From the Chinde mouth of the Zambezi to Port Herald on the lower Shire communication is maintained by light-draught steamers, though in the dry season (April-November) steamers cannot always ascend as far as Port Herald, and barges have to be used to complete the voyage. A railway runs from Port Herald to Blantyre, the commercial capital of the Shire Highlands. The "Cape to Cairo" railway, which crossed the Zambezi in 1905 and the Kafukwe in 1906, reached the Broken Hill mine in 1907, and in 1909 was continued to the frontier of Belgian Congo. There are regular services by steamer between the ports on Lakes Nyasa and Tanganyika. The African trans-continental telegraph line (founded by Cecil Rhodes) runs through the protectorate, and a branch line has been established from Lake Nyasa to Fort Jameson, the present headquarters of the Chartered Company in North Eastern Rhodesia.

Towns.—The principal European settlement or town is Blantyre (q.v.), at a height of about 3000 ft. above the sea, in the Shire Highlands. This place was named after Livingstone's birthplace, and was founded in 1876 by the Church of Scotland mission. The government capital of the protectorate, however, is Zomba, at the base of the mountain of that name. Other townships or sites of European settlements are Port Herald (on the lower Shire), Chiromo (at the junction of the Ruo and the Shire), Fort Anderson (on Mount Mlanje), Fort Johnston (near the outlet of the river Shire from the south end of Lake Nyasa), Kotakota and Bandawe (on the west coast of Lake Nyasa), Likoma (on an island off the east coast of Lake Nyasa), Karonga (on the north-west coast of Lake Nyasa), Fife (on the Nyasa-Tanganyika plateau), Fort Jameson (capital of N.E. Rhodesia, near the river Luangwa), Abercorn (on the south end of Lake Tanganyika), Kalungwisi (on the east coast of Lake Mweru) and Fort Rosebery (near the Johnston Falls on the Luapula [upper Congo]).

Administration.—The present political divisions of the country [v.04 p.0597] are as follows:—The Nyasaland Protectorate, i.e. the districts surrounding Lake Nyasa and the Shire province, are administered directly under the imperial government by a governor, who acts under the orders of the colonial office. The governor is assisted by an executive council and by a nominated legislative council, which consists of at least three members. The districts to the westward, forming the provinces of North Eastern and North Western Rhodesia, are governed by two administrators of the British South Africa Chartered Company, in consultation with the governor of Nyasaland and the colonial office.

History.—The history of the territory dealt with above is recent and slight. Apart from the vague Portuguese wanderings during the 16th and 17th centuries, the first European explorer of any education who penetrated into this country was the celebrated Portuguese official, Dr F.J.M. de Lacerda e Almeida, who journeyed from Tete on the Zambezi to the vicinity of Lake Mweru. But the real history of the country begins with the advent of David Livingstone, who in 1859 penetrated up the Shire river and discovered Lake Nyasa. Livingstone's subsequent journeys, to the south end of Tanganyika, to Lake Mweru and to Lake Bangweulu (where he died in 1873), opened up this important part of South Central Africa and centred in it British interests in a very particular manner. Livingstone's death was soon followed by the entry of various missionary societies, who commenced the evangelization of the country; and these missionaries, together with a few Scottish settlers, steadily opposed the attempts of the Portuguese to extend their sway in this direction from the adjoining provinces of Mocambique and of the Zambezi. From out of the missionary societies grew a trading company, the African Lakes Trading Corporation. This body came into conflict with a number of Arabs who had established themselves on the north end of Lake Nyasa. About 1885 a struggle began between Arab and Briton for the possession of the country, which was not terminated until the year 1896. The African Lakes Corporation in its unofficial war enlisted volunteers, amongst whom were Captain (afterwards Sir F.D.) Lugard and Mr (afterwards Sir) Alfred Sharpe. Both these gentlemen were wounded, and the operations they undertook were not crowned with complete success. In 1889 Mr (afterwards Sir) H.H. Johnston was sent out to endeavour to effect a possible arrangement of the dispute between the Arabs and the African Lakes Corporation, and also to ensure the protection of friendly native chiefs from Portuguese aggression beyond a certain point. The outcome of these efforts and the treaties made was the creation of the British protectorate and sphere of influence north of the Zambezi (see AFRICA; Sec. 5). In 1891 Johnston returned to the country as imperial commissioner and consul-general. In the interval between 1889 and 1891 Mr Alfred Sharpe, on behalf of Cecil Rhodes, had brought a large part of the country into treaty with the British South Africa Company, These territories (Northern Rhodesia) were administered for four years by Sir Harry Johnston in connexion with the British Central Africa protectorate. Between 1891 and 1895 a long struggle continued, between the British authorities on the one hand and the Arabs and Mahommedan Yaos on the other, regarding the suppression of the slave trade. By the beginning of 1896 the last Arab stronghold was taken and the Yaos were completely reduced to submission. Then followed, during 1896-1898, wars with the Zulu (Angoni) tribes, who claimed to dominate and harass the native populations to the west of Lake Nyasa. The Angoni having been subdued, and the British South Africa Company having also quelled the turbulent Awemba and Bashukulumbwe, there is a reasonable hope of the country enjoying a settled peace and considerable prosperity. This prospect has been, indeed, already realized to a considerable extent, though the increase of commerce has scarcely been as rapid as was anticipated. In 1897, on the transference of Sir Harry Johnston to Tunis, the commissionership was conferred on Mr Alfred Sharpe, who was created a K.C.M.G. in 1903. In 1904 the administration of the protectorate, originally directed by the foreign office, was transferred to the colonial office. In 1907, on the change in the title of the protectorate, the designation of the chief official was altered from commissioner to governor, and executive and legislative councils were established. The mineral surveys and railway construction commenced under the foreign office were carried on vigorously under the colonial office. The increased revenue, from L51,000 in 1901-1902 to L76,000 in 1905-1906, for the protectorate alone (see also RHODESIA), is an evidence of increasing prosperity. Expenditure in excess of revenue is met by grants in aid from the imperial exchequer, so far as the Nyasaland Protectorate is concerned. The British South Africa Company finances the remainder. The native population is well disposed towards European rule, having, indeed, at all times furnished the principal contingent of the armed force with which the African Lakes Company, British South Africa Company or the British government endeavoured to oppose Arab, Zulu or Awemba aggression. The protectorate government maintains three gunboats on Lake Nyasa, and the British South Africa Company an armed steamer on Lake Tanganyika.

Unfortunately, though so rich and fertile, the land is not as a rule very healthy for Europeans, though there are signs of improvement in this respect. The principal scourges are black-water fever and dysentery, besides ordinary malarial fever, malarial ulcers, pneumonia and bronchitis. The climate is agreeable, and except in the low-lying districts is never unbearably hot; while on the high mountain plateaus frost frequently occurs during the dry season.

See Narrative of an Expedition to the Zambezi, &c., by David and Charles Livingstone (1865); Last Journals of David Livingstone, edited by the Rev. Horace Waller (1874); L. Monteith Fotheringham, Adventures in Nyasaland (1891); Henry Drummond, Tropical Africa (4th ed., 1891); Rev. D.C. Scott, An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of the Mang'anja Language, as spoken in British Central Africa (1891); Sir H.H. Johnston, British Central Africa (2nd ed., 1898); Miss A. Werner, The Natives of British Central Africa (1906); John Buchanan, The Shire Highlands (1885); Lionel Decle, Three Years in Savage Africa (1898); H.L. Duff, Nyasaland under the Foreign Office (1903); J.E.S. Moore, The Tanganyika Problem (1904); articles on North Eastern and North Western Rhodesia (chiefly by Frank Melland) in the Journal of the African Society (1902-1906); annual Reports on British Central Africa published by the Colonial Office; various linguistic works by Miss A. Werner, the Rev. Govan Robertson, Dr R. Laws, A.C. Madan, Father Torrend and Monsieur E. Jacottet.

(H. H. J.)

[1] The nomenclature of several of these rivers is perplexing. It should be borne in mind that the Luanga (also known as the Lunga) is a tributary of the Luengwe-Kafukwe, itself often called Kafue, and that the Luangwa (or Loangwa) is an independent affluent of the Zambezi (q.v.).

[2] The organized armed forces and police are under the direction of the imperial government throughout British Central Africa, and number about 880 (150 Sikhs, 730 negroes and 14 British officers).

BRITISH COLUMBIA, the western province of the Dominion of Canada. It is bounded on the east by the continental watershed in the Rocky Mountains, until this, in its north-westerly course, intersects 120 deg. W., which is followed north to 60 deg. N., thus including within the province a part of the Peace river country to the east of the mountains. The southern boundary is formed by 49 deg. N. and the strait separating Vancouver Island from the state of Washington. The northern boundary is 60 deg. N., the western the Pacific Ocean, upon which the province fronts for about 600 m., and the coast strip of Alaska for a further distance of 400 m. Vancouver Island and the Queen Charlotte Islands, as well as the smaller islands lying off the western coast of Canada, belong to the province of British Columbia.

Physical Features.—British Columbia is essentially a mountainous country, for the Rocky Mountains which in the United States lie to the east of the Great Basin, on running to the north bear toward the west and approach the ranges which border the Pacific coast. Thus British Columbia comprises practically the entire width of what has been termed the Cordillera or Cordilleran belt of North America, between the parallels of latitude above indicated. There are two ruling mountain systems in this belt—the Rocky Mountains proper on the north-east side, and the Coast Range on the south-west or Pacific side. Between these are subordinate ranges to which various local names have been given, as well as the "Interior Plateau"—an elevated tract of hilly country, the hill summits having an accordant altitude, which lies to the east of the Coast Range. The several ranges, having been produced by successive foldings of the earth's crust in a direction parallel to the border of the Pacific Ocean, have a common trend which is south-east and north-west. Vancouver Island and the Queen Charlotte Islands are remnants of still another mountain range, which runs parallel to the coast but is now almost entirely submerged beneath the waters of the Pacific. The province might be said to consist of a series of parallel mountain ranges with long narrow valleys lying between them.

