The seriousness of the situation is that any effort to keep the native vote from being fraudulently cast, is likely to interfere with the legitimate voting of qualified chiefs; the desirability of having those natives who are really entitled to the vote exercise their right of franchise is most important; but to give unqualified native voters the chance to cast fraudulent ballots is bad indeed. Of course this whole question of illegal voting should hardly shock us; in my own morning paper, the very day when I am writing this, these words appear in prominent head-lines: “Fraud in ballots a Chicago habit Butts Board told.” It is impossible for the pot to call the kettle black. The outside world, however, unaccustomed to the little peculiarities of “manhood suffrage,” will no doubt claim to be sadly shocked; it might even be that some clean-skirted nation like France or England might hysterically demand reform.
We have elsewhere claimed that the Liberians, too, know graft. Official salaries are very small; why then does political office possess such great attraction? Of course position and power count for something; but there are other solid advantages connected with office in Liberia as well as in other lands. When graft exists in France, Germany, even in respectable and pious England, it is not strange that it exists in the African Republic. More than that, graft is by no means confined to civilization; the native in the bush understands it both in theory and practice. It would be strange indeed if the descendants of barbaric grafters, who had been trained in civilized graft through a long American experience, should be free from graft when conducting their own affairs in a new land as rich by nature as is Liberia. The number of schemes which are proposed to the Liberian Legislature is very large; many of them are magnificent in their proportions, enterprises, and prospects; what could be more dazzling than the project submitted a few years ago by the Ellsworth Company of New York? I do not mean to say that that individual company used improper means to influence legislative action; but a company with as ambitious plans as they offered, if adequately capitalized, could easily have made the whole Legislature rich rather than lose their opportunity. In the same way Sir William Lever, in his effort to secure monopoly or large advantage in the palm-oil product of the Republic would, from a business point of view, be amply justified in making it well worth while for the patriots to encourage his enterprise. Of course, many of these schemes fail totally; many of them never get beyond a paper proposition; in the past, however, the Liberian Legislature has been much too free in giving concessions with monopolies. While the terms given to the English Rubber Company seemed to leave opportunity for competitive development of the trade by others, it practically put all competitors in the power of the company. Liberia is beginning to realize that in careless granting of monopolies and special privileges she has hampered her own freedom and interfered with legitimate development; not long ago the Government granted a concession to Edgar Allen Forbes and others; it seems to have been a legitimate and carefully-thought-out enterprise which he submitted; its development would no doubt be advantageous to the public; but it is found that previous concessions were infringed by some of its terms, and difficulties have arisen. On the whole, it would be much better for Liberia if the propositions submitted to it were less pretentious and far-reaching; it is better that she should have fifty different companies operating within her borders, each within a definite field and succeeding within modest limits, than that everything should be held in the hands of one or two great corporations which, when a moment of difficulty comes, may be able to bring influences to bear which will threaten or even destroy the existence of the nation.
Liberian officials quite well know the thing which we call junkets. One might almost think himself at home at times. When some crisis arises, and the “Lark” must be sent to a seat of danger, high officials, whose relations to the Government are not such that their presence is necessary at the seat of disturbance, take advantage of the opportunity for a fine outing. The nation may be in financial difficulty, but good food, good smoking, and good drinks seem easily provided; such an outing not infrequently gives the official opportunity to transact private business, for he may have interests near the seat of the disturbance. Junkets are presumably inherent in governmental activities of every kind; they are not confined to democracies, though they are common in them. Anywhere of course they are undesirable and should be curbed; nations, especially republics, should not be called upon to supply free outings, free business opportunities, free luxuries to individuals at public cost.
