23 JANUARY 1953, Page 5

It is unfortunate that Dr. Audrey Richards cannot join the

Royal Commission on Land and Population in East Africa as a full member, though her willingness to co-operate with the Commission in every way possible when it is sitting in East Africa is the next best thing. It can well be understood that the post that Dr. Richards holds as Director of the East African Institute of Social Research, associated with Makerere College in Uganda, is too important to be left vacant. Dr. Richards ranks with Miss Margery Perham and Mrs. Elspeth Huxley among the three Englishwomen with the widest and most comprehensive knowledge of Africa. In her absence the Commission will include no woman, which, since questions of population are concerned, is a pity.