The Rocky Mountains are composed chiefly of palaeozoic sediments ranging in age from the Cambrian to the Carboniferous, with subordinate infolded areas of Cretaceous which hold coal. The average height of the range along the United States boundary is 8000 ft., but the range culminates between the latitudes of 51 deg. and 53 deg., the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies being Mount Robson, 13,700 [v.04 p.0598] ft., although the highest peak in British Columbia is Mount Fairweather on the International Boundary, which rises to 15,287 ft. Other high peaks in the Rocky Mountains of Canada are Columbia, 12,740 ft.; Forbes, 12,075; Assiniboine, 11,860; Bryce. 11,686; Temple, 11,626; Lyell, 11,463. There are a number of passes over the Rocky Mountains, among which may be mentioned, beginning from the south, the South Kootenay or Boundary Pass, 7100 ft.; the Crow's Nest Pass, 5500 (this is traversed by the southern branch of the Canadian Pacific railway and crosses great coal fields); the Kicking Horse or Wapta Pass, 5300 (which is traversed by the main line of the Canadian Pacific railway); the Athabasca Pass, 6025; the Yellow Head Pass, 3733 (which will probably be used by the Grand Trunk Pacific railway); the Pine River Pass, 2850; and the Peace River Pass, 2000, through which the Peace river flows.

The Coast Range, sometimes called the Cascade Range, borders the Pacific coast for 900 m. and gives to it its remarkable character. To its partially submerged transverse valleys are due the excellent harbours on the coast, the deep sounds and inlets which penetrate far inland at many points, as well as the profound and gloomy fjords and the stupendous precipices which render the coast line an exaggerated reproduction of that of Norway. The coast is, in fact, one of the most remarkable in the world, measuring with all its indentations 7000 m. in the aggregate, and being fringed with an archipelago of innumerable islands, of which Vancouver Island and the Queen Charlotte Islands are the largest.

Along the south-western side of the Rocky Mountains is a very remarkable valley of considerable geological antiquity, in which some seven of the great rivers of the Pacific slope, among them the Kootenay, Columbia, Fraser and Finlay, flow for portions of their upper courses. This valley, which is from 1 to 6 m. in width, can be traced continuously for a length of at least 800 m. One of the most important rivers of the province is the Fraser, which, rising in the Rocky Mountains, flows for a long distance to the north-west, and then turning south eventually crosses the Coast Range by a deep canton-like valley and empties into the Strait of Georgia, a few miles south of the city of Vancouver. The Columbia, which rises farther south in the same range, flows north for about 150 m., crossing the main line of the Canadian Pacific railway at Donald, and then bending abruptly back upon its former course, flows south, recrossing the Canadian Pacific railway at Revelstoke, and on through the Arrow Lakes in the Kootenay country into the United States, emptying into the Pacific Ocean at Astoria in the state of Oregon. These lakes, as well as the other large lakes in southern British Columbia, remain open throughout the winter. In the north-western part of the province the Skeena flows south-west into the Pacific, and still farther to the north the Stikine rises in British Columbia, but before entering the Pacific crosses the coast strip of Alaska. The Liard, rising in the same district, flows east and falls into the Mackenzie, which empties into the Arctic Ocean. The headwaters of the Yukon are also situated in the northern part of the province. All these rivers are swift and are frequently interrupted by rapids, so that, as means of communication for commercial purposes, they are of indifferent value. Wherever lines of railway are constructed, they lose whatever importance they may have held in this respect previously.

At an early stage in the Glacial period British Columbia was covered by the Cordilleran glacier, which moved south-eastwards and north-westwards, in correspondence with the ruling features of the country, from a gathering-ground situated in the vicinity of the 57th parallel. Ice from this glacier poured through passes in the coast ranges, and to a lesser extent debouched upon the edge of the great plains, beyond the Rocky Mountain range. The great valley between the coast ranges and Vancouver Island was also occupied by a glacier that moved in both directions from a central point in the vicinity of Valdez Island. The effects of this glacial action and of the long periods of erosion preceding it and of other physiographic changes connected with its passing away, have most important bearings on the distribution and character of the gold-bearing alluviums of the province.

Climate.—The subjoined figures relating to temperature and precipitation are from a table prepared by Mr R.F. Stupart, director of the meteorological service. The station at Victoria may be taken as representing the conditions of the southern part of the coast of British Columbia, although the rainfall is much greater on exposed parts of the outer coast. Agassiz represents the Fraser delta and Kamloops the southern interior district. The mean temperature naturally decreases to the northward of these selected stations, both along the coast and in the interior, while the precipitation increases. The figures given for Port Simpson are of interest, as the Pacific terminus of the Grand Trunk Pacific railway will be in this vicinity.

+ + -+ + Absolute Mean Temp., Fahr. Temperature. + + + + -+ + -+ Coldest Warmest Average Highest. Lowest. Month. Month. Annual. + + + + -+ + -+ Victoria[1] Jan. 37.5 deg. July 60.3 deg. 48.8 deg. 90 deg. -1 deg. Agassiz[2] Jan. 33.0 deg. Aug. 64.7 deg. 48.9 deg. 97 deg. -13 deg. Kamloops[3] Jan. 24.2 deg. Aug. 68.5 deg. 47.1 deg. 101 deg. -27 deg. Port Simpson[4] Jan. 34.9 deg. Aug. 56.9 deg. 45.1 deg. 88 deg. -10 deg. + + + + -+ + -+

-+ Rainfall Inches. + - Wettest Driest Average Month. Month. Annual. -+ Victoria Dec. 7.98 July .4 37.77 Agassiz Dec. 9.43 July 1.55 66.85 Kamloops July 1.61 April .37 11.46 Port Simpson Oct. 12.42 June 4.37 94.63 + -

[1] 48 deg. 24' N., 123 deg. 19' W., height 85 ft.

[2] 49 deg. 14' N., 121 deg. 31' W., height 52 ft.

[3] 50 deg. 41' N., 120 deg. 29' W., height 1193 ft.

[4] 54 deg. 34' N., 130 deg. 26' W., height 26 ft.

Fauna.—Among the larger mammals are the big-horn or mountain sheep (Ovis canadensis), the Rocky Mountain goat (Mazama montana), the grizzly bear, moose, woodland caribou, black-tailed or mule deer, white-tailed deer, and coyote. All these are to be found only on the mainland. The black bear, wolf, puma, lynx, wapiti, and Columbian or coast deer are common to parts of both mainland and islands. Of marine mammals the most characteristic are the sea-lion, fur-seal, sea-otter and harbour-seal. About 340 species of birds are known to occur in the province, among which, as of special interest, may be mentioned the burrowing owl of the dry, interior region, the American magpie, Steller's jay and a true nut-cracker, Clark's crow (Picicorvus columbianus). True jays and orioles are also well represented. The gallinaceous birds include the large blue grouse of the coast, replaced in the Rocky Mountains by the dusky grouse. The western form of the "spruce partridge" of eastern Canada is also abundant, together with several forms referred to the genus Bonasa, generally known as "partridges" or ruffed grouse. Ptarmigans also abound in many of the higher mountain regions. Of the Anatidae only passing mention need be made. During the spring and autumn migrations many species are found in great abundance, but in the summer a smaller number remain to breed, chief among which are the teal, mallard, wood-duck, spoon-bill, pin-tail, buffle-head, red-head, canvas-back, scaup-duck, &c.

Area and Population.—The area of British Columbia is 357,600 sq. m., and its population by the census of 1901 was 190,000. Since that date this has been largely increased by the influx of miners and others, consequent upon the discovery of precious metals in the Kootenay, Boundary and Atlin districts. Much of this is a floating population, but the opening up of the valleys by railway and new lines of steamboats, together with the settlements made in the vicinity of the Canadian Pacific railway, has resulted in a considerable increase of the permanent population. The white population comprises men of many nationalities. There is a large Chinese population, the census of 1901 returning 14,201. The influx of Chinamen has, however, practically ceased, owing to the tax of $500 per head imposed by the government of the dominion. Many Japanese have also come in. The Japanese are engaged chiefly in lumbering and fishing, but the Chinese are found everywhere in the province. Great objection is taken by the white population to the increasing number of "Mongolians," owing to their competition with whites in the labour markets. The Japanese do not appear to be so much disliked, as they adapt themselves to the ways of white men, but they are equally objected to on the score of cheap labour; and in 1907-1908 considerable friction occurred with the Dominion government over the Anti-Japanese attitude of British Columbia, which was shown in some rather serious riots. In the census of 1901 the Indian population is returned at 25,488; of these 20,351 are professing Christians and 5137 are pagans. The Indians are divided into very many tribes, under local names, but fall naturally on linguistic grounds into a few large groups. Thus the southern part of the interior is occupied by the Salish and Kootenay, and the northern interior by the Tinneh or Athapackan people. On the coast are the Haida, Tsimshian, Kwakiatl, Nootka, and about the Gulf of Georgia various tribes related to the Salish proper. There is no treaty with the Indians of British Columbia, as with those of the plains, for the relinquishment of their title to the land, but the government otherwise assists them. There is an Indian superintendent at Victoria, and under him are nine agencies throughout the province to attend to the Indians—relieving their sick and destitute, supplying them with seed and implements, settling their disputes and administering justice. The Indian fishing stations and burial grounds are reserved, and other land has been set apart for them for agricultural and pastoral purposes. A number of schools have been established for their education. They were at one time a dangerous element, but are now quiet and peaceable.

The chief cities are Victoria, the capital, on Vancouver Island; and Vancouver on the mainland, New Westminster on the Fraser and Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. Rossland and Nelson in West Kootenay, as well as Fernie in East Kootenay and Grand Forks in the Boundary district, are also places of importance.

