Consul Robert Skinner' s article about his formal diplomatic mission to Ethiopia
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| Robert P. Skinner in later years |
Making a Treaty with King Menelik of Abyssinia
By
Robert P Skinner
When the President's
intention of sending an official mission to Ethiopia was announced in the
summer of 1903, vague and curious views of its purpose prevailed everywhere. It
should have occasioned no surprise, either in America or in Abyssinia. The
United States has maintained friendly official relations with a number of
small powers with which we have no commerce, but has had none with Ethiopia,
where for years we had profited by a flourishing trade. In the main, however,
comment was friendly and encouraging, though when I found myself on the Red Sea
coast, as chief of the mission, directed to establish official relations there my
errand took on mysterious importance. And as I persisted in talking about
cottons, tariffs and plain facts interesting only to plain people, the American
mission became more incomprehensible than ever. But whatever people may have
thought, politeness surrounded us from the 17th of November, when we landed at
Djibouti, the capital of the French Somaliland coast, until we said good-by and
began our journey homeward.
Necessity for a coaling
station created Djibouti. With the public works came the French merchant, the
railroad and a "boom." When the railroad had pushed its winding
length 125 miles across the desert, Djibouti resumed its status as a port of
call for numerous African steamer lines, and waited, as it is still waiting,
for the great expected development of Ethiopia. When that development comes,
the French capital will be Abyssinia's natural point of contact with the modern
world. It was this expectation of a future for Ethiopia, and the partial
completion of the railroad to it, that took me to Africa. Hitherto, trade
in general, and American trade in particular, had drifted to Aden, thence
across to any one of half a dozen points, where camels took it up and plodded
into the interior. The railroad meant evolution and revolution. It was time for
a watchful people like ours to be up and doing.
Our two days in Djibouti
passed quickly. Our experiences there ended in a blaze of glory at the
"Government," where we were most gracefully and hospitably feted. The
next morning, when the sun rose out of the Indian Ocean, we set forth by rail
for Ethiopia in a train of French-made cars, with double roofs as a protection
against the sun.
The Ethiopian frontier
was crossed some time before we reached Dire-Douah - a boom city, created
within a twelvemonth - but there we first encountered in outward and visible
sign the orderly administration of him who signs himself "The Lion of the
Tribe of Judah has Conquered! Menelik II, by the Grace of God, King of Kings of
Ethiopia." The Somali railroad guards were drawn up at attention to
receive us. Across the street from the new railroad station was the new hotel,
and thither we walked between two rows of undressed, amiable savages.
The next day, the task of
organizing our party began in earnest. Our expedition was remarkable in that it
had started off in a ship of state to visit a country without a seaport, and,
aside from the staff, I was accompanied by a party of but twenty-four marines
and bluejackets. These were immediately mounted upon mules. The mules had been
well selected in advance, but when the sailors took their first lesson in
riding there was excitement in Dire-Douah. The Issas and Gourgouras poured out
of their native village to see the sight, squatting on their haunches in the
sun, and impassively brushing their teeth with the ends of green twigs.
When the mules had been
distributed, and the saddles adjusted, we received applications for service
from an army of native youths, who were eager for employment at only twice the
normal rate of pay. A tent boy and a mule boy were necessary for each officer,
and there had to be a considerable number of boys to perform miscellaneous
duties for the enlisted men. When our party finally disbanded, some of our
servants were employing servants of their own, and I suppose that if we had
remained in Ethiopia long enough, these servants of servants would have been
hiring other servants still.
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I had already found an
interpreter at Djibouti, young Oualdo, Son of Mikael. He spoke French fluently
and half a dozen of the local languages. He was an excellent horseman and a
good shot, and .whether he wore his fresh khaki suit and riding leggings, as he
did in the European settlements, or his flowing snow-white "chamma,"
as at the capital, he made a smart appearance. I also employed one Gabro
Tadick, or, in English, "The Slave of the Holy Ghost." He was of
wistful countenance, wore a pair of blue overalls, a huge hat, and a
red-bordered white "chamma." He also carried a gun to indicate his
superiority over the other servants.
Modern Abyssinia consists
mainly of the unified and organized kingdoms of Godjam Tigre, Amhara, and Choa.
