The beginnings of a vernacular literature in languages spoken in British West Africa go back for more than a century. As early as 1815 the gospel of St. Matthew was published in Bulom; in 1816 part of St. Matthew in Susu (Soso), 1829 Genesis and part of Matthew in Mampua, a dialect of Bulom. A translation of the whole Bible appeared in the Ga language in 1866, in Twi in 1871, in Efik in 1868, and in Yoruba in 1880. Since that time there has been a constant increase in the number of languages into which parts of the Bible or the whole Bible and other religious books such as catechisms, hymn-books and prayer-books have been translated. Other books for use in schools and for general reading have also been produced, but only to a very limited extent; the great majority are books written by missionaries for immediate missionary purposes. I know of only two cases in which a complete set of school-books in native languages for a curriculum of about eight or ten years has been published and is in use. These are produced by the Basel Mission on the Gold Coast (Twi and Ga) and the North German Mission in Togoland and on the Gold Coast (Ewe).

The camel-herding peoples described in our last article differ considerably from the cattle-breeding tribes now to be discussed. Not only do the pastoralists mentioned in Section V accord to the camel the leading position as their standard of value, the ass, sheep, and goat being only of secondary importance, but they are also different in race. Like all herdsmen they have a strong pride of ancestry, which has led to internal gradations of rank, crossed by considerations of wealth. The North African Berber tribes are, however, Mohammedans, and therefore the whole structure of their civilization is different from that of the mainly ‘heathen’ cattle-breeders to be considered below. Their great natural gifts and their connexion with Islam set them apart from most of the remaining inhabitants of Africa ; on the other hand conditions of existence in desert and steppe, combined with specialization in pastoral life, have prevented their uniting to form large states or similar organizations.

Toute culture matérielle ou spirituelle comporte d'une part des principes généraux réglant des opérations communes, et d'autre part des applications particulières, ou façons spéciales, infiniment variées.

Nous n'avons pas à revenir sur les principes, les ayant exposés dans notre précédent article sur Assimilation ou Adaptation'. Venons-en donc tout de suite aux applications, et, sans entrer dans l'infini des détails, essayons de tracer les grandes lignes d'une pédagogie africaine, rationnelle et adaptée, telle qu'elle nous est apparue dans les études jusqu'ici publiées, et plus encore dans des observations personnelles, quotidiennes et directes de plus de vingt années d'enseignement et de direction.

The publication of this journal must undoubtedly mark an epoch of importance in the history of the relationship between Africans and Europeans. It is therefore surely not amiss to survey our ethnographical knowledge and acquaintance with the African people. But such a survey could hardly be compassed within the confines of a single article. Possibly, however, one small portion of that vast continent might so be surveyed; and of all such small portions perhaps none offers better scope than the Gold Coast.

Auf Karten und in der Literatur herrscht offensichtliche Verschiedenheit in der Schreibung det Völkernamen, die im Titel angedeutet sind. Eine kleine Auslese möge uns das vergegenwärtigen. Um sie möglichst anschaulich zu machen, setzen wir die einheimische und die europäische nebeneinander, wobei ich mir vorgreifend erlaube, den Anfangsbuchstaben des Stammes gross zu schreiben.