CO885-(25-26) — Page 607

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זווד

PUBLIC RECORD

OFFICE

THI

iC.O.

Reference :-

885/25

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

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of an export duty on all palm kernels exported to countries other than the United Kingdom has been proposed for the future; I have already given my reasons for objecting to this proposal and the views of the Executive Council have been forwarded to the Secretary of State. Having regard however to para- graph 3 of Secretary of State's Circular of 24th October, 1916 a replica of Your Excellency's Despatch and Enclosures on the export duty should perhaps be attached to Your Excellency's reply to the present reference.

It may perhaps be said that we have temporarily 'lost' our foreign trade in cocoa in so far as enemy countries (? and Holland) are concerned. But assuming that the embargo on exports to Germany and Austria is lifted after the war I imagine there will be little difficulty in regaining those markets unless Germany and Austria select this productfor retaliatory measures in the event of the Allies subjecting them to economic disabilities. Even so the Gold Coast could probably dispose of all its cocoa in the United Kingdom, France, Holland, the United States of America, etc.

As for new markets I question whether any special steps are necessary at present at any rate as regards our agricultural products. The case may be different as regards our mineral resources though it seems probable that for some considerable time at least we shall have no difficulty in disposing of all our out- put in the United Kingdom.

7. The most important question, as it seems to me, is the third :—

"(c) To what extent and by what means, the resources of the Empire should, and can, be developed' or, making the question of local application " To what extent and by what means the resources of the Gold Coast should, and can be developed"?

I am not quite sure what significance is intended to attach to the word "should "in this question and that part of the question is perhaps only capable of a satisfactory answer by the Committee which will have before it particulars of the resources of all the Colonies. The Committee, for instance, will, I assume, be in the best position to say whether having regard to the resources of other Colonies (or even Allied countries ?) in respect of e.g. palm kernels, timber, ground nuts, coconuts etc. it is worth while spending money in an attempt to "develop" those industries in the Gold Coast. I assume that there can be no question as to the desirability of developing cocoa, and those mineral resources which are already known to be valuable.

8. The main question for us in the Gold Coast is I think " By what means can our resources be best developed"? and I will endeavour to indicate briefly what in my opinion are our chief desiderata.

(i.) First and foremost we require a plentiful supply of money. Our revenue is, apart from war dis- abilities, buoyant, but it is totally insufficient for development, and the existing sources of taxation are not capable of much further expansion while there are objections to the exploitation of such fresh sources as might prove fruitful, (e.g. direct taxation); one of the existing sources (i.e. high railway rates) is indeed not infrequently attacked on the score of being a tax on development. The revenue however is amply sufficient to bear the charges on a large loan if it is relieved of the necessity for providing the entire sums required to finance costly capital works, and there can be no doubt that what the Gold Coast most needs for development at the present time is a loan of several millions of pounds. The Accra Harbour will probably need anything up to £1,000,000, or even more, before it can adequately meet the trade that is about to develop in the Eastern Province; either the Accra or Seccondee Harbour must in the near future be converted into a deep sea Harbour and the whole port remodelled accordingly: remunerative railway extension can itself absorb several millions, and roads, water supplies, drainage schemes, medical and edu- cational facilities will for several years require more money than revenue can produce.

No doubt the same case can be made out, with greater or less force, for the needs of other Colonies and at the same time the universal demand for money after the war will, it may be said, preclude any possibility But that is just the point I wish to make: of this outlying corner of the Empire getting what it wants.

is it impossible to avoid a mutually costly scramble in the Loan Market by all the Colonies wanting loans ? Can there not be arranged a general loan for the development of Crown Colonies with Imperial Government backing, instead of perpetuating the present system whereby we all compete together, the only common tie being the emphatic repudiation by the Imperial Government of any responsibility, a repudiation which to a certain class of investor must damn our prospectus from the start? If the Imperial Government really wish to develop the resources of the Empire will they help us in this way? It is a small risk as far as the Gold Coast is concerned: the amount of capital that merchants have been pouring into the Colony even during the war is a sure indication of their confidence in our future.

