374 AFRICAN GAME TRAILS 



civilizations, to develop without fear of being overwhelmed 

 in the surrounding gulfs of savagery; and this aside from 

 the direct stimulus to development conferred by the con- 

 sciously and unconsciously exercised influence of the white 

 man, wherein there is much of evil, but much more of ulti- 

 mate good. In any region of wide-spread savagery, the 

 chances for the growth of each self-produced civilization are 

 necessarily small, because each little centre of effort toward 

 this end is always exposed to destruction from the neighbor- 

 ing masses of pure savagery; and therefore progress is often 

 immensely accelerated by outside invasion and control. In 

 Africa the control and guidance is needed as much in the 

 things of the spirit as in the things of the body. Those who 

 complain of or rail at missionary work in Africa, and who 

 confine themselves to pointing out the undoubtedly too nu- 

 merous errors of the missionaries and shortcomings of 

 their flocks, would do well to consider that even if the 

 light which has been let in is but feeble and gray it has at 

 least dispelled a worse than Stygian darkness. As soon as 

 native African religions practically none of which have 

 hitherto evolved any substantial ethical basis develop be- 

 yond the most primitive stage they tend, notably in middle 

 and western Africa, to grow into malign creeds of unspeak- 

 able cruelty and immorality, with a bestial and revolting 

 ritual and ceremonial. Even a poorly taught and imper- 

 fectly understood Christianity, with its underlying founda- 

 tion of justice and mercy, represents an immeasurable 

 advance on such a creed. 



Where, as in Uganda, the people are intelligent and 

 the missionaries unite disinterestedness and zeal with com- 

 mon sense, the result is astounding. The majority of 