These are the mountainous highlands that have been ruled over successively in
our time by the three great emperors, Theodore, John and Menelik. The race
occupying these provinces is vastly superior to any other in Ethiopia, having
descended from the natives and the Jews who, according to tradition, followed
the Queen of Sheba back after her visit to Solomon.
The flux which before our
day had driven the Ethiopians back into these four kingdoms was succeeded
under Menelik by a reflux which carried the boundaries of the Empire beyond the
limits of Harar and the Galla country, beyond numerous vaguely defined
provinces to the west and south, and gave it effective control over the
barbarians of the lowlands and the desert, as far as the borders of the
European coast colonies. Thus the modern Empire consists of a vast extent of
territory, including not merely the conquered tribes, but whole nations not
yet assimilated, and in some cases almost impossible of assimilation.
The shortest, and in some
respects the best, route from Dire-Douah to the capital, Addis Ababa, follows
along the base of the mountains, across Mt. Assabot, usually in sight of the
great desert, yet never quite upon it. Following this route, we expected to
move on after some delay. The camp-stove was promptly put into commission the
first night, and the aroma of bacon and other homely American things floated
over the Ethiopian desert. A ring of tents upon the poles of which appeared the
historic words, "Santiago, Cuba," was formed around the stove. The
camels were brought within the circle after they had eaten their fill of mimosa
twigs. Among the animals the Arabs and Danakils constructed huts of our boxed
effects, thatching them with their straw packsaddle mats. A crescent moon rose
over our camp, and after "taps" had been sounded by the bugler the post
guards called out the hours. Then only the howling of the hyenas broke the
stillness.
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| Emperor Menelik's picturesque soldiery |
On the march our caravan
spread its thin length along a short mile. It was quite impracticable for us to
keep together, and we determined after our second day to detail a rear-guard to
follow the camels, and to send the main body of the escort and the servants, as
rapidly as they could travel, to each day's rendezvous. The halting points were
fixed naturally by the condition of the water-supply. By following the base of
the mountains, we came occasionally to small streams, or wells; farther to the
north these same streams lost themselves in the sand.
The sixth and seventh
days of our journey were across arid, stony plains; and then for two days over
rich prairie land. Our ninth night found us near Mt. Assabot. After three days
more of varied country, we got our first glimpse of the telephone poles which
mark the way to the capital of Abyssinia. Five minutes later we were upon the
king's highway, out of the desert, and in Menelik's hereditary kingdom of
Choa. From this point we traveled along the main road in Abyssinia, and
encountered frequent caravans laden with hides, coffee, and ivory. We had left
the savages behind and were in a realm of law. We had proceeded not more than
five miles in Choa when we passed beneath a tree from which was Mill suspended
a headrest and gourd which had been placed there with the body of some
unfortunate malefactor who had been hanged for his sins.
There was now before us
the longest and most trying stage of the journey. The Hawash plain and the
Fantelle range have an evil reputation in Ethiopia. The long stretch before the
Kassan River is reached is without water except such as may sometimes be found
in the crevices of certain rocks. The sun beats down mercilessly upon an
unshaded trail. Even the dark-blue spectacles we wore failed to do more than
temper the blinding white sunlight. As there was no longer any occasion in
prudence for the party to remain together, we now rode in groups, as fancy
might dictate. The only rule of the road seemed to be that one of our Somali
policemen should lead the advance party, and that one should bring up the rear
with Oualdo, Son of Mikael, whose powers as an interpreter were required to
settle small difficulties that might arise.
We were now crossing a
level plain, and were in the richest game country between the coast and the
capital. We saw gazelles and antelopes, not one at a time, but frequently in
groups of from four to a dozen. When we returned two months later, we saw whole
regiments of antelopes, some of them containing two hundred beasts. To the
right of our route lay the huge mountain range, in the rocky fastnesses of
which is hidden the ancient city of Ankober. Numerous caravans of apparently
interminable length crept toward us across the Ankober trail. Farther on, we
found a herd of from five to six thousand female camels grazing under the
supervision of herdsmen.
After leaving the Hawash
River we began to climb gradually. Now it became very cold as soon as the sun
had set. There was little or no wood for fires around which our servants could
sleep, and how they stood the low temperatures is incomprehensible. They wore
nothing but cotton garments, and although most of them had blankets, many had
preferred to retain their blanket money, and to keep warm as best they could.
