African Odyssey
The heights by great men reached and kept were not attained by sudden flights. But they whilst their companions slept were toiling upwards in the night!
-- Longfellow
Africa is known as the Dark Continent. Following the “discovery” and travels of such great men like Dr. Livingston in the Lake Victoria region and Richard Landers in West Africa, the Scramble for Africa came into full swing in the end of the nineteenth century. Following the partition of Africa at the Berlin conference of 1885, colonization followed.
Nigeria was given to Great Britain following the travels of Mungo Park.[1] The administration of these colonies was organized from the Colonial Office in England and colonial administrators were drawn from the cream of the products of Oxford and Cambridge Universities. The country was divided into provinces ruled by a Resident and districts under District Commissioners.[2]
The local governments were under natives[3] called warrant Chiefs. This was called indirect rule.[4] The people were hardly ever in contact with the colonizers except whenever there was trouble and the “D.O.” would arrive, guarded by native police and assisted by an interpreter. People would congregate in the village square and the complainants would come and state their cases, presenting their witnesses if they had any. The D.O. would adjudicate. When matters were more serious they were taken to the courts. First there were the native courts and when matters were more serious, they would be taken to the high courts. One had to hire a lawyer before one could appear before the high courts, and since those lawyers must have studied in England in one of the Three Temples, hiring a lawyer was an expensive undertaking. Misdemeanors received fines and serious crimes imprisonment; murderers were hanged.
The other major occasion on which natives came contact with the white men was Empire Day. Held on May 24th Empire day commemorated the birth of Queen Victoria who ruled in the light of British colonization. The sun never set on the British Empire - it was so much around the whole world. On Empire Day, the police band played marches such as Men of Harlech and there was much pomp and circumstance. The students from the various school marched in their uniforms past the podium where the Governor, Resident or the District Commissioner (DC) stood at attention in their white colonial outfits, helmets and swords. Their shoes usually had a clip at the heels. The ceremonies included an official march-past inspection. Later in the day there were various sports competitions, and in the evening tea in the governments house gardens. Although students were not included in the tea party at the government house, Empire Day was a major event for students.
The Schools
There were three kinds of schools: government schools, mission schools and private schools. Nigeria was divided into three parts by the rivers Niger and Benue and their confluence in Lokoja.
The government had only three colleges: Kings College in Lagos, Government College, Umuahia and Government College, Kaduna. Each admitted not more than a hundred students a year. For a country of nearly 100 million as Nigeria was in those days this was certainly low to say to the least.[5] Competition to get into the government colleges was fierce. In the schools students got the best graduates of Oxford and Cambridge and even more important a good mixed diet so important during those formative years of a pupil’s life.
The Mission Schools
The missionaries were Roman Catholic and Anglican.[6] In Onitsha in those days there was Christ the King College (CKC) and Dennis Memorial Grammar School (DMGS).[7] These schools competed fiercely in academics and sports. The academic [test for graduation] was the Cambridge school certificate exam and the found on University Matriculation. There were also two teacher training colleges in our area, both run by missionaries. St. Charles was run by Irish Franciscans and Awka Teacher Training Institution run by Anglicans. The colleges were fee paying and awarded few scholarships.
The teacher training Colleges were free but if you trained there you had to sign a contract to teach a minimum of five years after graduation or pay a fine of ₤20. Those who excelled in the colleges later applied to study abroad for the professions, mainly Medicine, Law and education. Few went into engineering and other subjects.
The females went to girls schools’. Queen’s College in Lagos was the female counterpart of Kings College was Queens College Lagos. The provinces did not want a girls College.[8]
Organization of Education
Education was organized into primary, secondary and university. The primary school was an eight year course made up of 2 years of pre-primary and six years of primary. The pre-primary was 1 and 2 and the primary was from Standards 1 to 6. So one proceeded from Primary 1 and 2 (the preprimary) to Standards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. The Standard Six exams was administered by the govt. in the early times but soon the numbers of people taking the exam became so large that the government gave the administration of the tests to the missionaries.
The teacher training Colleges were examined by the government Inspectors of Education who apart from written examinations also administered practical teaching sessions.
The Missionaries
The Catholic Missions in Nigeria.
Eastern Nigeria had Catholic and Protestant missionaries. The Catholics belonged to Holy Ghost Congregation (CSSp) and were mostly Fathers from Ireland. They were mostly in eastern Nigeria west of the Cross river. East of the Cross River were the Irish priests of St. Patrick’s Mission. The Protestants in the Niger area were the Christian Missionary Society (C.M.S.). In the Cross River area there were Presbyterians; in the North were Augustines. The above is the general milieu into which I was born.
The Origin of My People
Wide through the landscape of his dream
The lordly Niger flowed.[9]
I was born in Igboland. The Igbo people are a group of migrants from Igalla[10] who broke off from the original Africans traced to the first human settlements in the Rift Valleys. They headed westwards, migrating towards the savannah. According to Elizabeth Isichei,[11] the Igalla and Igbo languages are very closely associated.
Many people migrated and settled on the banks of rivers, which, like the Nile flooded every year during the rainy season (April-October). They farmed yam, cassava and maize. Even today Anambra yam is highly prized and indeed most delicious when either boiled or roasted and eaten with palm oil in or pounded into foo - foo and swallowed after kneading with the fingers into delicious stew (soup) made with palm oil and washed bitter leaf. A great image of Ibo women pounding the boiled yam comes to mind.
In the nearby Savannah guinea corn (maize) and rice are also produced.
In Nigeria we have the three main tribes. In the East Ibos; in the West Yorubas, and in the North Hausas.
Colonial Exploration
With the Industrial revolution came trade. The British used trading companies to develop the production of raw materials for their machines. In the India subcontinent it was the East India Co.; in Nigeria it was the Niger Company. The products the Company sought were palm oil and kernels from the East, cocoa in the West, groundnuts and cotton from the North. Roads, and later on railways, were constructed mainly North - South for the evacuation of these products.
Pacification[12] of Nigeria
The pacification process was a three pronged attack, involving warfare, evangelization and trade. The Ibos had no strong Native rulers (“Igbo-enwe Eze”[13]). The west had great Obas. The North had Emirs and the Sultan. In the North the various cities like Kano and Zaria had Emirs who were subservient to the Sultan of Sokoto. A great warrior Othman den Fodio conquered and installed Fulani rulers in those cities. Once an Emir is gotten into the “Empire” by war or by force it suited the “indirect rule”[14] of the Empire.[15]
Soon mountains of groundnuts and cotton waiting evacuation to the seaports became a common sight in Northern Nigeria.
The Cocoa from the West went to feed the hungry machines of “Cadbury” to produce cocoa drinks and chocolates. The palm oil from the East went to Liverpool for the making of soap and detergent. Northern groundnuts made edible peanuts and margarine.
Metals
It was not very long before gold and tin were discovered. Tin was discovered in the Jos plateau with its remarkably moderate temperature. Then columbine was discovered. One three hundred parts of columbine in iron converts it into steel. Nigeria had 98% of the world supply of columbine.[16]
These materials were exploited and carried by ships, to Liverpool mainly, and after processing returned [to Nigeria] as clothes, cocoa drinks chocolate.
During the Second World War Nigeria was particularly important to Britain because palm kernels were needed in large quantities for manufacturing bombs. One recalls with nostalgia the propaganda efforts of such colonial wives like Mrs. Maub.
Nigeria in the Slave Trade
It is rather difficult to imagine the origin of slave trade. A Jesuit missionary in America was responsible for this catastrophe.
