CHAPTER VIII.

ON THE LOWER CONGO.

The Congo--The Congo Free State--Its political and judicial organization--Trade settlements--Instructions for aiding Stanley--Arrival of the _Madura_ at Banana--Transport flotilla--Boma--Camp at Matadi--Trial-march--Start to the interior.

The Congo claims the seventh place among the largest rivers of the world. It is nearly 3000 miles in length. In the volume of its waters it has no rival in the Eastern hemisphere, this being estimated at more than 50,000 cubic yards a second. In the magnitude of its current it is surpassed only by the Amazon. It rises in the high plateaux of Mouxinga, between 3000 and 4000 feet above the level of the sea, and forms in two different places a series of rapids. Its course through Central Africa is often obstructed by islands, and extending in width from twelve to eighteen miles, describes a vast curve which is twice crossed by the Equator. On either side it receives numerous affluents, and thus drains a river-basin, which in its area must be hardly less than half as large as the whole continent of Europe.

Long ago the Congo would have constituted the principal avenue to the interior had it not been that a succession of falls and rapids about 100 miles from its mouth completely paralysed all efforts for navigation. These rapids, until recently, have had the effect of making the Congo a sort of _cul-de-sac_, a den of slavers into which European merchants hesitated to venture with any design of forming settlements. When Stanley for the first time reached the western coast on his way from Zanzibar to Nyangwé, a few trade-depôts were scattered at long intervals along the shores of the lower river, and Boma, about twenty hours’ journey from the coast, was the outpost of civilization and commerce; for travellers who should risk any further advance there was the prospect of dying of hunger and of perishing in unknown districts where barbarism reigned supreme. This was ten years ago!

Such a discovery as Stanley’s could not fail to awaken the keenest interest. Here was revealed to the eyes of Europe a vast region in the heart of Africa, rich, fertile, and densely populated, and permeated by a colossal river-way, the mouth of which presented the exceptional advantage of being dominated by no European power. The opportunity for commercial enterprise was too fine to be overlooked, and accordingly, under the auspices of Leopold, King of the Belgians, a conference was held in Berlin, which resulted in the formation of the “Congo Free State” in the year 1885.

Since the date of King Leopold’s proclamation, announcing the establishment of the new order of things, European activity has produced large results on the Lower Congo. The conditions of existence are improving with singular rapidity, and a political organisation has grown into fair proportions without provoking any serious opposition from the native chiefs. The administration of the State is carried on, in the name of the King, by a Governour-General who has the control of every department with its proper staff, consisting of about 150 European agents distributed over twelve stations. There is a military force of about 1000 black soldiers recruited from the Haoussa of the Niger and the Bangala of the Upper Congo; these are under the command of Belgian officers and subalterns. On the lower part of the river a sort of police-inspection is maintained by the employment of six steam-boats, which are serviceable also, as occasion arises, for the conveyance of the officials. In addition to these there are five other steamers on the Upper Congo.

[Illustration: THE FORCES OF THE CONGO STATE ON DRILL AT VIVI.

(_From a Photograph by Dr. Allart._)]

To provide against such infringements of the laws of morality as seem to demand immediate repression a penal code has been issued; but this is only temporary in its character, and is to be replaced, as soon as experience will allow, by a more definite classification of crimes and award of punishments. The present is a transition state between the social anarchy of the past and the future reign of law. A court of justice is established at Banana, with a court of appeal at Boma.

A postal service exists, and the State moreover has entered the convention of the Postal Union. Offices of the civil service are open in three departments. To ensure the stability of property and to provide security for any investment of capital, a State Register has been established. In its general principles the Congo Land Law is founded upon the “Torrens Act,” a system which has been a practice in Australia since 1858, and has likewise been adopted by France, in Tunis. For the registration of titles to land plans have already been made, by a special survey, of all the districts on the lower river where there are any European settlements.

All trade on the Congo, as is generally known, is quite free. The State, by its international agreements, is prohibited from levying either import or transport duty: its only privilege is to receive an export-duty on certain of the productions of the State territory, but even this is very moderate, and rarely amounts to more than four per cent. on the value of the goods.

The French were the first to establish any merchant-settlement on the Congo. In 1855, the house of Régis & Co. of Paris (now Daumas, Béraud & Co.) planted a depôt on Banana Point, which still retains the name of “French Point;” in subsequent years came the Dutch, followed by the Portuguese and English, and finally in 1885 by the Belgians.

[Illustration: GROUP OF KABINDA SERVANTS.

(_From a Photograph by Dr. Allart._)]

In 1876, just before the date at which Stanley first arrived at Boma on his way from the interior, there were upon the banks of the Lower Congo thirty-three factories and branch-factories. Ten years later, resulting mainly from the impetus given by the enterprise of the Congo Association, this number was nearly tripled, so that in 1886 there were eighty-five establishments on the Lower Congo alone. In addition to these fifteen other stations belonging to the State, either mission-stations or business-marts, completed the chain of civilising and hospitable centres along the line of the Falls from Matadi to Leopoldville. There are now nine stations upon Stanley Pool and ten upon the Upper Congo. Hence it will be seen that upwards of fifty new settlements have been made upon the banks of the river which ten years since might have been described as practically unknown.

