t Truth aW tiie Civilisation in Cor I 1 IfiS i^ * BY A BELGIAN NA/ I X M A M A l=> BRUSSELS J. LEBEGUE & C», PUBLISHERS AND BOOK 46, rue de ia Madeleine, 46 1903 Th^ Truth about th^ Civilisation in Conooland BY A BELGIAN W I T M A IN/I A F> BRUSSELS J. LEBEGUE & C°, PUBLISHERS AND BOOKSELLERS 46, rue de la Madeleine, 46 1903 *l ';i^,m:i',x. the university of Connecticut ibraries hbl, brti Truth about the civilization in DT 652.T8 Co CJ O 3%153 DOSODb^fi a m en o < > m 3 THE TRUTH ABOUT THE CIVILISATION IN GONGOLAND I Brussels. — J. JANSSENS, printer, rue des Armuriers, 23 ,t#9 THE TRUTH ABOUT THE T V BY A BELGIAN WITH A MAP BRUSSELS J. LEBEGUE & C«, PUBLISHERS AND BOOKSELLERS 46, RUE DE LA MADELEINE, 46 1903 Under the title « Civilisation in Congoland » a booh has jus been published, which deals in a careful and methodical manner, with the attacks and charges which have, from time to time, been brought against the Congo State. That luork is not complete. It omits to reproduce, side by side with the attacks, the refutations and expla- nations to which those attacks have given rise. The present work aims at supplying these invo- luntary omissions on the part of the author and thus ajfording the reader just grounds on uhich to base his opinion. It begins by giving the views of eye-wit- nesses and others, on Belgian enterprise in Africa. A Belgian. 15- d 1% Letter from the King-Sovereign of the Congo Free State to the State agents. Brussels, 16lh June 1897. Sir, The agents of the Congo Free State have been much tried of late. Their ranks have been thinned by cruel and repeated attacks. Associa- ting myself with the unanimous expressions of regret aroused by these painful losses, I desire to pay my tribute of acknowledgment to all those who have so bravely sacrificed their lives in the accom- plishment of duty. Like every great cause, that which we serve in the Congo has had numerous martyrs. To those who respect these manly traditions, I desire to address a few^ words, coming from my heart. The task which the State agents have to accomplish in the Congo is noble and elevated. It is incumbent upon them to carry on the work of the civilisation of Equatorial Africa, guided by the principles set forth in the Berlin and Brussels resolutions. Face to face with primitive barbarity, struggling against dreadful customs, thousands of years old, their duty is to gradually modify those customs. They have to place the population under new laws, the most imperious as well as the most salutary of which is assuredly that of work. — 4 — In uncivilised countries, a firm authority is, I know, necessary to accustom the natives to the practices of civilisation, which are altogether contrary to their habits. To this end, it is necessary to be at once firm and paternal. And, in the first place, in a country like the Congo, the native population is the basis of its wealth. The first efforts should tend to assure its free development. Civilised society attach to human life a value unknown anion" savage peoples. When our guiding will is planted among the latter, it must aim at overcoming all obstacles. The result cannot be obtai- ned by mere speeches, however philanthropic may be their tenour. But if, with a view to the necessary domination of civilisation, it be permitted, in case of need, to have recourse to forcible means, tiie supreme sanction of right, it is none the less true that the ultimate object is one ol peace. Unnecessary wars ruin the country where they occur, as our agents know well. Therefore, from the moment their effective superiority is established, they are loth to abuse that authority. The unfortunate blacks who are still subject to their traditions alone, believe that victory is only effective when the fallen enemy is disabled. The soldiers of the State must be recruited among the natives. They do not easily abandon the sanguinary habits transmitted from generation to generation. The example of the white officers and military discipline will make them hate the human trophies of which they are now proud. In their chiefs they should see the living demonstration of the superior principle that the exercise of authority has nothing in common with cruelty : the latter ruins the former. I am glad to think that our agents, nearly all of whom are volunteers from the ranks of the Belgian army, always bear in mind the rules ot the honorable career in which they are engaged. Anima- ted with a pure sentiment of patriotism, recking little of their own blood, they will care all the more for the natives who will find in them the powerful protectors of file and property, the kindly guardians of whom they stand so much in need. The aim of all of us,— I desire to repeat it here with you — is to regenerate, materially and morally, races whose degradation and misfortune it is hard to realise. The fearful scourges of which, in the eyes of our humanity, these races seemed the victims, are already lessening, little by little, through our intervention. Each step tbi'ward made by our people should mark an improvement in the con- dition of llie natives. In those vast tracts, mostly uncultivated and many unproductive, where the natives hardly knew how to get their daily food, european experience, knowledge, resource and enterprise, have brought to light unlhought-of wealth. If wants are created they are satisfied even more liberally. Exploration of virgin lands goes on, commu- nications are established, highways arp opened, the soil yelds produce in exchange for our varied manufactured articles. Legitimate trade and industry are established. As the economic state is formed, properly assumes an intrinsic character, private and public owner- ship, the basis of all social development, is founded and respected instead of being left to the law of change and of the strongest. Upon this material prosperity, in which whites and blacks have evidently a common interest, will follow a desire on the part of the blacks to elevate themselves. Their primitive nature will not always resist the efforts of christian culture. Their education, once bee:un, will no more be interrupted. In its success I see the crowning of the task undertaken by our people and so ably seconded by religious missionaries of both sexes. The most urgent part of the programme we wished to realise was to set up direct communication with the natives all over the Congo basin. And this was done in the course of fifteen years, without the help of any Stale, if it were not that lent by Belgium. The establishment of a whole, compact series of stations gradually substitutes for savage warfare, carried on incessantly between tribes and villages, a regime of peace. From a geographical entity, physically determined, the Congo State has become a country whith distinct frontiers, occupied and guarded at every point, — a result almost without precedent in the history of colonisation, but which is explained by the concentration of our united efforts on a single field of activity. Our own difficulties will be considerably lessened in a short time when the railway between the Lower Congo and Stanley Pool is com- pleted. I here make a renewed appeal to the devotion, of which our agents have already given such abondant proof, that the establishment of this means of communication may bear fruit as soon as possible. It will closely connect the Congo with the mother country, it will afford all Europe, which is so interested in our work, an opporlunily to take an intelligent and kindly interest in our work. It will, finally, give a decided fillip to our progress, and it will speedely introduce into the vast regions of the Congo, all the benefits ot our Christian civilisation. I thank our agents for their efforts and I reiterate to them the expression of mv royal regard. LEOPOLD. Edm. V.\n Eeivelue. (Prom La Belgique coloniale, August, li, 1898.) FIRST PART OPINIONS .§ 1. — Treatment of the natives. « I will not leave the accusations drawn up against the agents of the State without an answer. During the inspection tour which I have just taken in the districts of the interior I had the occasion to examine their administration, to see how the natives were treated, to meet with most of the mis- sionaries; and I declare formally that it is downright dishonesty to represent the agents of the State as inhuman and cruel to the native populations. If there have been individual abuses, like everywhere, I have ascertained that the instructions given by the Governement to its agents as to their relations with the natives, have, on the whole, been executed. » Baron Wahis, Governor General of the Congo Free State. {The Times, May, 31, 1897.) — 8 — « Impartiality demands that we should take into consideration the grandeur of the woik, the difliculties overcome, and the results achie- ved, if me desire in fairness to appreciate the administration of the Congo State. If faults have been committed by certain agents, in Africa, they have not injured the tinal aim in view or their recurrence is no to be feared. This justice must be rendered to the Govern- ment of the Slate that c< it has not hesitated, nor will it do so in the » future, to punish the responsible agents. » One is entitled to say that the system adopted by some people of always ignoring the good and the great which the State has accom- plished and of making exclusively conspicuous by exaggeration the unavoidable mistakes committed at the outset of any colonial enter- prise, shows that there is on their part a « parti pris » at the bottom of which one might find more greedy than philanthropical motives. » Jules Holdret, General Consul of the Congo Free State. {The Times, April, 10, 1897.) « I am not prepared to defend the Congo Free State from its British or foreign critics, any more than I am prepared to assert that the British exploration and administration of Negro Africa has never been accompanied by regrettable incidents. I can only stale in common fairness that that very small portion of the Congo Free State which I have seen since these countries were administered by Belgian officials possessed excellent buildings, well-made roads, and was inhabited by cheerful natives v>'ho repeatedly and without solicitation on my part compared the good times they were now having, to the misery and terror which preceded them when the Arabs and Manyema had established themselves in the country as chiefs and slave- traders. » Sir Hauhy Jounston, Formerly Special Commissioner to the Uganda Protectorate,. [The Uganda Protectorate, 1902, vol. I., p. 198.) — 9 — « In spite of this element of Arab civilisation which the slave-trader had certainly implanted in the Congo Forest, he had made himself notorious for his ravages and cruellies. Numbers of natives had been horribly mutilated, hands and feet lopped off, and women's breasts cut away. All these people talked Swahili, and explained to me that these mutilations — which, as only a negro could, they had survived,— had been the work of the Manyema slave-trader and his gang, done sometimes out of wanton cruelty, sometimes as a punish- ment for thieving or absconding. May it not be that many of the mutilated people of whom we hear so much in the northern and eastern part of the Congo Free State are also the surviving results of Arab cruelty? I am aware that it is customary to attribute these outrages to the native soldiery and police employed by the Belgians to maintain order or to collect taxes ; and though I am fully aware that these native soldiers and police under imperfect Belgian administration as under imperfect British control can commit all sorts of atrocities (as we know they did in Mashonoland and in Uganda), every bad deed of this description is not to be laid to their charge, for many outrages are the work of the Arab traders and raiders in these countries, and of their apt pupil the Manyemas. This much I can speak of with certainty and emphasis : that from the british frontier near Fort George to the limit of my journeys into the IVIbuba country of the Congo Free State, up and down the Semliki, the natives appeared to be prosperous and happy under the excellent administration of the late Lieutenant Meura and his coadjutor, Mr. Karl Eriksson. The extent to which they were building their villages and cultivating their plantations within the precincts of Fort Mbeni showed that they had no fear of the Belgians, while the Dwarfs equally asserted the goodness of the local white men. :» Sir Harry Johnston, Formerly special Commissioner to the Uganda Protectorate. {The Uganda Protectorate, 1902, vol. I., p. 197.) — 10 — (c I am happy to believe that some of the reports are quite untrue. Certainly some of the last published revelations reach me for the first time through the newspapers. I am convinced that in each of tiie districts where our Society (B. M. S.) is represented by a station the rule of the State is infinitely more beneficienl than any native regime I have known, and that life and property are more and increasingly secure. » Rev. G. Gresfell, Baptist Missionary Society. {The Times, May, 31, 1897.) « The general administration, on the whole, I believe to be well inlentioned, and as efficient as the means at the disposal of the Govern- ment permit. There are, of course, isolated cases of bad conduct and mistaken methods, for which the subordinate officers are mainly res- ponsible. There is, however, a progressive effort being made to obtain an efficient coi-ps of functionaries which will greatly improve the entire course of administration. For the most part the reports regar- ding barbarities are exaggerated. I do not, of course, deny that for too many bad cases of this sort have taken place and do take place on the Congo. What I do not believe from my present light is that the Central Authorities, either at Boma or in Brussels, instigate oi* countenance these acts. « Rev. Vehner, Americaji Presbyterian Congo Mission. (Reuters interview published in the Morning Post, January, 30, 1899.) « Several police-offic<;rs assured me that they never struck a black, even if the latter were in the wrong; in their opinion this is the only system which gives satisfiictory results. » PiKRRE VeRH.VEGEN, Provincial Councillor. (An Congo, p. 152.) — 1 1 — c( I regret that missionaries give currency to erroneous opinions concerning the acts and policy of the State that protects us and this at a lime when a number of incidents seem to indicate, on the part of cei'tain persons, a policy of systematic opposition to the State. I hope, Mr. Inspector, that, knowing the past and present missionaries with whom you have had dealings, you will not hesitate in agreeing with me ^^hen I say that the majority of them feel nothing but sym- pathy for the Government which has overcome so many difficulties in the work of substituting order and well-being for the terrible anarchy which formerly existed over the whole ot the Congo territory. In the accomplishment of such a considerable undertaking which demands so manyagents and such varied lines of policy, it is quite natural that mistakes should be sometimes made. It may even happen that historical precedents re-occur, that excesses are committed, that the Government is criticised and ren- dered responsible for those acts. I can aftlrm, for my part, that the superior authorities of the Congo State have never taken amiss just criticism or the reporting of repre- hensible conduct on the part of certain agents. The authorities would not hesitate, I believe, to do everything tending to suppress demonstrated abuses. I feel sure. Baron, that, together with all right-thinking men, you will acknovledge that the duly of humanity forces us to point out these facts, if need be, and to endeavour to obtain the suppression of abuses and the breach of the laws and principles which form the very foundation ot the Slate. » Yakusu, 9th. March 1896. Rev. G. Grenfell, Baptist Missionary Society. (Translated from Le Congo beige, August, 15, 189G, p. 100.) « My experience of the last two years has convinced me that in the district of Katanga at any rale the Belgian officials endeavour to treat the Central African native with justice and leniency, and in as great a degree as officials of any other nation look on him as a human being, with a perfect right to sell his labour and his food on terms satisfac- — 12 — tory to himself. When I first entered the Congo, at the time that the ofilcials of the Special Committee were establishing their Government, and before I had come into personal contact with them, I found some armed natives who posed as soldiers of the Belgian Government, and who lived more or less the life of robbers, raiding and stealing wherever they went. The natives believed that these men were the authorised police of the European Administration, whose white officials they had not yet seen, and members of my expedition reported to me on the shocking behaviour of the Belgian Askari. I later learnt the complete mistake we had made in believing these men to be Government employees. In a short time they completely disappeared, caught or driven out by the agents of the committee. » G. Grey, English civil engineer, recently in charge of mission to Katanga. {Morning Post, January, 20, 1903.) « Undoubtedly, wherever civilisation is being implanted among savage races, abuses and conflicts are inevitable ; but it would be most unjust to make the Congo State responsible for those abuses and conflicts, when it is doing all that is possible to prevent and suppress them. What a difference and what an improvement in a few years! In the whole country of Kisantu for several leadgues round and in spite of the difficulties of porterage absolutely necessary to the State, village wars, which formerly decimated the population, are becoming rare and almost unknown. To day the blacks live in peace among themselves. Still some tribes, far away in the interior, submit with difficulty to the State and sometimes come near revolting against it ; but if repressive measures are necessary and sometimes severe, they are rendered so by the want of foresight and the savage natures of those tribes. » Rev. Father Van Hencxthoven, Superior of the Jesuit Fathers' Mission. {Precis historiqiies, February, 1897, p. 49.) — 13 — « Generally, in the Stanley-Pool district, the blacks welcome the establishment of a white station near their villages. On several occasions in the course of commandant Antoine's travels he was asked by the natives and even by some of the leading chiefs to establish military stations in their midst. The reason of this is simple. Tribal chiefs in those parts, often make war on each other; villages are exposed to the sudden attacks and nocturnal raids of their enemies. The presence of the white soldier is looked upo:i as a sufficient protection. » Rev. Father Van Hencxthoven, Superior of the Jesuit Fathers' Mission. {Precis historiques, 1895, p. 382.) (c I am also able to state that the central power, as well as most of the Belgians established in the Congo, are animated with the genuine spirit ofcivihsation in their dealings with the natives. » Pierre Verhaegen, Provincial Councillor, (All Congo, 1898, p. 150.) « But, for the Batetela revolt, which took place quite on the eastern frontier of the State every thing is quiet on the Congo. With refe- rence to the stories of cruelties, I do not deny that in the earlier days of the State they may have occured, bat latterly they have been practically unknown. The payment of commission to the Belgian officers or agents for procuring rubber and ivory has been abolished since the end of 1895. In my own district of the Upper Welle the collection of rubber has always been carried on without any cruelty or hardship— in fact, the rubber is voluntarily brought in by the chiefs, who receive payment for it in exchange. » Glv Buimovvs (1), Captain of the Force Publique of the Congo Free State. (Reuler's interview pubhshed in The Times, December, 17, 1897.) « Of course you must understand that for the moment I am in the service of the Congo Free State and a great many people might consider anything I should say in favour of the Congo as being biased ; but I can asurc you that, in my opinion, it would be impos- sible for any one to give other than a favorable report on the work of the Free State in the Eastern province. The administration is excel- lent. The countiT is quite quiet from the Falls to Tanganika. The native tribes seem contented and happy and are paid by the Govern- ment for eveiy stroke of work they do. The price of rubber has increased and every man who brings in rubber receives pay for it. Formerly robbery and murder existed to a great extent among the native tribes, but are now quite rare; and the old « mwavi » or ordeal by drinking poison seems to be disappearing. Justice is administered with an impartial hand, and I firmly believe the natives are beginning to appreciate the benefits of good Government. « D. MonuN, Formerly Consul ot the U. S. A. (The Times, November, 26, 1901.) (1) AuUior of 'flic Cid'ne oj Central AJrica. — 15 — « To those accusations I shall oppose also the testimony of the Rev. G. Grenfell, of the Baptist Missionary Society, a man of high ability, who deserves for his merits a prominent rank amongst those who have struggled in Africa for the cause of humanity. Nobody knows the natives better than the Rev. Mr. Grenfell. The natives know him well too, and they have given him that full confidence which should ensure the manifestation of truth. The Rev. Mr, Gren- fell often made tours in the Stanley-Falls region, and has had every opportunity of studying the ways and manners of our ofticials. He had several times expj-essed his complete approbation of our treatment of the natives. Not long ago, he travelled round a part of the region Mr. Lloyd alludes to, but he did not confine himself to the highways; on the contrary, he searched the out of the way nooks, wheie, if our agents were disposed to indulge in unkind and condemnable practices they could do so at their leisure. After this journey the Rev. Mr. Grenfell has deemed it his duty to express his high opinion on the achievements of our rule, and to wish us further success in our difficult task of organising the country. » Major Malfeyt, General Commissioner of the Congo Free Slate. {Daily Chronicle, November, 25, 1899.) « I found the natives evei-ywhere on friendly terms with the Belgian authorities, and the excellent roads and well-built stations, together with abundant supplies of the comforts and necessaries of existence from Antwerp merchants, introduced a strange element of civilization into these otherwise trackless wilds. Sir Henry Stanley would indeed be amazed at the change which has taken place in parts of the forest which some twelve years ago were to him and his expedition more remote from civilization than the north pole. » Sir Harry Johnston, Formerly special Commissioner to the Uganda Protectorate. {Geographical Journal, January, 1902, p. 23.) — 10 — « Look at the schools, the hospitals, the active and thriving towns, the steadily increasing commercial enterprises, the satisfaction expressed by the English and American missionaries (not to mention the Belgian missionaries) ; does all that in any way bear out the outrages, the corruption raved about by the Aborigines Protection Society? They must forget that King Leopold only a short time ago, with the view of satisfying the grumblei-s, created a mixed commis- sion of missionaries of all nationalities and creeds to examine into all abuses and report the same to the authorities. Why have the missio- naries of this commission not raised a storm, and why has not the missionary Sjublom, who belongs to no commission, who first of all complained to the authorities on the spot, and then followed this up by a complaint in London, instead of coming over directly, and giving the authorities an oppoi'tunily of any kind to prove or disprove his allegations ? I myself have known personally many who have resided in the Congo, both in commercial and in official positions and those who are neutral in their sentiments, and whose word is not to be for one moment doubled, declare that never have they seen or heard in the Congo itself of any of the outrages and abuses of which so much parade has been made in Europe. No, the work has been a humani- tarian one ; Belgium and the Belgians have done wonders in the development ot darkest Africa. Remember they have only been there ten years; there is an endless, unlimited amount of woik yet to be done before an approach to perfection can be reached ; but for a little country, whose entire population is not much larger than that of London, the work already accomplished has been Herculean. Render unto Caesar, etc. » {The Journal of Commerce, from its Antwerp correspondent, June, 2, 1897.) « As to the general condition of affairs on the Congo, there can be no doubt that the attention attracted by the various interviews published in the english press has done much to improve matters. Sufficient proofs of this is to be found in the recent cessation of reports of atrocities. Last year, too, no fewer than 20 persons of — 17 — englisli or american nationality had been sent (o stations in the far interior where, hitherto, only Belgians had been employed. The fact of there being in these distant posts persons of dilTerent natio- nality, woiking side by side, must do much to insure belter treat- ment of the natives. The commission appointed by the King, although its work must necessarily be slow, will no doubt do good service in preventing- a recurrence of atrocities or in securing the punishment of offenders. » (Interview of a resident, by Renter's agency, published by The Times, September, i>o, .1897.) « I have had considerable opportunity on the spot of learning the instructions which the Special Committee give their officials, and how those instructions are carried out. I myself and many members of my expedition have become fairly intimate with the native inhabitants of large portions of this district, and have from time to lim.e employed as carriers and miners several hundred labourers. That the natives of this country had never suffered ill-treatment from white men was evident to me from the time I entered the country. They showed no hesitation in working for my expedition and in bringing quantities of food to sell, and always seemed quite confident that fair payment would be given, both for labour and food. » G. GitiiY, English civil engineer, recently in charge of mission to Katanga. {Moriiinij Post, January, 20, 1903.) « Having had a good deal to do with Belgian officials in Africa, I venture to say that if once the Governor General at Boma heard that such crimes were committed a very full and searching inquiry would be instituted and the malefactors punished. I cannot gather from what has been published that either of the gentlemen to whom we are indebted for the accounts of the atrocities ever informed the — 18 — superior authorities of what was taking place on the Upper Congo, and therefore it is dilTicult to see how the Provincial Governor, the Governor General, the Secretary of State at Brussels, and King Leopold can proceed against the otfenders. If deterred from informing the authorities at Boma, why not, when giving their information to the British Press be precise and definite in these charges, for thus, if the Congo officials conspire to deny them, the olficials at Brussels might take action? If I remember right King Leopold is a constant reader of The Times, and if he saw it announced in your columns that a Lieutenant Hansen had ordered a woman's breasts to be cut off, or a Lieutenant Jansen had Hogged a woman with 200 lashes, or that a Lieutenant Bunsen had caused a young girl to be dismembered, surely we may well believe that his first act would be to cable to the Governor General to ask whetlier he knew anything of these horrible barbarities. But vague and general accusations against his officers can only result in the King naturally refusing to give much credence to these stories. » Sir H. M. Stanley. {Tlie Times, September, 16, 1896.) c( Cases of partial revolt occured during the early period and will occur again. Certain tribes of the interior, bellicose and not yet quite accustomed to Europeans, opposed the establishment and main- tenance of the authority of the State. Those revolts, examples of which, it must be admitted, have occurred at the outset of every colonial enterprise and of which no portion of occupied Africa has been free, have been rapidly put down. Forcible measures have thus been rendered necessaiy and the State agents who used such measures had their duties cleat ly defined in Government instructions. « Before using any force wiih the natives, » ran those instructions, « the agents shall endeavour to enter into relations with them and )) they should realise that it is belter to obtain the peaceful compen- » sation for damage caused to the State than to obtain redress Ly the » force of arms. The Govci'ninent does not deny that energetic — H) — » repressive measures are sometimes necessary, but it desires that » ihey be only used in exceptional cases and when all means of con- » ciliation have failed. In every case where force is used, the )) Government must be clearly and fully informed of the reason « therefore, and operations should be carried on with a view to puni- » shing only those actually guilty. Regular and volunteer troops « must always be commanded by a European... Native property )) may not be destroyed and villages may not be burned... Opera- » tions shall be conducted without cruelty... The wounded must » be cared for, the dead respected, prisoners humanely treated, the » women and children placed under the direct protection of the leader » of the operations, w The Government is convinced that these instructions have been generally followed. In the rare cases where they have been trans- gressed, the Government has not hesitated and vvill not hesitate to inflict disciplinary and legal punishment on the agents concerned. » Report to the King -Sovereign, January, .25, 1897 (Bulletin oFFiciEL DE l'Etat iNDfiPENDANT Du CoNGO, January, 1897, pp. 62 & 63). (c I have before me a report by M. De Lancker, judge attached to the Upper Congo expedition. The report is quite recent ; it is dated May, 27, 1896. He interrogated more than thirty missionaries of various Protestant denominations. Some of these brave pioneers count more than ten years' residence. They all agree in declaring that then have no reason to reproach the State officials, with whom they have always had the best of relations. Such is the testimony of a magistrate, an impartial man, who sought nothing but to get at the truth. His duly was to unrelentingly but conscientiously bring to justice anybody guilty of cruelty or excess. And that is what this magistrate gathered, in his search for truth, of all those accusations with which, for over two years, the enemies of the Congo enterprise have been entertaining the press. » Ch. LlEBRECHTS, General Secretary of the Home Department. (Interview in the Joxmial de Bruxelles, September, 11, 1896.) — 20 — « I consider it my duly to render justice to the Belgian oflicers,so unjustly accused. I spent fourteen years with them and I learnt to esteem them. I deliberately state thai 1 refuse to believe the assertions of irresponsible individuals who attempt in a rapid inter- view to estimate the great work of your ofllcers in Africa. Of course, 1 have not read all that has been written against the State agents; I have not been back a fortnight. But I affirm that if people slate your fellow countrymen have misconducted themselves in Africa they state what is not true. The little that I know of recent attacks suffices to arouse my indignation. I am really astonished that the Belgian press h;is believed calumnies put forth by foreigners rather than the statements of the people of its own country, w M. Lerman. (A former Austrian ollicer.) (Interview in the Journal de Bruxellcs, October, 4, 1896.) « Mr. Paul Lemarinel deprecates the statements which make it appear that the methods of colonization pursued by the Belgians are more inhuman than those adopted by other nations. That there have been abuses of authority he does not deny, but he maintains that it is a mistake to generalize from these, and he considers that the code by which the Congo Sate is governed was inspired by a due regard for the interests of the natives. » Paul Lemarinel,. State Inspector. (The Times, February, 18, 1896.) « Gases where the blacks are illtrealed, are cases of individual abuse of power by isolated agents who are at once discharged and punished by the superior authority, which is most severe in the repression ot acts of ill-treatment committed by whites upon the natives. There is nothing hidden or mysterious in the Congo. What I see and say, everybody can see and say. » Paul Conreuu. {hidcpcndance beige, August, 3, 1897.) - 21 — « The gathering of indiarubber in Uelle only began this year. Salusbury, who returned to Europe in the middle of 189u, cannot therefore say that it is carried amid the worst atrocities ; he knows nothing about it. But I, who have seen how the Macks are induced to gather the precious sap, must acknowledge that but little persua- sion was needed to get the native chiefs to order their subjects to do this work, which is very remunerative. » Guy Burrows, Captain in the Congo Free State Force Publique. {^toile beige, September, 26, 1897.) « The charges against the State have found an especially welcome -echo in the English press which published the denunciations of cer- tain officers or agents discharged through incapacity, who distorted the facts without at the same time mentioning the counteracting influences. However regrettable some occurrences may be, they fall short in point of cruelty those with which Miss Olive Schreiner and Miss Mary Kingsley reproach their countrymen. As for Mr. W. H. Brown, not only does he admit the use of ferocious methods in Hhodesia, but he declares them to be an absolute necessity in the foundation of a colonial empire. » Cii. BuLS, Former Burgomaster of Brussels. (Croquis congolais, 1899, p. 212.) « On one hand, the severity of the penal code, on the other the reiterated instructions given to the State staff to treat the blacks with equity and justice, will render still rarer the few cases of abuse reported. These cases, in spite of what has been said, are but individual ones; and it is in vain that they have been attributed to a defective system of administration, especially in regard to the development of C)i.) the Stale property. That development has been provided for in numerous Government instructions forbidding the agents concerned to employ any but humane methods of action. » Report to the King -Sovereign, July, lo, 1900 (Bulletin OFFICIEL, 1900, p. 138). cc What can be demanded of the Congo Free Slate? That all possible precautions be taken to prevent the recurrence of such occur- rences (cases of cruelty), that a severe penal code be drawn up, that vigilant and active tribunals be formed to deal with such crimes. And that is just what the Congolese Government is doing : it has taken most minute precautions te prevent its agents being concerned in the dealings of commercial companies. Not only are they forbid- den to take any part in such dealings, but they may not accept any or bribe or present from commercial companies, and this under severe penalties. The measures adopted by the Congo State for the protection of the natives are numerous. The published regulations, especially those of 189G, defined the relations of the agents with the inhabitants and minutely sets forth the course to be pursued by the agents of the PlUdUc Force in case of conflict. It is there stated that no agent may have recourse to the force of arms against natives unless he is acting in self defence or is duly authorised by his superiors. Expeditionary troops, in spite of what M. Lorand stated just now, must be comman- ded by Europeans. Therefore black soldiers have never had to sur- render lo their own people— as the previous speaker would have us believe. When on the march, black soldiers are always commanded by a white officer. » Baron deFavereau, Minister of Foreign Affairs. {Aunalrs parlementaires, Chambre, April, 19, 1900, p. 1040.) — 23 — « When I left the Transvaal, the Belgians were accused of a thou- sand cruelties. And I expected to find them at the stations occupied all day cutting up niggers' arms, legs and heads, without ever repla- cing them. Now, I have travelled with Belgian officers and agents for a year and a half and I was surprised to find nothing of what I feared. Moreover, in our party it fell to my lot to make laws instead ol finding the existing laws too severe. » M, Kemper-Voss, English civil engineer. (Lecture at Brussels, Petit Bleu, December, 12, 1900.) « I consider it my duty to deny in toto the statement attributed to me a propos of Belgian colonisation. Questioned on this matter I said that, having had the opportunity of knowing several ofticers and having visited their stations in the Congo State, I was convinced that the conduct of those gentlemen had been grossly misrepresented by the press. I quoted, as a proof ol this, my own experience, which is opposed to the version, recently published in the english press, accusing them of gross cruelty. It is possible and even probable that native sergeants in command of stnall detachments abuse their authority; but as soon as these excesses come to the knowledge of the white officers, the most severe punishment is dealt out to the culprits. » Major H. H, Gibbons. {The Egyptian Gazette, September, 3, 1900.) « I saw many Belgians during my travels; I stayed at eleven Belgian stations ; I was a fortnight in Katanga and three months in the Upper-Nile, and I never saw any thing to corroborate the charges of barbarity brought against them for the most part, it would seem, by natives in whom too much confidence had been reposed. » Major H. H. Gibbons. {La Me'tropole, September, 18, 1900.) ILi — « Asa fact, the general cliarge of cruelty brought against the State agents, is profoundly unjust, and nothing is farther from the truth than to take a few rare exceptions as the manifestation of a preme- ditated system of barbarity. All the laws of the Free State, all the Government orders, the conduct of nearly all its agents, show the common desire to secure to the person, the life and the property of the native, that protection to which he has a right. This is, more- over, demanded by the interests of the State itself. The penal law inflicts severe penalties on any one illtreating a native; and the tribunals have, as is known, punished certain white men for cruelty to the blacks. The evidence which forms the basis of your chai-ges is the fruit of calumny or, at least of odious exaggeration. We oppose it with the evidence of responsible and desinterested eye-witnesses. Mr. de Bi'o- queville cited just now the testimony of monseigneur Augouard, who has exercised his ministery for years past on the borders of the Belgian Congo. He loyally acknowledges to day that those abuses are no longer committed. I had the pleasure of seeing Mgr. Augouard a year ago. He told me also that Belgian colonisation in Africa deserved to become an example for his countrymen. « Comte DE Smrt de Naeyeij, President of the Council of Ministers. (Chamber of Representatives, July, 16; Annales parlemeii- taires, session 1900-1901, p. 1976.) « It has been the fashion during the past for travellers who have been in the Congo State to run it down in every way, but it gives me the greatest pleasure to be able to affirm that only a most captious critic would be able to find ftuilt with its administration to-day. You ask me finally for some more specific pronouncement on the alleged murder of several hundred natives who failed to supply the required quota of rubber. I can say nothing, it having been out of my district. Personally, I do not believe it, excepting in a vastly modified degree; and I must point out that the authorities are taking such — 25 — steps as must bring any ofFenders to summary justice. I absolutely deny the absurd attempt to fasten responsibilities upon the authorities for any acts of violence they cannot control from this side ; such acts committed while I was there would Lave been reported, and it is evi- dent they are now taking steps to prevent in so far as possible any recurrence of them. In all human institutions there are imperfec- tions; here and there employe's prove themselves unworthy of the trust reposed in them; but these, in my opinion, are exceptions rather than the rule. « D. Mo HUN, Formerly consul of the U. S. A. {The Times, November, 20, 1901 ) « Here, as at home, tlie law watches over the acts of every agent, and more than one white man has received the hospitality of Boma gaol. The crimes of Mongala have been brought to the light of day and justice has been done. It is our imperious duty to inform the Government of even the smallest reprehensible act, and every pecca- dillo is punished. « Lieutenant Devos. " {Impressions congolaises, Mouvf.ment des missions catholiques AU Congo, Janvier 1903, p. 12.) « I only know of the atrocities by hearsay. I have never wit- nessed them or received sworn evidence of them, nor had I the slightest difficulty with any native during my long Trans-African journey. While I am sceptical of frequent and continued atrocities on the Congo, I am by no means prepared to say that they never occur, since the regular Courts of the Congo— of which there are none superior in tropical Africa— have condemned many Europeans to varying terms of imprisonment. The most rigorous orders are given to the high officials to inflict severe punishment for ill-treatment — 20 — of natives, and these orders are daily execated, but who can prevent the excesses of brutal natures?... The lot of natives in the Congo Free State is, as far as 1 have seen, most promising. There is no doubt that the laws of the State protect the natives efficaciously and that they are administered as well as is possible by a staff necessarily small on account of the enormous extent of territory to be occupied. All the contracts for the employment of natives, whether Congolese or of other tribes, are subjected to very close examination, and more than one European has complained that the law displayed greater solicitude for the native than for the while man. » Capt. Charles Lesiaire. {The Times, Odober, 9, 1901.) § 2. — Justice. « The Government intends that justice shall impartially fulfil its r6le : if it be indispensable that infractions committed by natives shall not go unpunished, the penal law must also be able to reach the white men who set the example of illegal acts. The State agents have, perhaps, in this connexion, stricter duties : I may say they have the sentiment of duty and I am glad, in the midst of the suspicious just now cast upon them, to be able to state that the Belgians who serve the King in Africa have not degenerated, but have remained faithful to the laws of honor and duty. If such were not or should no longer be the case