February 23, 1934

Missionaries "got me down" in Freetown, Sierre Leona. We had to trans-ship one of our passengers back through the country to get her down the coast and the train did not go until the following day so we had to put this woman up in an African hotel. When he had all her bags on the sidewalk in front of the hotel another missionary came up, talked for a while - during which time she learned what was being done - and then as she was leaving she turned and said "Well, I suppose you will come up this afternoon". Brotherly love, indeed! That is what the missionaries are supposed to do and teach above everything. The missionary money is wasted out here. You can teach morality for ever and it will not mean a thing . . .

Across the street in one of the nicer houses is a woman with two illegitimate children. One of our clerks is the bastard son of a Government Official. That is the way it goes. Three to a dozen wives are not too many if you can pay for that many. That custom is for the native Liberians, of course.