NUMBER 2 VOLUME XV 1990 LIBERIAN STUDIES JOURNAL , 1 8°W I Ó° LIBERIA 8 °N- -8 °N LOFA GRAND CAPE MOUNT BONG MONSERRADO . GRAND BASSA MARGIBI 6 °N- RIVER CESS l" INS GRAND GEDEH SINOE LIBERIA GRAND KRU it/ / MILES oigr U 50 MARYLAND 8 °W Geography Department 10 °W I University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown 1 INC. Published by THE LIBERIAN STUDIES ASSOCIATION, PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Cover map: compiled by William Kory, cartography work by Jodie Molnar; Geography Department, University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor VOLUME XV 1990 NUMBER 2 LIBERIAN STUDIES JOURNAL SPECIAL ISSUE In Memory of Bai Tamia Moore (1920 -1988) Guest Editor Lester P. Monts University of California, Santa Barbara Editor D. Elwood Dunn The University of the South Associate Editor Similih M. Cordor Kennesaw College Book Review Editor Alfred B. Konuwa Butte College EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Bertha B. Azango Lawrence B. Breitborde University of Liberia Beloit College Christopher Clapham Warren L. d'Azevedo Lancaster University University of Nevada Reno Henrique F. Tokpa Thomas E. Hayden Cuttington University College Africa Faith and Justice Network Svend E. Holsoe J. Gus Liebenow University of Delaware Indiana University Corann Okorodudu Glassboro State College Edited at the Department of Political Science, The University of the South PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 BAI TAMIA MOORE 1920-1988 .............................................................. 4 PROBLEMS OF VAI IDENTITY IN TERMS OF MY OWN EXPERIENCE 10 by Bai Tamia Moore LANDSMAN: THE CONVERSATIONS OF BAI T. MOORE ............ 13 by Diane Oyler and Arnold Odio BAI T. MOORE'S POETRY AND LIBERIAN IDENTITY ................... 26 by Dorith Ofri- Scheps ZOLU DUMA, RULER OF THE SOUTHERN VAI, 17??-1828: A PROBLEM IN HISTORICAL INTERPRETATION ......................................... 91 by Svend E. Holsoe SOCIAL AND MUSICAL RESPONSES TO ISLAM AMONG THE VAI DURING THE EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY ..................... 108 by Lester P. Monts THE DAY WILL COME: J. J. WALTERS AND GUANYA PAU ....... 125 by John Victor Singler INGENIOUS INVENTION: THE INDIGENOUS KPELLE SCRIPT IN THE LATE TWENTIETH CENTURY .......... ............................... 139 by Ruth M. Stone REFLECTIONS ON SOME CONCEPTS OF RELIGION AND MEDICINE IN LIBERIAN SOCIETY ................................. ............................... 145 by Al- Hassan Conteh CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE ......................... ............................... 158 INDEX ............................... 159 A referee journal that emphasizes the social sciences and humanities, the LIBERIAN STUDIES JOURNAL is a semiannual publication devoted to studies of Africa's oldest republic. The annual subscription rate is $25.00, $12.00 for students and $40.00 for institutions, and includes membership in the Liberian Studies Association, Inc. All manuscripts and related matters should be addressed to The Editor, Liberian Studies Journal, Department of Political Science, The University of the South, Sewanee, TN 37375. Subscriptions and other business matters should be directed to The Executive Secretary, Liberian Studies Association, P.O. Box 671 Bloomington, Illinois 61702 -0671. The views expressed herein are those of the individual contributors and do not necessar- ily reflect those of the editor or the Liberian Studies Association, Inc. Copyright 1990 by the Liberian Studies Association, Inc. ISSN 00241989 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor Introduction At the annual meeting of the Liberian Studies Association held in Akron, Ohio in April, 1988, a proposal was made that the Association devote a special issue of the LSA journal to the memory of Bai Tamia Moore, who passed away in January, 1988. Bai T., as he was affectionately known by his friends and colleagues, was a central figure in the development of Liberian cultural studies. For Liberian and foreign scholars alike, he was the quintessential "stranger father," the person from whom advice on Liberian culture was sought. Since the early 1950s until his death, Bai T. had interacted with numerous scholars whose interests span many areas of Liberian cultural studies. For all who relied on his knowledge of Liberian culture, Bai T. comprehended the nature of their research and interests and was willing to provide input into the many complex problems they encountered. It is in the spirit of thanks and gratitude that we dedicated this issue to the memory of a great man. It is customary for the editor of festschrifts and other dedicatory volumes of