Note 129.1 — Chapter IV · Notes
Reading edition
C. W. Hobley, “Kikuyu Customs and Beliefs,” Journal of the Royal Anthropological Intitute, xl. (1910) pp. 438 sq. As to the sanctity of the fig-tree (mugumu) among the Akikuyu, see Mervyn W. H. Beech, “The sacred fig-tree of the A-kikuyu of East Africa,” Man, xiii. (1913) pp. 4-6. Mr. Beech traces the reverence for the tree to the white milky sap which exudes from it when an incision is made in the bark. This appears to have suggested to the savages the idea that the tree is a great source of fertility to men and women, to cattle, sheep, and goats.