One of the reforms demanded by the British memorandum was the improvement of the judiciary. Here there was indeed real reason for complaint. Liberia has few well trained lawyers; it was not uncommon for a man to be appointed judge who had no legal training; there were not infrequent cases of personal and professional misconduct on the part of judges. President Barclay, in his message of 1908, a notable document be it said in passing, says the following: “International attacks upon this (our judicial system) commenced some years ago, and the movement was initiated by citizens of the German Empire living in Liberia. But the crisis has been precipitated by our people. When the editor of the African League, himself an ex-judge, an attorney at law, a citizen, publishes a special edition of his paper, headed “Startling Revelations,” in which the judicial system of the country is attacked both in its personnel as well as on its administrative side, when he describes himself as a scapegoat and martyr, and when months pass and no reply to his attack is made by the persons affected, what conclusion, do you think, can other communities of the world, having business interests in Liberia, draw?” In his address, The Impartial Administration of Justice, the Corner-Stone of a Nation, Justice T. McCants Stewart says: “It can not be denied, however, that our judiciary to-day is the object of serious charges both by foreigners and our own citizens, and they are charges which demand serious consideration. They can not be brushed aside. The British Government is not alone in making these charges. Our own people have made them, and our Chief Executive has declared to the Legislature that evils exist in our judicial system which must be speedily remedied if we desire to strengthen ourselves as a nation. Gentlemen of the Bar: Can we be quiet while our judges are charged both at home and abroad with: (1) ignorance; (2) excessive use of intoxicants; (3) the exhibition of prejudice or passion in the trial of cases; (4) shocking immorality; (5) accepting retainers from private parties; (6) sharing moneys as a reward for the arrest of criminals; (7) accepting bribes?” This is specific enough and bad enough. To the credit of the nation be it said that reforms have seriously been undertaken, and the present condition of the judiciary is greatly improved. It is rather interesting that we ourselves at this moment are agitating against a corrupt judiciary; it is scarcely likely that we are in a condition for stone-throwing.
Of course where there is corruption in the judiciary there is almost certain to be miscarriage of justice. During the time we were in Monrovia, there was great excitement over the case of Col. Lomax and Commissioner Cooper. We have already mentioned Col. Lomax. He figured conspicuously in the Kanre-Lahun matter, when he gained the undying hostility of the British; when Major Mackay Cadell was removed from his position as the head of the Frontier Force, Lomax took charge; he has recently been in the district of the newly acquired Behlu Territory. This is the tract of forest land, of little value, which Great Britain traded to the Liberian Government in exchange for the rich and desirable Kanre-Lahun district. Poor as that area is, Britain will never be content to leave it in Liberian possession. In taking over the area, Col. Lomax was sent to the new boundary with soldiers, and Commissioner Cooper was sent to aid in delimiting the boundary. Of course there was trouble; there would have been trouble had Lomax and Cooper been angels. At the town of Behlu itself, certainly within the new Liberian territory, there was difficulty, and several Liberian soldiers were killed. All sorts of complaints were hurried to Monrovia by the Sierra Leone authorities:—Lomax was causing difficulties; he and Cooper were interfering with the delimitation of the boundary; Liberian soldiers, instigated no doubt by Lomax, were tearing down the cairns which marked the boundary line; the British commissioners refused to do anything unless both men were summoned from the border, and meantime would charge up the expenses of the commission for the period of their idleness; Col. Lomax was accused of murder—it was stated that he had killed eight native chiefs. These complaints were so urgent and serious that the President of the Republic sent orders to Lomax and Cooper to return at once to Monrovia; to these orders no attention was given. The Secretary of State was sent to fetch them, but is said to have stayed in the district, apparently sympathizing in their attitude; it is asserted that the deeds of violence, destruction of cairns, and insulting of British commissioners continued after he was on the ground. The Postmaster-General was hurried to the boundary to bring back the Secretary of State, the Colonel, the Commissioner, and their henchman, Lieutenant Morris,—who, it seems, had been the active agent in the cairn destruction. Some days of inexplicable delay seem to have passed, when the Secretary of the Treasury, the Assistant Secretary of State, and Capt. Brown (one of the American officers) were hastened to the scene of difficulty to get the recalcitrants home. The Secretary of State, Postmaster-General, Secretary of the Treasury, and Capt. Brown started together for Monrovia; Lomax, Cooper, and Morris were reported to be already upon their way through the interior to the capital. Arrived there, Lomax and Cooper were promptly jailed; less promptly they were brought to trial. The Attorney-General presented the case against them. Lomax was tried for the murder of two native chiefs; Cooper for the murder of a third. The Lomax trial lasted two days; it was before the jury for but ten minutes. He was found not guilty, and was carried in triumph on the shoulders of friends, amidst a great outburst of feeling, from the court-house. The Cooper trial came the next day; it was promptly decided in his favor. There is no question that the Behlu difficulty is on; Great Britain will in some way get back the territory which she so generously traded to Liberia; undoubtedly in the diplomatic dealings regarding it much will be made of this Lomax case; there is not the least doubt that the native chiefs were killed; there is no denial that Lomax and Cooper were responsible for the killing; but the trial and its results are good psychology; they were as inevitable as anything could be. There was in this case no actual miscarriage of justice; Col. Lomax is a national hero; he embodied the national aspirations; he represented the nation as a victim of the injustice and greed of Britain through the years; his ovation was the result of natural sentiments. It may not be diplomacy; it may not be good politics; but it is in the very nature of humanity.
