Report from the Select Committee on Slave Trade (East Coast of Africa); together with the proceedings of the Committee, minutes of evidence, appendix and index

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Monograph

Identifikator:: 832922498

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-79587

Document type:: Monograph

Title:: Report from the Select Committee on Slave Trade (East Coast of Africa); together with the proceedings of the Committee, minutes of evidence, appendix and index

Place of publication:: [London]

Publisher:: [The House of Commons]

Year of publication:: 1871

Scope:: 1 Online-Ressource (XXIV, 242 S.)

Collection:: Economics Books

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34 MINUTES OF EVIDENCE TAKEN BEFORE SELECT COMMITTEE Sir B Freie, interfere with our national rights, though we G.C.S.I., may not think it very wise, viewed by our lights K.c.B. of political economy. Some of the Sultan’s most 17 July industrious subjects, some of those who are the main stay of commercial affairs in his dominions, are men of Indian extraction, who come there and are subject to poll taxes. 1 have no doubt it would be a wise measure, if he could afford it, to remit the whole of a poll tax of that kind ; but, I think, it should be left to his own sense of his interest, and unless there is some national question which enables us to say, “ You shall not tax our subjects,” we should abstain from interfering with him. 451. Mr. Churchill said, I think, that inas much as a treaty had been made by which certain duties ought not to be levied, but had since been levied sub silentio, there would be in our power the offering of a quid pro quo for his giving up the traffic ; was not that his evidence ?—Pos sibly that is the explanation. There are some six or seven preventive measures which, if the Committee will permit me, I will refer to. I he first seems to me to be to limit the transport from the main land to Zanzibar. As I understand the question, it is reasonable that we should for a time, at all events, offer no effectual objection to the Sultan of Zanzibar having such a number of slaves belonging to himself or his subjects, as he requires to trans port from the main land to Zanzibar, but that we should not allow that transit to be made a cover for slaves who are not really intended for domestic or agricultural purposes in the island of Zanzibar, but who pass to the sea, and so away to the northward ; and it is proposed to limit the transit to the export from one particular port. I should think from what I heard from the agents of the Sultan at different times in Bombay, and even in this country, that they would be very willing, if they saw their way clear to what we were about, to make that transit much more re stricted, and subject to much more stringent rules than appeared to be contemplated by the report of the Foreign Office Commission. For instance, I should think, if it were properly put before the Sultan, he w ould be very willing to have the whole legalised transit of slaves between the mainland and Zanzibar managed by steam-boats, with regard to the departure of which from the mainland and their arrival at the island, there would be much less doubt and discretion than there would be with regard to sailing vessels, and that every slave who was so passed should pass only under a permit which would come under the view of some authorised functionary of the English Government. 452. Sir iZ. Anstruther.'] That would diminish the export of slaves from the main land by about three-fourths, would it not ?—It would diminish the export of slaves to a very considerable extent. There is some difference with regard to the number required ; some authorities say between 1,700 and 1,800; others, and I think Mr. Churcliill, who has probably the soundest opinion, says nearly 3,000 or 4,000 ; but what ever it may be, I would give an outside limit; I would not attempt to draw the thing too tight at once ; if you limit the route by which they should go, you are pretty certain when you once get them to Zanzibar that you will have them more under your own view and your own con trol. Then I think you must be prepared when you are requiring the Sultan to cancel what he thinks a very valuable right to give him some thing in return. I think the means of doing so are afforded by the very peculiar position into which he has returned with regard to his relative, who is reigning at Muscat. The whole of the arrangements between the two kingdoms have been fully explained in the evidence which has been given in the last two days, and it amounts to this ; that the cost of carrying out in perfect good faith, as far as we are concerned, an arrangement which was very solemnly entered into a very short time ago under the authority, not only of Her Majesty’s Government in Eng land, but of the Government in India; I say, that the cost of carrying that arrangement out is in round numbers 8,0001. This arrangement affords the means, first of all, of keeping peace between Zanzibar and Muscat, and keeping both the branches of a very important family, a family to which civilisation and the English Government in India are under considerable obligations, in a position of honour, and in a position in which we should wish to see them placed, and where, if they understand us and act on their family tradi tions, they are quite certain to do very much what we ask them to do. It does not seem to me a large sum to pay, if it were divided between the Exchequers of England and India, for such very great objects. It is very much less than we have been in the habit of spending year by year for the purpose of putting an end to slavery ; and it would help to put an end to it in a natural and, it seems to me, a legal, as well as a very politic mode. It would give us a very great hold both on Muscat and Zanzibar. But our agents on the spot must know what the Government really intends to do, and must act vigorously as their predecessors have acted- The English Government has been extremely well represented hitherto, both at Muscat and Zanzibar ; and whenever our consuls have known what we wanted, they have given great effect, both by argument and influence, to • what the English Government required. That is the second point which I would urge, namely, that, between England and India, we should arrange for the payment for which Zanzibar is at the present moment bound to Muscat, and that we should take that as a stand point ; and, referring to the benefits which we have conferred : on both, say, “ Now in return for this you should do something that we consider desirable, and also for your benefit.” The third point is, that* I would place our consuls and the consulat service there, generally, on a better footing- Both Muscat and Zanzibar are extremely trying climates. The position is one Avhich wears out men very fast ; they are very ill paid, and they are almost without subordinate assistance ; they are especially deficient in the means of employ ing vice-consuls, and persons in that position at the outports. I have no doubt that if you wei’ß to deal Avith those gentlemen as the IndiaU Government has ahvays been in the habit of dealing Avith great political officers, and giving due weight to their representations, as to tb^ Avant of an additional outlay of 150 Z. or 200 Z. » year at particular places, for particular object?, I say I have no doubt that a little more liberality in that respect, enabling them to employ, nof necessarily English agents, but consular agent?, whether they might be natives of India, or Arab?, or Egyptians, you Avould find that they Avould ahvays have the means of knoAving what Ava? going

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