The Topeka state journal., 1903-06-27
KANO And SoKOTO.
Centers of Trade in New English Ter
ritory in Africa


ritory in Africa
The other day Colonial Secretary
/ Chamberlain officially announced in
parliament that King Edwards dornin-
ions in western Africa had been aug
/ mented by the annexati ton of a tract
of over ZOO square miles of territory /;
that is to say, of district as large as
the states of New York, Pennsylvania
and New Jersey combined. This ad-
ditiOn to the British empire has been
accomplished by means of conquest.
and with compare lively little loss of
life to the English forces, which consist
ed entirely of native troops command
ed by white officers, both commissioned
and non-commissioned.
The mere increase in the size of Eng
/ lands possessions in the dark continent
/ is of small Importance, however, COM
4 pared to the immense value of the cap
/ ture of Kano and of SokOtO from a
commercial point of view. For kano IS,
( indeed, the principal market and center
/ of trade in the interior of Africa, and
not only that. but likewise the center
of all sorts of African industries, Kano.
! indeed, having been frequently describ-
ed the Manchester and Birmlng nam
combined of the dark continent. Colon
fal Secretary hamberlain declares that
the annual attendance of the market
at Kano exceeds a million persons from
all parts of Africa while Colonel Mon
tell the French explorer. and Edmund
ca, estimates that the number of ma
tives who visit Kano each year for pur-
poses of trade is q least twice as large
The market is held daily throughout the
year. and the most bewldering diversi-
ty of articles are always on sale. ma
tive cloths. which are products Of the
Hausas' looms and dye pits; silk-en-
broidered robes, leather and brass ware
weapons. rough agricultural imple-
ments silver and brass ornaments,
ostrich feathers. live
stock of every conceivable description,
slaves, salt cakes, natron, european
merchandise and ammuniton-aH these
and thousand things more are on sale
in this immense city. which. inelosed
in lofty encompassing wall IS re
puted to be no less than sixteen miles
in circumference.
Many caravan routes converge At
KanO. and the procession of heaViiv Ia
den camelS and asses, of men. mounted
and on foot, of slaves, women and chill
dren. seems to be endless The narke
has been held thus daily on the same
site for over a thousand years. and at
the time when William the Couaueror
fought the battle of Hastings anc es
tablished himself on the throne of tEs-
land it is probable that the dallv mar
ket was in progress at Kano am sur
roundings almost Identical in form and
appearance with those Of the pres
ent day.
Each particular class of goods has its
own special market, and thus. whereas
in one quarter of KanO one finds nothing
but leather on sale. in another district
of the city the trade is restricted to
cloth Every imaginable type of Afri-
can may be seen there. merchants from
Egypt Tunis, Tripoli and Morocco, from
the eastern Soudan and from the
shores of the Red sea- as well as from
the western coast. which is washed by
the Atlantic. Even Zulus, oriental
Jews. East Indians and Malays are seen
there and. strange to say, not only
has peace from time immemorlal been
preserved among this strange medley OF
purchasers and venders. but, moreover,
they likewise understand one another.
carrying on their bargainings by means
of signs The traders have, indeed,
sort of language which beneath their
long sleeves is carried on by means OF
diverse grasps of one anothers hands,
wrists and arms. the deliberations being
in this way concealed froal the onlook-
ers and from the curious.
General Sir Frederick Lugard, 10
whom King Edward is indebted for this
notable addition to his colonial empire,
and who is the governor general and
high commissioner of all Great Britain
possessions in Western Africa and Nj
geria extending to the Anglo-E Egyptian
SOudan. proposes to rule the Sultana teS
of SokOto and of KanO in the same way
as the other Hausa states that IS
through native emirS, according to ma
tive ideas so as not to interfere IN any
way with the trade of Kano, which he
hopes to develop still more by rendering
more faciie its intercourse with the outer
world He will make no effort to pros
elytize, nor viii he encourage missionary
activity. but will endeaver to inspire
the natives with confidence in his as
surances that no attempt viii be made
to molest their various religions and
practices.
The only thing that he will endeavor
gradually to suppress is the slave trade,
which is indeed the sole obJectionaple
feature of the kanO market This VIII
be accomplished by degrees. as in Zan-
zibar. in eastern Africa and in other
parts Of the world where the British
fiag flies Slave raiding Sir Frederick
T.ugard will under no circumstances toll
crate Indeed. its suppression has been
the supreme object of his career in
Nyassaland, in Uganda and also in
northern Nigeria. Without the slave
raiding. and with the cessation of the
payment of tribute in the form of slaves
by the numerous vassal chiefs to the
Fulani rulers of KanO and SOE1oto, the
slave trade viii quickly dwindle down
and disappear. and in the course of time
slavery will in its turn vanish.-New
York Tribune
AMERICAN BANANA EATERS