SPADE WORK IN NIGERIA

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 140, 14 June 1924, Page 17

SPADE WORK IN NIGERIA

**Addreea to the Legislative Council of Nigeria." :By . file Governor (Sir Hugh Clifford, GiO.M-G.). President of the Council; • Lagos': The Government Printer. -

His Excellency the Governor of Nigsria, the writer of very many works of travel aod Eastern life, has taken the somewhat nniumal courso for a Governor of lending to "The Evening Post" for review • copy of his address delivered at (lie second session of the Legislative Council of Nigeria, held at Lagos, West Africa, in February last. In a covering letter, Bis. Excellency states that he regard*, this book "as quite the most important contribution that I have yet made to the study of contemporary history o* to English literature." He rcfen to his former books relating to Malaya and the Malays as "at any rate ostensibly fiction," but the address is a book of facia, relating to a country larger than the combined areas of Germany, Holland, Belgium, and. two-thirds of .France, carrying a population of over 13,600,000 people, and administered by a staff of administrative officers whose doty strength at any given .time is never more than one such officer to every 70,000 to 80,000 of the indigenous population; and which is dependent alike for its administration and for its development upon an annual revenue of less than £6,000,000 sterling, The address, as printed, ■.consists of . 170 pages.' It deals of course, with the domestic affairs-of Nigeria, but in a plain, matter of fact style, yet telle little or ' nothing about the people- or natural; characteristics of Nigeria. Although much of interest' can be inferred about them from careful reading of the■work.

LORDLEVERHULME'S. CRITICISMS.

Sir Hugh Clifford' describes the' address as "my latest book." That description must stand;; although considered as literature it.is in. the nature of Hansard. But those who; have patience to study Hansard reports of Dominion' Parliaments ;-will be rewarded with -occasional humorous f passages and sometin>e3 some, ieally valuable information. It is so.in this address when Sir Hugh Clifford,is; dealing with LordLeverhulme. His Lorship' made statements relative to Nigeria' at the' meeting of Lever Brothers, Liniited, in London :on 12th April, 1923, -which (says'.his Excellency) ■were "reckless"' and which were "repeated in r an aggravated form" 'to the shareholders of the Niger Company in the following August." Lord Leverhulme is reported 'to have!said that the future o' West. Africa and.jts continued existence lies in'the .'hands of "bureaucratic and autocratic Government officials, .'w,ho interpret', their, powers .to include ' the vrorst features of our colonial Governtoent of two centuries ago, and which Ipsf to us our American colonies." Sir Hugh. Clifford describes these remarks is 'fancifully inaccurate." He says he knows' 'of.'no action of any West .African Colonial Government or of ' any. Qoyerninent official,, bearing any relationship -whatsoever J-fo an attempt to divert funds raised by taxation in the colonies and protectorates from the local to_ the', Imtierial)>treasury. The' three principal/We'Stf African colonies have recently, ieceiyed a liberal constitution conferring -upon the leading local commercial; interests connected with them a larger ■meaEur.6<of; political, representation; and a far'j.stronger voice in the determination-, of .priblic questions than they have ever in the past .possessed. These changes are not the result of local agitation,, but -through the,earnest 'advocacy of those-very officers of the Government to ■whom, Lord: Leverhulme alluded. Since'the:war the.franchise has been granted.for; the first'time in West African history to-the- inhabitants of certain principal centres1 of population. Lord Leverhnlirie'a .charges: of' extravagant and inefficient management of the expenditure and finances in West Africa are ■warmly met by Sir Hugh Clifford, who quotes figures to show that from 1913 to 1923 the expenditure, was subrtantially exceeded by the revenue, excepting the years 1915, 1916, and 1921----22. , '

„. DUTIES yON SPIRITS: , , There is a touch, of irony in Sir.Hugh' Clifford's explanation that the deficits of 1915 and 1916 were due to the loss of duties on potable spirits and compensation for .this had to be found in an export duty on produce, which.. Lord Leverhulme vehemently condemned. The Sear:* 1921-22 was the clump period when iigeria suffered similarly to New Zealand.- The export duties, by the way, to which Sir Hugh Clifford referred, were on ground nuts and palm oil and similar produce of West Africa. . They ■were' reduced, however, last November, bat'without them there is likely to be a deficit if the revenue is not made up iri some other way.' The taxation in Nigeria appears to have been described <is excessive,, because it was imposed on exports/ On-Sir Hugh..Clifford's showing, it ia very light on the people, some of ■whom. are. not. taxed at all. But those "who produce tiie articles exported dispose only of their surplus. In Nigeria . thebulk of them grow and manufacture theix own cotton, make their own pottery, provide all their own foodstuffs, and, when the occasion arises, forge their own weapons, tools, and implements in steel. They do not wish to be a great exporting' people as New Zealanders, for instance, with their enormous quantities of wool, meat, butter, and cheese sent into the world's markets in exchange for the world's goods.- Sir Hugh _ Clifford, then, ■ has evidently erred in the eyes of Lord Leverhulme in assenting to the Government of Nigeria taxing exports rather than the people. He shows how angry Lord Leverhulme ■became over the tax on raw materials— for that seems to have been at the bottom of "his criticisms of the administration of "West Africa generally. Sir Hugh Cliffords rejoinder is not pointed with anger but it is penetrating all the same. He is equally outspoken and convincing when dealing with Lord Kylsant (for° merly Sir Owen'Philippe), the great shipowner, who questioned, the wisdom of ■ the policy of the Nigerian Administration in holding and working its coal mines instead of handing them over to private, enterprise.- ' ' ;' .'■•

EFFECTS OF EDUCATION. As a book, the Address reads well, ghowing how many and curious are tho problems that present themselves for solution in a Crown Colony, but it affords rather fewer glimpses into Nigerian life and customs and scenery than the general reader- ■ will look for. Ono danger, however, is : apparent in remarks made upon ; educ3tion. -Speaking' of incentive -the \youiig-Nigerian'na-tive ■understands' it;" Sir'; Hugh-Clifford's experience has been' that-there 'is a, remarkable avidity for'education ..'ori-the

part of the young of all West Africa, but— . . : ;

Tha fact (says Sir Hugh) which too often emerges is that the child, so eager to learn "to' read and write and cipher, is primarily inspired by the hope that the. acquirement ol these acts will win for him. complete eman_cipation, from. manual toil to which release the satisfaction to be derived from the awful respect and wonder of his illiterate . elders adds yet an additional and powerful attraction. ' : ■ ;' . '

The results of this desire for education are now seen in the "deplorable rapidity" with which unemployable semiliterates are increasing and the excessive supply of coloured .clerical workers considering the demand. Herein seeds of trouble may be expected to germinate. Therefore, education in many Nigerian schools is being directed mainly to enable children to follow ordinary avocations, and only boys of exceptional ability are helped to take up a clerical occupation. Taken _ altogether, the Address as a book will well repay winnowing for the great amount of information of general interest that is contained in the official but necessary husks of Government reporte and references.