Kenia and the Taita Hills, "discoveries are always possible, but hitherto we have no data to warrant optimistic views." On the Subject of Health Sir C. Eliot says:

It appears to me that large parts of the Protectorate are suited for colonisation by Europeans, and in this connection it is well to inquire what are its sanitary conditions. I shall probably provoke both surprise and contradiction in maintaining that the climate is not unhealthy, and, in the face of the terribly high death-rate among the small population of Europeans in the last few years, the contention requires explanation. I believe, however, that the sickness which has prevailed is mainly attributable, not to the climate, but to bad accommodation and exposure. Until quite lately ordinary comforts were unknown up-country: often there were no houses, and when there were any to be found they did not afford sufficient protection against the heat, and let in the rain, besides harbouring mosquitoes and every kind of vermin. Much time was occupied by long marches on foot, which necessitated halts in swamps and exposure to both sun and rain. Food was bad, and medical assistance, which, if rendered in time, might have stopped many maladies, was not procurable.

After a description of the Administration, in which Sir C. Eliot says that the staff should be increased, the districts being too large for one man to administer, the Report deals with finance and trade (neither subject being treated in an encouraging manner), and then describes the Uganda Railway and other means of communication. Of the railway Sir C. Eliot says:

The construction of this railway has, no doubt, been the most important event in the history of East Africa. It has transformed the interior and practically created all the towns which exist in the province of Ukamba. Nothing astonishes the newcomer in Africa more than the absence of towns up-country. One becomes familiar in conversation and correspondence with such names as Ndi and Machakos, and cannot help thinking that they represent towns, or at any rate a considerable number of houses. As a matter of fact, the localities so designated are composed of one or two Government buildings erected on the plains or in the bush. It is only with the arrival of the railway that anything has been constructed which can be called a town. Nairobi has already nearly 8,000 inhabitants, and other centres are springing up, both in this Protectorate and in Eastern Uganda, which will doubtless claim the rank of cities in the near future. It must not, however, be supposed that the Uganda Railway has in any way spoiled the picturesque wildness

of the country and people around it. It is not a humorous exaggeration to say that the wayside landscapes remind the traveller of the series of pictures in Punch, called "Prehistoric Peeps." On the platforms naked savages peer and grin with good-humoured curiosity; their nudity is rendered more conspicuous by the fact that they wear short cloaks hanging down their backs and carry elaborate ornaments, often including old jam-pots, in the slits cut in their ears. Near the stations the ostrich and the barn-door fowl almost intermingle. The obstinate rhinoceros, who assimilates new ideas more slowly than other beasts, sometimes disputes the passage of the train in a narrow cutting and derails it, though he perishes in the attempt. A troop of more intelligent elephants occasionally occupy a station, and in their curiosity ravage the booking-office and take tickets which cannot be accounted for afterwards.

But, while giving the railway the fullest tribute of praise and gratitude, I cannot help feeling that it has somewhat unduly monopolised public attention, to the exclusion of other interests in East Africa. Nearly £5,000,000 have been voted for it, while the grants expended on the rest of the Protectorate since its formation in 1895 amount to about £750,000 in all. I do not say this as a criticism of the expenditure on the railway, but I think it would be financially more advantageous, both for this Protectorate and His Majesty's Government, if it were recognised that the prosperity of a railway depends on the prosperity of the country through which it passes. There seems to be a tendency to treat the railway as something apart, built in the air, so to speak, and independent of terrestrial things. But in reality a railway is intimately connected with its surroundings. It is the backbone of the East Africa Protectorate, but a backbone is as useless without a body as a body is helpless without a backbone. If it is worth while to spend £5,000,000 on a railway, it must be worth while to spend a few thousands in making that railway pay. But until a greater effort is made to develop our East African territories I do not see how we can hope that the Uganda line will repay the cost of its construction. Its future must certainly depend largely on the exports from Uganda to the coast. But, as I have continually insisted in this Report, I believe the East Africa Protectorate has possibilities for commerce and colonisation which may in future contribute materially to the prosperity of any line which traverses it.

