Page:Some account of the town of Zanzibar.djvu/18

 upon the land; they cultivate it and bring in the produce, while he sits at home in the town and eats it.

The usual course of a day, from native accounts I had of it, is something of this kind: soon after daylight a man will wake, and, if he is at all devout, go through his morning devotions; he then lies or sits on his bed (which is a light wooden frame laced with thin cocoanut cord, and covered with a mat) until about ten or eleven o'clock, when he dresses and goes out. Every house is furnished with a seat called a baraza, outside the door, made of stone if it be a stone house, or of earth if it be a mud house, here the master spreads a mat and sits awaiting callers. If our friend meets anyone, or finds anyone sitting on his baraza, he says Hujambo, Are you well? to which the invariable answer is Sijambo, I am well, after which you go into the question of ailments. Even if you are dying you must begin by saying, " I am well," and after that explain your fears and feelings. When the subject of health is exhausted you must ask after the news, Habari gani, What news? to which the answer is Njema, Good. This is for the sake of the omen. If you ventured to say, "Bad," you would throw all your hearers into a state of dread and horror. So you must say, "Good," first, and then qualify its goodness in any way you may deem necessary.

After a few such greetings noon has arrived and the wife has some food ready, a large dish of rice and a little fish cooked with curry, or, for a richer man, a fowl and some sweetmeats and fruit. After these are discussed and some water drunk, they wash their hands, which is always done by an attendant pouring water