The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-10-27

anna and is about 600 miles from the In
dian ocean. 1t is a part of the territory IN
Ess. Central Africa allotted 10 England by
the Anslo-German agreement, and It mas
baaY1 occunsad by Great Britain ever since
rSea when an Invitation TO enter was given
by the native king and his people. me
cauitsl OF the country is Mengo. on the
northern coast OF Victoria Nyanza' anu
the headouarters of the Imperial East
Africa COMPANY are ar Kampaia, which
win ultimately be the terminus of the rail-
way The natives OF the country are the
yyaranSa. a fine intelligent race OF ne
groes under the rule or the notorious
King Mwanga. Mwanga has no sons, ana
his successor will be chosen. according 70
present plans. from among three OF ms
nephews, one of whom IS Nohammeoah'
the other two being Catholics as are a
large proportion of the influential people or
the country. An active MISSIONARY PIopA
ganda has been carried on in oganoa OF
late years with the result that the peop'e
sre divided into two great facuons' the
Protestant and the Catholic. each or which
claims about 5000 baptized adherents.
There are also many thousand men who
side with each of these Christian elements,
which together possesses the dominant IN
ffuence in the country. There are also, OF
course, large Mohammedan ana heathen
elements among the +oo,oo people WHO are
said to inhabit Uganda.
To the efforts and writings OF Henry NJ.
Stanley is due to large measure the de-
termination of the British government 10
establish this railway, though. or course,
uoIitical influence was brought 10 pear oy
the Imperial East Africa Company. Writ
ing in advocacy of the railroads construc-
ton, Mr. Stanley has said: Uganda IS
the center of a region which is inhabited
hv millions of the finest people in Africa
Victoria Nyanza, around whose nortnen
coast the country lies, has 1900 miles or
coast line OF it's own. At one point IL Is
but $50 miles from Lake Tanganyika; from
Reatrjce gulf it is only sixty miles: from
Albert Nyanza 1T is barely 100. and the
navigable Nile is also within easy reach,
so that by this lake we have, roughly
speaking. access to about 900 miles OF lake
shore and 5000 miles of river banks. To
Join these with the sea will be TO establish
a vast trade. 1 regard the region
through which the railway must
run as only a means to the end,
although the intervening country will
then become naturally of great
value. 1t is the Pearl of Africa That
is our object. Many have triel TO account
for the term by adducing the fertility or
the soil and the variety OF It's products,
but the truth is that the term, applied as
it was by the Portuguese, aptly illustrates
the superior value of Uganda, because or
its populousness. the intelligence OF Its
people, its strategic position for commerce
and for spreading Christianity-aH or
which make it pre-eminently desirable
colony for a trading and civilized nation
like ours. Uganda was indeed The Pearl
of the Crown of Portugal
Il have met no African race which i'm
pressed me so much with its mental,
spiritual and moral capacity as the Wa
ganda. Administered by a British COM
mission, assisted and directed by Brit
ish officers, educated by British mission
aries and trained in industrial crafts by
British teachers, Uganda and its people
are capable of astonishing Central At
RIGA. as the japanese have astonished the
far East"