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Library and Information Center Management 9th Edition Library and Information Science Text Ebook PDF Version
Library and Information Center Management 9th Edition Library and Information Science Text Ebook PDF Version
Illustrations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii
Acknowledgments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xv
SECTION 1—INTRODUCTION
1 Managing in T
oday’s Libraries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2 The Evolution of Management Thought . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
3 Change: The Innovative Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
SECTION 2—PLANNING
4 Strategic Planning, Decision Making, and Policy. . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
5 Planning and Maintaining Library Facilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
6 Marketing Information Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
SECTION 3—ORGANIZING
7 Organizations and Organizational Culture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
8 The Fundamentals of Organization: Specialization and
Coordination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
9 Designing Adaptive Organizational Structures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
SECTION 5—LEADING
13 Motivation in the Workplace. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
14 Organizational Leadership. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333
vii
viii Contents
SECTION 6—COORDINATING
18 Evaluating Organizational Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441
19 Library Finance and Budgets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
20 Library Fund-Raising (Development) and Grant Writing . . . . . 491
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 529
Illustrations
Figures
1.1 Elements of Competitive Advantage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1.2 Levels of Management in Libraries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.3 The Functions of Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.4 Mintzberg’s Managerial Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.1 Major Schools of Management Thought . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
2.2 Classical Schools of Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.3 Frederick W. Taylor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.4 Lillian and Frank Gilbreth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
2.5 Simplified Gantt Chart. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
2.6 Max Weber. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
2.7 Mary Parker Follett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
2.8 The Elements of the System Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.1 Information Paradigm Shift. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
3.2 The Continuum of Change. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
3.3 Internal and External Pressure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
3.4 Interrelationships of the Various Subsystems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
4.1 Strategic Planning Is a Continuous Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
4.2 Development of a Strategic Plan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
4.3 Looking-Around Aspect of the Planning Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
4.4 Political, Economic, Social, and Technological (PEST)
Factors Impact Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
4.5 Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and
Threats (SWOT) Analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
4.6 Components of a Mission Statement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
4.7 Steps in the Decision-Making Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
5.1 Sample Page from Library Architectural Program. . . . . . . . . . . . 116
6.1 Marketing Mix—The Three Cs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
6.2 Marketing Mix—The Six Ps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
6.3 10 Reasons for Marketing Library and Information Services . . . 129
7.1 The Life Cycle of Organizations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
ix
x Illustrations
Tables
1.1 Most Important Skills Needed for Success in 2015 and 2020 . . . . 17
2.1 Fayol’s Fourteen Principles of Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
2.2 Assumptions of McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y. . . . . . . . . . . . 39
5.1 Comparing Library’s Existing Space to Proposed Program
and to Comparator Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
9.1 Characteristics of a Bureaucracy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
10.2 Library Support Staff Job Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
10.2 Permitted and Prohibited Questions in
Employment Interviews. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
11.1 Onboarding Responsibilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
11.2 Differences between New Employee Orientation
and Onboarding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
11.3 Employee Development Plan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
11.4 Common Errors in Performance Appraisals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
12.1 Job Description from Classified Advertising Sections in
the January 15 and July 1959 Issue of Library Journal.. . . . . . . 291
12.2 Major U.S. Federal Legislation Relating to Equal
Opportunity in the Workplace. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
15.1 Some Definitions Related to Ethics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
15.2 Questions for Examining the Ethics of a Business Decision . . . . 375
16.1 Examples of Communication in a Library. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
17.1 How Do You Know that You Are Empowered?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
17.2 Types of Teams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422
17.3 Roles Played Within a Team. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428
19.1 Sample Format of a Minimal Library Budget—Operating
Income. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474
19.2 Sample Format of a Minimal Library Budget—Operating
Expenditures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475
19.3 The Line-Item Budget. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480
xii Illustrations
The first edition of this book was published in 1977. That edition, co-authored
by Robert D. Stueart and John T. Eastlick, was designed to fill a need for a
basic management textbook for library and information science (LIS) stu-
dents. At the time it was published, there was little material available about
library management, and LIS faculty who taught library management courses
had e ither to assign textbooks intended for students in public administration
or business management or to compile a reading list of selected material
on management from various sources. During the more than 40 years since
the publication of the first edition of Library Management, libraries and infor-
mation serv ices have changed dramatically and each new edition of this
textbook has reflected t hese changes in both libraries and in their external
environment. The ninth edition of this text is very different from the one that
was published in 1977, but its purpose is the same—to provide in one vol-
ume a comprehensive introduction to all the most important functions in
library management for not only LIS students but also for beginning library
managers.
