TRADE, REVENUE, AND TAXES
Among the earlier trading companies on the West Coast of Africa was
the house of Regis et Cie., established at Banana in 1858, whose
successors, Daumas, Béraud et Cie., were carrying on a considerable
business when Stanley explored inland from the mouth of the Congo in
1878. The old Dutch house, the Afrikaansche Handels-Vennootschap, of
Rotterdam, had a branch at Boma in 1860, and the Portuguese firm of
Valle & Azvedo, and the agents of Hatton & Cookson, of Liverpool,
opened trading depots near by a few years later. These firms had,
however, very little direct trade with the interior of the Congo
Basin, commerce in their early time being confined to the coast.
Trade with the interior is almost entirely due to the Belgians.
Before the Free State was founded the trade of Central Africa was
chiefly in slaves. As a Belgian writer quaintly observes, the slave
was at once the means of labour, the main capital, the vehicle
of transport, the common currency, and the usual tribute given
to satisfy the covetousness of native chiefs. The slave was the
standard of wealth and the element of power. In order to estimate the
influence of the slave trade as an economical factor in barbarous
communities, and compare it with the trade _régime_ of civilisation,
it would be necessary to imagine dealings in some object representing
all these uses in our markets.[26]
To destroy the slave trade creates the problem of substituting a
trade that is legitimate, that is founded upon the natural resources
of the country. It simultaneously creates the problem of _labour_.
The soil depends upon the man in the ratio in which man depends upon
the soil. The Belgians heard from Stanley what vast wealth the Congo
contained; but that wealth lay behind difficulties so great that no
one in Europe ventured to pursue it until the indomitable personality
of one man inspired men with the courage to undertake a seemingly
hopeless task. Without a railway from Matadi to Stanley Pool commerce
could not develop in the Congo Basin. This was Stanley’s opinion. His
judgment that the Congo had little value without such a railway in
the region of the Cataracts has been justified. The Belgians built
the railway at a cost nearly treble that of the original estimate.
In fact, while others have been groaning and droning and musing upon
the ethical theories of ideal colonisation and civilisation, in
pamphlets and innocuous books, the Belgians have followed their own
gospel of work and been at their task throughout the waking hours of
each day. Spontaneous initiative, timely energy, unremitting labour,
these appear to be the characteristics of Belgian dominance in
Congoland. Having regard to the habit Europeans have of considering
Americans the great exemplars of an age of materialism and hustle,
there is almost an element of humour in the fact that one of the
first Congolese companies formed under the ægis of the Free State
was founded by an American, General Henry S. Sanford, sometime
United States Minister at Brussels. This was the Sanford Exploring
Expedition, constituted by General Sanford and M. Georges Brugmann in
1887. Its business was that of dealing directly with the natives for
rubber and ivory, and it and the Mateba Syndicate and the Compagnie
du Congo pour le Commerce et l’Industrie are generally regarded as
the pioneers of organised trade in the interior of Central Africa. It
would seem, therefore, that the accident of a king’s friendship with
an American minister, whose wise counsel he often consulted, might
justify at least sentimental interest in the welfare of a region
where the restless spirit of strenuous American life had manifested
its tendencies nearly twenty years ago. Since the day when General
Sanford set the example, forty-eight Belgian and fourteen foreign
companies, with an original capital of 136,000,000 francs, have
established a commerce in Congoland which is attracting the envy of
some and the admiration of many throughout the world.
Before indicating the practical details of the trade and revenue
of the State, a brief glance at the ten years before the Brussels
Conference enabled it to create its support by levying import duties
will recall the fact that from 1878 to 1890 King Leopold personally
expended upwards of 3,000,000 francs a year for the founding
and maintenance of the State, irrespective of the meagre support
derived from other sources. Indeed, no one felt disposed to support
an African enterprise which promised to yield only “enlightened
niggers.” As Stanley sarcastically said in his lectures in England,
too many of his audience measured “civilisation” by the dividends
it produced. The inability of the Free State to support itself from
enthusiastic humanitarians outside of Belgium was significantly
indicated in 1886, when the _revenue_ of the State was less than
75,000 francs! The exports, chiefly ivory, were only 1,750,000
francs, and the Congo Association, when it was merged in the State,
possessed only thirteen stations. Out of two hundred and fifty-four
foreigners on the Congo in 1885-1886, only forty-six were Belgians.
In fact, nothing looked gloomier than the prospect of the new State
in the African jungle; and yet one man, with a superhuman sense of
the future, continued to pour gold and his labours upon that dark
and distant land with its thirty million unenlightened souls. Now,
when from a wilderness and savagery have been evolved civilisation,
a thriving industry, a prolific field and growing market, religion,
order, and prosperity, all that the early pioneer did is utterly lost
and forgotten in the noisy controversy over a rich spoil.
It was by the Brussels Act of 1890 that the State acquired the
right to levy taxes and impose customs dues. What Leopold II. had
expended on behalf of the State in its long formative period was
beyond recovery. It will be recalled that the Belgian Parliament
had sanctioned a loan to the State of 25,000,000 francs, 5,000,000
francs to be paid soon after the Brussels Conference, the remainder
at the rate of 2,000,000 francs a year. To this sum the King, having
abandoned all claim to the huge sum he had previously advanced to the
State, now added an annual subsidy of 1,000,000 francs. The State,
therefore, began the development of its resources with an assured
income of 3,000,000 francs a year—not a large sum when compared with
the responsibility of fighting cannibal slave-raiders with one hand
while tilling the soil, constructing railways, creating posts and
missions, and organising the State’s machinery with the other. Beside
the task in Congoland, the early American colonist enjoyed a holiday
in a land of greater security and healthfulness.
