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A snake man shakes hands with his left hand.  If he forgets, anyone can cry [[underline]] Klih [[/underline]] and he can be fined.  When you hear the drums, come to the house where the society meets, put left foot inside door first, and call [[underline]] Bakun. [[/underline]] Once inside, give a small piece of bamboo.  By paying the required fee (not specified) anyone may become a [[underline]] Gli [[/underline]] and step up his own lodge.

A cassada snake (Gabun viper) was brought out of its cage, and handled by the Gli.  Bill volunteered to hold it also, but none of us were allowed to touch it because of the medicine that had been rubbed on our hands earlier in the evening - that would kill the snake, and they had no desire to lose this tame symbol of their lodge.  If a man has touched palm kernel oil, he must wash before handling a snake.

The legend of the origin of the dnake medicine, Bakuna, is as follows: A man hunting I the woods with his dog saw a squirrel.  The dog chased the squirrel into a hole in a termite mound.  While the dog was digging at the nest, the hunter sent into the village for some children to bring fire, and the fire was put inside the nest.  The squirrel ran around inside, then turned into a red deer and came out.  As the man caught it, the deer (harnessed antelope) begged him not to kill it, and offered to show him something of great value.  This was the snake medicine, and in addition the deer caught two snakes and gave them to the hunter.  The children who had brought the fire were twins, Mugweh and Sahway; they saw this performance, and on their return to town told their grandfather and said they wanted snakes to be their special medicine or charm.  The grandfather agreed, and all relatives and friends were told.

That night the twins dreamt that palm kernel oil was against their law; they dreamt of the true medicine, bakuna, and that a snake came and told them that in the forest there was one tree no snake would touch, or climb.  The twins cleared a space in the forest where they practiced the rites f the snake society.  Formerly a man bitten by a snake had always dies, but the twins, with their new medicine, cured snake bite.  As they had started the first lodge, all twins since the have been considered as born members of the society.

The following morning we were taken to a cleared place in the forest, fenced about with palm thatch, and with the tabu sign of the inverted palm leaf hanging over three portals.  We went through, left foot first, giving the proper password to the watchman, and exchanging sticks and iron money for sticks and kola nuts.  Drums and chants resounded in the leafy clearing, where all except us sat on the ground - as usual chairs had been placed for us.

In the center was a big pile of green leaves, freshly gathered, and one by one they were lifted up and the meaning and use of each on explained to us.

[[underline]] Bombo-balu, [[/underline]] which you take before picking up a snake, is also good for fever and dysentery.

[[underline]] Sooli [[/underline]] gives wisdom.  It is a big tree that breaks others when it falls.

Transcription Notes:
Paragraph 4 has an "o" in the page that should be "of"