42 
MINUTES OF EVIDENCE TAKEN BEFORE SELECT COMMITTEE 
Thursday, 2()th July 1871. 
MEMBERS PRESENT : 
Sir Robert Aostrutber. 
Lord Frederick Cavendish. 
Mr. Criim-Ewing. 
Viscount Enfield. 
Mr. Gilpin. 
Mr. Russell Gurney. 
Sir John Hay. 
Mr. Kennaway. 
Mr. Kinnaird. 
Mr. Shaw Lefevre. 
Mr. O’Conor. 
Mr. John Talbot. 
Right Honourable RUSSELL GURNEY, in the Chair. 
20 July 
1871. 
Mr. Vivian read a letter received from Dr. Kirk on the 10th of June \hll—{Vide Appendix). 
Major General Christopher Palmer Rigby, called in; and Examined. 
Maj. Gen. 
C. P. Rigby 
530. Chairman.’] Were you at one time Consul 
• at Zanzibar?—I was Her Majesty’s Consul and 
Political Agent for the Indian Government nearly 
four years, from 1858 to the end of 1861. 
531. Had you previously to that been acting 
in any capacity which gave you a knowledge of 
the affairs of that district?—1 had been stationed 
at Aden for four years, where I studied Arabic 
and Persian, and the language of the African 
Coast, the Somali language ; and I had also been 
nearly two years up the Persian Gulf ; I was 
the^ magistrate at Bushire, superintendent of 
police, and Persian interpreter to the general 
commanding during the Persian War. 
532. Had you any opportunity of becoming 
acquainted with the proceedings of the slave 
traders previously to your being appointed 
Consul at Zanzibar ?—I had heard a good deal of 
the trade when I was up the Persian Gulf, being 
very much thrown amongst officers of the Indian 
Navy. 
533. At that time, that is before the year 
1858, was there any considerable slave trade 
cairied on up the Red Sea?—I think very few 
slaves indeed were carried up the Red Sea. 
There were always one or two vessels of the 
Indian Navy stationed at Aden, and they opera 
ted almost as a complete check to any slaves 
passing into the Red Sea. 
^4. In 1858, who was the reigning sovereio-n 
at Zanzibar ?—Syed Majid, the late Sultan. ° 
much communication with him ? 
—The British Consulate at Zanzibar had been 
closed 18 months before I went there on account 
of tlie death of my predecessor, Colonel Hamerton. 
I was the only Englishman there, and of course 
it took me some time to become acquainted with 
the slave trade ; every individual on the island 
was interested in keeping me in ignorance of it 
as much as possible, and it was only gradually 
that I became aware of the vast extent of it. 
. ^ suppose it has existed there for a long 
time, It has grown gradually from year to 
year ; but it is within the last 20 years that it 
has become developed to what it now is, 
53/. You found it prevailing to a great extent 
in 1858, as soon as you were able to become aC' 
quainted with what going on ?—Yes ; at that 
time the slave trade to the Persian Gulf and to 
the Red Sea, was not so active as it is now? 
because the chief number of the slaves, parti' 
cularly the adults, were taken away by the 
French. When I went there I found a most 
active slave trade carried on at Zanzibar itself, 
and along the coast by the French vessels, and 
at that time the French slave vessels went eS' 
corted by French men-of-war. 
538. Would those slaves be taken to the 
M auritius ?—To Reunion and to Mayotta. 
539. Did the slave trade increase or decrease 
during the time you were there ?—For sometime 
after I went there it increased very much. The 
French Government encouraged the trade ; the 
French Admiral used to say, we want labourers 
for our colonies, and we are determined to have 
them ; the French consul also gave his active 
sujiport to it ; not only was encouragement given 
to slavers under the French flag, but also to 
slavers under the Spanish flag. 
540. Has that state of things continued up to 
the present time ?—I brought this to the notice • 
of the Foreign Office, and I followed the subject 
up as much as I possibly could, but it continued 
till Prince Napoleon came into office as Porei^n 
Minister in France, and he issued very strino-ent 
orders prohibiting this slave trade, which^ did 
check it very much for a time, but afterwards 
they carried it on under the free engao-ées syS' 
tern. ® ^ I 
541. Have you reason to suppose that that 
has been continued to the present time ?—It waS 
checked afterwards by our Government entering 
into ail arrangement with the French, by which 
labourers from India. 
542. V\ as the principal part of the slave trade 
earned on at that time, that which was carried 
on under the French flag ?—In addition to that, 
theie was a great slave trade to Cuba under the 
Spanish flag. 
^ suppose has ceased before now ? 
AT entirely ceased. Large houses 
at Marseilles and Barcelona entered very largely 
inte