60 
MINUTES or EVIDENCE TAKEN BEFORE SELECT COMMITTEE 
Mr. H. a 
Rothery. 
24 July 
1871. 
the disposal of the liberated slaves ?—Yes ; as a 
member of the committee that sat at the Foreign 
Office, our attention was a good deal called to 
that point. 
800. What is your opinion upon that subject ? 
—We thought it very desirable to make Zanzibar 
the receptacle for the liberated slaves ; hitherto 
they had been taken to Aden or Seychelles, and 
the Seychelles it appeared had as many slaves as 
they required. 
801. One advantage in having a depot of libe 
rated slaves at Zanzibar would be that the labour 
which is wanted in Zanzibar could by that means 
be easily obtained?—We thought that that would 
be so. 
802. That would tend to remove the objection 
of the Sultan to the repression of the slave trade? 
—We thought it would supply the wann that 
would be felt in the event of the slave trade 
between the main land and the island being put 
a stop to. 
803. You spoke of the Seychelles having as 
many slaves as they could accommodate now ; are 
not a large number of those who are captured 
children?—I have a difficulty in answering that 
question correctly. I do not speak from any per 
sonal experience on the coast, but I am inclined 
to think that on the East Coast of Africa the 
number of children captured in proportion to the 
adults is not so great as it used to be on the West 
Coast of Africa. I have the number of males 
and of females captured, and that is the only 
classification which the Returns at the.present 
time give. 
804. The Seychelles would be a good place in 
which to dispose of the children, schools having 
been established there ?—It would, and I believe 
' many children have been sent to the Seychelles. 
805. Has your attention been called to the 
effect of the bounties ?—I have to report to the 
Treasury whether bounties are due and payable. 
806. Have any difficult questions arisen as 
to whether bounties should be paid or not ?— 
The question was discussed before the Foreign 
Office Committee whether it was desirable to 
continue the system of bounties, or whether it 
would be better to give the officers and seamen 
rather larger pay when they were engaged in 
suppressing the slave trade. 
807. Did you form any opinion upon that 
point?—We referred to that subject in our Re 
port, but I confess that I have formed no very 
strong opinion upon the point ; it seems to me 
that the advantages and disadvantages are pretty 
nearly equally balanced. It is very much the 
same question as arises with regard to prize in 
time of war; there have been always two opinions 
on the subject; one,of fliose who hold that higher 
pay should be given to those from whom addi 
tional services are required, and the other, of 
those who hold that it is better that the captors 
should have the benefit of any captures they 
might make, as they would thus have an incentive 
to greater exertions. 
808. Is there any want of interpreters on the 
East Coast of Africa ?—We were informed that 
there was a great want of interpreters on the 
East Coast of Africa, and that they were very 
untrustworthy persons. 
809. How can that evil be remedied, in your 
opinion ?—I cannot answer that from any per 
sonal knowledge ; I understand that there has 
been evidence given before you to the effect 
that there would be no difficulty whatever in 
supplying the want of good interpreters. We 
thought one means of doing it was by paying 
them more highly, and at the same time not 
allowing them to share in the bounties. 
810. So as not to have an interest in misinter 
preting the evidence ?—Yes. 
811. With respect to the recent instructions 
from the Admiralty, probably you had something 
to do with advising upon that matter?—Yes. 
812. What has been the effect of those in 
structions ?—I think it has been to introduce more 
regularity into the captures than previously 
existed. 
813. And to remove any ground of objection 
on the part either of the Arabs, or of the Sultan? 
—I think so. 
814. Have they had any material effect in 
diminishing the number of captures of guilty 
dhows ?—That I can hardly say, for I do not 
know how many ships there are at the present 
time on the East Coast of Africa ; but certainly 
there have been fewer captures of late. 
815. Have you learnt whether there is any 
difficulty in distinguishing a legal trader from a 
dhow ?—I have always understood that there is 
very little difficulty in distinguishing between 
them, except in the case of legal traders, who do 
sometimes take a few slaves on board. There is 
no distinction in appearance, I am told, between 
legal and illegal traders, but when a slaver has a 
cargo of slaves on board, there is no difficulty in 
distinguishing whether they are domestic slaves, 
or whether they are slaves carried for sale. 
816. Have you been able to learn from any 
papers that have come before you, whether do 
mestic slaves are often taken to sea for sale ?— 
I should have thought not; I should have 
thought it exceptional ; the captain of the dhoW 
perhaps might, if he had a good offer for a slave, 
sell him, but I should have thought, generally, 
that the slaves he had on board would be so valu 
able to him, as hardly to make it worth his while 
to sell them. 
817. If they are trained for mariners at all, 
they would be much more valuable on the ship 
than on the main land ?—Many of these dhows 
have perhaps half their crews composed of slaves, 
and, if they sold them, I should have thought a 
master would have great difficulty in navigating 
his dhow home again. 
818. How do you know a domestic slave from 
a slave intended for exportation ?—1 have always 
understood that the slaves when they got to 
Zanzibar were well treated, that they became 
more civilised, and got into better condition ; 
whereas the slaves exported from Ivilwa, which 
is the chief port of exportation, are generally in 
a state of the greatest emaciation. 
819. Are the two descriptions of slaves dif 
ferently guarded ?—I should have thought so. 
820. Are the slaves for exportation in the 
hold ?—Yot always, I believe ; when they have 
only small cargoes of slaves that would not be 
necessary. 
821. Can you give us any assistance in sug 
gesting means for the suppression of the slave 
trade?—No other suggestions occur to me than 
those which we made in the Foreign Office 
Committee Report. 
822. From any information you have obtained 
subsequently, have you had reason to change 
your opinion at all ?—Not on any point. 
823-4. With