with any of our agents, the Government would not hesitate to punish the guilty one, as it has already done; and I may be here allowed, with Your Majesty's permission, to make a serious appeal to all those who are really interested in the lot of the native races that they will contribute to the efforts of the authorities in the sense indicated. » Report to the King-Sovereign, Usty, 21, 1897 (Bulletin de l'Etat Ind6pendant du Congo, 1897, pp. 194 & 19o). « The Government was first led to increase the number of regular tribunals. We know that, at the beginning of the life of the State, circumstances rendered it necessary to confine the ordinary tribunals to the Lower Congo, whilst in the Upper regions military jurisdiction held exclusive sway. This situation, which was naturally destined to change according to circumstances, has now ceased to exist. The institution of territorial tribunals has been decided upon for all the districts of the interior; those tribunals have to apply the penal law to all residents of the State, native or not, courts martial being only competent to deal with military cases. Furthermore, these tribunals are provided with a specially quali- — 28 — fied staff; and notably, the functions of tlie public ministry attached to every jurisdiction, without distinction, are exclusively reserved for lawyers. The court is thus strongly organised, with competent representatives in the various centres, in sufTicient numbers to assure the due operation of the legal machinery. The Government believed that the repression of certain specially serious offences, in the case of Europeans, would be better guarantied, by entrusting the State attorney with the prosecution not before the tribunals of the Upper Congo but before that of the Lower Congo, where public opinion is more powerful This course is followed in cases of murder and homicide, and attempts on the life and liberty of natives. As the Government has multiplied the jurisdictions of the first degree, so it has strengthened the appeal jurisdiction. The Appeal Court was formerly composed of a single judge; it now comprises three counsellors. The State attorney, as responsible public officer, is attached to this Court. It has seemed prudent to compose the Court of different national elements : the president is a Belgian, one of the counsellors is an Italian, and the other a Swede. Before this appeal Court may be taken any judgment pronounced by the lower tribunals. The Court prosecutor has even orders to take the initiative in an appeal on behalf of the prisoner when the latter is a native ignorant of his rights. Such a repressive system affords those who have charged our agents with the most odious offences with a ready means of verifying their charges. If they have really at heart the welfare of the natives, and if they desire their intervention to be of use, let them come before the tribunals and give precise tangible evidence which can be usefully followed up. It is very easy to make a circumstantial com- plaint to the State attorney of an offence of which one has been a witness. Now, I may mention that not a single clear, precise com- munication has been made to the legal authorities with respect to the acts of cruelty of which the african staff are sometimes accused ; and this want of action renders suspicious those numerous charges of which nobody publicly takes the responsibility. » Report to tin' Kinrj-Sovcrcigii, May, 21, 1897 (Bulletin OFFiciEL DE l'Etat Independant du Congo, May 1897, pp. 19l-19i). — 29 — « Statistics ol penal afHiirs uiifoi'tiinalely show that sentences have been pronounced against Europeans, and some even against State agents. In the course of the past three yeai'S, thirteen agents were sentenced for violence towards natives. Allhough the cases are isolated and relatively few considering the large number of agents, such a state of things cannot be tolerated. In cases of this kind the instructions issued to the tribunals provide for vigorous prosecution, and Your Majesty has expressed the intention of granting less and less clemency in such cases. » Report to the King-Sovereign, January, 25, 1897 (Bulletin OFFICIEL DE l'EtaT l.NDfil'ENDANT DU CoNGO, 1897, p. 58). « The administration of justice in the country of the Lower Congo is in the hands of well-trained jurists, and, with a system of prisons with hard labor and corporal punishment, law and order are on the whole well preserved. » Jesse SmoALL Reeves, Ph. d. {The international Beginnings of the Congo Free State, XI-XII, p: 80, 1894.) « The Congo Free Stale is severe towards those who illtreat the blacks; complaint is even sometimes made that the law too often interferes on behalf of the latter. The judges assume the r61e of « nigger guardians. » Edmond Picard. {En Congolie, p. 185, 1896.) « The natives of the Congo willingly apply to the European tribu- nals, which are disinterested; while the native judge, generally the chief, administers justice for his own benefit. » F. Gather. {L'Etat Inde'pendant du Congo et les indigenes, p. 10, 1898.) — 30 — a The native penal law is slill applied when an offence is com- mitted by one native against another native, unless the Government official prosecute before the European tribunals. The wisdom of these dispositions cannot be too highly praised. They show the Government understood that it would be chimeric to attempt to apply European law to native society. The legal needs of the natives are quite different to those of the inhabit;mls of the temperate zones. Their intelligence, altogether different to ours, would not allow them to realise the extent and object of European laws. The unconsidered introduction of the latter would cause trouble, discontent and disorder, in the State, instead of assuring place and welfare among the tribes. » F. Cattiku. {Droit et udministration de V l^tat Inde'pendaut dii Congo, p. 193, 1898.) « I can affirm, from personal knowledge, that all unnecessary violence against the natives is severely punished. I have seen an officer undergoing five years imprisonment; I know of another in similar circumstances. I have also been informed of the prosecu- tion of a big chief, un grand chef hlanc, as the Anglo-French verna- cular of that country has it. 1 find another proof of this impartial justice in the confidence shown by the natives in our tribunals. More than once I have heard officials complain that they no longer dared strike their boys for fear the latter should take them before the judge. « I will go before the judge, » is ever on the lips of the natives when threatened with corporal punishment. The repressive justice of the State is extended over the vast terri- tory in proportion to the establishment of new posts and the deve- lopment of trade. You cannot make that justice responsible for crimes which are committed in the impenetrable forest, or other places unreached by the arm of the law. The State does not yet possess that powerful army of guardians of public order which in Europe extends from the attorney general to the village policeman. Nevertheless the security afforded by the judicial organisation to the innocent and oppressed is so well known among the natives that at Romee I took on board my boat on unfortunate fellow who had been travelling for a fortnight in order to show to ihe judge at Stanleyville the irons placed on him by some Arabs. » Cii. BuLS, Former Burgomaster of Brussels. {Croquis congolais, pp. 210 & sq., 1899.) a All breaches of the regulations I have just mentioned are punished, as soon as known, by tbe administration and by the tribunals, if necessary. It is interesting to note that it is precisely an action in which the judicial authorities would have taken the initiative against several whites which would have called forth the revelations of Mr. Lacroix, which are so much talked of to day. This is, then, a formal and material proof of the vigilance with which Congolese law acts, prosecutes and punishes the guilty ones, if such there be. » Baron de Favereau, Minister of Foreign AfTairs. {Annales par/nneiitaires, Chambre; April, 19, 1900, p. 1040.) « We went and questioned Mr, Liebrechls, Secretary of the Interior of the Free Slate, and he distinctly stated that all the guilty parties, irrespective of rank and station, would be punished with the utmost seventy. » Ch. Liebrechts, General Secretary of the Home Department. (Interview, Petit Bleu, April, 22, 1900.) — 32 — « In the Congo, as elsewhere, offences and crimes are committed. It is tlio duly of the authorities to repress tiiem and in that duly liiey do not fail. In accordance with the terms of the letter (produced) to the Government attorney at New-Antwei'p, it will be seen that an enquiry has been opened into the circumstances recently brought to light, and an assurance can be given thiat, in this affair as in every other concerning the penal law, justice will be done. If the cruelties are as represented, the guilty will be chastised. As soon as tiie Government learnt, through the press, the facts in question, instructions were telegraphed to the Congo ordering an exhaustive enquiry to be held at once and, if necessary, that the matter be brought before the repressive tribunals. According to the regula- tions in force, the Bonia tribunal will have to deal with the matter, lliis course ensuring an increased security and a more effectual control by public opinion. It has been stated that twenty whites are in prison at Boma for acts of cruelty. Crime amongst whiles is, fortunately, not so com- mon ; but it is true that three Europeans are at the present moment undergoing penal servitude for acts of violence towards natives; this shows that the law is not idle. One is serving a life term ; an other a term of ten years, and the third two and a half years. Nobody, however high placed he may be, is higher than the law. « (Letter from the Congo Government to the Belgian Minister for Foreign Affairs, April, 23, 1900. Annates parlemen- taires. Session ISgO-'igOO, pp. 1125 & 1126.) «■ The judicial statistics show the vigilance with which the courts seek for infractions and aim at leaving no olVence unpunished. The heaiest task which the law is called upon to perform is the protection of the life, liberty and property of the native. We have elsewhere referred to the orders which the Government continues to issue to its judicial agents in this respect, and it is right to add that the latter unremittingly prosecute any attempt on the rights of the natives. They have even been sometimes charged with an excess of zeal by a too generous protection of the blacks, who, it is alleged, — 33 — gradually lose respect for the authority of Europeans. The Govern- inemt can only maintain its regulations for ensuring an absolute respect of the law and second its agents in the prosecution of all otfenders. It does not hesitate to assert even, that, checking the ill-treatment of natives an excess of severity would be more in accordance with its views than an excess of leniency. This last criticism has been also passed on Congolese justice, but it is unwarranted. One would seek in vain for a case of violence by a white against a black, in which the magistrate had shown guilty leniency. As was recently pointed out by the King-Sovereign's Government in a letter to the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs, offences and crimes are committed in the Congo as elsewhere ; the duty of the authority is to repress them and in that duty it does not fail. The presence of a certain number of Europeans in the prisons of the State, where they are paying the penalty of cruelty towards the natives proves that the law is not idle. » Report to the King-Sovereign, July, 15, 1900 (Bulletin oFFiciEL, 1900, pp. 135 & 136). « In principle all explorers should be angels of sweetness, abne- gation and justice. Unfortunately, it is not yet so. But the propor- tion of tares to wheat among them is not greater than among the judges, officials, police, schoolmasters, officers and petty-officers of Europe. The black sheep are punished here. It is the same in the Congo. Well, before « atrocities » were ever spoken of, the legal sta- tistics showed sentences of fine, imprisonment and even death— the last were commuted to several years penal servitude— for the ill-treat- ment of natives. The justice of the Free State leaves nothing te be desired in this respect, and if you have heard complaints, they related to the over severity of the judges. They were reproached with attaching to sta- tements by blacks an importance which statements can never have in the mouths of those who are ignorant of the difference between truth and falsehood. 3 Besides, the guilty agents are often punished on the evidence of their superiors. It is thus absolutely unjust to make them bear the responsibility. » Interview willi an African. {Le Matin, Antwerp, November, 28, 1900.) « Congolese justice has shown, especially of late, that it knows how to apply with severity the proper penal laws, and that it can do without parliamentary control. » {Cologne Gazette, May, 5, 1901.) « I am glad to state that things have vastly improved on the Congo, as far as the treatment of the natives is concerned. The State has for some little time been keeping a sharp look out for oflicials and traders who dare to ill-treat the natives, and, to my knowledge, quite a number of white men have been severely punished for abusing the Congo people. When I passed through Boma in march of this year a lady missionary informed me that she was in the habit of visiting the prisoners in gaol there, and I was rather surprised to hear that there were quite a number of white, men who had been sentenced to various terms of imprisonment, varying from five to fifteen years. I understand, too, that their punishment is very severe, as the prison- house is far from comfortable, and their diet not at all luxurious. I believe that these very severe sentences will have a salutary effect upon the behaviour of white men, who would otherwise commit the former atrocities without compunction. During my nine years' work on the Congo I have seen vast improvements in the Govei'nnient of the country, and I believe one of the chief causes is that the traders are now very much more restricted in their authority than formerly. » Rev. A. J. Bow EN, Protestant missionary. (After Capt. Lemaire's citation in The Times of October, 9, 1901 .) — 35 — « The Congo State strenuously protects the persons and liberty of the natives, a proof of this being the activity shown by the judicial authorities in repressing any acts of violence or cruelty towards the native population. We notice that the Pall Mall Gazette admits that persons guilty of such acts have been severely punished, and we agree with your journal that such examples are salutary and effi- cacious. » Baron Dhanis, Vice Governor General. {Pall Mall Gazette, October, 31, 1901.) « One thing I can declare without fear of contradiction— except from ignorant and prejudiced, though often well-meaning, persons, and, of course, their strictures no one need fear — and that is this : that no tangible or specific complaints as to wrongs in the Congo Free Slate are hushed up or even treated with indifference ; they are all investigated by European and natives authorities, and we never fail to get from some responsible Baptist Missionary, or from others per- sonally acquainted with all the circumstances, a full, true, and parti- cular account. In this way offenders have been sternly punished, imprisoned and banished ; and, though there is no legalised form of capital punishment in the State, extinguished. At one time when complaints were more abundant than they are now, and sometimes better founded, the King appointed a royal Commission to investigate all complaints made by natives, candid friends, and even avowed enemies; and it consisted of three Catholic dignitaries and three leading Baptist heads, including a representative of the American Baptist Mission to the Congo, which is also doing valuable work and has often borne the same emphatic testimony as to the beneficial results of the administration. Sir Hugh Gilzean Reid. {Morning Post, January, 1, 1903.) — 36 — a If it be true that acts of barbarity occur and are tolerated or even committed by State agents, it is, on the other hand, equally true that the local Government, far from encouraging or tolerating them, follows up and punishes them with the greatest severity. Calumny and bad faith have represented such occurrence as the work of the State, whereas they are but individual cases. In the prisons of Boma, are numerous Europeans (fortunately no Italians), undergoing severe sentences, some even serving life terms, for ill-treatment of natives. High State officials have been tried and sentenced for mere blows. Only a few months since, a magistrate, attached to the government, was recalled and tried for having inadvertently carried out a sentence against a native before the expiration of the time for appealing. One of the latest appeal sen- tences signed by me last January, before my return on leave, was the condemnation, to life imprisonment, of a Belgian employed by the State for barbarity towards natives. And the sentences passed by the courts are rigorously carried out. An old circular of the Governor declares that persons sentenced for violence towards natives have nothing to hope from the royal clemency. And as a matter of fact, I do not remember the King having exer- cised his clemency in such cases for several years past, in spite of povv'erful and reiterated appeals. I do not think any code of laws protects the native so thoroughly as the Congolese legislation. There is no difference of rights between whites and blacks in penal matters. The same code deals with both; the same courts try them; and if any reproach can be laid at the door of the magistrature it is that of being too severe towards the whites and too lenient towards the natives. The mere fact of having constituted a superior appeal court with judges of different nationalities and of appointing foreign lawyers and magistrates (especially Italians) as judges and officials of the lower courts in the interior of the country is a proof and a more than evident guarantee of the impartiality and seriousness of the judicial adminis- tration of the State. Again, there ai-e in the State official representatives of every nation, some being jealous rivals, who would not hesitate in making their voice heard if the Government failed in its duty. The Congo Free State, by its simple, logical, and powerful organisa- — 37 — tion, by its ever increasing prosperity, by the order and activity which reign everywhere, may be and has often been taken as a model for colonial States and has called forth the admiration of all, friends and adversaries alike, who have visited and studied it. It forms the most active and effective centre of civilisation in the heart of Africa, which a few years ago was still unknown and which Stanley called darkest Africa. Our country must not then allowed itself to be deterred by interes- ted calumnies; but, on the contrary, it must turn its attention to that region, which, with such hospitality, welcomes and honors her chil- dren, and which throws open to our activity a new, vast and fruitful field. » Baron Giacomo Nisco, Member of the appeal Court of the Congo Free State. « The letter which we publish has a double value. It gives the truth about the charges of which the civilised world justly requires an explanation, and it justifies the conduct of the Italians who form such a considerable part of the administrative and judicial staff of the Congo Free State. Having published the charges, it is only fair that whe publish the defence — a refutation worthy of all credence from one of our illustrious fellow-countrymen, Baron Giacomo INisco, who, for six years, has been, if not theoretically at least pratically, the chief magistrate of a State which, under the a^gis of civilised and free Belgium, already offers advantages to so many Italians and will offer even more when the country is further developed. » {Don Marzio, Naples, March, 21-22, 1903.) §3. — Slavery and the Slave Trade. « The Free State is making praiseworthy efforts to put an end to the horrors of this infamous traffic (liie slave trade). Our mis- sionaries of Mpombou will act as auxiliaries, and as the advance sentinels of this eminently humanitarian and Christian work. » Rev. Father Guelly. {Missions en Chine et an Congo, 1890, p. 207.) « In the mind of its founders, Lusambo was destined to be not only a military but a militant station. At the time of its foundation, the Arabs were making sanguinary raids in this direction and were preparing an expedition against the Bassongos. The arrival of the Belgians caused them to retire. » Rev. Father Van Aertselaer. {Missions en Chine et au Congo, July 1893, p. 285.) « The victories of the Congo State have been the decisive victories of civilisation. With sacrifices and successes greater thbse of any other power, the Congo State fulhlled the civilising and humanitarian mission assigned to it by the Conferences of Berlin and Brussels. It may be added that these results have, to a large extent, a definitive character. » [Expose lies motifs du projet de hi d'annexion du Congo, February, 12, 189o, p. 3.) — 39 — « They have gone, those days of continual alarm, when the mns- siilman collectors, thirsting after blood and rapine, had only Captain Joubert and his handful of braves to fear. Thanks to the generous intervention of Belgium and her valiant officers, the followers of Mahomet, whose arrogance so often grieved us missionaries and for so long filled the peaceful tribes around us with fear, were treated as they deserved. Their cold-blooded, barbaric cruelty, their subterfuges, their black perfidy, their numberless and nameless crimes, have received their merited punishment. Everything supports the belief that our captain will no more have need to draw the sword against the enemy whom he was the first to attack. At present, the missionary can fi'eely and safely travel through the country and preach the gospel. Through the active and intelligent administration of captains Jacques and Descamps the country has been organised, justice impartially meted out, the mails circulate freely from one end of Tanganika to the other. The natives are 'taking courage and devoting themselves with energy to agriculture and the various primitive industries with which they are acquainted. Prosperty has reappeared with peace and quietness; all can enjoy their share of the sunshine thus accorded them. » Rev, Father Guilleme, White Fathers' Mission. {Mouvement antiesclavagiste, 1896, pp. 34o & 346.) « The Brussels Conference has dealt with the role of the Congo State in the anti-slavery campaign, the importance of the duties, incumbent upon it, the difliculty of the task which was assigned to it by the perilous honor of being in the vanguard on the battle-field. The number of ennemies, the organisation of their forces, the length of time they had inhabited the regions they terrorised, their weapons and munitions of war, the servile condition of the natives, were so many causes for apprehension and uncertainty as to the final issue of the struggle and as to the lot of the African races. It seems, indeed, — 40 — that in this struggle between civilisation and slavery, where the life and liberty of millions of human beings were at stake, failure would have destroyed all hope of a better future. It is thus that in the hands of the Congo State were placed the destinies of central Africa and its tribes. The situation was clearly defined by an English missionary when, with the experience of a lengthy residence in Africa he said, in the course of the military campaign of 1893 : « I am )) convinced that, unless the Arabs are driven out, a general massacre » will take place... it is time for the Europeans to play their last card » against the Arabs, whether they will win or not, I can not say? » Civilisation won and even if history only recorded this victory for the Congo State — due, moreover, to the courage of Belgian officers — how much would it have deserved from those who are interested in the lot of the native races ! If a new era of freedom and regeneration be opened to those races to day, if the improvement of their material and moral condition may now be carried on, it is owing to the definitive abolition of the slave traders. It has been pointed out elsewhere at what sacrifice of men and money, with what bravery and even heroism, these results were attained. The facts are there to prove that the sacrifices have not been fruitless : manhunters rendered powerless, their bands dis- persed, their chiefs gone, the fortresses of slavery destroyed, natives rebuilding villages under the protection of State stations, devoting themselves to the peaceful pursuits of planting and cultivation, a calm, peaceful era succeeding the dark and sanguinary episodes of the preceding period. Every mail from Africa brings fresh proofs of progress in this time of pacification and shows that the natives, deli- vered from a galling yoke, are becoming trustworthy and peaceable subjects. » Report to the King- Sovereign, January, 2o, 1897 (Bulletin OFFiciEL, 1897, pp. ol & seq.). — 41 — « The penal legislation has been duly completed and one of its main provisions is that attempts on the life, liberty or property of natives shall never go unpunished. From the special point of view of the protection due to the native races must be mentioned that portion of the law suppressing the slave trade and which has been harmonised with the provisions of the Brussels resolutions. » Report to the King-Sovereign, January, 25, 1897 (Bulletin OFFICIEL, 1897, p. 58). « It is only fair to remember that the Congo State has done a great work and by their administration the cruel raids of Arab slave-dealers have ceased to exist over many thousands of square miles. » Mr. CuKZON, State Under-Secretary. (House of Commons, April, 2, 1897. The Times, April, 3, 1897.) « Since three years ago, the condition of the mission has com- pletely changed. The Arab slave traders, checked by captain Joubert, who devotedly protected our missions, have seen their power destroyed by the united efforts of the Belgian Aijti-Slavery Society and the Congo Free State. Since that time, the traffic in blacks has been abolished in the Upper Congo and the mission enjoys that freedom of action which is necessary for the development of all catholic work. Therefore, during the past three years, the mission has made considerable progress. » Mgr. ROELENS, Apostolic Vicar of the Upper Congo. [Les Missions catholiques de Lyon, April, 9, 1897, p. 170. a The antislavery work, which you have so generously undertaken and carried on with such unfailing courage and perseverance, has obtained tlie best results here. The expeditions organised by your care, joined to the Slate's troops, have destroyed the slavetrade through the whole extent of my vicariate. The Arabian slave traders who ravaged and devastated the country, have been expelled and reduced to helplessness, and peace reigns through the whole country. We were previously obliged to keep to our stations and were conti- nually threatened and menaced by these enemies of civilisation. To-day we can circulate freely and evangelize in peace to the sur- rounding population ; we can even reach in safety the most distant places comprised in our vicariate. » Mgr. ROELENS, Apostolic Vicar of High-Congo. (Letter to the Directing Committee of the antislavery Belgian Society, Baudouinville, November, 15, 1895, Mouvement antiesclavagiste, 1896, p. 146.) c< The Manyema has been completely depopulated by the « slave trade, « this traffic has only been checked for live or six years ; the track from Tanganyka lake to Congo, followed by Arabian caravans, is literally strewn with human bones for a space of 400 kilometres !... How many thousands of slaves have fallen on this fatal track!... I discovered several skeletons and even dead bodies of some weeks date but this is an exception; the whitened bodies blanched on the ground contemporary to those covering the shores of Oudjiji' and of Mtova, are the last vestiges of that gigantic trade of human tlesh of which this region was indubitably the scene. Manyema requires two centuries of peace, tranquillity and protection to enable its population to regain the ground it has lost since the Arabian inroads. » Edguauu Foa, Plenipotentiary to the French Government. {La Traversee de i'Afrique, 1900, p. 217.) - 43 — « To-day the slave trade has ceased in this particular district, the traders being afraid to come anywhere near the Belgian posts. To such an extent have conditions changed with the advent of Bel- gian administration that many small chiefs are now recovering indi- viduals raided from them by their stronger neighbours and not already sold to the traders when European control reached the country. » G. Ghey, English civil engeneer, recently in charge of mission to Katanga. {Morning Post, January, 20, 4903.) « The slave trade may be considered as destroyed and abolished in the High-Congo as well as in the Lower-Congo. In numerous districts, blacks still own slaves who work under their orders but whose existence owns none of the miseries generally applicable to the tei'm « slave ». This domestic slavery will, no doubt, equally disappear, but by degrees and slowly, for it is inherent to the customs of the Congolese populations, and it would be a proof that the coloni- zation work was guilty of incompetency to exact the immediate abo- lition of all slavery. As for the trade if still in practice it can only actually exist in certain places not yet reached by explorers. » Major Chaltin. {Le Patriate, April, 2, 1894.) « I make a point here of doing justice to the agents of the Indepen- dent State of Congo who oppose, by every means in their power, this traffic so shameful to humanity. I speak, having full knowledge of the case, and knowing that under the rule of Messrs. Lemaire and Fievez, chiefs of the Equator district, blacks have no longer the right to sell slaves to one another, these almost fatally falling victims to ceremonials or ending in the Bondjos or N'gombos's boiling pots. This ought equally to be the same on the French side. If God gives me life I will resume this most interesting question later on. » Rev. Fathkr Allaikk, Of the Saint-Esprit Missionnaires. [Le Mouvement antiesclavagiste, 1896, p. 89.) « Do you consider that the slave trade could be efficaciously battled with only by missions and crusaders like Joubert? » — No. — Facts exist to prove that considerable troops and expe- rienced officei's would be requisite to beat the Arabian troops ; and besides, are not the Jouberts and the Jacques' constantly needing the help and power of the Independent State? » — It is adduced that Belgians are replacing slavery by other bon- dage quite as hard as slavery?... — This is simply exaggeration. The negro is lazy by nature, and force is required to make him work. It is evident that gentleness cannot ahvays master him. Severity must be used. But severity and violence are far apart. Officers and belgians agents never employ violence. They would be liable to punishment if they were guilty of any act of severity towards blacks. They strive to attain their aim by gentleness and persuasion. I, myself, witnessed a most curious scene. It took place on the Kasai. The natives tried to prevent our landing. They were nume- rous and threatening, Commandant Five had sufficient soldiers to disperse this howling mobby force, he could even have fired upon them. Instead of ordering, Mr. Five began to argue and with such success that all the excited crowd rapidly dispersed, quite willinglk. And I thus duly ascertained that our officers and agents proceed everywhere in the same manner. It is, besides, thoroughly acknow- ledged by the foreign press that Belgian officers give the example in Africa of humane proceedings towards natives. » Mgr. Van Aertselaer, Apostolic vicary. (Journal de Bruxelles, May, 3, 1896.) — 45 — « The abolitioA of the slave trade will certainly not thoroughly abolish slavery. If, the one, with its long train of murders and crimes could and should be put down even by force of arms, domestic slavery so thoroughly rooted in the native customs, does not need such radical suppression. The Brussels Conference like the Berlin one has marked this distinction and the most experienced Africans recognize that domestic slavery can only be gradually abolished and that it is a work of time. The Congo State has not, either, seen the necessity of using force to reach this aim, for, by giving a violent shock to the native social state of things, this would invariably provoke resistance and create revolts. But nevertheless it has cons- tantly striven since its birth, to sap this custom. It acted firstly through its civil legislation, which does not recognise servile statutes, and does not give its sanction to any transaction of which a slave may be the object. In this case the customary law could not be applied being quite opposed to public order. The domestic slave, if subjected to another native or to any one else, is thus, at all times, master of his own individuality and assured of having his rights asserted to any claim he may choose to make to obtain his liberty. The State acts by severe contract rules to which the hire system is subservient, these generally only recognizing short engagements so as to prevent the contract degenerating into disguised slavery. It has acted by its penal law which punishes every act attempting any one's liberty and in this case the Court must use its own circumspection so as to interfere progressively and to graduate conciliations. Any one is punished by five years penal servitude, who, either by craft, violence or threats, kidnaps anybody or helps to kidnap, arrests arbitrarily or helps to arrest, detains or helps to detain. « Anybody » is punished in the same way, who kidnaps or helps to kidnap, « arrests or helps to arrest, detains oi- helps to detain any persons to » sell them for slaves or who has made over any persons placed » under his authority for the same purpose. » The State has acted again by strictly superintending and watching the staff and compo- sition of the caravans. » Report to the Sovereign-King, January, 25, 1897 (Bulletin OFFiciEL, 1897, pp. 53 & 54). — 46 — « The Arabian slave trade has disappeared, but the trade between blacks, the natural sequel to domestic slavery (impossible to suppress from one day to another), still exists, at least here. The porterat^e being liiiished, the State gives its best care to suppress this abuse by which provinces w'ould shortly be depopulated. I have no doubt of its success, and most rapidly. This however did not prevent our having six concerns of this kind to arrange during our fifteen days expedition. » Rev. Father Prevers. {Missiojis beiges de la Compagnie de Jesus, 1899, pp. 28 & 29. Letter dated from Molembo, August, 1898.) « Kilonga-Longa had long since died, and another man, a Manyema, once a follower of his, had been made chief. The name of the place had been altered to Mawambi, after its present chief, who had been placed there by the Belgian authorities, and he was instructed to do away with all slave raiding and trading of every kind. This man had done his duty and the district was now a peaceable one. » A. B. Lloyd. {In Dwarf Land, 1899, p. 318.) « The State insists upon the chiefs thoroughly impressing their men with notions of superior morality and inculcating true ideas of individual respect and liberty. Strict prohibition has been given to the soldiers, also to all black servants belonging to the State, to dispose of the native women of children for their personal use as this was a' custom most important to check as it fed and developed slavery ideas. » Report to the Sovereign King, July, lo, 1900 (Bulletin offi- ciEL, 1900, p. 131). §4. — Barbarous Customs. « Europe is already acquainted with the fact that high class funerals never take place without human sacrifice. At some kilo- metres distance from Berghe 30 to 40 human heads can still be seen hanging over a chiefs house, this decapitation having taken place owing to the barbarous custom, at his father's death. I thus foresaw more sacrificing. I sent three men to Bokatoula to inform him that if he wished to oblige us he would prevent murder; I added that if he tolerated this barbarous act, the State would be immediately informed of this atrocity and that he was exposing himself to terrible punishment and penalties; we were warning him as friends, fearing to see his village burnt down and he, himself, thrown into prison. He immediately dispatched us a messenger with thanks, he realised that we were true friends and was quite ready to meet our wishes. As to the woman he was quite willing to give her over into our hands. « Rev. Father A. De Backer. {Missions en Chine et au Congo, 1890, p. 302.) « Human sacrificing is no longer a custom in Mayumbe. The last dates from 1887. Nine women were then sacrificed on an old chiefs tomb. The State prosecutor was informed of this fact, he sought out the perpetrators of this crime, and it has not occurred since. The « casque » trial is also gradually disappearing. We are aquainted with its meaning : to ascertain a prisoner's culpability or innocence the fetich-man administered poison to him and according to its action the culprit was condemned — by the fact — or discharged... The Congo Free State informed the native chiefs that it considered — 48 — as simple poisoners all those who still continued this barbarous trial by c( casque ». This custom disappears more and more, for each time it occurs information is lodged and legal authorities intervene. » Felix Flchs, * Vice General Governor. {I^'toile belgi', November, 29, 1893.) c< A big case is to be tried to-morrow at L6o ; two blacks have to answer to the indictment of having forced one of their tribe to drink Nkassa, a most terrible poison extracted from some bark. It is a legal judgment for negroes, if one of them is suspected of a misdeed he can only free himself from the accusation by swallowing, fasting in the early morning, the homicidal draught. If he vomit it before midday, his innocence is recognised, but more often the victim expires in most terrible spasms, unless he is strangled to shorten his agony. Generally the poison Nkassa is drunk by order of a fetich- man or wizard who, without any other motive than revenge, or the hope of some heavy reward, accuses the first comer of having caused the death of a chief or of having thrown some spell on a rich man's family or flock. It can be quite understood that the State cannot tolerate such a barbarous custom ; the culprits recognised as guilty are themselves sentenced to the gallows. The ultimate object will only, however, be reached by degrees as the negroes appear very astonished that such practices should be so severely dealt with as they appear most innocent and harmless to them. If the culprit survives, they consider that his fetich protects his innocence; if the contrary happens they only se» a guilty one deserted by his guardian spirit; does a white judge know more than our fetich-men?... » Rev. Father De Deken. {Missions en Chine et au Congo, April, 4896, p. 235.) — 49 — « Do the natives mutilate corpses?... — Without doubt. But what influence can the State authorities bring to bear on the matter?... These are old secular customs which the State does all in its power to prevent. This State has only eleven years existence, and it is expected it can obtain at the first onset, a similar result to that obtained in Belgium for instance (where, on the arrival of Cesar human sacrificing was still in practice with the Druids; where, in the middle ages, torture was applied) after eighteen centuries ! In my country bondage has only been abolished since 1848 and in Russia since 1862; and the Irish, were they not real pariahs fifty years ago?... » M. Lerman, Formerly Austrian officer. {Journal de Bruxelles, October, 4, 1896.) « Here, again is a personal reminiscence. The State's orders forbid our pursuing, pitilessly, sanguinary chiefs. Being Commander of the Kwango district I went to Muene Mputu Kassongo. This powerful chief was in the habit of causing the decapitation of several of his subjects, every morning. This mon- strous habit had degenerated for him into real sport. I went to this miscreant to inform him that he was forbidden to continue this abominable practice. Three Belgian officers were present at this interview. He replied : « Why does not thy King equally forbid me » to kill goats and pigs, they are as much my property as my sub- » jects? » What was the sequel? My prohibition remaining unheeded, I declared war to this brute and he perished in a battle. Believe when I say that it is impossible to influence such ferocious natures as we do in Europe. They only respect power, and strong force is solely obeyed, » M. Lerman, Formerly Austrian officer. {Journal de Bruxelles, October, 4, 1896.) — 50 — a The Bangalas!... The results obtained with Ihem are stupen- dous. They were inveterate cannibals. In the illustrious Coquilhat's time, human flesh was continually eaten. Coquilhat relates that to render the meat more palatable a living man's limbs were broken and the body of the victim still breathing, was soaked in the river. The action of the State completely mastered these terrible cannibals ; and if it only had this one feather to stick in its cap, it ought to deserve unlimited admiration. Cannibalism is completely abo- lished with them and if sacrifices are still made they are performed in the wood's depth, far from the white man's glance, and ihe situation of affairs is sufficiently prosperous to satisfy the most exacting. » Lerman, Formerly Austrian officer. {Journal de Briixelles, October, 4, 1896.) « It can be ascertained from the present that cannibalism decreases as the white man's influence extends, and disappears completely in the stations' neighbourhood. A Bangala who has served in the Army of the State, in our commercial establishments, in our dockyards, considers himself ennobled and regards his brothers of his own race, who still devour human flesh, as savages whom he despices. » Rev. Father De Deken. {Missions en Chine et au Congo, January, 1897, p. 379.) « Fresh proof of the generality of this monstrous custom (anthro- pophagy) ! It will require much time and severe measures to tho- roughly extirpate it. In places frequented by white men it is only practised secretly ; but elsewhere it is considered as natural and legitimate. » Rev. Father De Deken. {Missions en Chine et au Congo, January, 1897, p. 378.) — M — « The State has taken care to sap domestic slavery by attacking the evil at its root, that is by striving to uproot customs, which like anthropophagy and human sacrifices, are the real basis of private slavery. According to their instructions agents strive by persuasion, or, when the example is necessary, by applying the penal law, to deter the natives from these barbarous habits, and it is most satisfac- tory to ascertain that these practices are greatly decreasing. The petty tribe wars, this other cause of numerous instances of slavery, are equally decreasing on account of the State agents acting as arbi- trators between the chiefs, and the administering reports prove that this healthy intervention is acting more and more as the State's influence develops and strengthens. It is, ill fact, by the development and effectual authority of the State and the influence of civilisation, that we must seek the most really efficient means to completely abolish these customs. The proof is obtained to-day, for everywhere where we find efficient stations the native breaks with habits reproved by the white man. It is thus that cannibalism or sacrifices at deaths and births become rarer and rarer in the stations vicinity. Such results cannot be hoped for in places where the native is quite left to himself. It is only by slow degrees that this work of moral education can be expected to produce satisfactory results. » Report to the King-Sove7rign, January, 25, 1897 (Bulletin OFFiciEL, 1897, pp. 54-5o). « On the other hand penal law has not being able to remain impas- sive, regarding these barbarous practices inured by custom : human sacrifices bear the same penalty as manslaughter ; the poison trial, mutilation of corpses, cannibalism are considered and ranked as delinquencies. » Report to the King-Sovereign of January, 25, 1897 (Bulletin OFFICIEL, 1897, p. 58). 