The territory for 1 mile on each side of the track is known as the railway zone, and is the private property of the line. The discovery of minerals or valuable vegetable products within this zone would, of course, materially help the railway finances.

A section of the Report is devoted to military matters and contains the following Warning:

There can be little doubt that the present military resources of the Protectorate are not adequate to preserve order within its limits, but I am inclined to think that peace could be better insured by increasing the police than by providing additional troops. At present the Nairobi garrison supplies small detachments for Machakos, Mbirri, and Taveta. This system is generally condemned as unsound by military authorities, and it is clear that it has its disadvantages from the civilian point of view. The natural function of the army is to repress disorder rather than to maintain order. Soldiers are certainly more impressive than the police, and more efficacious when they do act. But what is required in East Africa is a steady and continuous control exercised by such methods as police patrols. In a territory inhabited by such a tribe as the Masai it is necessary to be on one's guard and be prepared to cope with the possibility of a rising, and probably the same may be said of some of the tribes inhabiting the Eastern provinces of Uganda. But most of the natives in this Protectorate, particularly such races as the Wakamba and Wakikuyu, are robbers rather than warriors, and can be restrained by posting an adequate number of police in their villages. I therefore entirely agree with those military critics who contend that all detachments should be withdrawn and the troops concentrated in the four garrisons of Nairobi, Mombasa, Witu, and Kismayu, provided that the number of police is increased.

At present we have about 650 police in the Protectorate, and in addition the Uganda Railway have a special body for service in the railway zone. This force is hardly adequate in present circumstances, and if the troops were withdrawn from outlying stations, as suggested, an increase of 250 or 300 police for the whole Protectorate would be desirable. I calculate that such a force would soon more than pay its expenses, for by establishing order it would facilitate the extension of trade and the levying of direct taxation.

The Protectorate troops are at present composed of Soudanese, Swahilis, and Masai. There is a good deal of discussion as to the comparative merits of Indians and Soudanese as soldiers. The former are more intelligent, and are ready to serve without their wives, but they create immense trouble by their peculiar rules of diet. Each caste will only eat certain foods, which are not always easily procurable. The Soudanese are excellent soldiers and will eat anything, but they insist on being accompanied by their wives and families. The women are models of domestic affection, but sometimes difficult to manage. The Swahilis

make fair soldiers, but are better as policemen. A most interesting military experiment is now being made by recruiting Masai, and it will be an excellent solution of a difficult problem if the warlike energies of the tribe find a sufficient outlet in the Protectorate service. At present the results are said to be quite satisfactory, but some difficulty is anticipated in making the men serve out of their own country, as they are extremely homesick. Of course, a large force of Masai troops in Masailand would be a doubtful protection. The appearance of the Masai recruits is, in one respect, very singular. In their wild condition they slit and distend their ears, in order to wear ornaments, until the lobes are 6 or 8 inches long. In uniform, when these ornaments are not allowed, the lobes are tucked up and twisted round the ears.

Egypt and the Soudan-Lord Cromer's Report-Upper Nile-Irrigation Projects -Report by Sir William Garstin. [Cd. 441, Cd. 672.]-Lord Cromer's Report, which is of unusual length, deals with the condition of Egypt and the Soudan for 1900. The Egyptian accounts for 1900 show ณ revenue of £E. 11,663,000, and expenditure £E.11,104,000-a surplus of £559,000, figures which "must be considered as highly satisfactory":—

The balance to the credit of the General Reserve Fund on the 31st December, 1900, was £E.3,529,000, of which £E.2,342,000 was pledged to expenditure of various sorts. The balance to the credit of the Special Reserve Fund, after deducting £E.50,000 on account of expenditure authorised, but not yet incurred, was £E.759,000.

The accumulated amount of economies, resulting from the conversion of the preference stock in 1889, was £E. 4,002,000.

The capital of the Egyptian Debt was £102,714,000, of which £7,273,000 was held by the Commissioners of the Debt, leaving an outstanding balance of £95,441,000 in the hands of the public.

