The Portland daily press., 1893-12-28
THE sOUDAN.
What is Going on in Region Which At
tracted Much Attentions few Years Ago
but has Now dropped out of Mind.

Of the British and German govern
nlents met very quietly in Berlin and pre-
pared little surprise for France. says
the New York Sun. They drew up and
signed convention in which they divid-
ed between them he entire REGION of the
Lake Tchad basin. They did not leave
an acre in all that wide domain for
France That country has been very
much engrossed by her internal affairs
for some weeks and the government,
apparently, has done nothing except to
send Capt. Monteil and M. Hausmann to
Berlin, duly accredited to look into the
matter. A part of the Paris press asserts
that France will never agree to the pro-
posed freeze-out, and that she will assert
her right to a fair share of the rio CEN
trail Soudan. Some Of the newspapers
say the matter must lie submitted to
arbitration if England and Germany are
not disposed to render to France what
should belong to her.
AS far as France is concerned, the
agreement between Great Britain and
Germany is, indeed, sorry outcome
of the fine record she made in the ex-
citing race for Lake Tchad, which began
over two years ago. In all that superior
part of Africa, where semi-civiized
governments exist, where substantially
built cities, with $4,000 or go, 900 inhapi-
tants, are found;r where manufactures
are considerably advanced, and where
horses are reared: by hundreds of thous-
ads, not white man was living two
years ago. European influence had not
penetrated any part of the central Sou
dan. No white man had been there since
Nachtigal. in 1871. The first European
power to reach Kuka capital of the en-
pire of Bornu, near the western shore of
Lake Tchad, was likely to reap advant-
ages and so the race began.
Almost simultaneously the three gov
ernments put their expeditions In mo-
ton. The English. under Macdonald,
started from the lower Niger; the
French, under Monteil, from the upper
Niger; and Gernany's two expeditions,
at an interval of some months, started
from the Cameroons. In the language
of the turf. the Germans were never in
the race. Hostile tribes brought their
expeditions to the deepest grief before
their journeys were third completed.
The English got to Kuka first; but
according to Macdonald's own story, he
met with very cool reception. In fact
the Emir told him he wanted nothing OF
the English except to be let alone; and
he advised his guest to go about his
business, the sooner the better, because
if he dalIied on the way within the con-
fines of Bornu his Highness would not,
be answerable for the consequences
Macdonald still has very poor opinion
of Bornuese hospitality.
mo, hc,i ,fa or oil or md On,
the scene According to his story. he
was welcome with open arms. He says
the British made the fatal mistake of
trying to impress the people by a dazz-
ling display of gilt buttons, red coats
and firearms, He asserts that the Emir
and the notables pledged to France their
eternal friendship. However that may
his sojourn at Kuka for more months
than Macdonald did his for weeks, and
the Emir finally sent him, under safe
conduct, to Algeria, where he was re-
ceived as a conquering hero.
Meanwhile France had started Nixon
up the great Benue tributary of the
Niger to YoIa, the capital of Adamawa
He says that on his second visit to Yola
the Emir agreed to a French protectorate
over Adamawa. The Emir denies it,
and he probably speaks the truth, as
there are various reasons for believing
that M. NIXON is gifted with vivid i'm
agination. But another Frenchman, M.
Maistre has made the most notable of
recent Journeys in Africa by advancing
north from the Congo-lnto the southern
edge of Baghirmi and then west through
Adamawa, revealing much new country,
and accompanied in the last stages of
his journey by hundreds of native riders.
The agreement between England and
Germany is the result of give-and- take
compromises and considerable sop is
thrown to France, which, however, has
nothing to do with the great basin of
Lake Tchad, for a share of which she
has been struggling.
By the treaty of 1855 between Germany
and England the northern boundary of
the German domain was to be a straight
line connecting certain point in her
Cameroons possessions with Yola on the
Benue river But England has repented
of her generosity, for Yola is the centre
of large trade, and she wants t. So
Germany has rel1nquished the whole of
the Yola district, and England is left in
possession of the entire nayiagble part
of the Benue, the only river in Africa
that affords uninterrupted communica-
ton by steamboa from the sea to the
far interior. She now adds Bornu and
sphere of exclusive influence. In other
words, having already an assured hold
upon Sonoto. the entire western half of
the central Soudan from the Niger river
to Lake Tchad falls to her share under
the new agreement.
The eastern part OF the central Soudan,
including part of Adamawa, the south
ern shore Of Lake Tchad, the large coun.
tries of Baghirml and Wadai, and the
regions beyond to the eastern limit of
the Shari river or Lake Tchad basin, be-
comes a German preserve. Germany
agrees not to go east OF the Shari basin.
In other words, she will not intrude
upon Darfur, Kordofan, or the Bahr-el-
Gasal, which are left to England, with
the rest of the Egyptian Soudan.
France is to enjoy more moderate
blessing. For long time the enterpris-
ing De Brazza has been pushing up the
great Sanga tributary of the Congo and
its northern atiiuents, planting line of
| stations almost to the borders of
Adamawa, and evoking energetic Ian
guagc from the Berlin press, which has
| accused him of poaching upon the
Hinterland of the Cameroons colony.
According to the map showing the
English German partition, which has
just reached this country, Germany ac-
knowledges frances supremacy in the
region OF De Brazza S activity.
Rut, on the whole, France appears to
have been greatly out generated. No