The revenues first provided were on the export of rubber and ivory.
These were fixed, after agreement with the neighbouring States of
France and Portugal, at ten per cent. The duty on vegetable products
was fixed at five per cent. Import duties were as follows: On arms,
ammunition, and salt, ten per cent.; merchandise of any kind, six
per cent.; on spirits, fifteen francs per hectolitre[27] at 50° of
the centesimal alcoholmetre; boats, machinery, and articles for
industrial and agricultural use were exempt till May, 1898, and
thereafter paid only three per cent.
The tax on caoutchouc (rubber) was first fixed at twenty-five
centimes a kilogramme (about five cents on two pounds) equivalent to
four per cent. on its value in Europe. When, however, the Cataracts
Railway was finished, and human porterage along the route from
Stanley Pool to Matadi abolished, the tax on rubber was increased to
eight per cent. of its European value. Another decree of the same
date (February, 1898) provided for the payment of a licence of 5000
francs by all persons establishing a rubber factory or depôt in the
domains. Other sources of revenue are coffee, tea, cocoa, gum-copal,
palm oil, palm nuts, rice, tobacco, maize, sugarcane, vegetables,
fruit, cinnamon, pepper, ginger, vanilla, nutmegs, cloves, and spices.
Great credit is due the local administrators of the Free State for
the progress they have made in a long list of cultivated products,
and the growth of the country’s export trade resulting from Belgian
and native co-operation and industry. For instance, in 1887 the total
exports amounted to only 1,980,441 francs[28], in 1891, 5,353,519
francs, and in 1903, 54,597,835.21.
[Illustration: Collecting Rubber in Forest of Lusambo
(Lualaba-Kassai).]
The following tables indicate at a glance the products imported and
exported, their comparison with previous years, and their value:
STATISTICS OF PRODUCTS EXPORTED FROM THE CONGO FREE STATE DURING 1903
———————————+———————————+—————————————+—————————+—————————————
| SPECIAL COMMERCE | GENERAL COMMERCE
EXPORTS +———————————+—————————————+—————————+—————————————
| Quantity | Value |Quantity | Value
———————————+———————————+—————————————+—————————+—————————————
|_Kilog._[29]| _Frs._ _Cs._| _Kilog._|_Frs._ _Cs._
Arachides | 328,463| 65,692.60| 461,652| 92,330.40
Coffee | 136,148| 129,340.60| 172,674| 164,040.30
Rubber | 5,917,983|47,343,864.00|6,594,804|52,758,432.00
White Copal| 341,883| 649,577.70| 342,317| 650,402.30
Palm Oil | 1,647,434| 971,986.06|1,848,092| 1,090,374.28
Ivory | 184,954| 3,791,557.00| 353,679| 7,250,419.50
Palm Nuts | 4,957,635| 1,487,290.50|5,909,900| 1,772,970.00
Cocoa | 89,365| 125,111.00| 89,365| 125,111.00
Beans | 740| 222.00| 740| 222.00
Maize | 4,750| 546.25| 4,750| 546.25
Rough Gold | 5| 15,000.00| 5| 15,000.00
Rice | 33,654| 16,827.00| 33,654| 16,827.00
Sésame | | | 35,810| 17,905.00
Tobacco | 235| 70.50| 235| 70.50
Wood | 5 m. 3| 750.00| 5 m. 3| 750.00
| +—————————————+ +—————————————
Totals | |54,597,835.21| |63,955,400.53
———————————+———————————+—————————————+—————————+—————————————
TOTAL VALUE OF EXPORTS FOR 1903
—————————————————————————+—————————————+——————————————
PLACE OF EXPORT | Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
—————————————————————————+—————————————+——————————————
|_Frs._ _Cs._|_Frs._ _Cs._
Free State | |
(Upper Congo) |51,790,451.05|{
Free State | |{54,597,835.21
(Lower Congo) | 2,807,384.16|{
French Possessions | |
(Upper Congo) | | 6,738,689.35
Portuguese Possessions | |
(Left Bank of the Congo)| | 1,293,043.47
German Possessions | |
(West Coast of Africa) | | 895,611.50
Portuguese Possessions | |
(Basin of the Shiloango)| | 271,840.18
Portuguese Possessions | |
(Sea Coast) | | 158,380.82
—————————————————————————+—————————————+——————————————
Totals |54,597,835.21| 63,955,400.53
—————————————————————————+—————————————+——————————————
COMPARISON OF EXPORTS FOR 1903 WITH THOSE OF PREVIOUS YEARS
——————————————————————————+—————————————————————————————
| VALUES
YEARS +——————————————+——————————————
| Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
——————————————————————————+——————————————+——————————————
| _Frs._ _Cs._| _Frs._ _Cs._
Second half-year, 1886[30]| 886,432.03| 3,456,050.41
Year 1887 | 1,980,441.45| 7,667,969.41
” 1888 | 2,609,300.35| 7,392,348.17
” 1889 | 4,297,543.85| 8,572,519.19
” 1890 | 8,242,199.43| 14,109,781.27
” 1891 | 5,353,519.37| 10,535,619.25
” 1892 | 5,487,632.89| 7,529,979.68
” 1893 | 6,106,134.68| 7,514,791.39
” 1894 | 8,761,622.15| 11,031,704.48
” 1895 | 10,943,019.07| 12,135,656.16
” 1896 | 12,389,599.85| 15,091,137.62
” 1897 | 15,146,976.32| 17,457,090.85
” 1898 | 22,163,481.86| 25,396,706.40
” 1899 | 36,061,959.25| 39,138,283.67
” 1900 | 47,377,401.33| 51,775,978.09
” 1901 | 50,488,394.31| 54,007,581.07
” 1902 | 50,069,514.97| 56,962,349.44
” 1903 | 54,597,835.21| 63,955,400.53
——————————————————————————+——————————————+——————————————
—————————————————————————+———————————————+——————————————
DESTINATION | Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
—————————————————————————+———————————————+——————————————
| _Frs._ _Cs._ | _Frs._ _Cs._
Belgium | 51,944,628.76 | 60,119,981.46
Portuguese Possessions | |
(Sea Coast) | 1,786,869.55 | 1,872,934.45
Low Countries | 415,558.85 | 1,293,801.56
England | 213,602.45 | 297,676.91
Portuguese Possessions | |
(Left Bank of the Congo)| 66,433.75 | 85,057.75
Portugal | 63,471.62 | 85,823.62
British Possessions | |
(East Coast of Africa) | 50,327.50 | 50,327.50
Germany | 22,074.48 | 103,797.78
French Possessions | |
(Upper Congo) | 16,269.75 | 16,269.75
France | 6,238.00 | 17,369.25
German Possessions | |
(East Coast of Africa) | 7,277.50 | 7,277.50
German Possessions | |
(West Coast of Africa) | 2,500.00 | 2,500.00
Italy | 1,312.00 | 1,312.00
British Possessions | |
(West Coast of Africa) | 820.00 | 820.00
Sweden and Norway | 287.00 | 287.00
United States of America | 164.00 | 164.00
—————————————————————————+———————————————+——————————————
| 54,597,835.21 | 63,995,400.00
—————————————————————————+———————————————+——————————————
STATISTICS OF GOODS IMPORTED INTO THE CONGO FREE STATE DURING 1903
_Summary_
———————————————————————————————————————————+———————————————————————————
| VALUES
GOODS +—————————————+—————————————
| Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
| _Frs._ _Cs._| _Frs._ _Cs._
Matches | 17,367.67 | 21,375.79
{Horned Cattle | 15,360.00 | 15,360.00
{Sheep | 2,197.20 | 2,197.20
Live Animals {Pigs | 48.00 | 48.00
and {Horses | 7,379.48 | 7,379.48
Fodder {Donkeys and Mules | 10,370.40 | 10,370.40
{Others | 227.40 | 227.40
{Fodder | 1,654.08 | 1,654.08
| |
{Cannons | 66,306.18 | 66,306.18
{Piston Guns | 34,788.66 | 48,541.45
{Flint Guns | 26,848.44 | 74,585.18
{Other Guns (Improved | |
{ Systems) | 68,215.97 | 90,044.50
{Pistols and | |
{ Revolvers | 10,295.82 | 12,347.82
Arms, {Charge Pieces | 23,516.53 | 23,834.71
Ammunition, {Side Arms | 1,356.26 | 1,356.26
and belts {Cartridges | 292,323.80 | 308,606.84
{Caps | 8,889.14 | 16,558.34
{Gunpowder | 167,024.44 | 271,145.04
{Ordinary and Blasting | |
{ Powder | 2,046.61 | 2,963.41
{Explosives | 48,183.67 | 48,183.67
{Sundries | 76,749.90 | 79,268.93
{Belts | 33,720.30 | 34,141.26
| |
{Steamers | 845,957.00 | 845,957.00
{Engines and Boilers | 30,920.00 | 56,332.83
{Charge Pieces for Engines | |
Boats, Engines, { and Boilers | 223,517.94 | 302,308.83
and {Boats and Sailing | |
Detached { Vessels | 66,950.00 | 66,950.00
Pieces for {Detached Pieces for Boats| 715,858.90 | 715,858.90
Boats {Canoes | 22,981.20 | 22,981.20
{Sail-Cloth | 5,216.44 | 6,553.18
{Anchors and Chains for | |
{ Navy | 2,585.71 | 2,848.27
{Wood for Masts | 120.60 | 120.60
{Other Rigging and | |
{ Apparatus | 8,781.91 | 9,302.88
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
N. B.—The _Special Commerce_ includes goods for consumption which are
declared directly they arrive, or at the time of their removal from
the warehouse.
_General Commerce_ embraces all goods which enter the territory
of the State that may be declared for consumption, transit, or
warehouse.
