Inlaga

Inlaga are a class of spirits whose worship forms the most prominent feature in the superstitious practices of Southern Guinea. They are the spirits of dead men; but whether good or evil, even the natives themselves do not know. The spirits of their ancestors the natives call Abambo; but the Inlaga are the spirits of strangers, and have come from a distance. Sick, and especially nervous, persons are supposed to be possessed with one or the other of these classes of spirits, and various ceremonies are performed to deliver them from their power. The patient is first tested by the priest, to ascertain which class of spirits has possession of him; he is then exorcised, and when sufficiently recovered, sent about his affairs, but under certain restrictions, lest his disease return..