676
BELGIAN CONGO
non-couiniissionecl officers, are Europeans, for the most part Belgians. Tlie term of service is seven years, and the recruits are trained in camps of instruction before being drafted to their companies.
Justice. — There are 7 courts of first instance, 12 county courts, and 2 courts of appeal (one at Boma and the other at Elizabethville) There are altogether 77 magistrates in the Congo.
Production, Commerce, Shipping^.— The four chief products in the
order of their importance are rubber, palm-nuts and palm-oil, white copal and cocoa. Ivory is also abundant. Coffee grows freely, and the cultivation of cocoa is successful. Tobacco is grown in all native villages. Planta- tions of rubber and coffee have been established by the Government. Cattle do not thrive on account of the deadly tsetse Hy. There are no native industries and few skilled Morkmen. Mining flourishes ; the chief minerals being gold and copper. Other minerals are known to exist — coal, iron, tin and manganese — but as yet these have not been obtained in paying quantities. The gold mines in 1911 employed some 3,000 natives, the output was 2,000 pounds and the exports 1,995 pounds. In 1911 the shipment of copper was 2,184,636 pounds (336,708 pounds in 1910).
The value of the commerce in 1895 was as follows : — Imports, special 427,430Z. ; general, 473,440Z. ; exports, special, 437,720Z.; general, 485,430?. The development in the last five years was as follows : —
Years
1907 1908 1909 1910 1911
Imports
Special
. £ . 1,007,270 1,063,550
885,100 1,473,872 1,045,315
General
£
1,337,480 1,290,830 1,139,290 1,759,117 2,334,602
Exports
Special
General
£
£
2,355,090
3,101,610
1,734,870
2,274,690
2,246,690
3,020,570
2,664,091
3,823,947
2,163,697
8,158.215
In the trade of 1911 the chief imports and exports were : —
Imp
orts
—
Exports
Special
General
Special
General
Francs
Francs
Francs
Francs
Arms, ammunition,
Rubber .
34,426,896
50,424,261
&c.
1,421,453
1,782,594
Ivory
5,683,468
9,237,227
Steamers and ships
1,920,^91
2,422,118
Palm-nuts
2,878,674
3,504,175
Machinery
8,050,844
8,518,072
Palm-oil .
1,731,898
2,032,395
Iron, steel, copper .
2,964,137
3,247,909
Copal
3,348,317
3,355,724
Wines, spirits .
3,377,492
4,129,729
Cocoa
895,543
899,832
Provisions
7,554,501
9,248,118
Coffee .
3,218
3,218
Cottons .
8,621,262
11,216,047
Gold, crude .
3,119,050
3,119,050
Olotliing .
3,117,344
3,930,129
Cupper, ore and
crude .
1,902.859
6,315,678
Of the special imports (1911) the value of 31,435,138 francs came from Belgium ; 5,882,230 francs from Great Britain ; 2,454,173 francs from Germany ; 2,177,246 francs from France, and 972,077 francs from Holland. Of the special exports the value of 47,566,266 francs went to Belgium ; 468,732 francs to Great Britain; 3,413,896 francs to neighbouring Portu- guese possessions ; 429,000 francs to British East Africa, and 705,920 francs to Holland.
