report casement small 1904
TRANSCRIPT
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A C C O U N T S A N D P A P E R S ;
SIXTY-FIVE VOLUMES.
-ruj-
C O L O N I E S A N D B R I T I S H POSSESSIONS—continued.
AFRICA—continued.
/
Sess ion
2 February 1904 15 August 1904.
VOL LXIL
1 9 0 4. U
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AF RIC A. No. 1 (1904).
C O R R E S P O N D E N C E
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A N D
BEPORT
FROM HI S M AJESTY 'S CONSUL AT BOMA
.
R E S P E C T I N G THE
2 S
. M
.
-
•
•' •:
'
A D M I N I S T R A T I O N
..
•
,
•
OP THE
•
INDEPENDENT STATE OF THE CONGO,
Presented to both Houses
of
Parliament by Command of His Majesty.
February 1901.
L O N D O N :
PRINTED FOR HIS M AJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE,
B Y H A R R I S O N AN DS O N S , ST. M A R T I N ' S L A N E ,
P R I N T E R S IN O R D I N A R Y TO HI S M AJ E S T Y .
And to be purchased, either directly or through any Bookseller, frora
EYRE AND SPOTTISWOODE, E AS T HAR DI NG S T R E E T , F L E E T S T R E E T , E.C.,
AN D 32, AB I NGDON S T R E E T , WE S T MI NS T E R , S.W. ;
[Cd. 1933.] Price fyd.
OR
O L I V E R AND B O Y D , EDINBURGH;
OR E. PONSONBY, 116,
GRVFTON
S T R E E T , DUB L I N,
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\M
i
i.i •J
• f l T A J l 0 g T T g a i À M
8 I B
M 1 Ï T I
T A B L E O E C O N T E N T S .
>rt
N o.
1
2
3
4
5
N a me .
Lord Cromer . .
Sir C. Phipps . .
M r. Casement
To Sir C. Phipps . .
••
•
'•
••
To His M ajesty's Representa
tives at Paris and other
Capitals
D a te .
J a n . 21 , 1903
Sept. 19,
Dec.
11,
Fe b . 11 ,
1904
Feb. 12,
S U B J E C T .
Visit to Cong-o stations of Kiro and Lado. Native
relations with Congo officials. Few natives to be
seen in the s ta tions . . . . ;:
:
-• -• •
:
- :•.:.
-
•
Ï
.
.
-
• .3
Correspondence
and Report from
His Majesty's Consul
at Borna
respecting the
Administration
of the Independent
State
of
the Congo.
Tri
auMirt
5
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I cannot say that I had an opportunity of seeing a full SO miles of Belgian territory.
At
the same
t i m e ,
I saw a good deal, and I not iced tha t , whereas there wer*e numerous
villages and huts on the eastern bank and on the islands, on the Belgian side not a sign
0
f
a village existed . Inde ed, I do not think that any one of our party saw a single h uman
being in Belgian territory, except the Belgian officers and men and the wives and children
of the latte r. M oreov er, not a single native was to be seen either at Kiro or Lado . 1 asked
the Swedish officer at Kiro whet her he saw much of the nativ es. He replied in the
negat ive , adding tha t the nearest Bari village was situated at some distance in the interior.
The Italian officer at Lado, in reply to the same question, stated that the nearest native
vi l lage was seven hours distant.
Th e reason of all this is obvious enou gh. Th e Belgians are disliked. Th e people
fly from them, and it is no wonder they should do so, for I am informed that the
soldiers a re allowed full libe rty to plunde r, and th at paymen ts are rarely made for
supp lies. Th e British officers wander, practically alone, over most parts of the
country , e i ther on tours of inspec t ion or on shoot ing expedi t ions. I understand t ha t no
Belgian officer can move outside the settlements without a strong guard. . ,
It appears to me tha t th e facts which I have sta ted above afford amply sufficient
evidence of the spirit which animates the Belgian Administration, if, indeed, Administration
it can be called. Th e Gove rnme nt, so far as I could judg e, is conducted almo st exclusively
on commerc ia l princ iples, and , even judged by tha t standard , i t would appear tha t those
princ iples a re somewhat short -sighted.
r
- A
N -2
•-*
:
Sir C, Phtpps to the Marquess of Lansdowne.—[Received September 21.)
My Lo rd ,
Brussels, September 19 ,
1803.
I H A V E t h e h o n o u r t o t r a n s m i t herewith copy of a note , toge ther with its
i n c l o su re s , w h i c h h a s b e e n a d d re sse d b y t h e Congo G o v e rn m e n t t o t h e Representatives
a t Bru sse ls of the Po wers part ies to the Act of Ber l in to which you r Lordship's Circular
desp a tch of the 8 th Au gu st resp ec t ing the a ffa i rs of the Independent S t a t e of the
C o n g o h a d b e e n communicated.'*
M . d e C u v e l i e r , in h a n d i n g m e t h e se d o c u m e n t s , stated' t h a t h e h a d b e e n i n s t ru c t e d
t o fo ll o w t h e sa m e p ro c e d u re a s t h a t a d o p t ed b y H i s M a j e s t y ' s Government. •
I have , &c.
•
( S ig n ed ) C O N S T A N T I N E P H I P P S .
•
In c losure in N o. 2 .
LE G o u v e rn e m e n t d e l 'É t a t In d é p e n d a n t d u C o n g o , a y a n t e u c o n n a i ssa n c e de l a
dépêc he du Eore ign Office, da tée du 8 Aoû t dernier , remise a ux Pu issance s Signa
t a i r e s d e l 'A c t e d e B e r l i n , c o n s t a t e q u ' i l e s t d ' a c c o rd a v e c l e G o u v e rn e m e n t d e Sa
M a j e s t é su r d e u x p o i n t s fo n d a m e n t a u x , à sa v oi r , q u e le s i n d i g è n e s d o i v e n t ê t r e t r a i t é s
a v e c h u m a n i t é e t m e n é s g ra d u e l l e m e n t d a n s l e s v o i e s d e l a c i v i l i sa t i o n ,
et
que la
l iberté de commerce , dans le bassin convent ionnel du Congo, doi t ê t re ent iè re e t
c o m p l è t e . ;
M a i s i l n i e q u e l a m a n i è re d o n t e s t a d m i n i s t r é l 'É t a t entraînerait u n r é g i m e sy s t é
ma t iqu e " de c ru aut é ou d 'oppressio n " e t que le princ ip e de la l ibert é comm erc ia le
apporte ra i t des modifica t ions au droi t de proprié té te l qu ' i l est universe l lement compris ,
a lors qu ' i l n 'es t pas un mot à ce t e ffet dans l 'Acte de Ber l in . L' Ét a t du Congo note
qu ' i l ne se t rou ve dans ce t A cte auc une disposi t io n qui con sacrera i t des res t r ic t ions
q u e l c o n q u e s à . l ' e x e rc ic e d u d ro i t d e p ro p r i é t é o u q u i r e c o n n a î t r a i t a u x Pu i ssa n c e s
S i g n a t a i r e s u n d ro i t d 'i n t e rv e n t i o n d a n s l e s a f f ai r es d ' a d m i n i s t r a t i o n i n t é r i e u re l e s
une s des aut res . I l t ie nt à se mon trer f idèle observa teu r de l 'Acte de Berl in , de ce
g ra n d A c t e In t e rn a t i o n a l q u i l i e to u t e s l e s Pu i ssa n c e s S i g n a t a i r e s o u a d h é re n t e s , e n
ce que di t le sens gramm atica l si c la i r de son tex te , que nul n 'a pouvoir de d iminu er
ou d 'amplif ie r .
La n o t e A n g l a i se r e m a rq u e q u e c ' e s t e n c e s d e rn i è re s a n n é e s q u ' a p r i s c o n s i s t a n c e
l a c a m p a g n e m e n é e e n A n g l e t e r r e c o n t r e l 'État 'du C o n g o , sous l e d o u b l e p ré t e x t e d e
m a u v a i s t r a i t e m e n t s d e s natifs e t d e l ' e x i s t e n c e d e m o n o p o l e s c o m m e rc i a u x .
* See Africa No. 14 (1903;). ' • (''i-.
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enchaînés, i ls consti tuaient un groupe d ' individus condamnés par le Tr ibunal ter r i tor ial
de Basoko et qui venaient purger leur peine à la maison centrale de Borna. Ce sont
les numéros 3612 à 36T9 du registre d'éerou de la pr ison de Bor na . " . . _C
V C'est ainsi encore qu 'une "inter view " to ut e récente, reproduisant les accusations
coutumières
de cruauté, est due à
un
ancien
agent de l'Etat "
déclaré impropre au
service, " et qui n'a pas vu accepter par l'État sa proposition d'écrire dans la
presse
des
articles favorables à l'Adm inistration . .
/ •;; :.ï
La note ignore les réponses, démentis, ou rectifications qu'ont amenés, dans les
différents temps où elles se sont produites, les attaques contre les Agents de l 'État .
Elle ignore les déclarations officielles qu'en Juin dernier, le Gouvernement de l'État
f i t publiqueme nt à la suite des débats du 20 M ai à la Chambre des Communes, débats
annexés à l a note. Nous annexons ici le texte de ces déclarations, qui ont, par avance,
rencontré les considérations de la dépêche du 8 Août.