After the voyages of discovery to the American North and South, there followed wars to conquer and exploit these areas. Then the papacy issued the Papal Bull demarcating Spanish and Portuguese Americas.[17] Then came the British and French, and later still, the American War of Independence. The Americas offered large, fertile areas for the cultivation of cotton and peanuts.
The colonialists used the native Indians as laborers. These Indians were faced with extinction and the priest[18] thought and suggested that “Negros” who could stand the hot climate should be brought to America.
Bringing Africans as slaves to the Americas involved a two-step process. First, the slavers took the materials that were wanted in Africa -- guns, gunpowder, clothes, liquor etc – and exchanged those for slaves. These slaves were transported in deplorable conditions after being collected in two big West African Countries -- Ghana, then Gold Goast and Goree in Senegal. Auctions were held in European Ports and Liverpool greatly prospered in this. When they arrived in America the able-bodied men went to work in the cotton fields as outside or field Niggers and the women, particularly if pretty, as household servants. Such were the suffering of these poor folks.[19]
Such were the sufferings of those poor folks that one cannot but recall those wonderful lines in the songs of Stephen Foster, such as “Swanee River” and “Old Man River.”[20]
“The Jaja of Opbo”
In Nigeria the slave trade was associated with the Jaja of Opobo[21] and the White Juju[22]. King Jaja built a clever tunnel from the Northern part of Eastern Nigeria along the Cross River to Opobo. Slaves were brought from the interior to Opobo from where ships carried them to the collecting centers for later shipment to Europe and eventually the Americas.[23]
A typical story goes as follows. Someone transgresses somewhere in Iboland. He is apprehended and led to consult the White Juju in Arochukwu. He is transferred into a canoe and transported to Opobo via the Cross River. A chicken is slaughtered and the blood shown to the relatives as a token that the spirits have taken the person. In the meantime he is taken to port in Opobo and exported.
.
The other way of capturing slaves was by the use of fire arms and gun powder brought as payments for the slaves. This trade created a lot of internecine wars as people tried to conquer areas where they could obtain slaves.
The UMUNRI CLAN
Among the inhabitants of Eastern Nigeria was a group of Ibos called the UMUNRI.[24] Nri was made up of four towns, each founded by one of the four sons of NRI.[25]
[insert chart here:]
NRI
AGU UKWU NRI ENUGU UKWU NAWFA ENUGU AGIDI
AGU UKWU NRI was the first son and later became the EZE NRI. The EZE NRI was the spiritual father of all Ibos. In the home of the last son (ENUGU-AGIDI) there grew a tree that nurtured branches out of which OFOR (staff of office) is made.[26] When people get rich enough to take the OZO title (a distinction of great honour) they have to come to ENUGU-AGIDI to obtain the OFOR.
Becoming of Age
For all males there are several ceremonies associated with becoming of age. The first is the “ama nwulu,” which takes place when the boy is about seven years of age. At that stage a good father must see to it that his son carries out this ceremony. It consists mainly of showing that one is a man not a woman (Describe the ceremony).[27] The second ceremony is “iba mmonwu.” Masquerades are common in Iboland and consist of all sorts of dress and covering the face and masking the voice. When boys of an age group reach puberty they must go through this frightening process. The third rite was joining an age grade. Age groups were in clusters of three-year cycles.[28]
[Insert chart: “Family Tree”]
IKECHEBELU
ONUBU UDEKUU (GIRLS)
NWOKEKE BENSON
EBO ANENE OZXXXX
My father, Udekwu Akunwata Ikechebelu, must have been born in the late nineteenth century because he was already an adult at the end of the First World War. He told me that the Pandemic Influenza of 1918 to 1919 took a terrible toll on the family and he had to bury many including his older brother Onwubu.
The Compound
According to Ibo custom, the eldest son (DIOKPALA), inherited the father’s compound when the latter died. All the other sons had to move and create their own homes elsewhere.
The compound is made up of the OBU, NKPUKE and OBA. The obu is the owner’s abode and the nkupke the wife’s abode. If you were a polygamist and most rich people were you must provide a separate abode for each wife to avoid quarrels. The oba is the yam barn.
Shrine
This is a separate building where we honour our ancestors who we can invoke in times of necessity. It is also the seat of your IKENGA.[29] In the shrine there is a separate altar /for each dead male representative. Every year during harvest celebrations one must sacrifice a live animal -- chickens, goat or a cow – and smear the blood in the OKPESI and pour libations in it.
The Barn (OBA)
Ever major farmer has a barn made of sticks and palm branches on which he stakes the yams in proud display of wealth. There are two main species of yam J. OCHA (the white variety) and ABIA. Other species like abara [SPELLING??] are not so valuable.
There are rules of engagement in the oba. For instance, women are not allowed to enter the barn. Usually, when leaving for the farm in the morning a father selects and hands over to the wives their rations for the day.
He then departs to the farm at the crack of dawn.
It is the responsibility of the wife to prepare meals and carry to the farm so that, during rest periods, the farmer could sit down under a shade, eat the meal and rest before resuming his labors.
At sundown he returns home to a nice bath and evening meal. After the meal there may be family gathering with friends, relatives and children; or he may go to the village square.
The village square
In the village square there is a huge tom-tom (“ikolu”) which is only sounded when there is a crisis such as death. In the square there are sandy areas where children play and age mates compete at skills such as wrestling. On moonlights nights dancing is practised.
DANCING
One of the great heritages of the IBOS is the love for dancing. It is quite an elaborate affair. When one observes a dance group one likes you make arrangements to import the dance. If you find a good group in another town you invite them to come and train you. You must arrange for the accommodation and feeding of these guests. When a group has learned the new dance, a date is chosen -- usually during the harvest time -- to exhibit the dance. Some of the best dances in the world such as the ATILOGU[30] with acrobatics and elaborately choreographed and synchronized dancing are famous all over the world.
Dance groups are organized by the age grade societies and so there is intense competition amongst the various groups. People are invited from neighboring towns to share dances and engage in dance contests.
BIRTH & EARLY DEVELOPMENT
There are no birth certificates in a farming community. One simply belongs to an age grade. When the white men came and brought churches and schools those few early literates tried to assign dates to the periods of the age grade. Thus one Isaiah Okonkwo from Enu Achalla told me that I was born during the dry season of 1925. I quickly adopted the date November 20, 1925 as my birthdate.
My father was a polygamist. His first wife Uzidi died long before we were born. The second Mgbeke Okolobu served my father and lived to a very ripe old age. My father was very unfortunate with children. They just died like flies.
At last seven months before my birth Mgbeke Okolobu gave birth to her first surviving son and the first for my father. They called him EBOKANSI. Seven months later my mother whom my father married from a famous medicine man in Abagana, ANUNTU, gave birth to me. There was a great rejoicing after the circumcision on the 8th day (hence some people call Ibos the Jews of Africa)[31] I was given two names: ANENE CHUKWU and OSITA DI MMA.
Ibo names are always meaningful.[32] They typically refer to the days of the week or make reference to God (Chukwu). Names such as Chukwuemeka (which can be shortened to Emeka), Chukwudi (shortened as Chidi) and Ikechukwu (shortened as Ike) all make reference to God. There are four days in the Ibo week: Eke, Oye, Afor and Nkwo.
My mother’ NKPUKE was in the ONWUBU compound,[33] about a block from my father’s compound where be lived with MGBEKE OKOLOBU. I assume they must have made arrangements as to when and where to make love.
