The morning call., 1893-12-19
0OBBLING up AFRICA.

In 1876. as far as the European powers
were concerned, Africa was still African
in Government, save along its seaboard
here and there. France. Spain. Portugal
and England were the only countries with
flag over territory, and. when shaded.
their possessions were mere black specks
in contrast with vast unappropriated
area. Now it is quite the other way. The
shaded portions appropriated by foreigners
in seventeen years leave very little Of the
continent African. and very soon there
may be none. France has vastly ex-
tended her domain, so that it extends from
Iripoli to Morocco. and from the Med-
terranean to the Gulf OF Guinea. 1t may
90 eastward to the Egyptian frontier or
sphere Of Influence, but on this point 1t
must come to some arrangement with
Germany, which seems to claim jurisdic-
tion indefinitely northward from the Cam
eroons with England sandwicbed between
portion Of the way. France has another
large slice to the south of German equa-
torial Africa, and bounded on the south by
the Congo Free State.
Then comes Portugal, with the Congo
State and British Africa for eastern
boundary. and another great tract of Ger
man territory on the south. Britain rounds
OF the continent at the cape and right up
1or thousands OF miles to the southern
border OF the Congo State and Portuguese
and German possessions in East Africa.
Withln, but with no untrammeled access
to the sea. lie the Orange Free State and
the TransVaal Republic. Then to the
northeast of the Congo Free State and
north OF German East Africa lies another
vast British area, in equatorial Africa,
contiguous on the west with the Congo
State and the French and German posses
sions. Italy claims Somali Land. Abyssi-
MIA and the land of the Gallias, aud Eng
land again creeps in with a tract of the
Red Sea littorsl opposite Alden, as well as
the Island of SOcotTa. Egypt may also be
said TO be In English hands, for the good of
the natives, as the English say.
Ihls is pretty good land-grabbing on a
continental scale during seventeen years.
What is left is hardly worth naming only
Morocco and Tripoli (Which will fall to
either Italy or France), bit of country be-
hind ASbanteeRnd and the SOudan. Still,
IN spite of geographical appropriation and
chan ging OF the maps. Africa is much what
1t was, and without the natives the Euro
peans can do nothing to render their occu-
patton effectively useful. Some of this
excessive colonization will come TO grief,
but who knows what Africa will become
in fifty years? 1t will have railroads from
north to south and from east to west
Much of the interior, even in the tropics,
is habits Bile by the white man owing TO
high plateau attitudes. and it is so rich IN
resources that it is bound to tempt advan-
ture and enterprise. The scramble for the
earth will have we'll nigh ceased when its
various divisions are governed on some
permanent basis by the Europeans. but il
will be no surprise if in the future there
are quaTrels among the European couu-
tries as to their claims in Africa
A great Africander empire will prob
ably be the outcome of the Cape settle
ments, in which British. Beers and Ger
mans will assert the right to govern them
selves. The necessities of trade and free
hand on tariff questions support this policy,
but as far S England is concerned South
Africa is virtually a republic at present
from Capetown to he Zambesi, and Pre-
mier Rhodes influence extends much
farther. He has big projects of telegraph
and railway extens sions in view, and he Is
one Of the very energetic and astute men
who succeed in the wilderness and over
come all obstacles. The Dark Continent
may yet be of more value to the world than
Asia in its present state, for there are
none of the old civilizations to combat,
such as those Of India. China, Japan and
Persia. Egypt is cradle of civilization,
yet to-day it scarcely counts in lis own
influence except as ground of contention
between France and England.