The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-09-09
I'm, yp.sFDY IN THE soUDAM.
Improbabiiity Of the story That the MUIR
d,rsr. Meant TO Set Up an Empire


Can't. youlet and ChanoIne OF the French
army, who killed Lieut. Col. Klobb and Lieut..
Navnier and A part OF their escort. on July -
Iast. cannot escape the penalty OF their terriolo
crime. even in Africa. IL will not De ionk 20
fore they are called to account. Ihey aio
henri ed IN on the north by the oahara a"u ~
the south and east BY dense popua.'on
.emi-ciyilized Mohammedans. who are Rooo
fighters. have plenty OF fire arms. ana Wou'u
not tolerate invasion by this handlul Oh nien
who have only few hundred rines ana se'ohS
trained Senegal soldiers west OF .hs" sio
the French outposts. The view has peeh
widely pubIished that these two French officers
intended to be ase in their duty to France. 10
run amuck in Africa and establish an empire
Of their own. The idea Is ridiculous unless
they and the six picked and trusted french
soldiers with them had gone stark mao INC
thought had probably never entered their
minds.
The fact is that up to the time OF their terri
BILE crime they had carried out to the letter 'he
instructions OF their government. hiopp anu
Meynier were sent to supercede them not Do
cause they had failed to do what they were told
to do, but because, in the discharge OF their
mission they were accused OF treating the ma
tiyes, among whom they passed. with barbarous
cruelty These accusations were based upon
charges made by Lieut.. Peteau. who had had q
serious quarrel with Youlet and Chanoine and
had been dismissed from the expedition. lie
returned west to the French outposts. ana MS
accusations were forwarded to France together
with the charges Voulet made against the dis
missed officer.
Some light may be thrown ON the whole mat
ter by a brief statement OF the nature OF
the mission connded to Capt. Voulet. HIS
party was ona OF three expeditions set on
f,rt h.. ~ atudvinD the tprritOrea
in the soudan that had been assigned to France
n tho treaties made with Germany. Great
Britain and the Congo Free State. 1t was
designed to connect the new French
territory in the neiehborhood OF Lake
Tchad with the French possessions in
the Mediterranean. the Niger and the
Congo by means OF itineraries traced by these
three expeditions. In other words. France de-
sired to find the best routes between her new
territory in Central Africa and her possessions
to the north. south and west OF 1t. to learn all
the advantages and disadvantages OF these
routes and what must be done to make them
thoroughly available. and to get all the infor-
nation possible with regard to the value OF the
new country. THE SUN has already told Of the
largest exploring expedition that ever entered
the Sahara. 1t was the Mediterranean detach-
ment Of this large enterprise. and it
left Algeria last fall under command
OF Mr.. Foureau. the Saharan explorer
and Commander Lamy who had with
them about 200 Algerian soldiers. 1000 bag
Rage-laden camsls and the camp following re-
quired for so large party. They were bound
for the very region which Voulet was approach
ing when the tragedy OF July occurred. Tho
Congo detachment. under the command Of
Messrs. Bretonnet. Gsntil and Robillot was on
the way north at the same time pushing to-
ward Lake Tchad by the route OF the Congo.
the Mobangi and the Shari rivers. 1t will be
interesting to learn OF the meeting OF those
three parties after the tragedy Of July.
The third detachment under Capt. youlet
with Capt. Chanoine as second In command
took the route from the Niger. but at the out
set it was divided. youlet and part OF his
force descending the Niger past Timbuctoo
and on down the river to Say whore there 10 q
French outpost. while Chanoins and the re-
mainder OF the expedition struck straight
across the country to Say. travelling south
| OF the big northern bond OF the river.
| 1t is noteworthy that all the atrooi-
| ties which Lieut.. Peteau. later. called to
| the attention Of the French authorities were
| committed by orders from Chanone during
his overland march to Say. Voulet was not
there and could not be directly responsible for
| them unless. later. he justified the conduct OF
| his subordinate. The forces were reunited at
Tchad. while Peteau retraced his steps and
| told the story OF the bloody march OF Chanoine
across the Mossi country.
| There is no reason to doubt the accuracy OF
this appalling tale Of the burning OF villages
| and the massacre and mutilation OF natives.
including women and children. In fact. Lieut.
| Col. Crave and Capt. Grandge. who were at
once sent into the Mossi country to investigate
the charges. came back with full confirmation
N
| 1t all 10 that brutal and murderous proceedings
OF this sort are nothing new in the his
| tory Of the European occupation OF large
| parts OF Africa. They have been recorded
| in the Belgian Congo. in German East Africa,
| in the Cameroons and in the French Soudan.
| In no case has there been any need for these
| high handed measures to strike terror to
| the hearts OF the natives. They have been
| the work. almost invariably. OF young officers
| who were not ut for the grave responsibilities
entrusted to them. These men have had to
| deal with barbarous peoples OF whom they had
not the slightest knowledge and have gone
at them without a particle OF patience or tact.
| Their lack Of common sense and capacity have
| OF course involved them in trouble and then
they have run riot simply because they had
| powder and ball and believed they would es.
cape responsibility for deeds done in the Afrl-
| can Jungle. The performances of Chanoine
are the latest reported in this bloody category,
and. happily. there 10 little prospect that m any
| more chapters OF the same sort will be written.
The Powers are at last beginning to hold ther
agents in Africa responsible to civilized rules
| OF conduct.
| Capt Voulet made no charges against his
second in command but retained him in his
| position. tacitly Justifying and approving his
| conduct. On they went together and there ia
every reason to believe they were wholly un-
conscious OF the rod In pickle for them. They
| went strai ght ahead to carry out their mission'
They had been told not to enter British terri:
Judgment. for France, has little more
than pass4gewaE along the, edge OF
finally reached the town and country OF Finder
by turning little to the north. It is in the
the big lake. and they had besn ordered to
make report on this region. They were prob.
believed they were doing their country the best
possible service when they received blow m AZ
was like thunderbolt from clear sky.
1t was tine note from Lieut. Col Klobh al
mn hFnI oil In,