Mining.—Mining is the principal industry of British Columbia. The country is rich in gold, silver, copper, lead and coal, and has also iron deposits. From 1894 to 1904 the mining output increased from $4,225,717 to $18,977,359. In 1905 it had reached $22,460,295. The principal minerals, in order of value of output, are gold, copper, coal, lead and silver. Between 1858—the year of the placer discoveries on the Fraser river and in the Cariboo district—and 1882, the placer yields were much heavier than in subsequent years, running from one to nearly four million dollars annually, but there was no quartz mining. Since 1899 placer mining has increased considerably, although the greater part of the return has been from lode mining. The Rossland, the Boundary and the Kootenay districts are the chief centres of vein-mining, yielding auriferous and cupriferous sulphide ores, as well as large quantities of silver-bearing lead ores. Ores of copper and the precious metals are being prospected and worked also, in several places along the coast and on Vancouver Island. The mining laws are liberal, and being based on the experience gained in the adjacent mining centres of the Western States, are convenient and effective. The most important smelting and reducing plants are those at Trail and Nelson in the West Kootenay country, and at Grand Forks and Greenwood in the Boundary district. There are also numerous concentrating plants. Mining machinery of the most modern types is employed wherever machinery is required.

The province contains enormous supplies of excellent coal, most of which are as yet untouched. It is chiefly of Cretaceous age. The producing collieries are chiefly on Vancouver Island and on the western slope of the Rockies near the Crow's Nest Pass in the extreme south-eastern portion of the provinces. Immense beds of high grade bituminous coal and semi-anthracite are exposed in the Bulkley Valley, south of the Skeena river, not far from the projected line of the Grand Trunk Pacific railway. About one-half the coal mined is exported to the United States.

Fisheries.—A large percentage of the commerce is derived from the sea, the chief product being salmon. Halibut, cod (several varieties), oolachan, sturgeon, herring, shad and many other fishes are also plentiful, but with the exception of the halibut these have not yet become the objects of extensive industries. There are several kinds of salmon, and they run in British Columbia waters at different seasons of the year. The quinnat or spring salmon is the largest and best table fish, and is followed in the latter part of the summer by the sockeye, which runs in enormous numbers up the Fraser and Skeena rivers. This is the fish preferred for canning. It is of brighter colour, more uniform in size, and comes in such quantities that a constant supply can be reckoned upon by the canneries. About the mouth of the Fraser river from 1800 to 2600 boats are occupied during the run. There is an especially large run of sockeye salmon in the Fraser river every fourth year, while in the year immediately following there is a poor run. The silver salmon or cohoe arrives a little later than the sockeye, but is not much used for packing except when required to make up deficiencies. The dog-salmon is not canned, but large numbers are caught by the Japanese, who salt them for export to the Orient. The other varieties are of but little commercial importance at present, although with the increasing demand for British Columbia salmon, the fishing season is being extended to cover the runs of all the varieties of this fish found in the waters of the province.

Great Britain is the largest but not the only market for British Columbia salmon. The years vary in productiveness, 1901 having been unusually large and 1903 the smallest in eleven years, but the average pack is about 700,000 cases of forty-eight 1-lb tins, the greater part of all returns being from the Fraser river canneries, the Skeena river and the Rivers Inlet coming next in order. There are between 60 and 70 canneries, of which about 40 are on the banks of [v.04 p.0600] the Fraser river. There is urgent need for the enactment of laws restricting the catch of salmon, as the industry is now seriously threatened. The fish oils are extracted chiefly from several species of dog-fish, and sometimes from the basking shark, as well as from the oolachan, which is also an edible fish.

The fur-seal fishery is an important industry, though apparently a declining one. Owing to the scarcity of seals and international difficulties concerning pelagic sealing in Bering Sea, where the greatest number have been taken, the business of seal-hunting is losing favour. Salmon fish-hatcheries have been established on the chief rivers frequented by these fish. Oysters and lobsters from the Atlantic coast have been planted in British Columbia waters.

Timber.—The province is rich in forest growth, and there is a steady demand for its lumber in the other parts of Canada as well as in South America, Africa, Australia and China. The following is a list of some of the more important trees—large leaved maple (Acer macrophyllum), red alder (Alnus rubra), western larch (Larix occidentalis), white spruce (Picea alba), Engellmann's spruce (Picea Engelmanii), Menzies's spruce (Picea sitchensis), white mountain pine (Pinus monticola), black pine (Pinus murrayana), yellow pine (Pinus ponderosa), Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga Douglasii), western white oak (Quercus garryana), giant cedar (Thuya gigantea), yellow cypress or cedar (Thuya excelsa), western hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana). The principal timber of commerce is the Douglas fir. The tree is often found 300 ft. high and from 8 to 10ft. in diameter. The wood is tough and strong and highly valued for ships' spars as well as for building purposes. Red or giant cedar, which rivals the Douglas fir in girth, is plentiful, and is used for shingles as well as for interior work. The western white spruce is also much employed for various purposes. There are about eighty sawmills, large and small, in the province. The amount of timber cut on Dominion government lands in 1904 was 22,760,222 ft., and the amount cut on provincial lands was 325,271,568 ft., giving a total of 348,031,790 ft. In 1905 the cut on dominion lands exceeded that in 1904, while the amount cut on provincial lands reached 450,385,554 ft. The cargo shipments of lumber for the years 1904 and 1905 were as follows:—

1904. 1905. Ft. Ft. United Kingdom 7,498,301 13,690,869 South America 15,647,808 13.332,993 Australia 10,045,094 11,596,482 South Africa 2,517,154 7,093,681 China and Japan 4,802,426 4,787,784 Germany 983,342 Fiji Islands 308,332 29,949 France 1,308,662 ————- ————— 42,199,777 51,515,100

There is a very large market for British Columbia lumber in the western provinces of Canada.

Agriculture.—Although mountainous in character the province contains many tracts of good farming land. These lie in the long valleys between the mountain ranges of the interior, as well as on the lower slopes of the mountains and on the deltas of the rivers running out to the coast. On Vancouver Island also there is much good farming land. The conditions are in most places best suited to mixed farming; the chief crops raised are wheat, oats, potatoes and hay. Some areas are especially suited for cattle and sheep raising, among which may be mentioned the Yale district and the country about Kamloops. Much attention has been given to fruit raising, especially in the Okanagan valley. Apples, plums and cherries are grown, as well as peaches, apricots, grapes and various small fruits, notably strawberries. All these are of excellent quality. Hops are also cultivated. A large market for this fruit is opening up in the rapidly growing provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Imports and Exports.—For the year ending June 30th 1905 the total exports and imports (showing a slight gradual increase on the two preceding years) were valued at $16,677,882 and $12,565,019 respectively. The exports were classified as follows:—Mines, $9,777,423; fisheries, $2,101,533; forests, $1,046,718; animals, $471,231; agriculture, $119,426; manufactures, $1,883,777; miscellaneous, $1,106,643; coin and bullion, $171,131.

Railways.—The Pacific division of the Canadian Pacific railway enters British Columbia through the Rocky Mountains on the east and runs for about 500 m. across the province before reaching the terminus at Vancouver. A branch of the same railway leaves the main line at Medicine Hat, and running to the south-west, crosses the Rocky Mountains through the Crow's Nest Pass, and thus enters British Columbia a short distance north of the United States boundary. This continues across the province, running approximately parallel to the boundary as far as Midway in what is known as the Boundary district. The line has opened up extensive coal fields and crosses a productive mining district. On Vancouver Island there are two railways, the Esquimalt & Nanaimo railway (78 m.) connecting the coal fields with the southern ports, and the Victoria & Sydney railway, about 16 m. in length. The Great Northern has also a number of short lines in the southern portion of the province, connecting with its system in the United States. In 1905 there were 1627m. of railway in the province, of which 1187 were owned or controlled by the Canadian Pacific railway.

Shipping.—The Canadian Pacific Railway Company has two lines of mail steamer running from Vancouver and Victoria: (l) the Empress line, which runs to Japan and China once in three weeks, and (2) the Australian line to Honolulu, Fiji and Sydney, once a month. The same company also has a line of steamers running to Alaska, as well as a fleet of coasting steamers.

Government.—The province is governed by a lieutenant-governor, appointed by the governor-general in council for five years, but subject to removal for cause, an executive council of five ministers, and a single legislative chamber. The executive council is appointed by the lieutenant-governor on the advice of the first minister, and retains office so long as it enjoys the support of a majority of the legislature. The powers of the lieutenant-governor in regard to the provincial government are analogous to those of governor-general in respect of the dominion government.

The British North America Act (1867) confederating the colonies, defines the jurisdiction of the provincial legislature as distinguished from that of the federal parliament, but within its own jurisdiction the province makes the laws for its own governance. The act of the legislature may be disallowed, within one year of its passage, by the governor-general in council, and is also subject to challenge as to its legality in the supreme court of Canada or on appeal to the juridical committee of the privy council of the United Kingdom. British Columbia sends three senators and seven members to the lower house of the federal parliament, which sits at Ottawa.

Justice.—There is a supreme court of British Columbia presided over by a chief justice and five puisne judges, and there are also a number of county courts. In British Columbia the supreme court has jurisdiction in divorce cases, this right having been invested in the colony before confederation.

Religion and Education.—In 1901 the population was divided by creeds as follows: Church of England, 40,687; Methodist, 25,047; Presbyterian, 34,081; Roman Catholic, 33,639; others, 40,197; not stated, 5003; total, 178,654. The educational system of British Columbia differs slightly from that of other provinces of Canada. There are three classes of schools—common, graded and high—all maintained by the government and all free and undenominational. There is only one college in the province, the "McGill University College of British Columbia" at Vancouver, which is one of the colleges of McGill University, whose chief seat is at Montreal. The schools are controlled by trustees selected by the ratepayers of each school district, and there is a superintendent of education acting under the provincial secretary.