02 « As to the grievances expressed by Sir Charles Dilke against the Congo State, they consist of two sorts, and the Belgian press has already done justice to them. The English statesman stated, by his erroneous reliance on Dr. Hinde's testimony, that baron Dhanis had put his soldiers on rations of human tlesh. In reality, the doctor, formerly attached to the expedition against the Arabian slave traders, simply stated that the auxiliary soldiers, whose co-operation so mate- rially contributed to the States regular troops mastering the enemy, addicted themselves to cannibalism, and this assertion could not surprise anybody who had explored the African centre. These abominable customs cannot evidently disappear in a moment, the moral education of populations who feed on human flesh can only be the work of time. » Sir H. M. Stanlky. {L'J^toile beige, April, 26, 1897.) « Dr. Hinde's assertion proves by itself that if it is only too true that anthropophagy is practised on a large scale in Congo, it cannot be adduced with any truth that the Congolese Government approves such savage habits or even that it is indulgent towards them. It punishes them severely whenever it has the opportunity of doing so and when the culprits are discovered. But it is not astonishing on the other hand, that owing to the vast extension of cannibalism it is not always possible or feasible that this administration can always unfailingly act, when it might be necessary. « {Bulletin du Comite de CAfrique fraiiQaise, June, 1897, p. 192.) « Now is it reasonable to expect that the Belgians can rout out the inbred customs of generations in a few years? Or can it be alhrmed with any claim to common sense that the suppression of such deba- sing practices can be unattended by occasional repression of a severe kind? The Benin natives had been in close touch with Europeans for fifty years at least, and had come into contact with them for a couple — 53 — of centuries, yet until the other day human sacrifices were in full swing at Benin city to the knowledge of the British authorities not forty miles distant. The task which the Belgians have taken in hand is a gigantic one, and they are not getting fair play. » {Pall Mall Gazette, July, 19, 1897.) « Credit is also due to the Congo Government in respect of the diminution of cannibalism, although the improvement noticeable in this regard has resulted as much, perhaps, from the presence of resident Europeans as from direct repression. Eaters of human flesh soon become susceptible to public opinion on the subject. In a riverside town where cannibal relics where to be found still hanging from the sooty rafters of the huts, a missionary informed me that the inhabitants would never admit that they had been addicted to the practice ; while other members of the same tribe, in a bush village not more than half-a-day's march away, had shortly before offered a child to a passing trader for his supper, in lieu of the goat's meat they were unable to supply. It will take a long time, however, to disinfect the country of this foulness throughout. The banks of the main river, and those of many of its affluen.s, may be regarded as no longer tainted thereby; but cannibalism will continue to be heard of on the Congo until the natives who are ashamed of it can be brought to see the advantage ol assisting in its abolition. » PlCKERSfilLL, H. M. s. Consul. {Diplomatic and consular Reports, n° 4o9, June, 1898, p. 8.) « Not far from the Congolese frontier, Mr. Lloyd reached a village occupied by an Arab. This man did all he could to prevent his con- tinuing on his way and was on the point of doing him a bad turn. The missionary had a sudden inspiration that saved his life. He assured the Arab that he was the friend of Tippo-Tip, and imme- diately this man softened and gave him hospitality. Mr. Lloyd — bi — seeking for the cause of the inimical attitude of his host writes : » This Arab's chief reason for not wishing me to pass through his )) village was undoubtedly because the place was full of slaves, » gathered from various parts. He evidently thought that if I got » through, having seen all these, I should tell the Belgians of his » existence in the forest and they would send soldiers to capture )) him. » [l^loile beige, January, 11, 1900.) « If the Government has not yet succeeded in abolishing comple- tely these hideous practices, the trial by poison, mutilations, canni- balism, interior wars, its persevering action has greatly decreased the number and to such an extent that it is easy to foresee the happy day when they will be completely abolished on all the surface of the Congo territory. Some time after the gravest accusations had been brought against its agents, Mr. Curzon, State Secretary, stated in the Commons sitting the 3rd of April 1897 that the Independent State of Congo had accomplished a splendid work, for it is, said he, owing to its govern- ment that the slavers have been obliged to cease their cruelty over several thousands of square miles in the very heart of Africa. The results are evident to all. Everybody who has visited Africa can bear witness to the fact that the population formerly so decimated has considerably increased, thanks to the successful governing ot the Independent Slate. When white men settled in a region, the natives withdrew, for the slavers cruelty remained in their memory and rendered them suspi- cious, but as soon as they were assured of the State's agents pacific intentions they came back in groups round the stations. » Baron uk Faveueau, Ministre des Affaires Elrangeres. {Annales parlemeiUaires [Cliam.bre] of April, 2G, 1900, p. 1167.) « Cannibalism does not necessarily engender ferocity ; in reality these men are not vicious. Du Chaillu, de Compifegne, Marclie, Gren- fell, Schweinfurth, Junker and many others, like myself, have lived amongst them without any danger. It would thus be easy to make these unfortunate men understand that their customs are reprehen- sible : all that is requisite are a little time and patience. Belgians are excellent colonists ; I trust we shall follow their example without delay in the Congo part under our influence, and anthropophagy will gra- dually thoroughly disappear from the African continent. » Edguard Foa, Charge de mission par le Gouvernement fi"an(;ais. (A travel's I'Afrique, 1900, p. 252.) « It is useless to state that in places where Europeans have esta- blished their influence, there appears a thorough understanding between the natives to deny all inclination to these customs ; they know that they are reproved by the white man, and for this reason they pretend complete innocence, even indignation, when the subject is broached. But if the zone is left, where civilised influence is no longer felt cannibalism ostensibly exists, and will exist yet for a good while. » Edguard Foa, Charge de mission par le Gouvernement frangais. (A travers I'Afrique, 1900, p. 245.) S 5. — Anti-alcoholic measures. <( The adverse influence of alcoholism on natives is well known. The State, has sacrificed on this point all treasury (fiscal) considei-a- tions to the superior necessity of protecting the population against the introduction of spirits. It has put into full force, in the greatest part of its territory, its principle of interdiction, decreed by the Brussels Act, and recently again it has e.\tended the limit of this pro- hibition from the Inkissi to the Kmlu. so as to prevent the importation of alcohol in the railway region. There, where on account of unavoidable reasons and not to upset commercial transactions, this interdiction has not been able to be decreed, the State has taxed to the maximum the customs — duty authorised by the Brussels Act. This duty, 45 fr. the hectolitre, might have been increased to 25 fr. on the 2nd. April 1895 ; it is to be hoped that this increase of duty will soon be established. » Report to the Sovereign-King , January, 25, 1897 (Bulletin OFFiciEL, 1897, pp. 65 & 66). « We must admit that formerly in the Lower-Congo district, bor- dering the Portuguese possessions, alcohol, in every form, was the only remuneration coveted by porters. This scourge has not ceased preying on the Lower-Congo but the energetic measures taken by the State have greatly palliated this evil by preserving the intelligent population of the interior from it. No alcohol is found beyond — 57 — the Inkissi river, the rare bottles discovered in the markets at some days distance from this limit are used as exchange (barter) money and pass through fifty hands before being uncorked. » Rev. Father De Deken {Missions en Chine et au Congo, No. 86, March, 1896, p. 2H.)* « The reproach that the Congo Stale encourages and reaps profit from the liquor traffic is unfounded. The State has forbidden the importation of and trade in alcoholic drink in the whole territory beyond the Inkissi river, from the very first, then beyond the Kwilu river, and now not a single bottle of gin is sold to natives in the Upper- Congo. Wherever, by reason of international arrangements, the absolute prohibition was impracticable, alcohol has been made liable to the heaviest duties possible under the Brussels convention. The State has even endeavoured to increase those duties by means of an understanding with its neighbours. » {Bulletin du Coniite de VAfrique francaise, June, 1897, pp. 193 & 194.) « For several years past, the trade in spirits has been entirely for- bidden in nine tenths of the State territory, but it was tolerated on the southern bank of the Congo, up to the river Kwilu, 45 miles to the east of the port of Matadi, the terminus of the railway line. At. 3 miles to the east of Matadi, the M'pozo empties itself into the Congo, and, in order to prevent spirits being transported by rail, the zone in which their sale is forbidden has just been extended towards the west, by a new law, up to the M'pozo, All those who take an interest in the welfare and development ot the natives of Africa will welcome joyfully this new step taken by the Congo Government. Could we not ask our own Government to order the same prohibition of such transport on all the railways of our African colonies, both those already existing and those planned for the future? We may be allowed to suggest that the inner land be preserved even if the trade in spirits has to be tolerated on the coast for some time still. I can personally attest that the prohibition has its effect as far a§ the Congo is concerned, but thei'e yet remains about 13 square miles round Matadi, where the traffic is still tolerated as also m the 7,000 square miles that belong to the State in the north of the Congo, from the coast up to Maiiyanga, which is the point at which the French territory begins to border the river. The Government does not think that it could put a stop to the smuggling from the French and Portuguese possessions into this district. » Rev. W. H. Be.ntley, of the Baptist Missionary Society. (Chhistian Would, 1898, quoted by La BeUjique coloniale, 1898, July, 10.) « The Slate has restricted the liquor trade which was already flourishing on the lower river when occupation took place and is keeping its unwholesome influence, from spreading to the newlyo- pened interior. No intoxicants tor sale to the natives are permitted to pass the Lufu — a tributary of the Congo traversing up-country route about 20 miles east of Matadi — while equally strong repres- sion is exercised elsewhere, of which an interesting example occured not long ago in the far south, when Baron Dhanis broke up the rude distilleries of a tribe which had learnt the art of making rum at home. It is scarcely possible to over-estimate the service which is being rendered by the Congo Government to its subjects in this matter. Total collapse may not yet have overtaken the contention that spiri- tuous liquors do the native no harm, and that when he cannot obtain the European kind, he gets drunk just the same on fermented palm wine. But the contrast between the mid-continent savage, living where the rum barrel has never appeared, and the down-country negro born in the shadow of it, is too great for those who have seen both at home to share an opinion formed upon limited observation. » PiCKEHSGILL, H. M. s. Consul. {Diplomatic and consular Reports, no 4o9, June 1898, p. 7.) — o9 — « The burning question of the di'ink traffic has been dealt with very effectively by the Congo Stale. The sale of spirituous liquors to the natives has been strictly prohibited over 99/100 of its wide area. We have good means of knowing that this restriction has been effective ; the missions would not fail to second the efforts of the Stale by making known any contravention of the laws. The enclave to the north of the Congo from the coast to Manyanga, and some twenty square miles about Matadi from Underbill to the Mpozo river, are not within the zone of restriction. On the south bank the line of restriction is drawn at the Mpozo river, three miles above Matadi ; the railway cannot therefore transport it at all ; neither are the natives allowed to carry any beyond the Mpozo river. We could wish that the Government would keep out the liquor entirely, but it considers that it would be impossible to watch effectively the French and Portuguese frontiers near the coast, and at the port itself; the sale is therefore permitted over 9,000 square miles, although very little finds its way into more than half of that area. There is no restriction to the sale of drink to the white men, but no absinthe is allowed to be imported under any circumstances. It is a very great thing that the Government takes such an enlightened view of the matter, and that it realizes that such a course favours its best and truest interests. » Rev. W. HoLMAN Bentley. B. M. S. {Pioneering on the Congo, 1900, p. 427.) « In the high interests of the material and moral preservation of the native races, the Government has also continued its campaign against alcoholism. The decree of 15th April extended as far as the river M'pozo, the zone, which formerly stopped at Kwilu, in which it is forbidden to import or sell distilled alcoholic liquor. To prevent this prohibition being eluded, the very introduction of stills into the zone has been forbidden. Thus, in nineteen twentieths of the Stale the importation and manufacture of alcoholic drink and the establish- ment of stills are not tolerated. Certain alcoholic drinks are absolutely forbidden in any part of — 60 — the territory, even for consumption by whites. We may mention absinthe, for example, which experts class as a virulent poison, and the consumption of which is prohibited. In the relatively restricted zone where, for reasons set forth in preceding reports, the importation of spirits is still permitted, not without regret, it is severely regulated. The Slate has welcomed the international measures which allowed it to increase the import duty on spirits; in this connexion it signed the Convention of 8th June 1899, the ratifications of which have just been deposed, and since that Convention came into force the import duty which stood at 15 francs per hectolitre of 50 degrees per cent., has been increased, by decree of 12st June 1900, to the newly- authorised maximum of 70 francs. In this connexion the legal dispositions dealing with and punishing drunkenness may be recalled. District police commissioners are instructed to « take special note of the habits of temperance of the » officers under their orders, to prevent them dealing with an » excessive quantity of alcoholic liquor, to report, in this respects, » to the Government any misbehaviour, to punish any disregard of » their preventive orders by the agents, to prosecute every offence of » drunkenness. » Report to the King-Sovereign, July, 25, 1900 (Bulletin OFFiciEL, 1900, pp. 153 & 154). « A final word about the part of protector played by the Free State towards the natives. While protecting them against the raids of the Arab slave-traders, it at the same time defends them against the alcoholic peril which is almost as dangerous for the blacks. It is knov/n that steps have been taken to banish alcohol from Central Africa and to reduce its consumption in the districts near the coast. » Comte DE Smet de Naeyeh, President of the Council of Ministers. (Sitting of the Chamber of Representatives, July, 16, 1901, p. 1977.) The force publique. « The national army of the Congo has a value which will hence- forth be uncontested. Its component elements are in no sense inferior to the foreigners primarily enlisted. It is even certain that they are superior to most Afi'icans and equal to the best. Of how many men will this force soon consist? That is difficult to foresee; but it seems certain that several thousand natives will be shortly drafted into the ranks of the public force. And, what is especially reassuring, the retired soldiers will, in case of need, be the first to volunteer ! This was so in the case of the Bangalas who volun- teered to reinforce the troops of commandant Ponthier and who, under the orders of Mr. Lothaire, so valiantly aided in the successful operations undertaken against Kibonge. They were all old State servants, There would thus be a reliable reserve of trained and tried men. « Lieutenant Gorin. (Indepen dance, November, 24, 1893.) « Your countrymen have accomplished great things over there in so short a time. Their black soldiers have acquired a <.' moral elevation » formerly unknown. Thanks to the moral influence of their leaders, they have improved wonderfully. But the human animal is not so easily tamed. People would like to abolish corporal punishment. What an Utopia! The British Navy, I am told, still uses the cat-o'-nine -tails and Bussia the knout. The knout will disappear as a matter of course when man is morally elevated to a sufficient degree of evolution to henceforth obey purely moral sug- — G2 — geslions. That evolution will yet be gradually accomplished. It has taken centuries to make itself Felt in Europe; I venture to think that a little more enlightenment will cause it to be developed in the Congo. » Lehman, Formerly Austrian officer. [Journal de Bruxelles, October, 4, 1896 ) « All at once, three cannon shots make the ground tremble and salvoes of muskelry reply from the other side. The steamer casts ofif, approaches and brings back the famous soldiers of Captain Doorme. The white plumes waving above their heads, their brand-new, pure white uniform, their band lustily playing the Brabangonne, the march past the inspector, the sham taking of a village on the manoeuvring ground, the enthusiasm of all those braves, happy to serve under the whites against the cursed Arab, — constitutes a spec- tacle not easily forgotten. And one asks oneself what energy for- tified by patience our officers must have employed to make of these erstwhile savages soldiers who, by their order, their discipline, their enthusiasm, their ready use of arms, would bear favorable compa- rison vvith no matter what European troops. » Rev. Father De Deken, of the Mission of Scheut. [Missions en Chine et au Congo, January, 1897, pp. 379 & 380.) « The Force Publique have been sufficiently increased for the due preservation of order. The Force Publique include, without auxi- liaries, 8,000 militiamen, 4,000 national volunteers, and 2,000 foreign volunteers. The State aimed at raising a purely national army, with a view of relieving the budget of the considerable charges entailed upon it by outside recruiting, and, in its highest political interest, at making it self independent of the foreigner. It considers, moreover, the period — 03 — of military service as a salutary school for the native where he learns the respect of authoriy and the rules of duty. This being so, the State notes with satisfaction the increasing number of national militiamen, and in order that the institution might retain ail its value, special regulations have been made to prevent abuses, systematise recruiting, , assure the welfare of soldiers on service, and create a career for retired militiamen. The decree on the recruiting ot the public forces, drawn up by the superior council, and which we will examine, is no severer than other similar legislation, and enlistment takes places with as sure guarantees of personal liberty as in the armies of Europe. As is the case in nearly every country, recruiting, independently of voluntary service, « takes place by annual levies, » but « within the limits of the contingent as fixed by the King-Sovereign, » and in these limits (c the Governor General decides on the districts and localities in which the levy shall take place as well as the proportion to be furnished by each locality. » « The manner of the levy is decided by the district commissary in agreement with ihe native chief, » and, while the drawing of lots is recommended, it must be admitted that it would be difficult, under present circumstances, to have recourse to this means always and everywhere, in every village, at the risk of ignoring the customary authority of the chief when he would select militiamen among the men under his command. As v^e have already seen, moreover, the British colonial authorities, under similar circumstances, felt that the impost should be claimed from the village rather than fi'om the individual, und the system which has just been established in Madagascar provides for the appointment of recruiting sergeants by the village chiefs, with the sanction of the Governors. These cases show the same desire to conciliate as far as possible, the exigencies of the public service with the interests and customs of the native communities. « The length of active service is five years. At the expiration of that time, the men are drafted into the reserve for two years. » The time spent with the colours cannot thus exceed seven years, which is shown by experience not to be excessive, and it « is strictly forbidden, under penalties for disobedience to keep with the colours men who are not longer liable or whose term of service has expired. » Each man « receives daily pay of twenty one centimes. » « He is kept and equipped at the State's expense. » — 64 — These organising dispositions were completed by regulations which order that « militiamen shall be cared for with the greatest humanity and shall receive all the attention their condition may demand. » « It must be seen that the men receive sufficient food, are properly quartered, that the sick are specially cared for, that the men be under all circumstances considerately treated, that any faults they may commit be corrected in conformity with the regu- lations and that all excessive severity be avoided. « Thus, the system lightens the native's militai-y obligations. No further proof is wanted than the 4000 volunteers at present enrolled and the re-enlistments which testify to the native's disposition for bea- ring arms. Besides, the State would never have been able to pursue its anti-slavery campaign with an army of malcontents. Only one case of serious mutiny has occurred— that of Luluaburg— and, apart from this exceptional case, the commanders and officers of our native troops acknowledge the latters' obedience and devotion to their chiefs. The number of deserters is not appreciable. The State looks after its time-expired men. Discharged soldiers, sent back with their wives and children to their homes at the expense of the State, are the object of special protection and receive grants of lands in any station they like. It does not seem that serious criticism can be passed upon such a regime. It seems superfluous to add that in imposing military service on its native population the State remains in agreement with all its international engagements. The contrary could only be main- tained by also denying the sovereignty of power. One would then have to imagine a State with only liabilities and duties, and without the necessaiy financial and military means of acquitting those liabi- lities and fulfilling those duties. » Report to the King-Sovereign, January, 2o, 1897 (Bulletin oi'FiciKL, 1897, pp. 59 &seq.). « Repeated testimony shows that reprehensible acts are committed in the immense, largely barbaric territory of the Congo State. That should not supprise anybody. The black soldiers of the State, suddenlv snatched from savagery, do not always act as civilised — 65 — beings when the eye of the Belgian officer is no longer upon them. Some Europeans even, affected by the climate and isohuion, may occasionally abuse their authority. But, in acting thus, they are going against their instructions and rendering themselves liable to punishment. Their conduct can in no wise compromise the general spirit of Congolese administration, inspired by the noble philanthropy of the King of the Belgians. Tiie same faults occur from time to time in every other part of Africa, and if the Congo is specially singled out, it is perhaps because it seems less able than the other African powers to resist such attacks. » [Bulletin de rAfriqiiefrangaise, juin 1897, p. 194.) « I do not pretend that everything is perfect in the Congo. Certainly, abuses are sometimes committed, but I must, in truth, declare that the Government only seeks to redress them and to punish the guilty parties. With regard to the relations of the authorities with the natives, they leave nothing to be desired in the regions I have visited. The public forces are easily recruited : in Uelle the Mobanghi show the greatest alacrity in enlisting in the ranks. The tribal chiefs receive an indemnity for the contingents they furnish and the recruits them- selves receive premiums. If military service inspired Uie natives with horror, as Salusbury has stated, there is nothing to prevent them deserting. On the contrary, the Mobanghi feel honored at being accepted as soldiers and they bravely do their duty when called upon to fight. In the districts where I have lived, and, generally speaking, all over Uelle, recruiting for the public forces is carried on under the most satisfactory conditions. The Belgian officers do not brutalise their men as they please, as Salusbury has alleged; therefore the soldiers are much attached to the majority of their white officers and the latter can rely with certainty on their courage and devotion in case of war. « Guy Burrows, , Captain of the Force Publiqu'e of the Congo Free State. {Etoile beige, September, 26, 1897.) — GG — c< To what are due the defeats suffered in those countries by the Belgians? Let them not be attributed to an insufficiency of officers who behaved so gallantly in the war against the Arabs. One of them, de Bergh, who had his leg crushed, killed himself with his revolver so as not to fall into the hands of the enemy who would have scourged him. That was an officer of the very highest merit, a cou- rageous soldier, a kindly comrade who will never be forgotten in our German stations of Tangauika. Not a fight has occurred without many officers being killed or wounded. All the Belgian officers are worthy of praise. I consider it is all the more my duty to make this statement be- cause in Germany a contrary opinion has often been entertained since the unfortunate Stokes affair. As for us German officers on the shores of the Tanganika, we who have had an opportunity of closely observing events in the Congo, we have learnt to esteem our Belgian colleagues and I should be happy if, in expressing our sentiments towards them, I could help to reduce the number of those in Germany who underestimate the worth of the men. » Richard Kandt. {Etoile beige, March, 6, 1899.) « Just give me your opinion of the black as a soldier? » — If he is under an officer whom be knows and likes, and especially one who understands him, he makes an excellent, disciplined and obedient soldier. You may punish a soldier guilty of a fault as much as you like but he never forgets unmerited punishment. I consider this as evidence of his honor. The officer fresh from Europe (I have been in this position), not knowing how to « take » the black, must learn by experience. But experience once gained, the officer, if he understands his business, cann do what he likes with his men. It must never be forgotten that the black is a great child and must be treated as such, with firmness and kindness combined, and even with a suggestion of gaiety. » Baron Fredeiuck von Friksendorff, Formely Swedish officer. {Etoile beige, May, 31, 1899.) — 67 — « At Avakubi were stationed about two companies of soldiers, com- prising all kinds of nationalities, chiefly Manyema and Bangala. They were a very fine set of men, who were well equiped, and whose houses were of quite a model character. They were fine mud buil- dings, in long rows, each house occupied by about five men, excep- ting the native officers, each of whom has one to himself. The whole place, however, is but a clearing in the forest, and one duly has to walk for about ten minutes to get right into the forest again. There exists excellent communication between Avakubi and the lower Aruwimi. » A. B. Li.OYD. {In Dwarf Land, 1899, p. 340.) « The organic regulations of the Force Publique were set forth in detail in the report of 1897. Their application, with the legal gua- rantees, furnishes an effective of 15,000 men. The State has attained its object as much by political interests as by economic reasons, that object being to possess an army exclusively recruited within its territory. Foreign volunteers are no longer enlisted. The militia expenses do not bear heavily upon the people if it be remem- bered that the population is generally dense and numerous, and that the radius for recruiting is becoming larger and larger. As a matter of fact the obligation to military service only necessitates on the native tribes in the recruiting districts the service of one soldier in every 25 huts, or, in the present state of the occupation of the country, one per cent of the population. This proportion of one militiaman per hundred inhabitants, which is certainly not beside the mark, will be further reduced in the near future, since, in proportion to the exten- sion of our influence, the duty of conscription will be distributed among a larger number of individuals, without the actual numbers of the army being proportionately increased. The Government has persevered in bettering the material condition of the militiaman whose food and lodging are subjects of special attention. The military authorities take care that the regulations are applied with firmness and kindness combined. Besides his wages, — G8 — llie militiaman has a certain monthly allowance of deferred pay which, given to him when he leaves the service, helps him to start again in life at home. Serious efforts are made to raise the moral level of the native while under arms. A number of regulations have been made in this res- pect. For example, the Government gives decided encouragement to the legal marriage of soldiers. It undertakes to defray the cost of living for the wife and the legitimate children of the soldier; it allows the wife a certain monthly sum in return for her services in cultivating produce destined for the troops. Evei'v warried soldier has a plot of land, the produce of which belongs to him. Domestic morality is safeguarded by the provision of special married quarters. Only the legitimate wife of a soldier is allowed to follow him when the troops change garrison. Thus the number of regular households in the army is increasing. The Slate requires the chiefs to inculcate their men with notions of a higher morality and especially to teach them to respect the person and the liberty of others. Soldiers, as well as all other native servants of the State, are forbidden to keep native women or children for their personal service. This was a custom which maintained and developed among the blacks sentiment of slavery which had to be uprooted. These regulations, rigorously put into force, have produced remarkable results. The soldiers, trained in a school of order and morality, assimilate principles of discipline, regular life and good conduct, of which they become propagators on returning to their villages. Polygamy has been extirpated everywhere except in the Eastern Province where the social condition of the Arabs has left deep roots and where the introduction of a new moral code encounters real difhculties. The Government, however, intends that polygamy shall be forbidden, there as elsewhere, among the black servants of the State and it makes the civil and military chiefs responsible for all reprehensible conduct tolerated by them in this respect. » Report to the King- Sovereign, July, 45, 1900 (Bli.lktin oi-rir.iEL, 1900, pp. 129 & seq.). — 09 — « With respect to our soldiers and workmen, they have so changed by contact with the whites, that they may be looked upon as an almost different and superior race. What will it be in twenty years' time if we continue to progress? The white villages (posts) will be a sort of negro towns — but how different from the miserable native hokas with their dirty little, unsubstantial disgusting huts where, pell-mell, are huddled together, whole families — and such families ! » Charles Caudron. {Etoile beige, September, 18, 1900.) « A word-^bout the Force Publique. Of course, rebellions have occurred, but, in this respect too, people exaggerate and generalise at will. In what colonial State in course of formation has it not been found necessary to repress mutiny among the armed forces recruited from natives ? The Congo Govei'nment endeavours that its troops shall be a pattern of order and morality to the natives. Isolated cases of abuse have doubtless occurred in the ranks of the Force Publique; but where, and in what domain, are no faults committed? Are even the parliaments of civilised countries faultless? The Government of the Free State, it must in honor be admitted, aims at preventing abuses, and, when necessary, prosecutes and represses them. Let not the sentences pronounced by its tribunals be thrown in its teeth. Should we dream of dissolving the Belgian tribunals in the hope that there would he no more crimes or offences to judge? I say that the Congolese tribunals have their duty to fulfil, that they fulfil it as well as the Belgian tribunals, and that, neither in the Congo nor in Belgium, can the State be reproached for the sentences pronounced by the law. » Comte DE Smet de Naeyer, President of the Council of Ministers. (Sitting of the Chamber of Representatives, July, 16, 1901, p. 1977.) Material and moral conditions. « Being one of the founders of the English baptist mission in Congo, where I have resided since Mr. Stanley's arrival in 1879, the new year's advent drew my attention to the immense progress realised in the country during this brief period of twelve yeais. In 1879 the English consul informed us that we must not entertain the hope of penetrating to San Salvador, and here we are settled in the interior of the country at more than 1,600 kilometres from the river's outfall. In February, 1881, I was driven from Kinchassa by a crowd of armed natives and now we possess a station where peace and prosperity reign. » Rev. HoLJiAN Bentley, Missionary to the Baptist Missionary Society. (Letter to the Governor General Wahis, Mouvemeut ije'ogra- phique, March, 6, 1892, p. 21.; « When I came in the course of February 1888, to fix my resi- dence at Wathen (Ngombe) I constantly found natives engaged in intei-nal warfare, using violence, seizing the native travellers on their passage, laying hold of the women in the fields; every one did what they chose : violence, murder and poisoning were practised in full daylight. No corner in Africa could give the example of greater anarchy; each village formed a Slate, considering every stranger as an enemy; it was thus war to the knife from village to village; a man was sold for a slave on the pettiest pretext. To-day all is changed : the repoit of guns is only heard when shooting for pleasure or to render the last honors to the dead. Roads almost impracticable are now open and free; our scholars can go, in all security from here to — Ti- the Kinsuka school, about 80 kilometre distant. The State laws now inspire certain awe to those wo might still wish to molest travellers; and thus news of bloodshed and war are become less frequent and always followed by chastisement that puts an end to it. » Rev. Ed. Holman Bkntley, Missionary to the Baptist Missionary Socifty. (Letter to Governor Wahis, Mouvemeut geogra'phique, 1892, March, G, p. 21.) « The State has its critics, but according to my opinion the best appreciation may be drawn from the comparison of the state of the country ten years ago and its actual condition. » Rev. Ed. Holman Bentley, Missionary to the Baptist Missionary Society. (Letter to Governor Wahis, Mouvemeut geographique, 189i*, March, 6, p. 21.) « It is much lo be regretted that in recent « revelations >y made by certain missionaries, false facts have been mingled with accusations easy to prove and, — what is worse — blended in a confused way with accusations only comprehensible by taxing their author with inexcusable unstableness. I am one of the rare Europeans, actually residing in Congo, who was acquainted with this country before the State was established and who can compare that situation with the present one. For this reason, I wish to state that I most sincerely appreciate the advan- tages attending the establishment of a civilised Government and I proclaim that I am more and more grateful for the order and liberty actually existing. Since 1884, having recognised the necessity of a stable government sufficiently energetic to guide Congolese affairs and above all to arrest the conquering pov.'er of Arabs who were advancing in fall force towards the west through Congo, since 1884, 1 repeat, I claimed the establishment of regular order. I add, and this is my firm convic- tion, that without the intervention of some civilised force, we should be obliged now to unravel the Arabian problem at Boma and on the oriental coast... Not only must I recognize the mightiness of the work the State has accomplished, towards the solution of the Arabian question, but I am obliged to admit that without the State's power and authority, the Cataract region of Lower-Congo could never have been opened to missionaries or to trade. Without its influence, the High-Congo and its vast navigable tributaries would still be closed. I am convinced that no other Government besides the Congo State could, within so short a period, have taken possession of such a vast territory with organised force. No other could have established and assured these lines of commu- nication in so vast an area as those actually existing in this territory's limits. )> Rev. G. Grenfell, Missionary to the Baptist Missionary Society. [Le Congo helge, 1896, August, lu, p. 100.) « T, myself who have resided in Congo for the last twenty years and am perfectly acquainted with the amount of work required to obtain the least result, I was simply amazed at your engineers' works and I am most happy to congratulate them publicly. On Matadi's departure, difficulties which appeared insuperable, were vanquished and it was with intense pleasure that I crossed the M'pozo, on your graceful iron bridge, remembering that fifteen years ago I had narrowly escaped drowning as I passed the torrent in a rotten pirogue. These difficulties at the outset have perhaps produced good result, for they incited your engineers not to be discouraged by obstacles, and to-day they are rapidly advancing with marvellous precision and are mastering the chaos of the Congo mountains. » Mgr. AUGOUARD, Apost. vicar of the Ubangi. (Letter to major Thys, Precis historiq2U's, 1897, p. 148.) « To-day the conn try is in such a condition that it is possible for any one to go from the coast at Boma to the interior without an escort. The railway is nearly finished. By July next it will be opened for traffic to Leopoldville. This will make an enormous difference to the commissariat. The journey to the Upper Congo will be shortened by three weeks, and goods will be foi'warded by rail instead of, as now, on men's heads. The enormous benefits which will accrue to the country from this source will only be appreciable after sufficient time has elapsed to enable one to thoroughly understand the great possibilities of this growing State. » Guy Burrows, Capt. of the Force Publique of the Congo Free State. {The Times, December, 17, '1897.) « The State has also paid adequate attention to public hygiene and to the sanitary condition of the native populations. Hygienic com- missions have been established in the principal towns of the district. Owing to their initiative— the dwelling houses for the agents being, at this same time, built in the healthiest conditions not only with regard to materials but also as to premises— general measures conducive to sanitation were taken, such as the drainage of bogs, the salubrity of working negros villages, appropriate plantations in crowded centres, the erection of works destined to prevent inunda- tions. The district officers were particularly zealous in inculcating elementary hygienic measures in the native villages. Vaccination has been rendered obligatory and the vaccine is given gratuitously. An institution for vaccine working at Boma gives a sufficient amount of vaccine to all the stations. Ravages produced formerly by small- pox have diminished in a notable degree ; it is impossible to conceal the happy results of these beneficent measures for the natives, who previously were constantly falling victims to this dreadful disease almost as fatal for them as the slave-trade. » Report to the King -Sovereign, January, 2o, 1897 (Bulletin OFFiciEL, 1897, pp. G6 & 67). — i4 — « I must point out also