BUDGET 2

Benedict Somo and Christina Lambiif

Benedict Somo lives in the Banka area of Kimbaw and is in his late thirties; his
wife, Christina Lambiif, is probably a little younger. Both were Roman Catholics
when they married. Somo is the son of a deceased Fai-Tawong, and a grandson of
the late Føn. He has four children - three boys and a girl. The eldest son attends the
Mission school and is in the Infant's Grade; the younger stays frequently with his
mother's mother in Bamenda Station, while the youngest son is about 2 years old. The
number in the household fluctuated during the year under review. In addition to Somo,
his wife, and the three children, there was Somo's brother's son, Bunila, for whom Somo
paid school fees, and who gave some help in his leisure. For part of the year there
was a labourer, but when he left his place was taken by another of Somo's relatives,
Mburong, who gave assistance to Somo and received in return food, clothing, and
the payment of his tax. There were thus seven permanently resident in the compound,
but Somo and his wife had many visitors who sometimes stayed the night or a few days.
They were given hospitality, but made some return in gifts of money and food. Somo
and his wife occasionally went to Bamenda Station: Somo twice, and Christina twice.
Somo was at one time a vernacular teacher in the R.C.M. school, but he retired and
decided to take up coffee-planting and general farming. He also learnt to be a tailor
and bought a sewing machine. Towards the close of 1945 he received two month's
training in mixed farming at Bambui and, on his return to Kimbaw, was granted by
the Føn 3.1 acres of good alluvial land. He built pig styes and began to breed pigs,
but he continued to cultivate his coffee farms (some 3.2 acres). He belonged to two
djanggis (one of which met weekly and the other monthly), and also to a "bank" in
Tabessob, where he had maternal relatives. His budget was recorded weekly over a
full year, but for the first seven months Somo kept all the entries as I was away from
Kimbaw. After September 1947, he continued to note expenditure and income, but
brought the accounts to me at the end of each week. His wife, in addition to her work
on the farms, traded in gari, starch and other commodities. Her earnings are included
in the budget. She spent much on relishes and cooked food, Somo assuming responsi-
bility for large quantities of staple foods, such as maize, as well as oil, salt, meat, and so
on. Christina bought a few trinkets, and was generous in making small gifts of cash
to her own kin and friends.

NOTES
(a) Christina bought a considerable amount of flour, roots, beans, etc. to save herself the
trouble of grinding grain. The hulled maize was bought to augment household supplies,
as the harvest in 1946 was not sufficient.
(b) Christina, with her earnings from trade, often bought prepared foods, some to save trouble
of grinding grain, and to provide variety e.g. gari (9s. 9d.), and others as snacks.
(c) I have not tabulated in detail expenditure on relishes, but out of the amount entered in
the budget 6s. 11 1/2d. was spent on egusi, 1s l1d. on dried locust bean (davadava), 4s. 6d. on
spinach, 1s. 2d. on okra, and so on.
(d) Honey was used to sweeten coffee, and also as a medicine for sore throats.
(e) After Christina had her child, she bought a considerable number of oranges for herself
and him on the advice of the Mission clinic.
(/) Somo belonged to a djanggi, which bought salt and oil and retailed them to members at
rates cheaper than those in the open market. Of the 18s. 1d. spent on salt, about 7s. 1d.
worth was given away to kin and friends, exclusive of what was used in cooking to entertain
guests. Of the 52s. lOd. spent on oil, at least 6s. 2d. was given away to kin and friends,
although both Somo and his wife received small gifts of oil from their guests.
(g) At Christmas, and also when entertaining important guests, Somo bought a few kolas,
as well as wine (3s. 6d.) and beer (5s. 7 1/2d.).