Finance.—Under the terms of union with Canada, British Columbia receives from the dominion government annually a certain contribution, which in 1905 amounted to $307,076. This, with provincial taxes on real property, personal property, income tax, sales of public land, timber dues, &c., amounted in the year 1905 to $2,920,461. The expenditure for the year was $2,302,417. The gross debt of the province in 1905 was $13,252,097, with assets of $4,463,869, or a net debt of $8,788,228. These assets do not include new legislative buildings or other public works. The income tax is on a sliding scale. In 1899 a fairly close estimate was made of the capital invested in the province, which amounted to $307,385,000 including timber, $100,000,000; railways and telegraphs, $47,500,000; mining plant and smelters, $10,500,000; municipal assessments, $45,000,000; provincial assessments, $51,500,000; in addition to private wealth, $280,000,000. There are branch offices of one or more of the Canadian banks in each of the larger towns.



History.—The discovery of British Columbia was made by the Spaniard Perez in 1774. With Cook's visit the geographical exploration of the coast began in 1778. Vancouver, in 1792-1794, surveyed almost the entire coast of British Columbia with much of that to the north and south, for the British government. The interior, about the same time, was entered by Mackenzie and traders of the N.W. Company, which in 1821 became amalgamated with the Hudson's Bay Company. For the next twenty-eight years the Hudson's Bay Company ruled this immense territory with beneficent despotism. In 1849 Vancouver Island was proclaimed a British colony. In 1858, consequent on the discovery of gold and the large influx of miners, the mainland territory was erected into a colony under the name of British Columbia, and in 1866 this was united with the colony of Vancouver Island, under the same name. In 1871 British Columbia entered the confederation and became part of the Dominion of Canada, sending three senators and six (now seven) members to the House of Commons of the federal parliament. One of the conditions under which the colony entered the dominion was the speedy construction of the Canadian Pacific railway, and in 1876 the non-fulfilment of this promise and the apparent indifference of the government at Ottawa to the representations of British Columbia created [v.04 p.0601] strained relations, which were only ameliorated when the construction of a transcontinental road was begun. In subsequent years the founding of the city of Vancouver by the C.P.R., the establishment of the first Canadian steamship line to China and Japan, and that to Australia, together with the disputes with the United States on the subject of pelagic sealing, and the discovery of the Kootenay and Boundary mining districts, have been the chief events in the history of the province.

AUTHORITIES.—Cook's Voyage to the Pacific Ocean (London, 1784); Vancouver, Voyage of Discovery to the Pacific Ocean (London, 1798); H.H. Bancroft's works, vol. xxxii., History of British Columbia (San Francisco, 1887); Begg's History of British Columbia (Toronto, 1894); Gosnell, Year Book (Victoria, British Columbia, 1897 and 1903); Annual Reports British Columbia Board of Trade (Victoria); Annual Reports of Minister of Mines and other Departmental Reports of the Provincial and Dominion Governments; Catalogue of Provincial Museum (Victoria); Reports Geological Survey of Canada (from 1871 to date); Reports of Canadian Pacific (Government) Surveys (1872-1880); Reports of Committee of Brit. Assn. Adv. Science on N.W. Tribes (1884-1895); Lord, Naturalist in Vancouver Island (London, 1866); Bering Sea Arbitration (reprint of letters to Times), (London, 1893); Report of Bering Sea Commission (London, Government, 1892); A. Metin, La Colombie Britannique (Paris, 1908). See also various works of reference under CANADA.

(G. M. D.; M. ST J.; F. D. A.)

BRITISH EAST AFRICA, a term, in its widest sense, including all the territory under British influence on the eastern side of Africa between German East Africa on the south and Abyssinia and the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan on the north. It comprises the protectorates of Zanzibar, Uganda and East Africa. Apart from a narrow belt of coastland, the continental area belongs almost entirely to the great plateau of East Africa, rarely falling below an elevation of 2000 ft., while extensive sections rise to a height of 6000 to 8000 ft. From the coast lowlands a series of steps with intervening plateaus leads to a broad zone of high ground remarkable for the abundant traces of volcanic action. This broad upland is furrowed by the eastern "rift-valley," formed by the subsidence of its floor and occupied in parts by lakes without outlet. Towards the west a basin of lower elevation is partially occupied by Victoria Nyanza, drained north to the Nile, while still farther inland the ground again rises to a second volcanic belt, culminating in the Ruwenzori range. (See ZANZIBAR, and for Uganda protectorate see UGANDA.) The present article treats of the East Africa protectorate only.



Topography.—The southern frontier, coterminous with the northern frontier of German East Africa, runs north-west from the mouth of the Umba river in 4 deg. 40' S. to Victoria Nyanza, which it strikes at 1 deg. S., deviating, however, so as to leave Mount Kilimanjaro wholly in German territory. The eastern boundary is the Indian Ocean, the coast line being about 400 m. On the north the protectorate is bounded by Abyssinia and Italian Somaliland; on the west by Uganda. It has an area of about 240,000 sq. m., and a population estimated at from 2,000,000 to 4,000,000, including some 25,000 Indians and 3000 Europeans. Of the Europeans many are emigrants from South Africa; they include some hundreds of Boer families.

The first of the parallel zones—the coast plain or "Temborari"—is generally of insignificant width, varying from 2 to 10 m., except in the valleys of the main rivers. The shore line is broken by bays and branching creeks, often cutting off islands from the mainland. Such are Mvita or Mombasa in 4 deg. 4' S., and the larger islands of Lamu, Manda and Patta (the Lamu archipelago), between 2 deg. 20' and 2 deg. S. Farther north the coast becomes straighter, with the one indentation of Port Durnford in 1 deg. 10' S., but skirted seawards by a row of small islands. Beyond the coast plain the country rises in a generally well defined step or steps to an altitude of some 800 ft., forming the wide level plain called "Nyika" (uplands), largely composed of quartz. It contains large waterless areas, such as the Taru desert in the Mombasa district. The next stage in the ascent is marked by an intermittent line of mountains—gneissose or schistose—running generally north-north-west, sometimes in parallel chains, and representing the primitive axis of the continent. Their height varies from 5000 to 8000 ft. Farther inland grassy uplands extend to the eastern edge of the rift-valley, though varied with cultivated ground and forest, the former especially in Kikuyu, the latter between 0 deg. and 0 deg. 40' S. The most extensive grassy plains are those of Kapte or Kapote and Athi, between 1 deg. and 2 deg. S. The general altitude of these uplands, the surface of which is largely composed of lava, varies from 5000 to 8000 ft. This zone contains the highest elevations in British East Africa, including the volcanic pile of Kenya (q.v.) (17,007 ft.), Sattima (13,214 ft.) and Nandarua (about 12,900 ft.). The Sattima (Settima) range, or Aberdare Mountains, has a general elevation of fully 10,000 ft. To the west the fall to the rift-valley is marked by a line of cliffs, of which the best-defined portions are the Kikuyu escarpment (8000 ft.), just south of 1 deg. S., and the Laikipia escarpment, on the equator. One of the main watersheds of East Africa runs close to the eastern wall of the rift-valley, separating the basins of inland drainage from the rivers of the east coast, of which the two largest wholly within British East Africa are the Sabaki and Tana, both separately noticed. The Guaso Nyiro rises in the hills north-west of Kenya and flows in a north-east direction. After a course of over 350 m. the river in about 1 deg. N., 39 deg. 30' E. is lost in a marshy expanse known as the Lorian Swamp.

The rift-valley, though with a generally level floor, is divided by transverse ridges into a series of basins, each containing a lake without outlet. The southernmost section within British East Africa is formed by the arid Dogilani plains, drained south towards German territory. At their north end rise the extinct volcanoes of Suswa (7800 ft.) and Longonot (8700), the latter on the ridge dividing off the next basin—that of Lake Naivasha. This is a small fresh-water lake, 6135 ft. above the sea, measuring some 13 m each way. Its basin is closed to the north by the ridge of Mount Buru, beyond which is the basin of the [v.04 p.0602] still smaller Lakes Nakuro (5845 ft.) and Elmenteita (5860 ft.), followed in turn by that of Lakes Hannington and Baringo (q.v.). Beyond Baringo the valley is drained north into Lake Sugota, in 2 deg. N., some 35 m. long, while north of this lies the much larger Lake Rudolf (q.v.), the valley becoming here somewhat less defined.

On the west of the rift-valley the wall of cliffs is best marked between the equator and 1 deg. S., where it is known as the Mau Escarpment, and about 1 deg. N., where the Elgeyo Escarpment falls to a longitudinal valley separated from Lake Baringo by the ridge of Kamasia. Opposite Lake Naivasha the Mau Escarpment is over 8000 ft. high. Its crest is covered with a vast forest. To the south the woods become more open, and the plateau falls to an open country drained towards the Dogilani plains. On the west the cultivated districts of Sotik and Lumbwa, broken by wooded heights, fall towards Victoria Nyanza. The Mau plateau reaches a height of 9000 ft. on the equator, north of which is the somewhat lower Nandi country, well watered and partly forested. In the treeless plateau of Uasin Gishu, west of Elgeyo, the land again rises to a height of over 8000 ft., and to the west of this is the great mountain mass of Elgon (q.v.). East of Lake Rudolf and south of Lake Stefanie is a large waterless steppe, mainly volcanic in character, from which rise mountain ranges. The highest peak is Mount Kanjora, 6900 ft. high. South of this arid region, strewn with great lava stones, are the Rendile uplands, affording pasturage for thousands of camels. Running north-west and south-east between Lake Stefanie and the Daua tributary of the Juba is a mountain range with a steep escarpment towards the south. It is known as the Goro Escarpment, and at its eastern end it forms the boundary between the protectorate and Abyssinia. South-east of it the country is largely level bush covered plain, mainly waterless.

