Chapter IV: Barozi Industries

The Barozi industries are neither numerous nor complicated. A simple people living in a state of savagery would not have any very great or serious wants. Living on the Zambezi, and in a low flat swampy country which becomes inundated yearly, boats were a necessity of life. The trunk of a large tree cut down and then carefully hollowed out and pointed at bow and stern, such were their first boats and so they are to-day.

In the course of time they found that a long paddle worked by men standing up was more effective than a short paddle worked by anyone sitting down, as well as being much more useful for work in shallow water where the paddles being cut long are available as poles for pushing the boat along. Of all the various trees used for boat making “mukwa” (a tree resembling an ash) is alone unsinkable, all other kinds sink on being submerged. Paddles are made of young “mukwa” as it has more play and give in it than other woods. Paddling itself is quite a fine art, and to be a paddler in the Barozi sense of the word is to have a more than useful knowledge of the science. Steering is done by the stern paddler assisted by the bow paddler, but by no means all of those who are good paddlers are capable of paddling in the bow or stern.

The Barozi say that they learnt boat building from the Batotela, but this is possibly automatically suggested by the fact that suitable trees for boat building are found a long distance from Barozi itself, either amongst Batotela on the Lumbi, Bankoya on the Dongwe, and Alunda and Balubale on the upper Zambezi.

_Pottery._—This industry, since the introduction of iron pots and metal dishes, is fast dying out. At an earlier date large numbers of clay pots of all sizes were made. Considering that no wheel nor any instrument beyond the bare hands were used, the pottery work is wonderfully good. The favourite forms of work were big circular pots with wide orifices which were universally used for cooking porridge and other foods, and large pots with thin necks and narrow mouths which were used for keeping water in. These pots are very porous and are most excellent for keeping water cold during the heat of the day. The more ambitious workers (the industry is incidentally worked by women) used to cut patterns and daub red ochre streaks on their pots, this is usually done after the first baking. Children universally model animals, though very crudely, in clay, but few of these models are burnt.

Photo by J. C. Coxhead, Esq.]

_Ironwork._—It is not quite certain whence the Barozi acquired this industry. They must have had some knowledge of it during their migration from the Congo to their present habitat, though when they first left the Congo it is probable that their implements were made of copper. The blacksmith work of to-day is mainly in the hands of the Batotela, Bakwangwa, Bankoya and Bambunda, although traces of it are found in all tribes, aboriginal and otherwise, who are included in the Barozi people. In a few places iron is dug for and short shafts sunk, but the main supply of iron is gained from swamps and the beds of small streams. The ore, as recovered from these sources, goes through a rough smelting process, being placed under a large fire of wood in a circular fire-place from which small channels are made in which the molten iron is run off. These channels end in small circular depressions which collect the iron and it is then left to cool off. The iron is naturally very impure and is always very soft, but on the other hand it is very easily rubbed up to a good degree of sharpness and is really much more useful and adaptable to rough work than well-tempered European steel. The iron when cool is then taken in hand by the blacksmith, whose knowledge is generally passed on from father to son. He uses rough pincers, heavy and light hammers and an anvil all made from native iron. Bellows are constructed by taking a large piece of wood which is trimmed down into two large circular basins parallel to each other with a long pipe running down from between them, a small hole from each basin leading into the pipe. A closed pair of scissors gives, on a very small scale, a good idea of the woodwork of the bellows, the two finger holes being the circular depressions and the closed blades the pipe. Over each depression is tied a well dressed piece of hide which is tightly tied round the rim of the depression or cup. In the centre of each piece of hide a light stick, about twelve inches long is attached, and by jerking these sticks up and down quickly, quite a useful draught is made. At the mouth of the pipe a nozzle of clay is made to prevent the fire getting to the wood. Only charcoal is used by the blacksmiths and this is made, by preference, from any of the harder red woods with which the country abounds. Spear heads, axe and hoe heads, snuff spoons and nails are the chief articles made, and a good blacksmith will embellish his work with all kinds of punched ornamentation.

_Basketwork._—This is a form of work which is very nearly universal throughout the Barozi country, although certain branches of it are confined to certain localities. Plain mats made of rows of reed-like grass kept very close to each other by several parallel lines of bark, knotted to each individual piece of grass, are made all over the country. The best makers are, however, the Banyengo and Bambunda. These mats are about five feet broad and eight to ten feet long. A smaller mat, possibly introduced by the Makololo, is made of flat reeds which are kept together by strings of bark. The bark in these mats does not show as the reeds are strung on the various lines of bark. These mats are about two feet six inches broad by five to seven feet long. Another mat is made like the large mat mentioned previously, but worked throughout with a chequer pattern of dark bark so as to form squares, diamonds, triangles and, in the more daring efforts, to form crocodiles, men, horses, cattle and elephant. The best workers of this last form of mat are the Bambunda. Another form of mat is made out of undressed papyrus strung on bark, so closely that they are, when placed at a fair angle, practically waterproof, and the Bakoma who are the chief makers of this form of mat, frequently build their houses of several mats slung over a horizontal pole.

Circular and oval baskets of white stiff grass with patterns of black grass woven into the white are made by the Bambunda. These baskets have circular covers and are really very well and artistically made. The black grass used for patterns is of two varieties, one kind being the pith of a very slender root belonging to a small bush, while the other kind is simply the white grass as used in the main construction of the basket, soaked and partially decomposed in water before weaving. The Bankoya and the Alunda make a very closely woven grass basket which is waterproof and which is much used in districts where clay is scarce, to carry and even to cook water. Grass baskets are almost universally made throughout the Barozi to carry grain, meal, sweet potatoes and other foodstuffs.

_Woodwork._—The Barozi are not very proficient at woodwork, the neatest and best workers being again the Bambunda, Bakwangwa and Bandundulu who make stools and wooden dishes in large quantities. These are generally made out of a soft wood and are then hardened on the surface by being scorched all over with a red-hot axe blade, a certain quantity of fat being rubbed in after the scorching. The Bambunda are very clever at carving little figures of wood representing men, women, animals and boats, the Bambalangwi, Balubale and Alunda carve long hair combs and sticks in a variety of interesting patterns. The average Murozi can carve himself a knobkerry, axe and hoe handle, or the shaft of a spear, but their work is very plain though very neat and wonderfully regular.

The Bandundulu are the chief makers of boat paddles, though the Bambunda and Bakwangwa cut them as well.