Professional Documents
Culture Documents
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Contents vii
Chapter 13 Chapter 15
Defenses to Contract Enforceability 309 Breach and Remedies 356
Voluntary Consent 309 Damages 356
Case 13.1: Cronkelton v. Guaranteed Construction Services, LLC 314 Case 15.1: Hallmark Cards, Inc. v. Murley 357
Case 13.2: Fazio v. Cypress/GR Houston I, LP 315 ◾◾ Landmark in the Law: Hadley v. Baxendale (1854) 361
◾◾ Adapting the Law to the Online Environment: “Catfishing”: Spotlight on Liquidated Damages: Case 15.2:
Is That Online “Friend” for Real? 317 Kent State University v. Ford 362
The Writing Requirement 318 Equitable Remedies 363
◾◾ Beyond Our Borders: The Statute of Frauds and Case 15.3: Clara Wonjung Lee, DDS, Ltd. v. Robles 364
International Sales Contracts 321
Recovery Based on Quasi Contract 366
Sufficiency of the Writing or Electronic Record 323 Contract Provisions Limiting Remedies 367
The Parol Evidence Rule 324 ◾◾ Business Application: What Do You Do
Case 13.3: Frewil, LLC v. Price 326 When You Cannot Perform? 369
Chapter 14 Chapter 16
Third Party Rights and Discharge 331 International Law in a Global Economy 374
Assignments 331 ◾◾ Beyond Our Borders: Border Searches
of Your Electronic Devices 375
Case 14.1: Bass-Fineberg Leasing, Inc. v. Modern Auto Sales, Inc. 334
International Law 375
Delegations 336
Case 16.1: Linde v. Arab Bank, PLC 377
Third Party Beneficiaries 338
Doing Business Internationally 379
Contract Discharge 341
Regulation of Specific Business Activities 381
Case 14.2: Kohel v. Bergen Auto Enterprises, LLC 344
◾◾ Adapting the Law to the Online Environment: When International Contracts 383
Do Changes in Social Media Terms of Service Constitute Case 16.2: Carlyle Investment Management LLC v.
a Breach of Contract? 345 Moonmouth Company SA 384
Case 14.3: Kolodin v. Valenti 349 Payment Methods 386
◾◾ Beyond Our Borders: Impossibility or Impracticability U.S. Laws in a Global Context 388
of Performance in Germany 351
Spotlight on International Torts: Case 16.3:
◾◾ Business Application: Dealing with Third Party Rights 352 Daimler AG v. Bauman 389
Unit Two—Business Case Study with Dissenting Opinion:
Braddock v. Braddock 394
and Lease Contracts 398 The Formation of Sales and Lease Contracts 404
Case 17.2: C. Mahendra (N.Y.), LLC v. National Gold &
◾◾ Landmark in the Law: The Uniform Commercial Code 399 Diamond Center, Inc. 408
The Scope of Articles 2 and 2A 399 CLASSIC CASE 17.3: Jones v. Star Credit Corp. 414
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viii Contents
Chapter 18
Performance and Breach of
Sales and Lease Contracts 433
iStockPhoto.com/kali9
Performance Obligations 434
Case 18.1: Garziano v. Louisiana Log Home Co. 435
Anticipatory Repudiation 441
Remedies for Breach 441
◾◾ Beyond Our Borders: The CISG’s Approach to
The Bank’s Duty to Honor Checks 495
Revocation of Acceptance 447
Case 20.2: Michigan Basic Property Insurance
Spotlight on Baseball Cards: Case 18.2: Fitl v. Strek 448
Association v. Washington 500
Warranties 449
The Bank’s Duty to Accept Deposits 501
CLASSIC CASE 18.3: Webster v. Blue Ship Tea Room, Inc. 452
Case 20.3: Shahin v. Delaware Federal Credit Union 502
◾◾ Landmark in the Law: Check Clearing in the 21st
Chapter 19 Century Act (Check 21) 503
Electronic Fund Transfers 506
Negotiable Instruments 460 Online Banking and E-Money 507
Types of Negotiable Instruments 460 ◾◾ Adapting the Law to the Online Environment:
Requirements for Negotiability 464 Pay with Your Smartphone 508
◾◾ Linking Business Law to Accounting and Finance:
Case 19.1: Alpacas of America, LLC v. Groome 466
Banking Risks 509
Case 19.2: Charles R. Tips Family Trust v. PB Commercial LLC 470
