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SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XII. No. 308 



emigrated westward, and penetrated far into the interior, thus 

 giving Mohammedanism and Arabian influence a new impetus. 

 In the beginning of the eleventh century the new religion had 

 reached the great northern bend of the Niger, and since that 

 time this region has been' one of the central points and strong- 

 holds of Mohammedanism, and at one time the seat of high culture 

 and of science. It seems that about this time the Fulbe adopted 

 Mohammedanism. Arabian immigrants began to settle also on the 

 eastern slope of Abyssinia. They intermarried with the natives, 

 and founded a Mohammedan empire. The progress in Central 

 Sudan was steady. About the year 1600 Baghirmi had become a 

 powerful Islamitic state, and a little later Wadai had embraced the 

 same faith. While in the eighteenth century little progress was 

 made, a new period of advance dates back to the early days of our 

 century, when the Fulbe, led by the fanatical priest, Otmann dan 

 Fodio, attacked the heathenish Haussa States, and subjected them. 

 The two states Gando and Sokoto, and, later on, Adamaua, which 

 forms a portion of Sokoto, were founded. On the upper Niger 

 Mohammedanism made progress in consequence of the uprising of 

 the fanatical marabout El Had] Omar, who subjected the region 

 on the upper Senegal and Niger, and converted a great part of the 

 Mandingo. 



The Arabian supremacy over the east coast of Africa, which was 

 first gained about 1700 A.D., was lost again in consequence of dis- 

 agreements among the conquerors ; but about the end of the last cen- 

 tury the Sultan of Oman made an effort to re-occup}'' the coast, 

 which has been held by the Arabs since 1838. 



We have thus outlined the limits of Mohammedan Africa. 

 Mohammedan traders, however, penetrate much farther into the 

 interior, and with them the devastating slave-trade. It will be seen 

 from our map that the area of slave-trade in a general way adjoins 

 the Mohammedan area, and that it has almost invariably its outlet 

 in Mohammedan countries. The demand for slaves arises princi- 

 pally from two sources, — from the domestic wants of the Moham- 

 medan peoples, and from the necessity of obtaining carriers for the 

 ivory-trade. In describing the extent of this trade we follow A. J. 

 Wauters's sketches in the Moiivemeni geographique. 



In the period following the Conquest and the establishment of 

 plantations in America, the American land-owners who needed 

 workmen began to import slaves from the west coast of Africa- 

 Some figures will best show the extent of this trade. In 1600 the 

 government of Philip II. made a treaty with the governor of Angola, 

 according to which the latter engaged to furnish to the Spanish 

 colonies 4,250 slaves annually. The price paid for this monopoly 

 was 162,000 ducats. In 1701 this monopoly was held by the Port- 

 uguese Guinea Company, who had to furnish " 10,000 tons of 

 negroes " annually. The number of slaves furnished by the vari- 

 ous companies holding the monopoly increased steadily, and in 

 1786 -not less than 38,000 slaves were imported into Spanish 

 America. From 181 1 to 1820 Cuba received over 116,000 negroes, 

 and in Brazil as many as 50,000 were imported in 184.9. 



From these figures it is easily understood why, even at the pres- 

 ent time, many parts of the west coast are still depopulated. 

 One of the principal regions of slave-hunting was the lower Kongo, 

 whence, according to Monteiro, 100,000 slaves were exported an- 

 nually. The trade on the east coast was not less flourishing, the 

 principal market being Zanzibar. As is well known, this maritime 

 trade has ceased to exist. Owing to the abolition of slavery in all 

 Christian countries, the demand, and at the same time the necessity 

 of supplying it, have ceased. On the east coast it has also become 

 very insignificant owing to the endeavors of European nations, e.K- 

 cept on the coast of the Red Sea, whence Arabia and Persia con- 

 tinue to be supplied. 



While thus Africa has ceased to supply foreign markets, the in- 

 ternal demand continues to be very large, and causes the continual 

 spread of the area devastated by slave-hunters. We may dis- 

 tinguish four areas, — the western Sudan, the upper Nile, the lake 

 region, and Lunda. 