Each edition of the book has introduced new material and features. In
the early editions before the internet, a large portion of each volume was
devoted to examples of forms, charts and documents used by managers. More
recently, those examples have been included in the companion Web site to the
textbook. This new edition reflects the helpful feedback we have gotten from
LIS faculty both in the United States and internationally who use the text-
book in their courses. In preparing this revision, the authors have continued
to draw freely from writing and research in cognate fields, including busi-
ness management, public administration, and many areas of the social sci-
ences. Although all of our chapters have been revised and updated, we have
expanded the chapter on budgeting, with more real life examples and added
a grant writing section to the fundraising chapter
This edition continues to provide numerous opportunities through case
studies, role-plays, and simulations for experiential learning to enable stu-
dents or beginning managers to apply their knowledge to real world problems
or situations. In this latest edition, we have added more activities to allow
students to interact with one another and to participate in managerial-related
exercises. In this new addition, each chapter begins with “Chapter Take-
aways” which lists the most important concepts covered in that chapter.
Another new feature, “Management on the Job” is located near the beginning
xiii
xiv Preface
We would like to thank the many p eople have contributed to ninth edition of
Library and Information Center Management. Readers of previous editions,
including students, faculty, and practitioners, have made useful suggestions
and many have been incorporated into this latest edition. Colleagues through-
out the United States and the world have indicated the value of this text-
book to them and to their students. We are grateful for their encouragement
and hope they will be pleased with the changes made in this edition.
Our appreciation goes Rebecca Vargha, the SLIS Librarian at the Univer-
sity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Monica Colon-Aguirre from Simmons
College SILS; and Elizabeth Fowler from the University of New Hampshire
Library for their help in this latest edition. Brian Nussbaum and his team
of talented student assistants at the IT desk at UNC–SILS provided much
needed assistance whenever needed. We are also grateful to Rachel Anne
Spencer, who helped with the preparation of the manuscript. Our editor at
Libraries Unlimited, Blanche Woolls, provided us with assistance throughout.
We would also like to acknowledge other colleagues from Libraries Unlim-
ited, especially Emma Bailey, for their efficiency, assistance, and continuing
encouragement to write yet another edition of this textbook.
In addition, we need to once again recognize the contributions of A. J.
Anderson, who wrote several of the case studies used in the book and the Web
site. Finally, we again recognize Bob Stueart, friend and mentor, who first
saw the need for a textbook in library management over 40 years ago and
who coauthored the first seven editions of Library and Information Center
Management. His work in library management continues to be an inspira-
tion to us.
Many library and information center managers permitted us to repro-
duce documents that are used as examples in the book and the Web site, and
we thank them. Their management practices and procedures make our dis-
cussions and illustrations of the issues and challenges more relevant and
effective.
Finally, we thank our husbands, Joe and Lennie, and our families for
their help and encouragement during the writing of this manuscript. With-
out their support, the task would never have been completed.
