Excerpt from An Introduction to the Study of African Languages AS a rule, no long explanation is needed to make clear why a scientific traveller, an official, a business man, or a missionary should seek to acquire the languages of primitive peoples in our colonies over seas. All the world over, the first requisite for any one who has to deal with men is ability to communi cate with them. When, therefore, a primitive people understands no European language the only course open to the European desirous of opening up intercourse with it is to learn its language. Later on I intend to discuss the practical import ance attaching to the acquisition of primitive languages in some detail, because it is not even yet adequately recognised. But, in the first place, I have to deal with another question, the answer to which is not so immediately obvious: Why. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.