From the Nation dated June 19th 1884
Some key points to this article made by the author.
- No European can live in the country
- Doubtful any permanent European occupation like that of India is possible
- Natives there is one great country all the whites come from, called ‘Umputu,’
- Slavery is regarded by the slaves themselves as natural and proper; they do not want to be liberated and more...
The interesting interview with Captain Braconnier, published in the Herald on Monday, while it does not throw any absolutely new light on the purposes of the African International Association, brings out one or two points which are of considerable interest to all Americans who are thinking of the possibility of our “taking a hand” in the development of the “dark Continent.” Braconnier is a Belgian officer who was selected by King Leopold to assist Stanley on the Congo, and has spent three years and a half in the country.
He reports, first, that no European can live in the country, on account of the fevers. The climate is fatal to most strangers who remain there for more than two years. This does not prevent the establishment of trading posts, but makes it very doubtful whether any permanent European occupation like that of India is possible. As to commerce, he declares that Stanley, in his account of the river, has drawn upon his imagination for some of his facts. The river can be ascended... (click here)
1 comments:
For the true story of the much-maligned Stanley, whose views on Africa and Africans were ahead of his time, there's a wonderful biography: 'Stanley, The Impossible Life of Africa's Greatest Explorer' by Tim Jeal (Faber & Faber)Sunday Times Biography of the Year 2007.
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