The Council having granted permission, Momo Kabbia was 
called in and interpreted as follows :— 
‘ He calls me to interpret for him and asks me to interpret 
well. He is happy to sit here among you all; he is very glad 
indeed. He is speaking in Temne for me to interpret. This 
country that we are all living in now is Temne country ; it is 
part of Koya. When you came you met us all settling here, 
Formerly we used to sit together and talk. We used to sit in 
this part of the country. Your early friends are Pa Demba, 
King Tom, and King Jimmy. They were big men. Before 
you came here they owned the country, but friendship existed 
between us all. Then ‘you started to make the country pro- 
perly, the place was measured and we were handed small 
money. You settled from here on to Waterloo. But from 
Songo we do not know who sold that portion. 
"“ About the slave matter. We own slaves. We, all black 
men, are slaves, because the chiefs are the people Europeans 
bell not to do certain things. They give us orders. They say 
we must set the slaves free. Suppose we set them free, will 
we be paid? We work for the people and our slaves work for 
as. Since we chiefs entered this Council T have said nothing 
about anything, but, as to this slave matter, we do not agree 
bo it. If the slaves want freedom, they should redeem them- 
selves or they should be redeemed so that we can put the 
money into the bank. 
““ They say when the master of a slave dies the slave must 
be set free. How can the master of a slave die when he has 
got a child? He is only dead when he has no child. If a 
man gets money and puts it into the bank on the death of the 
owner, if he has no son the Government will take it. In the 
case of the master and the slave, the master bears children 
and the slave bears children also, they grow together and live 
as brothers. When the master dies his son takes the slaves. 
If on the death of the master the slaves are set free, who will 
work for the children of the master, who will support them, 
some of whom used to be young and unable to do anything? 
[f the slaves are to be set free on the death of their master, 
who will support and care for their young masters? 
“ We are all one, we all live in this country, we are friends; 
we paramount chiefs and you are friends. That is all I wish 
to say. I do not agree; if the slaves are to be set free, they 
should be redeemed. ’’ 
PARAMOUNT CHIEF Bar CoMBER : I cannot swear that I am not 
one of the slave owners though I am not without mercy for the 
slaves and justice for the owners. It has been said in the Bible