the advantages the natives derive from the Stale's doctors presence in Congo, who give their care to the popu- lation, and particularly of the introduction of vaccine. Small-pox devastates the tropics with an intensity unknow in Europe. It happens sometimes that whole regions are depopulated by this scourge. The Stale has founded in Boma a vaccine institution and has ordered the use of vaccination. The results are stupendous up to the present and the natives so thoroughly appreciate the advantage obtained that they will frequently undertake long distances to be inoculated. » F. Cattiek. {DElat Independanl dii Congo et Ics indigenes, 189o, p. 12.) « Twenty five years ago, death was making great havock, in a most terrible way over all the region known today as the Congo State. On an average of once a month each of the hundred thousand villages of the Stale was the scene of some tragedy... I should not be far from the truth in estimating its public murders at a million a year in the Congo Stale and at two millions in the whole of Central Africa. Add to that the human massacres occasioned by the inter-tribal wars, the wholesale slaughter by blood thirsty chiefs such as Utesa, Kabba, Regga, Mirambo, Nyungu, Usidi; the destructive invasions of the famous slave dealers such as Said bin Habib, Tagamoyo, Tippoo-Tib, Abed bin Salem, Kilonga-Longa and hundreds of others. I should not go so far as to say that today, these frightful mas- sacres, resulting from the natives barbarity and supersiilion, hav*€ completely ceased. Far in the interior there are pai;ls where civili- zation has not yet penetrated, but the time is at hand when Africa, so long neglected, will like the other continents, enjoy the benefits of liberty peace and prosperity. » Sir H. M. Stanley. (The Atlantic Monthly, 1897, October, reproduced by le Congo belge, 1897, December, 1, p. 267.) c( In 1872 the nine-tenths of equatorial Africa were unexplored, and the tenth known part had taken fifteen years for Burke, Speke, Baker and Livingstone to explore. According to this account it would have required thirty-five years to penetrate to the full African centre. Without the King of Belgium Europe would have still have remained fifty jears without being able to appreciate the value of equatorial Africa. » Sir H. M. Stanley. (The Atlantic Monthly, September, 1897, cited h\ Le Congo beige, December, 11, p. 267.) « Intertribal wars have been suppressed over a wide area; and the imposition of European authority being steadily pursued, the boun- daries of peace are constantly extending. This result is not obtained without bloodshed, of course ; nor is it always agreeable to the native ideas of liberty. But the State, nevertheless, must be congratulated upon the security it has created for all who live within the shelter of its flag, and abide by its laws and regulations. The traveller on the Congo quickly c6mes to realise that there is a power in the land which the people have learned to fear, and upon which they ate beginning to depend for protection. « PiCKERSGILL, H. M.s, Consul. (Diplomatic and consular Reports, n° 4o9, June 1898, p. 8.) « The Independent State takes great interest in improving the negro's lot wherever it can possibly extend its influence. By its system of scholastic colonies, the Slate snatches hundreds of black childi'en from certain death. It provides fur their marriage and obtains work for all those who ask for it and who are not incorporated into the army. By this care, civil and repressive justice is assured at the present through all the extent of the colony and acts for the black as well as for the white man. Finally the State gives its sup- port to all efforts at civilisation and especially for the missionaries. The relations between Europeans and natives are getting more and more extensive, and improve every day. The Stale and compa- nies' agents daily barter exchanges with the negroes whose commer- — 7G — cial aptitude is unfailing, and well known. They employ them for the prospeclion of forests and the cultivation of the soil, they recrute amongst them most excellent industiial workmen and, naturally enough, negros apply to them to obtain engagements and woi'k. » Pierre Verhaegen, (Am Congo, 1898, p. iol.) Provincial Counsellor. « We cannot, if we be just, refrain from feeling a warm admira- tion for, and extending a generous tribute to, the energy, the pluck, and the determination which individual Belgians have displayed in the first and only attempt at colonization ever undertaken by the Belgian people. » {Pall Mall Gazette, April, 16, 1898.) « Continuity of work is hard to keep up under conditions of that kind ; and results are not to be readily obtained in the face of obsta- cles such as those which have been indicated. Yet nothing astonishes the traveller on the Congo so much as the tokens of successful effort which he meets with. The ends actually attained may not be those at which the State was supposed to be aiming, but the daring enter- prise and the indomitable spirit which have been displayed compel admiration at once. Conspicuous amongst the achievements is the rapidity with which voids in the African map have been tilled up. A great amount of exploration in detail has yet to be done, and the ring fence of the vast domain is far from being complete, but the official knowledge of the country is marvellous, considering that the State has only been in occupancy about 12 short years. There has been no squatting on the beach, no waiting for something to turn up. Having acquired a title, the owners entered in forthwith to possess; and few and isolated must be the inhabitants of the 900,000 square miles of territory which stretch from the sources of the Lualaba to those of the Welle, and from Tanganvika to the Atlantic, who have neither heard of Mbula Matadi — « the breaker of rocks «— nor seen his blue flag with the golden star. » Pickersgill, H. M. s. Consul. {Diplomatic and consular Reports, n" 459, June 1898, pp. 6 & 7.) — 77 — « As for the benefits in the way of law, order, education and gene- ral enlightenment for the native people, these too are certain to come in much larger measure than ever before by reason of these new faci- lities for reaching the outside world. The darkness of Africa must soon flee away before the railroad missionaries. » {Christian Work, New-York, September, 1, 1898.) « The Congo State, having undertaken the superintendence of trade, can dispose of a splendid flotilla of more than thii'ty steamers of different dimensions. Nevertheless the State cannot meet all its freighting and transport demands, and all the firms established here are building private steamers; the greatest animation reigns in the dockyards. The energy and practical sense displayed here deserve the greatest admiration... large and small steamers are sent out here in sections; they ai'e set and fitted up and then launched on the Pool. These engineers and mechanics are nearly all Norwegian or Swedish. » Report of Mr. de Puttkamer, Governor of Kamerun. {Deutches Kolonialhlalt, 1899, April, lo, p. 274.) « I was very heartily welcomed by the Belgian officer in charge and throughout my stay was most kindly treated. Avakubi is a beautiful place, quite an ideal station. Fine, lofty buildings constructed of good sun-burnt bricks, and the whole place was most compactly arranged. The Europeans' houses, built four square, with an open quadrangle in the centre, and a high brick wall surrounding the back part which contained the servants' quarters and outhouses. The doors and window-frames were made ofwellplaned wood, so very different h'om the reed work that we are so accustomed to in Uganda. I was shown into a room where I was told I might sleep, and I was asked to stay for as many days as 1 possibly could. There was indeed a great temptation to make a long stay here, where everything — 78 — seemed so nice and homelike after ihe roughness of camp life. A very luxurious meal was prepared, and the hungry traveller did ample justice to it. I was then shown round the grounds. The gardens at once took my fiincy, for here not only was there every kind of Euro- pean vegetable, but also the most beautiful flower-beds, arranged with great taste, and which cast a brillance upon the scene that is lacking in most mission gardens. This garden was no doubt the hobby most indulged in by the officer in charge and a very useful one too. When in Central Africa one can get fine English potatoes, pineapples, mangoes, and grapes, besides a host of other things equally tempting, there is not much left for one to desire to make life pleasant. The greatest care had been taken to shield the products of the soil from the heavy rains without shutting out the morning and evening sun. » A. B. Lloyd. {In dwarf Lnud, 1899, p. 336.) a The Romee station, formerly a manoeuvring camp is actually an agricultural station under the direction of Mr. Ambroise, a friend. Energetic and intelligent, having a staff of good workmen he has done marvels here. We have just come from an early walk through the coffee plantations. They are splendid. It is just like walking through an extensive park or a vast botanical garden. » Rev. P. Gabriel, Superior of the mission of the Sacred Heart Fathers I at Stanleyville. {Le Regne du coeur de Jesus, 1899, February, p. 73.) « It is almost impossible to imagine, that such radical progress can have been realised in such a short space of time. The present Congo is no longer that Congo which Stanley in 1878 declared to be. full of barbarity and savage customs; and there is no doubt that the material and moral state of the native is so improved owing to the establishment of numerous civilising centres, of the abolition of slave — 79 — trade and Arabian razzias, of the gradual repression of intestine wars, of the notable decrease of cannibalism and human sacrifices, and of the missionaries' evangelism. Ought these to be ignored because agents may have transgressed laws and violated instruc- tions?... » (Congo Government's letter, Annales parlementaires , 1900, April, 23.) « Faithful to its principle of dealing progressively with tribes, wit- hout shocking their habits and customs, the Government has striven to make use their own political and social organisation to accustom them to the yoke of authority. It was necessary to find, for this purpose, some conciliating mea- sure, to unite the natives to the State, so as to induce them to accept the strengh of power, and which might at the same time, be invested with sufficient official authority to discipline the population. This intermediary was found in the institution of recognised «chief- doms.» The Government has thoroughly realised how prejudicial the political parcelling-out of populations of the same race amongst nume- rous natives independent from one another, is to the natives' welfare and to their moral improvement on account of the multiplied efforts the division of the population requires on the State officers-part. « It is progressively to modify this situation », the instructions state, )> that the district officers must strive without neglecting any opportu- » nity, to group under a small number of recognised chiefs, the popu- » lalions of the same race, whose habits, manner of lite and interests are identical. » Thus, by official investiture, conferred with due solemnity before the leading men of the country, to a district chief — who, being under the orders of a district officer can be easily held accountable for the misdeeds of those under his authority— justice thus obtains a powerhil State auxiliary and thus enforces with far greater facility, laws and rules which the native accepts without demur. « The » native chiefs have great influence with the populations and if they » have support, they will— thanks to our help— succeed in getting » our ideas firmly implanted and in eventually imposing them. » The results of the native chiefdoms are most important. — 80 — The populations previously divided amongst kinds of little States, were given over to chiefs, wiiose rivality was one of the causes of incessant wars fi-om village to village with their long train of murders, mutilations and slavery. On the other hand, the orders of autho- rities could not reach the inhabitants, and their due execution could not be effected. Since the chiefdoms have been instituted it is an established fact that native customs are more humane, civil wars are suppressed by slow degrees; the barbarous customs of cannibalism, trial by poison, human sacrifices are more easily repressed as Government holds a trump card in its hand by having a chief to be held responsable for any misdeeds or excesses of its subjects. » Report to the Sovereign-King , July, 15, 1900 (Bulletin de l'Etat iNnfiPENDANT Du CoNGO, 1900, pp. 144 & scq.). « Authority is only given to chiefs when it is thoroughly proved they can administrate it effectively, realising the services Government requires of them and being well disposed to second its efforts. These investitures are made with a certain solemnity so arranged to be impressing to the population and to make them comprehend the State's power and the chief's command and authority. The State also strives through the chiefdoms to annihilate internal wars. The State by its sway of effective authority over two chiefs effectually pre- vents any hostile feelings between them. It attains the same result by grouping, under one commanding chief, all the petty independent agglomerations so often hostile to those of the same race, and whose wants, mode of living and interests are very often completely similar. It is greatly to be desired that the State will not pursue this line of conduct too far, and strengthen for its own detriment, political native organisations. » F. C.VTTIEK. [UEtat Independant du Congo et les indigenes, 1895, pp. !21 &22.) — si- ce Rapidly skimming over the other striking facts characterising this last triennial period, we must mention the considerable improve- ment in travelling communication. The cutting of roads and building of bridges have been planned in different districts where the State's agents have settled. Since the last Report submitted to Your Majesty, the railway from Matadi to Leopold ville has been inaugurated... The transports, which by the roads followed by caravans last several months, are now effectually undertaken in two days. A light railway is being made in Mayumbe. It is already running over a 32 kilometres of line. The navigable net of the Upper River is placed in direct commu- nication by the cataracts railway, with the Lower-Congo ports. Your Majesty has ordered the survey of a railway unitling the oriental extremity of the navigable expanse of Upper- Congo with the great lakes regions. This survey is making normal progress. It had reached the kilometre 140 at the beginning of the year. « Report to the King- Sovereign, 1900, July, 15 (Bulletin OFFiciEL, 1900, pp. 143 and fol ). <■(. The Congo blacks are quite amenable to progress and to the necessities of improved life. They have already given proofs of this and give other ones every day. At the present in the Upper Congo, Bangalas are enroled by hundreds for agricultural, industrial, and commercial works that have no connection with a porter's advoca- tions. The Independent State employs Congolese only for its han- diwork. Farm labourers, gardeners, navvies, etc., they give general satisfaction in the Lower Congo stations and manufacturies. The Upper-Congo's mechanics and stokers is exclusively composed of Bangalas, Wangalas and Upotos. And this handiwork is much less expensive than what is recruited out of the colony. )) {Politique coloniale, 1900, September, 5.) — 82 — « I ask any unbiassed person to cast his reminniscences on the state ot Central Africa twenty-five years ago. At that time, this con- tinent was nearly closed ; fetichism reigned supreme there, canni- balism was in full swing, human sacritices were honored, the Arabian invasion multiplied its conquests and the slave-trade and devastation followed in its train. He, who, in 187o, had predicted that twenty- five years after, the whole of Europe would be interested in its welfare, would follow with interest the progress of civilisation, that Europe would found a i-egular Government, organize order, justice and equity and that the highest results would be obtained by divers means, this person would have been scoffed at. And yet this is the general situation. It would be to despise generous and immense efforts that have hitherto been brought to bear on this question in Congo not to own to-day by comparing this country actually to what it was twenty-five years ago, that real progress most creditable to christian civilisation have been attained there. » Cn. \N'OESTE, State Minister. (Annales parlementaires [Chambres] April, 26, 1900, p. 1173.) « Public sanitation and hygienic measures so necessary in a tropical climate, have never been lost sight of. To battle with small-pox often ravaging entire districts Government has founded vaccine institutions at Bonia and vaccine stations in divers localities of High-Congo where all the State's black staff is vacci- nated and equally and, also as much as possible, the neighbouring populations. By the care of the devoted medical staff of the State a hospital for blacks has been founded at Boma, and thanks to the co-operation of the Red-Cross, a hospital tor white men under nuns' care is equally in full swing in that town. With the help of this philanthiopic institution, a hospital lor white men will be shortly established at Leopoldville and negocialions are already begun to create another, in the vei-y heart of the State, at Bumba, the centre of important — 83 — Iransporl service on the Haut Fleuve. The Red-Cross has also sent travelling ambulances on the Uelle and in the Oriental Province. Your Majesty's decree dated September, 7, 1899 has instituted in the district's or zone's principal townsan hygienic commission of which the member's mission is to superintend all that concerns public health, and to indicate the best preventive measures to improve sanitation, to stem the course of epidemic and to increase the salubrity of stations or dwelling-houses. The members of this hygienic commission are ranked as officers of legal police. They visit at least once every three months, the dwelling-houses and out houses in the principal town, inhabited by white people as well as those inhabited by negroes. As forming part of the sanitary system of the State's staff, impro- vements brought to bear on the stations and dwelling-houses. Fragile material has given place to more resisting material in the construction of houses. Brick-kilns and workshops have been established. The houses occupied by the white as well as the black staff give proof of the greatest comfort. The negroes already follow the good example by changing the general aspect of their villages and superseding by good and sanitary buildings the miserable huts which our first explorers were familiar with. » Report to the King-Sovereign, July, lo, 1900 (Bulletin OFFICIEL, 1900, p. 149). « 1 should wish to lay stress on thousands of things introduced in- to Belgian Congo, to run counter to the routine to which many of our commercial traders are tied in colonial matters. From articles of household production and consumption up to the horse, donkey, and mule, that did not exist there, because it was adduced they could not live in that climate, the list is very long of all the Belgians, those extemporary colonists, have acclimatised in the soil or into the customs of their new kingdom. « L. Sevin-Desplaces. [Moniteiir maritime, 1897, December, 5, p. 584.) — 84 — « The seciu'ily that ilie Government has obtained for the natives, previously always engaged in warfare between themselves, has allowed them to obtain herds of goats and pigs. Tiiey take to agricultural pursuits and are thus gradually reaching a state of moral perfection that foretells a thorough state of civilisation in a century or two. » M. Lehman, Formerly Austrian ofhcer. {Journal de Bnixelles, 189G, October, 4.) « The State has placed in all its territory, cattle of which couples for reproduction are distributed to the native chiefs on the condition that they do not sacrifice any before the flock has attained a certain definite number. » F. Cattieii. [IjEtat Imh'pendnnt du Congo et les indigenes, i89o, p. 12.) « Particular care is taken regarding the prohibition against the importation of fire arms and ammunition. It is well known that the introduction of improved fire arms and ammunition is strictly inter- dicted through all the territory and that in the Upper-Congo the intro- duction of fire arms and ordinary powder is equally prohibited. The custom officers are obliged to ensure, in the course of their patrol, the strict observance of these laws and rules by the commer- cial traders. Regarding the transfer of fire arms and ammunition the Government exacts most severely, notwithstanding the complaints of interested parties, the production of the declaration which, according to the terms of article iO of the Brussels Act must certify that the arms and ammunition are not destined for sale. The transit authorisation is only granted on a similar declaration emanating from Government to whose territory the arms are transferred. » Report to the King-Sovereign, July, 15, 4900 (Bulletin OFFICIEL, 1900, p. 154). — 85 — « How long might the two Upper-Congo railways have remained in suspense if the German Reichstag had had to authorize them?... This undertaking is really no trifle. At thousands of kilometres from the sea, in the very heart of the African continent where the necessary material must be conveyed at the utmost difficulty and expense, 1,300 kilometres of railway are to be laid, wich, according to the most moderate estimates will cost more than 100 millions fr. The plan of these railways in its extensive line, in its more extensive development, does not date back more than one year. At its early birth, it was quickly followed up by the sending out of the engineer Adam's mission ; he has scarcely returned two months to Brussels, before every preparation is made to immediately follow up this work. Three months ago Adam's last reports came from Africa, as favorable as possible, not only regarding the intended work, but also as to the fertility of the countries through which the railway would past. Some days after the affair was concluded, financiers were found as well as the method of execution. The Congo State's technical offices had only to set down properly on stamped paper, plans, contracts, and calculations and to present them to the King and the contractors for signature. It did not require more for every one to read in their paper that the Congo State would soon connect its dominions to the great lakes on one side, and to German East Africa on the other. In what other colonial empire, however rich and enterprising, could an undertaking of this importance be realised in such an incredibly short time?... » {Gazette ge'iie'rale de Munich, 1901, November, 26.) « No native is forced to work against his will. The Independent State's Government, on the contrary, does all in its power to insure the workman's safety and liberty. Most stringent measures have been instituted to ascertain the validity of contracts of hire and service and to prevent these contracts from degenerating into domestic slavery. The negro's hire contract must be drawn up and approved by competent authority, thus completely convinced that the negro acts freely and that he thoroughly comprehends the terms of — 86 — his engagement. The contract's duration is unhmited. Blacks acquire every day a greater idea of their rights and are falling smootiily into the habit of applying to justice to get their rights vin- dicated when they consider themselves cheated by their employer. » Comte DK S.MET DE Naeyeh, President of the Ministers' Counsel. (Sitting of the Chambre des Representants, 1901, July, 16, p. 1977.) c( It is impossible to imagine a kinder and more cordial welcome than the one given us by Lieutenant Vervloet at Kilo ! He, however, experienced the greatest difficulty at the beginning of his residence in Congo!... Without meat, flour, bread, quite deprived of everything; killing the enormous gorillas of the forest and living on its flesh, and herbs, in a station formed by bundles of straw thrown dov^'n in haste!... Without any other help than that of his soldiers, a station was erected. And Kilo is now a pretty little township which improves every day. Good and numerous piasphalt houses, large avenues, edged with fruit trees, such as bananas, papaw and lemon trees, the first in full bearing; a large kitchen gai'den providing every kind of vegetables; cultivated areas producing provisions for ihe staff; a fine flock of goats and sheep, sheltered in vast buildings on the neigh- bouring hillock! ... This is the result realised !... And yet six long days separate Kilo from Irumu, and eight are requii-ed to reach Mahagi!... Any other person than Lieutenant Vervloet would have fallen a victim to nostalgia in such solitude. He, on the contrary, thanks to his cheerful and lively temper, has taken advantage of it to create everything out of chaos, to supply all where everything was wanting ! . . . And he has succeeded, as now the misery era is passed and the state of things improves from day to day. Lieutenant Vervloet is a most intelligent young officer, full of tact and courtesy. Besides, his acts have procured him a great reputation as « the negros' friend » and I myself ascertained the veracity of this assei'tion. This reputation is gradually drawing all the neighbouring popu- — 87 — lations towards him and it is quite certain that he will shortly obtain the complete subjection of the great sultan of Bambissa, those horrible caimibals. » Mgr. Streicheu, Bishop of Tabaca, Apostolic Vicar of Northern Nyanza. [Courrier de Bruxelles, 1901, November, 12.) cc The Congo State occupied and actually governs a territory almost as large as that of Europe without counting Russia and Spain. Compelled by insufficient finances to reduce' the number of its soldiers and agents to a minimum, it succeeds however in main- taining order in all its possessions, with the exception of 'a few dis- tricts in the east which have been disturbed by invasions of Der- vishes. It has regularly constituted authority throughout and in spite of a few cases of abuse which were soon repressed, these agents rapidly introduced civilisation amongst the natives, » C. Blanchard, Avocat pres la Cour d'appel de Chambery. {Formation et politique de VEtat Independant du Congo, 1901, p. 388.) « The Government of the Congo Free State has dealt well with the chaos which they found here, and the blessings of law and order are becoming everywhere apparent. » Rev. Herbert Sutton Smith. [Missionary Herald, 1901, pp. 438 & 439.) « I have been astonished in coming down river from Kasongo to the coast to see what extraordinary changes have taken place. First, the administration is now established on a good, firm basis, and all the officials take an intelligent interest in their work, with the result that scandals are quite a thing of the past. The stations are all splendidly and solidly built in brick, and the grounds are laid out in - 88 — a very pleasing way. The transport service by canoe between Kasongo and Stanley-Falls goes without a hitch, and thousands of loads go up river every year, absolutely unguarded, and the loss by theft is almost «//. » D. MOHL'N, Formerly C. S. A. Consul. {The Times, November, 26, 1901.) « The new undertaking is one of the most colossal in modern colo- nial politics. The lake Albert line is particularly remarkable because it must run through the enormous virgin forest of Aruwimi disco- vered by Stanley, a forest depicted as the richest in all Africa. Twelve years ngo, on his return from his search expedition, Stanley called attention to the necessity of constructing railways in this part of equatorial Africa. The Belgian line will reach at Albert Lake the region of the Nile's source, and probably before the German Empire leaves the Indian Ocean the Congo State will have attained the north- south line of Rhodes, the line of the Cape to Cairo ; and in every case, it will speedily and easily join the Nile's navigation. » [Kolonial Zeitung, of Berlin, 1902, January, p. IG.) « Some missionary critics pretend to think that it would have been better to leave the natives as they were, without troubling them with more complex views of life. This fallacy of the a happy, simple native » was, however, rudely in contrast with the facts of the case as we found them when our missio- naries first went to the Congo, and, in order rightly to appreciate tlie results of Christian Missions in Lolo-land, it is necessary to under- stand something of the actual condition of degradation in which the people lived. At that time cannibalism was in full swing... Cruelty was uni- versal... The horrors of domestic slavery were universal... Lying and stealing were rather accomplishments than otherwise... Poly- gamy was universal and morality, as we understand it, was practi- — 89 — cally non-existent... The religion of the people was demonology... The witch doctors were a source of perpetual danger to the commu- nity... To-day, I am thankful to say the atrocities to which we have referred are entirely a matter of the past wherever missionary influence has been felt. Cases of cannibalism are also becoming of very rare occurrence. » Dr. Hahry GuiNNiiss. {These thirty Years. — Our missions on the Congo, January 1903, p. 34.) « In the protestant missions there are 6,521 christians, 1,470 cate- chumen; the dominical schools are attended by 5,641 natives and the daily schools by 10,162. In the catholic missions directed by seven religious orders, there are 18.973 christians, 23,551 catechumens; fur five of these orders there are 5,515 children of whom 500 are orphans ; I do not remember the figures of the two other orders. Finally, Gentlemen, I will relate an undeniable reminiscence recently given by an English missionary whose name is certainly not unknown to you,— the Rev. Mr. George Grenfell. On his return fi'Oin a journey through Aruwimi, he wrote to major Malfeyt on the 12th November, 1902 : — «. The time I passed at Banalaya was a source of real pleasure » to me; their clean and well kept houses, their fine plantations and ^:) the contentment reigning everywhere were really most suggestive « and pleasant. It is really most important and encouraging that » these communities should be so advanced on the high road to civi- » lisation in such out of the way places in the very centre of Africa. » The proofs I obtained also up to Nepoko of the extension of civil » law, and of its efficacity in insuring the people's welfare, — and this » in a country still bearing the marks of the Arabian dominion, » reigning only some years ago, — were most edifying. Those who are « thoroughly acquainted with all these circumstances easily com- » prehend that the Upper-Ituri has not yet obtained the same 3) advantages but railroads and the imminent development will » no doubt result in the disappearance of the old state of things, as — 90 — )) the country will be thus placed under the rule of the civil law and » will then derive manifold advantages from it. » This, Gentlemen, is the testimony of an English missionary, a thoroughly impartial witness, Nvho, the honorable member must own, is as well acquainted with facts in Congo as Sir Charles Dilke who has never visited the country. Natives handiwork is remunerated as I have already stated and Mr. Burrows corroborates this fact in the extracts already mentioned. For this purpose 3 millions of francs have been spent by Government in the course ot last year. The legal organisation is advancing to completion. So as to render the trials more rapid in the second degree of jurisdiction another Appeal Court will be established in Upper-Congo. » Baron de Favereau, Minister of Foreign Affairs. (Chambre des representants, Anuales parlementaires, March, 18, 1903, p. 885.) 8. — Missions. « Rendered strong by personal experience, perfectly acquainted with the language and Congolese customs, backed up and sustained by the advice and help of the Independent State's agents who have never failed him, with full confidence in Divine Providence in which he has full confidence, Reverend Father Van Hencxthoven has the best hopes of ultimate success. « {Precis historiques , 1896, January, pp. 22 & 23.) « My declarations naturally agree with Father Van Aertselaer's ! . . . They agree with all the declarations promulgated by other missiona- ries. Our opinion is unanimously identical without any after thought and is the expression of real Truth. W^e are most grateful for the Free Slate's protection and trust we may retain it always. It has greatly facilitated our task, it has helped our efforts which in many cases might have remained unsuccessful, and we must congratulate ourselves upon the present situation. » Rev. F. deHerdt. S. J. of the Jesuits' mission. {Journal de Bruxelles, 1896, May, 8.) « The district officers ensure special protection for the missio- naries now established on the State's territory. They give them all aid and help when their services are needed to the extent that cannot injure their public duties with which they are entrusted. The inter- course with the missions must be most courteous and no opportunity must be neglected of rendering them service. All the State's agents and the State itself does full justice to the — 9i> — great civilising help the missionaries conliibiite to the good cause. The natives conversion to higher religions, the education given bv religious orders, the development of the negro's moral qualities, the love of woik which they inculcate, everything contributes to assist their efforts. Their mode of action, noble and disinterested, pursues the same parallel as that of the State and the State by its protection can only advance its own aims. It has thoroughly realised this fact. » F. Gather. {UEtat Independant dii Congo et les indigenes, 1895, p. 13.) (V We owe also the greatest gratitude to the Congo State's agents who are unceasing in their efforts to help us ever since we settled in the Pool vicinity. It is necessary to reside in Congo to thoroughly appreciate the immense services that the State agents continually render the white men as well as the negros and their reciprocal relations in our missions' neighbourhood. I am most happy to have been elected as member of the Com- mission instituted for the blacks' protection, I hope most sincerely that this Committee will soon sit and draw up a report on the clever manner with which the State so efficiently protects the natives. Of course wherever civilisation is struggling against savage tribes, conflicts and abuses are inevitable, but it is highly injust to con- sider the State responsible for these abuses when it does all in its power to quell them. What difference and what improvements have been effected in a few years!... In all the Kisantu region at several miles distance and notwithstanding the difficulties and intricacies of porterage, so necessary to the State, village bloodshed and warfare are becoming quite extinct. Blacks now live in peace one with another. Nevertheless some tribes at a greater distance from the Centre revolt sometimes against the State, but, if they are harshly repressed, they must bare the full responsability of this anarchy as it is wholly due to their vicious passions and want of foresight. » Rev. F. Van Hkncxthgven, of the Jesuits Mission. {Precis kistoriques, 1897, February, p. 49.) — 93 — « The fact is that the line of conduct we follow towards all mis- sions of all nations and of all creeds is a line of favor and unfailing sympathy. The State gives them gratuitously all the ground required for their establishments; it facilitates by the intermediary of civil agents, their settling down in the centre of populations. It entrusts them with the care of free children and gives them emolu- ment. The result of these proceedings is that the number of mis- sionaries has increased sevenfold in a few years, that new religious stations are established every day and that catholics, like protestants, render the full due to our help and our agents protection. Do you think that our adversaries give us any thanks or that they even recognize our efforts?... Not more than they recognize our efforts to trample on the slave trade and to increase means of inter- course, not more than they admit that the commercial movement is constantly improving :— these being quite sufficient proofs to show the success of the Congolese work but which their detractors will not even recognise. » Baron van Eetvelde, State Minister of the Congo Independent State. [J^toile beige. A%m, May, 21.) « The evening of our arrival, as we strolled about in the beautiful starlight night, we were attracted towards the church by the sound of negro voices singing and praying. They were about thirty kneeling and standing, with arms outstret- ched and crossed, preparing for the next day's Sunday, all Saints Day, communion. By the faint light of two glimmering candles, under the influence of these powerful voices this sight gives an impression of early Christianity. There were no white priests, only two black catechumens directing the solemn service of penance and exal- tation... No women in theChurch. It is curious to note that the Con- golese woman are more adverse to religious conversion than the men. The following day being Sunday, we went to mass, this is the time when and the spot where equality between blacks and white men is proclaimed by Christ. The negroes communion is really edifying ; it it is very impressive. » Paul Conreur. {Le Bien public, 1898, January, 4,.) — 1J4 — a I have collected some children, and the State has given me others. At the present time I have forty-seven... These children belong to all the tribes in the region of the Falls. Victims of slavers' razzias or of war and bloodshed which have devastated the country during the last years, they are here as in paradise. Good, obedient and docile they will be all baptised in a years time. At least I hope so... The district's chief, Commandant iMalfeyt,who is most truly amiable, and his principal agents have helped me by every means in their power. . . The Arabs, scattered here and there, formerly devastated the country but, to-day, their power seems annihilated. They have become the white man's auxiliary. We have near our mission a village newly formed by soldiers formerly belonging to the State and natives of Lusambo. These men have been through ten battles, and to-day, like the old roman soldiers, they have become agriculturists and they relate their adventures in the long evenings. The home life does them good and they have a certain idea of the aim we are pursuing... They often offered to help me, saying they were quite ready to give their assistance in building our houses and that they were perfectly acquainted with what I wished. » Rev. F. Gabkiel, Of the FaHs Mission. {Le Regne du cceur de Jesus, November, 1898, pp. 5o2 & fol.) « Belgians are very favorable to missionaries, who thus obtain a staff of interpreters and artistic workmen which renders them the greatest service. » Baron de Mandat-Grancey. (Am Congo, 1900, p. 197.) « The State is greatly seconded by the missionaries to whom it renders justice by stating that the greatest number are mainly inte- rested in their evangelical mission. — 9o — The Stale neglects nothing to help their expansion. It favours them by supplies and by gifts of land, and it orders its staff to sup- port them in every vv-ay. Special orders enjoin the district officers and generally all the State agents « to protect and to befriend the civilising work undertaken by the Congo missionaries, by every means in their power. » They must especially protect missionaries willing to settle in the » State's territory, and tender them all help and aid if they need its » services, and where it can give them assistance without injuring » the public welfare. » To ascertain if the Government's good intentions are realised it is only necessary to open different reviews of divers missions : in them can be read testimonies attesting the good-will and help they have received from these agents. » Report to the King-Sovereign, '1900, July, 15 (Bulletin OFFICIEL, 1900, p 152). « Matadi is well governed by a District Commissioner and a Com- missaire of Police. The former is always ready to listen to any representations the missionaries may make on behalf of the natives, as for example when asked that a mid-week market might be esta- blished, because the native Christians could not attend the great market held on Sundays ; and quite recently the Police Commissioner invited one of our brethren to visit some European prisoners under his care and lend them some religious literature. The Missionaries have also free access to the coloured prisoners and to the patients in the hospital. » Rev. Lawson Fohfeyt, B. M. S. {Missionary Herald, 1901, p. 313.) « The high officials on the Congo have also been very cordial, and have in no way hindered our work. By the General Act of Berlin, liberty of worship was guaranteed to all, and this has been faithfully carried out by te State. » W. HOLMAN BeNTLEY. {Pioneering on the Congo, 1900, vol. II., p. 425.) — 96 — cc The village of Mivandeke is situated at eight kilometres from the mission. It has existed for about a year and its population is chiefly composed of State soldiers on leave. There is a catechism teacher there, and all follow the lessons in the most regular way. The men, about fifty, have a fixed hour and the women too. They have built, too, the catechist's abode, and have given him a fine plantation. They intend, I think, to build a chapel, for shortly a certain number will be baptized... The good baron Dhanis, when he passed through Saint-Gabriel proposed the establishment of a mission at six days distance from the Falls on the Avakubi road. The intended railway will pass that way. There is a very high hill there, 800 metres high, most fertile and always healthy. The baron intends building a sanatorium on its summit... » Rev. P. Gabhif-l, Superior of the Falls mission. [Le Regne du coiur de Jesus, 1901, February, pp. 85 & 86.) « The Government is busy at the present moment preparing the census of Stanley-Pool district and the orphans who are not yet at the mission are fetched from there to be taken to Boma and Moanda. In fact it is an excellent measure. Since the orphans have been taken in the villages, the natives better, advised, have entrusted a certain number of different missions with the care of them. « Rev. P. Van Hencxthoven, S. J., Kwango mission. {Missions beiges de la Compagnie de Jesus, 1902, p. 3o6.) « The Committee of the British Baptist Missionary Society, of London, desire most respectfully to address Your Majesty as Sove- reign of the Congo Free State and to express their grateful acknow- ledgements for Your Majesty's gracious and helpful sympathy with all wisely considered efforts put forth for the enlightenment and up- lifting of Your Majesty's native subjects living within the territories of the Congo Free State... In the piosecution of these labours, the Committee of the Baptist — 97 — Missionary Society desire gratefully to acknowledge the many signal and helpful proofs they have received of Your Gracious Majesty's approval and support; and very specially at this juncture they are anxious to express to Your Majesty their respectful appreciation of the great boon granted « to all religious, scientific and charitable institutions, » by the reduction of direct and personal taxes by 50 per cent, from, on, and after the first day of July last, as proclaimed by Your Majesty's Command in the May and June issues of the Bulletin officiel cle Vl^tat independant du Congo, which the Committee regard as a further and significant proof of Your Majesty's desire to promote the truest welfare of Your Majesty's Congo subjects, and to help forward all institutions calculated to produce enduring and bene- ficent results. » (The Committee of the Baptist Missionary Society to H. M. King Leopold, Sovereign of the Congo Free State. I^toile beige, January, 7, 1903.) « Less than four years ago, the Mayumbe inhabitants were so ferocious that Europeans did not dare approach them. At the present datethe missionaries can count catechumens in forty-three villages. The fathers often cannot settle down, as they are obliged to travel from village to village to give the necessary religious instruc- tion and to control the teaching given by the negi'O catechists who are established in the villages. The adult inhabitants of Mayumbe are completely indifferent to the missionaries ; not one of them will get up to bow to them on their passage. Children, on the contrary, look upon the missionary as their best friend; they come to meet him, bow to him, shake hands, hang on to his cassock and are most regular attendants at catechism and teaching. Often on Sundays there are about 1,800 children at church at Moll-Sainte-Marie, and some come from great distances. On this account huts are built to serve as sleeping- rooms for the children who come on the Saturday evening. » Rev. P. Senden, Missionary. {Monvement des missions catholiques au Congo, 1903, January, p. 28.) 