The Descent of Man

her four front teeth from the lower jaw, and
wear the long pointed polished crystal in her
under lip." Further south with the Makalolo,
the upper lip is perforated, and a large metal
and bamboo ring, called a pelele, is worn in the
hole. "This caused the lip in one case to project
two inches beyond the tip of the nose; and
when the lady smiled, the contraction of the
muscles elevated it over the eyes. 'Why do the
women wear these things?' the venerable chief,
Chinsurdi, was asked. Evidently surprised at
such a stupid question, he replied, 'For beauty!
They are the only beautiful things women have;
men have beards, women have none. What
kind of a person would she be without the pelele?
She would not be a woman at all with a
mouth like a man, but no beard.'" (49. Livingstone,
'British Association,' 1860; report given in
the 'Athenaeum,' July 7, 1860, p. 29.)
Hardly any part of the body, which can be unnaturally
modified, has escaped. The amount of