| Show RELIANCE ONLY ON MEMORY zulus having no written language have been compelled to cultivate f that quality f it Is said that the lie memory in savage or uncultivated peoples is often trained to a degree very surprising to those civilized men and women who have brown grown used to depending upon the Mi written ritten much more than on tle me remembered word the transmission of whole epics like the iliad by word of mouth no longer seems so incredible when one rends reads of the feats of memory of which present pr e sent day zulus are capable these people have no writing and are accustomed to transmit messages aind re record cord events by memory alone this they hey can do because their mental impressions are made especially distinct by reason of their acquired or inherited habit of giving undivided attention to the subject in hand Com communications munica t ions between the british authorities and the zulu kings are arc almost invariably conducted by means of oral messages ines sages carried loy liy natives A certain ultimatum addressed by the british to 10 was conveyed to 0 hirn him not upon paper but in the brain fells cells of tile nies messengers seng ers whom lie had biad sent SO 80 miles to receive it from the british commissioners although the document contained forno sorno 40 words and was accompanied by some comment on the state of things it was inas desired to remedy the whole was repeated to with perfect accuracy |
