74 SCIENCE IN AFRICA 



The Gold Coast Department produces annual reports (since 

 19 1 3), bulletins (six to date), and memoirs (four to date). Tan- 

 ganyika has annual reports (8vo. since 1928), bulletins (eight), 

 and short papers (twelve). 



Uganda has a series of annual reports (since 1925), occasional 

 papers, and memoirs. Two of the latter, on South-West Ankole, 

 by Combe and Groves (1932), and the volcanic area of Bufumbira 

 by Combe and Simmons (1933), may be singled out as examples 

 of the detailed regional surveys now in progress. In 1931, the 

 Director published a most valuable summary of the progress of 

 the Geological Survey from its inception in 191 9 to 1929. In 1934 

 the annual report was reduced to a twelve-page document con- 

 taining necessary references to the movements of the staff, finance, 

 etc., with the minimum of technical and scientific data, and a 

 series of annual bulletins was inaugurated for the publication of 

 the latter. This system will eventually be of great assistance to 

 the outside scientist. 



In view of the advantages of a uniform system of publications, 

 the following scheme, based on a combination of the most valuable 

 methods at present in use, is suggested: 



(i) Annual Reports (8vo.) reduced to a minimum and contain- 

 ing only information concerning staff, finance, etc., required by 

 the Government in question or by the Colonial Office. 



(2) Annual Bulletins (small 4to.) containing articles on the 

 results of research by members of the department, sometimes 

 articles by outside authorities who have visited the territory, 

 etc. 



(3) Memoirs (small 4to.) published as required, each consisting 

 of an individual piece of work which is too long or too detailed for 

 inclusion in the annual bulletins. 



(4) Maps. 



An attractive system is that adopted by the French, of publish- 

 ing nearly all results of research in the journals of scientific societies 

 in France. The geological service for French West Africa, for 

 instance, has published short annual reports since 1932, each of 

 only fifteen to twenty pages, with a two-page list of references to 

 papers in societies' journals by members of the departmental staff. 

 This method has the advantages of making the results of research 