Le seul grief nouveau qu'elle énonce—en vue sans doute d'expliquer ce fait non
sans importance, que le Consul Anglais qui a résidé au Congo depuis 1901 ne paraît
pas appuyer de son autorité personnelle les dénonciations de particuliers—c'est qu e cet
Agent aurait été " principally occupied in the investigation of complaints preferred by
Brit ish subjects." L ' impression en résulterait que de telles plaintes auraient été
exceptionnellement nombreuses. Sans aucun doute, l e Consul, en diverses occasions,
s'est
mis en rappor t
avec
l'Administration de Borna dans l'intérêt de ses ressortissants,
mais il ne paraît pas que ces affaires, si l'on en juge par celles d'entre elles dont a eu à
s'occuper
la
Légation d 'Angleterre auprès du Gouvernement Central à Bruxelles ,
soient autres , par leur nombre ou leur importance, que celles de la vie administrative
courante : des cas ont notamment visé le règlement de successions délaissées au Congo
par des ressortissants Anglais ; quelques-uns ont eu pour objet la réparation d'erreurs
de procédure judiciaire comme il s 'en produit ail leurs , et ii n'est pas avancé que ces
réclamations n 'ont pas reçu la suite qu'elles comportaie nt. Le mêm e Consul, dont la
nomination remonte à 1898, écr ivait le 2 Juil let , 1901, au Governeur-Général :—
" I pra y believe me when I express now, not only for myself, but for my fellow-
countrymen in this par t of Afr ica, our very sincere appreciation of your efforts on
behalf of the general community—efforts to promote goodwill among all and to bring
together the various elements of our local life." •
Les prédécesseurs de M r. B. Casement—car des Consuls Anglais avec juridiction
sur le Congo ont été appointés par le. Gouvernement de Sa M ajesté depuis 1888—ne
paraissent pas davantage avoir été absorbés par l 'examen de plaintes multiples
;
tout
au moins une telle appréciation ne se trouve pas consignée dans le
Bapport,
le seul
publié , de M . le Consul Pic kersgill, q ui, par le fait qu'il rend com pte de son voyage
à
l'intérieur,
du Congo, jusqu'aux Stanley Ealls , dément c ette sor te d ' impossibili té,
pour les Agents Consulaires Anglais , d 'apprécier de visu toute par tie quelconque de
leur jur idiction. V : , ..-••:
Comme allégations contre le système d'adm inistration de l'Éta t, la note vise les
impôts, la force publique et ce qu'on appelle le travail forcé.
Au fond, c'est la contribution de l'indigène du Congo aux charges publiques que
l'on critique, comme s'il existait un seul pays ou une seule Colonie où
l'habitant,
sous
un e forme ou sous une autre, ne participe pas à ces charges. On ne conçoit pas u n
État sans ressources. Sur quel fondement légit ime pourrait-on baser l 'exemption de
tout impôt pour les indigènes, alors qu'ils sont les premiers à bénéficier des avantages
d'ordre matér iel et moral introduits en Afr ique ? A défaut de numéraire , i l leur est
demandé
une c ontr ibution en travail . D'autres ont dit la nécessité, pour sauver
l'Afrique de sa barbarie, d'amener le noir
à
la compréhension du travail , précisément
par l'obligation de l'impôt :—
; •;;" It
is a question (of native labour) which has engaged my most careful
attention
in connection with W est Africa and other Colonies. To listen to the right honourable
gentleman, you would almost think tha t i t would be a good thing for the native to be
idle. I think it is a good thing for him to be industrious ; and by every means in
our power , we mu st teach him to work. . . . . No people ever have lived in the
world 's history who would not work. In the interests of the natives all over Africa,
we have to teach them to work."
Ainsi s 'expr imait M r . Chamberlain à la Chambre des Communes, le 6
Août,
1901.Et récemment, i l disait :—
"W e are all of us taxed, and taxed heavily. Is that a system of forced labour ?
. .' . . . T o say that because we put a tax on the native therefore he is reduced
to a condition of servitude and of forced labour is, to my mind, absolutely ridiculous.
. . . ".- It is perfectly fair
to
my mind that the native should contr ibute
something
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towards the cost of administer ing the country." (House of Commons, the 9th M arch,
i 9 0 3 . ) '
;
•
•
'
' •
.
-
-v u J f . " ' ' • ; • : = ' i -
" If that really is the last word of civilization, if we are to proceed on the
assumption
tha t
the nearer the
native
or
any human being comes to a pig the more
desirable is his condition, of course I have nothing to say.
...... .
. I
must
continue to
believe that, at all events, the progress
of
the native in civilization will not be secured
until he
has been convinced
of
th e necessity and the dignity of labour. Therefore,
J
think that anything we reasonably can do to induce the native to labour is a desirable
thing." L.
W'
'1 ...•.•• ••;• •••..,;.• A -•• nuumnufo*: :. vhh
Et il défendait le principe d'une taxe sur le natif parce que" the existence of .the
tax is an inducement to him to work." (House of Commons, the 24th M arch, 1903.)
Aussi l'exemple de taxes sur les indigènes se retrouve-t-il presque par tout en
Afrique. Au Transvaal , chaque natif paie une taxe de capitation cjo
2"A
dans
l'Orange Biver Colony, le natif est soumis à une **poll tax ; " dans la Southern
Bhodesia, le Bechuanaland, le Basutoland, dans l 'Uganda, au Natal , i l est perçu une
"hut ta x ; " a u Cap, on trouve cette hu t t ax "e t une " labour ta x ; " dans l'Afrique
Orientale Al lemande, i l es t / égalemen t per çu un impô t su r les huttes,..payable en
argent , en produits , ou en travail . ... Cette sor te d ' impôt a été appliquée encore dans le
Protectorat
de Sierra-Leone, où elle a pu être payée
"i n
kind by r ice
or
pa lm- nu ts , "
et la suggestion a
été faite " that
work on
roads and useful works
should be accepted
in lien of payment in money or produce."
T : ;
Gn
voit donc que le mode de paiement
de
l ' impôt, en argent
ou
en nature, n 'en
altère pas la légitimité, lorsque son taux n'est pas excessif. Tel est le cas au Congo*
où les prestations fourmes par l ' indigène né représentent pas plus de,.quarante., heures
de travail par mois. Encore est- i l que ce travail , est rétr ibué et que l ' impôt payé en
nature fait, en quelque sorte,
l'objet
d'une ristourne à l'indigène.
; Pa rtou t le paieme nt de l'impô t est obligatoire ; son non-paiement entraîne des
voies de contraint e. Les textes qui établissent les taxes s ur les hut tes frappe nt
l'indigène réca lcitran t de peines, telles que l'emprisonn emen t et le trava il forcé. Au
Congo non plus, l'impôt n 'est pas facultatif. On a vu, ail leurs , les actes d 'autor ité
qu'a parfois rendus nécessaires le refus des indigènesùe se soumettre à la loi: tel les
les difficultés à Sierra -Leone, à propos desquelles un public iste Anglais, parla nt des
agents de la force publiqu e, affirme:— [• . •_
" Between July 1894 and
Eebruary
1896, no
fewer
than
sixty-two
convictions—
admittedly representing a small proportion of offences actually
committed—were
recorded against them for flogging, plundering, and generally
maltreating
the
natives." •
: D'autres exemples pourraient être rappelés de l'opposition que rencontre chez les
populations indigènes l'établissement des règles gouvern emen tales. Il est fatal que la
civil isation se heur te à leurs instincts de sauvager ie, à leurs coutumes et pratiques
barbares ; et il se .conçoit qu 'elles ne se plient pas sans impatience à un état social qui
leur apparaît comme restrictif de leurs licences et de leurs excès et qu'elles cherchent
même à s'y soustraire. C'est une chose comm une en Afriqu e que l'exode d'indigèn es,
passant d'un territoire à l'autre, dans l'espoir de trouver de l'autre côté des frontières
une autorité moins établie ou moins forte, et de s 'exonérer de toute dépendance et de
toute obligation. Il se pourr ait, à coup sûr, que des indigènes de l'État se soient, Sous
l'empire de telles considérations, déplacés vers les territoires voisins, encore qu 'une
sorte d 'émigration sur une large échelle, comme la présente la note Anglaise, n 'ai t
jamais été signalée par les Commandants des provinces frontières.
IL
est , a u
contraire,
constaté, dans la région du Haut-Nil , que des
natifs
qui s'étaient installés en territoire
Britannique sont revenus sur la rive gauche à la suite de l'établissement d'impositions
nouvellement édictées par l'autorité An glaise. Si c'est, d'ailleurs, ces régions qui sont
visées, les informations de la note semblent être en contradiction avec d 'autres ,
renseignements donnés, par exemple, par Sir Harry Johnston :— y f
a
i ' v
" T h i s much ï can speak of with cer tainty and emphasis : that from the British
frontier hear Eort George to the l imit of my journeys into the Mbuba country of thé-
Congo: Eree State, up and down the Semliki , the natives appear to be prosperous anel
happy, ; , : . - . . The extent to which they were building their vil lages and cuL
tivating their plantations within the precincts of Eor t M beni showed that the y
had,
no f car of the Belgians." , . • y
;V\
,:
r
:" Lv • :
tnïï
Le M ajor H . H. Gibbons, qui s'est trouvé plusieurs mois sur le 'Haut-Nil ,
écr it :— , :. ....
" Ayant eu l 'occasion de connaître plusieurs officiers et de visiter leurs stations
de l'Éta t du Congo, je suis convaincu que la conduite de ces messieurs
a été
bien
mal
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G
interprétée par la presse. J 'a i ci té comme preuve mon expér ience personnelle, qui est
en opposit ion avec une version récemment publiée par la presse Anglaise, qui les
accuse de grandes cruauté s." • .