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
| VALUES
GOODS +—————————————+—————————————
| Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
| _Frs._ _Cs._| _Frs._ _Cs._
Jewelry {Gold and Silver Jewelry | 183.30| 183.30
and {Other Jewelry | 4,806.60| 7,144.68
Clock-work {Watches and Fittings | 11,315.99| 11,635.07
{Clocks and Alarums | 5,819.75| 5,963.75
Carved Wood and Wooden Objects | 287,143.01| 325,245.95
{Beer | 203,181.34| 207,279.72
{Brandy, at 50 Degrees or | |
{ Less | 96,725.40| 116,101.64
Liquors {Brandy, at more than 50 | |
{ Degrees | 113,987.22| 147,452.99
{Other Brandy (including | |
{ Liqueurs) | 85,148.69| 133,834.91
{Wines | 890,618.56| 1,053,073.73
Candles | 39,473.91| 49,133.16
Coffee | 16,041.49| 24,265.51
Camping Equipments | 60,143.52| 66,217.44
{Briquettes of Coal | 220,681.79| 220,681.79
Fuel {Coke | 103.20| 103.20
{Coal | 1,470.36| 1,470.36
{Charcoal | 1,574.83| 1,574.83
Rope, Cord, and Fishing Implements | 49,973.37| 54,429.73
Colours, Varnish, and Painters’ Materials | 90,181.70| 96,694.46
{Canned Meats, Fish, | |
{ Vegetables, Butter, Cheese, | |
{ etc | 2,117,536.81| 2,501,029.49
{Starch, Biscuits, Flour, etc | 378,337.04| 478,102.87
{Seeds (Beans, Oatmeal, | |
Alimentary { Lentils, Barley, etc.) | 8,696.69| 9,331.56
Provisions {Dried Fish | 516,216.60| 547,529.61
{Potatoes and Onions | 67,376.77| 73,211.63
{Rice | 412,772.93| 472,494.35
{Salt | 101,206.70| 132,471.30
{Sundries (Spices, Yeast, | |
{ Tea, etc) | 175,696.59| 220,038.06
Chemicals | 42,450.49| 46,085.27
Pottery and Earthenware | 51,218.48| 58,014.07
Seeds and Berries | 33,491.80| 36,869.80
Clothing and Lingerie | 1,112,571.28| 1,284,929.00
Harness and Saddlery | 35,262.87| 51,670.17
Oils, {Petroleum | 41,865.91| 44,597.69
Grease, and {Oils, Tar, Grease, Resin, | |
Bitumen {etc | 126,940.40| 133,992.10
Tools, Scientific Apparatus, etc | 126,258.93| 134,216.20
Machines, {Engines | 29,400.00| 29,400.00
{Cars | 46,073.88| 46,073.88
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
| VALUES
GOODS +—————————————+—————————————
| Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
| _Frs._ _Cs._| _Frs._ _Cs._
Machinery, {Machines and Various | |
Tools, { Machinery | 244,595.21| 291,491.21
Telegraph {Charge Pieces and | |
and { Accessories | 147,997.82| 150,092.90
Telephone {Various Tools | 300,770.38| 322,553.56
Apparatus, {Material and Apparatus for | |
Metallic { Telegraph and Telephone | 32,454.55| 40,776.55
Structures {Various Metallic Structures | 337,512.43| 340,782.43
| |
{Bricks | 2,098.38| 2,098.38
Building {Lime | 13,166.52| 14,541.84
Materials {Cement | 98,351.29| 100,560.41
{Other Material | 116,396.30| 128,908.61
Mercery and Perfumery | 135,047.31| 163,413.99
{Steel Bars | 596.46| 1,681.08
{Steel | 209.52| 2,292.10
{Steel Rails | 378,287.50| 378,287.50
{Steel Plates | 4,941.61| 7,587.61
{Other Steel | 1,335.60| 1,454.40
{Copper and Brass | 479,356.67| 522,850.66
{Other Copper and Brass | 21,452.05| 27,190.16
{Tin | 1,667.14| 1,979.14
Metals {Iron Bars | 885.32| 1,583.24
{Pure Iron | 2,772.24| 2,772.24
{Iron Nails | 55,678.83| 58,704.06
{Iron | 6,544.36| 9,386.68
{Iron Girders | 602.48| 602.48
{Sheet Iron | 68,334.43| 77,021.87
{Other Iron | 32,279.45| 49,102.97
{Mercury | 348.90| 348.90
{Lead | 1,489.99| 2,704.75
{Zinc | 6,792.88| 8,515.78
Furniture and Furnishings | 119,458.27| 133,537.33
Papers, {Account-Books and Papers | 73,873.84| 76,413.49
Cards, {Papers and Cards | 28,598.79| 31,743.82
Office {Office Stationery and | |
Stationery { Printed Matter (Sundry) | 115,664.81| 139,694.47
Chemical Products | 63,644.81| 70,509.15
Pharmaceutical Products | 224,577.48| 248,789.45
Ironmongery (Kitchen Utensils, Household | |
Articles, Sundries such as Copper | |
and Iron Bands, Mirrors, etc.) | 640,032.60| 784,079.20
Soaps | 91,364.23| 106,753.67
Tobacco {Cigars and Cigarettes | 80,874.89| 102,181.71
{Other Tobacco | 72,897.57| 91,313.90
| |
Tissues {Unbleached Cotton | 835,792.11| 895,633.90
{Bleached Cotton | 141,243.69| 180,482.79
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
| VALUES
GOODS +—————————————+—————————————
| Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
| _Frs._ _Cs._| _Frs._ _Cs._
{Printed Cotton | 688,813.04| 772,302.83
{Dyes, Cotton | 3,966,602.10| 4,632,076.80
{Other Kinds, Cotton | 123,052.95| 132,819.78
{Raw Wool | ...| 152.06
{Woollen Prints | 446.94| 446.94
{Woollen Dyes | 52,766.94| 54,174.68
Tissues {Woollen Cloth | 1,060.20| 1,060.20
{Other Wool | 48,863.76| 60,844.02
{Hemp and Jute | 190,920.12| 223,715.70
