The Ordway new era., 1922-12-29


ciety, Washington. D. CO
Commodities have left their names
in the geography of western Africa In
ascending scale. First came the Ivory
Coast, followed by the Gold Coast and
Slave Coast. Now that the age of
coal is being threatened by the grow
ing Importance of liquid fuels, the
Gold Coast, where important petrol
cum discoveries were recently report
ed, may take on name that denotes
value surprising all the rest-the
Oil Coast.
Columbus Is believed to have done
some of his apprentice exploring along
the Gold Coast shores before he set
sail for America and many an eman-
cipated slave of our southland could
find his family tree among the ma
tfves of this British colony. The col
ony lies under the caves" of Africa,
with the Gulf of Guinea due south of
it. The golden age of the Gold Coast,
commercially considered, was In the
days Of fiourishing slave trade, and
the oil fields promise again to outbuy
the entire product of the gold grains
winnowed from the sands Of the many
rivers of this region.
When you read that three-fourths
of the colony is covered with thick
forests you get very inadequate idea
of what you would see could you look
upon the amazing Businesses Of Bonn
bax trees, piercing the skyline at
hundred feet, with columnar trunks,
free from branches below the top
quarter lergth. The trees you know
best at home are like icebergs In that
their bases, or root systems, are under
the surface. These foreign giants re-
mind you Of your children's Christmas
tree, buttressed by what look to be
huge triangular supports. Should you
dig beneath one Of these buttresses
you would find tiny tendrils. such as
those which might nourish sapling.
In the spaces between these buttresses
natives sometimes pitch primitive
tents.
The impression of forest of tele-
phone poles is further conveyed by
great cables sagging from tree to tree.
These "creepers" are popularly known
as monkey-rope, appropriately enough,
since many varieties Of monkeys are
to be found in these forests.
The Gold Coast colony stretches
along some 27O miles of harborless
coast, and extends back for about half
that distance to the border of Ashanti.
Its government seat, Accra. which es-
capes by only few degrees of having
both a latitude and longitude Of zero,
t>o H.
full. The entire region Is hot and
damp, has two rainy seasons, and is
swept by that peculiarly dust-laden
| Sahara wind, the harmattan.
Along this cost lies Kormantine, ia
nous as the place where slaves first
were exported, which gave the name
| Cormantynes, to the West Indies
slaves from the region.
OF the estimated population of a
million, fewer than 1000 are Euro
peans. The most noted Of the native
peoples are the Fanti, whose women
| of light brown skin are pretty. Their
fayorite perfume is distilled from the
excrement of snakes. Shark flesh
sun dried, Is favorite edible. Among
them, as among many primitive fight
| ing peoples, mothers are held In higf
| esteem. Property Is inherited by the
| oldest son Of the oldest sister. Lant
is held In communal fashion, the
possession Of gold ''stool" being the
badge of chiefs authority to thu
lands over which he holds sway
Areas are assigned to families bu
they revert to the community upor
the holders death.
Trees, plants, animals. snakes AM
/ insects are found In amazing variety
Here, as in many other verdant tror