xv
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Section 1
Introduction
It has become a cliché to say that constant change is the new normal, but we
are certainly living in a period of time when the pace of change has increased
dramatically. Organizations of all types are struggling to stay ahead of trans-
formations that often threaten their traditional ways of doing things, real-
izing that those organizations that do not adapt will likely not survive. In
2015, Udo Gollub, a German entrepreneur and CEO, provided an interesting
perspective on the consequences of not being able to adapt quickly. He used
Kodak, which just a few years ago was a h ousehold name in cameras and film,
as an example of an organization that was not able to adapt rapidly enough. In
1998, Kodak employed over 170,000 employees and was the source of 85 percent
of all photo paper sold worldwide. However, in just a few years its business
model was completely destroyed, and the company entered bankruptcy. Kodak
was too slow to change in response to the advent of digital photography, which
constituted a transformative change in the environment for photography. This
change almost resulted in the demise of an organization that had existed as
a leader in its field for over 100 years. Gollub speculates that what “happened
to Kodak w ill happen in a lot of industries in the next 10 years—and most
people don’t see it coming.”1
Gollub described other transformative changes that he thinks will become
mainstream in just a few years, advances that w ill pose the same threats to
the traditional practices of many existing organizations that digital photog-
raphy did to Kodak. These are trends to which today’s managers need to be
responding to now if they want their organizations to remain viable. Some of
these changes are:
1
2 Introduction
The changes listed above are all speculations, but they are grounded in
reality. Although they may not occur within the time frame predicted by Gol-
lub, it is highly likely they all will occur. Most of them are already begin-
ning to happen. All organizations that exist t oday w
ill feel the impact of one
or more of t hese transformative changes and likely w ill be impacted by o thers
that we are not yet able to foresee. Managers are facing the need to stay
ahead of these changes while at the same time encountering more competi-
tion in terms of funding and support than ever before. Some of the transfor-
mations faced by organizations are the result of demographic and other
changes, but most have been the result of the dizzying pace of change in tech-
nology that has occurred in the past few decades.
Just as organizations w
ere transformed after the advent of the indus-
trial revolution of the 18th century, we now are entering a new industrial
Introduction 3
revolution. This new era has been given various names including the Digi-
tal Revolution, the Second Machine Age2 and the Fourth Industrial Revolu-
tion3, but whatever you call it, the indications are that this new era is poised
to bring fundament alterations the way we live and work. The first industrial
revolution was triggered in the mid-1700s by the advent of the steam engine
that allowed many processes that had previously been done by hand to be
mechanized. The second arrived about 100 years later when electric power
began to be used to drive mass production. The third industrial revolution
began in the late 1960s and was based on electronic technology that provided
new ways of generating, processing, and sharing information. The fourth
industrial revolution, unlike its predecessors, is not based on a single technol-
ogy but instead is a coming together of a number of technologies; this fusion
of technologies is blurring the lines between the physical, digital, and biologi-
cal spheres.4 As a report from the World Economic Forum states, “Develop-
ments in genetics, artificial intelligence, robotics, nanotechnology, 3D printing
and biotechnology, to name just a few, are all building on and amplifying one
another. This w ill lay the foundation for a revolution more comprehensive
and all-encompassing than anything we have ever seen.”5
Today’s organizations have already been affected by the changes brought
about by the information technology associated with the third industrial rev-
olution. Few organizations have been transformed as much as libraries, which
have experienced change in almost e very area of responsibility and activity.
These already transformed organizations w ill face further changes during
the Fourth Industrial Revolution. At least for the immediate future, librar-
ies will need to continue many of the legacy functions they have always per-
formed while at the same time implementing the new services needed to meet
the information needs of the 21st century user. Today’s library managers
must be able to respond rapidly and flexibly to this new environment. Good
management has always been important for libraries, but it w ill be even more
critical as they face the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
This book examines the current management practices in libraries and
other types of information agencies. It w ill discuss both current thinking
about management and some of the principles developed over the past cen-
turies that still provide a framework for thinking about modern organ
izations. The first chapter of the textbook w ill begin with a general overview
of the skills and competencies needed by modern managers. This chapter is
followed by a historical overview that provides a retrospective look at the
roots of modern management. The third chapter focuses on change and its
impact on organizations.
Library and Information Center Management provides an introduction
to the principles of management, but serves only as a foundation. Although
the principles of management can be imparted, the practice of management
really cannot be taught—it must be learned through experience. This book
will acquaint you with the basic principles, concepts, and techniques of man-
agement. It w ill also teach you the professional vocabulary of management,
but if you are interested in becoming a manager, you must continue to learn.
