Nigeria 1939 Report on Employment of Nigerian Labour in Fernando Poo Rhodes House Library 718 r6

7/29/2019 Nigeria 1939 Report on Employment of Nigerian Labour in Fernando Poo Rhodes House Library 718 r6

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Report on Employment of Nigerian Labour in Fernando Poo.

Ever since 1931 , when the supply of labour from Li.bPria was stoppe<l after

the Leao·ue of Nations Inquiry into the labour traffic, the plantation workers in

Fernan'do Poo have almo t a ll come from either the mainland of Spanish Equatorial

Africa or from Kigeria. The mainland territory io being rapidly clevelope<l all(l

as the population is not large the ouppl:--· of labour from there will rapidly dP crea,;e"-ith the opening up of turther plantations and the expansion of t he timber export

inclu try in that area.

2. Prior to the outbreak of the l'i-'il war in Spai11, I believe that mo :st ofLhe workers who " ·ent to Fernando Poo went there of their own free \\'ill with afa irlY accurate knowlerlo·e of the l'onditions there. Even then unoffi <'i.al rec>ruiten;"·ere. operating , and being pai<l by the planters fo r Ihe renu its they produce<l ,

as the supply of workers going over on thei1· O\Yll wa,; in sulli<"i ent. .Bu t i.ndays the recruiters acted more a;; public>it .Y agents and conducton; of t he reen ui.sthrough the neb\ork spread b ,,. the poli ce in _ igeria to prevent their emigration;

they did no t m i s r e p r e ~ > e n t the conditionRin thP 1'llan<1 more than to omit to meutio11that the binding of a worker to one employer from whom l1e harl litile chance of

getting away for two e a r s was something Yery different from what the worker\Yas usetl to. The worker went because he was attracted b.Y the pru,;pe('t of g·oodwag-es and of ha>ing to saYe mouey owiug to the method of pa,\·ment employed,

and he was willing to risk conditions whit·lJ he kuew "·ere on the whole goo<l butmight be bad if h e unluck,· iu his PmployPI'.

3 . In l!l37, th e <'OIHlitious in Fernando l>ou bel'ame ('Onsiderabl \ \Vor,;eowing to the effects of the civil war in :-::>pain. 'l'he " ·orker l'l could not obhtiu

sterling in exchange for the pe1'letas <lue to tl1em at llte exp iration of their c o n t r a c t ~ aml food was not so plentiful as lwfore. Tl1e news of t he altered co1ulitions r·oup le<l

with the wave of pro::;perity that Xig-eria. wa-, enjoying redurerl the amount oflabour going· to the I slanrl and then· wa""' ·d1orlage of lahom' there . 'rhe slwrtuge

of labour was not as great as it might ha>e been as mauy worke1·s, seeing that

t.h e.Y could not take sterling ba(·k to Xige1·ia, <lel'iderl to re -engage in ihe hope

that at t he expiration of t heir further t·ontraet t he CUITt'nC ,\' problem would be

solved . Other " ·orker-- went back to Xio·eria for a ;,hort holiday and the11 returned.

to their frozen p e ~ e t a - - nd a t>econd c ~ n t r a c t . 'l' hiH, 1 <ont>ider , discount:; tu acertain extent the art- tae nt that l1as been raised i.hat the number of \Yorkersreturning for a second unaet shows that the labour mu;;t be contenterl.

4. BJ: I : ~ d ~ t g e had be<:ome lllore ac·ute and a,;, despi te the end of

the boom penocl m::\ 1ge Ia . httle labour \Ya: ; going lu the I sland , the planter;; hacl

to more e ~ e r g - e t i e s . They inerea:ed tlte price th at. they paid to the

u u o f f i c i a l i for earh worker they brought to the l sland with the idea t hat

thPy in turn would be l-lp to bribe \Yorken; to eome aCTOi'lS of their o\\·n free will

In this they SUl'Ceedetl ro a certain extent, hut it also made the r ec>ruitino· t r a d ~ so profitable that the r e c r u i t e r ~ > found it \Yorth while to stick at nothing orderto get workers to the I lr.nd.



:1. Onh iu isola!Ptl e n ~ e ~ haYt> rl'tTililt·t·,., lwPn abl<> lo lun ' full.Y g:rown meu

into goino lo ·.Fernando Poo "·ithout their kuowiug that the_,. ' 'ere g01ng there.

but 1' am ~ · e r t a i u that the re<'''liter,; haYe in<1u<·ed a consit1erahle numbe1· of. \ o ~ ~ ! : ~ ~ -tn l ( - _ l ~ J " \ . ~ p tl1Pil' lHHYH\I. .L n ·n - ~ - . . . , ....., : " " ' \ . _ _ _ 1 " _ ~ ~ · - _ ..,.,._..,- .... ":...-....._ ._ .::- ......... : ~ _ . • ._...._ ....,

t i t ' t u ~ · ~ } ' 1 l 1 ~ 2 c d b ~ l : i i ' t c i l ~ r t'l;:lr·n;·t\·. ; ~ n · .going I() IhP Cam t'l'OO!l :i). 'l'he l : e < · ~ · ~ u 1:-, t l ~ e l lembark in the ntnoe:-; and llt'"-l lllOl'lliilg tlw.\· an· wdl out at . ~ e . · ~ .. ~ ~ ~ 1 1l l ~ . t l ~ t ( ) f 0 ,, t _ h t > ~ ' ~ ..+".l'.".-''·l-.·L.- ,._,..l...,.L.- .. ::. * ~ - . . · . · ;.,.. ,.,,., 'jv.ut·uc-.\ ·"" . ii.ill'a1{i.• n unpoR::nble lor hnni;; turn ha<k ,,·lwn In• fluth out the truth .

7. HPfore leaYillg 1geria [ ,,.,"' tloubtfu l w bel hPr it \Ya:l po,;sibl e tor

recruib to be laude<l in FernaiHlo l 'oo without their ,,·islli11g to go there but, aHer

listening to complain\,; an<l making· i1H1uiries in the hlan<l, l am quite certain

that it is po"sibh• an<l i:-; done. ThP ~ · o u t h-; are keen to gel work and are e r e d uenougl1 to believe the inll stories tol<l them; they are a l ~ o too frigldt-JlP<l of Lbe

sea whid1 man.\' oi them haYe ne ·er Slen before. to take <·oncertecl action ouee they

find the,\ are nE-aring J?ernaudo Poo <'\'PH Mttppo;-;ing thal there were ,;ut!icient of

them iu one nmoe to be ahie to <lo >-'0 or that they knew before tht-,\' btHled tha ttheir <1esti.nalion was uol the -;ame a:-; the,\' hcul been promi:w<l.