(h) Somo bought small quantities of firewood, as his wife required some for frying gari. The
bundles of kindling brought in by her from the farm did not suffice for the purpose. Somo
also had a brazier to warm the house in the evening, and spent 1s. 8d. on charcoal for it.
(i) Somo bought, over the full year, 3 lengths of cloth at a total outlay of 33s., a headtie for
5s., shoes for 14s. 6d., and underwear for 7s. 6d. for his wife, Christina.
(j) He bought a shirt for himself, and in addition spent 6s. on shoe repairs. But it is noteworthy
that the household received gifts of cloth and shoes from Christina's sister and mother,
and also friends (see footnotes (11), (mm) and (pp) below).
(k) Mburong (brother's son to Somo) often helped on the farm and received food, clothes,
etc. for his work.
(l) Somo paid 6s. a year in fees for his own son Isaac, and 6s. for a relative, Bunila.
(m) The horse was bought from a Fulani, but was not broken in. Somo thought it would be
useful later for riding to outlying coffee farms and to Bamenda Station.
(n) Somo intended to breed rabbits and sell the meat in the local market, but his first experiment
failed and he gave up the idea.
(o) The amount cited above was spent on cement, wood, etc. for styes and does not include
the value of cement received on credit from Bambui (see footnote (z) below).
(p) When Somo began raising pigs he had not sufficient food from his own farm, and, through-
out 1947, he purchased large quantities of cocoyams, cassava, sweet potatoes, and skim
milk. During 1948 his outlay would not have been so heavy as he would have the crops
grown on his own farm.
(q) Christina lost 2s. in the market. On another occasion Somo had to pay 20s. for a parcel
for which he was responsible and which he had lost.
(r) Early in 1946 Somo received a loan of £15 from the N.A.T. for pig-raising, as his outlay
on food alone for the pigs was considerable. By the beginning of 1947 he had repaid £7.
During 1947 he paid off another £7, but only by drawing on his savings in the "bank"
at Tabessob. With the help of a loan of £5 from a soldier friend he was able to meet
other commitments.
(t) Many of the returned soldiers had a relatively large amount of cash and one of Somo's
friends lent him £5. By mid-March Somo still had not repaid his debt.
(u) The cash outlay entailed for gifts to affines, kin, etc., should be compared with gifts in kind
given from own stores which are listed in footnotes (ll)) (mm), etc. Somo's father-in-law
had never recognized the marriage as legal and refused to make his peace, even when
Somo and his wife had a number of children. Therefore Somo had no commitments to
him. Somo's mother-in law had left her husband several years previously and lived at
Bamenda Station, but she occasionally visited her daughter in Kimbaw and was visited
by her in Bamenda. In addition to ordinary hospitality, Somo and Christina gave
Christina's mother 23s. 11d. in cash, relishes bought specially (2s. 3d.), a blanket (30s.)
and cloth (7s.). From her they received only 2 1/2d. in cash, but she gave a number of
presents (see (ll) below).
(v) Christina's sister, Angela, was a teacher in the R.G.M. school at Shisong and was a
frequent visitor at the house. Besides making many gifts to the family she occasionally
sold gari for Christina at the Mission. During the year Christina gave her 5s. 6d. in cash,
and bought especially for her ink, knitting needles, butter, etc. She also gave her presents
of food (which I have listed in footnote (mm) below). From Angela Christina and her
children received small sums of cash in addition to gifts in kind (see below).
(w) I have not tabulated separately the gifts made to other kin of Christina, since the value was
relatively small. The main recipients were her sister, brothers, and mother's brother
(who was a returned soldier). The latter received small presents of cash amounting to
3s. 8d. during the year, but in return he gave small sums amounting to 9s. 1d.
(x) Somo was a grandson of the Føn, and was expected to be generous in gifts to vikinto as well
as to his own kin. When the Føn died Somo sent 2s. 6d. worth of beef and porridge to the
vikinto as well as buying 1s. 6d. worth of salt for them. However, on different occasions
he received, all told, 8s. in cash from the reigning Føn. To a wiinto, who had shared a hut
in the palace with Somo's father's mother, Somo gave salt, pots, and cash to the value of
1s. ll 1/2d., as well as food from household supplies amounting to 3s. 1d. Somo felt some
responsibility for a father's sister who lived at Mbuluf village and was alone. During the
year he gave her 3s. 1d. in cash, cloth for a pubic covering (worth 1s. 6d.) and tobacco (1d.)
in addition to 3s. 5d. worth of salt and oil drawn from household supplies. From her
Christina received gifts of cocoyam, corn, potatoes, etc., amounting to 5s. 3d. in value.
To another relative Somo made a number of gifts at marriage, providing him with 2s.
worth of wine, and 6d. in cash for the bride, as well as maize, egusi, flour, tomatoes, etc.,
to the value of 3s. 5d. This same relative had previously assisted Christina with the sale
of her gari in the market, and had received from her gifts of food amounting to 2s. 4d.
in value.