La décla ration de Ju in d ernier, ci-jo inte, a fait justice des critique s contre la
force publique de l'État en signalant que son recrutement est réglé par la loi et qu'il
n 'at tei nt qu 'un homme sur 10,000. Dire que " the method of ob taining m en for
military service is often but little different from that formerly employed to obtain
slaves, " c'est méc onnaîtr e les prescrip tions minu tieuses édictées pour, au contraire
éviter les abus. Les levées
:
s'opèrent dans c haque district ; les Commissaires de
District règlent, de commun accord avec les Chefs indigènes, le mode de conscription.
Les engagements volontaires et les multiples réengagements complètent aisément les
effectifs qui atteignent à peine le chiffre modique de 15,000 hommes.
Ceux qui allèguent , comme le dit la note, que " the m en composing the armedforce of the State were in man y cases recruited f rom th e most war like and savage
tr ibes," ignorent que la force publique est recrutée dans toutes les provinces et
parmi toute la population du ter r i toire. Les intérêts de l 'État protestent contre cette
notion d 'une armée que l 'autor ité elle-même formerait d'éléments indisciplinés et
sauvages et des exemples—tels que les excès qui ont été mis à charge des auxiliaires
irréguli ers utilisés dans l'Ug anda , ainsi que les ré voltes qu i se sont produites jadis
au Congo, imposent, au contraire, une circonspection spéciale pour la composition de
la force armé e. Les cadres Europ éens, qui se comp osent d'officiers B elges, Italiens,
Suédois, Rorwégiens, et Danois , y maintienn ent une sévère discipline, et l 'on cher
cherait en vain à quelles réelles circonstances fait allusion l'assertion que les soldats
"n o t infrequ ently terrorized over their ow n officers.' ' Elle n'est pas plus fondée que
cette autre assertion, "that compulsion is often exercised hy irresponsible native
soldiers uncontro lled by an European officer." Depu is longtem ps, l'auto rité était
consciente des danger s que p résen tait l'existenc e de postes de soldats noirs, dont le
Rapport de Sir D. Chalmers, sur l ' insurrection à Sierra-Leone, a constaté lés
inévitabl es abus de pouvoirs. Au Congo, ils ont été gradue lleme nt supprim és.
I l apparaîtra, à ceux qui ne nient pas l 'évidence, que des reproches ar t iculés
contre l 'État , le plus injuste est d 'avancer " that no attempt at a ny administration of
the natives is made, and that the officers of the Government do
not-apparently
concern themselves with such work."
On peut s'étonner de trouver semblable affirmation dans une dépêche d'un
Gouvernement dont l 'un des membres, Lord Cranborne, Sous-Secrétaire d 'État pour
les Affaires Étra ngèr es, disait le 20 M ai dernier :—
" There was no doubt tha t the adm inistration of the Congo G overnment had
been marked by a very high degree of a certain kind of administrative develop
ment. There were railways, there were steamers upon the r iver , hospitals had
been established, and all the machinery of elaborate judicial and police systems had
been set up."
Un autre M embre de la Chambre des Communes reconnaissait—
"That the Congo State had done good work in excluding alcoholic liquors from
the greater par t of their domain, that they had established a cer tain number of
hospitals, had diminished small-pox by means of vaccination, and had suppressed the
Arab Slave Trade."
Si atténuées que soient ces appréciations, encore démentent-elles cette affirmation
d'aujourd'hui que " the natives are left entirely to themselves, so far as any assistance
in their government or in their affairs is concerned."
Telles ne semblent pas être les conclusions au xquel les, déjà eh 1898 , arriva it le
Consul Anglais Pickersgil l .
" Has the welfare of the African," se demande-t-il, " been duly cared for in the
Congo State ?" Il répond : " The State has restr icted the l iquor trade it is
scarcely possible to over-estimate the service which is being rendered by the Congo
Government to i ts subjects in this matter Inter tr ibal wars have
been
suppressed over a wide area, and, the imposition of European authority being
steadily
pursued, the boundar ies of peace are constantly extending. . . . . . . The State
must be congratulated upon the secur ity i t has
created
for all who live
wdthin
the
shelter of its flag and abide by i ts laws and regulations. . . . " . . . Credit is also
due to the Congo Government in respect of the diminution of cannibalism. . . . .The yoke of the notorious Arab Slave Traders has been broken, and traffic in
human beiDgs amongst the natives themselves has been diminished to a considerable
degree."
Ce Rapport constatait aussi que les travaux des natifs étaient rémunérés et
. *
.-
* --
•--"-•
rendait hommage aux efforts de l'État pour instruire les jeunes indigènes et ouvrir des
écoles.
Depuis 1898 l'amélioration de la condition générale de l'indigène a encore
progressé. Le portage à dos d'homm e, dont précisém ent M r. Pickersg ill signalait le
côté pénible pour les indigènes, a disparu là où il était le plus actif, en raison de la
mise en exploitation des voies ferrées. Ailleurs , l'automobile est utilisée comme
moyen de transpor t . La "sentry"—le poste de soldats nègres qu ' i l cr i t iquait non
sans raison—n'existe plus. Le bétail est introd uit dans tous les districts. Des
Commissions d'Hygièn e sont instituées. Les écoles et les ateliers se sont multiplié s.
" L ' indigène," dit le document ci- joint , " est mieux logé, vêtu , n ourr i ; i l
remplace ses huttes par des habitations plus résistantes et mieux appropr iées aux
exigences de l'hyg iène ; grâce aux facilités de transp ort, il s'approvisionne des
produits nécessaires à ses besoins nouv eau x; des ateliers lui sont ouverts, où il
apprend des métiers manuels—tels que, ceux de forgeron, charpentier , mécanicien,
maçon ; il étend ses planta tions, et, à l'exem ple des blan cs, s'inspire des modes de
culture rationnels ; les soins médicaux lui sont assurés ; il envoie ses enfants dans les
colonies scolaires de l'État et aux écoles des missionnaires."
I l est juste de reconnaître, a- t-on dit à la Chambre des Communes, que la
régénération matér ielle et morale de l 'Afr ique C entrale ne peut être l 'œuvre d 'un
jour. Les résultats obten us jusqu 'à présent sont considérables ; nous cherchero ns à
les consolider et à les accentuer, malgré les entraves que l'on s'efforce de mettre à
l'action de l'État, action que l'intérêt bien entendu de la civilisation serait, au contraire,
de favoriser.
La note Anglaise ne démontre pas que le système économique de
l'État
est
opposé à l'Acte de Berlin. Elle n e renc ontre pas les éléments de droit et de fait par
lesquels l'Éta t a justifié la conform ité de ses lois foncières et de ses concessions avec
les dispositions de cet Acte. Elle n'ex pliqu e pas pourquo i ni en quoi la liber té de
commerce, termes dont la Conférence de Berlin s'est servie dans leur sens usuel,
grammatical et économique, ne serait plus entière au Congo parce qu'il s'y trouve des
propriétaires.
La note
confond
l'exploitation de son bien par le propriétaire avec le commerce.
L ' indigène, qui récolte pour compte du propr iétaire, ne devient pas propr iétaire des
produits récoltés et ne peut naturelleme nt les céder à autrui , pas plus que l 'ouvr ier
qui extrait les produits d'une mine ne peut en frustrer le propriétaire en en disposant
lui-même . Ces règles sont de droit et sont mises en lumiè re dans de mu ltiples
documents : consultations juridiq ues et décisions judiciaires d ont quelq ues-unes sont
annexées. Le Gouvernement de Sa Majesté ne conteste pas que
l'État
a le droit de
répartir les terres domaniales entre les occupants bona fide et que l ' indigène ne peut
plus prétendre aux produits du sol , mais seulement lorsque " land is reduced into
individual occupa tion." La distinction est sans base juridique. Si l'Éta t peu t céder
les terres, c'est que l'indigène n'en a pas la propriété, et à quel titre alors con
serverait-il un droit aux produi ts d'un fonds dont la propriété est légitim eme nt
acquise par d 'autres ? Pourrait-on soutenir , par exemple, que la Compagnie du
Chemin de Eer du Bas-Congo ou la Société du Sud-Ca merou n ou
l'Italian
Colonial
Trading Company sont tenues de tolérer le pillage par les indigènes des terres qu'elles
ont reçues, parce qu'elles ne les occuperaient pas actuellement ? En fait, d'ailleurs,
au Congo, l'appropriatio n des terres exploitées e n régie ou par les Compagnies Con
cessionnaires est chose réalisée. L'É tat et les Sociétés ont consacré à leur m ise en
valeur, notamm ent des forêts, des sommes considérables se chiffrant par millions^ de
francs. Il n'y a donc pas de doute que dan s tous les territo ires du Congo, l'État
exploite réellem ent et complètem ent ses proprié tés, tout comm e les Sociétés exploite nt
réellement et complètement leurs Concessions.
Cet état de choses existant et consolidé dans l 'État In dépendant permettrait , en
ce qui le concerne,
cle
ne point insister plus longuement sur la théor ie
formulée
par
la note et qui envisage tour à tour les droits de l'É tat, c eux des o ccupan ts
bona fide,,
ceux des indigènes.
Cepend ant, elle s'impose à l'attent ion des Puissance s par les graves difficultés
qu'elle ferait surgir si elle était implicitement acceptée.
La note contient les trois propositions suivantes :—
" The State has the r ight to par ti t ion the State lands among
bona fide
occupants."