H. I t is Yen· <1iffindt to p,.;j inwlP 11H' proporl ion nf Iho,;e ,,·lw go \1·illi.J1gl,\'and tbose who g-o ~ l s a re:mlt of mi,.;represe11iation, e,;pcc;iall;y aR i t i.s uaLural for

tho:;e who haYe p;one willingl,Y aud find the;\· do uot likt:' the eontlition:> tn make a,;

good a otory a,; post>i.hle iu t lwir effort,; to retum to .K i.gcria before completing

their eontrad:-;. After JU<tking al.l dne allowances I ·would PstimatP that not more

than li'J% of t h o ~ e who have g-onP to Femaudo Poo fhuing the la,.;t ,Year au<l a l1alf

have been taken tl1ere w.ill,out \heir being willing· io go lh re. l1 is aLo Yery

tlifficult to obtain au accurate estimate of the number of natives of Xi.geria wh.o

have gone \o lhe Island in re<·eul ~ · e a r , . ; hui ,.;o far as I eould a Tertuin it has

averaged out at about 2..100 a .H'a r for tht> lasi J·ear and a, half .

B. I haYe tlealt with thi-, <1uestiou of people being taken to Fenwnclo .Pooagains_t their will at " . o 1 ~ 1 e length beeausP i t i:-; one of the mo::,t unportaut points

when 1t ~ o m e s to exannmng the rea;;on:> for ::,urh diseonteut as there is amongst theworkers m the Island.

10. Those who go l_o the bhu\(1 willingl,Y go h.Y ,;hips, launehes an<l <'anoes.

Before they can board a slup or a ~ p a 1 1 i s h launrh theY are ~ m p p o s e d t<) obta111 f.th p }' · 1 \ ~ · • • . • lOl l l

. e o H ' ~ m . ~ 1gena a permit allowmg them to proceed to Fernando Poo . ThislS <_mly g1ven a man :'·ho ean, prove to the satisfaction of a European PoliceOffirer .that he 1:-1 not g01ng to ll'l'll:llHlo Poo to c·ontrad as :c worker or \Yho ean

lp)rodure a "Perm.it-to-Hcturn ., signe<1 b ~ · lhe British Yiee-C'ou"ul j 11 Fernando00.



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l l . These pen i , H l ~ l l l a i in note:-> given to Ha{iye-; of ~ ~ i g e r i a reRident

I l l F er uaudo P oo other hau ·, outracted worker,; who wi,.he<l to Y i ~ i t Xigeria

and avoid t he necessic of haYing to prow . \Yhcn they wi,;hed to return to the

h l:wd t hat theY were t •oino· back there to contract. Their u::;e has gradually

:.;rown 'and I f e ~ l cer ta i- ,hat ;eople in Fei·nando Poo now obtain them in order

to send t o Nigeria and thu,; en able prosper{ ive worh'r" to g• t perm i , ; ~ i o n from the

Police to go to th e !,;land.

12. 'rhe l aro·e maJ·ority who have no " P e n n i i ~ t o - l { e t u m " , muHt find :some. . '

way of p cr;;uad iug the European PolieP Oflieer that th<) are genuine t r a c l ~ ~ · s , •1t a uy ra te are not goir !:! to eont rad , mH1 t h u ~ obtaiu a permit to leave 1'1 Igena

tor Fernando Poo. I wa- tol<l hY natin·..; in the I land t ltat t ht>re is a fixed Pharge

in Calabar for tlu• lo u o goo<l- moue:- fo r t he hrit• lll'l'iocl :. c·es s<ll',\. to prove to

he European P olic·e Oftieer· ..; :;ati,.,factiou tha( the man j, ; a irader. The other

altf>J·nat iveH are to go h.'· <'tUlot', to book to a pb!'e be.\on,l Fe11 uu<lu Poo and jump

ship !her e or to get on a ,;hip 'vithou( !Ja,·ing- obtmned a permit. This latter

a ltern ative im ·oh·es getting past the Police rank Ull(l fi],. "l o board ever.Y ship

uo iug to Fern an clo Poo with the objPl'! of making sure that p . t ~ , . ; p n g e n ; g-oing to the

l ,;]a rlll all have p e r m i t ~ to go there.

n. Owing to thP ]ll'PHHing ne<·d for hhour thl' ~ p a n i - - h Autlwritie;; in the

J Hlan cl ttllow the canoe · raffic to <'on(inue uuhincl<'rvd iho11 ..:h tl.ey wonld he a,;

o u ~ as t h ~ : : ... ~ i g e r i a u (;oyenmrent is (o pni a stop to it providing: i hai an alter

nati \'P u of lahom j, llHHle axailab le.

I f . On arriva1 iu the lslan<l t lw worl,ers are usuaUy lo lg ed in the R a r r ~ u : o 1 1 , a RJWrieR o{ lodging--lH ·1-e uncler rhP coutrol of tht> fnnulor Colonial who is tlw

L abour Offi cer Hl]Wrvi-·nz everyt11ing· to do with ihP C'ontmctt•d workers . BP;;ideH

those who are waitin,.. o lw <·outral'tecl, workers wlm an· out-patients at thehosp ital, aml those wL - <'Om plainb are being illH'stig-a ted or who ha-ve been

called iuto Santa I:=:ulw: r an:• re::1,on are at·t·omJrLOllatecl there. They are g-ivenf r eP fo o(1 a nd lodging hu I wa, · in-fonned that the pbee h a ~ a hacl repuhttion.

15. Before a pr

HPaclquarter s, wher e iwher e he is ex aminerl.

s iP lmesR) ancl i s isR1H'd

16. He iR th eu·wh ere he is informed

aud, i f so. "·hether

appears f rom what I hnow, natives an·i.-in gth inlnng p arti cul ar];\·

in a position to ~ e . as they ean (aml t h e ~over the fee t h at t h e ~ · l . 'fhis fee varies with t1

l ' e :·w l tu> whi eu , if the

· iw worker i::: <·ontradecl he ha first to viRit the Police

i_ ion l ' ~ ·ticular,_ tlre taken, and thP Health Office.hi- blood te..:te<l ( iu pnrti(•ular for sigus of f'lPeping

)It>d iea1 J > a ~ - - p o r t .

ht> f'uracluria (the offict' of the Cmaflor Colonial)

di ion -- of "llork antl askecl if he wishes to contract

prererel.l"P for t t ' l ~ parti<•ular employer. But i t

Femaw1o Poo that whe11 labour is Rrarl'e, a:-; it is

I -land aJl l t no( "·ishing to . iQ·n a eontrad-1 am

u·h- hrought ov<'r against tl.eir will-are hardly

ruiter- a - ~ i , ; t in the eontructing pro c• t•<lure as mucl1

ch·al) in order that lben' --hall he no argument

eel to accept from lhe pro,-pedi-ve emplo:yer.ntne-, ot thP renu1t and may be as hig-h a,; 750

uuld be excktnge for ~ T < - ' l i n g at ille Gon'rnment



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rate, would bP nearl:-· £1 :1. [n some cases the recruiter gets .£1 of hi fee msterling lo cover , at> 1 Tras informt>rl, " the hri.bery e x p e n ~ e s in Xig-eria " .