The great American government, after a silence, far from forgetting and abandoning the tender infant cast upon the shores of Africa, has come in our hour of danger to assist us on her strong pinions to a nest of safety. If we but follow her example and heed her teachings of economy, thrift and industry, and if we are just in our dealings with men and nations we shall never escape her vigilant eye, nor cease to be the object of marked manifestation of interest on her part.—Daniel E. Howard.
THE APPEAL TO THE UNITED STATES.
In 1908 Liberian conditions were desperate. England and France had been alternately slicing off territory; debts were weighing the nation down, and creditors were pressing; reforms were insolently demanded under threats. The future indeed was dark. In her hour of desperation, Liberia turned to the United States. The idea of seeking aid from us seems to have been first voiced by T. McCants Stewart in January, 1908. A Commission was appointed by the Legislature—consisting of Garretson W. Gibson, J. J. Dossen, and Charles B. Dunbar, with Charles R. Branch and T. J. R. Faulkner as secretaries. Garretson W. Gibson had been President of the Republic and was a man well on in years and generally respected; J. J. Dossen was at the time Vice-President; Charles B. Dunbar is a successful and well trained lawyer. On its way to the United States the Commission visited Germany, where it was well received and officially entertained in the capital city, Berlin. On its arrival in New York in May, Charles Hall Adams, of Boston, Consul-General for Liberia in this country, and Booker T. Washington received them and attended to the details of their visit. They spent several days in New York and visited Tuskegee, but, of course, spent most of their time in the city of Washington. They were received by President Roosevelt on the 10th of June, had several important interviews with Secretary Root, and were introduced to Secretary Taft—just before the Republican Convention was held which nominated him for the presidency of the United States. They were everywhere treated with distinguished courtesy and everywhere made a remarkably favorable impression; the newspapers gave considerable space to their visit and quite a general interest was aroused in their errand. A notable reception was given in their honor in Washington by the Negro Business League. Before they left New York, Secretary Taft had received his nomination, and one of their last official acts was the sending of a letter of congratulation to him.
The Commission arrived at home in August, 1909. An official reception was given them on the 18th by President Barclay. The address of welcome was given by the Secretary of State, F. E. R. Johnson, and other addresses by Acting Mayor Roberts and Postmaster-General Prout. Replies were made by Gibson, Dossen, Dunbar, and Faulkner. It is significant that in these addresses more emphasis was laid upon the subject of negro education in the United States than upon other matters. Both then and while in this country, Vice-President Dossen especially emphasized the importance of immigration; he wants 600,000 negroes from America to settle in Liberia, and claims that the people of Liberia feel that they are holding their territory in trust for this mass of immigrants. Music and refreshments were supplied and a speech of congratulation given by President Barclay. Of course nothing definite at this time could be said in regard to the actual results of the Commission’s visit; no one knew just what impression had been made upon our Government; no one knew just what to expect in the way of action.