I had an older sister Nwogbonye [XXXXXX CHECK SISTERS NAMES] and a younger sister Nwinyinga [XXXXX?!!] . My mother died during a difficult childbirth of another daughter. She developed a sepsis which in those days was treated by inviting the medicine man who came and with the aid of AFA told you which god was the cause and prescribed treatment. Some simple cases simply subsided naturally, others required the use of natural herbs.
Some medicine men became very good in the knowledge of herbs and ANUNTU, my grandfather, was one of them and people went to consult him from all over Iboland.
After several days of labor my mother finally delivered a normal female child. The sepsis, however, persisted and a group of medicine men were called in. After consulting the Gods[34] they said the cause of my mother’s difficulties was ANUNTU, her father.
How are earth could it be that a LIVING MAN could act like a Spirit?
It was decided that to appease him a chicken would be taken to a spot as near as possible to ABAGANA and sacrificed there.
My mother had a breed of white chicken that were the pride of our lives. To carry out the sacrifice, we had to get the fastest and the prettiest. I was appointed to go with the medicine man to the outskirts of Abagana to carry out the sacrifice. We went for quite some distance outside ENUGU AGIDI before stopping. Then, he wrested the chicken out of my hand and proceeded to slice its throat.
He then spilled the blood and made incantations asking Anutu to please be appeased.
To my consternation he proceeded to shove the beheaded chicken into his bag.
This did not make sense to me and I protested. He quickly silenced me and we returned home.
ANNUAL VISIT TO ABAGANA
Every year during the ONWA ASATO FESTIVAL[35] my mother would gather all her children select the choicest white yam, the most splendid and mature chicken and we all went to Anuntu’s.
ANUNTU’S CASTLE
Anuntu was so rich and famous that he lived in a castle made up of several buildings. First it was walled and had a huge gate. Near the entrance was a row of mud huts to the left of the large open court yard. To the right was a large construction made up of a large building and a large shrine.
Only goodness knows how many wives he had! But each had her own house.
In his area he had cubicles --- as many as there were wives -- into which he had a bed of bamboo and at night he personally tucked each wife in her cubicle, locked it and took the key.[36]
There were so many wives that when they got older and had less of a temptation to wander astray and bring in foreign blood he sent them to his huge farm in Achalla along the Anambra River where they farmed and spent the rest of their lives.
During one of my visits to Abagana Anutu was celebrating the circumcision and naming ceremony of one of his children. He complained that he had trouble thinking up new names. He named this particular child NJELITA, shortened from the phrase NNJEWTA NA AKO OYI MMA. The name celebrates friendships, meaning literally, “I am going to visit my dear friend.[37]. He informed me that hardly a month passes without his having a child to name.
After I returned from America, I went back to visit Abagana and was amazed that not one of Anutu’s multitude of children became anything to talk about. How are the mighty fallen! One would think that at least one would have inherited his medical knowledge. (Anutu claims – they say -- - that it all came to poor me and with that the duty of appeasing him.)
When I visited him that eventful naming ceremony day I went with my friend Ben Okafor from Enugu-Ukwu whose uncle Amamilo [CHECK NAME XXX] was a PWD road maintenance labourer and lived in a one-room home not far from the castle. Ben and I passed the night in the hut.
Early the next morning when we awoke who did we see? The frightful sight of this powerful man of short stature -- about 5’3’ and average build- -- a bald head [XXXX NOT SURE WHAT THIS IS ABOUT TEMPLES ] at the temples and the most piercing eyes of an eagle. He said, “How sad and unbelievable that a son of ANUNTU would come to his castle wine and dine and then go to sleep in the lowly hut of a labourer.”
He had just returned from his early morning walk and visit to his medicinal plants. I ran as fast as I could and went home to Enugu and never saw him alive again.
Death & Burial of my Mother
When my mother died we were presented with two immediate problems: the burial itself and where to send her children, including the two nephews of my father, the children of his deceased brother, Onwubu. Nwokebe and his younger brother Benson were like sons to my father since their father died in the influenza epidemic.
He [WHO? Nwokebe, mentioned just above? Seems so XXX] prepared the pyre made up of matted/plaited palm fronds and placed the corpse in it.
He then washed the corpse, wrapped it in some clothes and then wrapped another expensive cloth around the whole set. According to the custom the wife must be buried in her home –- Abagana. Engu - Agidi could take the corpse half way [to Abagana] and then Abagana youth took over.
When in Abaqoua the women’s body must not be buried inside the compound but beside it.
Missionary Journeys
“Go ye therefore to all nations preaching to them and baptizing them in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy Ghost”
Gospel of St. Matthew[38]
Following the travels of Samuel Ajai Crowther[39] Protestant mission stations were established along the River Niger. Around 1885 there were well-established stations close to the Niger Company’s stations. [The Catholic] Bishop Shanahan arrived at Onitsha and the Protestants who were already settled there were generous enough to give him some land.
Building a mission is a difficult job particularly when you are short of funds. One needs a church, a school, dwelling houses. Transport was by canoe along the river Niger and its main tributaries, especially the Anambra.
Teachers were imported from Europe, catechists also. In addition to churches and schools there were also hospitals like the famous Iyi Enu Hospital (Protestant) and Charles Borromeo Hospital (Catholic). Volunteer doctors came from many parts of Europe. Besides primary schools like Holy Trinity and St. Mary’s there were secondary schools like CKC. The whole country was divided into Parish (under a Parish Priest), Province (Bishop) and See (Cardinal).
The British Educational Administration
At the pinnacle was the Director of Education, based in Lagos, and he was in charge of a host of Inspectors of Education. There was a great need of teachers, clerks and interpreters who also served the Courts.
At first the government inspectors administered the primary school Std. VI Exams but as the schools increased tremendously in numbers and size this job was passed on to the missionaries. The missions ran the teacher training colleges, but the government inspectors carried out the examinations and certification. With the growth in number and reputation of mission schools, the government appointed missionary inspectors of schools.
One of the greatest travelling inspectors of schools was Rev Fr. John Jordan C.S.S.p. From his headquarters at an old building in Onitsha Waterside he travelled very widely, establishing a stream of secondary schools like Bishop Shanahan School, Nkwere, C.I.C, Enug and Holy Rosary, Onitsha.[40]
Anene Goes to School
My going to school was no accident. As the missionary schools spread like wild fire families who sought progress sent their boys to school. Not unlike England where women were not readily admitted into Education (in Oxford there were thirty men’s colleges as apposed to a meager three for girls) Ibo men were belated in sending their girls to school.[41]
The reason was that educated sons got jobs as teachers, clerks, policeman, interpreters etc. They earned money which at that time was the pound sterling (administered by the West Africa currency Board serving the British West Africa colonies of Gambia Sierra Leone, Gold Coast and Nigeria). The West African pound was at par with the British pound.
My father, being quite up to date with his peers, decided to send one of his sons to school. There were just two of us at school age, Ebo and me (Anene). Since EBO was the first son (DIOKPALA) there was no question of sending him.
So it fell to my luck that I was to start school. This decision was taken at the regular family meetings convened by my father and included his two nephews Nwokeke and Benson. It is interesting to note that of the two Onwubu children, Nwoheke, the older one, was not sent to school. Benson was sent to school. He later learned the trade of shoe making and worked with a relative of his from his mother’s side, —Charles Chiaghan of Nawfia. [UNCELAR XXX]
My mother lived a block down the road in the Owubu compound. Right opposite was another compound in which an older boy Clement Okwubunie went to St Johns Catholic School. It was decided that I should go with him. Thus whilst Benson and his family are Anglicans I went to a Catholic school -- St. John’s. This was in late1932.
