ON SLAVE TRADE (EAST COAST OF AFRICA). 
49 
Wt it 
appears that Seychelles does not want 
V .^17. Would not there be a danger of their being 
idnapped by the northern Arabs^ if they were 
glided at Zanzibar ?—Our squadron must stop all 
; I found no difficulty with the 6,0001 emanci 
pated ; each slave had his own certifícate of emanci- 
Pation; I watched them pretty well ; I used to send 
g^^iard about the island to find if they had been 
kidnapped, and no complaints ever reached me. 
fil8. In fact you think precautions might be 
Y Gn to prevent any danger of kidnapping ?— 
when the northern Arabs came down, and 
prowling about, the slaves whom I had 
^berated, without any hint from me, formed 
i^iongst themselves a vigilance committee, who 
J^cd to patrol the town all night to protect the 
I^Y^cipated slaves; and they very often used to. 
'ake me up in the night if the Arabs had at-' 
^^^pted to take any of their children. 
Whose subjects are the northern Arabs, 
',ko chiefly carry on this trade ?- 
clu< - - •" - 
They 
are 
kefly the piratical tribes ; the tribes who in 
years gave us a great deal of trouble. 
^2o. Are they subject to any power?—That is 
kG difficulty in dealing with the slave trade; a 
niany of them are nominally under the 
■J^krisdiction of the Imaum of Muscat, but in 
^ality the Imaum of Muscat has no power at all 
^ Gr them ; he can do nothing effective. 
fl2l. q'o what ports do those northern Arabs 
Giefly take the slaves ?—A great many now go 
^•^cullali and Has al Had, and other ports in 
^kia, and a great many go to ports in Persia. 
o22. You think that the chiefs having control 
Gr those ports, would not have sufficient power 
^ stop the import of slaves, if they wished it ?—In 
paling with them I should send an English man- 
Pt'War round with proclamations in Arabic, which 
^vould have read out by the sheikhs and elders 
„ the tribes, giving them distinct notice that 
w k certain date the provisions of our treaties 
n', ^ kk those chiefs, declaring the slave trade 
Hiacy^ would be rigidly enforced, and that the 
yander of every dhow found with slaves on 
Card would be hanged. 
o23. The slave trade to Cuba was first effica- 
^ ciigiy stopped when we were able to station a 
j^.k^dron round Cuba ; do you think this trade 
gZSkt be more easily stopped if our ships cruised 
^he jDorts of entry instead of cruising off 
ports of export?—We should do both, and 
cculd be more easily done in this case on ac- 
.^^,kkt of the prevailing winds. The Committee 
^^ch sat at the Foreign Office suggests that one 
^.c®sel could easily watch the entrance of the Per- 
Gulf ; one stationed at Aden could easily 
^jkfeh the entrance of the Red Sea. It is during 
kionths when the southern monsoon prevails 
^ the slaves are carried north, and one vessel 
addition cruising off Socotra would intercept 
of those. Of course, the northern Arabs 
the 
it 
kiost 
SQ^kld persist for some time, but they would very 
k find that it was a losinj 
off the 
^ ijijcnj XU ,1 CIO cc trade. 
Do you know whether cruising 
the is unhealthy for the men?—ÎSot at all ; 
'VYg khinate is nothing like so bad as that on the 
kten kc^'-t, but it is an enervating climate ; the 
ßgkught not to be kept too long on the coast, 
kfte t ' ^kra short period the climate does not 
1 the men?—2io ; at the time when they 
a k not be required on service they have got 
to go to which has one of the finest cli- 
0 the world, viz, the Seychelles Islands, 
where they can get fruits and vegetables and 
fresh meat in the greatest abundance. 
626. Mr. Crum-EwincjYou mentioned that, 
at one time, a considerable trade in slaves was 
carried on with the French Islands ; is that en 
tirely given up now ?—We have no recent in 
formation, I believe, about that. Two or three 
years ago Lord Campbell carried a motion in the 
House of Lords for an Address to Her Majesty, 
to appoint a consul at Mozambique. I think 
it is a most unfortunate circumstance that that 
has never been acted on. J^ot only have we no 
consul at Mozambiqe, but the consulate at the 
Comoro Islands has been abolished, so that from 
Zanzibar to our own territories in Port Natal, 
there is nobody to watch British interests, or to 
interfere with the slave trade. In consequence 
of the ports in jMadagascar having been thrown 
open to foreign trade since the death of the old 
queen, there is such an immensely increasing 
trade in the products of Madagascar, that they 
have begun to import slaves into Madagascar 
very largely, in order to cultivate their rich land; 
and, although the Portuguese Government have 
abolished the slave trade in Mozambique, I must 
say I do not believe it is abolished, or will be 
abolished without a British squadron to watch it. 
Up to recently there was no trade whatever in 
the Mozambique dominions except the slave 
trade ; the whole business of the Portuguese 
population was men-stealing and men-selling. 
At the five chief ports, Ibo, Mozambique, In- 
hambane, and the mouths of the Zambesi, the 
only trade was in men. Large parties of half- 
caste Portuguese, led very often by Portuguese, 
scoured all the interior, and brought those slaves 
down to be sold. 
627. Do you think that slaves are still taken 
to Reunion ?—I have no reeent information about 
it. We have now a consul at Reunion, and I 
should think he would be able to state whether 
they are still importing slaves under the name of 
free engagées. 
628. IVhat are the products of the interior of 
the country about Lake Nyassa?—All sorts of 
grains and vegetables. In the valleys of those 
large rivers opposite Zanzibar, within the Sultan’s 
dominions, they are now cultivating sim-sim, from 
which most of our fine olive oil is made, which 
goes very largely to IMarseilles. In the last few 
years a great trade has sprung up in orchil la, 
which is a purple dye, and sugar is grown to a great 
extent. I believe very few people know what a 
fertile country that is. Baron Van der Decken, 
whose very interesting work has lately been pub 
lished, speaks in the very highest terms of the fer 
tility of the country, and of the opening there is 
for trade there. H e describes a good deal of the 
country, a little to the north, as being a moun- 
tainons country, very much resembling Switzer 
land, and he says the chiefs are very anxious to 
have Europeans come and settle amongst them. 
629. Chab'man.'\ You mentioned that Dr. 
Livingstone had found one district near Lake 
Nyassa where cotton was being cultivated ?—- 
Yes, the Manganga country towards Lake Nyassa. 
He describes the whole country as being a field of 
cotton, all the people of both sexes being busily 
engaged in spinning and weaving. 
630. Mr. O’CWoî-.] You think it useless to 
make treaties with the Sultan ?—From my 
knowledge of the Arabs treaties are utterly use 
less. I understand that some of the witnesses 
who have been examined have suggested that the 
G Sultan 
Maj. Gen. 
C. P. Rigby, 
20 July 
1871.