It is hoped that this book will cause you to become interested in becoming a
manager yourself, because good management is critical to the success of all
organizations.
Notes
1. Udo Gollub’s Facebook Page, April 22, 2015 https://w ww.facebook.com/udo
.gollub /posts /10207978845381135
4 Introduction
Chapter Takeaways
After reading this chapter you should:
Libraries existed in the ancient world and still retain their importance in
the modern information age. Throughout history, as libraries have developed
in various nations and cultures, they have all shared a defining character-
istic: they provide access to information that has been recorded on some type
of medium. Over the years, the medium has changed, from stone slabs to clay
tablets, from papyrus and palm leaves to vellum, from scrolls to hand-copied
books, and, most recently, from printed paper to interactive electronic and
multimedia resources.
It is easy to imagine the concern felt by librarians in ancient times as
scrolls were superseded by the new technology of books. Such concerns still
exist to this day as modern hybrid libraries supplement or replace their print
resources with electronic ones. For librarians, however, the format in which
the information is recorded is far less important than whether patrons can
5
6 Introduction
retrieve and access this information efficiently and effectively. To make that
retrieval and access as smooth as possible, librarians need to create suitable
environments by employing appropriate methods of management.
Talk About It
Look at the predicted changes listed in Section 1: Introduction and discuss which of those
changes have already had an impact on libraries. Which are likely to have an impact in
the future? Do you think today’s libraries are adequately prepared to meet the chal-
lenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution? If not, what else should they be d
oing?
be beneficial b
ecause it does force an organization to rethink its priorities
and practices. However, too much pressure to increase efficiency can be harm-
ful. It produces g reat stress on employees and can result in managers try-
ing to cut corners in any way possible to contain costs. As Maurice Line, a
British library consultant, pointed out:
What Is Management?
The basic task of management is using organizational resources to achieve
defined goals. Within an organization, managers are the p eople who make
decisions that enable the organization to achieve its objectives. Managers then
work to help others reach t hese objectives effectively and efficiently.
10 Introduction
to them and the depth at which they perform them. Like most other man-
agement textbooks, Library and Information Center Management is orga
nized around t hese five major functions, with a section devoted to each.
Managerial Roles
Managers must play a number of roles in order to do their jobs well. A
role can be defined as an expected set of behaviors and activities. Henry
Mintzberg, a Canadian management theorist, observed the activities of a
number of managers over a period of time and, from his observations, came
up with a set of roles that managers play. Mintzberg grouped these roles into
three broad categories: interpersonal roles, information roles, and decisional
roles.12 These roles can be seen in figure 1.4.
Interpersonal roles, as a category, involve working with p eople. For
example, top managers often serve as figureheads. Although the term has
taken on a slightly pejorative overtone, figureheads are people—like higher-
level managers—who spend a g reat deal of time representing their organ
izations to the outside world. They perform ceremonial functions and entertain
on behalf of the organization. In such cases, top managers serve as symbols
of the organization itself.
Managers also play a role as leaders. They perform functions such as
motivating, communicating with, and inspiring the p eople who work for them.
Managers often act as liaisons between groups of employees or between
employees and customers, linking information sources inside and outside the
organization. It is often said that managers need to be good networkers;
indeed, when they are serving as liaisons they are building essential net-
works within the organization or between the organization and the outside
world.
Informational roles are more impor t ant than ever in t oday’s
information-based organizations. One role Mintzberg identifies is that of
monitor. Monitors are always seeking information, both from outside the
14 Introduction
organization and from inside. They develop systems to keep track of their
units’ performance. They oversee the use of resources.
Complementing their information-seeking role, managers also act as dis
seminators of information. Managers not only gather information, but they
also share it with others. This dissemination can take place in person, by
e-mail, or via other communication media. As organizations in general have
become more participatory, managers share information much more broadly
than in the past.
