M^^NINYAGA, THE GREAT ^ ^?^liITE SPIRIT 



the good of their character. They are naturally self- 

 indulgent and improvident, for they live in the pres- 

 ent without taking careful thought for the morrow. 

 And yet, strange to say, regarding them from the ma- 

 terial standpoint, wealth per head of population is far 

 greater than it is in any of the countries of Europe. 

 They are superstitious and credulous, but eager to un- 

 derstand and quick to copy the ways of the white man, 

 which do not always benefit them. In the matter of things 

 supernatural, they show a vivid imagination. Kind and 

 hospitable to each other, they will share the little lux- 

 uries as well as the necessities of life. If a man has two 

 corn cobs and meets another who has none, he will give 

 him one. Lovable and trustful, yet unstable of char- 

 acter, they are naturally inclined to be lazy, but when 

 once given a taste for work, they Hke it. 



But to be in a position to help them, it is necessary 

 to have, first, a thorough knowledge of their spiritual 

 and mental attitude towards life. These peoples do not 

 need our pity. They want our understanding. To un- 

 derstand them we must divest ourselves of our preju- 

 dices. We must realize that in their present state they 

 are comparable with other peoples at the same stage of 

 development. Because their mode of life is different 

 from ours, it is not necessarily unsuitable for them. 

 "We must eliminate that smugness which is too often a 

 characteristic of our attitude towards African races. 

 We must be prepared to go with them into the forest, 



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