The revenue of 1901 is estimated at £E.10,700,000, and the expenditure at £E.10,636,000, thus leaving a surplus of £E.64,000. There is every reason to suppose that this surplus will be exceeded.

The general financial results obtained since the commencement of the British occupation in 1882 may be stated as follows:

During the four years 1883-1886, both inclusive, the aggregate deficit amounted to £E.2,606,000. During the fourteen years from 1887 to 1900, both inclusive, the aggregate surplus, in spite of large reductions of taxation, heavy capital expenditure on public works, and latterly of a heavy Soudan charge, has amounted to £E.9,986,000.

Dealing with the question of the charge which the occupation of the Soudan entails upon the Egyptian Treasury, Lord Cromer says:

The contribution provided by the Egyptian Government to meet the charges of the Civil Administration of the Soudan has been increased from £E.134,000, the figure of 1900, to £E.194,000 in 1901. On the other hand, the military expenditure chargeable to the Soudan has been reduced by £E.60,000. The total sum disbursed by the Egyptian Treasury remains, therefore, the same as in 1900, viz., £E.417,000.

That this is a heavy charge cannot be doubted. Indeed, in my own opinion, the most remarkable feature about the reoccupation of the Soudan is the ease with which this heavy additional burthen has been borne without for a moment seriously endangering the stability of Egyptian finance. It affords, perhaps more than any other single fact, very strong proof of the great recuperative power with which Egypt has by nature been endowed.

There does not at present appear to be any immediate prospect that the charge on the Egyptian Treasury on account of the Soudan will be sensibly diminished. The advantages which Egypt gains in return for this large expenditure of money cannot be altogether expressed in figures. They are, nevertheless, very real.

The country has been relieved from the dread of Dervish invasion. All fear of interference with the water supply, on which the prosperity of Egypt depends, is removed. Indeed, the path is prepared for inquiry as to whether, in the country formerly dominated by the Dervishes, works may not be executed which will eventually prove of the utmost service to all the inhabitants of the Nile Valley. Trade, which cannot fail to benefit Egypt generally, has sprung up, and is certainly destined to increase as time goes on. The necessity for maintaining so large an Egyptian army no longer exists. The burthen of military service has already been lightened. Lastly-and this is an argument which, I hope and believe, appeals to Egyptians as well as to my own countrymen who co-operated with them in the civilising work of reconquest-the stigma that a large tract of country, formerly under Egyptian rule, had been allowed to relapse into barbarism has been removed.

I observe, in the remarks of the Legislative Council on the Estimates for the current year, that it is stated that the Council approves of the proposed expenditure on the Soudan, as they consider that the country "forms an integral part of Egypt." That view is substantially correct. The political regime in the Soudan is, however, governed by the Convention between Great Britain and Egypt, signed

on the 19th January, 1899. As it is possible that some Members of the Legislative Council may not be fully acquainted with the purport of that instrument, I take this opportunity of explaining that it was not framed with any wish or intention to curtail the legitimate rights of Egypt. The main objects of its authors were: first, to insure gcod government to the people of the Soudan; and, secondly, to avert from that country the special complications to which an international régime has given rise in Egypt. Members of the Council are, I conceive, not unaware of the manifold inconveniences to which those complications are liable to lead.

The

Lord Cromer then enters upon an exhaustive review of the various administrative departments of the Egyptian Government, showing progress and reform in every branch. The report concludes with the following remarks upon the Khedive and our Relations with Egyptians :

I cannot conclude this report without expressing my hope and belief that his Highness the Khedive's recent visit to England, coupled with the very remarkable and touching sympathy displayed by every class of society in this country on the occasion of the death of the Queen, will serve to cement more closely the bonds of friendship and goodwill which now, perhaps more than at any previous period, unite my own countrymen and the Egyptians. It is certain that, as each year of occupation has passed by, the British officials in the service of the Egyptian Government have acquired a more and more intimate knowledge of the language, manners, and customs of the Egyptians, and a greater aptitude for recognising the administrative requirements of the country. On the other hand, I trust that I am not mistaken in thinking that year by year the Egyptians themselves appreciate more and more fully the fact that every Englishman employed in Egypt owes his appointment solely to the consideration that his presence is conducive to their own welfare. On no single point, indeed, can there be any question of a divergence between British and Egyptian interests. The British Government and the British nation are concerned in the special point, which is also of the deepest interest to the Egyptians themselves-namely, the good government of Egypt and the prosperity of its inhabitants.

