January 2, 1885.] 



SCIENCE 



to their travelling through the country, prefer- 

 ring to hold all the trade of the interior in their 

 own hands. The natives in the interior are 

 generally well disposed to the white man, and 

 ready for trade. 



Which of the great powers shall control this 

 trade is a question now agitating the civilized 

 world. The Portuguese first discovered the 

 western coast of Africa. They claim the terri- 

 tory from latitude 5° 12' south to 18° 5' south, 

 including the mouth of the Kongo River, run- 

 ning from the coast indefinitely into 

 the interior. Their northern bound- 

 ary-line crosses the Kongo at Isan- 

 gilla, about one hundred and fifty 

 miles from the mouth. By the right 

 of discovery they claim jurisdiction 

 over the mouth of the Kongo and all 

 commerce passing out of its mouth. 

 The English claim large portions of 

 the coast from about 6° or 8° north 

 to 18° north, including the mouths 

 of the Niger, and the whole country 

 drained by the Niger and the Benue, 

 the Gold Coast. Sierra Leone, and 

 Senegambia. The French claim Cape 

 Verde, the River Senegal (14° to 17° 

 north). Cape Lopez, and the Gaboon 

 from about 4° or 5° north of the equa- 

 tor to as many degrees south. The 

 Germans, within two 3 T ears past, at 

 the suggestion of Bismarck, have taken 

 possession of Lagos on the Bight of 

 Benin, of Cameroon between the Eng- 

 lish and the French claims (about 5° 

 north) , and a vast country near Angra 

 Pequena, commencing at 23° south, 

 and running to Cape Colony, about 

 29° south, inland to Transvaal, — a 

 territory said to be as large as Ger- 

 many, Belgium, and Holland united. 

 The}' have established over forty fac- 

 tories on the coast. 



Almost all the western coast of Africa is now 

 claimed by these four great powers. Portugal 

 claims the exclusive control of the navigation 

 of the Kongo ; England, exclusive control of 

 the Niger. A year ago Portugal proposed to 

 make a treaty with England by which the re- 

 spective rights of these powers to each of 

 these rivers should be recognized. Great op- 

 position was made, both in England and on 

 the continent, to this alliance, and it has been 

 abandoned . 



The International association of Africa was 

 formed in 1877 in Belgium, about the time of 

 the return of Mr. Stanley from the ' dark 

 continent.' Its headquarters are in Brussels. 



The object of the association is to acquire, by 

 treaties with the natives, territory for the use 

 and benefit of free states established under the 

 care and supervision of the association. For 

 this purpose it is declared that no custom-house 

 duties are to be levied upon goods or merchan- 

 dise brought into the territory, and that no 

 greater rights will be granted to the citizens 

 of one nation than to those of every other ; 

 that the Kongo, the great highwa}' into cen- 

 tral Africa, shall remain an international 



OUTLINE-MAP OF AFRICA, SHOWING THE PORTIONS OF THE COAST 

 CLAIMED BY EUROPEAN NATIONS. 



river, open to all civilizing influences, and to 

 the legitimate commerce of every land. It is 

 established to promote the public good, not 

 private gain. It has made treaties with many 

 different tribes, and founded thirty stations 

 on the river. At these stations factories are 

 established, and trade carried on b}' mer- 

 chants with the natives. This association is 

 unlike any other ever organized. The United 

 States was the first to recognize its nation- 

 ality, in April, 1884. Since then it has been 

 recognized by several other European na- 

 tions. 



At the invitation of Bismarck, a confer- 

 ence of the leading nations of the world is 



