Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Discussion Questions
References
Government Programs
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 19 The Affordable Care Act: Historical Context and an Introduction to the State of Health
Care in the United States
Historical, Political, and Legal Context
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Exchange Purchasers
State-Based EXCHANGES
Exchange Features
8
Marketplace Insurance Categories
Role of Medicaid
Consumer Education
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 21 Patient Engagement and Public Policy: Emerging New Paradigms and Roles
Patient Engagement Within Nursing
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 22 The Marinated Mind: Why Overuse Is an Epidemic and How to Reduce It
Commonly Overused Interventions
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Summary
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
9
Chapter 24 Achieving Mental Health Parity
Historical Struggle to Achieve Mental Health Parity
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 25 Breaking the Social Security Glass Ceiling: A Proposal to Modernize Women's Benefits1
Benefits for Women
Changes We Oppose
Strengthening Financing
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Values Conflict
Conflict of Interest
Education
Gifts
Samples
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
10
Charting a Bright Future for Public Health
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 29 Taking Action: Blazing a Trail...and the Bumps Along the Way—A Public Health Nurse
as a Health Officer
Getting the Job: More Difficult Than You Might Think
On-the-Job Training
Political Challenges
References
Chapter 30 The Politics and Policy of Disaster Response and Public Health Emergency
Preparedness
Purpose Statement
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Medical Homes
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
11
Who are the Family Caregivers?
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 33 Community Health Centers: Successful Advocacy for Expanding Health Care Access
Community Health Centers Demonstrate the Advocacy Process for Innovation
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 34 Filling the Gaps: Retail Health Care Clinics and Nurse-Managed Health Centers
Retail Health Clinics
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
12
Who are the Duals?
Policy Implications
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Home Health
Hospice
Private Duty
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Weak Enforcement
Corporate Ownership
Financial Accountability
Other Issues
Public Financing
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 39 The United States Military and Veterans Administration Health Systems: Contemporary
Overview and Policy Challenges
The MHS and VHA Budgets
13
Advanced Nursing Education and Career Progression
References
Seamless Transition
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Polarization
Gerrymandering
Implementation Challenges
Increasing Access
Measuring Wealth
International Progress
Adaptation is Local
14
Examples of Health in All Policies
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Chapter 41 How Government Works: What You Need to Know to Influence the Process
Federalism: Multiple Levels of Responsibility
State Governments
Local Government
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 42 Is There a Nurse in the House? The Nurses in the U.S. Congress
The Nurses in Congress
Political Perspective
Campaign Financing
References
Online Resources
Regulatory Process
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Lobbyist or Advocate?
Why Lobby?
Collective Strategies
Discussion Questions
15
References
Online Resources
Political Strategies
Voting Behavior
Congressional Districts
Involvement in Campaigns
Types of Elections
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Campaign Activities
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
16
Chapter 49 Taking Action: Truth or Dare: One Nurse's Political Campaign
Stepping Into Politics
Ethical Leadership
Making a Difference
Lessons Learned
Getting Ready
Identify Opportunities
Confirmation or Interview?
Compensation
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 51 Taking Action: Influencing Policy Through an Appointment to the San Francisco Health
Commission
Democracy and Service to the Health Commission
References
My Campaign
Campaign Preparation
Lessons Learned
The Future
References
17
Judicial Review
Reference
Impact Litigation
Reference
Criminal Courts
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Sources of Regulation
Licensure Requirements
Disciplinary Offenses
Regulation's Shortcomings
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 55 Taking Action: Nurse, Educator, and Legislator: My Journey to the Delaware General
Assembly
My Political Roots
Is It Worth It?
References
18
Chapter 56 Policy and Politics in Health Care Organizations
Financial Pressures From Changing Payment Models
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Increasing Diversity
Retaining Workers
Conclusion
19
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Defining Rural
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
What Next?
