Book Description

Excerpt from The Belgian Congo and the Berlin Act It is the aim of this work to examine in the crucial instance of the history of the Independent State of the Congo the defects of the Berlin Act, and to indicate the amendments which must be made in that international compact if it is to serve the high purposes for which it was destined, the extension to central Africa of the benefits of civilization and freedom of trade. This limitation of purpose has involved the omission in the historical sketch of the vivid detail of individual heroism and achievement in which the record of the Congo State abounds, but it has also justified the decision not to enter into particulars of the acts of cruelty committed upon natives under the State regime. The exposure of these crimes was a public duty, honourably fulfilled in England, during the period of the agitation to secure the reform of the administration, but since Belgium, under King Albert, has accepted in principle all the reforms urged by Viscount Grey, it is permissible to refrain from entering minutely into the investigation of these deplorable events. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.