322 THROUGH ANGOLA 



In early days in Angola settlers took possession! 

 of any land they pleased without troubling to 

 secure titles, which were more difficult to regu- 



7 c5 



larize then than to-day, when an attempt is being 

 made to help the settler. 



But the Government has not even yet thor- 

 oughly surveyed the land. Concessions granted 

 before the land laws of 1911 were given frequently 

 on wrong descriptive titles, and this fact, together 

 with the large amount of unoccupied land border- 

 ing on estates, has led to a surreptitious annexa- 

 tion of rich unallotted land. Since 1911 intend- 

 ing settlers are compelled to peg out, roughly 

 survey, and describe the land before preferring a 

 claim ; and no concession is ratified until a com- 

 plete survey has been carried out by a Govern- 

 ment surveyor. 



The detailed conditions of land tenure, for 

 which I am indebted to the Zambezia Exploring 

 Company, are as follows : 



1. All applications must be made to the 

 Governor-General. 



2. No one person can obtain more than a 

 total of 50,000 hectares (125,000 acres) on one or 

 more blocks, but two or more tenants can associ- 

 ate themselves and join up with their blocks. 



3. The yearly lease payable for any quantity 

 of land taken up is $0*03 per hectare (2-i acres), 

 or less than halfpenny per acre per annum. 



4. Immediately the intending settler taks 

 up his land a conditional title is granted to him 

 for a maximum period of ten years. 



