EAST AFRICA

Southland Times, Issue 25306, 8 June 1935, Page 19

EAST AFRICA

LIFE IN UGANDA BANKER’S IMPRESSIONS A traveller with an eye for beauty as well as for detail is Mr P. L. Fenton, of Uganda, East Central Africa, who, with his wife, has been spending a short time in Southland. Though hailing from Scotland, Mr and Mrs Fenton have spent nearly 33 years in Africa, where Mr Fenton has been in the employ of the Standard Bank of South Africa, one of the largest of the colonial trading banks. He has retired after many years as manager in Uganda of the Standard Bank. Interviewed by a Times reporter yesterday, Mr Fenton had much to tell of Africa, described by many writers as the “dark continent.” If that appellation is correct it was hardly borne out by the experiences of Mr Fenton who, transplanted from the hardy land of Scotland to the heart of the tropics, has evidently found his long sojourn in Africa most enjoyable. “For a lengthy period I served in the Union branches before going to Portuguese East Africa and Uganda,” Mr Fenton said in response to a. query about conditions in South Africa, “I do not profess to first-hand acquaintance with the south as it is to-day, but I do know something of the great prosperity brought about by the gold boom. Expansion Of Trade. "Conditions in South Africa are very good at the moment. The gold mines around Johannesburg have proved a wonderful asset, for they are producing about £6,000,000 worth a month. Thus about £70,000,000 worth of gold is being exported annually. “All classes are receiving the benefit. Not fewer than a quarter of a million natives are employed by the mines, apart from the European staff, while the local stores are prospering. Imports are mounting, and the last financial year ended with a credit balance of £3,000,000. Trade is healthy, buildings are being erected in large numbers and various towns are being extended. The farming community, too, is experiencing a respite from the depression. “The climate of this area is rather akin to Sydney and Melbourne. Johannesburg, in fact, is cold in winter, for the city is 6000 feet above sea level and piercing blasts often sweep over. It is a healthy climate. “There is not much activity in the diamond mines owing to a lack of demand, but no doubt this will improve again later.” Interesting Uganda. Pressed to speak of the British protectorate he left six months ago, Mr Fenton said that Uganda was a very interesting country and upset one’s preconceived ideas of the tropics. “It is a beautiful green country and, one might say, dominated by the great Lake Victoria,” he said. “This lake is as big as Tasmania, for it embraces 26,000 square miles! Often it is called Lake Victoria Nyanza, but that is really redundant for ‘Nyanza” is the native name for ‘lake.’ “Victoria Nyanza gives one all the atmosphere of being at sea, for it is subject to storms and its enormous expanse conveys the same sense of vastness. One almost expects to see a big ocean liner appear on the horizon. One would not welcome a wreck, for crocodiles abound round the shore. The Cotton Growing. “The principal industry of the country is cotton growing, this, of course being carried out by the natives, who have a population of three and a-half millions. The areas range in size from an acre to 10| acres. In the earlier stages of growth they present an exceedingly pretty sight when the plants bloom out like a rose, later growing into a pod. “The natives are not allowed to pack more than 801 b into a bag because if they ram the cotton in too tightly it is liable to break the fibre. The raw cotton is brought in to ginneries. I need hardly add that these have no connection with a popular tropical drink of that name! At these factories the raw cotton is de-sealed. Out of 1001 b of raw cotton comes only 30 to 331 b of lint. Last year 286,000 bales of lint were exported trom Uganda, mainly to Bombay and Japan. Uganda cotton is of a good length staple and well above average quality. The Commercial Centre.

“Kampala, 840 miles inland, is the commercial centre of Uganda, and is at the terminal point of the Kenya-Uganda Railway. The port is Mombasa. The railway rises at points to a height of 10,000 feet before dropping to 3500 feet in Uganda, the level of Lake Victoria. The service is good, as are the roads. “The white population of Uganda is 2500, but there is an Indian population of 15,000. There are some fine buildings in Kampala, the chief being the Law Courts, which were erected at a cost of £70,000. The Malaga Hospital, on one of Kampala’s seven hills, is one of the pleasantest native hospitals in Africa.

“Churchgoers in New Zealand would be surprised if they attended a service in the Anglican Cathedral there. It is built to accommodate 3000 people, but there are seats in the centre of the edifice only, so that the natives must arrange themselves on mats. The women dress very gaily in long robes adorned with broad sashes, lhey are very fond of brightly coloured Japanese silks, so that the scene is a colourful one.

“Entebbe, the administrative capital of Uganda, is a charming place. The residents. are all civil servants, the only non-official being the bank manager. The town is on the shores of Victoria Nyanza, and is a veritable gem in the midst of the tropics. The houses are delightful, set against gardens gay with roses and flowers, while there is an excellent golf course.

“The only drawback in this pleasant haven is the frequent appearance of hordes of tiny flies. These will swarm in in their millions from the lake and cause a temporary stoppage of social activities. Though harmless, they are most annoying and are so small that they penetrate even mosquito nets. Big Game. “Uganda abounds with big game. Not far from any of the towns there are herds of elephants, buffaloes, lions and leopards. In fact, several big game pictures have been ‘shot’ in Uganda. The Murchison Falls are in a sleeping sickness area which is also a game reserve. These falls are really the start of the Nile. “A trip up the river at this 1 point is rather an exciting experience. The gigantic hippopotami play about in schools of twenty, thirty, or forty, bobbing up their heads, yawning and going under again. The crocodiles often lie with their mouths open and little white birds called egrets fly into their mouths and pick their teeth!” Mr and Mrs Fenton came to New Zealand by a devious route embracing Burma, Java and Australia, and they are now enjoying a tour of New Zealand. “We visited Stewart Island on Wednesday, and are now sorry that we did not make arrangements to stay there a week,” said Mr Fenton. “Though we have lived for so long in the tropics we have experienced no real discomfort from the bracing climate of the south.”