THIS BASIC COURSE IN MENDE, A TONE LANGUAGE OF LIBERIA AND SIERRA LEONE, IS DESIGNED TO BE TAUGHT BY A LINGUIST AND AN INFORMANT TO LINGUISTICALLY ORIENTED STUDENTS. THE TEXT COMPRISES TWO SECTIONS, THE FIRST CONTAINING A VOCABULARY, USEFUL PHRASES AND "NARRATIVE DRILLS" TO ACCOMPANY THE 18 SLIDES PREPARED FOR THE COURSE. THE NARRATIVES ARE DESIGNED TO BE USED AS SELF-INSTRUCTIONAL DRILLS. THE SLIDES PROVIDE A GENERAL CULTURAL BACKGROUND. THE SECOND SECTION COMPRISES 22 LESSON UNITS EACH OF WHICH DEALS WITH A PARTICULAR FEATURE OF THE LANGUAGE. THESE LESSONS CONTAIN EXPLANATORY NOTES ON STRUCTURE, AND LOCATIVE AND NOMINATIVE PHRASE DRILLS WHICH PREPARE THE STUDENTS TO FORM FULL SENTENCES. ALL DRILLS ARE ACCOMPANIED BY TRANSLATIONS. THE GENERAL EMPHASIS THROUGHOUT IS ON TONE AND MORPHOPHONEMICS. THE INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS INCLUDE TAPES. (AMM)