Transfer of Instruments 470
Case 19.3: In re Bass 472
Chapter 21
◾◾ Beyond Our Borders: Severe Restrictions Security Interests
on Check Indorsements in France 473
Holder in Due Course (HDC) 475
and Creditors’ Rights 514
Signature and Warranty Liability 478 Terminology of Secured Transactions 514
Defenses, Limitations, and Discharge 483 Creating and Perfecting a Security Interest 515
◾◾ Landmark in the Law: Federal Trade Commission Rule 433 485 Case 21.1: Royal Jewelers Inc. v. Light 516
◾◾ Adapting the Law to the Online Environment:
517
Chapter 20 Secured Transactions Online
Scope of a Security Interest 522
Banking in the Digital Age 491 Priorities, Rights, and Duties 524
Checks 491 Default 527
The Bank-Customer Relationship 494 Case 21.2: Smith v. Firstbank Corp. 529
Case 20.1: Royal Arcanum Hospital Association of Kings Other Laws Assisting Creditors 530
County, Inc. v. Herrnkind 494 Case 21.3: HSBC Realty Credit Corp. (USA) v. O’Neill 534
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Contents ix
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x Contents
Chapter 27
All Forms of Partnership 675
Basic Partnership Concepts 675
Formation and Operation 678
◾◾ Beyond Our Borders: Doing Business with Foreign Partners 679
iStockPhoto.com/dynasoar
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Contents xi
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xii Contents
Chapter 33
Liability of Accountants
and Other Professionals 830
Potential Liability to Clients 831
◾◾ Landmark in the Law: The SEC Adopts Global
iStockPhoto.com/spxChrome
Accounting Rules 832
Case 33.1: In re B.L.H. 835
Potential Liability to Third Parties 836
Case 33.2: Perez v. Stern 839
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act 839
Potential Liability of Accountants under Securities Laws 841
Protection of Health and Safety 810
◾◾ Beyond Our Borders: Europe Bans Foods That Americans Eat 810 Spotlight on an Accountant’s Duty to Correct
Mistakes: Case 33.3: Overton v. Todman & Co., CPAs 844
Credit Protection 812
Potential Criminal Liability 845
Protecting the Environment 816
Confidentiality and Privilege 846
Air and Water Pollution 818
Unit Six—Business Case Study with Dissenting Opinion:
Case 32.3: United States v. O’Malley 820 Yates v. United States 852
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Contents xiii
Wills 907
Case 36.3: In re Estate of Melton 910
◾◾ Adapting the Law to the Online Environment:
Social Media Estate Planning 913
Trusts 915
◾◾ Business Application: How Can You Manage Risk
in Cyberspace? 920
Unit Seven—Business Case Study with Dissenting Opinion:
Kovarik v. Kovarik 926
APPENDICES
A How to Brief Cases and Analyze Case Problems A-1
B The Constitution of the United States A-3
C The Uniform Commercial Code (Excerpts) A-11
D Answers to Issue Spotters A-130
E Answers to Even-Numbered Learning
Objectives Check Questions A-136
F Sample Answers for Business Case Problems
iStockPhoto.com/fstop123
with Sample Answer A-144
G Case Excerpts for Case Analysis Questions A-152
Glossary G-1
Table of Cases TC-1
Index I-1
Chapter 36
Insurance, Wills, and Trusts 899
Insurance 899
Case 36.1: Breeden v. Buchanan 902
Case 36.2: Valero v. Florida Insurance Guaranty Association, Inc. 905
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Preface
T he study of business and the legal environment has universal applicability. A student
entering any field of business must have at least a passing understanding of business law
in order to function in the real world. Business Law Today, Eleventh Edition, provides
the information in an interesting and contemporary way. The Eleventh Edition continues its
established tradition of being the most up-to-date text on the market.