[Geology.—The geological formations of British East Africa occur in four regions possessing distinct physiographical features. The coast plain, narrow in the south and rising somewhat steeply, consists of recent rocks. The foot plateau which succeeds is composed of sedimentary rocks dating from Trias to Jurassic. The ancient plateau commencing at Taru extends to the borders of Kikuyu and is composed of ancient crystalline rocks on which immense quantities of volcanic rocks—post-Jurassic to Recent—have accumulated to form the volcanic plateau of Central East Africa.

The formations recognized are given in the following table:—

Sedimentary.

( 1. Alluvium and superficial sands. Recent < 2. Modern lake deposits, living coral rock. ( 3. Raised coral rock, conglomerate of Mombasa Island.

Pleistocene ( 4. Gravels with flint implements. ( 5. Glacial beds of Kenya

Jurassic 6. Shales and limestones of Changamwe.

Karroo ( 7. Flags and sandstones. ( 8. Grits and shales of Masara and Taru.

Carboniferous? 9. Shales of the Sabaki river.

Archaean ( 10. Schists and quartzites of Nandi. ( 11. Gneisses, schists, granites.

Igneous and Volcanic.

Recent Active, dormant and extinct volcanoes.

Post-Jurassic ( Kibo and volcanoes of the rift-valley. to Pleistocene( Kimawenzi, Kenya and plateau eruptions.

Archaean.—These rocks prevail in the districts of Taru, Nandi and throughout Ukamba. A course gneiss is the predominant rock, but is associated with garnetiferous mica-schists and much intrusive granite. Hornblende schists and beds of metamorphic limestone are rare. Cherty quartzites interbedded with mylonites occur on the flanks of the Nandi hills, but their age is not known.

Carboniferous?—From shales on the Sabaki river Dr Gregory obtained fish-scales and specimens of Palaeanodonta Fischeri.

Karroo.—The grits of Masara, near Rabai mission station and Mombasa, have yielded specimens of Glossopteris browniana var. indica, thus indicating their Karroo age.

Jurassic.—Shales and limestones of this age are well seen along the railway near Changamwe. They contain gigantic ammonites. According to Dr Waagen the ammonites show a striking analogy to forms from the Acanthicus zone of East India. Belemnites are plentiful.

Pleistocene.—These are feebly represented by some boulder beds on the higher slopes of Kilimanjaro and Kenya. They show that in Pleistocene times the glaciers of Kilimanjaro and Kenya extended much farther down the mountain slopes.

Recent.—The ancient and more modern lake deposits have so far yielded no mammalian or other organic remains of interest.

Igneous and Volcanic.—A belt of volcanic rocks, over 150,000 sq. m. in area, extends from beyond the southern to beyond the northern territorial limits. They belong to an older and a newer set. The older group commenced with a series of fissure eruptions along the site of the present rift-valley and parallel with it. From these fissures immense and repeated flows of lava spread over the Kapte and Laikipia plateaus. At about the same time, or a little later, Kenya and Kimawenzi, Elgon and Chibcharagnani were in eruption. The age of these volcanic outbursts cannot be more definitely stated than that they are post-Jurassic, and probably extended through Cretaceous into early Tertiary times. This great volcanic period was followed by the eruptions of Kibo and some of the larger volcanoes of the rift-valley. The flows from Kibo include nepheline and leucite basanite lavas rich in soda felspars. They bear a close resemblance to the Norwegian "Rhombenporphyrs." The chain of volcanic cones along the northern lower slopes of Kilimanjaro, those of the Kyulu mountains, Donyo Longonot and numerous craters in the rift-valley region, are of a slightly more recent date. A few of the volcanoes in the latter region have only recently become extinct; a few may be only dormant. Donyo Buru still emits small quantities of steam, while Mount Teleki, in the neighbourhood of Lake Rudolf, was in eruption at the close of the 19th century.]

Climate, Flora and Fauna.—In its climate and vegetation British East Africa again shows an arrangement of zones parallel to the coast. The coast region is hot but is generally more healthy than the coast lands of other tropical countries, this being due to the constant breeze from the Indian Ocean and to the dryness of the soil. The rainfall on the coast is about 35 in. a year, the temperature tropical. The succeeding plains and the outer plateaus are more arid. Farther inland the highlands—in which term may be included all districts over 5000 ft. high—are very healthy, fever being almost unknown. The average temperature is about 66 deg. F. in the cool season and 73 deg. F. in the hot season. Over 7000 ft. the climate becomes distinctly colder and frosts are experienced. The average rainfall in the highlands is between 40 and 50 in. The country bordering Victoria Nyanza is typically tropical; the rainfall exceeds 60 in. in the year, and this region is quite unsuitable to Europeans. The hottest period throughout the protectorate is December to April, the coolest, July to September. The "greater rains" fall from March to June, the "smaller rains" in November and December. The rainfall is not, however, as regular as is usual in countries within the tropics, and severe droughts are occasionally experienced.

In the districts bordering Victoria Nyanza the flora resembles that of Uganda (q.v.). The characteristic trees of the coast regions are the mangrove and coco-nut palm. Ebony grows in the scrub-jungle. Vast forests of olives and junipers are found on the Mau escarpment; the cotton, fig and bamboo on the Kikuyu escarpment; and in several regions are dense forests of great trees whose lowest branches are 50 ft. from the ground. Two varieties of the valuable rubber-vine, Landolphia florida and Landolphia Kirkii, are found near the coast and in the forests. The higher mountains preserve distinct species, the surviving remnants of the flora of a cooler period.

The fauna is not abundant except in large mammals, which are very numerous on the drier steppes. They include the camel (confined to the arid northern regions), elephant (more and more restricted to unfrequented districts), rhinoceros, buffalo, many kinds of antelope, zebra, giraffe, hippopotamus, lion and other carnivora, and numerous monkeys. In many parts the rhinoceros is particularly abundant and dangerous. Crocodiles are common in the larger rivers and in Victoria Nyanza. Snakes are somewhat rare, the most dangerous being the puff-adder. Centipedes and scorpions, as well as mosquitoes and other insects, are also less common than in most tropical countries. In some districts bees are exceedingly numerous. The birds include the ostrich, stork, bustard and secretary-bird among the larger varieties, the guinea fowl, various kinds of spur fowl, and the lesser bustard, the wild pigeon, weaver and hornbill. By the banks of lakes and rivers are to be seen thousands of cranes, pelicans and flamingoes.

Inhabitants.—The white population is chiefly in the Kikuyu uplands, the rift-valley, and in the Kenya region. The whites are mostly agriculturists. There are also numbers of Indian settlers in the same districts. The African races include representatives of various stocks, as the country forms a borderland between the Negro and Hamitic peoples, and contains many tribes of doubtful affinities. The Bantu division of the negroes is represented chiefly in the south, the principal tribes being the Wakamba, Wakikuyu and Wanyika. By the north-east shores of Victoria Nyanza dwell the Kavirondo (q.v.), a race remarkable among the tribes of the protectorate for their nudity. Nilotic tribes, including the Nandi (q.v.), Lumbwa, Suk and Turkana, are found in the north-west. Of Hamitic strain are the Masai (q.v.), a race of cattle-rearers speaking a Nilotic language, who occupy part of the uplands bordering on the eastern rift-valley. A branch of the Masai which has adopted the settled life of agriculturists is known as the Wakuafi. The Galla section of the Hamites is represented, among others, by Borani living [v.04 p.0603] south of the Goro Escarpment (though the true Boran countries are Liban and Dirri in Abyssinian territory), while Somali occupy the country between the Tana and Juba rivers. Of the Somali tribes the Herti dwell near the coast and are more or less stationary. Further inland is the nomadic tribe of Ogaden Somali. The Gurre, another Somali tribe, occupy the country south of the lower Daua. Primitive hunting tribes are the Wandorobo in Masailand, and scattered tribes of small stature in various parts. The coast-land contains a mixed population of Swahili, Arab and Indian immigrants, and representatives of numerous interior tribes.

Provinces and Towns.—The protectorate has been divided into the provinces of Seyyidie (the south coast province, capital Mombasa); Ukamba, which occupies the centre of the protectorate (capital Nairobi); Kenya, the district of Mt. Kenya (capital Fort Hall); Tanaland, to the north of the two provinces first named (capital Lamu); Jubaland, the northern region (capital Kismayu); Naivasha (capital Naivasha); and Kisumu (capital Kisumu); each being in turn divided into districts and sub-districts. Naivasha and Kisumu, which adjoin the Victoria Nyanza, formed at first the eastern province of Uganda, but were transferred to the East Africa protectorate on the 1st of April 1902. The chief port of the protectorate is Mombasa (q.v.) with a population of about 30,000. The harbour on the south-west side of Mombasa island is known as Kilindini, the terminus of the Uganda railway. On the mainland, nearly opposite Mombasa town, is the settlement of freed slaves named Freretown, after Sir Bartle Frere. Freretown (called by the natives Kisaoni) is the headquarters in East Africa of the Church Missionary Society. It is the residence of the bishop of the diocese of Mombasa and possesses a fine church and mission house. Lamu, on the island of the same name, 150 m. north-east of Mombasa, is an ancient settlement and the headquarters of the coast Arabs. Here are some Portuguese ruins, and a large Arab city is buried beneath the sands. The other towns of note on the coast are Malindi, Patta, Kipini and Kismayu. At Malindi, the "Melind" of Paradise Lost, is the pillar erected by Vasco da Gama when he visited the port in 1498. The harbour is very shallow. Kismayu, the northernmost port of the protectorate, 320 m. north-east of Mombasa, is the last sheltered anchorage on the east coast and is invaluable as a harbour of refuge. Flourishing towns have grown up along the Uganda railway. The most important, Nairobi (q.v.), 327 m. from Mombasa, 257 from Port Florence, was chosen in 1907 as the administrative capital of the protectorate. Naivasha, 64 m. north-north-west of Nairobi, lies in the rift-valley close to Lake Naivasha, and is 6230 ft. above the sea. It enjoys an excellent climate and is the centre of a European agricultural settlement. Kisumu or Port Florence (a term confined to the harbour) is a flourishing town built on a hill overlooking Victoria Nyanza. It is the entrepot for the trade of Uganda.