7 — 98 — « A Report of the First United Conference held amongst the mis- sionaries of the Congo had just been published, and is thrilling reading for anyone who has followed the work from its commencement. From its pages 1 quote the following facts and figures: There are to-day21 1 Protestant missionaries on the Congo, belonging to 8 various Societies. There are 283 native evangelists, and. 327 native teachers; 40 main stations and 192 out-stations; 6,521 communi- cants and 1,470 catechumens; Sunday school attendance o,64I, and day school 10,162. » Dr Harhy Guinness. {These thirty Years. Special number of Regions Beyond, January 1903, p. 38.) § 9. — Conclusions. c( I should be ungrateful if I neglected, in closing these pages, to render cordial and heart felt hommage to the generous and gigantic work undertaken and accomplished by Leopold II, king of the Belgians, who, alone and without violence, has thus been able to secure for Europe the largest and most peaceful of african colonies. It is to be hoped that such a vast enterprise will continue to prosper and be crowned by complete success. » G. Corona, Italian Consul. {SuC Congo, report for 1889, p. 60.) « All the ■efforts of the Congo State have been directed to the accomplishment of its mighty enterprise. The administrative organisation has been established with a rapi- dity which can only be properly realised by comparing the maps of the Congo of 1890 and 1894. Thanks to the activity of its agents the Government has become known to the people, it has studied the immense resources of the country, begun to enlist the natives in the public forces, heeped the desirable development of religious missions, started the cultivation of marketable crops, and thus increased the resources of the country. The results of four years' labor warrant the assertion that no civilised nation has dealt with its African pos- sessions so effectively, so promptly and so successfully. Again, and in this respect, events have surpassed expectations, dangerous incur- sions have forced the Governement of the Congo Free State to under- take several expeditions against Arab slave-traders. Belgium has followed the course of these operations with patriotic pride. » {Expose des motifs dii projet de loi d'annexion du Cougo^ February, 12, 1895, p. 3.) — 100 — c( In all the history of colonies, there is no precedent of such an advanced result being obtained in such a brief period, with an almost « chance » staff constantly suffering from illness. These repleated, trying and often even fatal expeditions by means of which the whole territory has been reconnoitred in every direction are associated with the names of Stanley and of a host of our officers, as that of Xenophon is with the Anabasis. The successive occupation ot posts to the very extremities of the territory has covered the whole colony as with a connected and strong net. Towns have been established with a due regard to the needs of Government, of trade and even of possible war. At Boma, the capital, are the central authoriliep whose work I have studied closely and which are really remarkable in their details. Regular communication has been established with all parts of the Empire. In spite of frightful diffi- culties and discouragements an effective staff of civil and military officials has been organised. To secure the wherewithal for this lengthy enterprise has necessitated considerable efforts. In the first place much is due to personal sacrifice and, when this was exhaus- ted, the breach was filled by determined diplomacy. Even those who are eptirely lacking in sympathy with the work in the Congo cannot gainsay that gigantic efforts must have been employed to achieve such results. This explains the phrenz of some and the hallucination of others. » EdMOND PlCARD, Senator. {En Congolie, 1896, pp. 152 & 153.) « However much of a socialist or republican one may be, it must be acknowledge, asPicard has admitted, that the King of the Belgians deserves praise for the great initiative and earnest perseverance he has shown with a view to realising his object by all available means, including the exercise of his sovereign power which was as necessary as the help of devoted men. » Paul Coxreur. [Independance beige, 1897, April, 16.) — 101 — « One is surprised at the quickness with which the Belgians have imitated the Dutch in the art of colonising far off lands. Their first attempt has been a masterpiece. Private initiative, capital, industry and the crown rivalled one another in colonising this enormous piece of the African continent. Powerful companies have been formed. Public works have been multiplied. Abundant native labor has been called up and utiHsed everywhere. Trains run as far as Tumba, with passengers and goods. All fhc old caravan tracks feed the river traffic. The various means of cheap and quick communication are already systematised and the river presents the spectacle of a prosperous trade which we may well envy. Telegraphic and tele- phonic communication exists between the steam saw mills and other trade establishments and the various stations. The Belgians are quite at home in the Congo ; they enjoy the same liberty untrammelled by any interference. The state of things is altogether characteristic and instructive : the colonial expansion of a small nation to whom colonisation was hitherto an unknown art. » {Petit Parisien, June, 1897, cited by La Belgique coloniale, 1897, June, 13.) « An attempt is here made to urge upon public opinion in this country the need of a little generosity towards the first colonizing attempts of a small power, which finds itself confronted with the stu- pendous task of administering nearly 1,000,000 square miles of territory, peopled in its greater part by tribes who, for unknown cen- turies, have been buried in the blackness of the most abject and repul- sive barbarism which the mind of man can conceive. » {Pall Mall Gazette, July, 19, 1897.) « As a whole, the progress and results of this colonisation are no longer blindly contested, I no longer hear people say : « There is » nothing to be done in the Congo, there is nothing to get out of it; — 10^2 — » civilisation is impossible with the negroes; it is an unproductive » enterprise on which Belgian initiative devotion and capital are )) absolutely thrown away, or which yields so little that it would be •>■> better to leave the colony to others, w These attacks are gradually ceasing. And how should it be other- wise when such abundant evidence is present to overcome the most pessimistic arguments? We can rely upon those who have been in the Congo with unbiassed minds and who come back and tell us sincerely what they have seen. I hope that, by my letters, I have somewhat contributed to this change of opinion. We have also had the impartial testimony of Edmond Picard, which is surely more credible than that of those systematic « Congophobes » who, without ever having been to the Congo, support their opposition by evidence of an altogether foreign nature, such as the failure of the Dhanis expedition which has been grossly misrepresented so that we see the cannibals feeding on beef- steaks cut from every white person who ventures into the interior. » Paul Conueur. {Itidependauce beige, 1897, August, 3.) « Undoubtedly Belgium has, in its Congolese enterprise, set an example to France and even to England, which both may study with advantage. The annexation of the Congo Free State has been accom- plished with the least possibly outlay of money and military force. Belgium has thus shown that colonial entreprise can be as well carried out by small as by great nations, as long as, instead of being brutal conquests, they are merely the work of civilisation, 'trade and com- merce. Now, this pdlicy is the most conformable to the principles of justice and the best interests of European nations. » G. L. i)K Lanessan, Formerly French Minister of Marine {Politique coloninle. 1897, August, 28.) — 103 — c( There. is no denying the fact that, ever since the day when, under the intelligent inspiration of Leopold II, the Upper-Congo Committee was formed in 1878, Belgium's work in the Congo domi- nions has been considerable and carried on with a breadth of views and a fixed purpose which was a guarantee of success. » Camille Guy, Governor of Senegal. {Moniteur des expositions, 1897, October, 16-31, p. 227.) « A new colonial power has certainly appeared, and that power, which had not a single colony, no colonial army, no navy, and which was not distressed dy the need of a commercial market outside Europe, is Belgium. In less than seventeen years she has displayed an initiative of the first order, and from the vague mission entrusted to her in 1876 under the name oi International African Association, she has produced results of which she may be proud and which all her neighbors, not excepting England, may take as an example. Belgium, it must be admitted without flattery, had no colonial tradi- tions, was inspired by nobody, and yet she undertook this work with all its risks and with no experience to help her. There were no plans made, properly speaking. Ready help was forthcoming and this with the official group at its head led to the study of the country and to the realisation of objects which anyone individual could never have hoped to attain. » L. S^vin-Desplaces. {Moniteur maritime, 1897, December, 5.) « In conclusion, I consider that the Congo, of which the Belgians have made a wonderful colony, thanks to an administration which is a pattern of economy and industry, and thanks also to their home and foreign policy, which is a prodigy of prudence, will give them more and more brilliant results as the years go on. » Baron de Mandat-Grancey. {Au Congo, 1898, p. 289.) — 104 — « Encouraged and guided by the King, the Belgians have shown, in every respect, a perspicacity, an activity, and a spirit of enterprise which redounds to their highest credit. They have done mor for the development of central Africa than all the great nations ccynbined. In short, as Picard lias said, the Belgian Congo is an example to be followed by France, Germany and England. If the King's idea was a bold one and if it seemed too daring to some, the resuHats achieved have surpassed all expectations, and as the number of hands is con- siderable in our country, its industry and capital amply sufficient and the physical and moral energy of the Belgians well developed, the- future may be faced with confidence. » Pierre Verhaegen, Provincial Councillor. (Au Congo, 1898, p. 149.) « Belgium has shown that, in matters of colonisation, she posses- sed more practical and rational ideas, and a better understanding of the processes of modern colonisation. « J. DE Lanessan, Formerly French Minister of Marine. {Politique coloniale, 1898, April, 12-13.) « We know very well that the Congo Stale does its best to be and to remain on good terms with Germany. The Congo is an example tor us in every respect. Of the same age as our colonies, the Slate has suffered from the same apparent evils ; the undertakings carried out on its soil have demanded much and profited little. Since the construction of the railway, all has changed. » Baron von Danckelmann. {SchlesischeZeitung, 1898, July, IG.) — 105 — « You have shown to every nation with a colonial policy, what the spirit of enterprise, and an irresistible colonial activity are capable of. You have given them an example to follow\ In view of this success, I can only express my admiration and tell you how proud I am to be entrusted, on this auspicious occasion, with the duty of presenting to the authorities of the Congo Railway the sincere and cordial congratulations of the Imperial German Govern- ment. » Baron von Danckelmann. [Journal de Bruxelles, 1898, August, 18.) « This astonishing development of the Belgian Congo is due to two factors : to the manner in which the State is governed and to the help of a certain number of exporting companies. The Government of the State is entirely in the hands of the King of the Belgians. The constitutional monarch of a small country, Leopold II. seemed destined to play but an obscure role ; but in the annexation and development of the Congo, which is a purely personal affair, he found an opportunity for using the remarkable gifts with which nature had endowed him. At first he was looked upon as a dreamer bent on wasting his private income in the pursuit ofa philanthropic chimera. Now that the worthiness of his aims is no longer debateable, he is represented as a smart man who foresaw a good stroke of business. Both are unfair judgments. As a matter of fact he is one of the figures of the nineteenth century, one who personifies in an eminent degree the qualities ofa great man of action : a powerful mind which embraces the whole extent of the possible and without which a hero would be impossible, plenty of executive power, and a firm and tenacious resolution. There is nothing in history approaching the development of this immense country, the heart of a mighty con- tinent, by a sovereign who has never been there, and who shows us the marvellous spectacle of a superior intelligence acting on a vast scale. » Pierre Mille. [Le Temps, September, 13, 1898.) — lOG — « Whatever may be prophesied about the Congo, it is certain that no colony has had such a rapid development : in respect of both commercial progress and political organisation. This is due to the Sovereign of the Free State and to our counterymen who responded to his appeal. The Belgians have shown that they are neither machines nor stay- at-homes. The Congo has brought out their colonising aptitudes. Even supposing it did not repay them for the sacrifices made, it would still have served as a splendid school of energy for an entire nation. And that is an advantage which deserves to be appreciated at a lime when nations must vanquish by the strength of their arms, their adaptability to environment and to the international struggle for life. » [Messager de Paris, 1898, November, 10.) « Look at the Congo State. Everything has not gone there as well as could be wished, but still a great domination is maintained. There are two sets of opinions; but what is undoubtedly true is that Begium— a very much less . powerful country than Great-Britain — has been able to maintain the dominions of her King over a territory larger than the Sudan. » Lord Salisbury. (House of Lords, The Times, February, 8, 1899.) « Considering the difficulties encountered, the internal disquiet arising from the Arab war and the hostility of maneating tribes, and the slender means disposed of by King Leopold in the earlier years of his enterprise, the results are highly satisfactory, and even creditable. » {The Observer, Juni, 18, 1899.) — 107 — « What arouses the attention and even the admiration of all inte- rested in foreign enterprise, is the remai kable manner in which all this colonising work has been carried out, both from the point of view of the material development of the country and h'om that of the moral education ofits people. Witli restricted resources, far less than those usuably possessed by a Slate for its over sea dependencies, the Congolese Government has attained astonishing results. » G. Blanchaiid, Advocate at the Chambery Appeal Court. {Formation et constitution politique de VEtat Independant du Congo, 1899, p. 388.) « There is a great future before the Congo Free State, and there is no reason whatever why gallant and artistic Flanders shoud not play a great part in Central Africa ; she is already sufficiently illustrious in the history of Europe. » Sir H. H. Johnston, Formerly special Commissoner for the Uganda Protectorate. {The Colonization of Africa, 1899, XI, p. 230.) « With respect to the Lower-Congo, which is half French and half Belgian, it is quite sad to compare the two colonies. Although only separated by the width of a river, what a surprising differences exist! On the one hand, steamers going and coming, human habitations, rising towns, steamers in course of construction, the whistling of loco- motives, movement, life, an European invasion ! On the other band a small outpost with a few soldiers to protect the flag or an isolated factory, everywhere a dreary solitude, conveying a general impres- sion of sadness and neglect. » Edouard Foa. {La Traversee de I'Afrique, 1900, p. 273.) — 108 — « One need not be a prophet in order to foresee for the Congo a brilliant future. Not only is it rich in itself, but European industry will quintuple its v;eallh. The Free State is already the most impor- tant ivory and india-rubber exporter in the world. It will also become, whenever it chooses, the chief producer of palm oil, cocoa, coffee, ebony, mahogany, and at the same time the premier African colony, without mentioning the work carried on by the Belgians simul- taneously with the commercial development, work which includes school colonies, schemes for the betterment of the people, railways, telegraphes, steam-traffic companies, etc. By means of a firm colonial policy, by the wisdom and practical spirit of its regulations, by the united efforts of the Government and of individuals, by the confidence crowned with success shown by European capitalists, the Congo Free State is the finest existing spe- cimen of African colonisation. » Edgiard Foa. {La Traversee de I'Afrique, 1900, pp. 294 & 29o.) « The Belgians may well be proud of the part which their small country has played in the opening up of Africa, and the development of the 900,000 square miles in the heart of the continent which is now known as the Congo State. » Rev. W. HoLMAN Bentley, B. M. S. {Pioneering on the Congo, vol. II, p. 426, 1900.) « The King, clear-sighted, enterprising and energetic, has been able to control his vast domains with such method that they serve as a model to even our most experienced neighbours in the difficult art of colonisation, ;> Alex. Jacobson. {Revue diploiuatique, September, 9, 1900.) — 109 — « In 1884 Ihe Congo wasbntahope, a conception of Leopold II, who has made the most generous and substantial sacrifices to assure it a real existence. Amid the disputes in which we ourselves have been obliged to take part, although they did not diminish France's sympathy with the enterprise of its northern neighbour, the Congo State has acquired a vast territory, now clearly defined and uncon- tested. Its founders have vanquished doubt and pessimism, esta- blished their railway and occupied one district after another. To day they have a complete system of posts and they impose on the Euro- peans let loose among the Congo blacks an ever increasing discipline.)) Robert de Caix, (Journal DES Debats, quoted by la Me'tropole, 1901, May, 12. « Our old Europe is the scene of so many errors and abuses, that I really wonder how the savage lands of Africa could remain free from all stain. But I should like to be allowed to refer, in this connexion, to the opinion of one by whose friendship I feel honored and who has spent a longer time in the Congo than any other Euro- pean. This is what monseigneur Augouard, apostolic vicar of the French Congo, a largehearted and well informed man, said to me only a few months back : (f I used some hard words with respect to certain events at the )) outset of this new work. My priest's conscience dictated the lan- )) guagel used and by its means I attained the object at which I aimed. )) But to-day, as a fairminded man, I feel compelled to declare, as a )) Frenchman and a Christian, that I wish with all my heart to see the )) French Congo one day attain the material and moral level of the )) Belgian Congo. That work commands my unqualified admiration.)) I have had the honor of dealing with a large number of those Catholic pioneers who go and die out there with no other object than that of saving souls. And I venture to think everybody will approve the words of Mgr. Augouard. » Baron de Broqueville, Member of the Chamber of Representatives. (Sitting of the Chamber of Representatives, 1901, July, 16.) — 110 — « The crimes with which we are connected ! Here are a few : the establishment of administrative services, of protective public forces, the creation of means of communication, the institution of public hygiene, especially the introduction of vaccination which' has alone saved the lives of thousands of natives, the work of assistance, hos- pitals, and education. Such are the crimes of our countrymen in the Congo. And foreigners, protestant missionaries, men of light and leading, — such as Grenfell, Benlley, Johnston and others— have praised the efforts put forth and the results obtained by the Belgians in Central Africa. » Comte DE Smet de Naeyer, President of the Council of Ministers. (Sitting of the Chamber of Representatives, 1901, July, 16.) « It is undeniable that the Belgian system is far superior to that in neighbouring cftlonies, both from the point of view of economy, and from that of tiie development of civilisation to be pursued in Africa. The rapid and powerful growth of the Congo State the fifteen years following on its foundation, its economic development, its military and administrative organisation, its means of communication, its success in the assimilation of the native races, are indubitably in advance of the results in surrounding countries. Every undertaking there contributes to the trade of the country, every object is followed up by energetic means, without regard to trouble or expense, when it has once been recognised as being worth while. Questions, which require long and careful examination in the Reichstag, and which, in spite of their important bearing on the general welfare, are put off and sometimes entirely abandoned, find an immediate solution in the Belgian system, simply because an energetic mind decides on a measure solely on its merits. And once decided upon, the under- taking is at once put in hand and quickly executed. » [Munchner neucsle Nachrichtcn, 1901, November, 40.) -ni- ce The importance of ihe results obtained cannot be disputed. The slave-trade abolished, a vast territory opened, up populous centres rising up on every hand, roads made, quick means of communication organised, an extensive I'aihvay system created in the very tropics, missions, flourishing schools, the natives protected by law and taught agriculture and trades, — such is the wonderful work accomplished in the name of civilisation and Leopod II. This unterlaking has completely reformed colonial methods and remains almost unique in history, in face of so many errors and cruelties. » RiCCARDO PlERANTONI, Advocate at Rome. {Le Traite de Berlin de 1885 et rEtat Independant du Congo, 1901, pp. 287 & 288.) « The Congo Free State, in spite of the criticisms showered upon it, has dealt most intelligently with the problem of the European transformation of Africa. It has completed the system of its natural means of communication by works which open an easy access to immense territories : it is administered in such a manner that the distribution of individual efforts does not injure the organic unity of its development; it closely resembles— and this is not a reproach— a large house of business whose various offices are companies which share the work and whose managers, residing at Antwerp and at "Brussels, form but a small body at once united and obeyed. » P. LORIN. {L'Afriqiie a f entree du XX^ siecle, 1901, p. 100.) « AVatered by one of the finest river systems in the world, under the direction and guardianship of a nation surpassed by none in agricultural, industrial and commercial capacity, the Congo seems called upon to fulfil the highest economic destinies. It will evidently only attain them in the course of time, and intermittent stationary periods if not periods of actual retrogression. But, as long as discouragement and lassitude are not allowed to prevail— and the — 112 — Belgian people have ever been tenacious— those magnificent countries cannot fail to flourish. It will be a lasting honor to King Leopold to have discovered the future of that part of the world, to have explored it at enormous sacrifices, to have never allowed that doubt or discouragement to prevail w'hich might have been aroused in a weaker mind by the slowness and mistakes at the outset, tie deserves to be counted among the greatest soveigns of the time, as the creator of an empire. » Paul Lkroy-Beaulieu. {De la colonisation chez les peuples modernes, 1902, 5* ed., p. 364.) « Let us give everything its proper value ; blame that which is reprehensible, but also praise ungrudgingly the generpus initiative which led to the formation of the Congo Free State. To Congolese anarchy has succeeded a State strong in its rights and prerogatives. Hideous slavery is now but a myth ; horrible anthropophagy is decreasing, tribal wars, with their accompanying fearful atrocities, no longer exist, and, thanks to commandant Chaltin, the Dervishes, those terrible manhunters, have been long since expelled from our territories. Such is the moral work accomplished by our countrymen under the aegis of our King. Flourishing missions are spread up and down the country and our brave missionaries especially and power- fully contribute to the building up of a humanitarian Congoland. » Lieut. Devos. {Impressions congolaises, Le Mouvement des missions catho- UQUES Au Congo, January, 1903, p. 13.) « The vast basin of the Congo, it is not uninteresting to note, readily lends itself to a scheme of partition among the three principal powers possessing the adjoining territories. Nothing could be more easy than to find natural frontiers to the territories such divided. The British fi'onlier could be made to follow the waters of the Conso — 113 — along its entire length from the point where the Lukungu takes its waters from Tanganika to the present Portuguese frontier below Matdi. The German border could follow the same line as far as the junction of the Aruwimi and the Congo, thence following the course of the former to its source, and then due east to the western shore of lake Albert. The present frontiers between the British east African possessions and German East Africa could be readjusted to run from the southernmost point of lake Albert to the northern point of lake Victoria, following for a considerable part of the distance the course of the streams. To France would go the entire territory on the north of the Congo from Banana point to the Aru- wimi, following this river to the 27lh. degree of east longitude to the extreme eastern point of French occupation on the Uelle. To Egypt could be assigned the remaining fragment, including the Lado enclave and the Bahr el Ghazal, bringing the Egyptian border from the extreme easterly French line along the 27th. degree of east longi- tude to the Aruwimi and along the German line to lake Albert. » Captain Guy Burrows (1). [The Curse of Central Africa, 1903, p. 274.) (1) See the map at the end of the book. PART II THE REFUTATIONS Aiis>vers to the attacks of Messrs. Ulurpliy, Sjoblom, 8lie|>|)ai*vs9 Cauisiiis« etc., etc. Interview with Commandant NILIS. « I returned to Belgium just two months ago. After my long tour of exploration in the vast and well w'atered territories of Adda, I was called to lake over the management of the province of Ubangi- M'Bomu, which has since become the district of Ubangi. To return to Boma, I had to descend the Congo by steamer from the Equator, where I embarked after spending some time at Goquilhatville. Both at that station and on the boat — which took passengers to almost all the stations on the lower part of the river — also at Leopoldville and in the Lower-Congo stations, I was in com- munication with numbers of agents of the State and the various companies. Well, I give you my word of honour that, neither in the district which I commanded, nor in those which I traversed on my return, did any officer or functionary of the Slate, any missionary or head of a factory, speak to me of any facts in the least degree ana- logous to those with which, during the last few days, certain news- papers, hostile to the Congo, have been occupied. What has struck me in reading the papers is the vague and loose nature of Ihc so-called revelations. Mr. Parminter, who has given — 115 — the signal lor the attacks on the Independent State and its officers, has cited three classes of facts in his interview with a reporter of Renter's agency; Mr. Blocteur, superintendent of the Equator District, to whom the English ex-commercial agent imputed the first class of facts, is dead. Mr. De Keyzer, whose name has been quoted with refei'ence to the second, is powerless to call Mr. Parminter to account for his language, as the latter has confined himself to attacking the conduct of the soldiers placed under that officer's orders. As to the last class of facts, the accuser charges them to the account of an officer who is indicated in such a vague manner that it is impossible to guess his name. How can one dispel a calumny under such conditions? In the letter which he has addressed to the Belgian newspaper which makes itself the willing mouth-piece of his accusations, Mr. Par- minter has cited a fi'esh fact. He says : « Let any one turn over the » judicial records of Lukungu, and he will find the proof of the con- » viction of an officer who had knocked two of his boys' senseless with » blows from the butt of his rifle. » I know the story to which he alludes, and, while I have no right to mention names, I think it well to tell the story, for it is an instructive one. This officer, one of the best servants of the Independent State, commanded, six years ago, the post of Manyanga in the Cataract region. One day, after taking a cup of tea in his tent, he felt him- self seized with violent pains ; having a presentiment that he was the victim of an attempt at poisoning, and wishing to punish the guilty parties, he questioned his servants, who came running up at his call, and discovered that those who had attempted his life were precisely two op his boys' whom he had treated with the most lavish kindness. The indignation that he felt was so strong, that he took his rifle from the sentry posted before his tent, and stunned the two wretches with one blow. The facts' came to the knowledge of his superiors, who, after holding an enquiry, and in view of the circumstances that I have just recounted, confined themselves to inflicting a fine of 500 francs upon him. For my own part, I believe that if he had been tried by our own assize-courts, this officer — who since then has atoned for this outbreak of anger by exemplary conduct and most brilliant services— would have been acquitted. — 110 — Mr. Parminter is obliged to go back to 1890 to be able to produce an accusation of murder against an oflicer — a murder which should rather be called a legitimate act of self-defence. Besides this fact which it is, 1 think, useful to make clear, Mr. Parminter only incriminates the conduct of a dead man, and of an officer whose name he does not give. He produces in support of his words a letter from a commercial agent whose name we do not know, taking care to add that this masked witness has, since then, retracted his statements. Is this the way to bring to light and prove the facts which one puts forward? As the ihoUe remarked yester- day in a leaderette, the detractors of tlie Congo began by accusing the officers in the service of the Congo; then, giving up the attempt to show that these atrocities were to be imputed to them personally, they maintained that the barbarous acts were committed by the black soldiers, and were not punished ; finally the mutilations, in which they believe, were not— except in the case of the unfortunate little girl at Ikoko — perpetrated upon living, but upon dead bodies, whicli, one would consider, considerably lessens their gravity. After ail, too, it is no more maintained that these guilty acts remain unpu- nished. Little by little, then, we come to discuss nothing but the barbarous customs of the natives of the Congo, which hardly differ, I can assure you, from the customs of all the other tribes who in- habit the vast regions of central Africa. The newspapers which from a previously formed prejudice, disparage the King's beautiful and wealthy colony, are reduced to the discovery that these poor blacks are addicted to odious practices, that it is customary among them to decapitate an enemy, when they have succeeded in making him bite the dust, that theft is punished by cutting of a hand, and the aduiteiy of a woman by cutting off one breast. Is one going to make responsible tor these things the whites who devote them- selves to the work, sometimes thankless and always meritorious, of civilizing these countries. It is just fifteen years since Stanley, who was put at the head op an expedition, in which I had the honour to share, established on the Congo the first posts of the International African Association, which has given birth to the Independent State of the Congo. The progress made in the course of these years has been enormous. No European colony in Equatorial Africa has deve- loped at the same rate. But we must be pair, and not expect impos- — 117 — sibilities. It is hot possible in such a short space of time to entirely change native morals. The influence of the stations is gradually extended, and atrocities like those which are spoken of are already only exceptional, this is due to the officers and agents of all ranks whom Mr. Liebrechts, the General Secretary assembles at his office in the Place du Trone, on the eve of each departure for Africa, and whom he solemnly reminds of the instructions v/hich are laid down for them to behave in a kind and humane manner towards the blacks, only to have recourse to severe I'epression in case of absolute necessity, and to punish severely cases of cannibalism, violence of every description, mutilation, etc. These instructions, which the Governor-General has frequently recalled to his subordinates, I have found reproduced in extenso in the warrant which the I^'loile has analyzed. Let the detractors of the Congo furnish proof that these instructions are not obeyed? For my part, I assert that I have never heard of a single officer in Africa having violated them. After these « revelations, » which were made several months ago in The Times, by a missionary, Mr. Murphy, the Congolese Government ordered a magistrate, Mr. De Lancker, to go to the Upper-Congo to check Mr. Murphy's statements. The enquiry, which was most searching, showed that the conduct of our officers could not be called in question. There were other accusations, it is true, notably those of a certain Captain Salusbury; but Stanley has recently announced in an article in The Saturday Review,'ihait this Salusbury is only a vulgar blackmailer of the first order, who has simply tried to make the King buy his silence. » {Etoile beige, 1896, September, 23.) Interview of Sir H. M. STANLEY. A representative of the African Review called on Sir H. M. Stanley, on his return from America to ask him his opinion as to the proba- bilities of the exactness of Mr. Murphy's declarations. Fortunately, Mr. Stanley, the greatest authority on Congo matters, does not attach much importance to Mr. Murphy's affirmations. He declares that, without in the least doubting Mr. Murphy's standing, it is very necessary to accept such a list of atrocities as — 118 — those given by him with a great reserve. The vague character of the accusation is by itself enough to make you hesitate before crediting the truth of all statements. If such a state of things really exists, it is quite amazing that Mr. Murphy should be thoroughly isolated in his accusation. There are more than 600 missionaries of all kinds and denomi- nations in the Congo State. They work in a region covering more than 1,000,000 square miles. If the barbarous and cruel acts des- cribed by Mr. Murphy have as general a character as he pretends, it is at least incomprehensible that an organized movement of protest does not exist among this great number of missionaries. — Will it be said that all the other missionaries are paid by the State to keep silence? — I know the Congo, said Mr. Stanley, and the difficulties consequent upon the climate and other circumstances with which the officers of the State have to contend. As a rule the whites in the Congo deserve in all senses as much pity and consideration as the blacks, and one must examine scrupulously all the difficulties of the situation before blaming them too hastily. Mr. Stanley does not consider it improbable, that here and there an act attributed by Mr. Murphy, has been committed, but these would be isolated cases. It would be impossible to believe that such could be the usual state of things all over the colony. The officers are but men, and missionaries must not forget that they themselves are not exempt from human weaknesses. Mr. Stanley himself has seen cases where missionaries, without going so far by a long way in acts of revolting cruelty, have nevertheless done things which in England would be counted as atrocities. There are black sheep in every flock, and neither the agents of the Free State, nor the merchants trading there, nor the missionaries can consider their own flock immaculate. A great number of unfavorable reports,— this without' any allusion to Mr. Murphy, are the result of disordered imaginations due to the abuse of quinine. They are sometimes caused by slight personal differences between the authorities and those responsible from time to time for these reports. In short, on the Congo as elsewhere, tattling is tattling, and as long as more reliable informa- tions is not to be obtained, we have perfect right to treat such as idle gossip. » [La Belgique coloniale, January, 5, 1896.) — \\u Interview with Mr. LIEBREGHTS, General Secretary of the Home Department. — "Who is this Mr. Parminter, captain? — He is the nephew of the late Major Parminter. He was in the service of the Congo Free State from i88i to 188G. Since then he has been in the service of the Belgian commercial companies. —Had he any grounds of complaint against the Free State? — I have been told that he had disagreements with the companies. As to the Free State, he never had anything to complain of, unless it was that he had a grudge against it because he could not obtain per- mission to go down from Leopoldville to Boma with a special escort. — Has Mr. Parminter ever brought to the knowledge of the Free State the facts concerning which Reuters Agency has interviewed him? — Never ; and that is very much to be regretted. We sometimes read accusations against our agents in the newspapers. These accu- sations, made without proof, generally consist of simple statements and no more. What can we do? We are not going to assert that every Belgian on the Congo is a saint. That is no more the case on the Congo than in Belgium itself. We only ask that punishment should be administered where the crime has been committed. Let thenji state their case, with proof to support it, and we will act with due severity. But every time that an accusation is made against one of our agents, we ask for proofs, and then our accusers immediately disappear. What can we do? By what means can we set the v^heels of justice in motion, when our accusers refuse to give evidence ? —But does not Mr. Parminter name the officers whom he accuses? — No; and that is what is so regrettable in his statements. He accuses black non-commissioned officers of having committed atro- cities, while their white officers shut their eyes or enjoyed themselves. Now I maintain that our officers do their duty perfectly, and that they have those under their command as well in hand as circumstances with allow. Mr. Parminter speaks of Mr. De Keyzer. Well, that instance is not well selected. In 1894, calumnious reports, such as Mr. Parminter speaks of, were spread abroad to the discredit of that — 1-20 — oflicer. Immediately an enquii'y was set on foot. It resulted in Mr. De Keyser's justification, and showed up in a strong light the calumnious character of the accusations brought against him. I have lived six years on the Congo; and never, no, never, have I seen committed anywhere the horrors of which Mr. Parminter speaks. Mr. Parminter says that young ofiicers recently appointed are entrusted with important missions, and that their cruelties are chiefly the result of their inexperience, well, youg officers are never appoint- ed straight of to important posts. Years must pass before they can be promoted to a rank which gives them any sort of authority. There certainly was a time when young officers were, of necessity, immediately provided with commands. That was the time when men made their mark, thirteen years ago, under Stanley, well, let them read the magnificent encomiums which the great explorer made on those young officers! The Belgian officers who are on the Congo are an honour to our army and our country; whe may say so