The Report on the Soudan consists of an abridgment of a Report by Sir Reginald Wingate, with a covering despatch by Lord Cromer. That considerable progress has been made, says Lord Cromer, cannot be doubted. But little advance can be made in the Soudan without the expenditure of

Deficit £E.41,683, or, say, £E.40,000. This large deficit is mainly due to the fact that the expenditure was very much under-estimated, while the receipts were put down at a figure they never attained. Again, during the course of the year, it was found necessary to abolish certain taxes, and reduce, or suspend, the collection of others which proved premature, and would have pressed unduly on the inhabitants and militated against the prosperity and good government of the country.

Several other causes contributed to prevent the anticipations of the Estimates from being realised. I will cite a few instances which illustrate the difficulties created by the situation and show how impossible it has been to keep within the limits defined in the Budget.

At the outset, we found ourselves saddled with liabilities from the previous year, and, amongst other items, had to meet a sum amounting to fully £E.25,000, being part of the extra expenditure in

curred over the special credit for the extension of the railway to Khartoum.

The appearance of the cattle plague was a misfortune to cattle owners in the Soudan and a great blow to the resources of the country. It menaced Egypt as well as the Soudan, and necessitated an unforeseen expenditure of about £E.6,000 in order to enable us to check its progress and protect both countries.

The occupation of Kordofan made it also necessary to establish in that province some sort of civil government, which started in a very primitive manner and has been steadily developing during the course of the year. In spite of the exercise of rigid economy, an expenditure of about £E.3,500 is anticipated, and this sum was not taken into account when the Estimates for the year were made. the year 1901, owing to the development of this province, the expenditure necessary to meet its requirements has been entered at £E.8,437.

In

The Public Works Budget, owing to the increasing necessity for office and house accommodation, hospitals and other public buildings, &c., is expected to be exceeded by about £E.13,000.

The Railway and Public Works have been, as in the previous year, and will remain for a considerable time to come, the heaviest drain on the resources of the country.

Several other items of expenditure were necessarily incurred for which no provision had been made. Amongst these may be enumerated the appointment of land commissions, municipal engineers, &c., the creation of an inspector-general and of additional English inspectors for the remoter districts in order to safeguard the interests of the loyal population and to make the beneficial influence of the reforms which have been instituted felt in localities where mistrust still exists and where evil opportunities are eagerly seized upon by those beyond the direct supervision of the Government.

The revenue was likewise affected. The Soudan Budget for 1901 shows an expenditure of £E.604,679, necessitating a contribution by the Egyptian Government of £E.417,179. Sir Reginald Wingate makes the following observations:

In spite of this evident progress, it must not be forgotten that there is still a universal appeal for more funds; more cattle are required for irrigation purposes, more high officials and closer inspection are demanded in order to facilitate the administrative system and crush out any tendency to revert to the old habits of corruption and venality, in which a certain section of the native subordinates are only too ready to indulge unless most carefully controlled. To such appeals, whether to aid development or to relieve the pressing wants of a population im

poverished by long years of warfare and oppression, there can be but one answer -an answer made by Lord Cromer when, cognisant of their real requirements, he recently addressed the Ulemas, Notables, and Sheikhs of the Soudan assembled at Khartoum.

"It must never be forgotten," he said, "that, however desirable any improvement considered on its own merits may be, an essential condition to its execution is that there shall be no increase of the fiscal burdens imposed on the Egyptian people for the sake of the Soudanese, and that the burdens on the Soudanese people should be kept as low as circumstances will permit."

