sentenced to be hanged. The execution took place the following morning. When news of this arrived in England it created much excitement for Captain Lothaire had no legal right to pass any final sentence, and the accused had the right of appeal to the court at Boma in the Congo Free State. Mr. Stokes, it was declared, had gone on an expedition to Kibonge's country to demand reparation for the murder of his headman, named Juma, who had been killed by the Arab chief, and was perfectly innocent of any treasonable action against the Congo State.

In September Captain Lothaire was recalled to give an explanation concerning the execution of Mr. Stokes, and if it were not satisfactory he was to be tried by a competent tribunal. The procedure of the court-martial, it was admitted, was not in conformity with the laws of the Congo State. An indemnity of 100,000 francs was paid in December by the Congo State to the natives from German East Africa who were members of Mr. Stokes's caravan, and were deprived of their chief, an indemnity of 105,000 francs having already been paid in November to the British Government for the irregular procedure of Captain Lothaire in the trial and the execution of the hapless trader. Mr. Stokes had been established near Taborah, and the caravan arrived on the east coast, within German territory, in the autumn, with ivory to the value of 40,000.

V. CENTRAL AFRICA.

In

British Central Africa.-By an agreement concluded with the South Africa Company the British sphere north of the Zambesi River, excepting the Nyassaland Protectorate, was to be directly administered by the Chartered Company. accordance with this arrangement Major Forbes took charge of the native territory between Lake Tanganyika and the Zambesi westward of Nyassaland to the Kaffir River, but excluding Barotseland, establishing districts under assistant commissioners.

Early in January hostilities were in progress in the Shiré Highlands against Kawinga, whose town was a centre for slave caravans. Kawinga had organised raids into the country of Malemya, a friendly chief, and a British force was sent from Zomba to Malemya's town, from whence an attack was made on Kawinga. After routing him and burning some of his villages, the expedition returned to Malemya's town, which was then fortified and garrisoned by Sikhs and a native force.

Commissioner Johnston, who had been absent in India, returned to his post at Zomba in May. He brought with him a strong force of Sikhs to relieve the time-expired troops in British Central Africa. Later, he went on a tour of inspection. through the country, visiting every administrative station and most of the missionary settlements, and returned to Zomba July 28. On Lake Nyassa in the north the threatening attitude

of the Mpata Arabs, who had been greatly reinforced, was causing anxiety to the settlers.

Bishop Maples of Likoma and Mr. Williams, a member of the Universities Mission, were accidentally drowned by the capsizing of their boat at the south end of Lake Nyassa, September 12, and Rev. George Atlay of the same mission was murdered on the Portuguese side of the lake by a raiding party of natives in the same month.

The country in the mission districts was devastated by locusts, and as the year opened there were many deaths from starvation.

War was threatened in April upon the British settlements on Lake Nyassa by Zarifa, the slave-trading Arab chief, who had so long harassed them. A force of Sikhs and trained native troops, under Major C. A. Edwards, routed him, October 28, and his town was taken. The next day a sevenpound gun was captured by Major Bradshaw, which had been taken from the British in 1892. Eight hundred prisoners were taken by Major Trollope, with many slaves who were set free. Zarifa, however, escaped, and was reported to have retreated to an island in the Luganda River, where Mtanka, a powerful Yao chief and slave dealer, had established himself." Sir H. H. Johnston accompanied the expedition.

The village of Matapwiri and his brother Mtiramanja was destroyed in October, and these Yao chiefs surrendered. Isponda, another chief who had caused much trouble, also surrendered to a British force sent against him. Sir H. H. Johnston and Major Edwards went with a strong expedition in November to reduce to submission the North Nyassa Arabs, and early in December, after two and a half days' fighting, they were completely successful. All the enemy's stockades were taken and destroyed, and Mlozi, one of the most cruel slave-trading chiefs, was captured, tried, and executed. The Arabs lost 210 men, there were many taken prisoners, and 569 slaves were released.