Communications.—Much has been done to open up the country by means of roads, including a trunk road from Mombasa, by Kibwezi in the upper Sabaki basin, and Lake Naivasha, to Berkeley Bay on Victoria Nyanza. But the most important engineering work undertaken in the protectorate was the construction of a railway from Mombasa to Victoria Nyanza, for which a preliminary survey was executed in 1892, and on which work was begun in 1896. The line chosen roughly coincides with that of the road, until the equator is reached, after which it strikes by a more direct route across the Mau plateau to the lake, which it reaches at Port Florence on Kavirondo Gulf. The railway is 584 m. long and is of metre (3.28 ft.) gauge, the Sudan, and South and Central African lines being of 3 ft. 6 in. gauge. The Uganda railway is essentially a mountain line, with gradients of one in fifty and one in sixty. From Mombasa it crosses to the mainland by a bridge half a mile long, and ascends the plateau till it reaches the edge of the rift-valley, 346 m. from its starting point, at the Kikuyu Escarpment, where it is 7600 ft. above the sea. It then descends across ravines bridged by viaducts to the valley floor, dropping to a level of 6011 ft., and next ascending the opposite (Mau) escarpment to the summit, 8321 ft. above sea-level—the highest point on the line. In the remaining 100 m. of its course the level sinks to 3738 ft., the altitude of the station at Port Florence. The railway was built by the British government at a cost of L5,331,000, or about L9500 per mile. The first locomotive reached Victoria Nyanza on the 26th of December 1901; and the permanent way was practically completed by March 1903, when Sir George Whitehouse, the engineer who had been in charge of the construction from the beginning, resigned his post. The railway, by doing away with the carriage of goods by men, gave the final death-blow to the slave trade in that part of East Africa. It also facilitated the continued occupation and development of Uganda, which was, previous to its construction, an almost impossible task, owing to the prohibitive cost of the carriage of goods from the coast—L60 per ton. The two avowed objects of the railway—the destruction of the slave trade and the securing of the British position in Uganda—have been attained; moreover, the railway by opening up land suitable for European settlement has also done much towards making a prosperous colony of the protectorate, which was regarded before the advent of the line as little better than a desert (see below, History). The railway also shows a fair return on the capital expenditure, the surplus after defraying all working expenses being L56,000 in 1905-1906 and L76,000 in 1906-1907.

Mombasa is visited by the boats of several steamship companies, the German East Africa line maintaining a fortnightly service from Hamburg. There is also a regular service to and from India. A cable connecting Mombasa with Zanzibar puts the protectorate in direct telegraphic communication with the rest of the world. There is also an inland system of telegraphs connecting the chief towns with one another and with Uganda.

Agriculture and other Industries.—In the coast region and by the shores of Victoria Nyanza the products are tropical, and cultivation is mainly in the hands of the natives or of Indian immigrants. There are, however, numerous plantations owned by Europeans. Rice, maize and other grains are raised in large quantities; cotton and tobacco are cultivated. The coco-nut palm plantations yield copra of excellent quality, and the bark of the mangrove trees is exported for tanning purposes. In some inland districts beans of the castor oil plant, which grows in great abundance, are a lucrative article of trade. The sugar-cane, which grows freely in various places, is cultivated by the natives. The collection of rubber likewise employs numbers of people.

Among the European settlers in the higher regions much attention is devoted to the production of vegetables, and very large crops of potatoes are raised. Oats, barley, wheat and coffee are also grown. The uplands are peculiarly adapted for the raising of stock, and many of the white settlers possess large flocks and herds. Merino sheep have been introduced from Australia. Ostrich farms have also been established. Clover, lucerne, ryegrass and similar grasses have been introduced to improve and vary the fodder. Other vegetable products of economic value are many varieties of timber trees, and fibre-producing plants, which are abundant in the scrub regions between the coast and the higher land bordering the rift-valley. Over the greater part of the country the soil is light reddish loam; in the eastern plains it is a heavy black loam. As a rule it is easily cultivated. While the majority of the African tribes in the territory are not averse from agricultural labour, the number of men available for work on European holdings is small. Moreover, on some of the land most suited for cultivation by white men there is no native population.

In addition to the fibre industry and cotton ginning there are factories for the curing of bacon. Native industries include the weaving of cloth and the making of mats and baskets. Stone and lime quarries are worked, and copper is found in the Tsavo district. Diamonds have been discovered in the Thika river, one of the headstreams of the Tana.

Trade.—The imports consist largely of textiles, hardware and manufactured goods from India and Europe; Great Britain and India between them supplying over 50% of the total imports. Of other countries Germany has the leading share in the trade. The exports, which include the larger part of the external trade of Uganda, are chiefly copra, hides and skins, grains, potatoes, rubber, ivory, chillies, beeswax, cotton and fibre. The retail trade is largely in the hands of Indians. The value of the exports rose from L89,858 in 1900-1901 to L234,664 in 1904-1905, in which year the value of the imports for the first time exceeded L500,000. In 1906-1907 the volume of trade was L1,194,352, imports being valued at L753,647 and exports at L440,705. The United States takes 33% of the exports, Great Britain coming next with 15%.

Government.—The system of government resembles that of a British crown colony. At the head of the administration is a governor, who has a deputy styled lieutenant-governor, provincial commissioners presiding over each province. There are also executive and legislative councils, unofficial nominated members serving on the last-named council. In the "ten-mile strip" (see below, History), the sultan of Zanzibar being territorial sovereign, the laws of Islam apply to the native and Arab population. The extra-territorial jurisdiction granted by the sultan to various Powers was in 1907 transferred to Great Britain. Domestic slavery formerly existed; but on the advice of the British government a decree was issued by the sultan on the 1st of August 1890, enacting that no one born after that date could be a slave, and this was followed in 1907 by a decree abolishing the legal status of slavery. In the rest of the protectorate slavery is not recognized in any form. Legislation is by ordinances made by the governor, with the assent of the legislative council. The judicial system is based on Indian models, though in cases in which Africans are concerned regard is had to [v.04 p.0604] native customs. Europeans have the right to trial by jury in serious cases. There is a police force of about 2000 men, and two battalions of the King's African Rifles are stationed in the protectorate. Revenue is derived chiefly from customs, licences and excise, railway earnings, and posts and telegraphs. Natives pay a hut tax. Since the completion of the Uganda railway, trade, and consequently revenue, has increased greatly. In 1900-1901 the revenue was L64,275 and the expenditure L193,438; in 1904-1905 the figures were: revenue L154,756, expenditure L302,559; in 1905-1906 the totals were L270,362 and L418,839, and in 1906-1907 (when the railway figures were included for the first time) L461,362 and L616,088. The deficiencies were made good by grants-in-aid from the imperial exchequer. The standard coin used is the rupee (16d.).

Education is chiefly in the hands of the missionary societies, which maintain many schools where instruction is given in handicrafts, as well as in the ordinary branches of elementary education. There are Arab schools in Mombasa, and government schools for Europeans and Indians at Nairobi.

History.—From the 8th century to the 11th Arabs and Persians made settlements along the coast and gained political supremacy at many places, leading to the formation of the so-called Zenj empire. The history of the coast towns from that time until the establishment of British rule is identified with that of Zanzibar (q.v.). The interior of what is now British East Africa was first made known in the middle of the 19th century by the German missionaries Ludwig Krapf and Johannes Rebmann, and by Baron Karl von der Decken (1833-1865) and others. Von der Decken and three other Europeans were murdered by Somali at a town called Bardera in October 1865, whilst exploring the Juba river. The countries east of Victoria Nyanza (Masailand, &c.) were, however, first traversed throughout their whole extent by the Scottish traveller Joseph Thomson (q.v.) in 1883-1884. In 1888 Count S. Teleki (a Hungarian) discovered Lakes Rudolf and Stefanie.

The growth of British interests in the country now forming the protectorate arises from its connexion with the sultanate of Zanzibar. At Zanzibar British influence was very strong in the last quarter of the 19th century, and the seyyid or sultan, Bargash, depended greatly on the advice of the British representative, Sir John Kirk. In 1877 Bargash offered to Mr (afterwards Sir) William Mackinnon (1823-1893), chairman of the British India Steam Navigation Company, a merchant in whom he had great confidence, or to a company to be formed by him, a lease for 70 years of the customs and administration of the whole of the mainland dominions of Zanzibar including, with certain reservations, rights of sovereignty. This was declined owing to a lack of support by the foreign office, and concessions obtained in 1884 by Mr (afterwards Sir) H.H. Johnston in the Kilimanjaro district were, at the time, disregarded. The large number of concessions acquired by Germans in 1884-1885 on the East African coast aroused, however, the interest of those who recognized the paramount importance of the maintenance of British influence in those regions. A British claim, ratified by an agreement with Germany in 1886, was made to the districts behind Mombasa; and in May 1887 Bargash granted to an association formed by Mackinnon a concession for the administration of so much of his mainland territory as lay outside the region which the British government had recognized as the German sphere of operations. By international agreement the mainland territories of the sultan were defined as extending 10 m. inland from the coast. Mackinnon's association, whose object [Sidenote: A chartered company formed.] was to open up the hinterland as well as this ten-mile strip, became the Imperial British East Africa Company by a founder's agreement of April 1888, and received a royal charter in September of the same year. To this company the sultan made a further concession dated October 1888. On the faith of these concessions and the charters a sum of L240,000 was subscribed, and the company received formal charge of their concessions. The path of the company was speedily beset with difficulties, which in the first instance arose out of the aggressions of the German East African Company. This company had also received a grant from the sultan in October 1888, and its appearance on the coast was followed by grave disturbances among the tribes which had welcomed the British. This outbreak led to a joint British and German blockade, which seriously hampered trade operations. It had also been anticipated, in reliance on certain assurances of Prince Bismarck, emphasized by Lord Salisbury, that German enterprise in the interior of the country would be confined to the south of Victoria Nyanza. Unfortunately this expectation was not realized. Moreover German subjects put forward claims to coast districts, notably Lamu, within the company's sphere and in many ways obstructed the company's operations. In all these disputes the German government countenanced its own subjects, while the British foreign office did little or nothing to assist the company, sometimes directly discouraging its activity. Moreover, the company had agreed by the concession of October 1888 to pay a high revenue to the sultan—Bargash had died in the preceding March and the Germans were pressing his successor to give them a grant of Lamu—in lieu of the customs collected at the ports they took over. The disturbance caused by the German claims had a detrimental effect on trade and put a considerable strain on the resources of the company. The action of the company in agreeing to onerous financial burdens was dictated partly by regard for imperial interests, which would have been seriously weakened had Lamu gone to the Germans.

