70 REPORT OF THE HARVARD AFRICAN EXPEDITION 
There the pawning of women was particularly brought to our attention. 
A man in Liberia may pawn as security for a loan of any kind, almost anything 
he possesses, including his wives or dependents, for any amount that he can get 
for them. However, the Liberian Government regulations on the subject provide 
that the person concerned must give his consent, a provision that is obviously 
disregarded for the most part. In order to differentiate the act of pawning an 
individual from slave dealing, it is stated that the pawn must be accompanied 
by some token, such as a ring, a bracelet, or other possession. Inanimate articles 
pawned may be used by the holder of the pawn, and if clothing, may be worn. 
In the case of a woman, the holder of the pawn acquires all rights over her per- 
son, and according to the regulations can ‘‘take her to wife until redeemed.” * 
If she bears him a child, he may retain it if he wishes. 
In 1923 the Liberian Government in attempting to control further this system 
of pawning in the hinterland, provided that pawns should be allowed to redeem 
themselves (which, clearly they can almost never do), and that a pawn should 
be redeemed by the payment of the original sum and nothing more. The regu- 
lations also forbade the pawning of Liberians to foreign subjects. Obviously 
foreign subjects do not reside in the interior of Liberia, but only in Monrovia 
and in the coast cities, and this provision discriminating as it were against 
foreign subjects, brings clearly to mind what may be referred to as the “‘ white 
slave” traffic in Monrovia, if we understand that the word ‘‘native”’ is to be 
substituted for the word ‘‘ white.”’ 
With reference to the custom of pawning children, or of receiving children to 
be educated or to be employed in domestic service by the civilized people living 
on the coast, Buell ? says: 
“Practically every negro family in Monrovia and other coast towns has such 
children in its household. Often such children stay in their new family for a 
period of ten or fifteen years. During this period they are obliged to do the 
housework and a number, it appears, perform labor on the farms. In some cases 
such children are mistreated. A prominent Liberian was found guilty of mis- 
treating eight boys who ran away and took refuge with the county attorney. 
Nevertheless it seems that many of them receive the same kind of education as 
the colonists’ children, and legally they may leave their foster parents and return 
to the bush when they like. The children frequently marry into the family, in 
other cases adopted girls become concubines. The Liberian system has given 
the native.children an education which many of them would not have otherwise 
received, and by injecting new blood into the coastal population, the system is 
forging a Liberian nation. Nevertheless, there are in any such system certain 
obvious abuses which should if possible be prevented by law. Every family 
accepting such children should be obliged to assume the obligation of a guardian 
enforced by the courts. There would seem to be stronger reasons for enforcing 
a rule prohibiting pawning against the “civilized” Liberians who profess a high 
standard of ethics than against the aboriginal tribes.”’ 
! Liberian Department Regulations (1923), Article 19. 
2 Buell: Loc. cit., II, 750. 