At the end of 1894 there were nine steamers, three of which were built during the year, plying in the Lower Shire and Zambesi, not including gunboats, while the number of barges and cargo boats had considerably increased. On the Upper Shiré a new steamer and several new barges and boats were built, as well as several vessels for Lake Nyassa and a steel sailing vessel for Lake Tanganyika. Extensive deposits of coal of good quality were discovered during the year near the Shire. Coffee planting promised to be the great industry of British Central Africa. The export of coffee in 1893 was nearly double that of 1892, that of 1894 was nearly double that of 1893, and 1895 was definitely expected to fully double that of 1894, when it amounted to 165,320 lbs. export of the drug strophanthus was increasing.

The

CHAPTER VII.

AMERICA.

I. UNITED STATES.

THE state of political parties in the Congress of the United States at the beginning of the year 1895 (the third session of the fifty-third Congress convened in regular session December 3, 1894, and expiring March 4, 1895) was as follows: In the Senate -Democrats, 44; Republicans, 36; Populists, 5. In the House of Representatives-Democrats, 219; Republicans, 125; Populists, 12. President Cleveland's Cabinet included Walter Q. Gresham, of Illinois, Secretary of State; John G. Carlisle, of Kentucky, Secretary of the Treasury; Daniel S. Lamont, of New York, Secretary of War; Richard Olney, of Massachusetts, Attorney-General; Wilson S. Bissell, of New York, Postmaster-General; H. A. Herbert, of Alabama, Secretary of the Navy; Hoke Smith, of Georgia, Secretary of the Interior; and J. S. Morton, of Nebraska, Secretary of Agriculture.

The financial recommendations of President Cleveland's annual message were rejected by Congress, and a bill "to authorise the Secretary of the Treasury to issue bonds to maintain a sufficient gold reserve" was defeated by a majority of 27. Early in February the President addressed a further message to Congress on the financial situation, stating that details of an arrangement had been concluded with parties abundantly able to fulfil their undertaking whereby thirty year 4 per cent. bonds, payable in coin, would be issued to the amount of over $62,000,000, for the purchase of gold coin (3,500,000 ounces of standard gold coin of the U.S.), amounting to slightly over $65,000,000. The President declared that this was the only course open to him because of the "omission thus far on the part of Congress to beneficially enlarge the powers of the Secretary of the Treasury in the premises," and he recommended an alternative proposition to issue 3 per cent. bonds if Congress gave the authority therefor. The message was referred by the House of Representatives to the Committee of Ways and Means. On February 13 the chairman, Mr. Wilson, of West Virginia, reported a resolution authorising the issue of $65,116,275 of gold 3 per cent. bonds as recommended by the President; but when the measure came up the following day the House rejected it by 165 to 121 votes. The Treasury free gold balance had fallen (Feb. 11) to $41,163,712.

On February 9 a petition, signed by members of the House of Commons and other British subjects, in favour of international arbitration was submitted to the Senate by Senator Call of Florida.

During the short session which closed March 4 little was done except to pass the various appropriation bills. Much time

was spent in discussing financial questions, and there was a want of harmony among the Democratic majority of the House of Representatives which paralysed their action. An Income Tax Bill was passed, and a Pension Bill, voting $140,000,000, became law. The Naval Appropriation Bill embodied a vote for three new battleships of 10,000 tons each and twelve torpedo boats with an additional 10,000 men.

The Senate passed the General Deficiency Bill without inserting any amendment providing for the payment of the Behring Sea claims.

When the Senate Committee, appointed to inform the President of the close of the session, returned, it reported that the President sent his congratulations to Congress on concluding its labours, which caused loud laughter and applause.