Progress such as this bears striking testimony to the far-sightedness of those who from the very first recognised the Congo as a promising avenue for carrying civilisation into the heart of Africa, and opening the rich resources of the country to European trade.

There is no room for question that the Congo is the one great river-highway for Equatorial Africa. Either by its own proper course or by its larger affluents it leads to the confines of Katanga, Manyema, the Soudan and the basin of the Upper Nile. So great are the comparative facilities that it offers for transport, and so comparatively certain is the security that prevails along its course that, notwithstanding its wide deflections, it could not reasonably fail to be proposed and finally to be adopted as the route which should be taken by the expedition now fitted out for the relief of Emin Bey: nor was any one so likely to appreciate the advantages it offered as Stanley, who had himself been the first to make known its eligibility to the world.

Obviously all the European settlements along the river would be fresh starting-points for the expedition, while the river itself would convey their steamers and whale-boats nearly a thousand miles inland: added to this there was the assurance of co-operation of the local government, to which the following instructions had been sent from Brussels by General Strauch, the Minister of the Interior:--“His Majesty the King, having been requested to authorise the State to aid the relief expedition, undertakes to place at its disposal the _Stanley_ and two steel-plated barges for two, or if need be, for three months. It was with reference to this that I sent you the telegram on the 15th of January, desiring you to give orders that the _Stanley_ should be at Leopoldville on the 1st of April ready to ascend the river.

[Illustration: ARRIVAL OF THE EXPEDITION AT BANANA.]

“In addition to the agreement, the conditions of which I now forward, the King has likewise promised the English committee that Mr. Stanley shall receive whatever assistance our agents in Africa can give him, saving all detriment to the interests of the State.

“This is no legal contract in the full sense of the word; it is simply a promise made upon the part of the King; but His Majesty is most anxious that it should be fulfilled; he does not entertain a doubt that our agents in Africa, many of whom are devoted men, will exert themselves, within the limits specified, to give their co-operation, even though it should entail upon them a certain amount of trouble; and he trusts that all of them will be desirous of saying that they have contributed to the success of an undertaking designed to relieve valiant soldiers who are so endeavouring to retain the last corner of the Soudan that it may not fall back into the grasp of barbarism.”

In due time the expedition arrived. At eight o’clock on the morning of March 18th the _Madura_ steamed into the harbour of Banana and cast anchor in front of the French factory. Two hours previously she had been signalled in sight, and the entire population of the place, white and black, thronged to the quay to await the arrival of the ship and to give her welcome. In the harbour was an exceptionally large concourse of steamers; there were the _Héron_ and the _Prince Baudoin_ of the Congo State Navy; the _Cacongo_ of the Portuguese Royal Navy; the _Serpa Pinto_, belonging to the Portuguese firm of Valle and Azevedo; the _Nieman_, to the Dutch factory; the _Albuquerque_, to the British Congo Company; the _Angola_, to the English firm of Hatton & Cookson; a steamer belonging to the line of Woermann & Co. of Hamburg; and lastly the _Lys_, of the line of Walford & Co. of Antwerp, which was lying in melancholy plight on one of the sand-banks of the creek, where she had run aground two days before, through the carelessness of her captain.

No time was lost. Scarcely had the _Madura_ made good her holdings, when the leader of the expedition proceeded in a pilot-boat to shore, intent upon satisfying himself at once as to what means of transport were available. Stanley is not only a bold and enterprising explorer, but it would seem as if the star of his good fortune never fails him; and now again it was shining favourably, inasmuch as it was a most fortuitous circumstance that so unusually large a number of steam-vessels should be assembled at one time at Banana. Not the least difficulty arose in securing the necessary assistance; the controllers of the factories and the commander of the Portuguese gunboat were equally ready and courteous in helping to forward men and baggage to Matadi.

The arrival of Tippoo Tib on board the _Madura_, and his appointment as agent of the Congo State, was the cause of as much surprise in Banana as in Europe. He did not land with Stanley, but remained on the ship, where the hundreds of men that formed the expedition were drawn up in perfect order and discipline, singularly in contrast with the usual habits of negroes when associated in any numbers. Good training was already beginning to tell.

Next day the change of ships was effected without commotion or accident, and the flotilla commenced the ascent of the river past Boma to Matadi. The _Albuquerque_ and the _Nieman_ took the lead with the Zanzibaris and the Somalis on board; the _Serpa Pinto_ followed, carrying Stanley and Tippoo Tib; then came the _Héron_, and lastly the _Cacongo_ with the Egyptian detachment. In this order the steamers arrived on the 20th in the roadstead of Boma, where they stayed awhile, without shutting off their steam, to allow Stanley to make a short visit on shore.

