is by no means universal.
In West Africa the Mpongwe believe in local spirits,
just as do the Inuit;
but they are regarded as inoffensive in the main.
Passers-by must make some trifling offering
as they near the spirits' place of abode;
but it is only occasionally that mischievous acts,
such as the throwing down of a tree on a passer-by,
are, in the view of the natives, perpetuated by the class of spirits
known as Ombuiri.
So too, many of the spirits especially concerned with the operations of nature
are conceived as neutral or even benevolent;
the European peasant fears the corn-spirit
only when he irritates him
by trenching on his domain and taking his property
by cutting the corn;
similarly, there is no reason why the more insignificant personages
of the pantheon should be conceived as malevolent,
and we find that the Petara of the Dyaks
are far from indiscriminating and malignant,
being viewed as invisible guardians of mankind.