Instructors have come to rely on the coverage, accuracy, and applicability of Business Law
Today. This best-selling text engages your students, solidifies their understanding of legal
concepts, and provides the best teaching tools available. I have spent a great deal of effort
making this edition more contemporary, exciting, and visually appealing than ever before.
Special pedagogical devices within the text focus on legal, ethical, global, and corporate issues,
while addressing core curriculum requirements.
The Eleventh Edition incorporates the latest legal developments and United States Supreme
Court decisions. It also includes more than fifty new features and seventy new cases, hundreds
of new examples and case examples, new exhibits, learning objectives, margin definitions, and
case problems.
New Features
The Eleventh Edition of Business Law Today is filled with exciting new features including the
following:
• Twenty-three Adapting the Law to the Online Environment features examine cutting-
edge cyberlaw issues. Seventeen of these are new and cover topics such as Facebook
poker, hacking, patent trolls, paying with smartphones, revenge porn, and social
media.
• I have included twenty new Ethical Issues that focus on the ethical aspects of a topic
being discussed in order to emphasize that ethics is an integral part of a business law
course.
• I have also added six new Beyond Our Borders features (for a total of twenty-four)
that focus on the global legal environment and illustrate how other nations deal with
specific legal concepts being discussed.
• For this edition, I have created a new feature entitled Managerial Strategy that
focuses on the management aspects of business law. There are ten of these new
features throughout the text, covering such topics as the commercial use of drones,
marriage equality, and the use of company e-mail systems to organize a union.
• Fourteen Business Application features and eight Linking Business Law to [one of the
six functional fields of business] features are included at the end of selected chapters.
xv
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xvi Preface
The Business Applications focus on practical considerations and offer checklists related
to the chapter’s contents, whereas the Linking Business Law features underscore how the
law relates to other fields of business.
• Eighteen Landmark in the Law features discuss a landmark case, statute, or other legal
development that has had a significant effect on business law.
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Preface xvii
Chapter-Ending Pedagogy
• Reviewing . . . features (in every chapter).
• Debate This (a statement or question at the end of the Reviewing feature).
• Key Terms (with appropriate page references).
• Chapter Summary (in table format).
• Issue Spotters (in every chapter with answers in Appendix D).
• Learning Objectives Check (The Learning Objectives questions are presented again to
aid students in reviewing the chapter. For this edition, answers to the even-numbered
questions for each chapter are provided in Appendix E.)
• Business Scenarios and Case Problems (Every chapter includes a Business Case Problem
with Sample Answer answered in Appendix F, A Question of Ethics, and a Business Law
Critical Thinking Group Assignment. Selected chapters include a Spotlight Case Problem.)
Unit-Ending Pedagogy
Each of the seven units in the Eleventh Edition of Business Law Today concludes with the
following features (which are answered in the Solutions Manual):
• Business Case Study with Dissenting Opinion—This feature presents a court case
that relates to a topic covered in the unit. It opens with an introductory section,
discusses the case background and significance, and then provides excerpts from the
court’s majority opinion and from a dissenting opinion as well. The case study portion
ends with Questions for Analysis—a series of questions that prompt the student to
think critically about the legal, ethical, economic, international, or general business
implications of the case.
• Business Scenario—This feature presents a hypothetical business situation and then
asks a series of questions about how the law applies to various actions taken by the
firm. To answer the questions, the student must apply the laws discussed throughout
the unit.
• Group Project—The final portion of the unit-ending pedagogy is a Group Project
that requires students to work together to formulate answers based on materials they
learned in the previous chapters.
Supplements
Business Law Today, Eleventh Edition, provides a comprehensive supplements package designed
to make the tasks of teaching and learning more enjoyable and efficient. The following supple-
ments are available for instructors.
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xviii Preface
Start Right Away! Cengage Learning Testing Powered by Cognero works on any operating
system or browser.
• Use your standard browser; no special installs or downloads are needed.
• Create tests from school, home, the coffee shop—anywhere with Internet access.