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Secondary Factors
Crucial Communication
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
20
Becoming a Voice for Back-Injured Nurses
The Future
References
Discussion Questions
References
Chapter 67 Taking Action: Reimbursement Issues for Nurse Anesthetists: A Continuing Challenge
Nurse Anesthesia Practice
Conclusion
References
Chapter 68 Taking Action: Overcoming Barriers to Full APRN Practice: The Idaho Story
Background
Conclusion
References
Chapter 70 Nursing Education Policy: The Unending Debate over Entry into Practice and the
21
Continuing Debate over Doctoral Degrees
The Entry Into Practice Debate
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 71 The Intersection of Technology and Health Care: Policy and Practice Implications
Public Policy Support for HIT
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Evolution of Organizations
Today's Nurse
Organizational Purpose
22
Leadership Development
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Discussion Question
References
Online Resources
Coalition Formation
Conclusion
References
Chapter 77 Taking Action: The Nursing Kitchen Cabinet: Policy and Politics in Action
The Context
Discussion Questions
References
Chapter 78 Taking Action: Improving LGBTQ Health: Nursing Policy Can Make a Difference
LGBTQ Rights in the United States
Taking Action
Conclusion
References
Online Resources
23
A Vision for Implementing the Future of Nursing Report
Conclusion
References
Online Resources
Ruth's Story
Compelling Voices
Strategic Planning
Kelly's Story
Policy Advocacy
Nursing is Political
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Healthy Communities
Determinants of Health
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
24
Chapter 83 Taking Action: The Canary Coalition for Clean Air in North Carolina's Smoky
Mountains and Beyond
Lessons in Communicating
Speaking to Power
References
Superstorm Sandy
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 85 Taking Action: From Sewage Problems to the Statehouse: Serving Communities
Sewage Changed My Life
My Campaigns
Child Maltreatment
25
Health Care Policies Related to Older Adult Maltreatment
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
International Policy
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Commitment in My Community
It Takes a Village
References
Culture of Breastfeeding
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Chapter 90 Taking Action: Reefer Madness: The Clash of Science, Politics, and Medical Marijuana
26
A Plant with an Image Problem
References
Chapter 91 International Health and Nursing Policy and Politics Today: A Snapshot
Globalization
Migration
Global Health
Getting Involved
Discussion Questions
References
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
References
Online Resources
Index
27
Copyright
Notices
Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and experience
broaden our understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical
treatment may become necessary.
Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in
evaluating and using any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In
using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of
others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility.
With respect to any drug or pharmaceutical products identified, readers are advised to check the
most current information provided (i) on procedures featured or (ii) by the manufacturer of each
product to be administered, to verify the recommended dose or formula, the method and duration
of administration, and contraindications. It is the responsibility of practitioners, relying on their
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To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors
assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products
liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products,
instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein.
The views expressed in this book are those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or
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of Veterans Affairs, any other government agency, or the U.S. Government.
Previous editions copyrighted 2014, 2012, 2007, 2002, 1998, 1993, and 1985.
28
[DNLM: 1. Nursing–United States. 2. Delivery of Health Care–United States. 3. Politics–United
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29
About the Editors
DIANA J. MASON, PhD, RN, FAAN, is the Rudin Professor of Nursing and Co-Founder and Co-
Director of the Center for Health, Media, and Policy (CHMP) at Hunter College and Professor at the
City University of New York. She served as President of the American Academy of Nursing (2013-
2015) and as Strategic Adviser for the Campaign for Action, an initiative to implement the
recommendations from the Institute of Medicine's Future of Nursing report, to which she
contributed. From 2012 to 2015 she served as Co-President of the Hermann Biggs Society, an
interdisciplinary health policy salon in New York City.
Dr. Mason was editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Nursing for over a decade. Under her
leadership, the journal received numerous awards for editorial excellence and dissemination,
culminating in the journal being selected by the Specialized Libraries Association in 2009 as one of
the 100 most influential Journals of the Century in Biology and Medicine—the only nursing journal
to be selected for this distinction.
