The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 45, July 1941 - April, 1942 Page: 221

Book Reviews

bility that the present arrangements may not prove adequate.
to the completion of the task on the basis on which the work
was started. If this possibility materializes, it may be desirable
to proceed as far as possible on the original scale and to under-
take a movement to secure additional funds to complete the
series, rather than to eliminate valuable papers and features
that have made the early volumes such notable contributions to
the published documents of the United States.
JOHN D. BARNHART.
Indilna University.
Gullah. By Mason Crum.
Durham, N. C.: Duke University Press, 1940. Pp. xiii, 351. $3.50.
The Gullah Negroes of the Carolina sea islands constitute one
of the most interesting racial groups to be found in America.
Left to themselves in their isolated island homes since Recon-
struction days, they have preserved in surprisingly pure form
many characteristics of their African and slave backgrounds.
Their unique dialect, their quaint social habits, and their folk-
religion offer a rich field indeed for studies in the social sciences
and folklore.
Dr. Crum, a native of South Carolina's Gullah region, has
brought a sympathetic picture of the Gullah Negro's society
before the reader. Although the study does not lay any claims
to distinction as a scientific or profound work, it does succeed
in throwing some light on Gullah culture. There are several
portions of the book that are particularly significant in this
regard.
The chapter dealing with Gullah dialect is especially interest-
ing because it brings together the views of a number of recog-
nized authorities on English dialects, as well as the opinions
of the few students of Negro dialect. There is a poverty of
published material in America on Negro dialect.
The sections concerned with the religious life of the Negro,
the life on the plantations during slavery, and the Port Royal
Experiment are very illuminating. In these sections the author
has cited source materials, such as letters and newspapers, that
date back to the early eighteenth century, and he is the first
writer to use them in a study of this sort.

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