What Instructors Will Find
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familiar, intuitive tools that take instructors through content creation and management
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• Full-featured test generator. Create ideal assessments with a choice of fifteen question
types—including true/false, multiple choice, opinion scale/Likert, and essay. Multi-
language support, an equation editor, and unlimited metadata help ensure instructor
tests are complete and compliant.
• Cross-compatible capability. Import and export content into other systems.
Through personalized paths of dynamic assignments and applications, MindTap is a digital learning solution
that turns cookie cutter into cutting edge, apathy into engagement, and memorizers into higher-level thinkers.
With MindTap’s carefully curated material, you get the right content and groundbreaking tools you need. You can
personalize every element of your course—from rearranging the Table of Contents to inserting videos, cases, and
activities. You’ll save time and improve workflow by having everything in one place. And, with MindTap’s Progress
App, you can monitor student progress in real time.
Worksheets - interactive online “worksheets” PREPARE Video Activities - real-world video exercises make
students for class, ensuring reading and comprehension. business law RELEVANT AND ENGAGING.
Brief Hypotheticals - these applications help students Case Problem Blueprints - promote deeper CRITICAL
spot the issue and APPLY the law in the context of a THINKING and legal reasoning by guiding students step
short, factual scenario. by step through a case problem.
Turn the page to learn more about our exciting NEW Case Repository,
Adaptive Test Prep, and the Interactive eBook.
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Access Over
900 Cases
with our new
Case Repository
Now, within MindTap, you can search a library of cases from previous editions of your favorite
textbooks by relevant criteria and then incorporate those cases in the learning path for your students.
This exciting repository allows you to personalize your course and truly engage students, helping
them to reach higher levels of critical thinking.
Easily search by topic, and then refine your search by subtopic, to find case examples
of a specific legal concept.
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Reduce
Exam Anxiety
with Adaptive
Test Prep
MindTap’s Adaptive Test Prep helps students study for exams with unlimited practice tests, quizzes,
and feedback aimed specifically at helping them understand the course concepts.
Students can create an unlimited number of practice tests using similar types of questions seen on exams and test
themselves on multiple chapters, by chapter, and by sub-topic levels. All practice test questions are book-specific and
students receive immediate feedback with a remediation path, called My Study Plan, based on questions they miss.
written remediation
video walk-throughs
These resources consist of robust explanations created by some of the best business law
educators in the country. My Study Plan also provides chapter level resources such as flashcards
and chapter summary reviews.
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Turn the Light
on Engagement
with Interactive
eBook Activities
An eBook environment leads to more interaction with the material and a deeper learning
of Business Law concepts. MindTap offers interactive cases, interactive exhibits, and
video whiteboard explanations for the business law classroom.
Interactive Cases
Bring cases to life with an interactive environment that pulls students into the material. Instead of reading a
boxed case feature, these interactive cases ask questions throughout, provide detailed answers, help guide
students to a deeper understanding of the case, and enhance their legal reasoning skills. After reading the
case, students are asked application questions to assess their understanding at a broader level.
Interactive Exhibits
Select static exhibits from within the narrative are now interactive. Students can enjoy manipulating
figures and exhibits to better solidify their understanding of key concepts in the text. These activities
are sure to engage students in the learning process and encourage greater focus and participation.
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Preface xxiii
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xxiv Preface
In addition, I give my thanks to the staff at Cengage Learning, especially Vicky True-Baker,
product manager; Michael Worls, product director; Rebecca von Gillern, managing content
developer; Leah Wuchnick, content developer; and Ann Borman, content project manager.
I also thank Katie Jergens in marketing; Michelle Kunkler, art director; and Anne Sheroff,
photo researcher. I would also like to thank the staff at Lachina, the compositor, for accurately
generating pages for this text and making it possible for me to meet my ambitious printing
schedule.
I give special thanks to Katherine Marie Silsbee for managing the project and providing
exceptional research and editorial skills. I also thank William Eric Hollowell, c o-author of
the Solutions Manual and Test Bank, for his excellent research efforts. I am grateful for the
copyediting services of Beverly Peavler and proofreading by Sue Bradley. I also thank Vickie
Reierson, Roxanna Lee, and Suzanne Jasin for their many efforts on this project and for helping
to ensure an error-free text.