In western Sudan the sultans of the Haussa States frequently 

 wage war upon their southern neighbors in order to obtain slaves, 

 which are used for paying tributes, for building new residences, or 

 for sale in order to fill the treasuries of the states. Kuka, the 

 capital of Bornu, west of Lake Tsad, is one of the important slave- 



markets. Rohlfs states that he saw there a caravan of four thou- 

 sand captives, which was about to be sent northward for sale. The 

 surplus of slaves of this region is sent across the Sahara. For a 

 long time Morocco was the chief consumer of these slaves, but the 

 trade with that country is declining. Fifteen years ago Rohlfs 

 estimated the annual import at ten thousand heads. The trade 

 with Egypt has almost ceased, but now and then caravans reach 

 its western boundary. Thus in 1871 a convoy of two thousand 

 slaves arrived from Wadai, and even as late as 1880 slaves were 

 sent there from western Sudan. 



In eastern Sudan the slave-trade is not less flourishing, but here 

 it is due to other causes. The region devastated by it embraces 

 Bahr-el-Gazal, Jebel-Nuba, Dar-Fertit, and the country of the 

 Shilluk and Niam-Niam. The ivory-trade created here the demand 

 for slaves. Every year the merchants of Khartum sent armed ex- 

 peditions into this region in order to collect ivory. These expedi- 

 tions ascended the Nile, and began their transactions in the region 

 of the tributaries of the Bahr-el-Gazal. They established at short 

 distances stockades, called ' seribas,' which served as the basis of 

 their operations. They subjected the natives, and compelled them 

 to serve their purposes. In course of time these seribas became 

 centres of slave-hunting, the negroes being not only compelled to 

 assist in the ivory-hunting expeditions, but being exported for sale. 

 During the time of Gordon's administration there was a slight re- 

 lax ; but, since the Mahdi has obtained control of the whole region, 

 slave-hunting is once more flourishing. It is estimated that an- 

 nually 30,000 slaves are taken from this region. This state of af- 

 fairs is the more to be regretted, as this is one of the most densely 

 populated and highly cultivated regions of Africa. The slaves are 

 sold to the upper Nile provinces. Nubia, upper Egypt, and Darfor. 

 They are also sent to the Red Sea, whence they are exported to 

 Arabia. 



At the present time, particular attention is called to the slave- 

 trade in the Tanganyika basin and on the upper Kongo. Tabora, 

 Udjidji, and Nyangwe are the principal markets in this region. It 

 is only since a recent date that this territory has been devastated by 

 the Arabs. Towards 1830 they reached Tabora in extending their 

 commercial enterprises inland, and in 1840 they established a fac- 

 tory on the Tanganyika. In 1868 they had reached Nyangwe on 

 the upper Kongo. From 1S30 to 1870 immense caravans of slaves 

 were transported to Zanzibar, and large tracts of land were devas- 

 tated. The endeavors of the European nations to prevent the ex- 

 portation of slaves have suppressed this export, but the ivory-trade 

 still demands enormous numbers of carriers. The Arabs in Africa 

 are also agriculturists, and enslave negroes in order to cultivate 

 their fields. To fill these demands, they continue their razzias, and 

 these are of course most devastating in territories into which the 

 Arabs have recently penetrated, and where they have no workmen 

 at their disposal. As soon as new means of transporting the ivory 

 from the interior to the coast are found, the slave-trade will become 

 less extensive. For this reason it is to be hoped that the Kongo 

 Free State will soon succeed in opening a regular service between 

 Stanley Falls and Leopoldville, as this will save the upper Kongo 

 basin from a great part of the devastations of the slave-trade. 



The last important territory subjected to the ravages of slave- 

 hunters is the empire of Lunda. Here Portuguese half-breeds 

 take the place of the Arabs of East Africa. It seems, however, 

 that, in consequence of energetic measures of the Portuguese Gov- 

 ernment, this trade will rapidly decline. 



It is to be hoped that the steps recently taken by many European 

 nations to finally suppress the export of slaves will tend to dimin- 

 ish the demand ; but a total suppression of the slave-trade cannot 

 be effected without new means of communication in Central 

 Africa. The social institutions of Mohammedan North Africa are 

 such, that any attempt to prevent slave-hunting in western Sudan 

 must fail, as it is impossible to influence the peoples who create the 

 demand for slaves. 



The Congress of Americanists, composed of some of the most 

 distinguished scientists of Europe engaged in the study of the pre- 

 historic nations of America, which recently completed a very im- 

 portant and successful session in Berlin, voted to meet in Washing- 

 ton in 1890. 



