Ill 
RACES AND CLASSES 
V 
and their villages are usually surrounded by low walls 
or fences. It is as agriculturists that they shine, and 
as such are sure to have a considerable influence on our 
future prosperity. The eastern shores of the lake, if 
somewhat unhealthy for Europeans, possess a deep, 
rich, loamy soil that is second to none in the 
Protectorate. In the past, the Kavirondo has grown 
naturally only such crops as he has required for his own 
food, eg ., maize, sorghun, etc. At the present day, 
however, the soil and his services are being exploited 
both by Europeans and Indians in the production of 
more valuable crops, such as rubber, coffee, sim-sim, 
cotton, etc. More than ^44,000 worth of native 
produce was despatched by rail in 1909-10, and 
£66,000 worth in 1910-11 from the district inhabited 
by the Kavirondo. Seeds of various kinds have been 
supplied them by the Government, and in this respect 
it is impossible to speak too highly of the work 
accomplished for this tribe by the Provincial Com¬ 
missioner, Mr. John Ainsworth. Whether this ex¬ 
ploiting of a tribe to the detriment of the European is 
quite so satisfactory is another question, and one on 
which two very diverse opinions may be held. 
As a labourer the Kavirondo form without doubt the 
best material in the country. In numbers they are 
surpassed by the Wa-Kikuyu, but in nearly every 
other essential they have the advantage over the latter. 
Thus, in the first place, the men are physically stronger, 
this being mainly due to the fact that the male 
Kavirondo has always been accustomed to do a very 
considerable proportion of the field-work, instead of 
leaving the whole of it to the womenfolk, as is the case 
with most tribes. Then he is a much more cheery 
individual and also more trusting and trustworthy. 