Somehow, they managed to huddle together in their "chammas," and
turned out in the morning after an apparently refreshing and warm night's
slumber.
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| Empress Taitu of Ethiopia |
On our second day in the
kingdom of Choa we were visited by Atto Paulos, Governor of Baltchi, who
informed us that we were now the guests of the Emperor, and that orders had
been issued to all the chiefs to receive us with "the traditional
hospitality of the kingdom." This meant that the right of
"durgo" had been extended in our favor - in other words, that we might
legally demand supplies of the inhabitants, who later, as a return for their
gifts, would obtain some slight concessions from the tax-gatherers.
The daily arrival of the
"hospitality" was an event of much solemnity, and the occasion of
great rejoicings among the servants, who gorged themselves on food which we
were utterly unable to consume. In the rich agricultural provinces a procession
of perhaps forty people would arrive toward sundown leading steers, sheep, and
goats, and carrying baskets of eggs, bread, barley, and jars of hydromel - the
native champagne - curdled milk, and beer. Elsewhere the "Choum," or
headman, would bring a sheep or a goat, with a thousand apologies for his
inability to do more. It was to no purpose that we sometimes protested against
receiving this largess. The grave and polite "Choum" invariably said
that the law enjoined the delivery of food to the nation's guests, and the law
must be obeyed. A scarcely less inexorable law imposed upon the stranger the
necessity of recognizing the gift. Later, when we left Addis Ababa upon the
completion of our errand, we had ten steers and fifty sheep and goats that we
had not needed. Ultimately, we were obliged to give them away. Our compound at
the capital during our stay bore some faint resemblance at all times to the
Chicago stock-yards.
On entering the fertile
and magnificent province of Mindjar we crossed vast expanses of well-cultivated
fields yielding two and three crops a year. There were fine cattle and
prosperous-looking villages everywhere. Some of the threshing scenes were most
picturesque. In some cases the straw was strewn about a small area and beaten
with flails; but the usual process seemed to be to drive cattle round and round
over it in a circle.
In one of the first of
these villages we passed the first church that we had seen since the beginning
of our journey. It looked something like the pictures of the Chinese pagoda
upon a willow-pattern plate. It was round, as are all the Abyssinian churches,
which tradition says are copied after Solomon's temple. All of our Abyssinian
servants bowed reverently when we passed the church, some of them kissing the
soil or the wooden gateway.
At length, on December
18th - twenty days after leaving Dire-Douah - we saw in the far distance the
shining roofs of Addis Ababa. High mountains were on both sides and ahead of
us, and we marched across fields of waving grain. We halted, after two hours,
at a spot called Shola, to receive M. Chefneux, the Emperor's Counselor of
State, who had promised to come to escort us into the city.
We mounted our mules at
two o'clock, and moved slowly in the direction of Addis Ababa. Soon we
discerned in the distance an entire division of troops coming toward us. When
the two forces met, the Dedjazmatch, or General in Command of the Abyssinians,
dismounted. Introductions followed. The escorting troops then wheeled, and
moved on in advance. Their numbers increased so rapidly as we approached the
city that we were finally preceded by 3,000 men.
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| King Menelik and his grandchildren |
Surrounding their chiefs,
the warriors marched in most extraordinary confusion, sometimes performing
evolutions, sometimes walking their horses, and sometimes galloping. It was a
beautiful spectacle. No two costumes were alike. Saddles and bridles were
decorated with gold and silver fringe. Bucklers of burnished gold were carried
by the soldiers, and from their shoulders flew mantles of leopard and lion
skins, of silk, satin and velvet. They were picked men riding well, their
"chammas" flowing in the wind. Only the bright rifle-barrels marked
the difference between these Ethiopians and the army of their forbears who
followed the Queen of Sheba when she went down into Judea. We were spellbound
by the moving mass of color, across which floated the weird music of a band of
shawm players - playing as they had played when Jericho fell. With the probable
emotion of the Yankee at the Court his legs crossed and his arms supported on
two cushions. He wore a red velvet mantle, barely disclosing the snowy-white
undergarments. Around his head a white handkerchief was closely bound. He
also wore diamond ear-drops, and several rings upon both hands. His face was
full of intelligence, and his manners those of a gentleman as well as of a
king. Distinctly, the first impression was agreeable.