The final informational role played by a manager is that of spokesperson.
As such, a manager may transmit official information about an organization
to the public by means of e-mails, speeches, newsletters, and the like.
Decisional roles are fundamental to management. The decisions that
need to be made may be tactical, financial, or interpersonal. For example,
managers often have to act as disturbance handlers. Conflict resolution and
crisis response can be among the more challenging aspects of a manager’s
job. Similarly, managers often play the role of negotiator. H ere they repre-
sent their organization or department in pursuing resources such as money,
equipment, or other forms of support. On occasion, managers may take part
in collective bargaining.
In their role as resource allocators, managers spend a g reat deal of time
determining how they w ill distribute assets such as time, money, and people
within the organization. T here are always decisions that need to be made
about allocating resources, especially now when resources are scarce in most
organizations.
Finally, when they work to introduce innovation within the organization,
managers play the role of entrepreneur. Managers must decide which new
ideas are worth bringing into an organization and then ensure that the
organization makes the changes that are necessary to keep it competitive.
Mintzberg’s concept of managerial roles offers an interesting and useful
alternative to the traditional view of managerial functions and has been built
upon by other researchers in the field of management. Some of the roles
Mintzberg describes, such as acting as a figurehead or serving as an official
Managing in T
oday’s Libraries 15
Talk About It
Identify an organization with which you are familiar and think of the managers who
work t here. What skills are required at different levels of managerial responsibility and
why? As managers rise in the hierarchy, how do they acquire the new skills necessary
to make a successful transition to their new position?
TABLE 1.1. Most Important Skills Needed for Success in 2015 and 2020
Top 20 Skills 2015 Top 10 Skills 2020
Complex Problem Solving Complex Problem Solving
Coordinating with Others Critical Thinking
People Management Creativity
Critical Thinking People Management
Negotiation Coordinating with O
thers
Quality Control Emotional Intelligence
Service Orientation Judgment and Decision Making
Judgment and Decision Making Service Orientation
Active Listening Negotiation
Creativity Cognitive Flexibility
Source: Adapted from the “F uture of Jobs” World Economic Forum, 2016, http://reports
.weforum.org/future- of-jobs-2016/preface/
I see increasing reason to believe that the view formed some time
back as to the origin of the Makonde bush is the correct one. I have
no doubt that it is not a natural product, but the result of human
occupation. Those parts of the high country where man—as a very
slight amount of practice enables the eye to perceive at once—has not
yet penetrated with axe and hoe, are still occupied by a splendid
timber forest quite able to sustain a comparison with our mixed
forests in Germany. But wherever man has once built his hut or tilled
his field, this horrible bush springs up. Every phase of this process
may be seen in the course of a couple of hours’ walk along the main
road. From the bush to right or left, one hears the sound of the axe—
not from one spot only, but from several directions at once. A few
steps further on, we can see what is taking place. The brush has been
cut down and piled up in heaps to the height of a yard or more,
between which the trunks of the large trees stand up like the last
pillars of a magnificent ruined building. These, too, present a
melancholy spectacle: the destructive Makonde have ringed them—
cut a broad strip of bark all round to ensure their dying off—and also
piled up pyramids of brush round them. Father and son, mother and
son-in-law, are chopping away perseveringly in the background—too
busy, almost, to look round at the white stranger, who usually excites
so much interest. If you pass by the same place a week later, the piles
of brushwood have disappeared and a thick layer of ashes has taken
the place of the green forest. The large trees stretch their
smouldering trunks and branches in dumb accusation to heaven—if
they have not already fallen and been more or less reduced to ashes,
perhaps only showing as a white stripe on the dark ground.
This work of destruction is carried out by the Makonde alike on the
virgin forest and on the bush which has sprung up on sites already
cultivated and deserted. In the second case they are saved the trouble
of burning the large trees, these being entirely absent in the
secondary bush.
