The Washington times., 1901-08-14
GE 2MANY'S COTTON VENTURE.

The comprehensive attempt on the part
/ of the German Emperor to utilize the En-
| pire's colonies In Africa for cotton grow
ing has been attended by great success
\ IL VIII be recalled that about year ago,
| at the request of Emperor William. three
! negro experts in cotton growing. gradu-
ates OF the Tuskegee Institute, were sent
! to the territory named. ]. N Galloway,
| born in Tennessee. a college graduate from
Fisk University, and for ten years in
/ structor in agriculture in the Tuskegee
| Institute. was selected as superintendent.
| and Sheppard L. Harris. John Robinson.
| and Allen Burks, all graduates of the
| Tuskegee Institute. each knowing well
| several trades, including architecture car
| pentry, agriculture. blacksmithing dairy
ing, etc. were the assistants. Flows.
hoes, cotton planters, cotton gin. press.
American cottonseed, ties. etc. were
bought here and shipped with them last
November. reaching Tosoiand nearly two
months later, after a brief stay in Ger
! many.
letter from Harris dated May Is gives
the following account of the undertaking
up to that time:
I'VE left America, as you know, on No
vember 3. 1900. After many hardships on
the ocean we at last got to LONE, where
things. As to my work here am get
ting along very well. l find 1t very hard
to get material to work with. This coun-
try, like all other unsettled countries. is
yet without modern machinery. The saw
mill. the cotton gin. and in fact all mod
ern machinery is yet to be introduced.
Some of this machinery we hope to have
in operation before our time is out here.
When We reached LONE we thougT we
were 1T the end of our journey. but we
had yet 100 miles to go in the bushes.
as they call it out here. 1t may sound
hard, but we had to walk this distance,
carrying with us such things we
thought would supply our needs until we
could get settled. The trip was made in
four days. By the 18th of January we
had about settled where our farm should
be. We began work clearing away. with
the help of the natives, and in a short
while the site of our new home was Sc
lected. We have cleared away mere than
100 acres of land. and part of the same
is planted in cotton. corn. peanuts, and
other things, and some of the cotton has
more fruit it now than many of the
farmers will make their whole crop in
America. There is no doubt about the
growing of cotton here, for it has been
demonstrated already. Six months ago
men passed this place without paying any
attention to it, for it was nothing but
field of bushes and elephant grass. but
today one is attracted by the number of
buildings, the growing OF cotton and 9TH
er products, also the pulling of plowS by
horses and men guiding them
while Mr.. Burks and Mr.. Robinson are
busy with their farm, | am at work try
ing to get the gin house ready to gin the
cotton when it is gathered. | md the
natives like to work, and will work If
they get plenty Of chop, as they call
food, but they are not able to do much
work. They soon give out.
Superintendent Galloway writes:
THE natives do not differ very much
from the uneducated negro or the black
belt of the South. | believe the Africans
have better disposition. Color is about
the same. If l did not know that l am in
Africa l could easily believe myself in
Alabama. The natives are just as anxious
to have clothes and to be educated as
American negroes. Many of them want
to come to America. They do not seem to
of work on the food they now eat. which
is principally rice. There is at LONE a
native who runs a seven-room boarding
house. He also conducts a large business
for German who lives in Berlin
The region of the present experiment is
Togoland, north of the Gulf of Guinea.
and the scene of the American slave
trade Togoland is the smallest of the
four German territories. the others, Cam
Groom and German Southwest Africa, on
the west coast, and German East Africa,
on the east coast, are all larger and more
temperate in climate.
Togoland is about 400 miles north of the |
equator and lies between the Gold Coast, |
which is a dependency of Great Britain, |
on the west, and Dahomey, which is
under France, on the east. The area is
33,000 square miles. little larger than
South Carolina. and the estimated popu- |
lation is 5000 On June 90 1899 the Eu- |
VI nj
We're Germans. Togoland was declared a |
German protectorate in 1884. and is placed |
under an imperial commissioner, assisted |
by a secretary. an inspector of customs |
and committee of local merchants.
The town of Togo has population of
5000. and the entire military and police |
service Of TogOland consists of seven |
Germans and $50 natives Two cable con- |
nections with Europe have been establish /
ed. TOsoland imported in 1900 SSl9.S2T in /
goods. the largest single item being for
cotton fabrics.
As early as 1886 cotton was introduced
and raised successfully on the slave coast
Of Africa, and during the civil war cotton
went up to such high price that Eng
fish merchants of Manchester raised a
fund to encourage the cultivation of cot
ton. hoping to rival the United States
but nothing came of it.
1t is right her. that Germany has hit
upon new idea The former efforts have
been with white men, who do not thrive
in the torrid zone. Emperor William, act
ing upon the advice of some progressive
merchants and a consul in this country
decided upon the present plan of taking
African descendants in the United States |
who are experts, and to whom there |
would be more racial sympathy and less
climatic dangers than would be the case
with whites. The German African terri |
tory amounts to 925. eco square miles
which is third more than the total area !
of cOtton-producing States in America
This African territory is fertile. well |
watered, and not too hot for cotton.
Hence it requires no extraordinary states |
manship to see that Germany can become |
our rival If she but conquers conditions |
which are usual in introducing new crops. |
and also safeguard the health of those |
who are to serve as pioneers. As to the |
labor supply, Africa furnishes the cheap |
est labor in the world-a labor that adds |
to its cheapness docility and great en- |