As a journalist, she has produced and moderated a weekly radio program on health and health
policy (Healthstyles) for 30 years. She blogs for HealthCetera (www.centerforhealthmediapolicy.com) and
for the JAMA News Forum. In 2009, she was appointed to the National Advisory Committee for
Kaiser Health News—the only nurse and health professional on the Committee.
She is the lead co-editor of The Nursing Profession: Development, Challenges, and Opportunities, part of
the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Book Series. She has been the lead co-editor of
all seven editions of Policy & Politics in Nursing and Health Care.
She is the recipient of numerous honors, including Honorary Doctorates from Long Island
University and West Virginia University; fellowship in the New York Academy of Medicine; and
the Pioneering Spirit Award from the American Association of Critical Care Nurses.
DEBORAH B. GARDNER, PhD, RN, FAAN, FNAP, is a health policy and leadership consultant.
She has more than 35 years of health care experience as a clinician, manager, trainer, and consultant
delivering care across diverse institutional and community settings. Dr. Gardner practiced as a
psychiatric mental health clinical nurse specialist for 15 years. She received a PhD in Nursing
Administration and Health Policy from George Mason University.
At the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center she established and held the position as
the Director of Organizational Planning and Workforce Development for 10 years. She served at the
Bureau of Health Professionals, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) as a senior
consultant collaborating on the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) (2010-2012). As
the Director of the Hawaii State Center for Nursing, she led the State's Campaign for Action
Coalition, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Initiative to support the Institute of Medicine's
Future of Nursing report.
In 2012 she served as a member of the Hawaii Governor's Healthcare Transformation Steering
Committee to assess and refocus Hawaii's health care delivery system for alignment to the ACA
goals.
A Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing and in the National Academy of Practice, she was
instrumental in establishing the National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education in
Minneapolis, Minnesota. She has received numerous awards, including the HRSA Administrator's
Special Citation for National Leadership in Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice,
an International Coaching Federation Award for Excellence in the Establishment of an Outstanding
Executive Coaching Program, the NIH Director's Award for Outstanding Mentoring and
Innovation in Organizational Development Strategies, and the “Profiles in Excellence” alumni
honors award from Oklahoma Baptist University.
Dr. Gardner has written numerous book chapters and articles. She serves on the Editorial Board for
30
Nursing Economic$ and writes the Policy and Politics column. She is a professional speaker on
interprofessional practice and education teams, advanced practice nursing, and health policy issues.
FREIDA HOPKINS OUTLAW, PhD, RN, FAAN, is an adjunct professor in the Peabody College of
Education, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. She served as the Assistant Commissioner,
Division of Special Populations, Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse
Services. In this role, she helped to develop policies and initiatives that improved treatment for
children with mental health and substance abuse issues. She provided leadership in securing $32
million of federal funding to support transforming the mental health system for children and their
families and was part of the leadership instrumental in passing legislation to create the Children's
Mental Health Council, which developed a plan for a statewide system of care implementation,
which continues today.
She participated in the American Nurses Association Minority Fellowship Legislative Internship
Program. Her passion was further ignited when state and national policies impacted delivery of
mental health services to children and their families to which she provided mental health services at
the University of Pennsylvania nurse-managed health center. Dr. Outlaw received a Department of
Health and Human Services Policy Academy Grant to lead a team of child-serving agencies,
community stakeholders, families, and youth to work on transforming mental health care for
children and families through planning, policy, and practice. Dr. Outlaw a member of the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Collaborative National Advisory Committee, whose function is
to advise the faculty of the RWJF Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative, University of New
Mexico, College of Nursing. She is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing and is an active
member of the Psychiatric Mental Health and Substance Abuse Expert Panel.
She has written frequently on the areas of depression, impact of racism, and stress on the health of
African Americans; management of aggression; seclusion and restraint; religion, spirituality, and
the meaning of prayer for people with cancer; and children's mental health. She has received
recognition for her excellence in clinical practice and for her work to improve the mental health of
children and their families.
EILEEN T. O'GRADY, PhD, NP, RN, is a certified Nurse Practitioner and Wellness Coach who
uses an evidence-based approach with people to reverse or prevent disease. She believes deeply
that more attention must be paid to getting us unstuck from lifestyles that do not support wellness.
