FIFTEEN YEARS IN AFRICA.

Otago Witness, Issue 2840, 19 August 1908, Page 67

FIFTEEN YEARS IN AFRICA.

A NEW ZEALANDER'S EXPERIENCES. There has jiist returned to .the Dominion for a few weeks a New Zealander who left Dunedin for Africa about 15 years ago, since when he has spent varying periods of time in practically every known and many unknown parts of that vast continent, for the '^nost part being engaged in mining pursuits, prospecting and endeavouring to locate where Nature has hidden her treasures in the way of v metals. The countries travelled through and lived in over those 15 years embrace Natal, Orange Free State, Transvaal, Portuguese East Africa, Southern and North-Western Rhodesia, Central Africa, Congo Free State, German East Africa", British East Africa, Abyssinia, the Soudan, also Egypt. Fifteen years in such countries, most of them but little-known, territories, and living among natives' and uncivilised tribesmen and never seeing a white man for months on end, the subject of this interview, courteously granted to a Times reporter, has had experiences that fallto the lot of bnt very few men. These are some of his experiences. " When I left here some 15 years ago and crossed from Australia to South Africa, I first spent some three years in Ihe Transvaal, then crossed over to Delagoa Bay, and then to Rhodesia. That was in 1895, just after the Jamieson raid. Then there occurred the Matabele rebellion, with the downfall of Allan Wilson's party. Allan Wilson was Cecil Rhodes's righthand man, and on that fateful occasion not a soul was left to tell the tale. The rebellion affected the whole country there, and I mad© my way back to the Transvaal. That was just before the Bow : war broke out. My next move was back to South Rhodesia The rebellion was then all over, but the Matabeles and Mashonas were not too friendly disposed towards the Britishers, neither were the Makorrikorris. I returned again to the j Transvaal, just Immediately before the' war broke out. The country was then ' in a very disturbed and unsettled state, j and I was told on all sides that war was inevitable. I was introduced to Advocate Esslen, at that time local advisor to the Crown at Pretoria, and also encountered Oom Paul at Johannesburg on the Park Railway Station, where he was addressing a crowd of Boers. He was just about to return to Pretoria, and wore a very distressed look. When war broke out, I left for Rhodesia, and in 1903 went back to the Transvaal, remaining there for about 12 months. I again returned to Rhodesia, and then crossed to Beira, in Portuguese East Africa. I there fell in with the Africa Lakes Company, traders and bankers, whose business .extends pretty well over the whole of Central Africa. From Beira I went to Chindy, and then north of the Zanzibar with Ziedeberg's galloping oxen., and crossed over to Zambesi River in native canoes. At that time the railway construction was being pushed on. Livingstown, through which I passed on my journey, is a very up-to-date town — in fact, in my opinion, 100 years ahead of its time. Since then, I believe., the site of the town has been changed further north, where there is better country to be had as background. £ continued travelling north, and went some 350 miles into the interior, following the course of the Zambesi. I was then in Portuguese country, and the inhabitants were natives, with an odd trader dealing in Tubber and skins. My expedition was in the direction of' exploring and prospect-

ing, and I bd a pretty big folio-wing of native '.'boys" with me. At this stage I located very extensive and valuable mineral-bearing localities. There was gold, copper, tin, antimony, and asbestos there, but I could do nothing in the way of obtaining concessions to work these rich deposits owing to the strictness of the Portuguese Laws. For one thing, to obtain concessions it means possessing an unlimited supply of money, with several heavy attendant risks. Sickness and fever were big obstacles to be contended with. Fevers of all kinds prevailed, and to keep horses was well nigh an impossibility. One's horse either fell a victim to the dreaded teetse fly, or during the night got .knocked doAvn and devoured by, lions, wiili which the country abounded. I continued to trek»farther inland, reaching -Blantyre, known as the Shire Island 1 ., This is a settlement of Scotchmen, whose principal occupation is coffee growing. Pushing on,- 1 came to Lake Nyassa, and then later on to Lake Tanganyika. -This brought me to the ' borderland of the Congo Free State, and I immediately • pushed my way into .it. I spent some , three weeks travelling through it, and found that the Belgians were not too friendly disposed towards, the British. They were engaged extensively in the rubber trade, and T had- not been there' - very long before I came across horrible examples of the Belgian atrocities practised on the- natives. ' T saw many who had been jvery cruelly treated indeed by the Belgian officials. Some were minus their hands, some had legs, and ears cut off, and others had their eyes missing. I asked the native's what and who were i responsible for, these .terrible atrocities, and they informed ,me that in the * majority of cases it was the work of the Belgian officials in connection with , the rubber trade. In some instances crocodiles accounted, for missing limbs. The' Belgians were extremely jealous of theircountry and viewed with extreme dis* favour and distrust any invasion of it by a Britisher. At -the time of my visit? there I found that " on the north-eastern " boundary of the Congo Free State; also on the south and .east frontiers, the 1 Belgians were building forts. This put! me very much in mind of the Boers-, when I found them about the time of my firßt visit to the Transvaal building fortresses and making other protective preparations. I had not been in the' Congo Free State very long when I was ordered out of. the country for trass-, gressing- the laws of the- land. I had shot! - an elephant, and was immediately . given 24 'Hours to -quit.- I ' accord* mgly pushed on . and - did someithree Weeks trekking, having about 160 natives with nfe. I made my way intqf,, German East Africa, and the' Germans, there treated me pretty "well. I found fl-* flourishing town of some 16 years' eatab* lishment- in Dar es Salaam, which is the" capital city, and which bad a population ■ of about £000 or- 9000, including whites aird blacks. The only thing I had tot '- find wrong with the Germans was thatf they wanted too much. I prospected tha country, and found gold, petroleum, cm* nibar, and traces of pitchblende, but t3i« payment they demanded for granting con* cessions were excessively high. My nextf , move was through Kalima Njaro, on the borderland, into British Easti Africa. I visited .the shores of botbi lakes Victoria Nyanza and Albert Nyanza., Nairoba was one of the principal townst visited. British East Africa is not a poor* man's land. Everything favours the( capitalist, and aliens and foreigners have; a monopoly of the trade, and the Britisher^ are not liked. Five out of every seven; persons ace Germans ' and Jews. Mombasa and Zanzibar were both, visited, and* at the former I was introduced to tha Sultan of that place. He is a young man, about 24 years of age, and resides in el very fine palace. Italian Somaliland and* British Somaliland I 'next crossed into.i The ountry here is only fit for locusts. I travelled through Abyssinia, Soudan, andJ Egypt, pursuing a course up the Nile for a considerable distance. After visiting allf the northern towns and ports of interest! I set sail for London, and finally made my return to New Zealand."