the revenue of the
colony. Nor was the Latin's mind wanting in concocting schemes for filling
the Portuguese coffers when the laws were lax on the subject, for it was
the simplest arrangement to frame a regulation suitable for every new
condition that arose. The Portuguese were willing to be the medium between
the Boers and the people of other parts of the earth, but they asked for
and received a large percentage of the profits.

When the mines of the Johannesburg gold district were closed down, and the
Portuguese heard that they would no longer receive a compulsory
contribution of four shillings from every native who crossed the border to
work in the mines, the officials felt uneasy on account of the great
decrease in the amount of public revenues, but it did not worry them for
any great length of time. They met the situation by imposing a tax of
eight shillings upon every one of the thousands of natives who returned
from the mines to their homes in Portuguese territory. About the same time
the Uitlanders from the Transvaal reached Lorenzo Marques, and, in order
to calm the Portuguese mind, every one of the thousands of men and women
who took part in that exodus was compelled to pay a transit tax, ranging
from eight shillings to a sovereign, according to the size of the tip
tendered to the official.

When the van of the foreign volunteers reached the port there was a new
situation to be dealt with, and again the principle of "When in doubt
impose a tax" was satisfactorily employed. Men who had just arrived in
steamers, and who had never seen Portuguese territory, were obliged to
secure a certificate, indicating that they had not been inhabitants of the
local jail during the preceding six months; a certificate from the
consular representative of their country, showing that they possessed good
characters; another from the Governor-General to show that they did not
purpose going into the Transvaal to carry arms; a fourth from the local
Transvaal consul to indicate that he held no objections to the traveller's
desire to enter the Boer country; and one or two other passports equally
weighty in their bearing on the subject were necessary before a person was
able to leave the town. Each one of these certificates was to be secured
only upon the payment of a certain number of thousand reis and at an
additional expenditure of time and nervous energy, for none of the
officials could speak a word of any language except Portuguese