17. I must emphasise that in the foregoing paragraph I am speaking of a

minority of workers; the majority sign willingly awl some of those who are

eoutracted in tlw eireum;;tance-; clescri.hecl hecome reconciled to the work after a

few months.

18. The p a r t i c u l a r ~ entered in the \Yorkers contract book and in the records

w the Curaduria arc exhaw;tiYe. and e Y e r ~ · prec·aution is taken to ensure that the

half of the ·workers wage:-; that has to he pairl in to the Curaduri a to await the

completion of the contrart iR artually pa'id in by the e m p l o ~ · e r . As each man is

contracterl his nanw anrl idPntii ~ particulars are entererl in a register from which

he get:-; a number. This number with his name are cross-referenced to a separate

register book kept for Pach employer of labour. In this Recond regiRter book are

the details of all monthly pa_nnents made to each worker which are enter ed hmn

checked pa)· sheets which the emplo.Yer has to submit with the 00% deposit eachmonth. There is no alphabetical inrlex of names so that to trace a man quickly

one must giYe the name of the emplo_yer or the approximate date on which he was

<'ontraeted . I was very i m p r e ~ s e d willt lhe collliJleteuess of the reconll'l. Some

years ago there were complaint. that \Yorkcr:s completing their contract found that

their half wages had not been paicl into t he Curaduria or had Yanishecl in some

way; I heard no complaints of this nature and . hould ha\e been urprised if I had .

Hl. Housing.-Hou Ring cond iiiom; are generally good. The workers

quarters are usually cement built or made of corrugated iron . The single men

live in <lomitories and the married mPn iu separate rooms or cubicles. Most ofthe quarters that I Raw were ,wJl whitewashecl anrl clean. T feel sure that

housing conditions would have been improved still further if it had not been for

the great scarcity of building materials owmg to the eivil war in Spain. Some

of the bigger farms have connete bathing pools for the workers and 1 know of one

vhntation at which a certain percentage of the profits each year is specially setasille for improving the cundilio11s under which the workers live.

20. J/edical supn-riswn and t1·entment.-'rhe1·e are fully equipped

hosp1tals at Santa Isabel and , 'an Carlos, and if a "·orker enter one of them all

his hospital expenses are C!ebited to his emplo.'·er b.\" the Curaduria. I went over

the hospital at Santa IsabPl and it Reemed to me to be excellent.

. 21 . Some .years ago "leeping siekness wa very preYalen t in the Island.A v1p:orous cam.pa1gn was started and the number of ,;ufferers from the disease has

been reducetl lo a remarkable exteni. Everyone in the I sland European and

African, .has a Medical PaR;;port (commonly called a blood card)' and all natives

are exammed every Lhree moni.h;; and everyone before leavina· the Island for sio·nsof s l e e p i n ~ · sickne;-;s. 'l'hi:-; _ r e g u l ~ r examination also provid:s an opportunity forworkers 1ntlt any other obYious d1seasc to receive medical treatment 'rh l tf h · · f l · . < • e resu

o eac exammatwn or s eepmg Sickness and notes of any other cli eases are ent 1

t h e P a s . p _ o r t s : . Rome of t h ~ big·ger plantations have well equipped d i s p e n s : ; i : ~ 1un b:'l n::nncs 'Hth some medical expenence and a few even lltwe small llospital s.



Doctors make regular , I ·o .ll the higger plantation;;;. The law r equires that

a sick ''"orker recei>e e rly medical attention, that a worker on a plantation thatis not visitell bv a d J c r or a worker who i:; too ill to a"·ait the next visit o£a doctor s ' s u p p ~ s e c l to bP taken to the neare,;t hospital.

22 . I ...-isited plantations wherp I saw men 1rho ' 'ere o n l ~ - lightly sick

rloing-light work well within their rapahilitit•s, but I also v i ~ i t e d other farms whereI saw men who were ob>ioush more s e r i o u ~ h ill and who hacl not been atiendecl

by a doctor though their illnesses had (leveloJ;ecl as long a.- four '"eeks beforehand.

This supporterl one of tlw more general romplaints whirh was to the effect thatthe law concernmg thl' mediral treatment of labour i not enforce<l suffirientlr .I recei...-ed m a n ~ complaints that in tht' t i!.!"!.!"t" p l a n r a t i O J . Yisited regularly by

clodors, worker- reportin"' -irk are ne>erthele,, ' ent to work in the plantation thus

m i ~ s i n g the rloctor, and that in the ~ m a l l l ' r farm,:; men are uot taken into a nearest

hospital until their illne s has be('ome ;;erious. 1 appreriate that there must berases of malingering ancl that planteri' "!10 in c-asP ],a>e immffic·ieut 1nnlers

to run their plantations properly must be 011 tl1Pir g-uard against it, but I-,ubmit that it is a dang-erous thing for auyonP but a rlodor to judg-e wh ether a man

i;; malingering or not. H o w e ~ · e r it muRt bP remembered in fayour of the planter

that when it actually eomes to the point it is often w r ~ - diffic·ult to get the

unerlueatecl nati...-e to go to a hospital. A fur·ther ('omplaint made to me was thatworkers discharged from hospital are put to heayy \York too ,;;oon with the result

that t h e ~ become i l l a"'ain. On my drawing the a ttention of the Curador Colonial

to these cases he a,;,:;ured me that they were not. rommon and would be dealt with.