Roger LeRoy Miller
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Dedication
To John Allen,
R.L.M.
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Unit 1
1 The Legal Environment
2 Constitutional Law
3 Courts and Alternative Dispute Resolution
4 Tort Law
of Business 8
9
Criminal Law and Cyber Crime
Business Ethics
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CHAPTER OUTLINE
1
▪▪ Business Activities and
the Legal Environment
▪▪ Sources of American Law
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CHAPTER 1: The Legal Environment 3
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4 UNIT ONE: The Legal Environment of Business
Exhibit 1–1 Areas of the Law That May Affect Business Decision Making
Contracts
Courts and
Sales
Court Procedures
Professional Negotiable
Liability Instruments
Business
Business Creditors’
Decision
Organizations Rights
Making
Intellectual
Agency Property
Torts E-Commerce
Product
Liability
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CHAPTER 1: The Legal Environment 5
Business Organization
What is the most appropriate business organizational form,
and what type of personal liability does it entail?
Taxation
How will the small business be taxed, and are there ways to reduce those taxes?
Intellectual Property
Does the small business have any patents or other intellectual
property that needs to be protected, and if so, what steps should the firm take?
Administrative Law
What types of government regulations apply to the
business, and what must the firm do to comply with them?
Employment
Does the business need an employment manual,
and does management have to explicitly inform employees of their rights?
Accounting
Do the financial statements created by an accountant need to be verified for accuracy?
Finance
What are appropriate and legal ways to raise
additional capital so that the business can grow?
financing, you become a finance manager. When you “go over the books” with your book-
keeper, you become an accountant. When you decide on a new advertising campaign, you are
suddenly the marketing manager. When you hire employees and determine their salaries and
benefits, you become a human resources manager.
Just as the functional fields of business are linked to the law, so too are all of the different
managerial roles that a small-business owner/operator must perform. Exhibit 1–2 shows some
of the legal issues that may arise as part of the management of a small business. Large busi-
nesses face most of these issues, too.
Primary Source of Law A
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6 UNIT ONE: The Legal Environment of Business
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CHAPTER 1: The Legal Environment 7
Uniform Laws During the 1800s, the differences among state laws frequently created dif-
ficulties for businesspersons conducting trade and commerce among the states. To counter
these problems, a group of legal scholars and lawyers formed the National Conference of
Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL, online at www.uniformlaws.org) in
1892 to draft uniform laws (“model statutes”) for the states to consider adopting. The Uniform Law A model law
NCCUSL still exists today and continues to issue uniform laws. developed by the National
Each state has the option of adopting or rejecting a uniform law. Only if a state legislature Conference of Commissioners on
Uniform State Laws for the states
adopts a uniform law does that law become part of the statutory law of that state. Furthermore, a
to consider enacting into statute.
state legislature may choose to adopt only part of a uniform law or to rewrite the sections that
are adopted. Hence, even though many states may have adopted a uniform law, those laws
may not be entirely “uniform.”
The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) One of the most important uniform acts is the Uni-
form Commercial Code (UCC), which was created through the joint efforts of the NCCUSL
and the American Law Institute.1 The UCC was first issued in 1952 and has been adopted
in all fifty states,2 the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands.
The UCC facilitates commerce among the states by providing a uniform, yet flexible, set of
rules governing commercial transactions. Because of its importance in the area of commercial
law, we cite the UCC frequently in this text. We also present excerpts of the UCC in Appendix
C. From time to time, the NCCUSL revises the articles contained in the UCC and submits the
revised versions to the states for adoption.
Agency Creation Because Congress cannot possibly oversee the actual implementation of
all the laws it enacts, it delegates such tasks to agencies. Congress creates an administrative
1. This institute was formed in the 1920s and consists of practicing attorneys, legal scholars, and judges.
2. Louisiana has adopted only Articles 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 9.
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Another random document with
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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.