9. (ii) Next in importance to money I would put improved shipping facilities. The only large markets we are in touch with at present are the United Kingdom, France and the United States of America and the last two intermittently only. Southward we have no outlet at all: if a Cape boat would call even once a month there should be good prospects of a new trade springing up between South and West Africa. In any case it may be hoped that competition may grow for the United Kingdom-West Africa trade. I believe it is true that Messrs. Elder Dempster, & Company have on the whole been comparatively reasonable in

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their exercise of the monopoly that they have enjoyed since the disappearance of the Woermann Line : nevertheless our recent experience in the Banking world has shown how salutary the whisper of competi- tion can be.

Incidentally the present monopoly is said to work inequitably for small shippers, and especially for native shippers (vide Mr. Casely Hayford's letter.) The Company defends itself from this charge by alleging it to be merely a case of justifiable preference to regular customers, and the point is probably good. Nevertheless development is retarded by the shipping monopoly.

10 (iii) Thirdly I would urge the importance of systematic scientific research of our agricultural and mineral resources. I need not in this place enlarge on the value of the discoveries made by the Director of Geological Surveys, Mr. Kitson, but I may emphasize the point that he has necessarily been able to explore but a small fraction of the Colony. If men of a similar practical stamp are forthcoming it will" us to multiply him at least threefold and have a systematic survey of every district, including Ashanti and the Northern Territories.

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As regards the Northern Territories we want an agricultural Kitson to investigate its possibilities from end to end. There are no insuperable difficulties in opening up communication with the Northern Territories, if the resources of the Protectorate show it to be worth while. Cotton has proved a failure but I doubt whether the other possibilities have been systematically investigated. This may cost a little money but it might have far reaching results.

If the Commercial and Industrial Policy Committee consider that our palm kernel and coconut resources should be developed we should not hesitate to spend money on the scientific investigations that have (e.g.) been suggested in the case of the oil palms, and the scheme for introducing Ceylonese craftsmen who will teach the West African the mysteries of the copra trade should be pursued.

As regards cocoa, steps are already being taken to apply the best expert opinion to the present state of the industry from an agricultural point of view.

11. (iv) If the Gold Coast is to have free scope for economic development it is time that the policy of decrying its climate in official (and unofficial) publications should cease. Without drawing any comparisons between our climate and that of other tropical colonies it will I think hardly be contested, after a scutiny of the vital statistics of West Africa for the last few years, that the "deadly character of the Coast "is now largely an anachronism. I suggest that the vital statistics referred to be published and emphasised and that we cease to pretend that every official or merchant who goes to the Gold Coast must be prepared for daily risk of mortal disease. I submit also that the vital statistics be brought officially to the notice of Insurance Companies in the hope that they will begin to consider the possibility of mitigating the rigour of their West African terms. Until the true character of our climate, and the simple character of the pro- phylactics necessary to mitigate its dangers, are much more widely known (and persistently insisted upon), so long will many promising Colonists be deterred from coming to the Gold Coast. The class of merchant who is common in Ceylon is a rarity in the Gold Coast, while the planter is almost non-existent.

12. (v) A chronic need of this Colony is Labour, and if the new industry in Kwahu materialises the need will become acute. The Committee's general survey will presumably disclose whether other parts of the Empire have superfluous labour of a kind which could suitably be transplanted to the Gold Coast for dev elopment work. Failing such imported labour I fear that development will be slow.

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A certain amount of economy in labour can no doubt be effected by the further dissemination and fection of medical and sanitary facilities-the former being at present very limited in scope as far as the native population is concerned. This however is a matter of money: if we can get the desired loan there will be no difficulty in providing ample medical facilities out of current revenue.

13. The last question addressed to the Commercial and Industrial Policy Committee is

(d) To what extent and by what means the sources of supply within the Empire can be prevented from falling under foreign control

This question appears to be one for the lawyers: I presume it would be possible, as regards the Gold Coast, to enact that no concession shall be held by a foreigner or company under foreign control. As regarde the past there has never been, as far as I know, any practical danger of our products falling under foreign control, and personally I find it difficult to believe that the German firms which were established here exer. cised any material influence in the direction of espionage: if they did, it must have been strikingly ineffi- cient, having regard to the astonishing ignorance of our military resources that prevailed in Togoland in August 1914. In saying this I am not advocating the return of the German firms as I would certainly not voluntarily allow a member of that nation to live on British soil for many a long year.