Note 1 — Chapter VII · THE CURSE AND ITS MANIFESTATIONS

At Ngenda Mission, a twin was handed over to the missionary, and the father agreed to give them the customary ten goats out of the dowry when the child should be married. No reason for this belief is known, but the custom is rigorously followed to this day. No one can sleep in the hut in which twins were born until they are disposed of, and the mother must cohabit with a stranger who is then called mwendia wa rohio or mundu rohiu (man of the sword).1