{Silks | 8,914.84| 14,228.44
{Velvet | 6,995.52| 9,330.42
{Shawls | 2,036.26| 7,083.20
{Carpet | 17,685.73| 22,616.82
{Awnings, oil-cloth, and | |
{ Tarpaulin | 58,068.92| 60,320.68
| |
Glassware {Glassware | 50,128.43| 58,606.07
and Fancy {Fancy Glass | 253,278.71| 324,955.06
Glass { | |
+—————————————+—————————————
Totals |20,896,331.02|23,933,375.02
———————————————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
_IMPORTS_
YEAR 1903
RECAPITULATORY TABLE, SHOWING COUNTRIES FROM WHICH PRODUCTS WERE
IMPORTED
———————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
COUNTRIES | Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
———————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
|_Frs._ _Cs._ | _Frs._ _Cs._
Belgium |15,699,535.09|16,524,451.18
England | 2,390,779.79| 2,790,509.07
Germany | 639,098.72| 781,608.72
France | 584,372.36| 1,724,921.27
Low Countries | 491,758.23| 975,031.13
Portuguese Possessions (Sea Coast) | 451,903.78| 478,443.69
Portugal | 155,500.81| 160,004.16
Austria | 110,976.30| 115,275.70
Denmark | 85,195.04| 85,607.06
Italy | 76,616.46| 81,730.76
Switzerland | 69,763.40| 69,857.22
———————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
———————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
COUNTRIES | Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
———————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
|_Frs._ _Cs._ | _Frs._ _Cs._
English Possessions (East Coast, | |
Africa) | 59,210.70| 59,210.73
Spain (Canary Isles) | 27,645.02| 27,645.02
Zanzibar | 13,301.28| 13,301.28
Sweden and Norway | 11,790.87| 12,077.07
Portuguese Possessions (Left Bank | |
of the Congo) | 8,245.69| 8,245.69
British Possessions (West Coast, | |
Africa) | 5,467.20| 5,467.20
United States of America | 5,274.33| 9,285.88
Senegal | 4,800.00| 4,800.00
Algeria | 2,647.20| 2,971.20
Spain | 1,141.55| 1,166.03
French Possessions (Upper Congo) | 731.28| 1,121.28
German Possessions (East Coast, | |
Africa) | 434.82| 434.82
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg | 84.00| 148.86
Republic of Liberia | 60.00| 60.00
+—————————————+—————————————
Totals |20,896,331.02|23,933,375.02
———————————————————————————————————+—————————————+—————————————
COMPARISON OF IMPORTS FOR 1903 WITH THOSE OF PRECEDING YEARS
———————————————————————————————————————+——————————————+——————————————
| VALUES
YEARS +——————————————+——————————————
| Special | General
| Commerce | Commerce
———————————————————————————————————————+——————————————+——————————————
| _Frs._ _Cs._| _Frs._ _Cs._
From May 9th to December 31st, 1892[31]| 4,984,455.15| 5,679,195.16
Year 1893 | 9,175,103.34| 10,148,418.26
” 1894 | 11,194,722.96| 11,854,021.72
” 1895 | 10,685,847.99| 11,836,033.76
” 1896 | 15,227,776.44| 16,040,370.80
” 1897 | 22,181,462.49| 23,427,197.83
” 1898 | 23,084,446.65| 25,185,138.66
” 1899 | 22,325,846.71| 27,102,581.18
” 1900 | 24,724,108.91| 31,803,213.96
” 1901 | 23,102,064.07| 26,793,079.37
” 1902 | 18,080,909.25| 20,699,723.98
” 1903 | 20,896,331.02| 23,933,375.02
———————————————————————————————————————+——————————————+——————————————
[Illustration: Church and Rectory, Matadi.]
These tables show what has provided the enemies of the Congo Free
State with a great deal of puerile prattle—an excess of exports over
imports which is more apparent than real. One of the bitter critics
who write from Liverpool repeats the charge in the press that the
Sovereign of the Free State is denuding the Congo of its natural
resources by exporting more than he imports. In this respect a German
writer in _Der Tag_, Berlin, September, 26, 1904, not at all friendly
to the Congo State (because it is diverting the Zanzibar trade of
the Fatherland), has some pertinent things to say of the excess of
exports over imports in the British colonies of South Nigeria and
Lagos. Herr Eberhard von Schkopp discusses the Congolese, British,
French, and German trade statistics in the following concise manner:
In 1901 the Congo State importations reached twenty-three million
francs whilst the exports attained fifty millions, and the transit
trade seven millions. This excess of exports over imports has been
turned to account to support the attacks—justified besides—upon the
Congo State’s system of government.
If that circumstance is of a kind to weigh in the balance, it ought
to be imputed as a ground of complaint against all nations carrying
on a practical colonial policy, and whose possessions export more
than they import. The Congo State is neither the only nor even the
first colony where this excess has been exhibited.