I started school at St. Benedicts Ogoja in 1933 by another circumstance that is difficult to explain except that God wished it so.
To Ogoja with Love
When my mother died in the middle of 1932 my older sister Nwogbo and my younger sister Nwinyanga were relocated to my father’s compound under the care of Mgbeke Okolobu.
Mgbeke Okolobu was a short spritely woman with a piercing look. She was an extremely hard worker who dashed around with hard quick steps that thundered as she went by. It was impossible to miss her when she was around. Her heavy quick steps would wake everyone at 5 am as she prepared to go to the farm.
Between the two families of our early days there was rivalry. The oldest daughter of Mqbeke – Nwoye -- closest to my older sister Ebo in age and just seven months older then me, and Nwakugo was about the same age as my younger sister Nwanye.
Nwakugo was so named because she was born after my father took the Ozo title.[42] Nwonyinye, my younger sister, was born when my father took further titles. My father’s Ozo title is IBIDEHALAZO. My father took the titles and married at an early age.
The rivalry once in a while would degenerate into fights. My mother was a tall six footer nicknamed Enyi una nu, or “ostrich.” When she went to Eke market in Etiti every body knew and she could look over the heads of all. She would take on Mqbeke. Ebo and I would go after Nwoye and Nwakugo. It was thus that my sisters and I were thrown into the lion’s den of Mqbeke Okolobu.
It was not long before my father realized that we might be starved to death. I remember clearly one day when were all eating sharing from the same bowl a meal of yam and greens when Mgbeke screamed at me that I was hogging the meal by eating too fast. She claimed that I was swallowing the pieces of yam without chewing.
My father was embarrassed and later he told me in private that as a male child I had access to the Yam BARN which even the hard working MGBEKE as a woman was not allowed by IBO tradition. I never took it advantage of this privilege.
Every month Benson would go from Ogoja to the cosmopolitan
market in Onitsha and bring provisions which he sold in Ogoja to supplement his shoe-making craft.
On the way home he would always stop to see the people in the village.
In one of those visits my father consulted with him to take me along with him before I got starved to death by Mgbeke Okolobu.
Benson agreed and Mqbeke was informed that I was to help him with his luggage to Awka..
Thus in the autumn of 1932. Benson and I left Enugu-Agidi by bush path carrying his luggage to the motor park in Amawbia-Awka.
There, after the usual negotiations we joined a mammy wagon to Enugu.
In the Motor Park one could get a good meal of yam foo-foo (with either ogbono or onugbu soup), rice and beans and stew in one of the “Mama Put”[43] or one could buy akara balls or moi moi. This can always be washed down with water or palm wine.
When we got to Enugu we stayed the night with Benson’s friend Daniel Ndulu at the Coal camp.
The next day we trekked to the motor park and took a mammy wagon to Bansara on the Cross River. There was no bridge. We crossed the Cross River in by canoe, paying a boatman to paddle us across.
In Bansara the constant attack of broods of mosquito was another problem. We ate and slept till midnight when Benson woke me
He brought his bicycle and tied up his provisions basket in the back. Then he tied a wrapper on the frame and perched me there.
With the help of the moonlight we rode the 24 miles from Bansara to Ogoja. For security Benson always did this stretch of cycling with the Post man who carried the mail that came to Ogoja - from Barsara.
We arrived late in the night and had just to go to sleep in Abakpa Ogoja.
The New Home
Abakpa is the name for strangers’ quarters throughout eastern Nigeria. Benson had a bungalow made of mud and roofed with palm fronds. The bungalow consisted of a living room (the parlour), a master bedroom and a front shed which was open. Behind was a servants’ quarter consisting of single rooms. To the right was another trader from Nawffia Felix MORA and to our left was a night trader from the CROSS RIVER area called Abang. Mr. Abang operated Abang’s Transport.
I remember the houses very well for two reasons. First, because of the fire which destroyed Mr. Abang’s house. The fire happened in the middle of the night. One had to think of PRIORITIES in such an evacuation. Fires are a great nuisance in Nigeria and many a trader has been left penniless by a fire in the market. Just imagine the great Onitsha main market in which traders store their belongings and go home to sleep at night. Suppose a fire, accidental or deliberate, starts there at night. There are hardly any fire departments in Nigeria. Even if there were fire departments how would you contact them? How do they get to the scene of the fire? In some cases where there are fire departments there is no running water or NO POMD. In the case of Ogoja there was no bridge between the Government Quarters[44] and Abakpa.
The second thing that I remember very well about Ogoja was a case of whipping.
When I first arrived at Ogoja there was a lot of temptations.
Very little meat was consumed in Nigeria hence we have the disease of Kwashiorkor - protein deficiency. There was no electricity. There was no refrigerator.
Cookng was done by making a big pot of soup with ingredients purchased from the market – mainly a little meat, palm oil or ground nut oil, vegetables or egusi. After making the soup you ladle a smell quantity to a plate and eat foo foo or yam with it.
Every morning one must warm the soup or it would be spoiled by the invasion of bacteria. As well as warm the soup daily, one had to be extremely careful not to disturb the soup after it had been warmed and put aside. However, once, I succumbed to temptation once and took one piece of meat out of a pot of soup. A that time there were two apprentices of Benson who lived with us. These apprentices followed the old British apprenticeship arrangements. The apprentice signs an agreement to serve you for seven years and you have to feed and cloth him during this time At the end of the period he graduates.
You must send him off [officially] (Iduno) by providing him with the tools with which to set up on his own, some clothes and probably transportation (bicycle). The apprentices caught me digging my fingers into the pot. They reported me to Benson who whipped me thoroughly. The next time we had soup Benson, unusually, bought duck meat. After the soup was made,[45] the apprentices took a big portion of the duck meat and accused me of having fallen prey to my old habit.
Benson of course thoroughly trashed me for what I did not do. One does not mind being punished when you are guilty but the injustice of the reverse is intolerable. That was my case. I have never forgotten it.
Private Tuition
I arrived at Ogoja in the fall of 1932. I was to begin school in 1933. Before the beginning of the school year Bensen appointed a private tutor who came every day to coach me and give me home work. The job was mainly Reading and Arithmetic. In St. Johns Enugu Agidi I had done just Elementary I and part of Elementary II.
A Typical day in 1932
I woke up every morning around six or slightly before. We servants[46] would take a pot and go to the Cross River to fetch water for the day. You either made a whole in the saw and let the water flow into, it and get it slightly filtered or if the river wasn’t too large a certain area was allocated for fetching drinking water as apposed to water for domestic cooking and washing.
On one of these trips I almost drowned.
During the rainy season the river swells up. Getting into the stream becomes hazardous. At this time I went with Isaiah our neighbor Ananag’s servant. I perched on the roof of a mangrove tree to fetch water Isaiah in rivalry placed his foot into the same place. I slipped and fell into the swollen Cross River. I did not know how to swim. I went down once, twice and on the third time there happened to be somebody who till today I don’t know was in a canoe near by. He rushed over grabbed my head and pulled me into the canoe.
After returning, barring accidents, with the pot brewing washed ones body in the streams you prepare breakfast mostly akamu and akara.
After breakfast Benson would push me to go and study.
I studied very hard and knew things like the multiplication table from 2-12 and read well.
First Day At School
The school year in those days began on the first Monday after January 1. The only primary school in town was a Roman Catholic one located five miles away. We had to wake up early to carry out the routine ablutions in the stream and fetch water and eat breakfast and track the five miles to school.
There were several boys doing this together. I developed two close friends, Jeremiah Okoli from the Abriba quarters and Anaduada from Ogidi. Armed with old bicycle wheels we literally ran the whole distance through the Akwuna kwuna quarters and Ishibori to St. Benedicts.
The school consisted of a reconstructed former Reverend Fathers’ dwelling which was abandoned after the priests moved to a new two floor building.
The school had a new crop of teachers imported from Onitsha province. There was the headmaster Mr. Joseph Anigbo, Mr. Felix Eke and Alphonses Osaka from Oqidi. There were two seminarians, Joseph Agba and John Ode from Ikom near Obudu and not far from Sankwala on the Sankwala Mountains[47] on the border with Cameroon. The seminarians were students at the C.K.C. Onitsha and taught as part of their training for several years during their studies.
I was placed in Primary II which was the class I was in at St. Johns Enugh Agidi Because of the private tuition that Benson provided for me it soon became evident that I was too advanced for that class and after six months was promoted to Standard. I had to catch up with the class. This I succeeded in doing.
Standard Two
One of the most vivid memories of my training school involved the teacher of Primary II, one Aloysius Osaka from Oqidi, just outside Onitsha. He loved me and made me his class monitor. I would convey his desk and books from his quarters every morning and take them back in the afternoon when school closed. Another vivid memory was the habit of the St. Patricks Mission Fathers to constant erect new buildings.
In the middle of lessons, a class would be summarily summoned and the students ordered to take a bucket and go down to the Onoya stream and carry sand for the bricklayers.
The School Curriculum
School hours were from 8 am to 1 pm. The curriculum consisted of forty five minute lessons in English, Arithmetic, History (British Empire and World and later Nigeria )
High on the curriculum and never interrupted was Religious Instruction which was conducted by a wonderful priest, Rev. Falling Gallagher. Father Gallagher told us the Life of Christ in extremely vivid language which till today remains in my mind. For instance Father told us of Christ talking the hand of the small child he cured and uttering in Aramaic, “Talita kum!” We always associated Jews with Hebrew so it made a huge impression on our young minds that Christ spoke Aramaic.
Examinations and Recess
There were two examinations in the year -- a mid year in June followed by a recess and a promotional examination in December followed by a Month of Christmas Holy days. In Standard I placed third. After that I placed first in the class from then onwards.
Catechism classes
Catechism classes were conducted in the government reservation[48] which was more central and only three miles from Abakpa. We had to go twice a week. It consisted of memorizing a series of 555 questions and answers from a book in Ibo by Father Anyogu (later Bishop Anyogu).
Some of the answers such as the one about God still resound even now as I write. Apart from the Ibo one we also had the regular authorized English edition. One of the 1uestions was as follows.
Is it sinful to belong to a Secret Society?
Answer: It is sinful to belong to a secret society that plots against the church or state for the bible states let every soul be true to the teaching of the church. He that resists the state-resists the ordinance of God and those that resist purchase to themselves damnation. Catechists conducted the classes.
At regular times the parish priest or his assistant would conduct evaluations for baptism, confession or Holy Communion. I attended these classes religiously and recall that in one of the examinations I was the only successful one in a small class of about 20 students. I was baptized in 1935 and took the name Fabian which I got from the brother who administered the test to me.
Change of Venue
In 1955 Benson sent me to live at the Government Reservation to serve as a servant to one Robert Nwosu from Nise, a prison warden. In many ways it was more convenient because it was closer to school. I also purchased the ingredients, prepared and served the meals. I, therefore, could not be starved.
Everything went on well and when he was transferred to Enugu I went along with him. Unfortunately the transfer was in the middle of the school year.
I had a transfer certificate and registered in St. Patrick coal Camp to start a long and most eventful association for the next several years.
St. Patricks—Coal Comp ENUGU
St. Patrick’s is located on a hillside in Miliken Hill.[49] It was right besides the first settlement of coal miners. The school had three parts: the school bungalow, the church and the dormitory, which sat between the school and the church. The dormitory was a long bungalow split into individual rooms. One or two teachers shared a room in which each had a bed and a table and a chair.
The Senior Teachers
The certificated teachers were those who had undergone training, mainly at St. Charles’s Onitsha. They may or may not have more rooms.
The Teachers of St. Patrick’s
Towering above all teachers to ever have served St. Patrick’s was headmaster CHARLES NDAGUBA from Onitsha. He was extremely tall and huge. He only wore boots because his feet were so huge that special boots were made for him by a German Reverend Brother, Baldonir. He reminded one of the headmaster in Oliver Twist.
There were two other characteristics which were his trademark: his most beautiful cursive hand writing – unparalleled, and his strict discipline. Every morning his monitor cut off the branches of the pine trees around the school and fashioned whips with which the head master whipped his errant pupils.
A Typical Day At School
Assembly
School started with the morning assembly. All students had to leave the classroom and assemble in the field. Then the school band struck and marched and we paraded around the field. Then we went into the school, knelt and prayed. The whole ceremony ended with important announcements by the headmaster.
Quite often the headmaster would also announce those students who had got into trouble in the previous twenty-four hours and they would go to his desk for appropriate punishment. He would announce solemnly in Ibo “madu ino bia.” Four strong boys would approach. These four boys would hold the erring pupil by each extremity whilst with his huge hands he would lash the student.
Depending when the crime you got six lashes or twelve.
I was the recipient once of this punishment. When I was in Standard Six I saw one of his monitors grab a very young boy, thrashing his fingers and back of his hands with a sharp ruler. This was the monitor’s way of accomplishing his duty of clearing the school hall to get everyone to assembly on time. I was astounded and expressed my shock to him saying, “Shame on you Ralph.” He promptly reported me to the headmaster who after prayers and assembly announced in his thundering voice “FABIAN UDEKWU.”
Not suspected anything I was tardy in the response. He screamed in a louder voice, “FABIAN UDEKWU” Tremulously I responded “Sir.” Come here, he boomed. I went up to his door.
He declared in his solemn voice: “1. FOR OBSTRUCTING MY MONITOR- 6 LASHES. 2. FOR BEING TARDY IN ANWSERING MY CALL 6 LASHES
He then followed with the usual “MADO INO BIA.” I was held on a flat desk by the extremities and he gave me twelve lashes on my bottom with his large casuarina whip. After the lashes I could not sit easily for 3 months.
STANDARDS FIVE & SIX
1937-1939
We travelled with all our belongings in the useful means of transportation - the mammy wagon. The only difference this time was that there was now a bridge across the Cross River at Iyake and this avoided the extra hazard of crossing by canoe at Barzha. Shortly after we arrived Mr. Nwosu was appointed steward to the white prison superintendent Mr. Faulkner. We moved to a more spacious quarter on the hill overlooking the prison.
We had a bungalow on the side below Mr. Faulkner’s house. The bungalow had three rooms -- Mr. Nwosu’s, the main room, one for the “small boy” and one for the cook. I shared the small boy’s room. The daily routine began with early morning wake up. Mr. Nwosu supervised the whole work of cleaning, washing and serving the white man.