By the hinterland doctrine, accepted both by Great Britain and Germany in the diplomatic correspondence of July 1887, Uganda would fall within Great Britain's "sphere of influence"; but German public opinion did not so regard the matter. German maps assigned the territory to Germany, while in England public opinion as strongly expected British influence to be paramount. In 1889 Karl Peters, a German official, led what was practically a raiding expedition into that country, after running a blockade of the ports. An expedition under F.J. Jackson had been sent by the company in the same year to Victoria Nyanza, but with instructions to avoid Uganda. In consequence of representations from Uganda, and of tidings he received of Peters's doings, Jackson, however, determined to go to that country. Peters retired at Jackson's approach, claiming, nevertheless, to have made certain treaties which constituted "effective occupation." Peters's treaty was dated the 1st of March 1890: Jackson concluded another in April. Meantime negotiations were proceeding in Europe; and by the Anglo-German agreement of the 1st of July 1890 Uganda was assigned to the British sphere. To consolidate their position in Uganda—the French missionaries there were hostile to Great Britain—the company sent thither Captain F.D. Lugard, who reached Mengo, the capital, in December 1890 and established the authority of the company despite French intrigues. In July 1890 representatives of the powers assembled at Brussels had agreed on common efforts for the suppression of the slave trade. The interference of the company in Uganda had been a material step towards that object, which they sought to further and at the same time to open up the country by the construction of a railway from Mombasa to Victoria Nyanza. But their resources being inadequate for such an undertaking they sought imperial aid. Although Lord Salisbury, then prime minister, paid the highest tribute to the company's labours, and a preliminary grant for the survey had been practically agreed upon, the scheme was wrecked in parliament. At a later date, however, the railway was built entirely at government cost (supra, Sec. Communications). Owing to the financial strain imposed upon it the company decided to withdraw Captain Lugard and his forces in August 1891; and eventually the British government assumed a protectorate over the country (see UGANDA).

Further difficulties now arose which led finally to the extinction of the company. Its pecuniary interests sustained a severe [Sidenote: The company and the crown.] blow owing to the British government—which had taken Zanzibar under its protection in November 1890—declaring (June 1892) the dominions of the sultan within the free trade zone. This act extinguished the treaties regulating all tariffs and duties with foreign powers, and gave free trade all along the coast. The result for the company was that dues were now swept away without compensation, and the company was left saddled with the payment of the rent, and with the cost, in addition, of administration, [v.04 p.0605] the necessary revenue for which had been derived from the dues thus abolished. Moreover, a scheme of taxation which it drew up failed to gain the approval of the foreign office.

In every direction the company's affairs had drifted into an impasse. Plantations had been taken over on the coast and worked at a loss, money had been advanced to native traders and lost, and expectations of trade had been disappointed. At this crisis Sir William Mackinnon, the guiding spirit of the company, died (June 1893). At a meeting of shareholders on the 8th of May 1894 an offer to surrender the charter to the government was approved, though not without strong protests. Negotiations dragged on for over two years, and ultimately the terms of settlement were that the government should purchase the property, rights and assets of the company in East Africa for L250,000. Although the company had proved unprofitable for the shareholders (when its accounts were wound up they disclosed a total deficit of L193,757) it had accomplished a great deal of good work and had brought under British sway not only the head waters of the upper Nile, but a rich and healthy upland region admirably adapted for European colonization. To the judgment, foresight and patriotism of Sir William Mackinnon British East Africa practically owes its foundation. Sir William and his colleagues of the company were largely animated by humanitarian motives—the desire to suppress slavery and to improve the condition of the natives. With this aim they prohibited the drink traffic, started industrial missions, built roads, and administered impartial justice. In the opinion of a later administrator (Sir C. Eliot), their work and that of their immediate successors was the greatest philanthropic achievement of the latter part of the 19th century.

On the 1st of July 1895 the formal transfer to the British crown of the territory administered by the company took place at Mombasa, the foreign office assuming responsibility for its administration. The territory, hitherto known as "Ibea," from the initials of the company, was now styled the East Africa protectorate. The small sultanate of Witu (q.v.) on the mainland opposite Lamu, from 1885 to 1890 a German protectorate, was included in the British protectorate. Coincident with the transfer of the administration to the imperial government a dispute as to the succession to a chieftainship in the Mazrui, the most important Arab family on the coast, led to a revolt which lasted ten months and involved much hard fighting. It ended in April 1896 in the flight of the rebel leaders to German territory, where they were interned. The rebellion marks an important epoch in the history of the protectorate as its suppression definitely substituted European for Arab influence. "Before the rebellion," says Sir C. Eliot, "the coast was a protected Arab state; since its suppression it has been growing into a British colony."

From 1896, when the building of the Mombasa-Victoria Nyanza railway was begun, until 1903, when the line was [Sidenote: A white man's country.] practically completed, the energies of the administration were largely absorbed in that great work, and in establishing effective control over the Masai, Somali, and other tribes. The coast lands apart, the protectorate was regarded as valuable chiefly as being the high road to Uganda. But as the railway reached the high plateaus the discovery was made that there were large areas of land—very sparsely peopled—where the climate was excellent and where the conditions were favourable to European colonization. The completion of the railway, by affording transport facilities, made it practicable to open the country to settlers. The first application for land was made in April 1902 by the East Africa Syndicate—a company in which financiers belonging to the Chartered Company of South Africa were interested—which sought a grant of 500 sq. m.; and this was followed by other applications for considerable areas, a scheme being also propounded for a large Jewish settlement.

During 1903 the arrival of hundreds of prospective settlers, chiefly from South Africa, led to the decision to entertain no more applications for large areas of land, especially as questions were raised concerning the preservation for the Masai of their rights of pasturage. In the carrying out of this policy a dispute arose between Lord Lansdowne, foreign secretary, and Sir Charles Eliot, who had been commissioner since 1900. The foreign secretary, believing himself bound by pledges given to the syndicate, decided that they should be granted the lease of the 500 sq. m. they had applied for; but after consulting officials of the protectorate then in London, he refused Sir Charles Eliot permission to conclude leases for 50 sq. m. each to two applicants from South Africa. Sir Charles thereupon resigned his post, and in a public telegram to the prime minister, dated Mombasa, the 21st of June 1904, gave as his reason:—"Lord Lansdowne ordered me to refuse grants of land to certain private persons while giving a monopoly of land on unduly advantageous terms to the East Africa Syndicate. I have refused to execute these instructions, which I consider unjust and impolitic."[1]

On the day Sir Charles sent this telegram the appointment of Sir Donald W. Stewart, the chief commissioner of Ashanti, to succeed him was announced. Sir Donald induced the Masai whose grazing rights were threatened to remove to another district, and a settlement of the land claims was arranged. An offer to the Zionist Association of land for colonization by Jews was declined in August 1905 by that body, after the receipt of a report by a commissioner sent to examine the land (6000 sq. m.) offered. Sir Donald Stewart died on the 1st of October 1905, and was succeeded by Colonel Hayes Sadler, the commissioner of Uganda. Meantime, in April 1905, the administration of the protectorate had been transferred from the foreign to the colonial office. By the close of 1905 considerably over a million acres of land had been leased or sold by the protectorate authorities—about half of it for grazing purposes. In 1907, to meet the demands of the increasing number of white inhabitants, who had formed a Colonists' Association[2] for the promotion of their interests, a legislative council was established, and on this council representatives of the settlers were given seats. The style of the chief official was also altered, "governor" being substituted for "commissioner". In the same year a scheme was drawn up for assisting the immigration of British Indians to the regions adjacent to the coast and to Victoria Nyanza, districts not suitable for settlement by Europeans.

In general the relations of the British with the tribes of the interior have been satisfactory. The Somali in Jubaland have given some trouble, but the Masai, notwithstanding their warlike reputation, accepted peaceably the control of the whites. This was due, in great measure, to the fact that at the period in question plague carried off their cattle wholesale and reduced them for years to a state of want and weakness which destroyed their warlike habits. One of the most troublesome tribes proved to be the Nandi, who occupied the southern part of the plateau west of the Mau escarpment. They repeatedly raided their less warlike neighbours and committed wholesale thefts from the railway and telegraph lines. In September 1905 an expedition was sent against them which reduced the tribe to submission in the following November; and early in 1906 the Nandi were removed into a reserve. The majority of the natives, unaccustomed to regular work, showed themselves averse from taking service under the white farmers. The inadequacy of the labour supply was an early cause of trouble to the settlers, while the labour regulations enforced led, during 1907-1908, to considerable friction between the colonists and the administration.