The above accurately sums up the situation, and whilst gratefully acknowledging the liberal contributions granted by Egypt for the purposes of Soudan administration, I feel that I should be failing in my duties as the local representative of both His Majesty the King and of His Highness the Khedive if I abstained from pointing out that, in order to establish a thoroughly sound administrative system in this country, more funds are urgently required.

The various divisions of the Report show that there is a perceptible but very slow progress in the recovery of the Soudan from the effects of Mahdist rule, and that only gradual development must be expected.

Irrigation Projects [Cd. 672].-Sir Wm. Garstin's Report, which is the result of three consecutive years' study of the problem, is a document of fifty-eight pages with twelve maps, and to be studied with effect must be read in its entirety. The gist of his recommendations is that Lake Tsana, in the northern Abyssinian plateau, should be considered as the best source of supply. He arrives at this tentative conclusion by a process of elimination. The questions demanding study resolve themselves into two: The regulation of the great lakes which feed the White and Blue Niles, and the prevention of the waste of water which at present takes place in the wide swamps of the Bahr-el-Gebel. The Report proceeds :

Commencing with the two sources of the White Nile-namely, the Lakes Victoria and Albert Nyanza, it is known that these two sheets of water differ largely from one another in their character, as well as in their surroundings. This has been recorded by many travellers, and Mr. Gregory, in his interesting book,* has described this difference very clearly. He explains that the systems of the Central African lakes follow a well-defined plan. The long and narrow, or as he terms them "fiord-like " lakes, occur in two continuous chains, one on either side of

"The Great Rift Valley," by J. W. Gregory. John Murray, London, 1896.

the Lake Victoria Nyanza. These chains of lakes follow the great depressions which he styles the two "Great Rift Valleys." The depression to the west contains the Lakes Nyasa, Tanganyika, Albert Edward, and Albert Nyanza; that to the east, those of Manyara, Natron, Naivasha, and Baringo. The two systems unite at Lake Rudolph. The lakes in these two lines are, for the most part, surrounded by high mountains, with precipitous cliffs, frequently running sheer down to the water. The area of flat shore surrounding them is limited. They thus form immense rocky cisterns, specially adapted for the formation of large reservoirs.

Its

The Lake Victoria Nyanza is a marked contrast to those above mentioned. shape is rounder, and it is encircled by a low and shelving shore, which gently rises from the water's edge for a considerable distance. It is not bounded by ranges of mountains. According to the writer above quoted, the site of this lake was once a plateau. When this began to subside, the head-streams of the rivers that rose upon it were cut off and reversed in their direction. Their waters flowed to the centre of the depressed region, where they collected as a great lake. It is unnecessary to follow Mr. Gregory any further in his speculations, fascinating as they are, regarding the changes which have taken place in this portion of the African Continent. Enough has been quoted to explain the great difference existing in the formation of the two lakes which constitute the real sources of the White Nile. Their general situation and relations to one another are well known. The Albert Lake receives the water of the Somerset Nile at its northern extremity, and the stream derived from the two great reservoirs issues from it near Magungo.

The areas of the Lakes Victoria and Albert approximate respectively to 70,000 and 5,000 square kilom. It requires no technical knowledge to understand that, if the water surface of each lake could be artificially raised for each metre in height, a cube of 70,000,000,000 metres would be stored in the Victoria Nyanza, and of 5,000,000,000 metres in the Albert Nyanza Lake. Allowing, for the sake of illustration, that it was decided to raise the waterlevel by three metres in either lake, the cubic contents of the Albert Lake would be thus increased by 15,000,000,000 metres cube of water, while to that of the Victoria Lake would be added the gigantic total of 210,000,000,000 metres cube. Allowing that one metre were to be lost by evaporation, which in these rainy latitudes is an excessive figure, there would still remain available for distribution 10,000 millions of metres cube in the Albert, and 140,000 millions in the Victoria Lake. In reality, these cubes would be considerably larger than the above, as the shelving shores of the lakes have not been taken into account.