44 THROUGH ANGOLA 



midday. These Government carriers hi Angola 

 are paid at the rate of 60 eentavos for the lirst day, 

 40 for the next, and 30 for each succeeding day, 

 and their food (2 Ib. of flour) cost GO eentavos a 

 day when I was in Angola. The cost of a carrier 

 in 1920 was thus not far short of 100 eentavos 

 (1 escudo, or dollar) a day. 



An escudo ac par equals 4s. ; when I was in 

 Angola in 11)20 it averaged is., and as I write, 

 only Gd. At tlie latter rate the Angolan carrier 

 costs an Englishman less than he would have to 

 pay in most British African colonies, but a Portu- 

 guese, what to him is nearly 4s. a day. 



As it was diilicult to give any exact period of 

 employment for my twenty carriers, the Portu- 

 guese authorities kindly allowed me to pay these 

 men on completion of service, with the condition 

 that their pay be sent to the authorities and not 

 given to the men. The natives complain that 

 they see little of the wau^ earned in this way : 



\j T^ t/ 



that this money is either entirely appropriated by 

 the Portuguese ; or that only a portion of it is 

 paid to the carrier, and then in the shape of 

 trade goods bought from merchant friends of the 



o o 



authorities. 



There may be some Portuguese officials capable 

 of such petty larceny, but it is impossible to believe 

 that it is practised by the majority, who, though 

 poorly paid, appeared to treat the natives well. 

 The carriers may be influenced to buy trade 

 goods with the money they have earned ; such 

 purchases are useful to the Government in en- 

 couraging trade and in making the negro, who 