After burning this piece of forest ground and loosening it with the
hoe, the native sows his corn and plants his vegetables. All over the
country, he goes in for bed-culture, which requires, and, in fact,
receives, the most careful attention. Weeds are nowhere tolerated in
the south of German East Africa. The crops may fail on the plains,
where droughts are frequent, but never on the plateau with its
abundant rains and heavy dews. Its fortunate inhabitants even have
the satisfaction of seeing the proud Wayao and Wamakua working
for them as labourers, driven by hunger to serve where they were
accustomed to rule.
But the light, sandy soil is soon exhausted, and would yield no
harvest the second year if cultivated twice running. This fact has
been familiar to the native for ages; consequently he provides in
time, and, while his crop is growing, prepares the next plot with axe
and firebrand. Next year he plants this with his various crops and
lets the first piece lie fallow. For a short time it remains waste and
desolate; then nature steps in to repair the destruction wrought by
man; a thousand new growths spring out of the exhausted soil, and
even the old stumps put forth fresh shoots. Next year the new growth
is up to one’s knees, and in a few years more it is that terrible,
impenetrable bush, which maintains its position till the black
occupier of the land has made the round of all the available sites and
come back to his starting point.
The Makonde are, body and soul, so to speak, one with this bush.
According to my Yao informants, indeed, their name means nothing
else but “bush people.” Their own tradition says that they have been
settled up here for a very long time, but to my surprise they laid great
stress on an original immigration. Their old homes were in the
south-east, near Mikindani and the mouth of the Rovuma, whence
their peaceful forefathers were driven by the continual raids of the
Sakalavas from Madagascar and the warlike Shirazis[47] of the coast,
to take refuge on the almost inaccessible plateau. I have studied
African ethnology for twenty years, but the fact that changes of
population in this apparently quiet and peaceable corner of the earth
could have been occasioned by outside enterprises taking place on
the high seas, was completely new to me. It is, no doubt, however,
correct.
The charming tribal legend of the Makonde—besides informing us
of other interesting matters—explains why they have to live in the
thickest of the bush and a long way from the edge of the plateau,
instead of making their permanent homes beside the purling brooks
and springs of the low country.
“The place where the tribe originated is Mahuta, on the southern
side of the plateau towards the Rovuma, where of old time there was
nothing but thick bush. Out of this bush came a man who never
washed himself or shaved his head, and who ate and drank but little.
He went out and made a human figure from the wood of a tree
growing in the open country, which he took home to his abode in the
bush and there set it upright. In the night this image came to life and
was a woman. The man and woman went down together to the
Rovuma to wash themselves. Here the woman gave birth to a still-
born child. They left that place and passed over the high land into the
valley of the Mbemkuru, where the woman had another child, which
was also born dead. Then they returned to the high bush country of
Mahuta, where the third child was born, which lived and grew up. In
course of time, the couple had many more children, and called
themselves Wamatanda. These were the ancestral stock of the
Makonde, also called Wamakonde,[48] i.e., aborigines. Their
forefather, the man from the bush, gave his children the command to
bury their dead upright, in memory of the mother of their race who
was cut out of wood and awoke to life when standing upright. He also
warned them against settling in the valleys and near large streams,
for sickness and death dwelt there. They were to make it a rule to
have their huts at least an hour’s walk from the nearest watering-
place; then their children would thrive and escape illness.”
The explanation of the name Makonde given by my informants is
somewhat different from that contained in the above legend, which I
extract from a little book (small, but packed with information), by
Pater Adams, entitled Lindi und sein Hinterland. Otherwise, my
results agree exactly with the statements of the legend. Washing?
