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The design of the French Equatorial Africa 100 franc air mail stamp is particularly interesting for it depicts two fishing canoes of the Kotoko tribe using huge triangular nets. Locally a net of this type is called a zemi, and they are suspended from two long tree branches in the form of an extended 'V'. At the base of the "V' is placed a lever arm with a balance weight to lessen the effort necessary when the net has to be raised out of the water. The Kotoko fishermen work in teams with a number of boats attended by small dug-out canoes. These each have a crew of a man and a boy, the latter making as much noise as possible by shouting and banging on the canoe with small sticks. The idea is that from a position well up¬stream, the fishermen let the current take charge and carry the boats with it. They try to keep in line abreast with the nets submerged and the dug-out canoes maintain a semi-circle in front of the nets driving fish into them with the noise.
SG274 Sea Breezes 7/55