He added that the regular inspection of tlw planwtions for ''"hich he is makino·

provision will ensure that eonclitions are improved. I am prepared to believe that

lack of facilities for medical treatmenti:-;

by uo means "'eneral butthere

1sroom

for improvement. · "'

, 23. Rations.- - I believe th_at the sralc of ration laid down by tlw

(,-onrnment plus thl' foocl o ~ t ~ m a h l e oJJ dH· p l a n t a t i m . perfectly adequate.

tnfort.unately the lack o ~ u p e r n s w n to seP that t lw law i · ob"'en-ed (wh ich I shall

d e a l w i t ~ greater ~ e n ! ! t l later in thP report) c·onpled wi th the effects of the civil

war 111 Spam have gi...-en_n. e to complaintti about the lark of food. Rice anrl salt

f i s ~ have a ~ w a y s _been 1mporterl for tl1e workers but rurrenry diffi culties have~ e n ? u ~ y a:ffe?ted p o r t a h o n s in the last nm P a r s anrl_ t hPre have been frequents h ~ r t a o e s . . E m p l o ~ er" who have n o ~ bee n able to proncle adl'quate rations have

p::nd t_heu w?rkers so many p e s e t a ~ m lieu thereof but t he money has sometimesbeen msuffiCient to b · an amount of footl equiYalPnt to hat 1 ~ · 1 1 · thGove t 1 y · ft . It l own 1n , e

. rnmen ~ e a e. ·= 0 ' e o r ~ , : : ~ n • helllg- made to impro>e the situation anrlwh1lst I was m t.he I,. a r a n ~ e m e n t · · \Yt're heirw macle t· bt · · · fC l b l l . c " ' •r o ::tluino· "'an ronl

a a ar ant a s np w a- - over to Duala ,..pt>cialh· to obtaiu "ft. t of"'· t b used p 1· . tl · l . · .. J ons o nee o e~ n e mg le arn - a a ~ e r lnpment that was on it,- Wa\ 1 . · 1complamts about th l' - 1 1. l < . • receiver no• ~ p p l ~

24. There u-t

measure and I belieof obtaining clefin it .

have against g-raspi· _the Curaduria. At :

hm. \Yorkers were sometimes receiving- short

. ' oine plantations tl.ough I had no means

m

be. best proted_ion that the workers candm<>n Is a r l e t ~ u a t e In-.] er tion b:x· the taff ofr ro be lackmg.



6

:2-'i. 'l 'urning to ilw other si<lt> of the picture I heanl of workers who soldsome of their rations . preferrinn; to saYC' the motw\· theY not from the ;;ale and

·upplt>ment the remainde: of the rations with free f ~ ) Q c l g : r o ~ · n in the plantations .In almost every P.lantahon tlwrP f!r·o> 1 ' ] , " ~ ' ' ; " ~ , ln•ou<t £ ~ . , , ~ t , pahn h<a ·u"'l" "-'-H11 ' ~ ~ 1 ) ~ ) - ! " 1 ~ - · ; - s - • ~ . . _ ~ ~ ~ . _ ~ - . : , . _ " . L V i , - . . . _ - . b - 1 . -.-.....,:J:o..::;\_., V 1 : . ~ : 1 . i U ; i . . l ' U.J.J. -\l.a\ ,..._ U.::.\... \ , . . .U\ \ . :U. IJ\. . . \ Ll"\.1..,{""" t r lC" \ t "l..lC". Jjh , { :" t l

n11<lnot bec·ause there is noti1ing ebe to eat. .

26. I rereive<l nunwrou. <"Omplaint.· that the workers only nwal of the day

,,·as in the evenin g· on their retun1 from "·ork. Some farms e m p l o ~ · C'ook-; but it

is more usual for the men to cook for them;;ehes or for a man ';; wife to cook fo r

him and a group of single men. I coul<l rli.·eover no Yali<l rea,;on wh,· the worker;;

<·uultl uut eat a meal before they went to work proYi<le<l the rook were willing to

get up a liti.le earlier. I ,-isited plantations when· I watc·hed g<HHl nwals being

eooked and taken out to the m>rker" at mill-day but the usual practice i:-; to allow

the \Yorkers to eat plantain,., pi<'ke<l near where ihe.\· happen iu be working duringa re-;i rounrl about noon. In the plant:11iou with thL• \\·orst name of all (io be

reft•ned to again later) 1 :-.aw worker-; preparing an eveu ng meal wl1ich consisted

almo;.;t entirely of plantain - and wa-.. 1·ertaml.' in,;uttirient for a man who harl <lone

a <lay's work. I reported lhe <·irl'um..,[auee,., to 1 he Cura<lor Colonial \Yho Yisite<l

l11e plantation three time-; be<·ause o£ this an<l other complaint:-; l made and

improved matten; there. I IntHle a point of notin!..!, t1w p h ~ · r ; i < " a l v01i clition of all

the plantation workeri\ I Raw in the Llan<l a1ul 1 1 1 ~ · impre,..,.,iml ,,·as tlHtt the cWerage

man looks well nom·ilihell.

27. M:-· Rummar:-· of thi" rather <"ontra<lirtory -mh-\wa<l is tl1at owing to tl1 ehek ot a<lministralivt' <'ontrol ag-gravale<1 in t hi;-; inslan<·e h.\· l·ireumt-itaHees outsic\e

the planters' control a number of the workers lmve uot been getting sufheientrations though the shortage has been "vt oft to somP extent bv the amount of free

food that is available in the plantations . The po,;ition is not sati;,factorv hut the

average man look:s well nourished aud I am "ure that the Hpanish Autho'ritieH are

cloing' their best to get aclequate Rnpplie,; of foocl tor the labourers 1uto the I;;land.

I t will then remain fo r the :;taft of the Uuracluria to :->Pe that all workers gel the

proper Government ratioll:-1.

28. \\.ages and JJul'lltion of ( 'onfNu· t . -The usual wage ot a worker

contra<·ting for the first time is five dollars (about ten shillings) a month. It i s

uever let>:s aml a strong man may be able to get a little mOTe. The first contract isllhnost inYariably for two years but cauuot be for longer. lf a worker recuntracts

his wages rise to anytl1ing behveen even dollars (thirteen shillings and sixpence)

and ten dollars (£1) a month. This sharp rise is partly an inducement

io him to recontract (often supported by a cash bonus on signing ag·ain)and partly a rec-ognition of the WOl'kers increasing u s e f u l n e ~ ~ the longer he sta:,-s

on a plantation. .Men are reeontraetec1 for one year, one and a half or two years

ancl t11e wage that he receiYe-; is u,.;ually 11tg:bPr the longer the tc>rm for which the

new contrari iR ma<le. Onre a worker ha;-; <'ompletecl a r·onhad he is at tulllibertyto r<>lurn to XigTri<t or to reeoHtra<'l \Yith th<> samp or a diiTPrPn( employer .