The exports of the English colony of South Nigeria have always
surpassed the imports. Here are the figures:
1896 1897 1898 1899 1900
Imports 750,000 655,000 640,000 732,000 723,000 pounds ster.
Exports 844,000 785,000 750,000 774,000 888,000 pounds ster.
Statistics of the trade of the English colony of Lagos:
1896 1897 1898 1899 1900
Imports 881,000 758,000 892,000 960,000 832,000 pounds ster.
Exports 975,000 810,000 882,000 915,000 885,000 pounds ster.
Here also, except for 1898 and 1899, the total of exports exceeds
that of imports. The case is the same with the commerce of the Gold
Coast and the Gambia.
The French colonies also—Ivory Coast, Dahomey, Guinea, and French
Congo—can also boast of having frequently had their exports higher
than their imports.
No one has ever yet pretended to make that a grievance against the
English and the French, and it must appear astonishing that the
favourable trade statistics of the Congo State should lead to an
attack on the system of its administration.
It would be very desirable if, following the example of the Congo
State, and as we have seen of the English and French colonies,
our possessions [the German] across the sea were to show exports
exceeding their imports. For a commercial firm that is the best
proof of success, and it cannot in any way be concluded from this
fact that the “poor” blacks of Africa are being exploited by
Europeans devoid of conscience.
But let us see if the Congo State exports really do exceed the
imports, and if so, by what sum. The exports of the State are
estimated in the tables at their value in Antwerp, after they have
been harvested, prepared for transport from remote parts of the Congo
Basin, stood charges of porterage, freight, export duties, taxes,
insurance, brokerage at the African and European terminals, and
merchant profits of an indefinite measure—in all, at least half their
European value. The original value of Central African ivory, rubber,
palm oil, gum copal, and other exports is, in fact, less than half
their market value in Europe. In other words, if the exports of the
Congo State were estimated at their value as they left the forests or
the native collector, instead of aggregating 54,597,835.21 francs for
the year 1903, they would show but 27,298,917.16 francs.
On the other hand, the imports, also estimated at their European
value, but having similar distances to undergo and similar charges
to bear, represent when they reach their consumers at least double
their invoiced European cost. On a proper basis of value in their
ultimate African market the imports for the year 1903 would amount to
42,792,662.04 francs. Thus the exports would stand at 27,298,917.16
francs, and the imports at 42,792,662.04 francs for the year 1903.
But even this is not a just comparison with the exports and imports
of the British colonies, inasmuch as in the colony of Lagos, for
instance, the imports include about sixty-five per cent. of alcoholic
liquors,[32] leaving the native the beneficiary of an aggregate
import of really civilising products of only thirty-five per cent. of
the total, while the Congo imports, containing only five per cent.
of alcoholic liquors, bestows upon the native legitimate products
for his civilisation to the extent of ninety-five per cent. of the
total of all the imports of the State. Deducting, therefore, from the
Lagos imports sixty of their sixty-five per cent. of gin, rum, and
whisky, thereby placing them on an equation with the imports of the
Congo, we find in Herr von Schkopp’s figures an arraignment of Lagos
“civilisation” which indicates where the real curse of Central Africa
abides.
The foregoing is an astonishing record of exports and imports for a
country practically developed in the short period which has elapsed
since 1886. Congolese products are largely sent to Antwerp and, as
the tables show, Belgium is by far the largest exporter and importer.
A few years ago England was the chief exporter to the Congo of its
cotton stuffs and other goods, but the same laggard spirit which
caused Englishmen once interested in the Anglo-Belgian India-Rubber
Company (known as the Abir) and other undertakings to abandon their
Congolese enterprises has lost England a large and growing market
in Central Africa. That the Belgians have developed the Mid-African
trade by dint of hard work, organisation, and the risk of capital, is
a state of things intolerable to those who have neglected and lost
it. The awkward English monetary system is alone responsible for a
large percentage of the world-wide diminution of British trade. All
other nations have shown greater adaptability to the characteristics
of foreign markets, and the capabilities and peculiarities of the
peoples who compose those markets. The Germans, French, and Americans
circulate their catalogues and price lists in the language of the
country where they seek a market and quote prices in its coin, giving
the equivalents in francs, marks, and dollars. British merchants, on
the other hand, have adhered to their ancient custom of employing
a monetary system so needlessly cumbersome that it can hardly be
attributed to intelligent origin.
Belgian manufacturers have patiently studied the needs of the natives
and have successfully endeavoured to supply them with the textures
and food stuffs, machinery, agricultural implements, and building
material which, being of simple construction, they are capable of
putting to intelligent use.
The mineral wealth of the country which prospecting during the
last five years has revealed in many sections of the Congo Basin,
it is not the purpose of this volume to more than mention. Fine
outcroppings of gold, coal, and copper have been discovered in
the Katanga district in the south-eastern corner of the State. It
has lately been rumoured in Europe that foreign prospectors have
discovered territory marvellously rich in gold near the borders
of British East Africa in the south, and again in the Enclave of
Lado in the north. On this subject, and the likelihood of early and
interesting mineral developments in that region, the Congo State
authorities appear to have considerable knowledge. They do not,
however, discuss the matter with any degree of candour. When the
secret of certain political phases of Congolese history shall have
been revealed, a connexion may be found between the mining and rubber
industry and the calumnious campaign now proceeding against the
State. But with that story, the present volume has naught to do.