For about a year Boma has been the seat of the local administration of the Free State, removed from Vivi where it had been originally established. It is also the residence of the Governour-General. The roadstead is very fine, more than half a mile in width and varying in depth from three to ten fathoms. The whole settlement is rapidly extending. Already its buildings of wood and iron, scattered along the river bank and running up to the high ground at the back, present an appearance that is exceedingly picturesque. Factories of various nations, Dutch, French, Portuguese and English, are erected on the shore, where also are to be seen the different departmental offices of the land-survey, the post, the customs and the shipping. Upon the high ground of the plateau, which is before long to be connected with the quay-level by a short railway, stand the house of the Governour-General, the residences of the public officials engaged in the works or connected with finance, the sanatorium, and the barracks for the garrison. Over the intervening slopes are scattered the quarters of the black dependents, little villages of Haoussa, Bangala, Kabinda, Krooboys, Kaffirs and Bacongo. Close to the river there is likewise a mission served by French priests; and a little lower down on the island of Mateba is a Belgian agricultural settlement founded by M. Roubaix of Antwerp.

[Illustration: VIEW OF BOMA.]

It is but a few years since the white population of Boma was under twenty-five in number; now, including Mateba, it must amount to about 120, of whom nearly half have some share in the administration of the State. Its black population, composed exclusively of soldiers and labourers on the Government works or in the factories, numbers not less than 500. The garrison is 200 strong, and is composed of one company of Haoussa recruits from the Niger basin and another of Bangala from the Upper Congo: they wear uniform and are armed with Schneider rifles.

Stanley’s stay on shore at Boma was very brief, and having received some of the chief Government officials who visited him on the _Serpa Pinto_, he resumed the voyage to Matadi, arriving there about five o’clock the same evening.

Matadi is a group of little European settlements on the left bank of the Congo, almost exactly opposite Vivi. There is a Government station, and a Dutch and a Portuguese factory. It is the starting point on the pedestrian route along the south bank to Stanley Pool, and will in all probability be the site of the terminus of the railway which is in project.

In due order the disembarkment was made on the following day. The expedition took up its quarters on an open plot of ground not far from the Portuguese factory. It was the first drill in the way of encampment. All the different burdens were collected together, including the sections of the whale-boat and the mitrailleuse. Besides these there were the Zanzibar donkeys provided as mounts for the Europeans and Arabs, and the herd of Cape sheep and goats that were destined to supply the table of the officials along the way.

[Illustration: BOYS OF THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF VIVI.

(_From a Photograph by Dr. Allart._)]

Before starting for good along the roadway past the rapids, which Stanley knew by personal toil to be extremely arduous, he resolved to make an experimental march out, and to have a preliminary practice in the method of encamping. Accordingly he gave the necessary instructions to his coadjutors, and the whole caravan being divided, as it has been said, into seven sections of over one hundred, each under the command of a European, it was conducted, baggage and all, to an open place that seemed suited to the purpose.

Mounted on a donkey that had been handsomely caparisoned for the occasion, Stanley took the head of the column. By his side marched one of his boys, bearing the stars and stripes of the American banner; an overt demonstration that notwithstanding his English birth, and in spite of his being in the service of the ruler of the Congo and in command of an Anglo-Egyptian expedition, he does not forget, nor intend it to be forgotten, that he is an adopted citizen of the United States.

Everything was done well and in order. The caravan unwound itself like a huge serpent along the river-bank, and received orders to make a second encampment near the station.

On another day, a trial was made of the Maxim mitrailleuse, which was pointed across the river and discharged with startling effect.

Four days were passed at Matadi, partly in organisation, partly in rest, the actual start for the interior being made on the 25th of March.

In the early morning, at half-past four, the camp was aroused by the sound of a shrill and piercing blast. This proceeded from a kind of marine fog-horn provided with a huge gong and worked by a piston, designed to be used for the daily reveillé. Instantaneously every one was on the stir, and for a quarter of an hour the hubbub and confusion of 800 negroes rushing about everywhere, shouting and gesticulating, were inconceivably great. Hard work had the eight Europeans of the staff, as they galloped backwards and forwards on their donkeys, to bring about anything like method; but they ultimately succeeded, and gradually calmness was restored, and the caravan was duly arranged in marching order.

In the vanguard were the Soudanese soldiers; then followed the Somalis, the Zanzibaris and the porters with their loads; Tippoo Tib and his people fell into their allotted place; the twelve sections of the whale-boat were distributed, each to be carried by two bearers, and the flocks were sent to the rear of the column. Then the various banners were unfurled and floated gaily along the line; the standard of the “Emin Relief Expedition” was in front side by side with Stanley’s American flag; then there were the standards of England and of Egypt; and besides these the Arab oriflammes, glittering with their inscriptions from the Koran. Thus was the caravan marshalled ready to start.

Another blast from the horn and the caravan was on the move. The Emin Pasha expedition had indeed set out for the interior!

It was now two months since Stanley had started from London; he had reckoned that if no impediment should arise to hinder him, he should in about five months arrive where he would be close to Emin’s quarters. Immediately before him now lay a journey of hardly less than 2000 miles, well nigh the same distance as there is between Madrid and St. Petersburg.