FOREST MAGIC 



hours of market, contrast with the silence of the de- 

 serted pitch when once the busy buyers have dispersed 

 to their homes; for, hke frightened children, they waste 

 no time in their homegoing, fearing to be alone and lost 

 in the dark. 



Just as the deserted market when in use is the centre 

 of their social life, so the solitary shrine seen by the trav- 

 eller in the Forest is in the time of ceremony the centre 

 of their mystic life. 



At a lonely ju-ju place it has been my privilege to 

 see a Forest-dweller make his offering, unconscious of 

 observation, while on a great feast day I have encoun- 

 tered a gathering of Chiefs and elders clad in their rega- 

 lia, who showed in every act, even as the old man alone 

 before the forest shrine, their sense of devotion to the 

 Great Spirit to whom it was their wont to turn. In the 

 Forest today there is a silent appeal to the thinking 

 white man who with them will penetrate its depths and 

 seek to be in tune with its life. But without local knowl- 

 edge of men and trees, it is impossible to lay sure foun- 

 dations for useful service. 



In the Forest comes the desire for the best utilization 

 of its wondrous resources, and the perpetuation of its 

 usefulness through the recurring years. One sees clearly 

 a place for man to cooperate with struggling Nature, 

 and with his knowledge of science direct the growth 

 into the highest use. 



Eager to learn, and ready to follow the guidance of 



169 