For several years after the establishment of the protectorate the northern region remained very little known and no attempt was made to administer the district. The natives were frequently raided by parties of Gallas and Abyssinians, and in the absence of a defined frontier Abyssinian government posts were pushed south to Lake Rudolf. The Abyssinians also made themselves masters of the Boran country. After long negotiations an agreement as to the boundary line between the lake and [v.04 p.0606] the river Juba was signed at Adis Ababa on the 6th of December 1907, and in 1908-1909 the frontier was delimited by an Anglo-Abyssinian commission, Major C.W. Gwynn being the chief British representative. Save for its north-eastern extremity Lake Rudolf was assigned to the British, Lake Stefanie falling to Abyssinia, while from about 4 deg. 20' N. the Daua to its junction with the Juba became the frontier.

BIBLIOGRAPHY.—The most comprehensive account of the protectorate to the close of 1904, especially of its economic resources, is The East Africa Protectorate, by Sir Charles Eliot (London, 1905). The progress of the protectorate is detailed in the Reports by the governor issued annually by the British government since 1896, and in Drumkey's Year Book for East Africa (Bombay), first issued in 1908. The Precis of Information concerning the British East Africa Protectorate (issued by the War Office, London, 1901) is chiefly valuable for its historical information. The work of the Imperial British East Africa Company is concisely and authoritatively told from official documents in British East Africa or Ibea, by P.L. McDermont (new ed., London, 1895). Another book, valuable for its historical perspective, is The Foundation of British East Africa, by J.W. Gregory (London, 1901). Bishop A.R. Tucker's Eighteen Years in Uganda and East Africa (London, 1908) contains a summary of missionary labours. Of the works of explorers Through Masai Land, by Joseph Thomson (London, 1886), is specially valuable. For the northern frontier see Capt. P. Maud's report in Africa No. 13 (1904). For geology see, besides Thomson's book, The Great Rift Valley, by J.W. Gregory (London, 1896); Across an East African Glacier, by Hans Meyer (London and Leipzig, 1890); and Report relating to the Geology of the East Africa Protectorate, by H.B. Muff (Colonial Office, London, 1908). For big game and ornithology see On Safari, by A. Chapman (London, 1908). The story of the building of the Uganda railway is summarized in the Final Report of the Uganda Railway Committee, Africa, No. 11 (1904), published by the British government.

(F. R. C.)

[1] See Correspondence relating to the Resignation of Sir C. Eliot, Africa, No. 8 (1904).

[2] The Planters and Farmers' Association, as this organization was originally called, dates from 1903.

BRITISH EMPIRE, the name now loosely given to the whole aggregate of territory, the inhabitants of which, under various forms of government, ultimately look to the British crown as the supreme head. The term "empire" is in this connexion obviously used rather for convenience than in any sense equivalent to that of the older or despotic empires of history.

The land surface of the earth is estimated to extend over about 52,500,000 sq. m. Of this area the British empire occupies [Sidenote: Extent.] nearly one-quarter, extending over an area of about 12,000,000 sq. m. By far the greater portion lies within the temperate zones, and is suitable for white settlement. The notable exceptions are the southern half of India and Burma; East, West and Central Africa; the West Indian colonies; the northern portion of Australia; New Guinea, British Borneo and that portion of North America which extends into Arctic regions. The area of the territory of the empire is divided almost equally between the southern and the northern hemispheres, the great divisions of Australasia and South Africa covering between them in the southern hemisphere 5,308,506 sq. m., while the United Kingdom, Canada and India, including the native states, cover between them in the northern hemisphere 5,271,375 sq. m. The alternation of the seasons is thus complete, one-half of the empire enjoying summer, while one-half is in winter. The division of territory between the eastern and western hemispheres is less equal, Canada occupying alone in the western hemisphere 3,653,946 sq. m., while Australasia, South Africa, India and the United Kingdom occupy together in the eastern hemisphere 6,925,975 sq. m. As a matter of fact, however, the eastern portions of Australasia border so nearly upon the western hemisphere that the distribution of day and night throughout the empire is, like the alternations of the seasons, almost complete, one-half enjoying daylight, while the other half is in darkness. These alternations of time and of seasons, combined with the variety of soils and climates, are calculated to have an increasingly important effect upon the material and industrial, as well as upon the social and political developments of the empire. This will become evident in considering the industrial productions of the different divisions, and the harvest seasons which permit the summer produce of one portion of the empire to supply the winter requirements of its other markets, and conversely.



The empire contains or is bounded by some of the highest mountains, the greatest lakes, and the most important rivers of the world. Its climates may be said to include all the known climates of the world; its soils are no less various. In the prairies of central Canada it possesses some of the most valuable wheat-producing land; in the grass lands of the interior of Australia the best pasture country; and in the uplands of South Africa the most valuable gold- and diamond-bearing beds which exist. The United Kingdom at present produces more coal than any other single country except the United States. The effect of climate throughout the empire in modifying the type of the Anglo-Saxon race has as yet received only partial attention, and conclusions regarding it are of a somewhat empiric nature. The general tendency in Canada is held to be towards somewhat smaller size, and a hardy active habit; in Australia to a tall, slight, pale development locally known as "cornstalkers," characterized by considerable nervous and intellectual activity. In New Zealand the type preserves almost exactly the characteristics of the British Isles. The South African, both Dutch and British, is readily recognized by an apparently sun-dried, lank and hard habit of body. In the tropical possessions of the empire, where white settlement does not take place to any considerable extent, the individual alone is affected. The type undergoes no modification. It is to be observed in reference to this interesting aspect of imperial development, that the multiplication and cheapening of channels of communication and means of travel throughout the empire will tend to modify the future accentuation of race difference, while the variety of elements in the vast area occupied should have an important, though as yet not scientifically traced, effect upon the British imperial type.

The white population of the empire[1] reached in 1901 a total of over 53,000,000, or something over one-eighth of its entire [Sidenote: Population.] population, which, including native races, is estimated at about 400,000,000. The white population includes some French, Dutch and Spanish peoples, but is mainly of Anglo-Saxon race. It is distributed roughly as follows:—

United Kingdom and home dependencies 41,608,791 Australasia 4,662,000 British North America 5,500,000 Africa (Dutch and British) 1,000,000[2] India 169,677 West Indies and Bermuda 100,000 ————— 53,040,468

The native population of the empire includes types of the principal black, yellow and brown races, classing with these the high-type races of the East, which may almost be called white. The native population of India, mainly high type, brown, was returned at the census of 1901 as 294,191,379. The population of India is divided into 118 groups on the basis of language. These may, however, be collected into the following principal groups:—

(A) Malayo-Polynesian. (B) Indo-Chinese: i. Mon-Khmer. ii. Tibeto-Burman. iii. Siamese-Chinese. (C) Dravido-Muṇḍā: i. Muṇḍā (Kolarian). ii. Dravidian. (D) Indo-European. Indo-Aryan sub-family. (E) Semitic. (F) Hamitic. (G) Unclassed, e.g. Gipsy.

Eastern Colonies

Ceylon, high type, brown and mixed 3,568,824 Straits Settlements, brown, mixed and Chinese 570,000 Hong-Kong, Chinese and brown 306,130 North Borneo, mixed brown and Sarawak 700,000 ————- 5,144,954

[v.04 p.0607] Of the various races which inhabit these Eastern dependencies the most important are the 2,000,000 Sinhalese and the 954,000 Tamil that make up the greater part of the population of Ceylon. The rest is made up of Arabs, Malays, Chinese (in the Straits Settlements and Hong-Kong), Dyaks, Eurasians and others.

West Indies.

The West Indies, including the continental colonies of British Guiana and Honduras, and seventeen islands or groups of islands, have a total coloured population of about 1,912,655. The colonies of this group which have the largest coloured populations are:—

Jamaica—Chiefly black, some brown and yellow 790,000 Trinidad and Tobago—Black and brown 250,000 British Guiana—Black and brown 286,000 ————- 1,326,000

The populations of the West Indies are very various, being made up largely of imported African negroes. In Jamaica these contribute four-fifths of the population. There are also in the islands a considerable number of imported East Indian coolies and some Chinese. The aboriginal races include American Indians of the mainland and Caribs. With these there has been intermixture of Spanish and Portuguese blood, and many mixed types have appeared. The total European population of this group of colonies amounts to upwards of 80,000, to which 15,000 on account of Bermuda may be added.

Africa.

Chiefly black, estimated South 5,211,329 Central 2,000,000

The aboriginal races of South Africa were the Bushmen and Hottentots. Both these races are rapidly diminishing in numbers, and in British South Africa it is expected that they will in the course of the twentieth century become extinct. Besides these primitive races there are the dark-skinned negroids of Bantu stock, commonly known in their tribal groups as Kaffirs, Zulu, Bechuana and Damara, which are again subdivided into many lesser groups. The Bantu compose the greater part of the native population. There are also in South Africa Malays and Indians and others, who during the last two hundred years have been introduced from Java, Ceylon, Madagascar, Mozambique and British India, and by intermarriage with each other and with the natives have produced a hybrid population generally classed together under the heading of the Mixed Races. These are of all colours, varying from yellow to dark brown. The tribes of Central Africa are as yet less known. Many of them exhibit racial characteristics allied to those of the tribes of South Africa, but with in some cases an admixture of Arab blood.

East Africa.

Protectorate—Black and brown: Natives (estimated) 4,000,000 Asiatics (estimated) 25,000 Zanzibar—Black and brown 200,000 Uganda 3,200,000 ————- Total 7,425,000

West Africa.

Estimated. Nigeria (including Lagos)—Black and brown 15,000,000 Gold Coast and hinterland—Chiefly black 2,700,000 Sierra Leone " " 1,000,000 Gambia " " 163,000 ————— 18,863,000