She speaks professionally at universities, associations, corporations, schools, and communities on
the importance of thoughtful self-care, patient engagement, and how to identify and remedy a life
that is out of balance. She is currently adjunct faculty in the Graduate Schools of Nursing at Pace
University, Georgetown University, Duke University, and George Washington University, where
she was given an Outstanding Teacher Award.
She has held a number of leadership positions with professional nursing associations, most notably
as a founder and vice chair of the American College of Nurse Practitioners (now the American
Association of Nurse Practitioners). She was a 1999 Policy Fellow in the U.S. Public Health Service
Primary Care Policy Fellowship and in 2003 was given the American College of Nurse Practitioners
Legislative Advocacy Award for her leadership on nurse practitioner policy issues. She is the 2013
recipient of the Loretta Ford Lifetime Achievement Award and the Virginia Council of Nurse
Practitioners Advocate of the Year Award.
She is a co-editor and author of Advanced Practice Nursing: An Integrative Approach, 5th edition
(Elsevier, 2013) and has authored numerous articles and book chapters as well as a monthly column
on advanced practice nursing and health policy for 10 years in Nurse Practitioner World News.
She has taught nurses and physicians both nationally and internationally with the U.S. Peace Corps.
Dr. O'Grady has practiced as a primary care provider for 15 years and is now certified as a life
coach through the International Coaching Federation and as an Adult Nurse Practitioner through
the American Nurses Credentialing Center. Dr. O'Grady holds three graduate degrees: a Master of
Public Health from George Washington University, a Master of Science in Nursing, and a Doctor of
Philosophy in Nursing/Health Policy from George Mason University. She has dual citizenship in
Ireland and the United States. www.eileenogrady.net
31
32
Contributors
Greg Abell
Principal
Sound Options Group, LLC
Bainbridge Island, Washington
33
Assistant Professor
School of Nursing and Health Studies
Georgetown University
Washington, DC
34
Co-Lead
Florida Action Coalition
Orlando, Florida
Rachel Burton
Research Associate
Health Policy Center
Urban Institute
Washington, DC
35
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DANCE ON STILTS AT THE GIRLS’ UNYAGO, NIUCHI
I see increasing reason to believe that the view formed some time
back as to the origin of the Makonde bush is the correct one. I have
no doubt that it is not a natural product, but the result of human
occupation. Those parts of the high country where man—as a very
slight amount of practice enables the eye to perceive at once—has not
yet penetrated with axe and hoe, are still occupied by a splendid
timber forest quite able to sustain a comparison with our mixed
forests in Germany. But wherever man has once built his hut or tilled
his field, this horrible bush springs up. Every phase of this process
may be seen in the course of a couple of hours’ walk along the main
road. From the bush to right or left, one hears the sound of the axe—
not from one spot only, but from several directions at once. A few
steps further on, we can see what is taking place. The brush has been
cut down and piled up in heaps to the height of a yard or more,
between which the trunks of the large trees stand up like the last
pillars of a magnificent ruined building. These, too, present a
melancholy spectacle: the destructive Makonde have ringed them—
cut a broad strip of bark all round to ensure their dying off—and also
piled up pyramids of brush round them. Father and son, mother and
son-in-law, are chopping away perseveringly in the background—too
busy, almost, to look round at the white stranger, who usually excites
so much interest. If you pass by the same place a week later, the piles
of brushwood have disappeared and a thick layer of ashes has taken
the place of the green forest. The large trees stretch their
smouldering trunks and branches in dumb accusation to heaven—if
they have not already fallen and been more or less reduced to ashes,
perhaps only showing as a white stripe on the dark ground.
This work of destruction is carried out by the Makonde alike on the
virgin forest and on the bush which has sprung up on sites already
cultivated and deserted. In the second case they are saved the trouble
of burning the large trees, these being entirely absent in the
secondary bush.
