The Gold Coast Review

Abstract

His Excellency the Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Gold Coast has been pleased to sanction an attempt to sustain in the Gold Coast the periodical issue of a journal of review of historical and scientific interest on the lines of the admirable Bulletin du Comit" d'Etudes Historiques et Scientifiques de l'Afrique Occidentale Franfaise, or of such publications in parts of the British Empire as, for example, Sudan notes and Records, or of the numerous records of the proceedings of County Archaeological Societies in England. Those coming to the Gold Coast from other parts of the world outside Great Britain have at times thought it a reproach to the Political Service of the Colony in particular that there should be no locally organised publication of studies on points of ethnological, anthropological and archaeological interest. Those of us who have spent some years in that Service know something of the difficulties which have militated against such production, but we know better than to attempt to explain them to an unsympathetic world and can content ourselves with taking the lead now in an endeavour to remedy the defect. It is not intended, however, that the pages of the Gold Coast Review should be restricted to contributions from members of the Gold Coast Political Service or even Government Officers generally, present or past. This first number is almost entirely composed of articles by members of the Political Service, but that is only with the intention encouraging the others. It has also seemed most convenient in the present circumstances of the Colony that the Review should be published under the auspices of the Government and not as a private enterprise, but it is very much hoped that this will not prevent all educated members of the community from regarding the Review as a possession, which with their support may become something of which we may all be proud. Apart from the contributions on subject of scientific and general interest that we may hope to receive from those in Europe with a knowledge of things West African, the Gold Coast itself contains a great variety of persons well qualified to write for the Review. It is hoped that the Administrative Officers of the Government whose duties bring them into close touch with the people of the country, will continue to contribute on points connected with the antiquities, traditions, rites, manners and customs of the Gold Coast: that other Government Officers will write on subjects of local llltere.t that may come under their notice either in a general way or from the point of view of their special professional qualifications: that those who are engaged in mining, agricultural, banking 01' mercantile pursuits will spare time from their engrossing preoccupations either to record for the pages of the Gold Coast Review some special aspects of their business as conditioned by local circumstance or to interest themselves in matters outside their business and, becoming amateurs of science and the arts in accordance with the best tradition of prosperous men of affairs III other communities, give the results of their interest to the world through the pages of the Gold Coast Review: and finally that natives of the country will not shun the Review as a Government publication or a preserve for Europeans, but will give us the advantage of special studies on matters connected with their own country. Such as we see now occasionally and of a "cry good quality III the all too ephemeral setting of the weekly newspapers. The late Mr. J. M. Sarbah und Mr. A. 13. Quartey-Papafio set a good example in contributions of great interest lo the Journal of the African Society, but it has not been followed, and we make a special appeal now to members’ of the Gold Coast Bar and other educated Africa to revive the fashion of making investigations ill a scientific spirit into the customs and institutions their own land and people and to put them on record in the Gold Coast Review.