publicly, without fear of contradiction. The Congo Free Stale — and nobody will gainsay it— treats its black soldiers very well. When they have left its service, it still extends its protection over them. This is so true that the old soldiers of Bula Matari (the State) are looked upon by the natives as forming a sort of aristocracy, and their highest ambition is to be like one op these white negroes, as they call them. Mr. Parminter asserts that the ofllicers mutilate the disobedient blacks in a shameful manner. — I declare that that is an absolute falsehood. Let him say : on a certain day a certain man perpetrated a certain specified atrocity, and we shall immediately take action. But once more, everything is vague, assertions are made without any sort of proof. How do you wish us to interpose? Look at Mr. Parminter. He makes serious charges to Renter's agency. Well, a fortnight ago, he wrote to us again, and he did not say a single word of all this. If he was really right, why did he say nothing to us about it? Wliy did he not make a formal complaint? In an interview he suggests that the head- quarters are full ot good intentions. Why did he not then bring his complaints before us? — 421 — — Then you do not believe in Mr. Parminter's veracity ? — Not in the very least. — Why does Mr. Parminter seem to appeal to tlie testimony of the English missionaries? — The great majority, in fact almost all the Protestant missiona- ries, express their respect tor the Free State? I have here a report of Mr. De Lancker, who was sent on a judi- cial mission to the Upper-Congo. This report is dated May, 27, 4896, just the other dated. He questioned more than thirty missio- naries belonging to different Protestant denominations. Some of these brave pioneers of civilization have been there for more than ten years. Well, they all agree in declaring that they have nothing to say against the officials of the Free State, with whom they have always maintained the happiest relations. There you have the evidence of a magistrate, an impartial man, who has no object in view but the quest of truth. His duty was to prosecute without mercy, on his soul and conscience, everyone who should be found guilty of cruelty or excess. And this is what this magistrate has collected, in seeking the truth as to all the accu- sations with which, for now more than two years, the enemies of the work of the Congo State have regaled the press. » M. LlEBRECmS, General Secretary of the Department of the Interior of the Congo Free State. {Journal de Bnixelles, September, 41, 4896.) Letter of Sir Henry M. Stanley to < The Times ». Sir, « The stories of Belgian cruelty on the Congo have been most frequent of late in the Press, and the headlines have been such as to predispose the ordinary reader to believe that the Belgian officers must be wholly lost to reason, in common fairness to a friendly and even kindred nation I hope you will permit me as one of the incre- dulous, to put in a word or tsvo which perhaps may make the 122 thoughtful feel that things cannot be so bad as they are represented to be. Altogether the Belgian officials on the Congo must now number about a thousand, and naturally among so many some few of them c( suddenly thrust with almost unlimited power among conditions that are strange, dangerous, unhealthy, and depressing »,as Mr. Par- minter said, may have suddenly lost their heads and committed atrocities of the kind described by him. It cannot be easy for youthful officers almost unacquainted with the term self-restraint to use their authority over barbarians with moderation. Their military training does not conduce to forbearance. The peremptory habits of the let me say Continental soldier have not been acquired by a leaching which taught that when dealing with poor ignorant, black savages, they should be kind and merciful. We teel this, but, nevertheless, knowing as I do that these young officers are hedged round about by superior authority I cannot understand how these cases of brutality can be « endless, » as Mr. Parminter said they were. If four officials out of the thousand had run amuck among the savages there would have been quite enough material for the terrible accounts we have had, and quite sufficient to justify general indignation. But while we think that four young officers may have been guilty as alleged, we mnst not forget that this number would be equal to one out of every 250, just the same proportion as the 152,000 British prisoners of last year bear to the 38,000,000 British population. Considering that the Congo State is a great deal more unhealthy than Great Britain, with vastly less restraining power, it may be that there were as many as eight miscreants, or one out of every 125. Still we cannot permit it to be believed that their ofi^ences obtain the sanction of authority. Without combatting the statements of Messrs. Salusbury and Par- minter, I may call attention to the fact that they have omitted to publish the names of the criminals and the dates of the crimes. Without these data we are unable to know whether the events belong to the past or the present, or whether a few individuals are guilty or all the officials are equally concerned in the outrages. Having had a good deal to do with Belgian officials in Africa, I venture to say that if once the Governor General at Boma heard that such crimes were committed, a very full and searching inquiry would be instituted — 123 — and the malefacters punished. I cannot gather from what has been published that either of the gentlemen to whom we are indebted for the accounts of the atrocities ever informed the superior authorities of what was taking place on the Upper Congo and therefore it is dif- ficult to see how the Provincial Governor, the Governor General, the Secretary of State at Brussels and King Leopold can proceed against the offenders. If deterred h*om informing the authorities at Boma, why not, when giving their information to the British Press be precise and definite in these charges, for thus, if the Congo officials conspire to deny them, the officials at Brussels might take action? If I remember rightly King Leopold is a constant reader of The Times, and if he saw it announced in your columns that a Lieutenant Hansen had ordered a woman's breasts to be cutt off, or a Lieutenant Jansen had flogged a woman with 200 lashes, or that a Lieutenant Bunsen had caused a young girl to be dismembered, surely we may well believe that his first act would be to cable to the Governor General to ask whether he knew anything of these horrible barbarities. But vague and general accusations against his officers can only result in the King naturally refusing to give much credence to these stories. Mr. Parminter gives us three instances. One time after dinner he and his host. Lieutenant Blocteur, saw some native troops appro- aching, whose sergeant held up triumphantly a number of ears fas- tened together, which was taken to be a sign of success and accor- dingly praised. These native troops were Bangalas, I presume, and if there be evidence to support the story, then Lieutenant Blocteur ought to be dismissed the service for permitting the Bangalas in his command to indulge their native ferocity after such a method. At another time, while Lieutenant de Keyser was lunching at a Dutch factory, his troops were raiding right and left in the neigh- bourhood, and after the raid an old chief showed Mr. Parminter's agent the body of his daughter whose feet had been cut of for the sake of her brass anglets. To satisfy himself of the truth of this story, Mr. Parminter states that he had the girl's grave opened. Here we have an instance of the savagery of the Bangala breaking out, despite the fact that they have been under military training for years. It also reveals a curious state of discipline, but it must be remembered that a white officer on foot cannot chase natives, and — 1-24 — possibly Lieutenant De Keyser had reason to believe that his native non commissioned officer might be trusted not to disgrace him. A third instance is the most horrible story I have heard in con- nexion with Africa. A Belgian lieutenant, after giving two women 200 lashes each, is stated to have ordered his men to cut their breasts off, and then to leave them to die. Now there is no reason in the world why this man's name should be concealed, and I can only marvel at the delicacy which requires his name to be hidden under a ""*. Who was he? When and where was such a revolting crime committed? Was the District Governor informed of it, and, if so, what did he do about it? The territory of the Upper-Congo is divided into several military districts, each of which is governed by a Provincial Governor, as we may call him. The officials are qualified by merile and experience. They are responsible to the Governor General at Boma for the good government of their respective districts. Unlill I am assured that these officials do not trouble their heads about the conduct of their subordinates, I cannot believe that the Belgian lieutenant remained unpunished. But if, as Mr. Parminter says, the State officials deny that such crimes ever took place, what can the Governor General, the Secretary of State and King Leopold do but believe that such as Mr. Parminter have been imposed upon by either a notorious scandal- monger or some wretched Dutch trader whose malignity towards the Belgians has been inspired by commercial jealousy? When I was establishing the stations along the Congo, I was the object of daily slander by the Poituguese and the Dutch, and every visitor to their factories on the lower river was, regaled with extraor- dinary stories about me. Another class of enemies was furnished bj' the officers whom I was compelled to dismiss or reprove. These people, besides originating countless calumnies against me per- sonally, often on returning to Europe w'ould resort to writing an abusive article against the Association Africaine, and, sending a copy of it to the Brussels office, would threaten to publish it in every newspaper in Europe if the claims for compensation were not instantly settled. When the territory of the Association became the Congo Free State, it was supposed that a regularly constituted government would be exempted from the exactions of such men, I cannot tell whether the State is still being victimized, but if anything — 125 — can serve to render all government impossible in the Congo, it is the indecent love of the Press for sensations and atrocities. At any rate I for one may be forgiven for thinking that there is another side to most of these stories and that all Belgians officials are not quite so bad as they have been represented to be. As a number of young man made it impossible that they could remain on the Congo with me, I do not doubt that among so many minor officials there are some who disgrace their manhood ; but if those acquainted with their misdeeds would instantly report them to the authorities, it would tend to the speedy weeding out of the criminally inclined. I have two friends on the Upper Congo who furnish me regularly with their private opinions of all occurences. One is a Dutchman, the other is a German. The Dutchman is a frank and outspoken anti- Belgian, because, as he says himself, he hates them for favouring Belgian merchants. This enmity has been the cause of many distor- ted accounts of Belgian doings reaching Europe. The German is in the service of the State, and he alwaysspeaks highly of them, because he appears to be duly appreciated. Finally it is well known that the Congo State was created by the good will of Europe in February 1885, and that in 1905 the Powers must decide whether on the whole, the Stale has been worthy its existence. I think the answer will be in the affirmative, though no doubt an effort will be made to its prejudice. But long before 1905^ the chief difficulty of maintaining discipline and good government will have been removed by the arrival of the locomotive at Stanley- Pool, the extension of the overland telegraph, the removal of the seat of Government to a more central locality than Boma. Meantime, however though this antagonism to Belgian officials is absurd, the wide publication of any particular crime, with the name of the cri- minal, cannot fail to act as a deterrent on rashness and evil doing, as there is no station so distant as to be beyond the moral effect of a newspaper ; but if we implicate the good officers with the bad in our general accusations, we only excite disgust and contempt. I am, Sir, your obedient servant. » Henry M. Stanley. (Grayshott, Hants, September, 14. The Times, Septem- ber, 16, 1896.) — 12G Intervie"w ■with Mr. LERMAN, formerly Austrian officer. « We had the occasion of meeting, the other day, a foreign officer, Mr. Lerman, who has been in the service of the Congo State and has since become general commissai'y. Mr. Drag. Lerman was born at Pozega (Croatia) on the 24lh August 1862. It was in 1882, fourteen years ago, that this distinguished officer was engaged for the first time by the Interna- tional African Association, to whose members he had been strongly recommended by his military chiefs, who had been able to appreciate him during the occupation of Bosnia. He was first employed in the Lower Congo and afterwards in the Kwilu Niadi. In I880 he leturned to Austria to finish his period of service; then, in 1888, he went back to Africa again. In 1891 , he returned for the third time, and two years later, when he came back to Europe, it was only to leave once more for the same destination nearly immediately. Mr. Lerman resided at Stanley Falls and until lately — he has been in Europe barely a fortnight — he was chief of the important district ot East Kwango. The Stale looks upon him as a first class agent. We had a long conversation with the energetic officer, who is a real Croatian with bright eyes, full of life and wit, which give his features a remarkable expression of energy. We questioned Mr. Lerman on subjects of present interest. — Have you read the attacks on our Belgian officers? — I am willing to undergo your interview, although it is a very deUcate matter. I might perhaps be looked upon as a man paid by the State, a bribed man, but, in spite of these circumstances, I will not draw back from your questions, for I consider it a real duty for me to render hommage to the officers of the Belgian army who are so unjustly accused. I have lived among them for fourteen years and I have learned to esteem them. I declare boldly that I refuse to believe the assertions of irresponsable persons who pretend they can judge the grand work done by your officers in Africa from a simple short interview. Of course, I have not read all that has been written against the State agents, I have not yet been back a fortnight, buj, what I can say is that if some people assert that your countrymen have . — 127 — acted badly in Africa, they do not speak the truth. The Htlle I know of the attacks that have been made lately are enough to arouse my indignation. I am really astonished that the Belgian Piess prefers believing the calomnies spread about by strangers rather than trusting the statements of her own children. — But, after all, Sir, there is a Swedish missionary who says that he « has seen. » — Has he really seen ? For I cannot understand how it is that we, who have lived in the Congo during five, ten or fifteen years and have been all over the whole State, have never seen anything of the sort. On my word as an officer, I assure you that if I had any faith in the accusations made or had the least reason for believing them, I should perhaps remain silent on the matter, but should certainly not deny them as I now do. — Well let us speak plainly ; what about hands being cut by black soldiers, for instance? — Ah! that is a case in point. On the day of my arrival people used to say to me : « All the Congo agents are brutes. » A few days later, it was : «The Europeans do not act by themselves, but they look on quietly. » Now they say : a Only the black soldiers of the Slate are accused. » Perhaps to-morrow, going still further, it will be, « The natives alone are to blame. » — Do the natives mutilate dead bodies? — Certainly; but how can the authorities prevent that? Those are things that the State does its utmost to suppress. The State has only existed eleven years ; how can it be expected to obtain in that space of time a result similar to the one obtained, for instance, by Belgium after eighteen centuries, in building up a State where, on the arrival of Cesar, human sacrifices used to be made by the Druids, and in the Middle Age torture was still inflicted. What it is nowadays? In my native country, slavery has only been abolished since 1848 and only since 1862 in Russia. And the Irish, for instance, what were they fifty years ago ? Let us examine calmly the accusations that are made. You know that negroes are big children, and, as such, they exaggerate everything, if you go to visit them accompanied by twenty soldiers, they proclaim you a powerful chief with numberless armies. If they are at war with an enemy, they say that they have killed thousands of men. We will take an example — 128 — which I have myself experienced. Supposing you send a black sol- dier to welcome a chief for you. Instead of simply performing his mission, he allows himself all sorts of liberties and makes himself tyrannical, quite unknown to you. You are naturally quite surprised five or six months after, when you pass through the chief's country to find yourself greeted by a shower of arrows. You enquire the reason of this altitude and find out the truth. The guilty soldier is always punished. I assure you. If, instead of being the agent, it is a missionary who first visits the country, the natives tell him all about the tyranny of the whites and he sends the account to the papers with more or less additions and inventions. That is how the whole thing happens. War among the natives is terrible. And the State can congratulate itself on having prevented this slaughters three parts of the time. The native watches for his enemy, wounds him from a distance with an arrow or lance or even a gun loaded with stones. When he sees him on the ground, he creeps up to him through the grass, and when close to him saws off his head or hand which he takes away with him as a trophy. In the same manner the Redskins treat what they call the « palefaces ». — Cannot this be prevented? — It cannot be done in a day. Civilisation, which is, of course a big change for the better from barbarity, cannot be effective instantly. Is not war always horrible, even in Europe? When I took part in the war in Bosnia, we saw the entire Szapary brigade decimated. And when we arrived on the field of battle, we found the bodies of our poor comrades dreadfully mutilated. I utterly deny that Belgian officers either commit atrocities themselves or allow them to be committed. — But, for instance, the soldiers enlisted among savages, such as the Bangalas, are they not capable of such horrors? — I say that these savages have been admirably subdued. But, of course, I admit that they still give way to their bad instincts when left to themselves, far from their masters' eye. Have not our own European soldiers the same habits when they are not under the control of their officers? These attacks against the Congo remind me of what happened on Stanley's return, after the establishment of the stations of the Interna- — 129 — tional African Association. Then, also, the officers of the great explorer were a set of brigands. Now the State is prospering wonderfully, and is full of life, and those who never spoke of it when it seemed poor go against it now that its prosperity is evident. We must really all be murderers and avowed malefactors ! And Belgians speak in such a manner without acknowledging the achievements of their countrymen? How they must foi'get the enor- mous progress realised in the civilisation of the Congo during the last fourteen years ! Here is another of my personal reminiscences. The orders of the State are that we prosecute cruel and sanguinary chiefs without pity. When I was commandant of the district of Kwango, I went to see Muene Mputu Kassongo. This chief was in the habit of having a certain number of his subjects' heads cut off every morning, and he had made quite a sport of this murderous custom. I went and forbade him to continue his cruelty; three Belgian officers were present at my conversation with him. His answer was « Why does « not your King forbid me also to kill my kids and pigs, they belong » to me as well as my subjects do, » As my instructions were not obeyed, I was obliged to go to war with the chief and he was killed in a fight. Believe me, it is impossible to think of acting on such natures as these as one does with Europeans; they only respect those stronger than themselves and obey the most powerful. Your countrymen have done great things over there in such a short time. Their black soldiers have acquired a moral superiority quite unknown hitherto. Thanks to the moral action of their chiefs, they have become wonderfully belter, but the human beast is not so easily tamed. They want to abolish corporal punishment; what an Utopia ! I hear that the English navy still used the cat-o' nine tails and Russia the knout. The latter will disappear of itself as soon as man elevates himself, morally, to such a height as to obey moral suggestions only ; this improvement is accomplished slowly, it took centuries to make its way in Europe, so I think I may ask for even more than that to see it developed in the Congo. The results already obtained with the Bangala are wonderful! They were perfect canni- bals. In Coquilhat's time, human flesh was eaten every day; he 9 — 130 — used to say how, in order to make it tender, they used to break the victim's limbs and let his body soak in the river while he was still alive. The action of the State among these savages has been a complete success, and even if it had done nothing else, this is alone sullicient to command admiration. Cannibalism is entirely abolished among them. If some sacrifices are still offered, they are always done far away from a white's eye, in some lonely wood. And the situation is prosperoas enough to satisfy the most difficult. The security that the Government has acquired for the natives, who formerly used to be in continual war with each other, has enabled them to become owners of flocks of goats and pigs. They go in for agriculture and thus gradually improve their morals which, in a century or two, will have become quite civilised. — A Swedish missionary says that the Congo river bed is daily covered with dead bodies. — I am really quite astounded. In 1890, six years ago, in the midst of the Arabian domination, I was resident at Stanley Falls. The brigands were in the habit of throwing „ne bodies of their victims into the river. Among my most pressing instructions was that of doing everything possible to abolish this barbarism. I succeeded and the Arabs gave up their terrible habit. I have never since then witnessed such a thing, neither have my comi-ades. And yet, if the thing still existed, it would be impossible for us not to see it. The State would certainly not allow such a thing if it occui'red now. It risked its existence formerly at the Falls for this very reason, at a time when its enemies were all powerful. Besides, the Congo is a boundary river; one bank belongs to France, and the French have never « seen » anything! — It is really strange that the Swedish alone saw something. Again, the n-^iives profess a deep respect towards their dead parents and relatives. I am surprised that the missionary never noticed that; I shall lidvise him, on his next journey, to pay a visit to the nume- i-ous cemeteries of natives which one comes across so frequently. He will see how carefully they are kept, and on the day of a funeral, for instance, a native will spend all he possesses on burial expenses. — The same missionary says that the captain go as far as des- troying the natives' huts in order to get dry wood for their steamers. — That is ridiculous, for in a hundred huts you could not find — 131 — enough wood tit to serve one steamer for an hour. The huts are built of light materials, leaves and branches for instance. And the authorities are extremely severe in punishing any destruction of the natives' property. I can give you an example of this which occurred quite lately. The captain of a native boat, himself a native ol Lagos, called Hills, had taken a canoe belonging to the black when passing through a river. When the authorities heard of it, they had him judged and condemned to a year's penal servitude. You can see by this example that justice is done whenever necessary. If the missionary really found out anything wrong, why did he not inform the authorities of it? — It would have been much better than making such a lot of fuss in the press as he has done. Mr. Parminter mentioned a certain Mr. D... who, he said, had been fined 500 francs for assaulting two natives. — I can speak of Mr. D... fori have lived with him and know about this incident. Mr, Parminter forgets to state that Mr. D... was condemned for accidental murder. He had been poisoned and was suffering agonies when his two murderers came up to him— 1 wonder what those who blame him so much \Nould have done had they been in his place! Mr. Parminter omits also a detail which I will supply you with, for it shows how vigilant the authorities are. Besides 500 francs' fine, Mr. D... had to pay 2,o00 (rancs damages to his uninteresting victims. How is it that Mr. Parminter tries to throw discredit on Mr. D... when he remained so intimate with him, even knowing that these things had happened ? — One day when I was visiting a district which was under Mr. D...'s control, I saw a letter written by Parminter after the condemnation of the former. He called him his « very dear friend » and told him that he had won a great deal of money at Monte Carlo enabling him to indulge in a pleasant voyage. Mr. D... is a good fellow, very much liked by the natives, whom he is supposed to have illtreated. He is always called upon by his chiefs when-ever someone is wanted to carry through any negociation with the blacks requiring special tact and experience, as they know he is particularly popular with them. At this moment, our conversation was suddenly interrupted. When we rose to leave, Mr. Lerman said to us in a particularly mar- ked tone of conviction : « Believe me, all these accusations are pure — 132 — fiction. I in no way regret the years of my youth which I devoted to your Congo. I have seen the English colonies on the east coast and I can assure you that they do not approach by any means in richness and prospects of prosperity to what the Congo is. I am quite con- vinced that in the next century, the Congo will have become a power- ful and prosperous colony. Perhaps, after all, the certitude of this future prosperity is the cause of the odious campaign directed against the Congo by foreigners. » {Journal cle Briixelles, October, 4, 1896.) Letters of Baron "WAHIS, General Governor of the Congo Free State to a The Times. » Sir, « On my return to Europe several articles on Congolese affairs recently published in the English Press were placed before my eyes, and particularly an interview of a missionary, Mr. Sjublom, who attacked me personally. I will not leave the accusations drawn up against the agents of the State without an answer. During the inspection tour which I have just taken in the districts of the interior I had the occasion to examine their administration, to see how the natives were treated, to meet with most of the missio- naries; and I declare formally that it is downright dishonesty to represent the agents of the State as inhuman and cruel to the native populations. If there have been individual abuses, like everywhere, I have ascertained that the instructions given by the Government to its agents as to their relations with the natives, have, on the whole, been executed. I will examine Mr. Sjoblom's accusations successively. To begin with, he takes up ancient facts pointed to by the Rev. Mr. Murphy in Tlie Times of November 18, 189o. As soon as these facts came to my knowledge by that number of the paper — for the missionaries on the spot never gave any notice of them to either — 133 — the judicial authorities or myself — I ordered the matter to be investi- gated and an inquiry was made in February, 1896, by Judge De Lancker. This inquiry reduced Mr. Murphy's allegations to little more than nothing. Thus, not one witness was found to confirm the supposed murder of a native woman by a soldier at the post of Lofila ; thus, again, it was proved that the mutilation of which a little girl had been the victim had been perpetrated by a native, who was con- demned to five years' penal servitude for that crime. As to the alleged attack in November, 1894, on the village of Bompanga « without any kind of provocation, » I have ascertained that the ope- ration against that village had been brought about by acts of insu- bordination. When in Coquilhatville in November, 1896, I took the initiative of an interview with Messrs. Banks and Sjoblom about the facts to which the Rev. Mr. Murphy had drawn the attention of the public, and I informed them of the result of the inquiries. I must oppose a formal denial to the fanciful account Mr. Sjoblom gives of our inter- view. Mr. Sjoblom says that I refused to hear evidence from natives whom he had brought to his house in order to bear witness to the truth of a fact of which he accused some soldiers. The point in question was precisely to ascertain whether in the Bompanga affair the five soldiers sent to arrest a chief who refused to present himself before the District Commissioner had attacked the natives or if the latter had tried to prevent the arrestation and thus brought about an aggression. I told Mr. Sjoblom that a minute inquiry had already been made into the subject, that from the whole of the depositions and the exa- mination of the circumstances a conclusion had been arrived at that the five soldiers who had found themselves before great numbers of natives had done nothing but return an attack. I added that the natives collected by Mr. Sjoblom were evidently those who had declared the soldiers to have been aggressors in the first instance, that I knew, therefore, what they were going to tell me, and that the facts, dating from more than 18 months ago and having been investigated in the presence of Europeans and natives whose responsibility was engaged, there was evidently no cause for another inquest. — 134 — With a curious obstinacy Mr. Sjublom constantly came back to accusations which had already been examined at different times. He did not furnish me with any particulars useful to the investi- gation I wished to make, but evidently showed the unkind feelings he entertained towards our agents. It was then I told him that lie was himself accused by numerous natives of exciting the populations to resist the orders of the authorities, that the accusations seemed founded, and made him thus liable to be prosecuted. I may here add that, if Mr. Sjoblom was not actually prosecuted it was precisely because under the circumstances proceedings against him might have appeared like retaliation, and it seemed desirable to avoid this. In his recent interview Mr. Sjoblom denounces new facts ; 4o vil- lages have been set on fire. Where? When? By whom? A native was killed by a soldier at Ebira in February, 1895 ; and the Rev. Mr. Banks, Mr. Sjublom's superior, who has lived at Bolengi since 1887, and whose testimony will certainly not be suspec- ted, has declared on oath that until March, 189o, he never had one complaint to make. Mr. Sjoblom has seen natives' hands cut off. It has undoubtedly happened that soldiers have cut off the hands of killed enemies after a fight. The mutilation of corpses is a custom that exists or has existed in almost every part of Africa. A warrior brings in hands or heads which he has cut off as a proof of his valour. In the Congo State more than in many other countries efforts are being made to bring about the disappearance of these abominable practices. Penal law declares them a crime, and punishes any mutilation of •corpses with penal servitude for terms varying from two months to two years. Here is a recent instruction given on the matter : — « Many of our soldiers do not know that they commit an offence » when they cutoff a limb from a dead enemy; officers must, in » consequence, often impress them with their horror of such prac- » tices. Each time a soldier arrives at a post new representations » must be made to him. Constantly repealed warnings alone can » bring about the disappeai-ance of a barbarous custom which pro- » vokes our indignation. » If it was noticed that commanders of troops did not fulfil the » duties imposed upon them by the present instruction, they would — 13o — » make themselves liable to disciplinary penalties for the offences » committed by their soldiers. » Of all the facts cited by Mr. Sjoblom, only one had been proved true, and yet it was surrounded by this missionary with false circum- stances. I am speaking of the Mandaka Vagigo affair. It is true that this village, having refused to pay the tax, had to be repressed in October, 1896. The inhabitants resisted and lost a certain num- ber of men. The repression was legitimate in itself; but, contrary to the instructions, a mistake was made in giving the command of the troop to a black sergeant. Mr. Sjublom gives to understand that the guilty officer was not punished ; he was revoked. It is absolutely false that I made up my mind to take steps against him only after I heard the facts were known to the English Consul, who had just passed through Coquilhatville. Mr. Sjublom knows very well that I became aware of this on my return to this locality only. I reproached Mr. Banks with not having informed me of the facts sooner, thus forgetting his promise to let me hear at once any complaint he might have to make against any of our agents. It was only after begging Mr. Banks to come and see me, and questioning him, that I learned what had happened. On the very same day I took a disciplinary measure against the accused officer, and the latter was revoked as soon as the necessary formalities had been gone through. I often was sorry to notice that the authority did nod find in some of the missionaries the help upon which it is justified in counting. In every conversation I had with them during my last journey up the river, I had to insist on their duty of acquainting us with any illegal facts that might come to their knowledge. On August 7th. last I wrote to one of them : — « If you noticed that natives were the victims to violence of any » kind, you would render the District Commissioner a service by » exposing the facts to him, but it is of importance that you should » investigate the matter yourself first, and avoid simply repeating « vague allegatrbns made by natives who often have not even wit- )) nessed the facts of which they talk. » When Europeans, either private individuals or agents of the State, are the authors of violences against natives, an inquiry always takes place and they are prosecuted. I do not wish to conceal the fact — 136 — that I have had to fnllil this painfull duty now and then, for I do not pretend that no abuse of power has ever taken place; but punishment has always followed. I accuse Mr. Sjnblom of giving credit to the opinion that the autho- rities shut their eyes on olTenccs perpetrated by their agents. The Congo Administration only wishes to throw alight upon these offences, and, in this respect, I consider the institution of the Com- mission for the protection of aborigines, which I had to organize lately, as a beneficent measure. I am convinced that the Government has not appealed in vain to such men as Monseigneur van Ronsle, Messrs. Greiifell and Sims, and the RR. FF. Van Hencxthoven and De Cleene ; every one of them as accepted the humanitarian mission which was intrusted to them. The secretary of the Commission, the Rev. Mr. Grenfell, expected them to meet at Leopoldville in May, and on his suggestion some members will be added to the Commission. I have noticed by the letters w hich some of these gentlemen have addressed to me that they are among those who render justice to the efforts of the State. Father Van Hencxthoven, of the Jesuits, wrote : — « I must in truth declare that during the four years I have spent in » the Stanley-Pool's district. I have never noticed an act of violence » worth being reported to the authorities. I have always found in » the district commissioners a spirit of justice and equity in keeping » with the important functions they fulfdled. » And Mr. Grenfell says : — « I am happy to believe that some of the reports are quite untrue. » Certainly some of the last published revelations reach me for the » first time through the newspapers. I am convinced that in each of ^) the districts where our society (B. M. S.) is represented by a sta- » tion the rule of the Stale is infinitely more beneficient than any n native regime I have known, and that life and property are more » and increasingly secure. » During my last voyage I confirmed to our agents the Government's instructions as to the manner in which natives should be treated. For instance, I wrote to the Commissioner of the Lake Leopold district on January 9th. last : — c( The Government has given orders that natives should be always » and everywhere treated with the utmost humanity. These orders — 137 — » do not imply that you should abstain from taking measures in order » to force the populations to pay llie taxes, light enough, to which » they are submitted. Where the natives obstinately refuse to work, » you will force them to do so by taking hostages. Arms must be » resorted to only in case of resistance and when the safety of the » troop is compromised. You will take care that all your agents » shall know their duties in this respect. The little posts com- » manded by black sergeants shall be under the strictest supervision. » Their doings must be constantly controlled. » In every district I have ordered those in command of posts to listen carefully to complaints from the natives and to pay the latter regulary and directly for their produce. On April 7th. last I wrote to the Commissioner of the Equator : — « It is impossible to suppress every little soldiers' post, but your » constant efforts must tend to narrowly watch them, and each time » you will notice that soldiers have committed exactions among the » populations where they are placed you must take repressive )) measures with the greatest severity. » It is not for me to state the progress made by the Congo State since its origin, or the remarkable results obtained as much from the point of view of material progress as from that of the amelioration of the social and moral condition of the native population. But as the chief of the local Government it is my duty to protest aloud against the insults of which Belgian officers have been the object. I have seen them at work, I have known the hardships of their task, I have appreciated the high sense they have of their duties, and I am proud to say that the officers in the Congo service have maintained their claims to esteem and respect. I am, Sir, your obedient servant. » Wahis. Bruxelles, May, 29, 1897. {Tlie Times, May, 31, 1897.) Sir, « I should be very much obliged to you if you would publish in your paper the reply which I am once more compelled to make to the — 138 — Swedish missionary Mr. Sjublom, after his letter whose summary appeared in The Times of September, 10, last. In my letter of May, 29, I showed that our agents did not deserve the general accusation of cruelty levelled at ihem, and that the few facts pointed to by some missionaries either were inexact or had been punished when proved true. After the reproach of inactivity on the part of the authorities, once more formulated by Mr. Sjublom, I must again repeat that the Government has taken repressive measures of a very energetic nature against the few agents who have been found guilty of having overstepped the limits of their powers in their conduct towards the natives. This action on the part of the State is manifest to all who, on the Congo, take a loyal interest in our affairs. At the end of the article of September, 10, mentioned above, Mr. Sjublom reproduces a passage of a letter from the Rev. Mr. Grenfell, in which is found an incidental confirmation of what I here assert. Each time I met with a reprehensible fact, corroborated by serious evidence, I immediately took the measures which our laws and regulations dictated. In the very station of Goquilhatville, after an accusation made by the Rev. Mr. Banks, of the American Baptist Missionary Union, I held an inquest which led to the dismissal of an agent who had for many years been in the service of the State. Mr. Sjublom is willing to admit that Judge De Lancker, whom I had intrusted with the care of holding inquiries before my arrival, seemed to act conscientiously. If, as this missionary says, witnesses were prevented from reaching the Judge, why did he not apply to this magistrate and give him notice of the fact? Mr. De Lancker was absolutely independent and had the necessary power to put an imme- diate stop to such an abuse. Besides, it is inaccurate to say that the inquiry held by this magistrate upon the facts produced by Messrs. Banks and Sjublom was incomplete. He questioned many witnesses— missionaries, agents of the State, native labourers at the mission, soldiers, &c. From the whole of the depositions on the Bompanga affair, recalled by Mr. Sjublom, Judge De Lancker con- cluded that Mr. Murphy's version had almost totally misconstrued what had taken place in this village, and that there had really been acts of rebellion against the public force, the latter being compelled to defend itself. It is, therefore, undeservedly that Mr. Sjublom — i;^9 — mentions this case as an instance of the authorities' inactivity. The latter, on the contrary, tried to get at the truth, while at the same time controlling the contradictory assertions that were made, and without granting as necessarily true the native rumours reproduced by the missionaries. As I have already stated, if, during the course of one of our interviews which took place in July, 189G, a lapsus calami was the cause of November being written instead of July on the copy of my letter; if I told Mr. Sjoblom that he himself seemed to come under the application of the penal law for incitation to rebellion, it was not at all in order to prevent his proving his accusations, but because he rested them only on native stories which had been proved false by the inquest. And, as Mr. Sjoblom evinced an obstinacy which seemed unreasonable, I was brought to declare to him that if I con- stantly relied, like himself, upon the word of the natives, I ought to summon him before a council of war for having at different times incited inhabitants to refuse to pay the taxes. Judge