Requests are made to the lightning to act as avenger against all enemies.