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ON SLAVE TRADE (EAST COAST OF AFRICA)
27
Zanzibar. It so happens that there are now
two brothers, one at Zanzibar, and the other at
^uscat ; and it was under those particular conditions
that the award was made that one brother
^ûould pay a subsidy to the other, so that there
'yould be no reason for the Sultan of Zanzibar
declining the payment now, whereas there was
^^Gn a sufficient pretext for not forcing him to
P^y it.
340. The Committee asked you questions with
^®gard to the trade of Zanzibar on the last
Occasion, but I will now ask you this ; was the
^ade direct from England to Zanzibar ?—The
¡British trade is direct and indirect; on the whole
amounts to a little more than half the whole of
T® trade of Zanzibar, but that does not appear on
statement that has been published here by
Kirk, for he says in one portion of his Report
that the British trade appeared to diminish by
"^07,000 dollars ; that was in the year 1866-1867
poly ; and again, it is mostly British trade that
carried on by foreigners. The Hamburg
o^d the French houses send their vessels direct
^0 England, and import into Zanzibar British
OiGrchandise. The Arabs do not know where it
^îïies from ; they only see that it comes in a
r^^Gnch vessel, or that it is imported by a French
oouse, and they put it down as French goods,
^ot it is really English goods. The trade of
^^Qzibar with Great Britain is increasing every
day.
. ?4l. But that is principally in foreign bottoms.
It not?—Yes, and even in English vessels; the
O^de is carried on by Germans and French,
§Gnerally speaking. Within the last two years,
English house has been established. Messrs,
^^iseman & Co. have considerable trade with
^aiizibar now, and I believe they are intending
enlarge it very much ; but the Indian trade
J^ith Zanzibar, though it has really increased,
^ not increased in the same proportion as the
her trade ; comparatively speaking, it has dedî-Gased.
^ 342. How would the openino; of the Suez
Afi
affect the trade
opening
on the East Coast of
pírica ?—In former days merchandise was sent
Q Zanzibar, and from Zanzibar to Europe by the
p '^Pe ^ of Good Hope, in sailing vessels ; the
^duities now are so great viâ Egypt that steamers
, be employed. In former days merchants’
^Pital could only be turned over once in 12
^dnths; but now as the voyage through the
^'^nal only occupies, going and coming, about 75
it may be turned over three or four times ;
■'vib'^ "^ill be satisfied with less profits ; but they
ttiake quite as much, if not more money,
^^ougb being enabled to use their capital so many
^dre times in a year. I think that Austria and
will, if we do not pay attention to the
^Gr, derive more benefit from it than we shall.
Have you turned your attention to what
Yg ^®d you would recommend the English Goi^
^^Gnt to take to put an end to the slave trade
of y quarters, and with regard to the Sultan
Gnt ^^^^bar, to enforce the treaties which he has
Hig^^^^iûto?—Yes; my opinion is that strong
fQj.^P^’^Gs should be taken with Seyed Burgash,
^Oc man who will not understand forbear-H
strong measures cannot be taken, for
®bouTf ^Gasons, then I should propose that we
Os + ^ borce him, indirectly, to make a treaty with
hb^ ^ ^ stop to the slave trade, by menacing
bis fbe deprivation of a certain portion of
' 0 j^^dme that he derives, without having a
right to it, from our Indian subjects who carry
on the trade betw een Zanzibar and the coast.
The treaties say we are not to pay any export
duty ; the farmer of the customs at Zanzibar is a
Banyan British subject, and most of the men
who carry on the petty trade between the coast
and the island are Banyans also, who are
afraid of him, and of his influence • and he has
induced them to pay him the tax of 5 per cent,
on everything that is imported into Zanzibar
from the coast ; but in reality it is export from
Zanzibar, and it amounts to something like 36,000
dollars a year; this, if Seyed Burgash was not
particularly agreeable to us, w e might take away
from him.
344. By simply claiming the fulfilment of the
treaty ?—Yes ; having deprived him of this source
of income, we might hereafter say we would give
it back to him, as a compensation, if he made a
treaty with us putting down or limiting the slave
trade.
345. ^ii\ Kennawai/.~\ You mean allowing him
those charges which he makes illegally at present?—Yes.
346. Chairman.^ Is the Sultan of Zanzibar
the only Arab Chief that it would be necessary
to make terms with ?—No; there are chiefs on
the Somali Coast (on the Coast of Africa), between
Cape Guardafui and Zanzibar, whom we should
call upon to pay more attention to their treaties ;
and then again there is the Sultan of Muscat ;
and a great many of his subjects (in fact, most of
the Northern Arabs are his subjects) come down
purposely to carry on the slave trade. They
belong to the neighbourhood of Ras il Had, and
trade under his jurisdiction. I do not suppose
he derives any direct profit from the slave
trade (though that is questionable) ; at all
events, he might exercise his power over his
subjects to prevent them from going down to
kidnap slaves ; and when they go back with the
slaves, he would assuredly have the powder of
detecting them.
347. Have you any idea of the number of
slaves that find their way into Persia, and how
they get there?—Lately, in Bombay, I made
inquiry on the matter. There is a man of great
influence there of the name of Aga Khan, who
is the spiritual chief of the Mussulmans of Bombay
; and though I did not see him, I saw some
of his relations, and they thought about 3,000
or 4,000 slaves found their way into Persia
annually.
348. How do you say they get there ; they
go to Muscat first, I suppose ? — Yes ; they
are first taken to the coast of Arabia from Rasai
Had to the Persian Gulf, and from that they
are crossed over into Persian territory.
349. A former witness told us that at Muscat
there was an open acknowledgment of the existence
of a slave market ; do you think that is
the case !—I do not think there is, but I am not
quite sure. General Rigby would give the
Committee better information on that point than
I can.
350. Sir B. Anstruthe?'.'] Are those slaves that
find their way into Persia shipped from Zanzibar
and the ports adjacent?—Yes; they are shipped
from Zanzibar and the ports in that neighbourhood.
351. Chairman.'] Do any slaves find their way
into India ?—Yes, I have heard so.
352. As slaves?—Yes, as slaves. General
Rigby was political agent at Kuttawar for a
D 2 certain
Mr. H. A
Churchill,
C,B.
17 July
1871.