After breakfast which was prepared by the cook and served by Mr. Nwosu, Mr. Nwosu prepared bath water which had to be warm. When Mr. Faulkner had bathed and eaten his dons his white colonial uniform which was washed starched and ironed by the washerman who was usually a prisoner. Then Mr. Faulkner would be driven by his driver up the hill to the prison yard where he had his office. Work closed at 1pm. He would returnsfor lunch which is quite elaborate and afterwards took his siesta till four.
At five he dons his tennis outfit – usually Wimbledon white shorts and canvas shoes and is driven by the driver and accompanied by the small boy – who is the ball pitcher at the European club where Mr. Faulkner plays his tennis till dusk. After a light social tea he returns to his house where Mr. Nwosu must be waiting with warm water for his bath. After that he returns to the dining room for supper. The day ends when he goes to bed. The above is repeated every day except the weekends.
Some white men, like the Scottish Railway superintendent went to Mass at St. Patrick’s where he and a few other whites sat segregated in nice seats near the altar. Their kneelers were individual and padded.
When a white Colonial officer had done this for eighteen months he is usually sent home to England on leave for six months. During this time his staff stays to warm the place. If he has a car it must be serviced by warming till he returns.
PARTING OF THE WAYS
Mr. Nwosu was quite a gigolo. He would dress immaculately in exquisite suits with matching ties and dancing Leonard’s shoes and go to dances in the African club in Ogui. Once in a while he would bring a girl home to sleep with him. Once he brought a pretty Itsekri girl home and whilst they were in the room the small boy spied on them through the key-hole. But the key-hole was very tiny and as he pushed on the door Mr. Nwosu heard a noise and went to check. Richard scrambled to his room butMr. Nwosu had caught sight of him.
The next day Mr. Nwosu went straight to Mr. Faulkner and said, “I have complained many times that Richard is inefficient. I am tired of this. He either goes or I go.” Mr. Faulkner took a deep breath and promptly said, “You go!”
We moved to the regular warden’s barracks below and shortly after that Mr. Nwosu was transferred to Warri in the Niger delta.
I refused to go with him because of the disturbance it would have caused to my schooling.
Whilst he lived in the regular warden barracks he got married to a young girl from Amawbia. In that brief period I almost starved to death. The lady now controlled purchasing, cooking and serving food. I was destined to scraps of left over food.
I was so hungry that the only thing that kept me alive was my trip to one of Benson’s friends -- a carpenter called Daniel Ndulue.
Out of his meager purse he would procure money to buy a head of cocoa nut and garri and I would fill my stomach with this and return to St. Patrick’s School. This happened till Nwosu left for Warri.
I stayed briefly in the little boarding room [at St. Patrick’s] till Benson found another prison warder ,this time from Nawfia ,called Robinson Okoye Ifeagwu. I moved in with him and he was most gracious to me. I in return served him extremely well. I fetched wood, went to market to purchase provisions, cooked and served him well. He not only saw to it that I ate well he bought me clothes not only at the usual Christmas but quite often. When he found out I was serving at Mass he made sure I had sandals even though he was a Protestant.
Mariage and Death
Robinson married a young maid -- Ifeyinwa from the Rev. Okagbue’s household Rev. Okagbue was also from Nawfia and this girl was his niece.
The marriage was quite an elaborate affair celebrated in church. I served him well and when the wife came to live with us it was quite a far cry from the experience with Mrs. Nwosu. We got along splendidly and never quarreled. Unfortunately it was not a long time before she caught cerebral meningitis and promptly died:
The corpse which was at the I.D.H- had to be prepared for burial. I courageously went there and washed and clothed her. A coffin was purchased and the funeral ceremonies, which are quite elaborate in Ibo land, carried out. This consisted of overnight vigils, singing and dancing with photographs of the deceased. In cases where there are many relatives who are titled (ozo) relatives must bring chickens, goats, rams and even cows which are slaughtered and meals made with soups of palm oil, onugbu, eguisi, ogbono, foo foo (pounded yam), garri and nni-oka.[50]
There is feasting and dancing, even with elaborate jujus in the case of deceased men.
This lasts for several days. The family in mourning make and wear special uniforms and continue to wear this for one year.
Anniversary
One year after the death of a relative the family go to church in a different apparel. This is called the divesting of the funeral clothes.
This is followed with another festival and dancing at the reception, which in some elaborate cases are held in hotels of prestige. Quite often a whole street is shut up and closed to traffic for the celebrations.
Standards V & VI
I had wonderful teachers in St. Patrick’s School. My Standard V teacher was Isaac Isi. He was methodical and gave his service generously. He was most patient in explaining what one did not understand.
I did not do well in the last six months of 1937 and failed. I repeated Standard V in 1938 and came out high on the pass list.
In 1939 I was in Standard VI.[51] Our teacher in the most eventful period of my primary education was an exquisitely dressed gentleman called Onwuzu. He dressed like in Oxford graduate and spoke King’s English. He was most up to date on current affairs.
Thus when the war broke out in Sept. 1939 and Germans overran Poland he promptly explained the movement to us in very clear terms. For instance when the Germans overran Poland and captured Cracow he put it this way: “The Germans captured Cracow, the Manchester of Poland.” How could I forget this even after over sixty years?
Mr. Onwuzu was most kind to me and took interest in my welfare. He was greatly annoyed at Mr. Ndaguba’s thrashing of me. When he got married and had a daughter he made me go to register her in the Registry office.
At the end of the year I sat for the Standard VI exam. I came out on top and possess a Standard VI certificate signed by Charles Ndaguba in his beautiful cursive
Pupil Teaching
Be ye therefore strong
Still pursuing &
Still forgiving
Learn to labour
And to wait
-- Longfellow
I moved to No. 1 room in the teaching quarters. The room was about twenty by twelve feet and had only enough space for a bed, a desk and chair. I shared the room with a young man from Onitsha, Olisa. He was frail and thin and coughed incessantly. He lasted for several years though and I had the opportunity to visit him and his mother when I was at St. Charles in their home at Ogboki-Eke [Onitsha]. He died not long after and my visits there were always full of pathos. But the attraction of the visit was for a different cause.
Across the Olisa home on the opposite side of the village square was a young girl called Bessie ATUANYA. She was a black beauty -- ebony black.
She was about 5 foot six and well proportioned. Atop a well-set oval head were gentle curls of braided jet black hair. When I saw that she wore the uniforms of OGS—the Onitsha Girls’ School for Protestants. I never had enough time to develop the relationship.
The other interaction I had with the Onitsha people was across the Enugu-Onitsha road in Nzegwu’s home. Nzegwu was a rich man with many children. I never found out what he did although the Onitsha people came in touch with the missionaries early and went to school early and became important teachers like Charles Ndaguba and P.H Okolo. Onitsha also produced the earliest lawyers like Sir Louis MBANEFO[52] and clergy such as Bishop Anyogu, the first Bishop of Enugu.
PUPPY LOVE
When I worked as a sacristan there was a routine. The Reverend Fathers lived at the new site while the Reverend Sisters lived at the Coal Camp. Every morning before Mass I would hop over to the convent house to get fresh boiled and filtered water for the mass. During one of these trips I came in contact with one girl who lived in the convent. Her name was Eunice and she came from Ogidi.
She was a spritely, very fair, yellow girl with slim pretty nose, lovely gray eyes and always clad in a waitress clean smock. On one occasion she sneaked up to me and asked for my name. I told her Fabian. She asked me to meet her in time Coal housing water pump opposite the covenant at 6 o’clock that evening. I did go there and we held hands and talked whilst I filled her bucket, just like the English ditty Sweet Mary Aniee!