D'Heygere, who was present at our interview, expressed his opinion that this fact might make him liable to five years of penal servitude. Mr. Sjoblom pretends that 1 wished thus to threaten him and prevent him from saying the truth. The appeal which I have made to all the missio- naries, asking them to give the authorities notice of any abuse coming to their immediate knowledge, proves the absurdity of such an opinion. I might take up successively the points contested by Mr. Sjoblom, but I think the few preceding lines will show sufficiently what my intentions were when I had conversations with the missionaries of the Equator. I will say, though, that the letter from Mr. Grenfell, to which I have alluded is dated December, 28, 1896. Ill his letter of May last Mr. Sjoblom produced a fact of which no mention had been made in our conversations. He said he had seen a country where 45 villages had been set on fire. In my letter of May, 29, I asked where these villages were situated, when and by whose order they had been burnt. At the time mentioned by Mr. Sjoblom in his answer, we had an obstinate struggle with the natives in the vast region where these villages were situated, in the course of which we suffered heavy losses. In no country is war made without devastations. The atrocities to which our officers and — 140 — soldiers are submitted when beaten explain reprisals which the autho- rities are often powerless to prevent. When war is raging it is not in the Congo only that it sometimes assumes a character which our civilization reproves. I am, Sir, your obedient servant. » Wahis. Brussels, September 20, 1897. {The Times, September, 23, 1897.) Interview with Baron VAN EETVELDE, State Minister. « We had been warned for some time of this campaign and of its object. As you may have noticed, the proceedings are rather common ones. They tend to create difficulties for the Congo State as well in Africa as in Europe, to discredit it by exaggerating certain isolated events, and to prepare for the time when the financial and territorial jealousy that are concealed now- behind the attacks made will be able to satisfy themselves. The plan is .very clear. At the beginning, they pretended to have at heart the interests of the native populations of Africa and the idea of a new Conference was put forth. As soon as this proposal was met with approval by the public and their opinion gained to the cause, the State of tlie Congo alone was spoken of and the question of dividing its territories plainly suggested. You remember the inter- view of a certain English politician, at which this division was spoken of as quite necessary. In the meantime, the campaign was continued, gradually changing the points of attack and piling up tlie accusations we are now heai-ing of. First of all, cannibalism was found out and the responsibility was attributed to the State, as if everyone did not know that anthropophagy has been a regular state of things in Africa for a very long time, unfortunately. Surely, nobody thinks that any Government could get rid of barbarous cus- toms, in a country where they have existed for ages, in a few days' time. Perhaps we ought to declare war against all the chiefs in whose villages a case of cannibalism is found out or a human sacri- — 141 — fice or mutilation of a dead body discovered. That is, perhaps, the manner of acting they want to preach to us, and then afterwards they would accuse us of setting the Congo alight ! — My opinion is that the only way in which the State can obtain the gradual abolition of these savage customs is by first acting persuasively with the natives and afterwards taking severe steps as its authority gets stronger. It will take many years to get entirely tree from the evil, but the results already obtained are to be appreciated. In the neighbourhood of the stations, both in the Lower and Cpper- Congo, cannibalism has entirely disappeared. Dr. Hinde, for instance, who has often been spoken of in an unfavourable manner, states that on the Ubangi the sacrifice of slaves as human victims has been quite done away with since the stations of the State exist. He also speaks of the attempts made to get rid of the transport of slaves destined to be eaten, and mentions cases in which the commander of an expedition has acted most severly towards native cannibals. A great many other witnesses could be quoted. Among the letters, books, leaflets etc. that I have here, I will take the following declara- tion of Mr. Mackittrick, an English missionary from the Congo Balolo Mission: — «In those times, the native executioner had a great deal to n do and human sacrifices were of daily occurrence. There were » such a number of dead bodies floating on the river that we were )) obliged to give up using the water from the Lulanga. ^Ye missio- » naries were unable to help the slaves in their sufferings, but. thank » God, the help we wanted arrived in the person of an officer of the )) State who was most active and kind hearted. In less than two » months after his arrival, it was difficult to find another canoe of « slaves on the river, either by day or by night. . . » Here is the opinion of the Trappist fathers who settled down in the district of the Equator : — « Cannibalism disappears more and » more as the influence of the whites increases and is entirely aboli- )i shed in the neighbourhood of te stations. A Bangala who has » been in the service of the State army or of our firms considers o himself quite superior and looks upon his fellow men who eat « human flesh as savages for whom he has nothing but disdain. » Father De Deken, from the Scheut missions, writes as follows : — « It is easily understood that the State cannot tolerate such a thing as )) cannibalism. Those who are guilty of it are condemned to be — 142 — y> hanged. However, it is only lillle by little that the desired results » will be obtained, for the negroes are quite surprised to see a custom » they consid'T innocent and natural treated so severely. » Mr. Bentley, one of the founders of the English Baptist Mission of the Congo, suys : — « When I arrived atWathen, I found the natives » in continual quarrel, everywhere one met with violence, attacks » upon the natives and on women, murder and attempts at poisoning; » it was absolute anarchy. Now all is changed. The roads which r, were then closed are now open to all and protected; children can » go to school alone without danger. The fear of the authorities y> prevents the natives giving way to attacks upon caravans, and acts >^ of violence and warfare are rare— the natives feel that a protecting » force exists in the country and anarchy disappears with the present n Government of the State. Every year the regions where progress » is made become more numerous. Of course, the State does not » lack people who calumniate it, but, in my opinion, the best critic » of its work is the different state of things which exists now compa- rt red to what it used to be ten or even only four years ago. » These opinions, which I take among many that can be referred to, prove how contrai-y to the truth the accusations made against the State really are. Yet, the English politician whom I spoke about before went as far as to state that the troops of the Dhanis expedition had smoked human flesh for food. As this assertion is not to be found in Dr. Hinde's book, where our accuser pretends to have seen it, he ought to mention its source.. Public opinion is entitled to know whether he is misrepresenting us or not. After having accused us of encouraging cannibalism, they say that we also favour alcoholism. We have proved what the State has done in this direction, and mentioned different steps taken in this respect; all precautions possible were taken, for, from the beginning, the State has prohibited the importation and traffic in alcoholic drinks, first in all territories beyond the Inkissi river, and afterwards in the Kwilu, that is, in the o9/60"' of its territory. In reality, not a single bottle of gin is sold to the natives in the Upper-Congo. As to those parts where absolute prohibition could not be effected, the highest possible tax has been put on alcohol and an attempt was even made to increase the tax by an arrangement with our neighbours. These measures have not been useless, since the importation of — 143 — spirits has greatly decreased and forms a very smali portion of the country's business. As this was proved a groundless accusation on their part, our cahimniators do not speak of the subject any more but try to find more effectual weapons against us. They have tried to rouse public sympathy with the missionaries, and, at a recent meeting of the Aborigenes Protection Society, the ridiculous statement was made that if the missionai'ies were to tell the truth in Europe, their lives would be in danger in the Congo. In this case, I can hardly understand how it is that the English mis- sionaries come to the Congo in far greater numbers than to any other African colony. The fact is that our ways are those of sympathy and kindness towards missionaries of all countries and religions. The State gives them the land they require for their establishments, it helps them in their settlement among the people, it sends children to their schools and assists them financially. The result of this is that the number of missionaries has increased sixfold during the last few years, new religious stations are founded every day, and both Catholics and Protestants bear witness to our help and that of our agents. Do you think that our enemies admit this or even acknowledge our efforts?— No, indeed, no more than they own to what we did to try and develop the means of communication and increase the commer- cial movement. All these things ought to be considered before one can judge the work done in the Congo, but our calumniators do not take them into consideration. On these different points, however, their accusations do nojt hold out long. Now they reproach us with making the natives w^ork; in reality they criticise the right of the State to raise taxes and impose military service on the men. This right belongs to the Congo State just as it does to every other, and the fact that in certain districts where money is not generally in use, the payment is made in goods, does not, in any way, change the legitimacy of the right in question. I may say the same thing as regards the right of the State to recruit, as it deems fit, the public forces amongst his populations. The State enlists men only for his Force Publique's wants. I fail to under- stand how it is that what is accepted in every other country as quite natural should be criticised in the Congo. Why should — 14i — military service be called slavery in the Congo when it is made an obligation everywhere else? — The men are enlisted for seven years, they receive the same pay as volonteers and have no more personal obligations than our soldiers in Europe. On the con- trary no other State protects the liberty of its subjects more than the Congo, and this is easily proved by the special laws it has drawn up in order to assure the free consent of the parties when contracts are made and to secure the faithful fulfilment of the latter. It is true that this law, which was given as a model at the Colonial Institute, has been looked upon in England as a kind of legal slavery. As to the taxes — which are called a robbery just as military service is named slavery — I have already had occasion lately in a report sent to the King, to indicate the rules that govern them. « Whatever may be the mode of exploitation » they state, « the » agents are obliged to allow the natives a remuneration which cannot » be less than the price of the work necessitated by the gathering of ■>■> the crop. It is fixed by the commissary of the district who submits ■)■> his tarif for the approval of the Governor General. (.'■ The Inspector of the State ascertains if the tariff corresponds « with the work and if all the conditions of the business are in order, » seeing at the same time that they are strictly observed. He makes » the agents understand that they will obtain good work from the » natives by paying them justly and at the same time by teaching » them to like work and make a practice of it. » It is simply intolerable to assert that the instructions I am quoting order or allow the mutilation of those who refuse to pay the taxes. If sucli a thing did exist, it would be easy to prove it by witnesses and the only case I know of was that a of little girl — whose photo- graph is carefully sent all round, but no mention is made of the fact that the culprit, a soldier of the State, was sentenced to five years' imprisonment. The mutilation of dead bodies is also forbidden by our instructions and punished by law, since the promulgation of our last penal decree. As to the severe measures we have sometimes been obliged to take against the natives, it is only natural that when a tribe rises up in rebellion against the State and refuses to obey its laws, an example must be made as severe in the Congo as it would be in Europe. And it is still more necessary out there, as the lat of all European — Uo — enterprises depends on the existence of the authorities. I shall not be telling you anything new if I tell you that many attempts have had to be made lately in the district of the Equator; quite recently, more than 12,000 natives following certain impulses which I will speak of later, attacked the State stations and all the energy of the oi^icers was required to put an end to the rising. Of course, I do not pretend that no errors or abuses are ever committed in the Congo. In Africa, as elsewhere, mistakes are made, perhaps even more often in the foreign colonies of Africa, where perpetual contact with the savages and the effects of the climate certainly have an effect on the inhabitants. Abuses occurred in the Congo, but they were punished and my duty is to acknowledge the eminent qualities shown as a rule by our officers and agents. I can declare that no other Colonial Government is better served in this respect than ours. Our administration, far from fearing criticism, asks for it. I wish every abuse which is I'eported were pointed out to us; we would punish the culprits severely. Unfortunately, I have to own that the Government cannot rely for this upon a few foreign missionaries who seem to let themselves be guided more by the thought of heaping up attacks against the State than by the desire of putting an end to the abuses. The recent interview with the missionary Sjoblom gives a striking example of this. Why did the missionaries not inform the authorities or the native protection committee of facts which they deemed reprehensible? — Evidently, if these missionaries really desired things to change, they would act in this manner. Besides, I can reproach them with other wrongs — they use in the Congo the violent language which is heard in English meetings, going against the legitimate action of the authorities and refusing the State a right to impose charges on the natives. In this way they incite the populations and cause no end of trouble. The following is a paragraph of the report of the Governor General which speaks for itself : — « The missionaries who live in the neighbourhood of Coquilhat- » ville, Messrs. Banks and Sjoblom, have not found out any new )) reproach. I told them that the results obtained from inquiries )/ held in the district of the Equator and particulars I had gathered )) as to the accusations formerly made were very insignificant indeed, » and asked them, if they did not agree with me, to give more » details on the matter and bring me positive proofs. Neither iO — 146 — » Mr. Banks nor Mr. Sjoblom was ablelo bring anything forward in J) the way of serious evidence. Then I told Mr. Sjoblom that he was » himself accused and this by the natives themselves, of persuading » a great number ol the natives on the left bank, of the Ruki not » to gather any more india-rubber because the Government had no )) right to force them to do that work. I added that the action he » had thus committed was liable to legal proceedings. » Mr. Wahis, Governor General, will be here in a few days, and he will also be able to tell you, how much wickedness and invention there is in the tales told by this missionai'y. In the meantime, I am glad that you give me an opportunity of protesting indignantly against the alleged attitude of such a loyal and distinguished man as Colonel Wahis. It must be presumed that Mr. SjOblom does not possess any of the qualities that ought to be those of a man sent to convert his fellow men : the love of truth, the instinct of rendering justice, and, above all, that spirit of charily which is the essence of Christianity. I can assure you that I do not place him on a par with such worthy men as Grenfell, Bentley, Forfeit and many others sent out with missions to the Congo. Be quite sure that I do not complain in the least of the press criti- cising our conduct; on the contrary, I think that their part is one of benevolence, as long as it remains quite impartial. It must be admit- ted, unfortunately, that impartiality is not always theguide of certain criticisims of the work done, I do not think that the English paper have ever rendered the slighleet hommage to what has been done for he last ten years in Africa. Say that I invite everyone who has lived in the Congo, whetlier missionaries or not, to inform the authorities of any abuses they know of there and to enlighten them as to how they can be suppressed. Our legal machinery, which to-day covers the whole of the coun- try, is sufficiently perfected to reach all guilty parties. We even desired that all cases involving the freedom or life of the natives should be invariably tried at Boma, where the light of publicity and the influence of public opinion are most powerful. We have strengthened the Court of Appeal which is composed of three duly- constituted lawyei's, one of whom is an Italian and another a Swede. Before this tribunal may be brought appeals from any judgment — 147 — whatever. We have, finally, formed a court for the protection of natives, this court being composed of Protestant and Catholic missio- naries; its object is to inform the legal authorities of any cases of the ill-treatment of natives. I consider, then, that every precaution is taken to ensure to the natives that respect to which they have a right, and, if we were only sure of the cooperation of every indivi- dual, it would be practically impossible for any offence to remain unpunished. » {£toile beige, May, 21, 1897.) Interview with Captain G. BURROWS. « In the first place, » said Captain Burrows, brightly, « the person of whom you speak to me has no claim to the title of an officer of the British army which you give him and which I know^ he takes. He is merely a lieutenant in the civil forces— a position as easily obtained in England as in Belgium. I wish to make this point clear, so that people may not believe that the British army has in its ranks ofliicers of such questionable reputation as this sorry individual whose state- ments—it is ray duty to say so — are absolutely unworthy of cre- dence. I was a member of the same expedition as Salusbury in the Congo, Consequently, I know the regions over which he travelled and I can declare that the facts of which he says he was a witness only exist in his imagination. Arriving at Nyangara on the 26th January, 1895, Salusbury left it again on the 2nd of February, to join commandant Francqui's column against Bafuka, an Upper Uelle sultan, who had risen up against the Stale. The check we encountered on February, 11, 1895, forced us to beat a retreat on Dungu, where we rallied on the 24th. Salus- bury remained at Dungu till March 18th, on which date, under pre- tence of illness he left for Boma where be embarked for Europe in July. He thus resided altogether eight days at Nyangara. How can you expect him, under these circumstances, to have say anything authoritative on the subject? With regard to his charges against the Congo State and the Belgian — 148 — olficers who serve it, they have no foundation. The natives enlist in the Force Publique without any constraint whatever. The collection of ivory and india-rubber give rise to no atrocities. I have seen nothing of the odious occurrences reported by Salusbury and which would certainly have come to my knowledge had they really hap- pened. I say this simply because it is the truth. Salusbury of all others has no right to question the courage of the Belgian officers, for in the retreat which followed the Bafuka disaster, he made such haste to get ahead that he allowed the ten prisoners he was guarding to escape. He is perhaps the only one who did not bravely fulfil his duty, but this did not prevent him from telling me that all the whites, excepting himself and myself, had behaved like cowards. I may mention that he said the same thing to the Swedish Captain Swinhufud, with this modification that he and Swinhufud alone were brave. Commandant Francqui, having heard of these things, had Salusbury brought before him. Salusbury then had the audacity, in the presence of Swinhufud and myself, to deny the facts and to declare in writing that he had never made such statements. This characteristic fact shows what this man was who disgraced everybody who knew him. I do not know a single person having had dealings with Salusbury— be they missionaries, officers, agents or servants of any sort— who has good to say of him. Now it is a missionary, the Rev. Mr. Forfeitt, chief of the Upoto Protestant mission, who does not hesitate to turn him out; then it is a steam- boat captain at I.eopoldville, who, indignant at his conduct, threatens to throw him in the water; again, at Matadi, a railway official makes a grave complaint against him. Everywhere he has left a bad name. With such a record, one should be silent instead of making charges. I do not pretend that everything is perfection in the Congo. Of course, abuses are sometimes committed, but in fairness 1 must say that the Government only desires to redress them and to punish the guiliy. With respect to the dealings of the authorities with the natives they leave nothing to be desired in the districts I have visited. The Force Publique are easily recruited. In Uelle,the Mobanghi enlist in the ranks most readily. The tribal chiefs receive an indemnity for the contingent they furnish and the recruits themselves receive premiums. If military service were detested by the natives, as — 149 — Salusbury asserts, there is nothing to prevent them deserting. But, on the contrary, the Mobanghis look upon enlistment as an honor, and they do their duty valliantly when called upon to fight. In the regions where I have lived and, generally speaking, troughout Uelle, recruiting for the Force Publique is carried on under the best con- ditions. The Belgian officers do not brutalise their men at will, as Salus- bury alleges. Therefore the soldiers are most attached to the majo- rity of their white chiefs and the latter can rely upon their courage and devotion in case of war. The india-rubber harvest in Uelle only began this year. Salusbury, who returned to Europe in i89o, cannot therefore say that it is car- ried out at the cost of the worst atrocities ; for he knows nothing about it. But I, who have seen how the natives are got to gather this valuable product, I must acknowledge that but little trouble was experienced in inducing the native chiefs to order their subjects to perform this work, which is, moreover, remunerative. And so one may look forward to the time when the State forests in the north will supply enormous crops of india-rubber for the plant abounds every- where. Great as has been the progress made during the past few years in the Congo Free State territory, it may be said that the present har- vests—except in the case of ivory — are poor in comparison to the natural resources of the country. And, as for ivory, the stock is far from being exhausted. It is vain to think that ivory can be obtained by raiding the natives. The subjects possess none and they are ignorant whence their chiefs get what they have. To get ivory, the black chiefs must be approached and they generally consent without difficulty to pay the tax fixed by the State, and in exchange for which the State guarantees the security of their frontiers and procures for them the thousand and one benefits of civilisation. Djabbir, a sultan as intelligent as he is powerful, is on the best of footings with the Congo Slate, which has in him an old and tried ally w^ho has already given proofs of his devotion. Less important rulers are following his example and, by reason of the rich and fertile territory they rule, constitute powerful allies for the Congolese Government of King Leopold. — 150 — It is a splendid result to have been able to establish and maintain friendly relations with these Asandeh potentates. Thanks to those relations the populous and intelligent tribes inhabiting- the banks of the Uelle will progress by giant strides and the development of their rich and beautiful territories will be rapid. Peace in this enormous province has remained untroubled for several years. Do you think it would be so if the whites were guilty of the atrocities alleged against them by Salusbury. The stories told about human hands being cutoff are pure fiction. I have never seen a living native mutilated. As for the cannibalistic customs of certain races of the Congo, they cannot be laid at the dooi* of the whites who do all they can to put them dowu but who can only succeed in time. » (ll^toile beige, September, 26, 1897.) Interview with B"" FREDERICK VON FRIESENDORFF, of the Sw^edish army. « 1 was chief ofa post in the Equatorial district from July 1st 1897, until my return. For a year and a half I was with Mi'. Sarrasin, district commissary, and afterwards with Mr. Dubreucq, his suc- cessor. Now and again, far in the interior, there were brief risings. But that is not astonishing. Ai'e there not riots in our own countries. I may say that, during the two years which I spent in the Equatorial distiict, 1 exposed myself to the worst of dangers had the country been troubled. I was never molested. I often had to travel through the country with a single soldier and my safety was never threatened by natives. The district in which I resided was much abused in the international press. Hard things were said about it. I swear that it does not deserve them! So many things were said ! It was even asserted that the whole of the Congo beyond Leopoldville was in a slate of trouble. What a legend ! Evidently, an escort is necessary when one goes among tribes who have come but little if at all into contact with white men. But as a rule the very presence of the escort suffices to command respect, without force — 15t — being resorted lo. The Stale always affords the European means of assuring his safety. » — It has been stated that,with the object of gathering india-rubber, the officials molested the natives. — I warmly protest against such calumnies." During my long resi- dence in the country, I never observed not only an occurrence of that nature but not even a single sign of such an occurrence. I refer to the time I was there and the officers whom I have interrogated relative to what occurred before my arrival, assure me that the present peaceful state of things already existed before. The natives are made to work. Thai is a good thing. Work is beneficial ; by its means the native gains a superior conception of morality. He is a great child. Do we not make children work at home ? Question them and you will find they prefer to play truant. But their parents, who know best, force them to work, in order to teach them how to earn their living. Furthermore, the black in the Congo State is paid for his work. He is never asked to do the smallest task without remuneration. Idleness is a bad friend and to it I attribute the deplorable brutality of the black races. — As a foreigner, was your position in any way inferior to that of the Belgians ? » — Not the least in the world. I have only good to say of the Bel- gians, and I know that my Scandinavian countrymen are highly satis- fied with their relations with the Belgians in the Congo. I consider my chiefs in the Equatorial district, Messrs. Sarrasin and Dubreucq, the most upright and kindest men I know. All our other Belgian comrades in the district were also most affable to work with. Both with the natives and with their white subordinates, Messrs. Sarrasin and Dubreucq were invariably most considerate. — Can you give any particulars about the revictualling service of the Upper-Congo? — It is evident that, when on an expedition, hundreds of miles from the base of operations, one cannot get food and other supplies as one would desire. One knows this before setting out. That does not deter you. But at the station, on the other hand, there is an abundance. During my residence in the district, we never lacked fresh food. To give you some idea of the well— organised commissariat service, I may mention that regularly each month we received a supply of preserved food. Not for a single day did we lack bread made of European flour. We ate it at each meal, at morning, noon and evening. We each had one or two jugs of wine per month. When 1 left, I had not touched my preserved foud for foor months. Our farmyard comprised, at that time, fifty goats and two hundred fowls. — Give us your opinion of the native as a soldier. — If he is commanded by a wiiite whom he knows and likes, and above all who understands him, he makes a capital soldier, well dis- ciplined and obedient. You can punish a soldier who has committed a fault as much as you like, but he never forgets undeserved punish- ment. I count this to his honor. The officer newly-arrived from Europe (1 was in that position), not knowing how to deal witli the native, has to learn. But once he has learnt, that officer, if he understands how to apply his knowledge, can do what he likes with his men. It must never be forgotten that the black is a great child and must be treated as such, with firmness and kindness combined, and even with a little joviality. » {L^toile beige, 1899, May, 31.) Letter of Major MALFEYT, to the - Daily Chronicle. » Sir, c( I read in your valuable paper, issue of November 3, that a missionary, the Rev. Herbert B. Lloyd, of the Church Missionary Society, brings forth several charges against officers of the Congo Free State, whom I had the honor to have under my command during my appointment as a Commissionary of District in the Eastern Pro- vince. I can but oppose the strongest denial to the erroneous state- ments and unjustified accusations of Mr. Lloyd. This missionary travelled through the Congo territory on his journey back to England, and followed the route established by the Belgian officials leading — 1o3 — from the British territory, near the Toru, to the Congo, where this river reaches the Aruwimi. Mr. Lloyd first accuses the officers of the post of Karimi where, he alleges, he saw a hundred women captured in a raid of the Congo State Force. These prisoners are said to have been kept at work from morning to night, bent over their tools, and to have been knocked about like dogs. I most solemnly declare that the only women employed in the culture of the land are the wives of servants of the State, and that far from being overworked they only do as much as is necessary to provide supplies for the services of the State. A time-table is posted up and enforced in all sections of the Congo State, and it allows very long intervals of rest, excluding any idea of overworking the servants. I may add that the number of women in this region applying for work oti the fields, in order to add a little comfort to theii' living, is so great that it is most incredible that the State should recure by force the necessary hands. Such a policy would disaffect the popu- lation and drive the Government into difficulties of all kinds. To Mr. Lloyd's allegations I shall oppose the opinion of Mr. Ansorge, a physician in her Britannic Majesty's service, who came back from Uganda shortly after Mr. Lloyd, following the same route, and with whom I had the pleasure to sail from Congo to Europe in June-July this year. In contradiction with Mr. Lloyd, Mr. Ansorge on several occasions had most laudatory words for the Belgian otlieials he had dealt with, and especialy for Mr. Meura, the officer in command at Karimi, who is the very man Mr. Lloyd endeavours to impeach. This officer is a kind-tempered man, is very popular amongst the natives, and has succeeded in gaining the cordial sympathy of Dr. Ansorge. I need not insist on the value of the testimony of a man like Dr. Ansorge, who has had more than twenty year's experience in Africa, and has been able to form an opinion on our agents so much better than anyone else, as he speaks Fi-ench very fluently. It appears that at Banalya, the Rev. Mr. Lloyd had to interfere to prevent a poor native being cut tot pieces by a drunken officer of the State. I must point out that no complaint on facts of the kind ever reached the public prosecutor at Stanley-Falls or myself. The natives of Banalva were on the best terms with their white officials, and in — 1o4 — spite of the distance separating Banalya from Stanley-Falls, they constantly came to see the chief representative of the Government there. This would not have taken place had not their confidence in the State officials been absolute. To those accusations I shall oppose also the testimony of the Rev. G. Grenfell, of the Baptist Missionary Society, a man of high ability, who deserves for its merits a prominent rank among those who have struggled in Africa for the cause of humanity. Nobody knows the natives better than the Rev. Mr. Grenfell. The natives know him well too, and they have given him that full confidence which should ensure the manifestation of truth. The Rev. Mr. Gren- fell, often made tours in the Stanley-Falls region, and has had every opportunity of studying the ways and manners of our officials. He has several times expressed his complete approbation of our treatment of the natives. Not long ago, he travelled round a part of the region Mr. Lloyd alludes to, but he did not confine himself to the highways; on the contrary, he searched the out of the way nooks, where, if our agents where disposed to indulge unkind and con- demnable practices they could do so at their leisure. After this journey the Rev. Mr. Grenfell has deamed it is duty to express his high opinion on the acheavment of our rule, and to wish us further success in our difllicult task of organizing the country. I shall now deal with the general accusations against the proceedings we have recourse to in the collection of taxes payable in kind. Wliere and when have the incidents alluded to by Mr. Lloyd taken place? Mr. Lloyd carefully omits these details! How is it too, that Mr. Lloyd who was in contact with the Congolese justice, did not speak one word when, by so doing, he would have caused proceedings to be taken against the culprits, if there were any. But now, he waits until he is in London to hurl at the Congolese officials charges as foolish as those he brought against the catholic missionai-ies of Uganda. It is true that Mr. Lloyd, wishing to strenghten his incredible calumnies appeals to the evidence of Mr. Cattier, attorney. This Mr. Cattier wrote that he found his authority in Mr. Conreur, living at Matadi, and he satisfied himself with the few lines Of an article published by Mr. Conreur. Two months later, Mr. Conreur spon- — loo taneously retracted his former opinion and owned, in good faith, that his statements were quite erroneous. What is then left of Mr. Lloyd's allegations? I would he much obliged to you, Sir, lor kindly publishing this letter in your valuable paper. I must apologize for writing at such length, but I tell it my duly to explain to your readers how reck- lessly accusations are often made and to defend against attacks so unjustified as those of Mr. Lloyd, the officers who were under my orders. I am. Sir, &c. » Major Malfeyt. Brussels, November, 19, 1899. (Daily Chronicle, November, 25, 1899.) Letter of Mr. HOUDRET, General Consul of the Congo Free State, to ■ The Globe. » Sir, « I have before me the articles which appeared simultaneously in The Globe and The Times on February, 23, under the heading Congo State on the subject of acts of cruelty committed by a canni- bal tribe on the Congo. As Consul- General of the Congo Free State, I venture to hope that you will allow me to state the actual facts through the medium of your columns. As soon as the accusations against the Zappo Zap were known to the State, an inquiry was immediately begun, and a magistrate went to collect information on the spot. The result of the inquiry is not yet known in Brussels, but from the evidence already at hand it appears that the Zappo Zap tribe waged war in the Ibonche region on its own initiative, without the countenance of, and even unknown to, the agents of the State. The author of the misdeeds mentioned by Mr. Sheppard seems to be a Nyampara of the Zappo Zap, named Mulambu-N'Kusu. It should be borne in mind that the country where the events are alleged to have taken place lies very for from Luluabourg, at a distance of — 150 — 12 days' march, and that the State does not hold complete sway over the native chiefs of the region. No tax exists there, and conse- quently there can be no connection between what may have occurred and the State's fiscal policy. There is no exploitation of the State's domain in the region either, and the trade is entirely in the hands of commercial societies or private individuals. As to the Congo flag having been hoisted by the Zappo Zap in the course of their depredations, there is nothing surprising in that fact ; the flag is a usual article of exchange in the whole of the Congo ter- ritories. In some parts it is sold in the way of handkerchief. It is not to be wondered at that the Zappo Zap may have had in their pos- session some guns and cartridges similar to those in use in the public force; when a mutiny broke out among the soldiers at Luluabourg some rifles and ammunition were stolen by the mutineers, and it is quite probable that they subsequently drifted into the hands of the native tribesmen. Besides, private persons in the Congo Stale are generally armed with Albini rifles, with which the State troops are also provided. I am taking the following extracts from a letter addressed by Mr. Van Bredael, District Commissioner of the Luluaba-Kasai, to the Governor- General at Boma : — « I have the honour to inform you that I left Luluabourg on Sep- tember 28 last, with the Deputy Public Prosecutor, and returned three days ego. We went to Ibonche, among the Bena Piangas, to hold an inquiry respecting the facts of which Nyampai'a Mulambu N'Kusu, a subject of Zappo Zap, is accused. The Riev. Mr. Mor- rison, ol the American Mission, had written me a letter, a copy of which has been forwarded to you, accusing the State's agents of having ordered the above-named chief to make these razzias. After twelve days of march we reached Ibonche. All the chiefs of the vil- lages, as well as the managers of the factoi-ies at Dumbi-Munene and Zappo-Lulua, were heard by the Deputy Prosecutor. So far, the inquiry shows that no agent of the State ever gave the Nyampara an order to wage war in that region, which is very far distant from Luluabourg, and where no agent has been. The chiefs of the neigh- bourhood are not yet well under the control of the State : they have no tax to pay. I left tiie Deputy Prosecutor to complete some inqui- ries concerning the factories, giving him an escort of 2o soldiers, — 157 — under Sub-Lieut. Chenot, and myself returned to Luhiabourg by llie southern road along (he left bank of the Lulua. A detailed map of the country will reach you soon. » I am, Sir, your obedient servant, Jules Houdrkt, General Consul of the Independent Congo State. London, 31arch, 2, 1900. {The Globe, 1900, March, 3.) Intervie-w with the Rev. Father GAMBIER, Superior of the Upper-Kassai Mission. THE ZAPPO-ZAPPO TRIBE. (( I have lived in the Congo twelve years and I have resided for nine consecutive years— from 14th November 1891 to 24th February 1900— at the St. Joseph's Mission, in Luluaburg, which is two and a half hours march from the State post and three hours from the Zappo-Zappo village. As a Catholic missionary, I have as much interest as a Protestant missionary in revealing atrocities — if any there be. I trust, then, that my testimony (since Mr. Lorand has asked for testimony) will not be doubted. The accusations in The Times emanate from a missionary whose name is not given, but who, we are told, is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society of London. I will tell you who that missio- nary is. It is the Rev. Mr. Morrisson. It is h'om him that come these imputations, only he was not a witness of the atrocities he cites. They were reported to him by another, a mulatto of ihe name of Sheppard, hailing from the United States — which fact matters little. All that Morrisson states is, mereover, very vague. I will translate his article and refute it sentence by sentence. « For eight years, news have been constantly received at Luebo of offences committed or at any rate tolerated by the Free State in that district. » If Mr. Morrisson will kindly be specific, I shall reply to him that I was nine years in that district, and I never heard of any of thosfr offences. — dSS — Further on, Mr. Morrisson says : « The latter has furnished arms and thereby maintains the Free State at Luluabourg. » There is here either a grave error or else bad faith. Mr. Morrisson cannot ignore that the piston guns in the hands of the Zappos were bought by them either at the factories or fiom natives (coming from the Bakiokos, English-Portuguese). I myself have procured several and I could buy as many I liked from the natives at the rate of four small crosses per rifle. But let us continue the examination of Mr. Morrisson's article : « Living at four days from Luebo. » Let us be precise. Four days' walk? That is vague. Having gone seven times over the road from Luebo to Luluabourg I can assure you that it requires a thirty six hours' walk. Let us say twelve hours from Luebo to Ibangi (where the atrocities are said to have occurred). That makes forty-eight hours' walk. At four kilometres per hour, that makes two hundred and forty kilo- metres, and the distance from Brussels to Paris represents two hundred and fifty kilometres. Is it not puerile to reproach an agent who has to look after a district as large as Belgium, France and Ger- many combined, that he does not prevent things of which he is ignorant, when those things happen in Paris while he is in Brussels? And this in a new country where there are neither telegraphs, rail- ways, automobiles or evenstage-coaches. I wish to flatly contradict Mr. Morrisson when he asserts that the State employs the Zappo- Zappos as tax collectors. I think 1 know a little ot what goes on in our neighbourhood and I guarantee that the