Ed's 1951 Safari - A Bit About the Locals - 09/25/20
"These Masai native villages are by far the stinkiest, filthiest places that I have ever seen. One has to have a good constitution, and a lot of determination to enter one of these villages. The flies are so thick, especially during the warmer season, that the natives' faces are practically covered, especially the faces of the children. Many times I have seen babies and young children with so many flies on their faces that one couldn't recognize them; in fact, the flies were piled on several layers thick.
The cattle are sacred to the Masai natives, therefore they never butcher them. The cattle live until they die of some disease or of old age....
These natives are superstitious about tilling the soil, therefore, they never plant anything or grow anything from the soil. Now that we had learned that they do not butcher their cattle or grown anything from the soil we wondered what they use for food, so, after a little inquiring, we learned that their food problem is solved in a simple manner. They cut a blood vessel in the cow's neck and draw of a quart or two of blood, and then close up the wound. Then they take this blood, while it is warm, and mix it with warm milk, stirring it together vigorously in a hand-made wooden bowl or a large gourd. When this mixture cools, it curdles and thickens, and within a shot time it will be like paste. We understood that this was the main or major part of their diet. Whenever one batch was consumed, they would simply mix up another batch...
While among the Masai we became curious as to just what they did when somebody died. After a little inquiring, we found that this was taken care of in a simple manner. When someone in the village dies, the corpse is placed on the ground outside of the thorn bush barricade surrounding the village. Then, all of the natives in the village hold a beast around the corpse for two days and two nights. Then, they pick up the belongings and move away, abandoning the village, never to return, leaving the corpse behind for the vultures and hyenas to dispose of."
The cattle are sacred to the Masai natives, therefore they never butcher them. The cattle live until they die of some disease or of old age....
These natives are superstitious about tilling the soil, therefore, they never plant anything or grow anything from the soil. Now that we had learned that they do not butcher their cattle or grown anything from the soil we wondered what they use for food, so, after a little inquiring, we learned that their food problem is solved in a simple manner. They cut a blood vessel in the cow's neck and draw of a quart or two of blood, and then close up the wound. Then they take this blood, while it is warm, and mix it with warm milk, stirring it together vigorously in a hand-made wooden bowl or a large gourd. When this mixture cools, it curdles and thickens, and within a shot time it will be like paste. We understood that this was the main or major part of their diet. Whenever one batch was consumed, they would simply mix up another batch...
While among the Masai we became curious as to just what they did when somebody died. After a little inquiring, we found that this was taken care of in a simple manner. When someone in the village dies, the corpse is placed on the ground outside of the thorn bush barricade surrounding the village. Then, all of the natives in the village hold a beast around the corpse for two days and two nights. Then, they pick up the belongings and move away, abandoning the village, never to return, leaving the corpse behind for the vultures and hyenas to dispose of."