7

:!H. l w:.h m I b Jl<tlti,h . ~ n t l o r i t i e : - ; tha t ,,f iltt• G. lOO :Xigt·rian

"·orkers on the planra - at the date I left tht I:<lall(1 appr · ~ i m a t e l _ , . ~ . ; 3 0 0 are 011

their second contrac 1. Ill !ta>e eont ~ a c t e d more than hn l h:we mentioned

t•arlier in the report t the workers frozen pesetas had a cousiderable effect ou

the number recontra t• ing \Then uo sterling was aYailable f(W the payment of t l1e

half of the wages due to th e \Yorker on the completion of 1 . ' t·ontrnd, hut i f the

figures are coned, and I haYe no reason fo r doubting- ih em. •h<>y ,;till show tltat at

any rate iu the past a u ~ · \YOrkcr,.; must haYe bt•eu sufticit·n th <·outented with i heir

!'Ouditions to recoutral't wit hou t being inflncneecl by the E:'Xt l_ange diffi<·ull.\·.

30. I wa t 1i • rktt :!::!.000 ha,; been ret·e·n·l .:ultrly eal'lt moni.b ciu n·

SoYelllbE:'r la,-t year or I aymeut or "H!!'e' witluhawn • ·.. I t'ura<huia h.\· \\'llllPrt>

who haw fi11i:>l1ed a I tm t awl w i ~ h to r·ptum to Xi":eria. So far at> l l'ould

ascertai11 most of rhe r er , were being- paicl t hl' "·hole of thei r <l<'posit in ,· terliug

but I came aero:,; iu - - ~ h e r E : ' onl.'- a portion of the wa _l'" < l e p o ~ i t e < l ,,·ith the

Curaduria had bee1. n - t e r l i u ~ owing- to th e "tE:'rliug- haYing run out. '!.'he

Uoverumeut l lO\Y ' __ • I hnlf of tl1e 1lepo. iretl v . a g - e plus half of an_,.:savings the workn m the mouE:',\- giYen lo him whilst working iu

sterling.

31.

follo"·iug :>eparate i

(I) Gleari1 _( ~ ) :Mainte:(:3)

(-+)

C')<11111 ((>)

'rile \York of keepir _

follo"- o11e a11other i ..

in these processes et

of work are e:s.C'e-<ili

law a, plantation w t

more than six hour

for ten hours. \Yo.

p.m. when the full

hour, but I receiveI was able w co11fir .

to a farm with a L

when I left the £overseer had not r·who mfl.icted fines f

32. Iu m o ~ tthe uature of thP ,n _?ecause they can dt1t decreases the amc

the amount of work

were all .rouths UIH

t>e and l'lH·ou p b utat ion,; o n , ; i s of the

tm· p l a u t i u ~ au<1 keepiug- it dear,

nt uur'"l'it>.., a.rul uan:-phwt iHg·,h -ulphatt•,

" 11 Y<'l' t•rll]iJrc, hut !bC' ol hl'r p r o 1 · e , . , ~ t·e • : ·,!,. " <'\de . Xm,e of the wmk iilYoh·e<1

ll · hard and ir can onl.'· be<·omt• so if the hours

r - not au ahle-botliecl man. l ' JJ<1Pr Spnuish

'. f i f t ~ t ' n l l l l t ~ l uot lw rt'(Fl ire(l to \rorli: tor

-I-t eu for eight h o m ~ and abo 1e t ha( :we

. u i a.m. ancl ~ h o u l r l t he rdore end by -1-.JoIlL.!'_ "o rket1 au<l there j , a break of h ~ 1 l f UJ l

I l ~ m r , ; that workt'l':' ha':e to do longer hours.

I- "hen ~ m a d e a b.te and unexp rrtet1 ,-i,.it

o · e : ~ : ad gone out nt <:bout 6 a.m. but· halt thP worke1 . • 1 ll · l 'l . . . alH Jeu 1,uropean

• 11 o d e d tlns to he ( 'ura<lor Coloniale_u u n h e ~ on t1Jt> planrab<•Il.

orker;; are giYen a defiJJite k ,Ill!!' do n(• 1'1 · . · . TU1:> to clo " ·heu

. . l l s I s '>pula• n th th lt I l l f ' . and popular ,,. th I . • l e wor \en;

e<triru<1l

. • t le p aniPrs be<' at!.·p' ' · n•t·PtT •cl -o 1 ·"'rtat but I · me <om1' a mts about- l lOl l<'C( fJt aj j h • J · ·

hPre this eomplaint . . ·t 'f i o ~ e eomp Ul l l l ngh J lh J ed, and [ do not



7

~ D . l \\as iu fonned by ll tt• ~ p a n i , · d t ,\ntlwril it• :-; {!tal ol lltt' G,IOO ~ i ! ! · t • r i a n workers on the plau i.aiion:; a( th e date I lefl { ~ t • l ~ l : w < l approx ima t el.\· ~ . ; 3 0 0 are oJt

their ~ e c o contract and 1 OIJO have cou(rueted more lhau twit ·e . I. h:.tv<> m entiou<>tl

earlier in the report that the workers frozen pesetas hacl a t'Onsiderahle effect on

the nmnl.Jer recontraeting wh en no ~ t e r l i n g was aYailable fo r the payment of the

h alf of the wages due to th e \HJrker on t he comp lelion of his contract, hut. if tl1e

figure:; are conect, and I h ave uo reason fo r doubiing Ihem, the·)· :-;till sl to\\· that at

any rate in the ~ ; t mau)· workcrH must haYe been :mf:tic·ien tl.v <'Oil tentl:'d '"'·itlt their

uouui tions to reeon tr:.wt wit hou t being in tluent·etl by Ute exl'lt allg'l3 diHit·uli.Y.