State has never entrusted the Zappo with the collection of taxes. What is true is that the Zappos, unknown to the State agent (and they were punished on several occasions when caught), taking advantage of their superiority did what every chief does who his stronger than his neighbour, they went here and there extorting ivory and india-rubber, not in order to hand it over to the Stale but to sell it to trading concerns. Does not Mr. Morrisson know that the Zappos are, so to speak, the sole furnishers of india-rubber to the Luebo factories, which are situated a stone's throw from his house. Further on again this missionnaiy says that « a short time ago a » band of its natives were sent to Ibangi » (not Ibonche). The context implies, does it not, « sent by the State agent? » Well that is not — 159 — so and I will prove it is not so. Advised of the offences of the Zappos by a letter from Mr. Morrisson (how would he have known it otherwise?), the State agent had the Zappos in question arrested as they were crossing the Lulua. The chief of their band, Molumba Nkusu, was put in irons while awaiting his trial. He had been some time at Luluaburg when the chief Zappo-Zappo sent me his delegate in ordinary to the mission, a black named Lupende. (The chief informed me that when this man spoke to me, it was as if he spoke himself; he was the chief's Mwene Muaba to me, that is to say his representative.) The chief Zappo Zappo, then, sent me this Lupende begging me to intercede with the State on behalf of his subject Molumba Nkusu. I asked Lupende to tell me frankly whether or no Molumba Nkusu or his chief Zappo had been sent by the State agent. If the agent had sent Molumba Nkusu, the agent was responsible and Molumba Nkusu ought to be released. Yet twice did Lupende auswer me that Nkusu had gone of his own freewill, without orders either from the agent, or even from his chief Zappo. As a witness of this, I have the Rev. Father Van der Molen who was at my side when I questioned Lupende. Is that clear enough? Here is another point. As he passed through Ndumba Kakese, on the Luluaburg-Luebo road, Molumba Nkusu asked the commercial agent there (I will not name him, for he is too far off to ask his permission) not to inform the Luluaburg agent that he had seen him pass, because, said he, « I should have trouble with the M'bula Matari. » (The State.) I heard this with my own ears from the commercial agent's own lips. Does one man sent out by another fear that that other may get to know that he is obeying his orders. It is easy to understand that the Zappo told Mr. Sheppard they were sent by the State. As they looked upon all whites, and even mulattos, as their chiefs and finding themselves surprised by a white, they pretended, in order to pass unmolested, that they were sent by another white. I have seen examples of this on several occasions with the neighbours of the mission who went round the villages claiming mirambo (tribute), saying they were sent by me. With respect to the behaviour of the Zappos— for which they alone are responsible— if the facts are as stated, I will not discuss them. I have not personal knowledge of those facts. I will only teel you that Lupende declared to me that — IGO — the Zappo tribe, who merely went to buy ivory and india-rubber, were attacked by the Baketes and the Bakubas and that they defended themselves. With regard to the eighty one hands that Mr. Sheppard says he counted (a certain amount of courage is required to count them). I know that among the witnesses called at the enquiry, one said he saw a heap of hands over a yard high, another said he saw fifteen hands, a third five, a fourth two. « These hands, » the article goes on to say, « had to be taken to the State officer at Luluabourg to show that the work had been accomplished.)) This cannot be taken seriously. With ten years' experience of the Congo and as a fellow of the Geographical Society of London, Mr. Morrisson knows but little of the olfactory suscep- tibilities of people who are four days from Luebo (thirty six hours). A black, who will make a quarter of an hour's detour to avoid the least smell, will not readily carry a decayed hand for a week. As to the « sixteen men sent to the State officer, )) I should like to know what he would do with them. When major Michel passed through Luluaburg, there were three blacksmiths there. Major Michel dis- charged two of them, considering that one was more than enough. Mr. Morrisson speaks, again, of the flag of the State which be saw floating from a staff and wants us to believe that the Zappos were acting under cover of the flag confided to them by the Stale officer. The Zappos have a good many more flags than one... They have at least a hundred. And it is from myself they received them ; I gave them, as a means of exchange, a bale of a hundred pieces, each piece comprising twelve flags, which makes twelve hundred flags. There is nothing surprising that the Zappos have at least a hundred and that they use them as they think fit. Mr. Morrisson noticed that six rifles belonging to the Zappos were of the same type as those served ont to the public forces. That is true and those rifles are Albinis. But I saw those six Albinis five years ago. When Zappo delivered us from theBena-Luluas in 189o. I desir- ed to show my gratitude by making him a present of stuffs and pearls. He refusered everything, saying he >vould only accept an Albini. As it was to him that our five Sisters and ourselves owed our life, and having no rifles with me at the time, I promised to satisfy him as soon as I could. And I kept my word. — 161 — Another of these rifles had been thrown into the grass by an insur- rectionary Batetela, because it was out of order. A Zappo found it, and, as I am something of a blacksmith, I put it right form him. As for the four others I know not whence they came ; but I can assure you that I have known for a long time that the Zappos possess six Albinis. Besides, for the expedition referred to by Mr. Morrisson, the officer would have certainly allowed more than six Albinis. The Times article finishes thus : « These atrocities continued for more than two months over a vast extent of territory, four or five day's journey from Luluaburg, and only two from State posts of lesser importance. » I admit, that, for my part, I do not know where these « State posts of lesser importance » are. What I do know is that in the whole district, there are State agents at Luluaburg alone. Such is the foundation of this charge, this proof written, as Mr. Coifs says, evidently in error. May be a Zappo band, unknown to the State agent, committed atrocities so common among blacks. Moreover, each time that one of these offences has become known it has been punished as this one was punished. At my request, Molumba Nkusu had his irons knocked off, but he was kept at the station until he was tried. He was still there when I left Luluaburg on February, 22. I know this affair in all its details, and I frankly confess that 1 never dreamt of giving evidence, as Mr. Lorand has said, until you asked me and until I read Mr. Morrisson's charges. » — And what do you think, we asked Father Cambier, of the charges made against the officials of the State? — What do I think of them? he replied, I will tell you in a few words, so as to no longer merit Mr. Lorand's reproaches. The other events, if they ever did happen, happened a hundred leagues aw^ay from our Kassai Mission. Of the events themselves, then, I have nothing to say. But, at the risk of meriting reproaches, — and I should be happy to share them with men like our Belgian officers who devote themselves to the work in the Congo— I reecho the remarks of Mr. Fievez, quoted by Mr. Lorand to the Chamber. Those remarks were as follows : « Do not tell me that these customs are no longer practised; they are still carried on; hands, ears and even heads are cut off. Of course soldiers with three, four and five 11 — 162 — years' service respect our instructions; but can you forbid a young soldier, animated with a desire to show his prowess, to bring back war trophies? We shall be able to do so, of course, some day when the moral tone of Africa is sufficiently elevated to make native recruits understand how reprehensible are such actions; but then you will have put down cannibalism and the present generation will not see that day. Mr, Morrisson knows very well, too, that his neighbours, the Bakubas in general, who are not even four days' journey from Luebo, and their chief Lukengo or his successor in particular, behead living slaves almost daily [The Times, February, 23), which is, in my opinion, a more atrocious cruelty than to cut a hand from a corpse. These atrocities must, then, be prevented; but how? The State officer has the weapons of persuasion and of force. I he employs force he is met by your accusations. As for persuasion, it is for us missionaries, my reverend colleague, to set the example. The Bakubas make human sacrifices at a stone's throw from your house. You have been there eight years. Have you succeeded in persuading them to stop? No, you have not; and neither have I who have been among the Zappos tor nine years. And if we do not know how to do it, let us not reproach others for not knowing. » {La Melropole, June, 3, 1900.) a The latest intelligence received respecting the incident known as the Zappo-Zapp affair shows that the preliminary enquiry was care- fully conducted by the Acting State Attorney at Lusambo. No fewer than twenty seven witnesses were examined, including the plaintiff missionary. The opinion of the « parquets is that, with regard to the exaggerated allegations of violence and extorsion committed towards the natives of the Ibonge district, a Nyampara of the chief Zappo- Zapp and the band commanded by him were the authors of the said violence and extorsion, but that there is no proof that any State agent was concerned. It I'emains for the tribunal to which the affair has been referred to definitely indicate where the culpability lies. » Extract from the Report to the King-Sovereign, iu\y , V6, 1900 (BULI.KTIN OFFICIEL, 1900, p. 137). — 163 — Letter of Baron DHANIS, Vice Governor General, to « The Pall Mall Gazette. » Sir, « ThePallMall Gazette in its issue of the 16th. inst. has published an article hostile to the Congo Free State. In the first place, this article is most inexact, as seems generally to be the case when that journal writes on matters connected with the Congo. This time, however, the Pall Mall Gazette adds to its ordinary attacks on the State certain sinister charges against Belgian officers, and particu- larly against myself. I have addressed this letter to you in order to correct the errors which I notice in the above-mentioned article, and I hope you will be kind enough to publish it. Although the writer of the article admits that the creation of the Congo State kept Central Africa from becoming the object of inter- national competition, still he takes good care not to. say a word on the part played by the King of the Belgians in the foundation of the State and the opening of African territories to civilization. He apparently forgets that, at a time when colonial enterprises in Africa were regarded as mere chimeras, King Leopold II, just after the discovery of the River Congo, sent Stanley at his own expense up the river, instructing him to establish stations and to open the way for civilizing and com- mercial enterprise. Such an undertaking seemed at the time so rash that all the endeavours of our King to secure the opening up of Central Africa by international effort failed, and he was compelled to confine his efforts solely to the working of the Congolese territories; and even in doing this he heard it said that he was imprudent and that his projects would result in ruin. The British Government, having been acquainted with the projects of our Sovereign, confined itself to giving him the assurance that it had no objections to urge against them. Under these circumstances, the King, communicating to Ihe little Belgians whom the Pall Mall Gazette appears to hold in such contempt his own lofty views and his great energy, succeeded in founding those numerous stations spreading from Banana to the inte- rior over the Congo territoiies. These centres of activity bear names which are destined in the future to be historic, as Vivi, Isangila, — 104 — Manyanga, Leopoldville, Kwamouth, Lukolela, Equator, Bangala, Upoto, and Stanley Falls. The occupation of these territories, which had been accomplished under the sole direction of the King, was due to his indefatigable tenacity, and entailed heavy expenses. The accomplishment of this work received the ollicial recognition of the Powers at the Berlin Conference in 1885. While the representatives of the Powers there assembled took official cognizance of the exis- tence of the State which the King had created, they at the same time unanimously praised the results which had been sO' rapidly obtained on the Congo. The foundation of the Congo State is not, as the Pall Mall Gazette seems to think, the result of the international arrangements of 1884-1885. These arrangements only officially recognized the entry into the life of nations of a State which already had a previous existence, and which owed its birth to the generous initiative of the King of the Belgians. It is hardly superfluous to recall these few historical points in view of the groundless assertion in your journal that the Congo Free State was created by a diplomatic decision. The truth is that it was created by our King. As the Belgians devote their colonizing energies to the Congo, and the Congo alone, they do not believe that this field is too large for their eflbrts. This they have proved by occupying the whole of the territories, and especially by guarding the borders of the Slate which they occupy, a precautionary measure which is applied to no other colony in Africa. Any one acquainted with the facts of the case — English missionaries, for example— can witness to the truth of this : that the task which the State has taken in hand has not been too great for it. The Government has suppressed the slave trade, and if it had done no more than deliver the natives from the raids of former times humanity would still be deeply indebted to it. It strenuously protects the persons and liberty of the natives, a proof of this being the activity shown by the judicial authorities in repressing any acts of violence or cruelty towards the native population. We notice that the Pall Mall Gazette admits that persons guilty of such acts have been severely punished, and we agree with your joui'nal that such examples are salutary and efficacious. With a view to preserving the existence of the native races, the Government has prohibited the importation of alcoholic drinks in nearly the whole of the territory, and, moreover, has stopped the traffic in firearms and ammunition. It has developed — 165 — the practice of hygiene, established hospitals for the coloured popula- tion, set up vaccinating centres, and spread over the whole country the use of vaccine by the natives. As regards commerce, the progress of trade in the Congo State is sufficient to show that little can be urged against it on that head. In 1900 the trade of the Slate amounted to 71,000,000 f. Of this sum, exports amounted to 47,000,000 f., and imports to 24,000,000 f. Kindly consider that in 1886 the whole trade did not exceed 3,500,000 f. The private companies established on the Congo are now seven times more numerous than in 1890, and their capital exceeds 100,000,000 f. Statistics show that a regular and sustained trade is going on at the ports. The military stations and posts planted all over the territory form a sufficient protection for the missions and factories, and their number is daily increasing. In every district roads and bridges are either constructed or in process of construction. At this moment experiments are being made for the organization of transport by motor traction. A railway has been made between Matadi and Leopoldville; another is established in the Mayumbe country, and several lines have been surveyed and are on the point of being begun in order to connect the Upper Congo with Lakes Albert and Tanganyika. The line of telegraph between Boma and the Upper Congo has a length of more than twelve hundred kilometres, and experiments are now being carried on with a view to the establishment of wireless telegraphy. From all this it is clear that the Congo State is not behind its neighbours in commercial « plant ». We may notice also that the Deutsch-Kolonialblatt , the great German colonial journal, in its issue of the 17ih. inst., invites the German Government to take pattern by the Belgian Congo and to press on the construction of railways in East Africa. This is a plain answer to the Pall Mall Gazette, which, in opposition to the wishes expressed at the Brussels Conference, questions the utility of the Congo railways! The Pall Mall Gazette declares, indeed, that, « commercially speaking, the Free State is practically on its last legs. » Such a stntement must appear rash to any one who, being acquainted with the natural wealth of the country, knows what may be expected fi'oni a careful examination of its soil and subsoil. The writer of the article in the Pall Mall Gazette seems to have heard of ivorv and — 166 — rubber alone ; he is not aware that palm-oil and palm-nuts, valuable timber, coffee, and cocoa, are found in the. Congo Stale; that iron ore of exceptional richness, copper mines, and cobalt have been disco- vered there. He is particularly ill-informed on the subject of the experimental coffee plantations ; more than three million coffee shrubs have been planted and are now yielding produce, the annual crop amounting to nearly five hundred tons. Coffee is actually husked in factories on the spot, and its value has been estimated by London firms at 1.02 f. per kilogramme in some cases, a higher figure than that reached by the best Santos. Very satisfactory results have also been attained in the cultivation of cocoa and tobacco, which, owing to the success that has attended the first experiments, may be looked upon as very promising. The Pali Mall Gazette may quite well lay aside its fears as to the disappeaiance of rubber. The Congo State has taken the necessary steps not oidy to prevent the vines being destroyed through a wasteful and destructive process of working, but also to have rubber-producing trees and creepers replanted in proportion to the quantity of rubber gathered. The carrying out of these measures is regulated by inspectors, whose reports show that the process of replanting has taken place in a methodical manner. Up to the present time three and a half million trees or vines have been replanted. We shall have sufficiently considered the Pall Mall Gazettes article when we have replied to its inaccurate statements concerning taxation, which that joui-nal maintains is oppressive. Only one tax exists, the Direct and Personal Tax, established by a decree July, 18, 1890. This tax has not been increased since. In the Congo State there is neither capitation tax, hut tax, income tax, nor stamp duty. As to import and export duties, their tariff is based upon international agreements, and it does not lie within the province of the Congo Slate to alter them. P'ree trade has remained untouched, and no transit dues have been established. No differen- tial tariff exists. The freedom of navigation has been subjected to no restriction, and pilotage is cheaper than in any other colony. As to the Matadi-Leopoldville railway rates, it is well known that attention has been and is now being given to the question of their reduction. A general reduction of 5 per cent, came into operation on July, 1, 1901, and at the same time rates have been lowered 40 per cent., and even 50 per cent, in the case of some — 167 — goods, such as rice, salt, boats, steam-engines, locomotives, building materials, and industrial and agricultural engines. Further and more general reductions are announced, amounting to 25 per cent. of the present prices. Moreover, the Matadi-Leopoldville railway will carry, at cost price, all the materials required for building the new lines of railway in the State. When we consider the above facts, our confidence in the future of the Congo State remains unshaken. If a dark spot may have existed in the shape of rebellion, we are glad to observe, with the Pall Mull GuzeMe, that « things are just now very quiet all over the State. » The latest intelligence to hand enables us to correct the Fall Mall Gazettes reservation concerning the region between Stanley Falls and Lake Tanganyika. The former rebel soldiers of my expedition have now for some time beesi rendered powerless. As to the Batetela rebels, they have recently been twice defeated— namely, in July and August last, near Lake Kassali and in the neighbourhood of Kinkon- dia. Lastly, the Uele rising has come to an end, the rebels, to the number of eight hundred, having laid down their arms. British officers would certainly not have succeeded better than Belgian officers, and it is a well-known fact that military operations some- times last longer than was expected. To resume, it seems to us that it would be difficult to show a country of Central Africa whose progress has been greater than that of the Congo. Those who criticise the State should remember the story of the mote and the beam. For our part, if Sir Charles Dilke, or any one who, like him, is actuated by hostility towards the Congo State, proposes to hold an international inquiry in order to examine the situation of all African territories from the Cape to Morocco and Uganda, we do not believe the Congo Free State would suffer by the comparison : and if at any time such a general inquiry were held, we have not the slightest doubt that it would be welcomed by the Belgians, who would be only too happy to place before impartial judges the result of their labours. — I am, Sir, yours truly. » Baron Dhanis. {Pall Mall Gazette, October, 31, 1901.) — ir)8 — Interview of Mr. MOHUN, formerly U. S. A. Consul. « An interview with Mr. E. Canisius, an e\-employe of the Congo State, on the treatment of natives in the Upper Congo recently appeared in the London Press. As charges of a similar nature liave been published also through other channels, I may, perhaps, be permitted to oftVi- one or two comments, not upon the acts alleged to have been committed, which it is obviously impos- sible to confirm or deny with authoiily, but as to the altitude of the Brussels Administration towards the offenders as well as the offences complained of. Without my holding a brief for the Congo State, impartial and careful observation leads mc to the conclusion that there is a spirit of increased activity in dealing with acts of cruelty towards the natives, and that this attitude ai-ises less from any pressure of public opinion than from a sincere desire to attain the ordinary ideals of a sound and practical form of government. The system of domaine prive has been attacked as the chief root of the evil; but, however true this may be, it is in itself merely another form of those monopolies not confined to any administration dealing with inferior races; in fact, parallels might be found in many depen- dencies of colonizing powers of the first rank. But the whole cnix of the question lies in the fact that undue authority is sometimes unintentionally delegated to officials unfitted to wield it ; and hence the tales of lamentable contlicts with the natives that appear from time to time in the Press. There are one or two points to be noted in connexion with these periodical scandals— either they emanate from a discharged employe who obvioulsy has interested motives in exagge- rating if not actually distorting the facts, or they have happened at some anterior time so that refutation has become almost impossible. Now there is no attempt on the part of the Congo State to deny in toto that acts of violence towards the natives have occurred, and do, unfortunately, continue to occur fi'om time to time; but to pretend that they are habitually connived at, or even inspired by the aulho- riiies, is neither just nor reasonable. The fact that some of the Congo employes are men of indiffei'ent character who become completely demoralized by a prolonged absence from the outer world is largely responsible for the trouble; but this is hardly a reason for a sweeping - 109 — condemnation of a system which has brought civilization into some of the darkest corners of the earth, and which aims at humanizing tribes who rank among the lowest in the scale of creation. Every question can be argued from two sides ; and if the whole matter were to be summed up from a purely objective point of view there can be no question as to the balance of advantages between what has been accomplished by King Leopold's enterprise and any disadvantages arising through flaws inseparable from an undertaking still in its incipient stages. As regards the actual charges under notice, I have had an oppor- tunity of conversing with Mr. Mohun,who for the past two years has been chief in command of the Eastern Congo telegraph expedition, now suspended owing to the strides made in the domain of wireless telegraphy. Mr. Mohun, who has just returned to Brussels, v/as formerly United States Consul at Boma,and subsequently at Zanzibar, a post which he quitted to enter the service of the Congo State, where he soon obtained a position of the first rank and was appointed by King Leopold chief in command of the telegraph expedition referred to. He is now quitting his position to return to America, and there- fore speaks with an unbiased mind; this, at least, renders his testi- mony more solid than that of an ex-official who is probably « nursing a grievance » against the Free State. It may be mentioned that Mr. Mohun crossed the African Continent from the mouth of the Zam- besi to the mouth of the Congo. The trip occupied over three years, from August, 1898, to October, 1901. During this time he passed nearly two years in that part of the Congo territories formerly know'n as the « Zone Arabe, » but now as the « Province Orientale. » His residence was at Kasongo, the old headquarters of Tippo Tib and the head centre of the African slave trade. It will be remembered that Mr. Mohun was in this part of the Congo in 1893-94, when he took part in the « Campagne Arabe » ; and naturally he remarks the changes which have taken place since that time. When asked to-day whether he could give some idea of the actual condition of this vast tract of country, and what were the principal changes he had noticed since his first visit, he expressed great willingness to condense the result of his observations in a few remarks which have doubtless sufticient interest to be placed on record. He said : — « Of course you must understand that for the moment I am in the a. — 170 — service ot the Congo Free Slate, and a great many people might consider anything I should say in favoui' of the Congo as being biased; but I can assure you that, in my opinion, it would be impos- sible for any one to give other than a favourable report on the work of the Free State in the Eastern province. The administration is excellent. The country is quite quiet from the Falls to Tanganyika. The native tribes seem contented and happy, and are paid by the Government for every stroke of work they do. The price of rubber has increased, and every man who brings in rubber receives pay tor it. Formerly robbery and murder existed to a great extent among the native tribes, but are now quite rare; and the old « Mwavi, » or ordeal by drinking poison, seems to be disappearing. Justice is administered with an impartial hand, and I firmly believe the natives are beginning to appreciate the benefits of good government. » Some months ago a woman was shot dead near my camp. I immediately sent for the chief, and told him I wanted the murderer arrested and brought in. Ten houi's later he returned with him and also two accessories to the crime, together with ail the stuffs they had stolen from the woman. The principal actor in the crime was tried and hanged, while the others received long terms of punishment. This incident is merely cited to show that when the natives are living in a contented way, and are satisfied with their surroundings, they will assist the Europeans wherever possible. I could enumerate a dozen cases where natives have themselves arrested and brought to justice thieves, ravishers, e^c, of their own accord. They never received a present for these services. In the Manyema, which is very thickly populated, a great market has been established at « Vieux Kasongo, » and this serves as a meeting-place for thousands twice a week. Caravans come from Ujiji nearly every month, and the natives journey there by a 15 or 20 days' march. 1 never saw a disturbance at the market, either going or returning. By common consent guns, knives, spears, and knobkerries are excluded from articles of exchange, and the men only carry thin walking-sticks. There are no soldiers guarding the market, but immunity from thieves is guaranteed by some ten or 12 native policemen, who receive no pay, and are highly pleased to have an opportunity of showing their authority. I have been astonished in coming down river from Kasongo — 171 — to the coast to see what extraordinary changes have taken place. Fh'st, the administration is now established on a good, firm basis, and all the officials take an intelligent interest in their work, with the result that scandals are quite a thing of the past. The stations are all splendidly and solidly built in brick, and the grounds are laid out in a very pleasing way. The transport service by canoe between Kasongo and Stanley-Falls goes without a hitch, and thousands of loads go up river every year, absolutely unguarded, and the loss by theft is almost nil. The steamer service betv»^een the Falls and Pool is good, and an enormous improvement over the old days, especially in the matter of messing. The large steamers Hainault and Brabant are most imposing looking craft, and most comfortably fitted up. They carry 200 tons of cargo and 600 troops, in addition to 40 white passengers. The new steamer La Flandre, of 250 tons, is on the slip at Leo, and I think will make her first trip in February next year. She is to be lighted by electricity. So far as I know the whole coun- try is tranquil, with the exception of a small portion of the Bangala district north of Bumba. It has been the fashion during the past for travellers who have been in the Congo State to run it down in every way, but it gives me the greatest pleasure to be able to affirm that only a most captious critic would be able to find fault with its administration to-day. You ask me finally for some more specific pronouncement on the alleged murder of several hundred natives who failed to supply the required quota of rubber. I can say nothing, it having been out of my district. Personally, I do not believe it, excepting in a vastly modified degree; and I must point out that the authorities are taking such steps as must bring any offenders to summary justice. I abso- lutely deny the absurd attempt to fasten responsibilities upon the authorities for any acts of violence they cannot control from this side ; such acts committed while I was there would have been reported, and it is evident they are now taking steps to prevent in so far as possible any recurrence of them. In all human institutions there are imper- fections ; here and there employes prove themselves unworthy of the trust reposed in them; but these, in my opinion, are exceptions rather than the rule. » {The Times, November, 2G, 1901.) — 172 — Letter of Mr. GREY, English civil engineer recently in charge of mission to Katanga, to the <• Morning Post. ■• Sir, « Since I relunied to Eni^dand a few weeks ago I have read some correspondence in the Morning Post on tiie subject of the adminis- tration in the Congo State. I am an Englishman, and have during the last two years led an expedition of the Tanganyika Concessions (Limited), organised in Rhodesia, to explore and search for minerals in the Katanga district of the Congo State. During the latter part of 1901 and the whole of 1902 sections of this expedition have explored and settled in the district of Katanga, and at the same time the repre- sentatives of the Special Katanga Committee have occupied and governed the country. It is almost impossible for one man to have intimate knowledge of more than a portion of the territory of the Congo Free Slate, and I can only claim to know a small and remote section. Still, seeing that so much attention has been directed of late to Belgian administration in the Congo, my experiences in that country may be of interest. It is, perhaps, necessary to explain that the Special Katanga Committee, the governing body in Brussels of the territories of Katanga, is composed of the representatives of an amalgamation between the separate interests of the Congo Free State Government and the Katanga Company ; the former originally owned two-thirds, the latter one-third, of that portion ot the Congo State. This administration is entirely Belgian, and the African staff is composed of a representative of the committee, whose headquarters are at Lukonzolwa, on Lake Mweru, and who occupies the position of administrator, and of numerous officials, civil and military, in charge of the various sections of the district and departments of the administration. The country is garrisoned by a large force of native troops, with European officers. My duties have confined me to the section of the district called the Upper Luapula Section, which borders on the south and east with Northern Rhodesia. I have visited the chief of that section, Mr. Vervloet, at his headquarters at Lukafu, and an officer of the Katanga force with a few soldiers has been attached to my expedition. — 173 — I have therefore had considerable opportunity on the spot of learning the instructions whicli the Special Committee give their officials, and how those instructions are carried out. I myself and many members of my expedition have become fairly intimate with the native inhabitants of large portions of this district, and have from time to time employed as carriers and miners several hundred labourers. That the natives of this country had never suffered ill- treatment from white men was evident to me from the time I entered the country. They showed no hesitation in working for my expedi- tion and in bringing quantities of food to sell, and ahvays seemed quite confident that fair payment would be given, both for labour and food. I have lived for many years in parts of Africa in which the native inhabitants were for the first time coming under the influence of European governement, and where conditions rendered the aid of such government by native troops necessary. It is almost impossible constantly to resli-ain the tendency to oppress and ill-treat his less powerful countrymen which is inherent in the native soldier, and I do not believe that it ever happens that the advent of that form of government is unaccompanied by acts of injustice and oppression. Generally there is a constant effort on the part of the Eui'opean officer to prevent such acts and punish offenders. My experience is that this is especially the case in the district of Katanga. The regulations of the Special Committee provide that no armed parties of soldiers should tiavel or jiatrol without a European officer. Native soldiers are not allowed to enter villages alone, and weekly markets are held at which a European official buys food for his soldiers from the neighbouring villages, so endeavouring to do away as far as possible with direct dealing between the soldier and the people. My expeiience of the last two years has convinced me that in the district of Katanga at any rate the Belgian officials endeavour to treat the Central African native with justice and leniency, and in as great a degree as officials of any other nation look on him as a human being, with a perfect right to sell his labour and his food on terms satisfactory to himself. When I first entered the Congo, at the time that the officials of the Sjiecial Committee were establishing their government, and before I had come into personal contact with them, I found some armed natives who posed as soldiers of the Belgian Government, and who lived more or — 174 — less the life of robbers, raiding and stealing wherever they went. The natives believed that these men wore the authoi'ised police of the European Administration, whose white officials they had not yet seen, and members of my expedition i-eported to me on the shocking behaviour of the Belgian Askari. I later learnt the complete mistake we had made in believing these men to be Government employees. In a short time they completely disappeared, caught or driven out by the agents of the committee. The Ba-Luba and Wasanga, the tribes we have been working among, are, we find, a peaceable, industrious race, with practically no warlike propensity, an easy prey to any organised hostile force. I am led to believe that their numbers have decreased during the last fifty years owing to a continuous traffic in slaves with the Arabs of the east and Mambunda of the west. To-day the slave trade has ceased in this particular district, the traders being afraid to come anywhere near the Belgian posts. To such an extent have conditions changed with the advent of Belgian administration that many small chiefs are now recovering individuals raided from them by their stronger neighbours and not already sold to the traders when European control reached the country. In all discussions and criticisms of the mistakes made by European administration in Central Africa there is one condition which seems to me to be never taken into account. That is the necessity of employing officials who have to spend a long time learning how to do efficiently the work that they have to carry on from the day they arrive at their posts. There is no school in which to learn Central African Civil Service except Central Africa, and it is impossible in Africa to obtain a sufficient number of quali- fied officials. Not many go to Central Africa with the idea of making their permanent homes there. It has been my own good fortune to settle in a healthy part of Central Africa, but from my knowledge of the Continent as a whole I think it is not an exaggera- tion to state that two-thirds of the officials who leave Europe are, within five years of their arrival, either killed by the climate, inva- lided home, or have left the country at the termination of an agree- ment. All these have to be constantly replaced by inexperienced men, with their job to learn. What wonder then that grievous mis- takes are sometimes made by some of these untried men, necessarily placed in responsible positions. In writing this letter to you I state — 475 — only my own experience and opinion of the spirit and effect of Belgian administration in tiie district of Katanga; but it seems natui-al to me to suppose tiiat the same spirit extends throughout the whole of the Congo territory, and it seems almost the duty, at the present time, of any Englishman who has had opportunity to judge of the general methods of Belgian administration to give publicity to his knowledge, — Yours, &c. » G. Gkey. (Morning Post, January, 20, 1903.) THE CONGO FREE STATE (1885-1003) COMPARATIVE TABLE (i: Number of posts and stations Establishments for cultivating and breeding purposes Number of State agents » Slate inspectors Force ( ^^'""^'^ n,,^. .^ \ Pettv-officers [ Rank and File Agents for State cultivation Agents of tlie forest department (india-rubber plantations) Medical Men Tribunals and Courts martial Civil establishments Notaries' establishments / Completed (kil.) Railways } In course of construci ion . ( Proposed Telegraph and telephone lines (kil.) .... Length of navigable watercourses now in use (kil.) Number of river steamers Navigation i l;7"^.^"g^^^^^/^(^^""^S^) • ' ( (Jutgoing vessels » Postal service ) J^^"f ^, ;, \ Printed Matter, etc. •. . . RuDGET ! Ordinary receipts £ ( )) Expenditure. . . . *- ! Exports £ T . n Imports £ Customs Duties £ 1885-1886 1901-1902 4o 215 70 91 A 6)70 1 , w 1 ^ — 4 23 223 — 308 1,487 10,775 — 55 ___ 21 C) 27 1 44 4 57 1 20 — « 480 — 1,000 — 450 — 1,532 3,000 15,000 5 79 100.028 477,814 103,710 472,395 20,950 274,114 12,184 97,893 (10,920 » 1,148,300 » 00.920 )) 1,141,900 )) 79,217 )) : 2,019.535 » (ISST) 3(>7,004 » 924,082 » (1893) 29.238 » 242,200 )) (1891) (1) BuUelin o/ficicl, la Belgique coloniale, Revues cles missions, lieciieil des societcs colo- niciles au Congo, etc., etc. - 177 Spirits (imports) . . . • . . . . Hires. Money in circulation £ / Belgian Trading companies | Others ( Commercial capital . £ Number of foreign branch establishments . Recognised native districts Value of land, per hectare Number of coffee- trees . » of cocoa-trees . Plantations } » of replanted india-rub- ber plants . I) gutta-percha plants. Vaccination establishments Sanitary Commissions Botanical garden Experimental garden Model farm Colonial garden Congregations Missionaries | „. ( Women Establishments (exclusive of « fermes- chapelles ») Schools Christians Catechumens Children Denominations Missionaries (of both sexes) Establishments (exclusive of secondary posts) Communicants Catechumens Children in day schools » in Sunday schools 1885 1886 1901-1902 1,747.732 194,865 (I89't) 445 )) 49,453 » iim) — 48 G 14 3,500 » 5,440,000 » 34 486 — 258 1 to 10 fr. 100 to 200 fr. — 2,000,000 — 300,000 — 5,250,000 — 4,000 — — 20 established in 1900. 2 13 6 160 — 84 3 44 — _ 25 — 18,973 — 24,731 — 5,515 3 8 — 221 14 40 — 6,521 — 1,470 — 10,162 — 5,641 CONTENTS Page.". Letter from the King-Sovereign of the Congo Free State lo the State agents 5 PART I OPINIONS § 1. — Treatment of the natives 7 § 2. — Justice 27 §3. — Slavery and the slave trade o8 § 4. — Barbarous customs 47 § o. — Anti-alcoholic nieasuiTs 56 § 6. — The force publique 61 § 7. — Material and moral conditions 70 §8. —Missions 91 § 9. — Conclusions 99 PART II REFUTATIONS Interview with commandant Nilis H4 — Sir H. M. Stanley 117 — Mr. Liebrechtp, General Secretary of the Home Department 119 Sir Henry M. Stanley s' letter to the Times 121 Interview with Mr. Lerman, formerly Austrian ofiTicer .... 126 Letters from baron Wahis, General Governor, to the Times . . 152 Interview with baron Van Eetvelde, State^Minister 140 — captain G. Burrows 147 — baron Frederick von Frie?endorft", of ihe Swedish armv ISO — 180 — Pages. Major Ma Ifeyi's letter to the Daz/y C/jronic/e V6i Letter of Mr. Houdret, General Consul of the Congo Free State, to The Globe i:;5 Interview with the Rev. Father Canibier. Suiterior of the Upper- Kassai mission 157 Lettpr from baron Dhani-s, Vice-Governor General, to the Pall Mall Gazette 1G5 Interview with Mr. Mohiin, formerly United States consul. . . 1G8 Letter from Mr. Grey, English civil engineer recently in charge of mission to Katanga, to the Morning Post 172 Comparative TABLE 170-177 i