"The natives will , as the land is so divided out amongst bona fide occupiers,
lose their r ight of roaming over i t and collecting the natural f ruits which i t produces."
" Until unoccupied land is reduced into individual occupation and so long as the
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pro duce can only be col lec ted by the na t iv e , the na t i ve shou ld b e free to d ispose of
t h a t p ro d u c e a s h e p l e a se s . "
•
I l n ' e s t p a s u n e
de
ces proposi t ions qui ne se mble exc lu re les deu x autr es, e t à
v ra i d i r e
ces
contradic t ions about issent à la néga t ion du droi t de Concession.
S ' i l a existé des occupants
bona fide,
i ls sont deven us prop rié ta i re s : l 'occupat io n ,
lorsqu 'e l le t rouve à s 'exercer , est dans toutes les législa t ions un des modes d 'acquisi
t ion de la pro prié té , e t , au Congo, les t i t res en dé rivan t ont é té lég a lem ent
enreg ist rés . Si la te rre n 'a é té va lab lemen t occupée par personn e , e l le est sans maî t re
ou , p lus exac tement , e l le a l 'Éta t pour maî t re : i l peut en d isposer au profi t d 'un t ie rs ,
e t ce lu i-c i t rouve dans ce t ac te
de
d i sp o s i t i o n u n
t i t re
comple t e t absolu . Dan s l 'un
c o m m e d a n s l ' a u t r e c a s ,
U n e
se conçoi t pas que les fru i ts du
sol
puissent ê t re réservés
à d ' a u t r e s q u ' a u
propriétaire
sous le
prétexte
qu ' i l n 'est pas apte , en fa i t , à récol te r les
produi ts de son fonds.
P a r u n e
singulière
contra dic t ion , le syst ème d e la note d i t qu 'à la sui te de
l ' a t t r i b u t i o n d e s t e r r e s p a r l 'É t a t , l e s i n d i g è n e s " l o s e t h e i r r i g h t o f c o l l e c t i n g t h e
n a t u r a l f ru i t s , " e t , d ' a u t r e p a r t , q u ' i ls c o n se rv e n t l e d ro i t
de
d isposer de ces
p r o d u i t s " u n t i l u n o c c u p i e d
land
i s r e d u c e d i n t o i n d i v i d u a l o c c u p a t i o n . " O n n e
c o m p re n d p a s l a n o t i o n d ' u n d ro i t a p p a r t e n a n t
au x
na t i fs qui existe ra i t ou non de
par le fa i t de t ie rs. Ou bien , par sui te de l 'a t t r ibut i on des te rres, i l s ont per du leurs
d ro i t s ,
e t a lors i ls les ont perdu s to ta l em ent e t com plè te men t ; ou b ien , i l s les ont
conservés, e t i l s doivent les conserver , quoique " the lan d is reduc ed in to individu a l
o c c u p a t i o n . "
Q u e f a u t -i l d 'a i l l e u r s e n t e n d re d a n s l e sy s t è m e d e l a n o t e p a r o c c u p a n t s " bond
fide " et par " individu a l occupat ion ? ' ' Qui se ra juge du point de savoir si l 'occupant
a mis ses te rres en é ta t d 'occ upat ion individue l le , s ' i l était apte à en recue i l l i r les
p ro d u i t s o u s i c ' é t a i t encore l ' indigè ne? Ce sera i t , en tous cas, des points re le vant
e sse n t i e l l e m e n t d u d ro i t i n t e rn e .
La n o t e , a u su rp l u s , e s t i n c o m p l è t e su r u n a u t r e p o i n t . E l l e d i t q u e l à o ù
l 'exp loi ta t i on ne se fe ra i t pas encore par les ayan ts droi t , la fac ul té d 'ex ploi te r devra i t
a p p a r t e n i r a u x i n d i g è n e s . E l l e v o u d ra i t d o n c d o n n e r u n d ro i t a u x i n d i g è n e s a u
p ré j u d i c e d e s G o u v e rn e m e n t s o u d e s c o n c e ss i o n n a i r e s b l a n c s , m a i s n ' e x p l i q u e p a s
c o m m e n t n i p a r q u i l e t o r t a in s i c a u sé se ra i t c o m p e n sé o u i n d e m n i sé . Q u o i q u e
l e sy s t è m e a i n s i p ré c o n i sé n e p u i sse a v o i r d ' a p p l i c a t i o n d a n s l 'É t a t d u C o n g o , p u i sq u ' i l
n e s ' y t ro u v e p l u s cle t e r r e s i n a p p ro p r i é e s , c e t t e r e m a rq u e s ' i m p o se d a n s l ' i n t é r ê t d e s
blan cs é tabl is dans le bassin conv ent io nnel . S ' i l est équi tabl e de b ien t ra i te r les noirs ,
i l est juste de ne pas spol ie r les b lancs, qui , dans l'intérêt de tou s, doiven t reste r la
r a c e d i r i g e a n t e .
Éc o n o m i q u e m e n t p a r l a n t , i l se r a i t d é p l o ra b l e q u ' e n d é p i t d e s d ro i t s r é g u l i è r e
m e n t a c q u i s p a r l e s b l a n c s , le s t e rr e s d o m a n i a l e s se t ro u v a s se n t l i v ré e s a u x i n d i g è n e s ,
fû t-ce tempo ra ire men t . Ce sera i t le re to ur à leur é ta t d 'aban don de jadis , a lors que
les n a t i fs les la issa ient inpro duct ive s, car les récol te s de caou tchou c , les p lan ta t ions
de café , de cacao , de tab ac , fee, da tent d u jour où l 'Éta t en a pris lu i - mêm e
l ' i n i t i a t i v e : l e m o u v e m e n t d e s e x p o r t a t i o n s é t a i t i n s i g n i f i a n t a v a n t l ' e s so r q u e l u i o n t
donné les e n t r e p r i se s g o u v e rn e m e n t a l e s . C e serait aussi l ' inobservance certa ine des
m e su re s d ' e x p l o i t a t i o n r a t i o n n e l l e , d e p l a n t a t i o n e t d e r e p l a n t a t i o n a u x q u e l l e s
s 'ast r e igne nt l 'Ét a t e t les Soc ié tés Concess ionnaires pou r assurer la conser va t ion des
r i c h e sse s n a t u re l l e s d u p a y s .
J a m a i s a u C o n g o , q u e n o u s sa c h i o n s , l e s d e m a n d e s d ' a c h a t d e s p ro d u i t s naturels
n 'o n t é t é a d re ssé e s a u x l é g i t im e s p ro p r i é t a i r e s . Ju sq u ' i c i l 'o n n ' a c h e rc h é à y a c h et e r
•que d e s p ro d u i t s provenant de r ece ls , e t l 'É ta t , com me c 'é ta i t son devoir , a fai t
p o u r su i v re c e s t e n t a t i v e s d é l i c t u e u se s .
La pol i t iq ue d e l 'Ét a t n 'a pas , com me on l 'a d i t , tué le commerce : e lle l 'a , au
con tra ire , c réé , e t e l ie perp é tue la mat iè re co mm erc ia le ; c 'est grâce à elie que , sur le
m a rc h é c o m m e rc i a l d 'A n v e r s e t b i e n t ô t a u C o n g o même—on examine la possib i l i té
d ' y é t a b l i r d e s d é p ô t s d e vente—peuvent ê t r e offertes a n n u e l l e m e n t à t o u s i n d i s t i n c t e
ment, sa n s p r i v i l è g e n i m o n o p o l e , 5,00(J t o n n e s d e c a o u t c h o u c r é c o l t é a u C o n g o , a l o rs
q u ' a n t é r i e u re m e n t , p a r e x e m p l e e n 1 8 8 7 , l ' e x p o r t a t i o n d u c a o u t c h o u c se ch i f fr a i t à
pe ine pa r 30 tonne s. C 'est l 'Éta t qui , après avoir à ses fra is c réé la mat iè re
c o m m e rc i a l e , e n m a i n t i e n t so i g n e u se m e n t l a so u rc e a u m o y e n d e s p l a n t a t i o n s e t
r e p l a n t a t i o n s .
I l n 'e st pas à oubl ie r que l 'Éta t du C ongo a dû compter s ur ses propre s ressources.
C e fu t u n e n é c e ss i t é p o u r l u i d ' u t il i se r so n d o m a i n e d a n s l ' i n t é r ê t g é n é ra l . Toutes les
rece t tes du domaine sont versées au Trésor , a insi que le revenu des ac t ions dont l 'Éta t
e s t d é t e n t e u r e n r a i so n d e C o n c e ssi o n s a c c o rd é e s . C e n ' e s t m ê m e q u ' e n t i r a n t t o u t l e
9
part i u t i le de ses domaines e t en , enga gean t la p lus gran de part ie de leurs reve nus qu ' i l
a pu contrac te r des emprunts e t provoquer à des entreprises de chemins de fe r par des
garant ies d ' in té rê t , réa l isant a insi l 'u n des moyen s les p lus désirés par
la
C o n fé re n c e
de Bruxe l les pour fa i re pé né tr e r la c iv i l isa t ion au centr e de l 'Afriqu e . Auss i n'a-t-il
pas hési té à
gager
se sd o m a i n e s d a n s c e b u t .
L'Acte de Berl in ne s 'y oppose pas, car i l n 'a édic té aucune proscrip t ion des droi ts
d e p ro p r i é t é , c o m m e o n v e u t , a p rè s c o u p , l e l u i
faire
d i r e , t e n d a n t a i n s i , c o n sc i e m m e n t
ou non , à la ru ine de tout le bassin convent ionnel du Congo.
