| Show WHITE SAVAGES many stories have shave recently been get act afloat in europe to the detriment of the conduct of affairs in the congo free state an english merchant on the congo has sent these scandalous rumors to the manchester geographical society by ba whom they have been made public ubbe I 1 he e says s for instance that in alere breyn 1884 there were w more ore than fifty fi aty trading houses in the congo free state though now there are only eighteen stations open including those of the now new bel companies in banana at the mouth of the river the state and dutch house alone are left and the dutch traders would have gone away had they been able to do so the belgian companies are forming armed stations each protected by one hundred soldiers for trading purposes and the natives are to be forced either to sell their produce pro or to quit the country among end dinces which be quotes ot of wig mis a reprehensible conduct are the following A state official is taking home a slave that is to be presented presente 4 to the emperor of austria the state sends its soldiers on the road and into tb the fields to seize all the women that are planting they are then exchanged for so many carriers M as a ransom for a pr prisoner nor claimed so many sheep and goats goa aba and as these were not forthcoming it was proposed that the relatives should give him two female slaves eventually a young girl was given him whom he keeps as his concubine M another official murdered two negro boys la in three quarters of an hour by thrashing them to death the belgians inquired into this atrocity aej found him guilty he was waa lined fined since the trial the official has baa been promoted and Is ie now recruiting and looking for a new route to the slice alice of portuguese territory which the state has annexed the writer says bays that ahat the natives of a village called abu in indignation at the brutalities of the state soldiers killed four of them andl burned them A force of fifty five soldiers marched upon the village but were routed by toe the villagers and chased to their boats an old cripple was left by the natives lit la an outlying village and he was killed decapitated and sliced into pieces by the state soldiers the writer concludes cewe we hear bear of children of the tender age of 10 being outraged of old men mein being forced to carry heavy loads of motherland mothers mother and sand their babies being made prisoners the mothers assaulted and their babies exchanged for carriers of the written regrets of european officers that they cannot get more than fifty carriers for a mother aud and her babe and we are told that the prime movers in this so called civilizing power are actuated by holy motives by a sincere love for their fellowmen fel their black brothers othere br aj thu the king of the Bel belgians giand has recently bently been in london and he has had something to say in regard to these accusations cusat ions against the government of the congo state the substance of conversations with him is that though sad things have bave been done on the congo it should be remembered that not a few of the stories of atrocities have come to europe through enemies of the king and the state one individual who was about to visit the congo recently rece atly threatened the king himself that he be would make dreadful revelations if his majesty did not agree to bribe him with regard to accusations against the officials of employing slave labor and themselves being slave holders it should be remembered that when there are am so many officials scattered over an enormous area it to is not possible to keep a strict watch over every individual at the same time his majesty pointed out that the system pursued on the congo is essential essentially ly the same as that so successfully initiated by george mackenzie in british east africa many slaves are earning money in the service of the state with which they may purchase their own freedom on all sides the officials of the state with the trained forces at their command are coustant constantly ly keeping back the raiding arabs and freeing their captured slaves quite recently on the dyer alver sankuro San kuru deschamps naw arb a band of slave hunters As these would not submit unconditionally deschamps with native soldiers and five whites marched out of the camp to meet the arabs whom he attacked and utterly routed one thousand slaves were freed the forces of the slave hunters were scattered and the country was rid of their presence were it not for the occupation of the congo free state there could be little doubt that before now the arabs would have held the river as far as stanley pool in the camp of the arabs referred to was found a barrel of powder with the mark of a well known dutch house facts like these were adduced by the king to show that the free state to is doing good work the king added that it was true that the taxes and duties are heavy and are driving some of the dutch houses bouses to the portuguese side of the river he said however these taxes and duties are absolutely necessary to carry on the work of the state at first the state naturally treated its territory as its own property and worked its ivory and other resources in order to secure a revenue As the traders complained of this the king abandoned his bis monopoly only on condition however that he be should impose the taxes these were admittedly somewhat heavy and the latest decree has greatly reduced them his majesty hopes to make up for this reduction by the duties on imports authorized by act of the late brussels congress while spirits arms and ammunition are stringently dealt with the duty on other articles it to is maintained is comparatively light personal equipment clothing agricultural and industrial implements and other articles are admitted free these tariffs are only for a limited term of years and by the end of the period it will be seen how far they have benefited or injured the state even with them the king will probably have to pay from one third to one half of the expense of the administration col george W williams a colored man and a republican campaign orator who went to the congo about two or three years ago has published a pamphlet addressed to the king of belgians belgians in which he accuses stanley of scaring the natives half to death by means of tricks for the purpose of making them sign treaties for instance be says stanley would give his black brother an electric shock while shaking hands bands in order to impress him with the strength of the white man and he utilized burning glasses to show that the white man could if he chow chose cause the sun to fire the native villages lages williams accuses officers of the congo on 0 state government of taking land from the natives by force burning their towns enslaving their women and children and committing many other crimes he says women are imported from the portuguese coast for immoral pur purposes posts and that he has seen belgian officers quarrel over the choice of four comely young women who had survived an almost indiscriminate massacre of natives mr stanley laughed yesterday says the new york sun stin when spoken to about col williams pamphlet he said in 1884 williams came to me and wanted to go to the congo I 1 sent him to king leopold with a recommendation in which I 1 suggested that as an he was a colored man he might be of service for some rewn reason I 1 dont know what the king did not take a fancy to him and he did nit get what he be wanted he did however obtain permission to go 90 into the country I 1 saw or heard nothing of him afterward until the very night before I 1 sailed from england for this country last october that night at dinner sir william mckinnon president of the british imperial east africa company asked me if I 1 knew a col WU hams I 1 told him I 1 did and he showed me the pamphlet sir william told me that col williams while in the congo had bad had the backing of collis P huntington and was then seeking his bia sir williams lilliarn s permission to go into east africa this whole thing I 1 am satisfied was nothing more than a threat to king leopold that if he did not come to terms the letter would be published possibly sending the pamphlet to sir william was a hint bint that he might be written up too there are plenty of f persons who try to abuse the king some are offended at him bemuse because he has refused them the badge of some order but they are mostly belgians others other sare are hostile to him because perchance they have failed to get what tb they want in the congo and col williams seems to be one of them chicago mau mail |