“Meets her young man down by the old Village Pump
A bubble of charm
He fills her pail
As they exchange the village gossip.”[53]
Down by the old village pump we never as much got closer then that. The situation remained like that for several months. I would meet her once a week on a Monday. Once she took ill and was admitted to the African hospital just across the river. I visited her every evening the week she spent there.
When she was discharged she told me that she enjoyed the visits so much she would have prefered to stay longer!
Our friendship lasted for several years even when I had gotten into St Charles. During the holidays we would exchange letters and often she would come to visit me. Once when I was on holidays at the Inland Town in Onitsha I stayed with a CKC teacher who lived there with his brothers. Eunice came to visit me. When Udenka saw her he fancied her and asked me to make arrangements as a pimp for him. I was flabbergasted.
How could a senior seminarian want to commit the sin of fornication?
I did not hesitate to express my surprise and told him so.
He promptly banished me from his home and I left. He later accused me of stealing his literature books which was a sure lie
During another holiday when I returned to Eungu and stayed with Robinson she came to visit me. I cooked a pot of rice and we ate.
When Robinson saw that I was interested in girls he offered to arrange a sure banker of a nice girl -- a possible wife. I told him that I was so busy with my education and did not wish to be distracted by a girl.
My second contact with a girl was at Nzegwu.
Phoebe Nzeguwu was a pretty seamstress who lived in the same big house as my friend Philip Nnaemeka Agu - my colleague with whom I studied during our preparation for the Intermediate B.A. degree of the London matriculation.
One evening she enticed me into her room and embraced and kissed me. When she tried to have sex with me she noticed that I was such a novice that I did not even know the entrance to her vagina much less how to penetrate. She quickly called it off and swore she would not get the opprobrium of having been the first to corrupt me. I have ever since respected her for this noble gesture. She was much older and was girl friend to such notable names like Pius Okoye . We remained platonic friends until I left Onitsha.
My other contract with a girl was when I was a teacher at Coal Camp. There were two Calabar girls working in the European Hospital. One was Imelda O’Neal, the other Essien. I do not recall how we met. Imelda was a mulatto -- a cross of an Efik woman with an Irish, Mr. O’Neal. The relationship also produced a young man who was older than Imelda and was at that time studying lab technology at Yaba.
[1] Mungo Park (1771-1806), a Scottish physician, sought out to trace the course of the River Niger. At the time many in Europe believed that the Niger and the Nile or the Congo were one. Park made his first expedition to the Niger with the support of the Africa Association; his second journey was underwritten by the British Colonial Office. Altogether Park traveled hundreds of mile down the river. Park, however, did not make it to the river’s terminus, the Atlantic; following a skirmish with locals, he drowned on his second expedition. The British colonization of what was to become Nigeria took place over a period of time, and in distinct phases over different states, kingdoms, empires and peoples. For more on the history of Nigeria, including the development of British colonial rule, see Toyin Falola, The History of Nigeria (Westport, CT: Greendwood Press, 1999) . For more on Mungo Park, see Kenneth Lupton, Mung Park, the African Traveler (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1981).
[2] The term
[3] Like “tribe,” the term “native” is universally rejected by American-based Africanist scholars as pejorative for a variety of reasons, chief amongst them being that these are words reserved exclusively for non-whites. In Africa, these words are commonly used. This dichotomy in practice speaks to the fact that language operates always in a context (for example, an American asking for “jelly” in the United Kingdom would be surprised at the product s/he receives). That English is a foreign language to Africans may also be a factor, as is the issue of age/generation. For a critique of these terms, see SANDERSON, FULL CIT
[4] The District Commissioner, the District Officer and the Resident were the central figures of authority in the British system of “indirect rule.” See, for example, the novels of Chinua Achebe (Things Fall Apart) and Joyce Cary (Mister Johnson). The Africanist historian and former District Officer, Anthony Kirk-Greene, has written a book about this administrator, Symbol of Authority: The British District Officer in Africa (I. B. Taurus, 2006).
[5] Estimating Nigeria’s population continues to be a difficult and thorny subject, in large part because resources and power are distributed on the basis of population. Today the population is usually estimated at between 120 and 150 million; some, however, believe the true numbers to be much lower. According to the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, Nigeria’s population for Nigeria in 1950 was thirty-seven million. Nigeria’s total population has long been a great source of controversy, with each region intent on claiming as many “citizens” as possible, an easy to understand affliction given that resources and political power are allocated on the basis of population. For Nigeria’s estimated and projected population from 1950 until 2050, see http://esa.un.org/unpp/p2k0data.asp.
[6] There were many different missionary groups in colonial Nigeria; in the home area of Professor Udekwu, Catholics and Anglicans dominated. CKC & DMGS. MENTION HOPE WADDELL
[7] CKC was Catholic, DMGS was Anglican.
[8] The sense here is ambiguous. Most likely the author means that there was no demand for girls’ secondary schooling on the part of the local population. It can also be read to mean that the missionaries did not wish to establish girls’ colleges. In Catholic parlance, provinces is used to indicate religious jurisdictions.
[9] The whole passage reads: “Wide through the landscape of his dream/ The lordly Niger flowed; Beneath the palm-trees on the plain/ Once more a king he strode,/ And heard the tinkling caravans/ Descend the mountain road.” From Alfred Slater West, The Elements of English Grammar (London, Glasgow, Leipzig, New York and Bombay: 1893; subsequently revised or reprinted in 1895, 1897, 1898, 1912, 1916). This widely used textbook was written for “boys and girls from thirteen to seventeen years of age” and it appears to have been intended primarily for speakers of English as a second language.
[10] Also spelled “Igala.”
[11] Two notes are inserted just below this sentence. “1. Prof Elizabeth Isichei. “2. ‘Lucy’ the descent of man Lakey [sic].” Isichei was a historian who wrote widely on Igbo and church history; Leakey refers, of course, to the paleontologist Richard Leakey. Skeletal remains of “Lucy,” the earliest hominid known, were discovered in Ethiopia in 1974.
[13] Literally, “The Igbos don’t have kings.” The Igbos have generally been noted, especially in the anthropological literature, for having established “village democracies.” The community councils in the classic Things Fall Apart by Igbo novelist Chinua Achebe is seen as archetypical of Igbo society. Most historians agree that the Igbo did not, as the author points out, establish large empires and kingdoms as did the Hausa, Yoruba and Edo. Some, however, maintain that Nri established suzerainty over a wide expanse of the Igbo-speaking world, effectively creating an empire. T
[14] The British policy of “indirect rule” is closely associated with Northern Nigeria. According to this policy, the British goal was not to disrupt entirely the conquered society, but instead to keep the structures in place as much as possible, acting only as supervisors/monitors of the whole. The role of the British, then, was to ensure that practices and laws contrary to “civilization” were not permitted. The real question then became, of course, Who is to decide what is “civilized”? GIVE EXAMPLE??? XXX In any event, while “indirect rule” was the official policy, in reality, colonial officials were often taking action that directly contradicted the philosophy of indirect rule. Most famously, in southern Nigeria, the appointment of chiefs in communities where extensive consultation had been the norm can hardly be said to represent indirect rule. Even in Northern Nigeria, the practice of extending the territories under the rule of emirs also contradicted the idea of indirect rule.
[15] SOKOTO CALIPHATE
[16] According to Robert A. Dibie, “Nigeria was once accounting for 90% of the world production of columite.” See his Public Management and Sustainable Development in Nigeria: Military-Bureaucracy Relationship (Aldershot, England: Ashgate, 2003), page 220.