(y) It is not possible here to cite the details of all gifts made to friends of Somo and his wife.
The gifts were, on the whole, small in value. Noteworthy are those to the godmother of
Christina's own mother, and especially to the godmother of Christina herself. The latter
received a headtie worth 5s., and 5s. in cash, as well as sundry gifts of food from household
supplies. The cash received from friends far exceeds that given away to friends, and the
main explanation lies in the fact that Somo and his wife had many visitors, some of whom
stayed for several days; teachers on holiday, masons, sawyers, government employees with
temporary work in Kimbaw, and so on. These had their meals with the family but
from time to time gave cash and food to their hostess. Thus Damon lived with the family
for several weeks and gave, all told, 13s. 7d. cash, 5s. worth of beef, 9d. worth of oil, and so
on. It is noteworthy that most of them handed over the money to Christina, since it was
her responsibility to provide the meals. Occasionally small sums were given to the children.
The expenditure on gifts to affines, kin and friends amounts to £6.14.10 1/2. Cash gifts
received from affines, kin and friends amount to £7.14.6.
(z) Somo's outstanding debts were relatively heavy, but it was arranged with Bambui Govern-
ment Farm that he should hand over a certain proportion of the proceeds from the sale of
pork during the year 1948. The £15, which he had in hand by the end of February 1948,
would be required for household expenses, incidental expenses for the piggery, and settle-
ment of other debts.
(aa) Government employees. Mission teachers and others in the 'higher' income group
occasionally bought small quantities of ground coffee from Somo. The sum entered
above also included the sale of a case to a fai for 23s.
(bb) The coffee berries were sold at 5d. a lb. in Bamenda Station. The entry above represented
net profit. The cost of transport has been included under expenditure in another column.
(cc) During the year Somo killed about 3 pigs, and retailed the pork in the market. A little
was given away to friends, and some was kept for the household.
(dd) Somo bought kolas for 3s. 9d. and retailed them for 5s. 5d.
(ee) Somo bought soap from the U.A.C. for 10s. 8d., and retailed it in srnall pieces for 16s. 1d.
(ff) Salt was bought for 8s. 6d. and retailed for 10s. 6d. In my budget records, kept during
my absence from Kimbaw during the rains, there was an entry for 29s. on salt bought for
retail, but no details of sales. I have omitted this item from the budget.
(gg) Bananas were bought for 7d. and retailed for 8d.
(hh) During the year, Christina bought in small quantities each week cassava at a total outlay
of 3.18.8. Sometimes she made starch and sold throughout the year 21s. 8d. worth;
the balance of the cassava was prepared as gari and sold for £5.15.10d. Some of Somo's
firewood was used when frying the gari.
(ii) Christina bought beans for 3s. l0d. and sold bean balls for 5s. 3d.
(jj) Christina bought maize for 7s. l0d. in order to brew beer. She sold the beer for 8s. 8d.
On another occasion she sold 6s. 3d. worth of beer, brewed from maize from her own farm.
(kk) Christina bought knitting wool for 12s. and knitted a sweater, which she sold for 20s.,
and a cap for 4s. 6d.
(11) Gifts in kind, drawn from household supplies, were frequently made to Christina's mother.
They included salt and various vegetables to the value of 4s. 0 1/2d., wine (6d.) and 2 cocks
(4s.). Christina received from her mother cocoyam, salt and fish to the value of 3s. l0d.,
and a hoe worth 5s. Her mother also contributed to the purchase of some cloth by Angela
for Christina (see footnote (mm) below),
(mm) Christina frequently gave gari, corn, yams, onions, tomatoes, meat, greens, and so on to
her sister Angela, who lived at the Mission School. The estimated value was 12s. l0d.
In addition Somo gave her a fowl (1s. 6d.), wine (3d.), and coffee (6d.), while Christina
made her a present of some ear-rings and vaseline worth 2s., which she herself had received
while on a visit to friends in Bamenda.
From Angela the family received groundnuts, oil, maize, etc. to the value of 6s. l1d.,
two lengths of cloth for dresses (40s. 6d.), canvas shoes (10s. 6d.) for Somo, shoes (30s. 6d.)
for Christina, a handkerchief (1s. 3d.) for Somo, soap worth 6d. and sewing thread (1s.).
It should be noted that Angela was an unmarried teacher, earning a salary, and that she
had no one immediately dependent upon her apart from her mother.
(nn) Again, I have not itemized all gifts in kind to other kin of Christina. Her mother's
brother received gari and other food to the value of 1s. 9 1/2d., and also a fowl (1s. 6d.), on
his departure to Bamenda. While staying with the family in Kimbaw, he made gifts in

