Foreword 



The honest are general Ij prepared to admit that the longer they have been in 

 Africa the more they realize how little they know about it. Others are not so 

 ready to acknowledge their ignorance and are all the more in need oj enlightenment 

 on that account. For all oJ us the tempo of modern times makes it very dijficuk 

 to find the opportunity to delve into the detail of African affairs for ourselves. 



There is no question of the need for greater knowledge of the things that affect 

 the daily life of the African people. Not only does it make for more efficient work 

 among them and for better understanding which is so essential, but it provides 

 an interest and enjoyment which are in themselves a reward and a stimulus to 

 further study. 



We are very fortunate in Nyasaland that Mrs. Williamson has accumulated 

 such a wealth of information on plants of day to day importance to its indigenous 

 inhabitants and presented it in a form so easy to use and to understand. The 

 majority of the items listed and described are eaten in one form or another at 

 varying times and circumstances during the year. They are therefore very much 

 the concern of the women who are the traditional gatherers and cookers of food. 

 This makes the material in this book all the more valuable in that it sheds light 

 into one of the darkest and most important corners of African life and better 

 understanding of it will help to gain the confidence of the women on which so 

 much of the progress in Africa depends. 



Indeed it was only by the utmost patience over many years that Mrs. Williamson 

 herself gained the confidence of the people — particularly the women — from whom 

 she gathered much of the material for this work. She has provided us with a 

 very necessary part of the foundation on which to build further understanding 

 and progress. 



ZoMBA, 24th February, 19^5^ R. W. Kettlewell 



Director of Agriculture 