00 . I \\·as told that £2,000 ha :; bet• n ret·Pin·<l rPg-1tlarl.\ l':l. l'h nwnt\1 s iw· t•

Novembn laHl. yea r for pay111ett l of wagl:'H wllhclr:.tll n hom llll· Uunttlnria 1 \' \\'or kel 'H

who have fiui::;hed a l 'onlrad allll "·i,.lt to rl:'turu to Nigeria,. So far as 1 t'Olll <l

ascertain most of thework

er;; were

bei11 g-

paitl till' 11·ltole of t heirllepoHi

t in~ e r l i u g ·

but I eam e across im;iant•es where onl.\· a portioJt of the 11·agl:'H tll:'posii.l'cl \nth il1 e

Curaduria h a ll been paid in st Prling owiJtg' to the sit•rling hewing nut out. 'l' l te

U o ~ e n u n e n t JJUW 1rishes to pa ,1 only halt of t. he depo,;ilt>tl \Yage:-; , plus half : . ~ a v 1 the work er may have mad e from t he mmtt'\' oivcu to him whilst worklllg Ill:;lerliury · · 0

o ·

;)1. ll'orl.· . - 'l'lte work oJt l'oltce and t'ot·oa planl uliotlR <oH:-;i:·d.H of !Ill•

follo11·ing separa te prol'esst'H: -·(! ) Cl earing virg iu g routlll for pl anting·, au<l kePping- it dear,

(:!) l\Iaint enallt'c of iltl' plant llUr:-.t·rit•:-i aHtl nan ,;plaHling-,(;J) Spraying l he tr ees 11·ith :mlplmll• ,

(-J.) l>icking llte <TO)J,

(5) Cl eaning and drying ,

ancl (G) Cl a::;t> ifying a ntl baggiug.

'l'lt f:' " ·ork of keepin g clo\\· 11 the Yf'g'Pt at. itH l is I l l ' ·t•r <'tilling hul t l ~ t · oil ll'l' pnH'l:'S"I'<l

follow on t• a no tht•r in rotation anclm akt• a year';; c·\Th'. Xonl:' ol' lh<' work involvt·d

in th ese proee::;::;es l'an be called reaJh awl ii <'all ouh becomt· Ho if t ht• lwun;

of work are ex<·eHsive or the 11·orke1·· iH no! an ahlc-hot1i t•(l man. { ntl er ~ p < l l l i H h law a. plaut.atio11 worker und er th e agl:' of fif(p,•n lliU:-il nol lw re,Juin•ll lo wo r k formore than six hours a 1lay . t hoHl' aged 1-lixtePn for Pight houn; and uho ,·e that :tg'L'

for t.Pn hours. \Vo rk usually ;;tarts uboui (i a.m. an<l sho1.tl(l i ht>rl'fore Pll<l b,Y -J..;l()

IJ.llt. w ]J en t he full t.PJl . ho1.;l'K are beiug worked ancl lhNl' j:-; <1 !Jn·ak ol' half <Ill

hour , huL I r el'eived a numbPr ol' l'omplaintH 1hat workPrK ha\'l' (o do loJt gL'l' hmu ,;.

· I 'vac; a l.Jle Lo <'oniirm Oll<' instanl'e of ihir> whL' JJ I mucle a lall' allcl unL•xpel'iecl Yit::il

to a farm with a bud na.nte. "\1 1 lilt• \YorkPr" ltat1 gonL' oui at ubout 6 a.m. hul

when I l eft the farm ai about (j p .n t . half t hP workers and llt l:'ir EuropPaJt

overseer had not r etu i'Ilell from work. 1 r eported this 1o t he ( 'ur:ulor Uoltlllial

who 1nflieted fin es for thiH a ll rl other irregularii il's on thP pl.ndalu•n .

32. ln m o ~ l pla11ta tionH th e \\·orkt•rs arP giYPn a dl'finit<· 1ask io do 11·iwn

th l' nature of lhc \\·ork allows oft being doll<'. Thi:< is P'> Jmlur ·' tt h t hl:' workPrs

becauHc they ean do i{ in their own tinlP, and popular \nlh ihL• plnn (prs h<·c ·auH<'

it l l ' e n · a ~ > e the amount of sup ervi;;ion I'l'lJUin·c1. l rt'('PiVL•d :-;o llH' c·olnplai nl:-: :dJOu l

th e aniO unt of work a1lotted being too great but I twii<·t•d that tllo,;e t·ompl:lining

were a ll yout hs and 1 think that wh <rp titi H t•otnplaint is j ust ified, and I do not



8

think Lliat. it oflpn iH , tl1e fault lit•ti in 110 allowallt'l' liaYing lH•cn 1ll atlt• fort I111 M'

who are noL abiP-botlietl men. in tml planlatiow; t.hal I vitiiletl all the wo1 ·kt'l'i'\

hacl fini shed tlwir day'H lasb by l:2.;HJ p.n1. a nd \\ ' l ' l ' l ' haek in their quarlpr;; \1 l1i lnt

in oLhers thaL I viHiLed ~ o m e IH're bal'k b y ~ . : l ( ) ] l . l l l . <111tl others were Htill workin g·.

33. 'rhe present posi tJOn iti that the labour availablP iH immffit·it•til 1111d

SOltH' of Lhc farming prOt'Pi'\til'H have lo lw Hkimpl'tl. 'l'his lt·ad s lo the i lll'l' i t nldt•

reHult lhal some employPrH t•n<lravmH· to gd more mll of tlrl' 1\'orkt•rs llil'.\ l1 111••

than they would i l l he.\· t·ould gl 'l all llH• Iahour the.\· rt·quire for llrt• propt·r wo1·k 111g

of their plantatiom;. I beli PI'C that il' lht·rP ll'l'l'l' an adPquate Hllpply of ahiP-h(ldit•d

labour in the Island there would he 110 t'otllpbints of the work !wing loo l 1 : ~ 1 11r

Lhe hours too long.

34. C o m 1 J I ( / i n t . ~ l l8 to treat i l l I ' l l f. All the labour is tlivitled into g n n g - ~ under heaclme11 and the owners of t lie bigger plantatioJIH employ Enrop t•an

overseers. :M:any of these over:-,cPrs an· in !' hargt• of sub-farn1 :-; whil'h arP aln1md

separate plantations and are often at a t·ottHitlPrablP tlistance front Lhe 1 1 P a d t l l 1 ~ 1 1 ' i t • r s o£ the plantation where the owner or his nuwager lives. 'fherc nre liO ~ u r o p t • n n s (mainly Spani;;h but indud ing a lllllllber of I > o r t u g u e ~ > e all(] a few German H) and