I l n ' é c h a p p e ra p a s n o n p l u s a u x Pu i ssa n c e s q u e l e s c o n c l u s i o n s d e l a n o t e A n g l a i se ,
en suggérant une ré férence à la Cour de La Haye , tendent à fa i re
considérer
c o m m e
c a s d 'a rb i t r a g e d e s q u e s t i o n s d e so u v e ra i n e t é e t d 'a d m i n i s t r a t i o n i n t é r i e u re q u e l a d o c t r i n e
couran te a toujou rs exc lues des déc isions d 'a rb i t res. Po ur ce qui concerne le cas
ac tue l , i l est à supposer que la suggest ion d 'une ré férence à la Cour de La Haye a une
portée généra le , s ' i l est vra i que , de l 'av is des Chambres de Commerce Angla ises, " the
princ iples and prac t ice in troduced in to the administ ra t ion of the a ffa i rs of the Erench
Congo, the Congo Ere e Sta te , and other a reas in the convent ion a l basin of th e Congo
being in d irec t opposi t ion to the Art ic les
of
t h e A c t o f B e r l i n 1 8 8 5 . " Le G o u v e rn e
m e n t d e l 'É t a t n ' a c e ssé, p o u r sa p a r t , d e p ré c o n i se r l ' a rb i t r a g e p o u r l e s d i s se n t i m e n t s
d ' o rd re i n t e rn a t i o n a l q u i e n c o m p o r t a i e n t l ' a p p l i c a t i o n : a insi , i l voudra i t voir déférées à
l 'a rb i t rage les d ivergences de vues qui se sont produi tes au suje t du ba i l des te rr i to i res
d u B a h r -e l -G h a z a l .
A p rè s u n e x a m e n a t t e n t i f d e la n o t e A n g l a i se , l e G o u v e rn e m e n t d e l 'É t a t d u
C o n g o r e s t e c o n v a i n c u q u ' e n r a i so n d u v a g u e e t d u m a n q u e complet de preuves, ce
d o n t e l l e f a i t i m p l i c i t e m e n t l ' a v e u , i l n ' e s t p a s u n e j u r i d i c t i o n a u m o n d e , e n e n
supposant une qui a i t compétence pour ê t re sa isie , qui puisse , b ien lo in de prononcer
une sorte de condamnat ion , prendre une autre déc ision que ce l le de ne pas donner sui te
à de simples supposi t ions.
S i l 'É t a t d u C o n g o se v o i t a t t a q u é , l 'A n g l e t e r r e p e u t se d i r e q u e , p l u s q u e n u l l e
a u t r e n a t i o n , e l l e
s'est
t ro u v é e , e l l e a u ss i , e n b u t t e a u x a t t a q u e s e t a u x a c c u sa t i o n s d e
toute espèce , e t longue sera i t la l i s t e des c a m p a g n e s p o u r su i v i e s en d i v e r s t e m p s e t
j u sq u e d a n s r é c e n t e s o c c a s i o n s c o n t r e son a d m i n i s t r a t i o n co l o n i a l e. E l l e n ' a ce r t e s p a s
é c h a p p é a u x c r i t i q u e s q u e l u i o n t v a l u ses g u e r r e s m u l t i p l e s e t sa n g l a n t e s c o n t r e l e s
popula t i ons ind igènes n i aux reproches de v io lenter les na t i fs e t de porte r a t te in te à
leur l iberté . Ne lu i a - t -on pas fa i t gr ie f de ces longues insurrec t ions à Sie rra -Leone—
de ce t é ta t d 'host i l i té da ns la Nigérie , où tou t der niè rem ent , d 'après les journaux
Ang la is , la répression mil i ta i re a , en une seule c i rcons tance , coûté la v ie à 700 indigènes,
à la p lupart de leurs Chefs e t au Sultan—de c e t t e l u t t e q u i se p o u r su i t a u So m a l i l a n d
au prix du sacri f ice de nombr euses v ies hum aines , sans que cependa nt i l ne soi t exprimé
à la Chambre des Communes d 'autre regre t que ce lu i du chiffre é levé des dépenses ?
Alors que ces a t taques adressées à l 'Angle te rre l 'ont la issée indiffé rente , i l y a l ieu
d ' ê t r e su rp r i s d e l a v o i r a u j o u rd ' h u i a t t a c h e r u n e t o u t e a u t r e i m p o r t a n c e à c e l l e s
dir igées contre l 'Éta t du Congo.
On peu t c roire , cepend ant , que les préférence s des indig ènes de l 'É ta t du Congo
d e m e u re n t a c q u i se s a u G o u v e rn e m e n t d ' u n e p e t i t e n a t i o n p a c i f i q u e , d o n t l e s visées
restent pac if iques comme a é té pac if ique sa c réa t ion basée sur les Tra i tés conclus-
avec les indigènes.
( S i gn é ) C H U . D E CT7VELIER,
Bruxelles, le 17 Septembre, 1903.
(Transla t ion . )
THE G overnm ent of the Independ ent Sta te of the Congo have examined the
despa tch from the Fore ign Office , da ted the 8 th August last , which was communica ted to
the Signa tory Powers of the Berl in Act , and dec lare themselves in agreement with His
M ajesty 's Gov ernment on tw o fundamen ta l points , v iz ., tha t na t ives ought to be t rea ted
w i t h humanity and gradual ly led in to the pa ths of c iv i l iza t ion , and tha t freedom of
commerce in the Convent iona lBasin of the Congo ought to be ent i re and comple te .
They deny , however , tha t the manner in which the Sta te is administe red involves a
systematic régime "of c rue l ty or oppression , " and tha t the princ iple of commerc ia l
freedom would in troduce modifications in the r ights of property as universa l ly under
stood , seeing tha t there is not a word to th is e ffect in the Berl in Act . The Congo S ta te
observes tha t the re is in tha t A ct no provision which would sanc t ion rest r ic t ions of a ny
hind on the exerc ise of the r ights of property , or g ive to one Signa tory Power the r ight
of in te rvent ion in the in te rior administ ra t ion of another . I t desires fa i thfully to observe
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the Berl in Act, tha t grea t In te rna t iona l Act which binds a l l Signa tory or adhering
Pow ers, according to the c lear gram matica l sense of the text , which none has power
e i ther to take from or add to .
The Engl ish note observes tha t i t i s wi th in the last few years tha t a defin i te
shape has been assumed by the campaign cond ucted in Eng land aga inst t he Congo
Sta te , on the twofold pre text of the i l l - t rea tmen t of na t ives a nd the existence of com
merc ia l monopol ies.
I t i s indeed worthy of remark tha t th is campaign da tes from the t ime when the
prosper i ty of the Sta te became as sured. The Sta te had been founded for years, and
administe red in the same way as i t i s now, i ts princ iples in regard to the Sta te -ownership
of vacant lands, and the manner in which i ts a rmed forces were organized and recrui ted ,
were known to the publ ic , wi thout any in te rest in the mat te r be ing shown by the phi lan
thropists and t ra ders to whose opinion the note begins by re ferr ing. This was the period
during which the Sta te Budget could only be ba lanced by means of the King-Sovere ign 's
subsidies and Belgian loans, and when the commerce of the Congo did not a t t rac t
a t tent ion. The te r m " Congo a troc i t ies " was a t tha t t ime only used in connexion with
" the a l leged i l l - t rea tm ent of African na t ives by En gl ish and other adv enturer s in the
Congo Eree Sta te ." * Afte r 1895 the t rade of the Congo Sta te deve loped re markab ly ,
and the amount of i ts exports shows a progressive increase from 10 mil l ions in 1895 to
50 mil lions in 1902. I t i s a lso about th is t ime tha t the ant i -Congo movem ent took shape .
As the Sta te gave increased proof of v i ta l i ty and p rogress , the cam paign becam e more
ac t ive , re l iance be ing placed on a few individua l and isola ted cases with a v iew to using
the in te rests of human ity as a pre tex t a nd concea l ing the rea l objec t of a covetousness
which , in i ts impat ience , has be trayed i tse l f in the wri t ings of pamphle teers and in the
speeches of M embers of the House of C ommons, in which the abol i t ion and part i t ion of
the Congo Sta te has been c learly put forward.
Such be ing the objec t in v iew, i t became necessary to bring a whole series of charges
aga inst the Sta te . So fa r as the hum anita ri an side of the quest ion is concerned , the
a l leged cases of v io lence offe red to na t ives have once more been brought forward and
re-edi ted ad infinitum. For in a l l the meet ings, wri t ings, and speeches which have la t te r ly
been direc ted aga inst the Sta te , i t i s a lways the same fac ts which a re brought up , and the
same evidence which is produc ed. W ith regar d to the economic side of the quest ion , the
Sta te has been accused of havin g viola ted t he Act of Berl in , notwith standin g th e lega l
opinions of such lawyer s as a re most qua l i f ied to speak to the point , which a fford ample
lega l just i f ica t ion both for i ts commerc ia l and for i ts land system. W ith r egard to the
pol i t ica l side , a heresy in in te rna t iona l law has been imagined , v iz . , tha t a Sta te , the
independen ce an d sovere ign ty of which a re absolute , should , a t the same t ime , owe i ts
posi t ion to the in te rvent ion of fore ign Powers.