[17] Treaty of Tordesillas, 1494.
[18] That is, the Jesuit priest mentioned at the beginning of this section as the one responsible for the start of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. XXXX.
[19] We know now that most African women who were enslaved in the Americas worked in the fields. A debate continues to rage about whether women slaves were purchased primarily because they could work in the fields as well as increase the wealth of their owner through reproduction. This seems an almost commonsensical notion. However, some data looking at specific plantations suggest that enslaved women’s fertility was very severely compromised. Some authors insist that women’s reproductive abilities were not part of the attraction for slave buyers, but rather their purely productive functions. For more on the women in the slave trade, see Claire Robertson XXXX. XXX ALSO SLAVE TRADE DATABASE.
[20] Stephen Foster (1826-1864) was an American composer who wrote more than 200 songs, many of which remain well-known to this day. According to the Center for American Music, located in the Stephen Foster Memorial building at the Unviersity of Pittsburgh, Foster was probably influenced by living in Pittsburgh, a center of anti-slavery activity, and his friendships with noted abolitionists. According to the library’s website, Foster “instructed white performers of his songs [ministrels, i.e., white singers in blackface] not to mock slaves but to get their audiences to feel compassion for them.” See http://www.pitt.edu/~amerimus/foster.htm, accessed 27 June 2009. Foster doesn’t appear to have a song named “Old Man River” although he did author one “Old Black Joe.” For further information on Foster, Steven Saunders and Deane L. Root, The Music of Stephen C. Foster
[21] Jaja of Opobo is a fascinating character. He rose from slavery to become a powerful merchant, trading in slaves and palm oil. To the chagrin of the British, he established direct contact with Liverpool traders, circumventing the increasing British power in the area. The British consul kidnapped Jaja and “deported” him to the West Indies. Of course, Jaja was not the only person engaged in slave trading or who employed slave labor. Interestingly, some today insist that Jaja was Nigeria’s first nationalist leader. In her 1972 Histoy of the Igbo People (XXX) Elizabeth Isichei termed Jaja “probably the greatest Igbo of his time.” For more on Jaja, see S. J.S. Cookey, King Jaja of the Niger Delta: His Life and Times (2005); Kemi Rotimi and Olukoya Ogen, “Jaja and Nana in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria: Proto-Nationalists or Emergent Capitalists?” Journal of Pan African Studies 2, no 7 (December 2008).
[22] Typically “Long Juju.”
[23] Ships usually sailed from Africa to the Americas.
[25] That Nri plays and played a role in Igboland is undisputed. However, the nature and extent of this role is a subject of great controversy. Some authors argue that Nri effectively established an empire, although one that is unusual historically because it was based on spiritual hegemony and not military might. For more on Nri, see M. Angulu Onwuejeogwu, An Igbo Cibilization: Nri Kingdom and Hegemony (London: Ethnographica, 1981). Worthy of note too is the website of the Nri Kingdom, www.nrikingdom.com, which has a history of Nri by the current Eze Nri. This latter history also establishes a link between the Igbo and Igala, as our author, but Nri has five offspring in this account. Not on Nri, but for those interested in the question of kingship in Igboland is Kenneth Onwuka Dike and Felicia I. Ekejiuba, The Aro of South-eastern Nigeria, 1650-1980 .
[26] The “ofo” (also “ofor”) is usually translated as staff or staff of office. Ofo is both material and symbolic. There are many Igbo proverbs which invoke the ofo. A person who is said to hold an ofo is one who is fair and justice, one who behaves appropriately, sometimes with compassion suggested. For more on the idea of ofo in the Igbo world, see C. I. Ejizu, Ofo: Igbo Ritual Symbol (Enugu: Fourth Dimension Publishers, 1986).
[27] Unfortunately, the author was not able, as he intended, to describe the ceremony. Rites of passage in Igboland vary in their details, and I have not been able to find out about the ama nwulu. Ciricumcision, joining a masquerade society and an age group are widespread.
[28] The author had made a note following this section to include information about age-grades in Enugu-Agidi, his hometown.
[29] Ikenga carved figures are male ritual objects, and often they highlight the right hand. The ikenga is believed to protect the strength of the owner, or provide strength. In some Igbo communities, women also have ikenga. For more on ikenga, see OFO BOOK BY PRIEST.
[30] Also “atilogwu.”
[31] Igbos are indeed often referred to as the Jews of Africa, especially by Igbo authors. Circumcision, which is widespread throughout Africa, is only one of the reasons for this appellation. Igbos are noted for their industriousness, business acumen and willingness to travel far and wide in pursuit of entrepreneurial opportunities, all proclivities thought to be possessed by Jews. There are other African groups known as “Jews of Africa,” such as the XXX. More recently, the Lemba of Zimbabwe have been seeking to be certified by Israeli rabbinic authorities as Jewish in fact. The case of the Lemba has excited a lot of passion. There are other, recognized Jewish communities in Africa today as well as in the past. Amongst the most well-known may be the Beta Israel of Ethiopia, most of whom live today in Israel.
[32] Author’s note: Charles Ndaguba described this phenomenon in an article in the Holy Ghost Fathers’ Annals. [TO DO: : EXPLAIN ---XXXX ]]
[33] Not clear if this is the same Onwubu as the author’s elder brother, who died during the influenza epidemic of 1919.
[34] The capitalization appears in the original.
[35] “Onwa asato” literally means “eighth moon” and is a major annual festival to celebrate the new yam. Since the Igbo calendar is a lunar one, the eighth moon is in September or October. In some communities the festival is known as the “iwa ji” festival. “Ji” is, of course, yam. Performances by masquerades are a major part of the festivities.
[36] This is certainly intriguing! It is not clear why the women had their own houses but slept in these cubicles that had keys.
[38] Matthew 28: 18-20.
[40] Actually, Holy Rosary Onitsha was a girls’ school, established in 1928 by the Holy Rosary Sisters, a congregation founded by Bishop Shanaha in Dublin in 1924.
[41] Ironically, it was often the women – mothers – who made it possible, or not, for their daughters and sons to go to school.
[42] Nwakugo means “a child is better than wealth.”
[45] It’s not clear who was responsible for the cooking in this apparently all-male household. It was common for a younger male relative living with and going to school with a working male relative to do the cooking and other chores of the household. However, with two apprentices also in the household, it may be that the cooking fell to all three younger men – the author and the apprentices, or that they took turns.
[46] Interesting that the author refers to himself (and the apprentices) as “servants.” Benson was the author’s cousin.
[47] This is part of the Cross River National Park. Sankwala is a town in the park.
[48] XXXXX Explain GRA & history of segregation. See Curtin on theory of segregation & building above ground, etc.
[49]Coal was discovered in what is today Enugu in the early twentieth century. Miliken Hill and Coal Camp are different parts of the city. For more on Enugu and its history, see Carolyn Brown, FULL CITATION. XXXX
[50] Although they do share some common features, Igbo communities are famously very different in practices and rituals. While most Igbo communities are patrilineal (or ambilineal), some, such as Ohaffia [THAT GUY XXXX] are matrilineal. In some places, such as Onitsha, jujus can feature in the funeral rites of certain women. For more on Igbo funerary rites, see Victor Uchendu, The Igbo of Southeastern Nigeria (XXX FULL).
[51] EXPLAIN imp of std Vi, and give stats on how many people had std VI cert – see diss.
[52] Here the author had inserted a note to himself to add “a few more [names].”
[53] Unable to locate this song.
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