kind to the value of 11s. 2d. They included honey (1s. 6d.); pork (9d.), bought specially
for the children; a large calabash (2s.), a strip of cloth (6s.) for Somo's son; and so forth.
It is worth noting that the value of all gifts (in cash and in kind) to wife's kin amounts to

£5.10.1, as compared with the value of £6.14.6 1/2 of all gifts in cash and in kind received
from wife's kin.

(oo) See footnote (x) above. It should be noted that in cash and in kind Sorno gave away
gifts to the value of 40s. 8 1/2d., and he received from his kin gifts in cash and in kind to the
value of 23s. 3 1/2d.
(pp) It is difficult to deal with the details here in terms of the individuals concerned. I therefore
include an estimate of the total value of various types of commodities given and received.
To his friends Somo gave during the year food (20s. 9d.), fowls (7s.), coffee (3s.), trinkets
(1s. 6d.), soap (11d.), and a calabash (1s.). From their friends Somo and his wife received
food (35s. l0 1/2d.), fowls (5s. 6d.), beer and wine (7s. 11d.), soap (3s. 7 1/2d.), cosmetics (5s. 8d.),
firewood (2s. 6d.), clothes (24s. 6d.), household utensils (4s. 7d.), and a pipe (2d.). It should
be remembered that many of the presents received were often handed on to friends or kin
immediately, or a few weeks later. This applied particularly to foodstuffs, trinkets, soap,
and smaller household utensils. Again, as might be expected, when a gift was received,
some kind of return was made later. But a detailed discussion of such acts of reciprocity
must be postponed for another publication.
(qq) Christina and Somo farmed, all told, 3.3 acres (exclusive of plots under coffee). Somo
gave help to his wife on all the farms except that devoted to rizga. In September 1947
they obtained 31 vegati of maize from their farm, but only 1/2 kegati of finger millet. Some
of the maize was used to feed the pigs, but Somo kept no records of the amounts involved.
(rr) Somo grew very large quantities of sweet potatoes and on the basis of some figures which
he gave me, I estimated a harvest of 15,000 lbs. Much of the crop was used for food for
the pigs. He sold about 2s. worth of potatoes.
(ss) About 3d. worth of dwarf beans was sold to Europeans.
(tt) Somo did not give much time to his plantains, and he sold only 1s. 10d. worth, or about
40 lbs.
(uu) Some of Somo's largest profits from farm produce were derived from the sale of tomatoes,
onions, etc. Most onions are imported from Northern Nigeria and sell at anything from
2d. to 6d. each. Their cultivation in Nsaw therefore offers considerable financial possibilities.

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