of the officers
take their dogs with them, which at once make a furious onslaught on
the numerous cats of the Commissaire and have to be suppressed. Mgr.
Derikx places a particularly pugnacious fox-terrier under the basket
work of his chair the little animal being literally sat upon by the
dignitary of the Church.

The Residency is a large brick building situated on a low hill and
raised above the ground, the space beneath being enclosed and
loop-holed, thus forming a small fort. The gardens are particularly
pretty and well kept. Beer is handed round and we sit chatting on the
verandah until Mr. Grenfell, the head of the Baptist Mission, arrives.
He has travelled up the river in the Mission Steamer from Bolobo and was
on his way when we stopped at that place. As he has been in the Congo
for more than twenty years, he knows the country well and thus speaks
with authority. He thinks the system of Government excellent, but that
it is administered better in the Lower than the Upper Congo, because
there are not enough officials in the latter. He is convinced the
population has greatly decreased on the riverside of the Bangala
District, and attributes it chiefly to Sleeping Sickness for he cannot
say if emigration to the French Congo has been extensive or not. No case
of ill-treatment of natives has come to his notice during the last three
years, but he thinks the State does not give them enough work to do. He
has seen natives without hands, but does not believe that any atrocities
have occurred for many years. Generally speaking, he thinks it would be
better if the State acquired all the property of the Companies. Although
he does not know of any definite cases of ill-treatment, he has heard
reports and thinks there is "no smoke without fire." However, he is
quite prepared to agree that a very little fire in the Congo makes a
great deal of smoke. Altogether, Mr. Grenfell spoke very calmly, and is
evidently not carried away by emotionalism or strong prejudice against
the State.

At Coquilhatville, as elsewhere in the State, the prisoners are given
useful work to do. Near by a party were digging a hole by the roadway.
They were chained together but the chain was so long that it did not
hamper their movements. Two policemen were on guard, but the whole gang
were evidently taking matters very easily.

In the evening we dine with the Commissaire and a party of sixteen or
eighteen, including many of our fellow travellers, Mr. G