APPENDIX
429
The results of the intervention of European states in Africa are
remarkable. The alien nations have occupied, or secured control
over, more than 10,940,000 square miles of the total area (11,-
508,000 square miles) of that continent. The only two states in
1914 which retained their independence were Abyssinia and Libe-
ria — the former with an area of 432,432 square miles and the
latter with 40,000. From 1889 to 1896 Abyssinia was an Italian
protectorate; but it resumed its complete sovereignty in the lat-
ter year through the defeat of General Baratieri and the signing
of the convention of Adis Ababa. And, since 1906, its territorial
integrity and independence have been guaranteed by Great Brit-
ain, France, and Italy. The position of the Republic of Liberia
is also secured by treaties with the European powers and the
United States.
France and England control over three times as much territory
as their nearest competitors — Germany and Belgium. Their
possessions are, in the main, more fertile, valuable, and promising
than those of any of the other European states; and a large propor-
tion of their lands lies within the temperate zone. The French
Republic heads the list with 4,538,354 square miles — 921,000
more than Great Britain controls; but, since over a million and a
half square miles of the French possessions consist of desert, the
real value of their respective holdings is more nearly equal than
these figures would indicate. In fact, although it is at present
impossible to procure reliable figures on the actual value of these
African territories, it is safe to say that the British — by reason of
the enormous mineral wealth, the extensive fertile plateaus, and
the favorable climatic location of British South Africa — hold the
most desirable portion of the continent. The value of the Spanish
and Italian possessions is still very questionable; and, while some
portions of the regions administered by Germany, Belgium, and
Portugal are promising, it is still uncertain whether their African
colonial activities will ever pay.
As a commercial venture, African expansion is apparently worth
while. All of the states concerned have secured control of impor-
tant trade centers and have obtained extensive markets for their
home productions. The state governments have not themselves
reaped any great profit, except perhaps in the way of coaling sta-
tions or strategic harbors for their fleets; but their merchants have
gained enormous advantages in many ways. Outlets for the super-
fluous population of the Continental states have also been found:
