CHAPTER XIV.Brief Historical Sketch of the Portuguese on the East Coast of Africa—Description of Mozambique—Its Position as an Emporium for Commerce—Its Restoration, like that of Alexandria, possible—Fort San Sebastian—Churches and Chapels—Palace of the Governor-General—Wharf—Population—Society.
Brief Historical Sketch of the Portuguese on the East Coast of Africa—Description of Mozambique—Its Position as an Emporium for Commerce—Its Restoration, like that of Alexandria, possible—Fort San Sebastian—Churches and Chapels—Palace of the Governor-General—Wharf—Population—Society.
Ten years after the discovery of the Cape of Good Hope by Bartholomew Diaz, while Columbus was yet at the height of his glory, and previous to the unmerited ignominy heaped upon that “Great Light of the Age” by ungrateful Spain, Don Emmanuel, King of Portugal, in 1497, despatched Vasco de Gama to follow up the discoveries of his countryman Diaz.
De Gama, having under his command three vessels, manned with sixty men, left Lisbon onthe 8th July, 1497. He called at the Cape de Verde Islands, and thence continued his course to the southward, along the coast of Africa, until he came to an anchor in St. Helena Bay. Two days after quitting which, he attained the latitude of the Cape of Good Hope, where he had to contend with the south-east trade-wind, and the insubordination of his crews. Having, by his perseverance and address, overcome the opposition of the elements and the mutineers in his fleet, he rounded the great promontory of Africa, and by his subsequent success, earned for himself the proud distinction, throughout all ages, of having been the first who reached India by that route.
Anxious to visit Sofala, discovered by his countryman Covilham, he followed the coast of Africa from its southern extreme. He anchored in Saint Blasse Bay, after leaving which, he arrived at the island of Santa Cruz, which was the limit of the discoveries of his predecessor Diaz. Thence, continuing his own discoveries, he kept the land in view as he proceeded to the northward. He touched at Natal, passed Sofala, and arrived at Mozambique, where he anchored, accordingto Osorio, on the 1st of March, but, according to theDiario Portuguez, on the 28th February, 1498, just two months before Columbus set out on his third voyage.
De Gama found that Mozambique was an Arab settlement, under the dominion of the Sultan of Kilwa, whose subordinate, Zacoëja, was then governor of Mozambique.
Kilwa was described to him as one of the most celebrated ports of the country, having vessels which had constant commercial relations with Arabia, Persia, and India.
Sofala was spoken of as the country which furnished large and inexhaustible quantities of gold; and he found that the whole trade of the country was in the hands of the Arabs, whose vessels were supplied with the mariner’s compass, marine charts, and astrolabes, or instruments for taking the altitude of the heavenly bodies, for the purpose of navigating these seas.
His application for pilots to take him to Calicut was readily complied with, and two pilots were furnished to him by the governor, Zacoëja.
On the arrival of the Portuguese at Mozambique,it was at first supposed that the strangers were Arab traders from Berbera, on the north-east coast of Africa, opposite to the Arab emporium of Aden, and hence arose the hospitality with which they were received. But on the true state, of the case being known, that De Gama and his followers were “infidel dogs,” who had found their way from the west round the Cape of Good Hope, the animosity of the Arabs was immediately let loose upon the strangers; who, not satisfied with depriving them of their fair possessions in the west, had circumnavigated Africa, to despoil them in the east.
On this discovery being made, the battle of the Crescent and the Cross commenced in the Indian Ocean, and from that moment De Gama had another difficulty to contend with in his voyage of discovery.
In consequence of the hostility displayed towards him by the Mozambique people, he was obliged to quit the port, and directed his course in search of Kilwa, in order to place himself in communication with the Sultan of that place.
His pilots, doubtless acting under the instructions of the Mozambique Arab, failed to reachKilwa, but, instead, found themselves off Mombas. They endeavoured to persuade De Gama that the greater part of the inhabitants of Mombas were Christians, and that it was the most suitable place to refit his ships, and refresh their crews, after their long and harassing voyage.
These pilots, mixing with the subordinate officers and the crews of the admiral’s vessel, laid before them such a pleasant prospect of the scenes of pleasure which awaited them at Mombas, that the Portuguese broke out into that state of mutiny which, in those days, led to the most disastrous results, and frequently frustrated the noblest enterprises.
De Gama was forced to yield to the solicitations of his crews; and, with a presentiment of impending danger, he reluctantly anchored at Mombas.
At Mombas he found the people in a high state of civilization; the princes and chiefs clothed in silk and satin; the city defended by formidable fortresses mounting artillery; and the houses of the inhabitants similar to those in old Spain. In fact, before him lay a Moorish or Arab city, well fortified.
A plan was concocted by the Arabs of Mombas to seize the Portuguese squadron, but being alarmed by some unnatural noise made in the hold of the admiral’s ship at the moment when they were about to put their plan into execution, a panic seized the ringleaders, and their untimely flight revealed to De Gama the danger which he had fortunately escaped. He immediately put to sea, and repaired to Melinda, where he was received with great cordiality by the Sheik Wagerage, who sent his son Ali on board of the admiral’s ship to bid him welcome, excusing himself from visiting De Gama on account of his great age and infirmities.
Here De Gama was furnished with experienced pilots; and in return for the attentions of the aged Sheik, he promised to call at Melinda on his return from India, and convey to the King of Portugal the ambassadors, whom the Sheik of Melinda expressed his intention of sending for the purpose of making a treaty of friendship and alliance.
On the 22nd of April De Gama left Melinda, and stretching across the Indian Ocean for Calicut, passed the equator, and once morebeheld the well-known constellation of the northern hemisphere. On the 28th of May, 1498, thirty-six days after leaving Melinda, the squadron of De Gama anchored at Calicut.
Thus was India reached by way of the Cape of Good Hope, and De Gama realized the dream of Don Henry, conceived eighty-six years before, and left by that prince as a legacy to the enterprise of his countrymen, to whom he had set the example of half a century of persevering energy.
By his prudent conduct De Gama overcame the opposition of the Mahometans, and obtained the favour of the Zamorin of Calicut. After visiting Goâ, the Portuguese squadron put again to sea, traversed the Arabian Gulf, and commenced running down the length of the African coast from north to south.
Passing Mogadoxa, the squadron bombarded that Arab stronghold, destroying many of the houses, and sinking a great number of vessels; evidently with the intention of striking terror into the followers of the Prophet.
True to his promise, De Gama called at Melinda; embarked the ambassadors of theSheik, and, after a short stay of five days, proceeded to the island of Zanzibar, arriving there on the 29th April, 1499. There, although occupied by Mahometan Arabs, he was well received; being furnished with live stock, vegetables, and fruit in abundance. Doubtless the fame of his deeds had preceded him, and the wily Arabs of that place wished to avoid making an enemy of one who had the power of visiting them with a severe retribution.
Leaving Zanzibar, he sailed along the Mozambique coast, wisely reserving his chastisement of the Mozambiquers for a future day. He watered his ships at Saint Blasse Bay, doubled the Cape of Good Hope in the stormy season of those seas, touched at Terceira, where he had the misfortune to lose his brother Paul, companion of his glory, but not destined to share in his triumph.
Leaving Terceira, with its melancholy reminiscences, De Gama, with his battered ships, wrecks of their former selves, containing only one-third of their gallant crews, reached Lisbon in the month of September, 1499.
The reception of De Gama and his companionsby his country, and the honours conferred upon him by his King, present one of those rich pages in the history of the small kingdom of Portugal which the lovers of progress delight to dwell upon; while the benefits conferred on the world by this discovery remain the property of mankind, forming one of the richest contributions towards civilization ever placed on record.
One cannot contemplate, without the most sublime emotion, this spectacle of the conquest of mind over matter. From the first attempt of Don Henry until its fortunate accomplishment in the successful voyage of Vasco de Gama, history cannot record a more glorious triumph than that of the Portuguese discovery of the passage to India. Kings, sages, philosophers, and heroes for the actors; a century for the performance; a vast ocean washing the shores of three continents for the stage; with posterity for the spectators—it stands unparalleled as the great drama of discovery.
It is not our intention, in the present work, to trace the history of Mozambique from its being made known to Europe by the great discovery ofDe Gama, through all the changes which have taken place on that coast since the Portuguese era of conquest—nor to show how its position, with that of all the Portuguese settlements in these seas, became affected by the union of Spain and Portugal into one kingdom, and the appearance of the Dutch and English in these seas. These are matters of history, which may be more properly laid before the student of history, the antiquarian, and the lover of social progress, in a work which will shortly appear; while, in a popular work like the present, we will more properly confine ourselves to the state of Mozambique as it may now be seen.
The city of Mozambique is situated on an island of the same name, in latitude 15° 2′ S. and longitude 40° 48′ E., which, with two other islands, St. Jago and St. George, placed in an inlet of the Indian Ocean, form, with the mainland, a secure harbour, five miles deep, and five and a quarter miles broad; and with the neighbouring harbour of Mokambo, in which three rivers discharge themselves, is perhaps the most eligible spot to establish an immense trade withthe interior, and an admirable position for an emporium for Europe, America, Arabia, India, and Madagascar. The advantages of this harbour for commercial purposes, both as to its means of communicating with the vast interior of Africa, and the facilities afforded to it by the monsoons for easy access to the neighbouring countries, cannot be overrated. It requires only the entire cessation of the accursed slave-trade to make the capabilities of this magnificent harbour known, when the development of its rich and varied resources would obtain for it a position as an emporium for the commerce of the world, second only to that of Alexandria. As Mohammet Ali restored Alexandria to its former position, so it is in the power of the King of Portugal, Don Pedro V., to again make Mozambique what it was when first visited by Vasco de Gama, in 1497, namely, a rendezvous for all the commerce of the Indian Ocean. The introduction and fostering of the slave-trade has destroyed legitimate commerce, and reduced it to its present position; and nothing but the entire abolition of that traffic can re-establish its formergreatness. The young King of Portugal has a glorious career opened to him, if he will only prove himself worthy of the destiny to which he is called.
On the north end of the island of Mozambique, there is a large fort, called San Sebastian, having an appearance of considerable strength, which at one time no doubt was the case, for it has embrasures for at least eighty pieces of cannon, but barely half of that number are in the fort at present; even the carriages of these are dilapidated by age, and the cannon themselves honey-combed by the combined effects of climate and neglect. This fort would afford but a poor resistance to an attack of one or two small ships of war. But yet the imperial government of Portugal are so intimidated by the occupants of this nest of slavery and piracy, that during my residence at Mozambique, orders were issued that, on the new Governor-general arriving at Mozambique in the month of September, 1857, some of the cannon were to be embarked on board of the frigate which brought him out, for the purpose of being conveyed to Portugal, so as to reduce the strength of the fort, andafford a better chance to the Portuguese government to retake the place, in the event of these slave-dealers attempting to overcome the new Governor-general, and driving him and the local government to obtain safety by flight, as their predecessors had done in 1835.
On the south end of the island there is also a fort, but it is small and of little strength, being intended to command a passage between it and the mainland, which is only practicable for boats, or vessels of very light draught of water.
The city of Mozambique has two churches and three small chapels; the two former were respectable edifices even at the time of their erection, which was when the Portuguese first obtained a footing on this coast. Besides the churches already named, there are one or two fine public buildings. The palace of the Governor-general is a very imposing edifice, of considerable extent, having a court-yard in the middle, from which access is obtained to the reception-rooms, which are lofty, well ventilated, and floored with handsome timber: being an exception to the flooring of all the other houses at Mozambique; thelatter being composed of chunam. The palace of the Governor-general was built by the Jesuits for their college, in 1670, but subsequently became, on their expulsion, the property of the government. The roof of it is flat, and entirely covered with lead, which not only protects it against the action of the weather, but renders it cooler than it otherwise would be. It is one of those buildings which strike the eye of the beholder, and give him some idea of the greatness of the Portuguese nation during the era of conquest. The Treasury and the Custom-house are plain, solid buildings, of modern date, and contrast unfavourably with the palace and churches of bygone ages. There is an admirable wharf, which would grace any harbour in Europe, and the masonry of which cannot be surpassed; the portion of it which is under water being built with mortar, in which oil has been used instead of water.
The town is irregularly built, the houses being substantially constructed to resist the heat, and perhaps the earthquakes which are occasionally felt from the volcanic eruptions in the north-west end of Madagascar, and the hurricanes which every fiveor seven years visit the island with great severity. The streets are very narrow; and the houses being all white-washed, the glare is distressing, and the heat, by these two causes, considerably increased, so that the thermometer is always from six to ten degrees higher in the town than on the mainland. There are two or three squares, and in the principal one there is a pillar of hard wood embedded in masonry, to which the negroes are secured when publicly whipped. Some of the houses have the appearance of comfort, and in former times, when the slave-trade was extensively carried on between Mozambique and Brazil, they were luxuriously furnished, having every comfort which affluence could supply, and the debilitating nature of the climate called for. Since the people of Mozambique have been obliged to abandon slavery, nearly all the former occupants have left, and the remainder, tied to the country by compulsory means, lead a miserable existence engendered by their own vices. The Portuguese officials look with the greatest jealousy upon any of the Mozambique people engaged in the slave-trade, for they consider this traffic as belongingentirely to themselves, and a grant from the government of Portugal, as a compensation in lieu of adequate salaries. There is no mistaking the meaning of the smile and shrug of the shoulders with which they reply to any one who ventures to state that the Portuguese government is sincere in its endeavour to suppress the slave-trade. I have been told, by persons in Mozambique, “Yes, the government of Portugal, after ruining us, are sincere in their endeavours to prevent us engaging in the traffic; and they take the best mode to prevent us benefiting by that traffic, for they send out their officers here on paltry salaries, which they well know cannot support life, and make them prevent us engaging in the slave-trade. But the government of the King knows well that the soldiers have not been paid for more than four years, and that many of the officers have not received avintim, or farthing, from the treasury, for more than two years. How must these men live? By the slave-trade. So that they deprive us of the benefits which were formerly derived from the slave-trade; and to prevent legal commerce, which would supplantthe trade in the natives, they throw every obstacle in our way.”
I must say, I observed, while at Mozambique, that this was a very fair statement of the case.
The city of Mozambique is exceedingly dirty, from the filthy habits of the Portuguese; and, without going into particulars, it may be briefly stated that it is the filthiest city in the universe, not even excepting that of Lisbon. For which there is not the shadow of an excuse, as there is an overabundance of slaves without employment; and the town being built on the beach, where the tide has a rise and a fall of, at times, twelve feet, there can be no difficulty in keeping it clean. That indolence which to the modern Portuguese has now become proverbially natural, has here an opportunity for its fullest development, so that the air they breathe, both here and in all the settlements along the coast, is as foul as the immorality in which they live.
The inhabitants of Mozambique are about 7,000 in number. The garrison, consisting of Portuguese soldiers, in all under 200, are principally convicts;some portion of them being convicts who have already passed a term of penal servitude at Goâ, and are sent from that place to serve a further period of punishment at Mozambique for crimes committed at the former settlement.
There are a few Portuguese officials connected with the Custom-house and the Treasury, some half-caste descendants of Portuguese or Canarines from Goâ, and natural children of slave-dealers by native women from India or Africa; such is the society at Mozambique. Add to this, one German merchant and an agent of a house from Marseilles, thirty or forty Banyan traders from Cutch, Goâ, and Bombay; a few Arabs, or, as they are called at Mozambique, Moors, and you have all that portion of the inhabitants of the island who call themselves free. The remaining portion of the inhabitants are slaves, called Négros, or, by the Christian Portuguese, they are more generally styledGentiles.
The aspect of the town from the anchorage is that of former grandeur crumbling to decay; and, indeed, a more intimate acquaintance realized the impression made on first entering the harbour.
There are generally a few vessels, principally Portuguese, lying in the harbour; and in the healthy season, which is also the trading season here, a great number of dhows from different places on the west coast of India, the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Madagascar, Comoro Islands, Zanzibar, and along the whole east coast of Africa, are attracted here, in the face of Portuguese restrictions on trade, by the enormous profits to be derived by trading at this place. If the slave-trade was done away with once and for ever, legitimate traffic with the whole Indian Ocean and adjoining seas might be indefinitely developed, and realize to Portugal a princely revenue. This might be done by simply removing those persons from Mozambique who are well known to the Portuguese government as being engaged in the slave-trade, and without whose assistance the Portuguese officials, arriving at Mozambique strangers to the country, could not engage in selling the natives. The names of these slave-dealers have been communicated to the Portuguese government, and it is nothing but the influence which they maintain, by bribing largely parties who have access tothe ministers, and others who are all-powerful at the Court of Lisbon, which prevents the government of the King from taking so simple a course; viz., the banishment of a few individuals for the benefit of the community. It will be asserted, on the other hand, that this would be a dangerous step to take, as these well-known persons have great influence at Mozambique, where their long residence has given them great influence over the natives, and where they form a local party, which, aided by the climate, the poverty of the Portuguese government, and the treachery of the officials and officers, renders them all-powerful. To this I simply reply, that the Portuguese government, to my certain knowledge, holds in its possession undisputed proofs of the guilt of these slave-dealers; and it is only by a guilty connivance of some members of the government of the King, who are participators in their ill-gotten and infamous gains, that measures have not been taken ere this for preventing, by banishment of those engaged in this traffic at Mozambique, a crime revolting to humanity, and opposed to Christianity and civilization.
The statements made in this narrative of facts, which came to my knowledge while at Mozambique, and which are so notorious that the government of Portugal offers no denial to them, fully justify the charges of complicity made against the government of the King, and show that the efforts made by that government are a continued imposition on the credulity of England and other nations engaged in this great question of the cause of humanity.
The remedy is simple, while the proof of sincerity on the part of Portugal in suppressing the odious traffic is very easy.
Banish those persons who are well known to be engaged in the slave-trade, changeallthe officials, and encourage the emigration of 1000 Europeans to the province of Mozambique, that territory would soon be richer than the Brazils, and many of the Brazilian planters would invest in land, and develop the resources of a country where labour is so plentiful that the sugar-growing countries have obtained their labour from it for ages.
But to do this effectually it will be necessary, and only just, to give to the officials going out tobe employed under the new system salaries adequate to their wants. Pay them well and make them honest. Now they obtain an appointment at Mozambique, with a salary which is not sufficient for their requirements even in Portugal. How insufficient must it be for their wants in a country where everything European in manufacture is naturally increased in price, and where the climate renders many of those things looked upon as luxuries in Europe absolutely necessary for the support of the European constitution. At present, when a Portuguese official is appointed to a post at Mozambique, his salary is an uncertain small amount, frequently not paid from one to four years after it has become due; but the appointment is known to be worth so much more, because those who have held it have returned to Portugal with a certain amount of wealth, that amount well known to the government and nation at large; and also as well known the means by which that wealth was obtained; namely, the buying and selling the great product of the country which has alone been developed—that of its natives.These human beings are bought from their relations or their enemies, and are supplied to the slave ship at an enormous profit. A Portuguese official knows the terms on which he takes the appointment—a small salary and the opportunity of making a large fortune by the slave-trade. These appointments are consequently eagerly sought after; and the cadets of noble families in Portugal are indeed deemed fortunate who obtain them. Is it then a wonder, when they arrive at Mozambique, that they use all possible means to amass wealth by the slave-trade, and look upon the Portarias of the King of Portugal as a sham before the world, and an infringement of the rights vested in them by the appointment which they may hold from the King?
From this it will be seen that the fault entirely rests with the government of Portugal, and that by paying the officials properly honesty will be secured. At present a premium is conferred on slave-dealers; for those who are most successful in amassing wealth by the nefarious traffic obtain, on reaching Portugal, by means of that wealth,titles, honours (?), and consideration,—year after year adding to the degradation which has come on Portugal through the slave-trade, and the slave-trade alone.