280 Africans employing workers on thP plautatious. Amongst lllel'le .f50 O\l ' llt•rso£ plantations and their m any EurOJl<'<tu ovPrseers an cl African headme11 it is

inevitable that there should be some men of a brutal tlispoHiLion just al'l it is

inevitable that amongst the G,OOO otld :KigPrian ll'orkers there must be some ll'lrowould give trouble "·hatever the t•ontlitiuns of work were like. It one acldl'l tire

facts that some of the workers m·p not phyHically fit enough to tlu woTk that t l u · ~bave been forced inio, that tlte emplo.yers are some\vhat naturally anx iuw; to gl'l

the most they can out of labour the .\· have hacl to pay a higb prit·e for before t l ~ tstart to pay wages , and i.hat administrative p e r v i ~ : > i o n of the e r ~ : > treatmeJJt

of the workers in the plantations iH inatlequate one has a state of aftairH i hat iH

bound to produl'e complain le;. Ae(·ortling· io Spanish law tl1e employer i::; forhitldrlt

to administer anything but the m i l t l e ~ t form of punishment to hi;; work en; a11d

decluctionH from the half of the labourcn; wagel'l that i8 paid clirect (except fm i ht•

yearly tax o£ 3! pesetas) have to be reported in the montl1ly return of wagt>s sell tto the Curaduria. Breaches of di scipline or of the la"·::; which warr::.ud corporal

punishment or impri tlomneJJt must go to the Curador Colonial who eit her a ward s

the punishment himself or in nton· s e r i o u t : ~ eases haucls the matter o\·er to tilt'superior Courts an cl seetl that thl' worl< er has free legal a s s i ~ t a n c e . l!'ro111 tht·complaints that I received I am quite t•ouvineed that. there are more l '<tl'il 'H ol'

beatings and assaults on the plantations than is within the knowledge of the Uunulor

Colonial and that it is usually the hearlmen and overseers who are responsible. lnsome cases the punishment is no doubt fully earned though thaL i t : ~ no e x c u ~ t · l'or it s

being administered in direct defiant·e of the laws. 'rhe worker has Lhe rigltL tucomplain to the Curador Colonial huL iu this r e ~ p e d , again i t is e o u ~ ; i d e r e d there

might be better facilities.

35 . Although there lta::; been no regular iuspet·tiou of the plantation8 by

the Curador Colomal or his a . ; s i s t a n t ~ : > for :'lome time, arrangem ents are uow bei11g

made to give the staff of the Curaduria more time for this work. As the Cumdor

has not been able to go to the workers they have to go to ltim , but as tbe only

free days that the labourer has during the year are f:luudaytl and five Hank Holidays,



on 11011e of which is i he Cun11luria opeu , the o n l ~ · wmkers \';ho eau make aeomplaint without absenting tllem:>elves from work are those whose plantations

are near enough to tl1e Curacl uria at Santa Isabel or San Carlos to allow o£ their

getting there after they have finished their day's work and before the offices close.

Even after getting to Lhe Curauur.ia it is not certain that the complainant will geta hearing as he has to pass the police outside the building who, I am prett.)· certain

from the complaints I received, do their best to 11iscourage eomplai11ants. In most

cases, nevertheless, tl1e complaint is inv.estigated and if found to be justifie<l the

guilty party is punitihed and the worker compensated if n e c e ; ; ~ a r s · , but a m::tnwhose complaint fails stan cls a good chance of being punishe<l for complaining , andfor absenting himself from work in order to do so, if he is unlucky enough 'to have

to return, Lo one of the minorit.v of plantations where treatment is not good.

36. l dis<·ussed all this wii·h the Curador Colonial \\·ho pointed out that in

<Lll,\' <·ountry in th e \Yodel you are bound to get a few bla('k sheep amongst thee m p l o y e r ~ > of labour an<1 that !l1e posit.ion will be g - r e a t ] ~ - improved when the

Tegubr inspection of plantation;; starts again v e r ~ · soon. He denied i.hat there " ·as<lll,d hing to stop a complainant making his eomplaint once he g-ot to the Curacluria,

but as l1is office is on the top floor and his assistants work below he is probably

unaware of the cases that do occur of a complainant preYentecl from la;yiughis eomplaint.

:rf. Before I went to F ernando l'oo I was iufonned that there were reports

of a curfe·w system being in force there. I could fincl no traces of thl"re ever having

been such a tbing but the reports may have originated from i.lw habit of i.he Island

police of a1 ·costing na tives at night i.o find out whai. their work iR and of raiding

houses in which i t is suspected that workless men an livmg. This is because of

the Spanish Governm<"nt's insisteuee on everyone without fmfficient meau::; to live

at le1:mre having a proper job of work to do i 1 ~ au IRland when' i.he labour availableis insuHi.cient.

;)8. Smrunary.---l!Iost o{ this report is fille d with critici:nn of conditions

in Fernando :Poo and I am afraid tlwt there if-l a clanger thal it will ercate a more

unfavourable impression than it is intcndcfl to. ln a report of this kind the goodneeds o much less describing than the bad. In this case too all the criticisms that

I have made, except tl1e criticism that there is a lack of administrative . upervision ,concern exceptions to general standards of good treatment.

; Every criticism that I have made is also a complaint tl1ai the Spanish

laws, which seemed to me to be good laws, are being broken. I saw tl1e reorgani-

:;ation going on in the Uuraduria whieh is designed to band ii s finan cial work over

to the Treasury and so give more time for inspection, but at the present moment i tis the ineflieiency of t h e ,.;teps taken to ensure that the laws are observed that causes

more breaehes of those la,,,-, than it iH reasonable to expect .

...J.O. "he majority of plaJJtcrH <lo not break the law and t.he majori.ty oC

worhn; have no real ·omplainis. I f the f.lpanish Aull1orities would take more

actiYc ;;teps to (letect breaehes of tl1e law and be more vigorous in tlw punislmwnt

of thos' found g-uilty of olfeneeH ag-ainst the labour laws I believe that n d i t i o n iJ J



10

Ft>rnaJHlo Poo would be liLLle di.flerent from those in any other place where co ntn11 tlabour iK pmpl oyed . To ilhu;l rat e Ll1 is point 1 will t nh the east' of onp planta.Lionlo which 1 have referred ~ · a r l in t.he n •port as having- a bacl name. ('ons11lm

reports of 19:36 refer tot h i ~

plantation as !wing one·

of the worst ancl whl'll I\ \lb

in the lHland the Curador Colonial tmicl that it g-an him mon• houbh• than :1n,other. Yd afte r over three .\ l'U.l'H unenviahlt• reputation l cliH<·ov<'recl on n1.\ ol l t '

Yisit to 1he place what l <'onsiden•<l to he serious bretH·hes of thP hnL ' l'hr l'l'pot 1

I made was certainly prompt] ,,· invrHtig-atecl ancl fint>K WL're impmi<'Cl but 1 do nnl

l'onsider that fine ;; totalling juHt over IPn JHHlllllK wpn• adeqmdl• <'OilHiclPring· t ' '" 't he Curudor Colonial had ahea<l.\ fin eel the O\\ nerK nncl ov<'rHePn; Kcvcral t i "'<before.

