Geology Reference
In-Depth Information
seems to stimulate in that direction). First of all fires are lit
and drums brought out and heated. Then a long bamboo stick
is laid on the ground and the drums are arranged at the end.
Then the stick and the drums are banged and the natives
commence to yell and sing in the most indescribably hideous
way until the din is simply terrific. The dancers are arrayed
in beads, and around their ankles and wrists are large
bracelets made out of dried fruits which rattle very loudly.
Around their loins they have a belt with strings of these fruits
hanging all around. The object of the dance is simply to
balance on the toes and give a curious shaking movement
to the abdomen which sets all the rattles going, and yet the
appearance of the body as a whole is only that of a gentle
movement forward as they slowly revolve in a ring. Really it
can only be described as a very obscene dance, for they
imitate all the actions of coition and the penis can often be
seen to rise to an appalling size!
Map on opposite page
The route shown here is that taken by Mr Barton and Arthur
Holmes while they 'geologised' in Mozambique. The dates (19/5,
7/8, etc.) indicate the places where they stayed the night. Each
member of the expedition was charged with the task of keeping a
careful record of his routes and was thus provided with a prismatic
compass. The various traverses were eventually fitted to a central
line of stations laid down by Mr R. L. Reid, from Mosuril to Sawa.
The instruments used were: (a) 5-inch theodolite fitted with
Reeves' micrometers to both circles, (b) two watches, R. G. S. pat-
tern, (c) boiling point thermometers and aneroids. The latitudes
were determined by circummeridian observations of North and
South stars and the sun, the longitudes by chronometric difference
from East and West Star observations, using the known position of
Fort San Sebastian as a starting point for the coast. With the large
party they had to take with them, and the difficulty of the terrain,
the expedition would cover less than one and a half miles an hour.
Nevertheless, in total Holmes must have traversed well over
six hundred miles.
 
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