Hapana—there is no such thing. Why should they do so? As it is, the
supply of water scarcely suffices for cooking and drinking; other
people do not wash, so why should the Makonde distinguish himself
by such needless eccentricity? As for shaving the head, the short,
woolly crop scarcely needs it,[49] so the second ancestral precept is
likewise easy enough to follow. Beyond this, however, there is
nothing ridiculous in the ancestor’s advice. I have obtained from
various local artists a fairly large number of figures carved in wood,
ranging from fifteen to twenty-three inches in height, and
representing women belonging to the great group of the Mavia,
Makonde, and Matambwe tribes. The carving is remarkably well
done and renders the female type with great accuracy, especially the
keloid ornamentation, to be described later on. As to the object and
meaning of their works the sculptors either could or (more probably)
would tell me nothing, and I was forced to content myself with the
scanty information vouchsafed by one man, who said that the figures
were merely intended to represent the nembo—the artificial
deformations of pelele, ear-discs, and keloids. The legend recorded
by Pater Adams places these figures in a new light. They must surely
be more than mere dolls; and we may even venture to assume that
they are—though the majority of present-day Makonde are probably
unaware of the fact—representations of the tribal ancestress.
The references in the legend to the descent from Mahuta to the
Rovuma, and to a journey across the highlands into the Mbekuru
valley, undoubtedly indicate the previous history of the tribe, the
travels of the ancestral pair typifying the migrations of their
descendants. The descent to the neighbouring Rovuma valley, with
its extraordinary fertility and great abundance of game, is intelligible
at a glance—but the crossing of the Lukuledi depression, the ascent
to the Rondo Plateau and the descent to the Mbemkuru, also lie
within the bounds of probability, for all these districts have exactly
the same character as the extreme south. Now, however, comes a
point of especial interest for our bacteriological age. The primitive
Makonde did not enjoy their lives in the marshy river-valleys.
Disease raged among them, and many died. It was only after they
had returned to their original home near Mahuta, that the health
conditions of these people improved. We are very apt to think of the
African as a stupid person whose ignorance of nature is only equalled
by his fear of it, and who looks on all mishaps as caused by evil
spirits and malignant natural powers. It is much more correct to
assume in this case that the people very early learnt to distinguish
districts infested with malaria from those where it is absent.
This knowledge is crystallized in the
ancestral warning against settling in the
valleys and near the great waters, the
dwelling-places of disease and death. At the
same time, for security against the hostile
Mavia south of the Rovuma, it was enacted
that every settlement must be not less than a
certain distance from the southern edge of the
plateau. Such in fact is their mode of life at the
present day. It is not such a bad one, and
certainly they are both safer and more
comfortable than the Makua, the recent
intruders from the south, who have made USUAL METHOD OF
good their footing on the western edge of the CLOSING HUT-DOOR
plateau, extending over a fairly wide belt of
country. Neither Makua nor Makonde show in their dwellings
anything of the size and comeliness of the Yao houses in the plain,
especially at Masasi, Chingulungulu and Zuza’s. Jumbe Chauro, a
Makonde hamlet not far from Newala, on the road to Mahuta, is the
most important settlement of the tribe I have yet seen, and has fairly
spacious huts. But how slovenly is their construction compared with
the palatial residences of the elephant-hunters living in the plain.
The roofs are still more untidy than in the general run of huts during
the dry season, the walls show here and there the scanty beginnings
or the lamentable remains of the mud plastering, and the interior is a
veritable dog-kennel; dirt, dust and disorder everywhere. A few huts
only show any attempt at division into rooms, and this consists
merely of very roughly-made bamboo partitions. In one point alone
have I noticed any indication of progress—in the method of fastening
the door. Houses all over the south are secured in a simple but
ingenious manner. The door consists of a set of stout pieces of wood
or bamboo, tied with bark-string to two cross-pieces, and moving in
two grooves round one of the door-posts, so as to open inwards. If
the owner wishes to leave home, he takes two logs as thick as a man’s
upper arm and about a yard long. One of these is placed obliquely
against the middle of the door from the inside, so as to form an angle
of from 60° to 75° with the ground. He then places the second piece
horizontally across the first, pressing it downward with all his might.
It is kept in place by two strong posts planted in the ground a few
inches inside the door. This fastening is absolutely safe, but of course
cannot be applied to both doors at once, otherwise how could the
owner leave or enter his house? I have not yet succeeded in finding
out how the back door is fastened.