Europeans from barrack to park, and park to barrack, with no
in Africa.
bigber purpose tban being drilled. To be drilled
from year to year, from tbe cradle to tbe grave!
Good beavens! think of some 500 millions of Asiatics,
300 millions of Africans, and 50 millions of Indians
and Pacific Islanders requiring some small share of
that drill which is so lavishly given to thousands of
accomplished officers, who perhaps would be better for
a little less of the training and a little more of the
sight-seeing in the big world without!
So the young officers came out to Africa, both unspeakably
excited at the prospect of adventures in the
far interior. Like many others, they had but a dim
idea of tbe real truth ; still, when the vain fancies had
vanished, there was enough of sterling worth found
in them. They became sobered by the grim painful
realities of wretched diet, and the intercourse with
the unlovely natures of thousands of savage brutalised
beings among whom they had to live, often putting
their natural politeness to a hard test. With their
ignorance of native languages, they could only discern
the kernels of the humanities which they met. They
had to learn the meaning of Ba, Ki, and Wa and M,
and no sooner had these profound studies been mastered
than they were pushed amongst other tribes whose
gabble sounded excessively unintelligible; and before
long they were shifted still higher up the riv e r; but
little by little they detected, by the slim knowledge
they had gained, that underneath these crude bronze
masks of faces there beat warm impulses varying
from anger to joy, hate to friendship. And lo ! what Europeans
in Africa.
with honest striving and fast purpose, the goal of
happy contentment was reached in triumph.
Now if gold medals should ever be struck by the
Association to reward industry, Lieut, Yangele should
receive the first and Lieut. Coquilhat the second, for
the construction of the best well-made station on the
Upper Congo. These two officers are the founders of
LIEUTENANT COQUILHAT.
Equator Station. To know the intrinsic value of the
rich land of Africa, visitors cannot begin their estimate
until they see the bananas grow in the fat soil around
this station.
An accident, sad in the extreme, deprived me of a
brilliant young officer after he had shown nearly three
years of assiduous effort to win an honourable name
■ for gallantry, good conduct, and industry. This young
gentleman was Eugene Janssen, lieutenant in the Royal
Belgian Army. He had come out as inexperienced as