41. AgainHI tl1iK lllUKt lw put th l• fac·t thni from th (• ma.iority or tlw

phnt atiom; both big and little whi<·h wen· within ea;;y distan<·<• of SanL.t lKalH ·I.from which worker;; eould havl' come lo com pla in to me on a Sunda,· if lhP\ didnot wish to risk absenting 1hemsclver; from work, L receiYcd no com j1J ai nlR ;tl :tl lalHl I can only conchHle tha t they were perfectly r;at itlfied wilh their <'On<lit

AnothPr factor tl1at I h ad to keep coH:-;tanlly in min(l \.Yas that th e workers knP\\that I had come io inYe:;i igate i ~ i i . i o and were more thau like]_. to paint '"

gloomy a picture a:-; possible of auy thing that th e.Y came to complain about . 'l'omake proper allowance for thiH was all the more difficult becam;e n1.an.r of t li<'complainb; (e.,r;. compbin tH of asl'iault , unjust fines an d r;hort r ations of food ) wJ,idtI referred to the Curador Uolonial were pronounced to be unju stified a nd I <·oulcl

find no wa .· of getting to Lhe bottom of them myself. 1 must co nf ess to a fet• l ing·that many of them ·were genuine but 1 believe that the Curaclor Colonial was aho

unable to get to the real truth owing to the distrust of the workers in the effieienn

of the administration of justice b y his Department caused by tl1e lack of superviHio;l

in enforcing the labour laws.

42. I f the observance or non-observance of the laws is left as much aK ii j ,

at present to those whom the lawH are designed to control (i.e. the planters) t.l1 rmajority, re alising that contented labour is the best labour , will observe tbe lawK

but there " ·ill always be a minority '"ho will take ach·antag-e o{ their knowl edg t•that a breach of the law;; will bring less chance of punislnnent lhan it u l d (lo :that is the posit ion as I see it in F ern anclo Poo to-cla)·. I t is only fair to add th at

the Curador Colonial who was there when I was in tbe b l and but has sin ce n•t urnl'dto Spain r ealised the situation and completed plan · for improving it.

43. Tlt e Future . - I have tri ed to deal as fairl)· as [ ean ,,·it b all the bad

points in the treatment of labour in l!'ernando Poo an<l to emphasi:-.e that (· a. u :-.L''

for complain t, though not rare, are the exception rather than t he 1·ule . '\Vhill-' 1do not consider that t here i:> an)· justification for the stoppage of labour going lu

the I sland, I do eonsid er that there should be further safeguards and that.recruiting must be put on a proper basis. I t is hoped to reach an agreement withthe Spanish Authorities on these matters. 'rh e safeguard s required are to ens1nPthat the l aws are properly enforced and that the workers are able to bring to notice

their grievances freely; a proper system of recruiting is also necessary to ensurethat those contracted are persons able and willing to do the work and that the.v

understand the nature of their contract.



1

44. I believe that the appointment of a Consul de carnm·e, who woultnave the special facilities for looking after the interests of the workers which thtSpanish Authoritie are willing to gTant him anrl >Yhose official position would givthim advantages which a:nyoue acting as Vice-Consul cannot enjoy, wo11ld providt

the necessary t>afeg·uards. A proper t>ystem of recruiting, besides ensuring tha·those who contracted were only able bodied men willing to do the work and witl

a knowledge of the c o n d i t i o n ~ ' > of work stipulated in th eir contracts, would als<

stop illegal recruiting in Nigeria b.,- offering- the worker who goes willingly a1

present a safer method of contracting than he has now, and by ensuring· that tl11

Spanish Authorities refuse to allow any natiTe of Kigeria to work on a plantatim

if he has not been properly eontraetecl in Xig-Pria for that purpo!-le, thus making il

useless for illeg-al recruiter:> to lme people oYer to the Island misrepresentation.

There is no fear that. the SpaniHh Colonial Governn1ent "·ill not eo-operate aH it

very much to the interet

of the I sland to put a stop to illegal recruiting a;; soonas an alternative source of lahom is available.

45. In repl,,- to the possible inference that. if there has to be so much

protection for the worker that a Vice-Consul is inadequate, it would be better to

stop Nigerian workers from going to ]<'ernando Poo altog·ether , I would answer

that it would not, because the m a j o r i t ~ of the worker:> going there are contented

and it would be unfair to deprive them of a chance of earning good money wl1enthey are able and willing to do so. The Government of the Spanish Territories

of the Gulf of Guinea has expressed its willingness to receive a Consulde ca1'1·iere

and to g-ive him very wide powers to enable him to protect the workers, an'd if the

British Government will ag-ree to such an appointment I feel that the safeguards

would be entirely adequate.

46. As regards put tiug recTniting- on a leg-al basiR, I gathered that the

mere fact that e v e r ~ · o n e i.u Fernando Poo knows that workers going there do soagain t the wishes of the Nigerian GoYernment has had some effeel on conditions.

owing to the assumption that the Xigerian Government will take les;; interest in

those who leaYe Nigeria against itH wishes than in thoRe ,...-ho leave witl1 itsblessing . But a proper ;;y,; tem of renuiting would baYe far greater advantagPHthan that. I t WOllld Pnsure that those who contracted were only ahle-bodiecl men

willing to do the work and with a knowl!:'rlge of the eonditioos ;1f " ·ork stipuhte<l

in their contracts. H would also stop illegal recruiting in Kigeria b ~ · offering the

worker who goes williugly at present a .-;afer method of eontraeting than he lmsnow, and b,,- ensuring· that tlw Spani,;h Authorities refuse to allo'v a n ~ · nativp of

Nigeria to work on a plantation if he has not been p r o p e d ~ eontr•actecl in Kigeria

for that purpose, thllR making i.t u ·eles:; for illegal recruiters to lure people over to

.the Island by misrepresentation.

I f lhere were a proper system of recruiting in Nigeria and a Consul de

cn·rrie1·e in Fernanclo Poo with Rp cial facilities for looking after the work rs

int reRts and with the neces;;ar.v authority to urg·e more vigorous enforcement of the

local laws, as far aR the plantations are eoncen1ecl, there would oon he nothing 1o

complain of in an oceupalion from whieh a larg·e number of NigerianR derive a.

great deal of benefit.

Documents

Nigeria 1939 Report on Employment of Nigerian Labour in Fernando Poo Rhodes House Library 718 r6