The State’s revenue, consisting of import and export dues, tolls,
excise, and direct personal taxation, is indicated in the following
table:
——————————————+———————————————————————————————————————+—————————————
1902 | | 1903
——————————————+ Nature of Receipts +—————————————
Estimates | | Estimates
——————————————+———————————————————————————————————————+—————————————
_Frs._ | | _Frs._
3,000.00 | Registration Taxes | 3,000.00
70,000.00 | Sale and Letting of Domanial Land, |
| Timber Felling, etc | 20,000.00
|{Customs Duties on Exports, } |
|{ Frs. 4,550,000.00 } |
6,055,000.00 |{Customs Duties on Imports, including} | 6,150,000.00
|{ the Duties on Alcohol, } |
|{ Frs. 1,600,000.00 } |
580,000.00 | Direct Personal Taxation | 600,000.00
1,000.00 | Road Tolls | 1,000.00
125,000.00 | Taxes on Timber Felling | 140,000.00
155,000.00 | Postal Receipts | 155,000.00
55,000.00 | Maritime Rates | 60,000.00
25,000.00 | Judicial Receipts | 25,000.00
8,000.00 | Chancery Duties | 6,000.00
4,160,000.00 | Transport, and Different Services |
| of the State | 3,100,000.00
60,000.00 | Taxes on Portage | 60,000.00
15,452,000.00 | Proceeds from the Private Domain |
| of the State, from Tributes and |
| Taxes Paid in Kind by the Natives |16,440,000.00
1,703,000.00 | Interests and Dividends | 1,100,000.00
122,000.00 | Fees for Licences Granted to |
| Congolese Companies | 105,000.00
135,000.00 | Extra and Casual Receipts | 125,000.00
——————————————+ +—————————————
28,709,000.00 | Total Receipts |28,090,000.00
——————————————+———————————————————————————————————————+—————————————
It will be observed that by far the greater proportion of the State’s
revenue is derived from the State lands (_Domaine privé_), which is
fully considered in a succeeding chapter. Direct personal taxation
is a comparatively small item, being only 600,000 francs, or one
forty-seventh part of the year’s budget. Import duties, including
duties on alcohol, are only 1,600,000 francs, while duties on exports
amount to 4,550,000 francs. These duties were, as hereinbefore
stated, fixed by arrangement with France and Portugal on April 8,
1892, for a term of ten years, and by a protocol dated May 10, 1902,
extended until July 2, 1905.
The export duty collected on India-rubber and ivory under these
tariff agreements between the interested Powers are as follows:
Ivory, in pieces or sticks Frs. 10 per kilo.
Tusks of less weight than 6 kilos ” 16 ” ”
Tusks above 6 kilos in weight ” 21 ” ”
India-rubber ” 4 ” ”
“Personal taxes,” says Descamps, “are levied upon three bases: 1, The
area of inhabited buildings and enclosures; 2, the number of employés
in service; 3, the ships and boats used by tax-payers.” As to the
taxes _en nature_, levied upon the natives and already referred to in
a previous chapter, the Chevalier de Cuvelier, Secretary of State of
the Congo Free State, says in his official capacity in the _Bulletin
Officiel_ for June, 1903, that “it is as legitimate as any other
kind of tax. It does not impose upon the native obligations of a
different nature or heavier than the system of taxation employed in
neighbouring colonies, such, for instance, as the British hut-tax.
It is the native’s contribution to the public charges incurred by
the State in exchange for the protection given him. In the Congo
State this participation in the State’s support is light, seeing
that it represents on an average not more than forty hours of native
labour in a month.” It is the payment of tax in this form that the
State terms _prestation_, which, if literally translated, would mean
enforced labour upon roads.
In 1902 a general reduction of direct taxation was decreed. At the
same time the taxation of all religious, charitable, and scientific
institutions and enterprises was reduced to 50 per cent. of the
rate which prevailed when the State had no revenue from import
dues or from its domain lands. By a decree of 25th June, 1902, all
personal taxes are entitled to one-fifth reduction so long as the
State lands (_domaine_), tributes, and taxes in kind, yield the sum
of 17,000,000 francs annually. In order to develop and extend the
public highways, and works increasing the facilities of commerce,
religion, agriculture, etc., the native _prestations_ and their
proper distribution have formed the subject of numerous decrees,
all seeking to equitably adjust this form of taxation. One of the
later decrees, that of 18th November, 1903, provides, amongst other
measures protective of the native, that “In order to fix the tax
justly and equitably among the natives, the territorial chiefs must
take into account the nature of the work to be done, the age and the
skill of the natives subjected to the _prestation_, and finally the
obligation of the State to remunerate the natives for all work
done by them.”[33]
[Illustration: Native Carpenters at Work, Mission of New Antwerp,
1897.]
The items constituting the State’s annual expenditure throw an
interesting light on the subject of these native _prestations_ in
the Congo State. The State’s enemies found their charges of slavery
largely upon the fact that the State enforces this labour upon the
natives instead of imposing a tax _in specie_. In 1903 the State paid
to its European officials and employés in the Congo _force publique_
the sum of 1,800,000 francs, whereas during the same period the wages
it paid to natives in the same service amounted to 2,050,000 francs.