After burning this piece of forest ground and loosening it with the
hoe, the native sows his corn and plants his vegetables. All over the
country, he goes in for bed-culture, which requires, and, in fact,
receives, the most careful attention. Weeds are nowhere tolerated in
the south of German East Africa. The crops may fail on the plains,
where droughts are frequent, but never on the plateau with its
abundant rains and heavy dews. Its fortunate inhabitants even have
the satisfaction of seeing the proud Wayao and Wamakua working
for them as labourers, driven by hunger to serve where they were
accustomed to rule.
But the light, sandy soil is soon exhausted, and would yield no
harvest the second year if cultivated twice running. This fact has
been familiar to the native for ages; consequently he provides in
time, and, while his crop is growing, prepares the next plot with axe
and firebrand. Next year he plants this with his various crops and
lets the first piece lie fallow. For a short time it remains waste and
desolate; then nature steps in to repair the destruction wrought by
man; a thousand new growths spring out of the exhausted soil, and
even the old stumps put forth fresh shoots. Next year the new growth
is up to one’s knees, and in a few years more it is that terrible,
impenetrable bush, which maintains its position till the black
occupier of the land has made the round of all the available sites and
come back to his starting point.
The Makonde are, body and soul, so to speak, one with this bush.
According to my Yao informants, indeed, their name means nothing
else but “bush people.” Their own tradition says that they have been
settled up here for a very long time, but to my surprise they laid great
stress on an original immigration. Their old homes were in the
south-east, near Mikindani and the mouth of the Rovuma, whence
their peaceful forefathers were driven by the continual raids of the
Sakalavas from Madagascar and the warlike Shirazis[47] of the coast,
to take refuge on the almost inaccessible plateau. I have studied
African ethnology for twenty years, but the fact that changes of
population in this apparently quiet and peaceable corner of the earth
could have been occasioned by outside enterprises taking place on
the high seas, was completely new to me. It is, no doubt, however,
correct.
The charming tribal legend of the Makonde—besides informing us
of other interesting matters—explains why they have to live in the
thickest of the bush and a long way from the edge of the plateau,
instead of making their permanent homes beside the purling brooks
and springs of the low country.
“The place where the tribe originated is Mahuta, on the southern
side of the plateau towards the Rovuma, where of old time there was
nothing but thick bush. Out of this bush came a man who never
washed himself or shaved his head, and who ate and drank but little.
He went out and made a human figure from the wood of a tree
growing in the open country, which he took home to his abode in the
bush and there set it upright. In the night this image came to life and
was a woman. The man and woman went down together to the
Rovuma to wash themselves. Here the woman gave birth to a still-
born child. They left that place and passed over the high land into the
valley of the Mbemkuru, where the woman had another child, which
was also born dead. Then they returned to the high bush country of
Mahuta, where the third child was born, which lived and grew up. In
course of time, the couple had many more children, and called
themselves Wamatanda. These were the ancestral stock of the
Makonde, also called Wamakonde,[48] i.e., aborigines. Their
forefather, the man from the bush, gave his children the command to
bury their dead upright, in memory of the mother of their race who
was cut out of wood and awoke to life when standing upright. He also
warned them against settling in the valleys and near large streams,
for sickness and death dwelt there. They were to make it a rule to
have their huts at least an hour’s walk from the nearest watering-
place; then their children would thrive and escape illness.”
The explanation of the name Makonde given by my informants is
somewhat different from that contained in the above legend, which I
extract from a little book (small, but packed with information), by
Pater Adams, entitled Lindi und sein Hinterland. Otherwise, my
results agree exactly with the statements of the legend. Washing?