W ith regard to the cases of i l l - t rea tment of na t ives, we a t tach spec ia l impor tance to
those which , according to the note , have been repo rted in the despa tch es of His Majesty 's
Consular Agen ts. At the si t t ing of the House of Comm ons on the 11th March , 1903 ,
Lord Cranborne re ferred to these
officiai
documents, and we have requested through his
Excel lency Sir C . Phipps tha t the Bri t ish Government wil l make known to us the fac ts
a l luded to . W e repea t the reques t .
The Governm ent of the Sta te have , however , never denied tha t c r imes and offences
are commit ted in the Congo, as in every o ther coun try or Colony. The note i tse l f recog
nizes tha t these offences have been brought before the Tribunals , and tha t the c r imina ls
have been punished . The conclusion to be drawn from this is tha t the Sta te fu lf ils
i ts mission ; the conclusion a c tua l ly d rawn is tha t
"
maxiy individua l instances of
•crue'lty
have taken place in the Congo Sta te , " and th a t " the num ber of convic t ions
fa l ls con siderably short of the number of offences ac tua l ly commit ted ." This deduct ion
does not appear necessari ly to fo l low. I t would seem more logica l to say tha t the
severe
sentences infl ic ted wil l se rve as a wholesome example , and tha t a decrease of c r ime may
on tha t account be looked for . If some offences have indeed , in the extensive te rr i tories
of the Sta te , escaped the v ig i lance of the judic ia l authori t ies , th is is a c i rcumstance which
is not pecul ia r to the Congo Sta te .
The En gl ish note p roceeds chiefly on hypotheses and su pposi t ions : " I t
was
a l l e g ed . . . . I t i s r e p o r t e d . . . . I t i s a l so r e p o r t e d . . . . " a n d i t e v e n
says
tha t " His Majesty 's Governme nt do not know prec ise ly to what extent these accusa t ions
may be t rue ." This is an acknow ledgment tha t , in the eyes of
the
Bri t ish Govern
ment them selves, the accusa t ions in quest ion a re ne i ther establ ished nor proved. And,
indeed , the v io lence , the passion , and the imp robabi l i ty of many of these accusa t ions
must ra ise doubt in an impart ia l mind as to the ir genuinenes s. To give but one
* " Transactions of the Aborigines Protection Society, 1890-1896," p. 155.
1 1
example
:—a
grea t dea l has b een mad e of the sta temen t tha t , in a t ra in coming down
from Leopoldvi l le to Matad i , three carr iages were fu l l of slaves, a dozen of who m were
in cha ins and guarde d by soldie rs. The Governor -Genera l was asked for a report on the
case. He
replied : "
The individua ls represented as composing a convoy of slaves were ,
the grea t m ajori ty of them (125) , levies proceedin g from the d ist r ic t of Lua laba- Kasa i ,
Lake Leopold II , and the Banga las to the camp in the Lower Congo. Ann exed you
wil l find l ists of these persons. As reg ards the men in cha ins, they were certa in
individua ls on whom sentence had been passed by the te rr i toria l Tribunal a t Basoko, and
who were on the ir way to und ergo the ir s entence a t the centra l prison a t Bom a. They
ar e
Nos.
3642 to 3649 on the prison registe r a t Boma."
In the same way, qui te a recent
"
in te rview," in which the usu a l accusa t ion s of
crue l ty were reproduced , is due to a person formerly in the employ of the Sta te ,
who
was " dec la red unfi t for se rvice , "
and
who has fa i led to persuade the Sta te to accept
his proposa l to wri te for the press a r t ic les favourable to the Administ ra t ion .
The note ignores the repl ies, contradic t ions, and correc t ions which the a t tacks
on the Agents of the Sta te have occasioned a t the various t imes when they hav e
taken place . I t ignores the off ic ial dec la ra t ions publ ic ly made by the Govern ment of the
Sta te in Ju ne last , a f te r the deba t e in the House of Commons on the 20th M ay, the
report of which is annexed to the note . W e a lso annex the text of these dec la ra t ion s
which dea l t , by ant ic ipa t ion , wi t h the co nsidera t ions se t forth in the despa tch of the
8th August .
The only fresh cause of compla int which the note brings
forward—doubtless
with the
objec t of expla in ing the not unimportant fac t tha t the Engl ish Consul , who has resided in
the Congo since 1901, does not appear to support , by h is personal authori ty , the accusa
t ions of priva te
individuals—is
tha t th is Agen t has been " princ ipa l ly occupied in the
invest iga t ion of compla ints preferred by Bri t ish sub jec ts." The impression which one
would derive from this is tha t such compla ints have been except iona l ly numerous.
Ho
doubt th e Consul has, on d iffe rent occasions, com munica ted with the Adm inist ra t ion a t
Boma in the in te rests of h is countrymen, but the subjec ts of h is representa t ions, i f one may
judge by such of the ir number as the
English
Legat ion has had to bring to the not ice of
the Centra l Governm ent a t Brusse ls , do not app ear , e i ther in nu mber or imp ortance , t o
have been more tha n ma t te rs of every day administ ra t ive rout ine : some cases in
part icula r concerned the regula t ion of the succession to prop erty in the Congo le ft by
deceased Engl ish subjec ts ; the objec t in o thers was to repa ir e rro rs of judic ia l pro
cedure , such as occur e lsewhere , and i t i s not even a l leged tha t the proper ac t ion has not
been taken upon these representa t ions. The same Consul , who was appointed in 1898,
wrote to the Governor-Genera l on the 2nd Ju ly , 1901 , as fo l lows :—
" I pray be l ieve me when I express now , not only for myself, but for my fe l low-
countrymen in th is part of Africa , ou r very sincere apprec ia t ion of your e fforts on beha lf
of the genera l community—efforts to prom ote goodwil l among a l l and to bring toge the r
the various e lements of our loca l l i fe ."
Hor do the predecessors of Mr. R .
Casement—for
Engl ish Consuls with jurisdic t ion
in the C ongo were a ppointed by His M ajesty Government as long ago as
1888—appear
to have been absorbed in the examinat ion of innumerable compla ints ; a t a l l events , tha t
is not the v iew taken in the Report ( the only one publ ished) by Consul Pickersgi l l , who,
by the mere fac t of g iv ing an account of h is journey in to the in te rior of the Congo as
far as Stanley Fa l ls , d isproves the a l leged impossib i l i ty for the Engl ish Consular Agents
to form an opinion de visu in regard to every part of the ir d ist r ic t .
W ith regard to the charges aga inst the administ ra t ive system of the Sta te , the note
dea ls with taxes, publ ic a rmed forces, and what is te rmed forced labour.
I t i s , a t bot tom, the contr ibut ions made by the Congo na t ives to the publ ic charges
which a re c r i t ic ized , as i f there existed a single country or Colony in which the inhab i tants
do not , under one form or another , bear a part in such charges. A Sta te withou t resources
is inconce ivable . On what legi t imate grounds could the exemption of na t ives from a l l taxes
be based , see ing tha t they a re the f i rst to benefi t by the materia l and mora l advantages
in troduced in to Africa
?
As they have no money, a contr ibut ion in the shape of labou r
is required from them. I t has been sa id tha t , i f Africa is ever to be redeemed from
barbaris m, i t must be by ge t t ing the negro to understand the me aning of work b y
the obl iga t ion of paying taxes :—
" It i s a quest ion (of na t ive labour) which has engaged my most careful a t tent ion in
connec t ion with W est Africa and o ther Colonies. To l isten to the r ight ho nourab le
gent leman, you would a lmost th ink that i t would be a good th ing for the na t ive to be
idle. I think it is a good thing for h im to be industr ious ; and by every means in our
power we must teach him to work Ho people ever have l ived in the world 's
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history wh o would not work. In the in te rests of the na t ives a l l over Africa , we have to
teach
them to work."
Such was the languag e used by M r. Cham berla in in the House of Commons on the
6 t h A u g u s t ,
1901
; and still more recently he expressed himself as follows :—•
"
W e are a l l of us taxed , and taxed h eavi ly . Is tha t a system of forced labour ?
To say tha t because we put a tax on the na t ive therefore he is reduced
to a c ondi t ion of se rvi tude and of forced lab our is , to my mind , absolute ly r id iculous .
. . . . . I t i s perfec t ly fa i r to my mind tha t the na t ive should contr ibute something-
towards
the cost of administe r ing the
c o u n t ry . "
(House of Commons, the 9 th March , 1908.)
"
If tha t rea l ly is the last word of c iv i l iza t ion , i f we are to proceed on the assumption
tha t the nearer the na t ive or any human be ing comes to a p ig the more desirable is h is
c o n d i t i o n , o f c o u r se I h a v e n o t h i n g t o sa y . . . . . I m u s t c o n t i n u e to b e l ie v e t h a t , a t
a l l events , the progress of the na t ive in c iv i l iza t ion wil l not be secured unt i l he has been
convinced of the necessi ty and the d igni ty of labour. Therefore , I th ink tha t anything
we reasonably can do to induce the na t ive to labour is a desirable th ing."
And he defended the princ iple of taxing the na t ive on the gro und tha t " the
existence of the tax is an inducem ent to h im to work." (House of Commons,
the
2 4 t h M a rc h , 1 9 0 3 . )
M oreover , i t i s to be observed th a t in nearly every part of Africa the natives are
t a x e d . In t h e Tra n sv a a l e v e ry n a t i v e p a ys a "h e a d t a x " of
2 1.
