81 
April, 1945 The Queensland Naturalist 
She is also President of the Brisbane Women’s Club and 
a well-known social worker. In April, 1942, Lieut. Jack- 1 
son married Miss Dorothy Oldfield in Brisbane. 
DUG-OUT CANOE FROM ROKELL RIVER, SIERRA 
LEONE, WEST AFRICA 
By G. K. JACKSON 
(Plate II.) 
In discussing an ethnographical aspect of a native race 
such as the manufacture and use of its local craft, it is 
perhaps advisable to give a genera] idea of the race itself, 
of the country it inhabits, and then to link these observa- 
tions with a description of the article in question. 
Sierra Leone, lying as it does within the Torrid Zone 
and being well noted for the prevalence of various tropical 
diseases, has earned for itself the name of “The White 
Man’s Grave.” Even a cursory glance at the low-lying 
swampy land at the mouth of the Rokell River gives 
adequate proof of this condition. 
Geographically the area is divided into two sections. 
The low-lying portions of swamp and rain-forest stretch- 
ing away to the north and west, whilst to the south rise 
large hills, and fairly rugged mountains, almost completely 
clothed in a growth of rain-forest. Curiously enough the 
forest does not appear to possess the deep shade of olive 
green usually associated with such botanical features. 
The natives themselves are mainly descended from 
negro slaves, liberated in this area many years ago follow- 
ing the general abolition of slavery. 
In 1787 four hundred were placed ashore here. Tn 
1792 a further 1,131, with still more following half a 
century later. Their language is Creole, the name of the 
negro population of America. They have reverted to, and 
likewise have developed many of the older arts, probably 
flavoured largely by contact with more primitive tribes 
which already inhabited the area. These crisp frizzy- 
haired natives, typical negroid types, are well built and 
muscular, a more or less universal trait amongst maritime 
tribes, who spend much of their time in the water. 
The canoe in question is a dug-out, of rain-forest 
timber, about 12 feet in length (Plate IT., fig. 1, 2, 3). 
The hull, with its greatest girth at the waist of the vessel. 
