WEST AFRICAN COLONIAL POLICY
Sta,—Your correspondent E. A. Una in your issue of May 14th writes: "A continuous policy of appeasement towards the demands of a handful of educated natives has resulted in the whole of the illiterate population getting wages which have exceeded their wildest dreams." For Nigeria the forced labour wages for mines were fixed last August at 5s. 6d. for a six-day week or 23. 6d. if rations and fuel were provided.
Statistics exist (see Orde Browne's report on labour conditions in West Africa, 1941, Cmd. 6277), as to wages paid by the Government and commercial firms for unskilled labour, the maximum ka a month and usually £r a month or less.
Only about one per cent. of the population of Nigeria are employed at wages ; the great majority live on and by their land, doing agricultural work for food crops or crops for sale as cocoa.
Your correspondent cites the Home Secretary as saying: "The British Government puts lots of money each year into the colonies." For
Nigeria the following are the figures: In 19oo the British Government paid £8t5,000 to buy out the Royal Niger Co. Chartered and Limited ; this money went to the European shareholders.
After !goo and up to iota the British Government gave annual subsidies to maintain the expenses of Northern Nigeria Government which aggre- gated £5,5oo,000. A considerable proportion of this money went to Englishmen, the Governor, civil and military officials, and to pay for English goods.
In default of such expenditure, Northern Nigeria would probably have been taken by some other European Power. Nigeria is a market for about £5,000,000 British manufactured goods annually imported, and about 4,000 Englishmen are employed by Government and commercial firms. The minerals exported from Nigeria total £2 millions annually.
The local improvements, railway, harbour, and other public works are paid for out of the £25,000,000 public debt, wherefore Nigeria is liable and pays interest and sinking fund.
As a matter of cash, has not Nigeria been a credit asset? To me personally and to many other Englishmen West Africa has been a good
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