Notebooks
Story: Ostriches and barter
Title
Ostriches and barter
Collection
Summary
About the hunting of ostriches, the finding and drinking of ostrich eggs, the preparation and cooking of ostrich meat and the bartering of ostrich feathers for tobacco with white men. The verso notes accompanying this story describe the drinking of ostrich eggs. A note on p.752v describes the stirring of the ostrich egg with the /gipp (Proteles) tail hair brush and how this implement is used, as well as how the eggs are beaten. Another note on p.769v describes how thick /gipp hair (taken from its rear parts) is attached to the stick and used to stir and drink with. A note on p.776v describes the house of bushes made by the hunters on the hunting ground, to lie in and shoot ostriches from. Of Ostriches and Bushmen we have two accounts, a short one (B I. 295), and a long one which is a continuation of the myth of !káken !kaka !áuï (L II.-7. 737-797, 800-810). In the latter account, pp.780-782 treat of 'Poisoned Arrows'.
Comments
1) Date on p.743: 28 October; p.807: 7 November, 2) p.770v: the skimming off of fat from the surface of soup (using a stick with hair wound around it which is stirred around), 3) p.771v: a note by |a!kunta explaining the people's love and craving for tobacco (in their 'hearts'), 4) p.774v: the white men in the story are called the 'Boer's people', 5) p.783v: the sai bush, the Dutch name for !kwai (a poisonous bush that kills people if eaten), 6) p.785v: the method of cooking using heated stones, 7) p.804v: the riverbed mentioned in the story is that of the Kleine Hart River, 8) This story is found in Book II-7
Contributors
Date
October – November 1871
Categories
Custom and daily life, Relations with others
Keywords
ostriches (and |xam) , ostriches (their spoor) , ostriches (different names and kinds of) , ostriches (their eggs) , ostriches (their houses or nests) , ostriches (the nature and habits of) , ostriches (their feathers) , ostriches (their body parts) , ostriches (meat from) , ostriches (the hunting of) , ostriches (making soup from) , ostriches (eating their fat) , ostriches (their flesh) , ostriches (and bartering) , hunting (methods for ostrich) , hunting (house of bushes used) , hunting (weapons and implements used in) , hunting (ostriches and barter) , ostrich feathers (bartering) , feathers (ostrich) , feathers (bartering of ostrich) , bartering (with white men) , bartering (and ostriches) , bartering (for tobacco) , bartering (of ostrich feathers) , ostrich eggs (methods of drinking) , ostrich eggs (finding) , ostrich eggs (implements used for drinking) , cooking (pot) , cooking (implements) , cooking (ostrich eggs) , cooking (fires) , cooking (methods of) , poison (and hunting ostrich) , food (methods of drinking ostrich eggs) , food (cooking ostrich meat) , food (eating and bartering ostriches) , names (of ostrich eggs) , tobacco (bartering of ostrich feathers and)
Story Pages
737-797, 800-810