Hapana—there is no such thing. Why should they do so? As it is, the
supply of water scarcely suffices for cooking and drinking; other
people do not wash, so why should the Makonde distinguish himself
by such needless eccentricity? As for shaving the head, the short,
woolly crop scarcely needs it,[49] so the second ancestral precept is
likewise easy enough to follow. Beyond this, however, there is
nothing ridiculous in the ancestor’s advice. I have obtained from
various local artists a fairly large number of figures carved in wood,
ranging from fifteen to twenty-three inches in height, and
representing women belonging to the great group of the Mavia,
Makonde, and Matambwe tribes. The carving is remarkably well
done and renders the female type with great accuracy, especially the
keloid ornamentation, to be described later on. As to the object and
meaning of their works the sculptors either could or (more probably)
would tell me nothing, and I was forced to content myself with the
scanty information vouchsafed by one man, who said that the figures
were merely intended to represent the nembo—the artificial
deformations of pelele, ear-discs, and keloids. The legend recorded
by Pater Adams places these figures in a new light. They must surely
be more than mere dolls; and we may even venture to assume that
they are—though the majority of present-day Makonde are probably
unaware of the fact—representations of the tribal ancestress.
The references in the legend to the descent from Mahuta to the
Rovuma, and to a journey across the highlands into the Mbekuru
valley, undoubtedly indicate the previous history of the tribe, the
travels of the ancestral pair typifying the migrations of their
descendants. The descent to the neighbouring Rovuma valley, with
its extraordinary fertility and great abundance of game, is intelligible
at a glance—but the crossing of the Lukuledi depression, the ascent
to the Rondo Plateau and the descent to the Mbemkuru, also lie
within the bounds of probability, for all these districts have exactly
the same character as the extreme south. Now, however, comes a
point of especial interest for our bacteriological age. The primitive
Makonde did not enjoy their lives in the marshy river-valleys.
Disease raged among them, and many died. It was only after they
had returned to their original home near Mahuta, that the health
conditions of these people improved. We are very apt to think of the
African as a stupid person whose ignorance of nature is only equalled
by his fear of it, and who looks on all mishaps as caused by evil
spirits and malignant natural powers. It is much more correct to
assume in this case that the people very early learnt to distinguish
districts infested with malaria from those where it is absent.
This knowledge is crystallized in the
ancestral warning against settling in the
valleys and near the great waters, the
dwelling-places of disease and death. At the
same time, for security against the hostile
Mavia south of the Rovuma, it was enacted
that every settlement must be not less than a
certain distance from the southern edge of the
plateau. Such in fact is their mode of life at the
present day. It is not such a bad one, and
certainly they are both safer and more
comfortable than the Makua, the recent
intruders from the south, who have made USUAL METHOD OF
good their footing on the western edge of the CLOSING HUT-DOOR
plateau, extending over a fairly wide belt of
country. Neither Makua nor Makonde show in their dwellings
anything of the size and comeliness of the Yao houses in the plain,
especially at Masasi, Chingulungulu and Zuza’s. Jumbe Chauro, a
Makonde hamlet not far from Newala, on the road to Mahuta, is the
most important settlement of the tribe I have yet seen, and has fairly
spacious huts. But how slovenly is their construction compared with
the palatial residences of the elephant-hunters living in the plain.
The roofs are still more untidy than in the general run of huts during
the dry season, the walls show here and there the scanty beginnings
or the lamentable remains of the mud plastering, and the interior is a
veritable dog-kennel; dirt, dust and disorder everywhere. A few huts
only show any attempt at division into rooms, and this consists
merely of very roughly-made bamboo partitions. In one point alone
have I noticed any indication of progress—in the method of fastening
the door. Houses all over the south are secured in a simple but
ingenious manner. The door consists of a set of stout pieces of wood
or bamboo, tied with bark-string to two cross-pieces, and moving in
two grooves round one of the door-posts, so as to open inwards. If
the owner wishes to leave home, he takes two logs as thick as a man’s
upper arm and about a yard long. One of these is placed obliquely
against the middle of the door from the inside, so as to form an angle
of from 60° to 75° with the ground. He then places the second piece
horizontally across the first, pressing it downward with all his might.
It is kept in place by two strong posts planted in the ground a few
inches inside the door. This fastening is absolutely safe, but of course
cannot be applied to both doors at once, otherwise how could the
owner leave or enter his house? I have not yet succeeded in finding
out how the back door is fastened.