Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-07-23
THE BASIN OF THE congo.

The conflicting claims of European pow.
ers in the heart of the Dark continent have
attracted bat little attention since the be-
ginning of hostilities in Madagascar and
| Anam. While the French were lombard.
| ing the Hova ports and shipping troops TO
Tonquin Stanley was pushing his way up
the Congo river, aad it is now announced
! that he has reached BrazzaviiIe with 1000
followers, and has met there N. de Brazza,
vino is said to have made but little prog
ress. Mr.. Stanley is the agent of the in
| transitional and neutral organization known
as the Comite d'Etudes du Haut Congo, at
the head of which is the King of the Be-
gians. The Association InteTnatlonale
Africsine, Of which King leopold Is the
moving spirit, undertook to open 4 path
| from Zanzibar, on the east coast, TO the
great lakes of the interior. A path was
| opened and q station was established on
the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika.
The other organization undertook to ex.
plore the course of the great river Congo
from its mouth on the west coast TO its
source, and to make roadways around the
cataracts thai divide the basin of the upper
Congo from the navigable waters, which
extend lis miles eastward from the rivers
mouth.
The roadways were built and steamer
was placed in the waters above the cata.
racts, at Stanley pool, beyond which navi.
cation is unimpeded for nearly one thou
sand miles into the heart of the continent.
| All this work was done under q neutral
! flag by an association that represents no
nation, and that advocates the opening Of
the rich valley and basin of this great
river to the commerce Of all nations.
| Already the trade OF this region IS great,
the gross exports and imports amounting,
it is ssid, to $4,000, 000 year. TIE
association that undertook 90 make path
westward from Zanzibar granted ont of its
| funds 20 600 francs to & French committee
that desired TO do part of the work. This
committee sent out NJ dc Brazza as it's
agent. He discovered another and a
better route from the western coast to the
upper Congo by avoiding the lower Congo
aud the eatarscts. and following the
course of the river Ogowe thatempties into
the Atlantic north Of the mouth of the
Congo The spiris of acquisition and an.
nexstion that has taken possession Of the
| French nation took possession of NJ. de
Bsazza. lie passed from the service OF a
neutral organization into the service of
| France, induced native chief to cede to
| France the northern shore Of Stanley Pool,
and raised the French flag upon this terri.
| tory.
In this way the French gained q .foos-
hold in the basin of the Congo. The Por-
tuguese suddenly discovered that the King
of Congo had been their vassal since l49l,
and laid claim to the region above and be.
low the mouth OF the river. So that the
international scientific and philanthropic
associations that have undertaken to open
a belt across the continent, and have al.
ready accomplished so much, are confront.
ed by the prstentions of two European na-
tons. This could have been foreseen.
The great wealth Of the basin east Of the
mountains, covering thirteen degrees of
longitude and fourteen degrees of latitude,
having been revealed by bold explorers,
aroused the predatory instincts OF Europe,
and the peaceful work of King Leopold
and his associates must soon give way to a
struggle between c0lonizers and conquerors
There will be great changes in southern
and central Africa in the next fifty years.
A large area OF rich land is to be explored
and opened to civilization The colonizing
nations Of Europe may contend among
themselves for division of the spoil. An
Gent and forgotten claims, ike the claim
brought forward by Portugal, will be re.
vived by other powers, and the Dark con-
tinent may be lighted up by the fires of
great conflicts. New York Times.