MEN OF THE TREES 



The Africans possess certain fine national traits which, 

 in the interest of the future well-being of the people, 

 should be handed on. The young African of today too 

 often has the idea that to be successful he must make 

 a clean cut with the past. There is no doubt that our 

 present system of education in Africa is very largely 

 to be blamed for this, for we are forcing upon them the 

 European curriculum, which, by the way, has not proved 

 itself to be an unqualified success even in the countries 

 of its origin. This curriculum we are imposing ready 

 made, with all its defects, upon the African peoples, 

 without sufficiently attempting to modify or adapt it 

 to their requirements, with the result too often that 

 the young African scholar begins to discredit everything 

 that belonged to his fathers. In his enthusiasm for the 

 new he is apt to forget the old, and often fails to re- 

 alize that there are things in his own past worthy of 

 remembrance. I am confident, however, that this state 

 of affairs will quickly change when the young enthusiast 

 has pursued his studies a little farther. But it is im- 

 portant that in the interim the secret of the past should 

 not be lost. 



Now that I am writing for the first time of my ex- 

 perience of the Kiama, I find myself in a quandary. I 

 am torn between two ideals; on the one hand I am 

 loath to betray any secrets entrusted to me for keep- 

 ing, and on the other hand for the future welfare of the 

 race and a better understanding of their customs and 

 beliefs I feel myself compelled to speak. Undoubtedly 



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