; in the Orange Eiver
Colony he is subjec t to a "pol l tax ;" in Southern Ehodesia , Eechuanaland ,
Basutoland,
Ugan da , and Nata l a " hut tax " is levied ; in Cape Colony we f ind a " hut tax " and
a " labou r tax ; " in German East Alrica a lso a tax is levied on huts , payable e i ther in
money, in k ind , or in labour. This spec ies of tax h as a lso been app l ied in the Sierra
Le o n e P ro t e c t o ra t e , w h e re p a y m e n t c o u l d b e m a d e " i n k i n d b y rice or pa lm nuts , " and
i t has been suggested tha t work on roads and useful works should be accepted in l ieu of
p a y m e n t i n m o n e y o r p ro d u c e .
The lega l i ty of a tax is , therefore , not a ffec ted by the mode of i ts payment ,
wheth er in money or in k ind , so long as the amount is not excessive . I t i s certa in ly not
so in the Congo, where the work done by the na t ive does not represent more than
forty hours ' work a -month . Such work , moreover , is pa id for, and the tax in k ind thus
gives the na t ive as i t were some re turn for h is labour.
Paym ent of taxes is obl iga tory everywhe re ; and non -payme nt involves measures
of compulsion. The reg ula t ions under w hich the hut- tax is levied impose on the na t ive ,
for non-paym ent , such pena l t ies as imprisonment and forced labour. Nor in the Congo
is paym ent of taxes opt iona l . Eepressiv e measures have occasiona l ly been rendered
necessary e lsewhere by the re fusa l of na t ives to conform to the law, e.g., the d is turbances
a t Sie rra L eone , in connexion w ith which an Engl ish publ ic ist , speaking of the pol ice
force , sta tes :—
" Betw een July 1894 and Febr uary 1896 no fewer than six ty-two con vic t ions,
admit tedly represent ing a smal l proport ion of offences ac tua l ly commit ted , were recorded
against them for f logging , p lundering , and genera l ly mal t rea t ing the na t ives."
Further instances might be reca l led of the opposi t ion encountered among na t ive
popula t io ns to the inst i tu t ion of governm enta l regula t ions. Civi l iza tion necessari ly comes
into col l ision with the ir savage inst inc ts and barb arou s custom s and hab i ts ; and i t
can be understood tha t they submit but impat ient ly to , and even t ry to escape from,
a sta te of soc ie ty which seems to them to be rest r ic t ive of the ir l icence and excesses.
I t f requent ly happens in Africa tha t an exodus of na t ives takes p lace from one te rr i tory
to another , in the hope of f inding beyond the front ie r a Government less wel l
establ ished or less st rong , and of thus free ing themselves from a l l obl iga tions and r est ra in ts.
Nat ives of the Sta te may qui te wel l , under the influence of considera t ions of th is kind,
have c rossed in to ne ighbo uring te rr i tories, a l though no kind of emigration on a large
sca le , such as is re fe rred to in the Engl ish note , has ever been reported by the Comman
dants of the front ie r provinces. On the contra ry , i t i s a fac t tha t na t ives in the U pper
Nile region who had se t t led in Bri t ish te rr i tory have re turned to the le f t bank in
consequence of the imposi t ion of new taxes by the Engl ish auth ori t ies. Besides, i f i t i s
these te rr i tories which a re a l luded to , the information conta ined in the note would seem
to be in contradic t ion with o ther part icula rs furnished , for instance , by Sir Harry Johnston.
" This m uch I can speak of with certa in ty and em phasis , tha t from the Bri t ish
front ie r n ear Fort George to the l imit of my journeys in to the M buba country of the
Congo Fre e Sta te , up and do wn the Semliki , the na t ives a ppear to be prosperous and
h a p p y , u
f
. T he extent to which they were bui ld ing the ir v i l lages and cul t iva t ing the ir
p lanta t ion s with in the prec inc ts of For t M beni showed tha t they had no fear of the
B e l g i a n s . " .
13
Major
H. H. Gibbons, who was for severa l months on the Upper Nile , wri tes
:-—
'
" Having had occasion to know many off icers , and to v isi t the ir sta t ions in th e
Congo Sta te , I am convinced tha t
their
behaviour has been much misunderstood by the
press. I have quoted as a proof' my experience , which is a t variance with an a rt ic le
recent ly publ ished in the Engl ish press,
in
which they
are
accused of grea t c rue l t ies."
The dec lara t ion of last June , of which a copy is inc losed , has d isposed of the
cri t ic isms direc ted aga inst the publ ic forces of the Sta te , by point ing out tha t recrui tment
for them is regula ted by law, and tha t i t
is
only one man in every 10,000 who is affected.
To say tha t " the
method
of obtaining men. for military service is often but little different
from tha t formerly employed to obta in slaves " is to misu nderstand the careful ly draw n
regula t ions which have , on the contra ry , been issued to check abuses. Levies take p lace
in each district; the d ist r ic t Commissioners se t t le the mode of conscrip t ion in agreem ent
with the na t ive Chiefs. Volun tary enl istment , and num erous re -enl istments, easi ly f i ll
up the ranks, which only reach , a l l to ld , the modera te to ta l of 15 ,000 men.
Those who a l lege ,
as
t h e n o t e say s , t h a t " t h e
men
composing the a rmed force of
the Sta te were in many cases recrui ted from the most warl ike and savage t r ibes" must be
unaware tha t the publ ic forces a re recrui ted from every province , and from the whole
popula t ion. I t is inconce ivable tha t the autho ri t ies of a Sta te , wi th due regard to i ts
in te rests , should form an a rmy out of undisc ip l ined and savage e lements, and instances a re
to be found—such as- the excesses sa id to hav e been pe rpe tra ted b y i rregular levies in
Uganda , and the revol ts which formerly occurred in the Congo—which , on ihe c o n t r a ry ,
render i t necessary tha t spec ia l care should be exerc ised in ra ising a rmed forces. The
European establ ishment , consist ing of Belgian , I ta l ian , Swedish , Norwegian , and Danish
officers, maintains st r ic t d isc ip l ine , and i t would be va in to seek the ac tua l fac ts a l luded
to in the assert ion tha t the soldie rs "no t infrequen t ly te rrorized over the ir ow n off icers."
Such an assert ion is as unfoun ded as the one " tha t compulsion is often exerc ised by
irresponsible na t ive soldie rs , uncontrol led by an Euro pean off icer." For a long t ime
past the authori t ies have been a l ive to the danger a r ising from the existence of sta t ions
of negro soldie rs , who inevi tably abuse their author i ty , as recognized in the Eep ort of
Sir D. Chalmers on the insurrec t io n in Sierra Leone . In the Congo such sta t ions have
been gradual ly abol ished.
Those who do not re fuse to - accept p a tent fac ts wil l recognize tha t of the
reproaches levied a t the Sta te , the most unjust is the sta tement " tha t no a t temp t a t any
administration of the na t ives is m ade , and tha t the off icers of the Govern ment do not
apparent ly concern themselves with such work."
I t i s astonishing to come across such an assert ion in a despa tch from a Governm ent , one
of whose members, Lord Cranborne , Under-Secre ta ry of Sta te for Fore ign Affa irs , sta ted
on the 20th M ay last :—
" Ther e was no doub t tha t the administ ra t ion of the C ongo Governm ent had been
marked by a very h igh degree of a certa in kind of administ ra t iv e deve lopment . There
were ra i lways, there were steamers upon the r iver , hospi ta ls had been establ ished , and
a l l the machinery of e labora te judic ia l and pol ice systems had been se t up ."
Another member of the House of C o m m o n s acknowledged—
" That the Congo Sta te had done good work in excluding a lcohol ic l iquor from thegrea te r part of their d o m a i n ; tha t they had establ ished a certa in num ber of hosp i ta ls ,
had diminished small -pox by means of vacc ina t ion , and had suppressed the Arab Slave
Tra d e . " '
v
However l imited these admissions, st i l l they contradic t the assert ion now made tha t
"the na t ives a re le f t ent i re ly to themselves, so far as any assistance in the ir government
or in their affairs is concerned."
Such does not seem to have been the conclusion a t which M r. Pickersgi l l , the
Engl ish Consul , had a rr ived as long ago as 1898.
" Has the welfa re of the African , " h e asks, " been duly cared for in the Congo
Sta te
1
? " H e a n s w e r s : " T h e S t at e h a s r e s tr i c te d t h e l i q uo r t r a d e . . . . . i t i s
scarce ly possib le to over-est imate the service which is be ing rendered by the Congo
Governm ent to i ts subjec ts in th is mat te r In te r t r iba l wars have been suppresse d
over a wide a rea , and , the imposi t ion of European authori ty be ing steadi ly pursued , the
boundaries of peace a re constant ly extending The Sta te must be congra tula ted
upon the securi ty i t has c rea ted for a l l whe live within the shelter of its flag and abide
by i ts laws and regula t ion s. . , . . Credi t is a lso due to the Congo Governm ent in
re sp e ct of t h e d i m i n u t i on o f c a n n i b al i sm . . . . . Th e y o k e of t h e n o t o r io u s A ra b s la v e -
t raders has been broken , and t ra ff ic in human be ings amongst the na t ives themselves has
been diminished to a considerable degree ."
This Eeport a lso showed tha t the labour of the na t ive was remunera ted , and gave
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f
due cr edi t to the Sta te for i ts e fforts t o inst ru c t the young na t ives, and to open
schools.
Since 1898 the genera l condi t ion of the na t ive has been
still
further improved .
The system of carr ie rs ("le portage à dos d 'homme") , the hardships of which ,
so
fa r
as
the na t ive was concern ed , were spec ia l ly pointed out by M r. Pickersgi l l , has
disappeared from those parts of the country where i t was most prac t ised , in consequence
of the opening of ra i lways. Elsewhere m otor cars a re used as means of t ransport .
