ABSTRACT
We are so accustomed to the phrase “sackcloth and ashes” in connection with the funeral rites of some eastern nations, that we seldom think of it as a filthy, disgusting mode of expressing sorrow. The Congo custom is almost identical; the natives rub themselves in the soil and wear their dirtiest garments for several days after the death of a relative, presenting a shockingly dirty figure. One has to think it strange that they cannot mourn in a more cleanly fashion, but such is the custom, and no one can change it. Phillips, The Lower Congo
