The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-24

, Americani, a kind of sheeting which brings more and sells better than any brought in from England, Germany or India, although they all compete with 1t. Those hides which are coming down to the ship on the heads of that gang of na- tives are destined to be made into boots and shoes in our American factories, and even now many of you have Lake Vic toria cowskins under your feet. We for merly got our best goatskins from the So- mali coast, and they were shipped from Alden, Arabia. Then one of the Uganda officials, who had been on duty in Brit ish Somaiiland, decided that the goat skins from there might be sent to Ameri- ca, and so immense trade in that prod uct has grown up north of the lake. It has extended down here to the south, and some of our finest skins now come from this region. This is so of cattle hides, as well as the skins of goats and sheep. Ali are exported in quantities.
 The regions about the lower end of the lake are largely devoted to stock raising. The natives have big herds of cattle. sheep and goats, and the chief profit comes from the skins. Cows are now sell ing here for s5 or s6 apiece, and a sheep skin or goatskin can be bought for yard or so of American sheeting. Back in the interior the people wear cowskins and goatslins, with the hair on, as clothing, and even here in Mwanza both women and men are dressed in such skins.
 Peanuts and Cotton.
 This country is also a land of pea nuts, Indian corn and cotton. There is some question about the cotton, but this ship will carry away 11,000 pounds when 1t leaves here and it was all raised within a few miles of Mwanza. The cotton Is put up in 100-pound bales and was carried to this port by two men to each bale. l am told tn at the seasons are so uncertain, however, that there Is little expectation of mak- ing the crop profitable. As to peanuts, 77,000 tons were shipped from German East Africa to Europe last year, and something like 6,00o,000 pounds went out from Mwanza. As to the hides they go chiefly to the United States via Alden or Naples so that there is but one transshipment after they leave the coast of the Indian ocean.
 New German Railroads.
 I have spoken of Mwanza as d future trading center. It may be the Chicago of the German possessions. It is on a lake which Is 10000 miles bigger than Lake Michigan, and it has rich coun- try extending for hundreds of miles to the south, east and west of 1t. The goods which now come in here are over trade routes which go to Lake Tanganyika and the coast of the In- dian ocean at Oar es Salaam. Tn q trade routes are merely paths through the woods, but they are annually trod- den by the bare feet of thousands of porters, each of whom carries 60 pounds on his head. The distance from here to the Indian ocean is not over 800 miles as the crow flies, but this human freight train takes 70 days to make the journey. and the rates are consequently high. The Germans are now proposing to build railroads be- tween these two points. They have begun at Oar es Salaam and are lay ing a trunk line toward Tanganyika That line will be bisected at the town of Tabora by a road going north to Mwanza. This will give Tabora sim liar position to that which Indianapoll now holds in regard to Chicago.
 At present nearly all the freight from here is carried on British steamers across the lake to Port Florence and down over the Uganda railway to the coast at Nom basa. I understand that the Germans would like to put their own steamers or the lake, but that the British refuse tt bring in over their railroad the ma chinery or supplies necessary to build the boats. They intend to keep the carrying trade to Lake Victoria to themselves as long as they possibly can. And so, If the Germans want steamers, they must bring the iron and other materials for them in pieces of not over 60 pounds each on the heads of porters for 800 or I0( miles through their own country. This would be costly and almost impossible