The unpopular Income Tax Law came to an untimely end on May 20. The question as to its constitutionality was referred to the United States Supreme Court, and the entire law was declared, by a majority of the judges, to be unconstitutional on the ground that the taxes imposed by it were direct taxes within the meaning of the Constitution and not apportioned according to representation. Five justices held this view-Chief Justice Fuller with Justices Field, Gray, Brewer and Shiras. Four dissented-Justices Harlan, Brown, White and Jackson. Amounts that had been paid for income tax were to be refunded. The court had previously decided by 6 votes to 2 that a tax on rents from real estate was a tax on real estate, and therefore a direct tax, and that, as provided for in the Income Tax Act, was unconstitutional; and by 5 votes to 3 that a tax on municipal and state bonds was also unconstitutional and trenching on state rights. It had been officially estimated that the income tax would yield nearly $30,000,000 per annum.

A bill had been brought into the House of Representatives during the short session ordering the slaughter of the entire Alaska seal herd on the Pribyloff Islands unless Great Britain should at once agree to regulations for protection of the seals. Much annoyance was felt on the subject because the United States were guarding the seal fisheries at great expense, mainly for the benefit of Canadian pelagic sealers, and a valuable source of revenue to the Treasury was lost. It was thought that another season's opportunities for slaughter, under the ineffectual regulations of the Paris Tribunal, would so nearly exterminate the herd as to render its restoration almost if not quite impossible.

State legislation in 1895 was interesting, and in some respects important. There was a general tendency towards relieving married women of disabilities in respect to property. Idaho passed a law providing for a secret and uninfluenced ballot submitting to the popular decision the question of giving the full right of suffrage to women. In Connecticut a novel enactment prohibited the intermarriage of persons either of

A law

whom, whether man or woman, was epileptic, imbecile or feeble-minded where the woman was under forty-five years old, under a penalty of imprisonment of not less than three years. In the same State an attempt was made to settle or prevent labour disputes by establishing a State Board of Arbitration. In Massachusetts an act was passed prohibiting the display of foreign flags on public buildings and providing for the display of the national ensign on school-houses. There were rigorous prohibitions made in another act against secular business on Sunday, and against being present at any game, sport, play or public diversion on that day. Illinois forbade by law the keeping of barber shops open on Sunday. Pennsylvania was particularly conservative and anti-communistic in her legislation. was passed in this State prohibiting the wearing in any public school by any teacher of any religious garb, badge or symbol. In the State of Washington an act passed for the protection of shareholders in companies enabling the shareholders at any time to expel a director from office. In the same State a law was passed to repress cigarette smoking by persons under age. Illinois provided for the pensioning of school teachers after a service of twenty-five years by a tax of 1 per cent. on the salaries; and also prohibited under penalties the colouring of every substance designed to be used as a substitute for butter or cheese. An act in Wyoming attempted to preserve the few remaining wild buffaloes by absolutely prohibiting the killing of one of them. South Carolina, in her new State Constitution, adopted December 4, provided for the permanent registration of voters having the customary qualifications of age, residence, etc., who can read any section in this Constitution submitted to them by the registration officer, or understand and explain it when read to them by the registration officer." This was intended to diminish the negro vote in the State.

66

The currency agitation continued, and during the earlier months of the year especially, the people had the silver question continually before them. In March the American Bimetallic League issued an address announcing the formation of a new party for the promotion of the unrestricted coinage of gold and silver on terms of exact equality. Mr. Carlisle, the Secretary of the Treasury, started on a speech-making tour in May, and addressed a "sound money" convention on the 23rd at Memphis, Tennessee. About the same time a silver convention was held at Salt Lake City, Utah, which appointed an executive committee, composed of one representative from each of the eleven "silver" States, to issue an address to the people of the United States in favour of free silver coinage, and a large fund for campaign purposes was raised by the silver mine owners. In June, a Bimetallic Conference at Memphis declared in favour of unlimited silver coinage at the ratio of 16 to 1. The active silver agitation throughout the country was secretly helped by agents of the silver mining interest who had large funds at their disposal.