English Missionaries and Their Charges 



1 1 



English Missionaries and Some of tlieir Charges 

 From "The Congo and Coasts of Africa." Copjright by Richard Harding Davis 



THE TRUTH ABOUT THE CONGO* 



WE have been hearing so much in 

 the last several years of cruelties 

 and slavery in the Congo Free State that 

 three volumes just published on this part 

 of the world will prove very welcome. 

 The authors do not agree in their conclu- 

 sions. Mr Wack had free access to all the 

 archives of the Belgian government, with 

 permission to read private and secret re- 

 ports from governors in the Congo Free 

 State. Dr Frederick Starr lived for 

 nearly a year in the Congo Free State, 

 traveling 15,000 miles on its rivers. Mr 



* The Story of the Congo Free State. By 

 Henry Wellington Wack. With 125 illustra- 

 tions and maps. Pp. 634. G. P. Putnam's 

 Sons. 



The Truth about the Congo. By Dr Fred- 

 erick Starr. With illustrations. Pp. 129. 

 Forbes & Co. (Chicago). 



Congo and the Coasts of Africa. By Richard 

 Harding Davis. With illustrations. Pp. 220. 

 Charles Scribner's Sons. 



Richard Harding Davis spent several 

 weeks in the Congo regions and the neigh- 

 boring colonies of French Cameroon. 



Mr Davis declares that the worst stories 

 told of Belgian cruelties and murder fall 

 far short of the actual atrocities taking 

 place, while both Mr Wack and Dr Starr 

 emphatically deny these outrages, and it 

 must be admitted that they present a 

 much stronger case. They admit that 

 there are occasional instances of misgov- 

 ernment in the Congo, as in every part of 

 the world, but they assert that as a whole 

 the government is considerate, wise, and 

 effective. 



To quote from Dr Starr : 



"Of course, I saw much to criticise. It 

 is true that there are floggings, and chain- 

 gangs, and prisons. I have seen them all 

 repeatedly. But there are floggings, chain- 

 gangs, and prisons in the United States. 

 Mutilations are so rare that one must seek 

 for them ; and I had too much else to do. 