this sort to present a lengthy introduction, pulling together the contributions in some coherent fashion. However, due to the length of this issue and to the fact that no central theme emerges, I will forego that task and provide only brief descriptions of the papers. This will allow the reader to derive whatever semblance of order that emerges. The first article, by Bai T. Moore, was written in 1972 and presented at the Manding Conference held at the University of London. Using the diversity of his own ethnic background as a model, Moore brings to light the often confusing problem of dual and multiple ethnic identity among the peoples of northwest Liberia and southern Sierra Leone. Diane Oyler's and Arnold Odio's contribution is excerpts from conversa- tions with Bai T. Moore held during the summer of 1987. The texts are word -for- word mussings by Bai T. on such topics as his poetry, the Vai language, the concept of the extended family, his walking tours of Liberia, his remembrances about people and places, the United States, Maya Angelou, and other topics of interest to him. The authors have tried as much as possible to preserve Bai T.'s free -ranging manner of conversing, his humor and wit, and the inimitable cadences in the oratory of a man for whom language was in and of itself a sense of discovery and wonderment. Dorith Scheps -Ofri's paper is a meticulous analysis of Bai T.'s literary style. Capitalizing on Moore's role as a builder of a contemporary Liberian identity, Ofri heralds his creative writing as the triumphant birth of modern Liberian literature. More significantly, the paper illustrates how Moore's writing touches on town and country, past and present, tradition and change, love and death, Liberian Studies Journal, XV, 2, (1990) 1 PDF compression, OCR, web optimization using a watermarked evaluation copy of CVISION PDFCompressor 2 LESTER P. MONTS Gola and Vai, Africa and beyond, poetry, tales, and a fusion of Liberian creative arts in his literary style. Through the use of oral and written historical sources, Svend Holsoe documents the life of Zolu Duma, a warrior and ruler of the southern Vai areas during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Holsoe's account lends a degree of clarity to Zolu Duma's position as an historical figure, while preserving his near mythical status as a culture hero and despot in Vai lore. My paper discusses the musical and social responses to Islam during the early twentieth century. During this era Islam moved from its marginal, localized status and began to take hold in all segments of Vai society. I attempt to show that the beginning of this period was characterized by toleration and coexistence between traditional and Islamic practices. But toward the end of this era, people witnessed abandonment of traditional practices, the infusion of Islamic elements, and a movement toward orthodoxy. Musical elements fol- lowed a similar courses. At first, traditional music performance was maintained as an important entertainment element at major celebrations, but the aniconic views of Islam soon relegated masked dancing, drumming, and singing to less central roles. John Victor Singler's discussion of Joseph Jeffery Walters' 1891 novel Guanya Pau: A Story of an African Princess, is an interesting discussion of male perceptions of female roles during the late nineteenth century. A young Vai man, Walters wrote this short novel as a polemic to call attention to the plight of women in Vai society. Singler's paper draws on archival material and existing ethnographic studies of the Vai to relate Walters' life to his novel and vice versa. Ruth M. Stone's paper illustrates that the Kpelle people, like the Vai, developed an indigenous script. Her meticulous study documents examples of the Kpelle script, presents a number of characters that have not appeared in the literature, and discusses the possible connections between the Vai and Kpelle writing systems. The final paper by Al-Hassan Conteh brings to light some new and interesting concepts on religion and traditional medical practices among the Mandingo. Relying on many personal experiences, he discusses the skills of traditional medical practitioners, illustrating their important role in society. Drawing on a theoretical model developed by Robin Horton, Conteh contrasts the notion of "open" and "closed" predicaments vis -a-vis modern Mandingo reliance on effective medical care within the confines of Liberian belief systems. This paper will no doubt further the debate on the reliability of traditional versus Western medical procedures. At the time this volume is submitted for publication, Liberia is in the throes of a tragic and devastating civil war. Thousands