The Pulaskian., 1915-10-29

# ~ down the west coast of the A continent that Livingstone and
 Stanley made famous until you have crossed the equator and reach the Congo river, direct your course up that majestic stream and in due sea son you will come to the town Of Boma-that is, provided you have the right kind of atlas.
 Bona doesn't cut much of a figure on the map. Itsis the capital of Bel gian Congo and Americans have been content for the most part to let it go at that. But since the war broke out food supplies have been curtailed, and now the people of Belgian Congo are having a chance to sample American products.
 Credit for the opening of this new field is due to Detroit man, Harry A. Mcbride, American consul at Bona.
 That portion of Africa with which I am familiar offers unlimited possi- bilities for American prospectors and manufacturers" said MT. Mcbride, when last at home on vacation. Bel gian Congo, for example, is one-third as large as the United States. 1t has 9,000000 natives and only 5000 whites. One thousand miles up the Congo river from the coast-and that is quite 8 way, you know-are diamond and gold concessions held by Americans that are said to be among the best in the world and only need developing. { ,s,,+x A pectors in the district now, nearly all from California. There will probably be more before there are less, for once a movement of that nature gets start ed it spreads rapidly.
 There are rich copper deposits in some localities, and one field is said to excel in extent and richness the best mines in this country. At pres ent they are each month taking out 1000 tons of clear copper, and they have scarcely started. Iron ore is found in great quantities and there are other deposits of metal, while much of the country, if it was accessi- ble, would lend itself to agriculture on profitable basis.
 Natives Kill Prospectors.
 Tn spite of what commerce and the missionaries have done. prospect ing is still fraught with great danger in many localities, for the natives har- bor intense hatred for the whites and will kill them upon the slightest prov ocation.
 Tt might seem that controlling these sayages would be simple thing. As matter of fact, they know all the time what is taking place, and no mat ter how remote the village no white man can enter it in such way as to surprise the natives. They are look ing for you every time. One reason for this lies in the splendid system of wireless communication they main tain. A log is hollowed out, usually a good-sized one Oyer the ends of this are stretched dried leopard skins, forming head, and when a native armed with heavy club or hammer pounds on this log there follows a penetrating boom that can be heard for miles through the forest. They seem to have generally recognized code of signals, and the coming of strangers is passed along the line with astonishing rapidity.
 There is another time when these crude drums come into play. This is when the tax collector makes his rounds. All the natives are supposed to pay an annual head tax, ranging from $1 to $40, according to their employment and income. Naturally, the collector is unpopular. Conse- quently, as he makes his rounds the dull boom of drums reverberates through che jungle, and when he reaches village he is liable to find only the chief and handful of sub jects. Where are the others of the tribe? Ahl With much weeping and many protestat1ons the chief asserts that plague swept over them and they are all dead excepting the faith ful few. The lie is palpable, but as there is no way of determining the number of those liable to taxation the receipts suffer very materially. In fact, since cessation of the atroci- ties credited to King Leopold and his agents was forced the revenues of the colony have fallen off to such an extent that it requires careful work to make ends meet sometimes. Rubber and ivory are still exported in large