In developing the State lands at a cost of 6,014,790 francs during
that year, the sum of 2,802,190 francs was paid to natives as wages.
For extending agriculture and replanting India-rubber vines the sum
of 1,373,932 francs was expended in 1903. The following items, taken
from the table of expenditure for the same year, may be interesting:
HOME DEPARTMENT
_Frs._
The Administrative Service of Europe 165,000.00
The Administrative Service of Africa 3,180,310.00
The Army 7,701,765.00
Naval Expenditure 2,023,376.00
Sanitary Department 504,120.00
Public Works 1,081,885.00
Missions and Educational Establishments 121,425.00
Expenses relating to some Transports in Africa, not
Drawn up in the Budget 1,600,000.00
FINANCIAL DEPARTMENT
The Administrative Service of Europe 99,000.00
The Administrative Service of Africa 503,065.00
Agriculture 1,373,932.00
Exploitation of the Domain 6,041,790.00
Savings-Bank, Interest of the Loans and Guaranteed
Stock 1,656,228.00
FOREIGN OFFICE AND JUSTICE
Administrative Service of Europe 227,100.00
Postal Department 66,000.00
Navigation 140,200.00
Justice 910,000.00
Worship 250,000.00
The currency of the Congo Free State consists of copper, silver, and
gold coins and paper notes. The former are issued under a decree
of 27th July, 1887, which established the monetary system upon the
gold standard. The gold coins are of the value of twenty francs; the
silver coins are the five, two, one franc, and the fifty centime
piece. The copper coins are the ten, five, two, and one centime
pieces.
Paper Currency. By a decree of February 7, 1896, with the object
of facilitating business transactions between the different parts
of the State, banknotes of the State, payable to the bearer at the
General Treasury of the Congo Free State, in Brussels, were issued.
This decree sanctioned a first issue of notes to the value of
400,000 francs.
An order of the Secretary of State of February 8, 1896, limited the
value of the issued notes to a sum of 269,850 francs, comprising
2,000 notes of 100 francs each, and 6,985 ten franc notes.
Formerly, in the Lower Congo, agents of the State and merchants
were accustomed to give the natives, in exchange for their
services, a _mokande_ or cheque, which enabled them to purchase
what they required at the factories.
It is evident that silver, copper, and paper currency of the State
have a great advantage over the _mokande_ or cheque system, these
latter often being only payable at a fixed date and by certain
persons. At first the circulation of money was slow and difficult.
It was only with a good deal of trouble that foreign money was
displaced in the Lower Congo, and in the interior there was the
same difficulty in abolishing the custom of barter, and the usage
of the _mitako_, or brass wire.
Finally, to accelerate the introduction of State currency, the
Government decreed:
1. To pay the soldiers and native workmen in cash, and also to pay
in the same manner for all goods bought from the natives by the
State;
2. To stop all payments in kind at the stations of the Lower Congo;
3. To substitute for the rations formerly issued by the State to
the agents, an equivalent in cash, and so forth.
Immediately after the enforcing of these measures the State
currency began to circulate rapidly, and merchants no longer
hesitated to open retail stores, where the natives in the
employment of the State and commercial companies, and other natives
as well, came to exchange their money for European goods.
At the present time, in the region south of Stanley Pool, the
greater part of the commercial transactions between Europeans and
natives is carried on through the medium of the State currency, and
in the native markets it is no longer possible to purchase anything
except with the silver or copper Congolese money—the preference
being given to silver.[34]
The native’s love of tinsel causes a large quantity of the silver and
copper coins put into circulation to disappear from the sphere of
commerce. Congolese vanity manifests itself in many forms. Necklaces,
earrings, bracelets, anklets, and other ornaments are made of the
State coins, and worn by the men and women of all the tribes which
come in touch with the Congo coinage. Powerful chiefs are often
buried with many coins placed upon their bodies.
FOOTNOTES:
[26] Descamps.
[27] About twenty-two gallons.
[28] Reported in the _Bulletin Officiel_, 1898.
[29] 1 kilogramme equals 2.20 lbs.
[30] Statistics of exports were not taken until after July 1, 1886.
[31] The collection of import duty commenced May 9, 1892.
[32] The revenue of the British colony of Lagos for the last three
years available was derived as follows:
1898 1899 1900-1
_Fcs._ _Fcs._ _Fcs._
Alcohol 3,386,450.00 3,288,250.00 3,345,850.00
Tobacco 273,250.00 266,125.00 379,150.00
Salt 40,075.00 43,750.00 140,800.00
Cotton Goods 428,075.00 382,850.00 432,450.00
Other Articles 366,650.00 661,350.00 799,775.00
The following is a comparison between the alcoholic liquor imported
into Lagos and the Congo Free State:
_Lagos_ _Congo Free State_
Gin 463,380 gallons
Rum 129,780 ”
Whiskey 8,100 ”
_______
601,260 ” Total consumption = 43,300 gallons.
Thus for every gallon of alcohol imported into the Congo Free State
(1,000,000 square miles in area,) there are imported into British
Lagos (3,460 square miles in area), thirteen and seven-tenths
gallons, or as 5 per cent. is to 68½ per cent. of total revenue.
[33] Report of Vice-Governor-General, July 1904.
[34] Descamps.