The " sentry , " the sta t ion of negro soldie rs which the Consul c r i t ic ized , not without reason ,
no long er exists. Cat t le have been in trod uced in to every d ist r ic t . Sani ta ry Comm issions
have been inst i tu ted . Schools and worksh ops have mult ip l ied .
"T he na t ive , " says the inc losed docum ent ,* " is b e t te r housed , be t te r c lad , and be t te r
fed ; he is replac ing his hu ts by be t te r bui l t and hea l th ie r dwel l ing-places ; thanks to
exist ing t ransport fac i l i t ies , he is able to obta in the produce necessary to sa t isfy h is new
wants ; workshops have been opened for h im, where he learns handicrafts , such as those
of the b lacksmith , carp enter , mecha nic , and m ason ; he extends h is p lanta t ions and ,
takin g exam ple by the white man, learns ra t iona l mo des of agricul ture ; he is a lways
able to obta in medica l assistance ; he sends h is chi ldren to t he Sta te school-colonies and
to the missionary schools."
As sta ted in the House of Commons, i t i s only r ight to recognize tha t the materia l and
mor a l regenera t ion of Centra l Africa cannot be the work of a day. The resul ts so fa r
obta ined have been considerable , and these we sha l l t ry to consol ida te and deve lop , in
spi te of the way in which an e ffort is be ing made to hamper the ac t ion of the Sta te , which
in the rea l in te rests of c iv i l iza t ion should ra ther be promoted.
The Engl ish note does not show tha t the economic system of the Sta te is in opposi
t ion to the Berl in Act . I t does not meet the points of law and fac t by means of which
the Sta te has demonstra ted the conformity of i ts system of land tenure and concessions
with the provisions of tha t Act . I t does not expla in e i ther how or why freedom of
t rade—a te rm used a t the Conference of Berl in in i ts usua l , grammatica l , and economic
sense—is incomple te in the Congo Sta te because there a re landowners there .
The note confuses the u t i l iza tion of h is property by the owner with t ra de . The na t ive
who col lec ts on beha lf of the owner does not become the owner of what is so col lec ted ,
and na tura l ly cannot d ispose of i t to a th i rd party , any more than a miner can rob the
proprie tor of the produce of the mine and dispose of i t
himself.
These ru les a re in
accordan ce with the p rinc iples of just ice a nd are expla ined in numerous documen ts,
such as lega l opinions and judic ia l dec isions, some of which a re annexed. His
M ajesty 's Governm ent do no t deny tha t the Sta te is just i f ied in a l lo t t ing domain lands
to bona fide occupants, or tha t the na t ive has no longer any r ight to the produce
of the soi l as soon as the " land is reduced in to ind ividua l occupat ion." The dist inc t ion
is without lega l foundat ion. If the Sta te can par t wi th land , it is because the na t ive is not
the owner ; by what t i t le could he then re ta in a r ight to the produce of property which
has been lawful ly acquired by others ? Could i t be contended , for instance , tha t the
Lo w e r C o n g o Kailway Company, or the South Cameroons Company, or the I ta l ian Colonia l
Trading Company are , on the ground tha t they a re not a t present in occupat ion , bound to
a l low the na t ive to p lunde r the te rr i tories a l lo t ted to th em ? As a mat te r of fac t , more
over , in the Congo Sta te the appropr ia t ion of land s worked on Governm ent account or
by the Concessionary Companies is an accomplished fac t . The Sta te and the Companies
have devoted la rge sums, amount ing to many mil l ions of francs, to the deve lopment of the
lands in quest ion , and more espec ia l ly to tha t of the forests. There can , therefore , be
no do ubt t ha t throu ghou t the te rr i tories of the Congo the Sta te rea l ly and comple te ly
works i ts property , just as the Companies rea l ly and comple te ly work the ir Concessions.
The sta te of a ffa i rs then which ac tua l ly exists , and is establ ished in the Independent
Sta te , i s such tha t there is rea l ly no need , as fa r as the Sta te i tse l f is concerned , to dwel l
longer o n the theory se t forth in the note which dea ls in turn w ith the r ights of the
Sta te , wi th those of bona fide occupiers , and those of the na t ives.
St i l l th is theory ca l ls for the a t tent ion of the Powers in v iew of the serious difficulties
which would a rise were i t to be implic i t ly accepted.
The note lays down the three fo l lowing proposi t ions :—•
"The Sta te has the r ight to part i t ion the Sta te lands among bona fide occupants."
" The na t ives wil l , as the lan d is so d iv id ed ou t amon gst bona fide occupiers , lose
the ir r ight of roaming over i t and col lec t ing the na tura l fru i ts which i t produces."
" Unti l unoccupied land is reduced in to indiv idua l occ upat ion , and so long as the
produce can only be col lec ted by the na t ive , the native should be free to dispose of that
produce as he p leases."
* See Annex No. 1.
15
There is no single one of these proposi t ions b ut ap parent ly exc ludes th e o ther
two, and , as a mat te r of fac t , such con tradic t ions amo unt to a
denial
of the r ight to
grant Concessions.
If
bona fide
occupiers ever existed they have become proprie tors ; occupat ion , where
i t can be exerc ised , is under a l l legisla t ive codes, one of the methods by which property
can be acquired , and in the Congo Sta te t i t les of
ownership
deriv ing
from
i t have been
lega l ly registe red . If the land has never been lega l ly occupied , it i s wi thou t an owner ,
or , ra ther th e Sta te is the owner: the Sta te can a l lo t it to a th i rd par ty , for whom
such
allotment
is a comple te and abso lute t i t le . In e i ther case i t i s hard to see how
the fru i ts of the soi l can be reserved for any but the owner on the pre text tha t the
la t te r is not able to col lec t the produce of h is property .
By a curious contradic t ion i t
is
observed in the note tha t , as a consequence of
the a l lo tment of lands by the Sta te , the na t ives " lose the ir r ight of col lec t ing the na tura l
fru i ts ," and , on the o ther han d , tha t they re ta in the r ig ht of d isposing of these fru i ts
"
unt i l unoccupied land is reduced in to individua l occupat ion." I t i s di fficult to under
stand what is meant by a r ight which be longs to the na t ives or not according to the ac t ion
of a th i rd party . Ei ther they lost the ir r ights on th e lands be ing a l lo t ted , and in tha t
case they have lost the m en t i re ly and comple te ly , or e lse they have re ta in ed them, and
are ent i t led to re ta in them, a l though " the land is reduced in to individua l occupat ion."
Again , w hat a r e we to under stand by the expressions " bond fide occupiers and
" individua l occupat ion ? " W ho is to de te rmin e whethe r the occupier has bro ugh t h is
lands in to a sta te of individua l occupat ion , whether he is able to col lec t the ir produce ,
or whether it is still for the native to do so ? In any case , such a quest ion is essent ia l ly
one to be se t t led by munic ipa l law.
The note is , moreover , incomple te in another respec t . I t sta tes tha t where the land
has not ye t been worked by those who hav e a r ight to i t , the opt ion of working should
belong to the na t ive . Eig hts would thus be g iven to the na t ives to the pre judice
of the Governm ent or of whi te concessionnaires, but the note does not expla in how
nor by whom the wrong thus caused would be repa ired or made good. Thou gh the
system thus advoca ted cannot be appl ied in the Congo Sta te , as there a re no longer
any unappropria ted lands there , a t tent ion should be ca l led to the sta tement in the
inte rest of whi te men establ ished in the convent iona l basin . If i t i s r ight to t rea t the
negro wel l , i t i s none the less just not to despoi l the white man, who, in the in te rest of
all,
must remain the dom inant race .
From an economic point of v iew, i t would be very regre t table i f , in spi te of the r ights
regularly acquired by white men, the domain lands were , even temporari ly , handed over
to the na t ives. Such a course would involve a re tur n to the ir former condi t ion ot
abandonment , when the na t ives le f t them unproduct ive , for the col lec t ion of rubber , the
planta t ion of coffee , cocoa , tobacco , &c , da te from the day when the Sta te i tse l f too k
the in i t ia t ive : the export t rade was insignif icant before the impetu s i t rece ived from
Government enterprise . Such a course would furthermore certa in ly involve the neglec t
of ra t iona l methods of work , of p lant ing and of replanting—measures which the Sta te
and the Concessionary Companies have assumed as an obl iga t ion with a v iew to securing
the preserva t ion of the na tura l r iches of the country .
Never in the Congo, so fa r as we know, have requests to b uy na tu ra l produ ce been
addressed to the r ightfu l owners. Up to now the only a t tempts made have be en to buy
the produce which has been sto len , and the Sta te , as was i ts duty , has had those gui l ty
of these unlawful a t tempts prosecuted.
I t i s not t rue , as has been asserted , tha t the pol icy of the Sta te has k i l led
trade ; i t has, on the contra ry , c rea ted the materia ls which t rade dea ls in and keeps up
the supply ; i t i s thanks to the Sta te tha t , on the Antwerp market—and soon even in
the Congo where the possibility^of establ ishing t rade depots is be ing considered—5,000
tons of rubber col lec ted in the Congo can be annual ly put on sa le to a l l and sundry
without priv i lege or mon opoly , whi le formerly , in 1887, for instance , the rubb er export
amounted to hardly 30 tons. I t i s the Sta te which , a f te r havin g c rea ted , a t i t s own
expense , the materia l of t r