After a short formal
address, I presented my commission from the President. This the Emperor
scrutinized with polite indifference, laying it aside at once, and replying in
a few words. He spoke in the Amharic language. All the other conversation and
translations were in French. The officers of the mission were then presented,
and were asked to take chairs. The Emperor told us of the arrangements made for
our comfort, and we separated with his promise to fix in writing an hour for a
first private audience on the next day. As we left the "Aderach" the
captured cannon roared out twenty-one guns, and the band of native musicians
played "Hail Columbia."
The same immense escort
which had led us into the city headed by the shawm players, now augmented by
the artillery men and the Emperor's band, led us down the mountainside to our
temporary home. The generals, judges and colonels entered with the officers,
and together we inspected the quarters of the Ras Oualdo Georgis.
The Ras Oualdo Georgis, a
nephew of Menelik and ruler of a province, had erected this palace for his own
comfort on his visits to the capital. It stood in a large park which was
subdivided into compounds. It was oval, probably one hundred feet long by
eighty wide, one story high, and divided into two rooms. There were several
large doors and two windows in each room: the latter had solid wooden shutters,
but no glass. Upon the floor were numerous oriental rugs, and in the front room
was a divan, or throne, a long table, and many chairs.
After the departure of
our visitors, the tired sailors and marines had to make a camp. The tents were
put up in front of the palace, and the flag was raised over "Camp
Roosevelt." A large number of spectators had found their way within the
grounds, and the soldiers' labors were beguiled by the music of the Emperor's
band.
The second day at the
capital was almost as strenuous as the first. The Emperor had given me an
appointment at ten o'clock. A divan in a small chamber awaited his Majesty. He
entered quietly and promptly, accompanied by a number of important personages. They
disappeared at a given signal, and to the Emperor's amazement I handed him a
copy of a treaty, written in his own language by Professor Littmann of
Princeton University. This enabled him to grasp our intentions immediately'
without the intervention of an interpreter. After this meeting, either business
interviews with the Emperor himself, or exchanges of views with his responsible
ministers, took place daily.
The role of the various
legations in Addis Ababa is purely political. America has been the first
country to establish diplomatic relations for the avowed purpose of protecting
and extending commerce, without having a political issue to discuss.
Our trade with Abyssinia
grew under shadowy political arrangements, when the Abyssinians claimed an
outlet upon the sea which the Egyptians contested with them by force of arms.
In our time the Abyssinians were forced back until they were land-locked, with
Italy, France and England standing guard upon the Red Sea. Later came the
active occupation of the French possession by keen-witted Frenchmen, the
creation of the port of Djibouti, and the building of the railroad to the
Ethiopian frontier. After many delays and political intrigues, the line was
finally put into operation in the summer of 1903. It has recently been
announced that all preliminary questions have been satisfactorily settled, and
that the railroad will now be completed from Dire-Douah to the capital. It will
require three or four years to connect Addis Ababa with the line already built,
but when this great enterprise is accomplished Ethiopia will be in a position
to convert her vast treasures of natural wealth into money and to join her
sister trading nations of the world.
The present foreign trade
of Ethiopia is not great. Exports and imports together amount to $2,316,000, of
which the share of the United States amounts to $1,389,600 – large in
proportion to the trade of other countries, but hardly important. American
cottons account for $579,000. As imports we receive, from Abyssinia and
Somaliland together, skins and hides to the value of $675,000, and $135,000
worth of coffee. We naturally look to the future to develop a commerce of
really important volume. The two great obstacles to the increase of American
trade at present are: 1.The absence of American navigation lines assuring
rapid, direct, and cheap transportation. 2. The absence of American business
firms in Ethiopia capable of representing our interests.
There are gems and gold
in Ethiopia. The gems we saw were found scattered over the desert wastes,
washed down from the mountains above. Gold is hidden away in the mountains in
quantities which can be estimated by no existing data. Even now the annual
production of gold by methods as old as Moses amounts probably to $500,000. As
for copper, iron and the ordinary metals, their extraction is merely a question
of finding facilities for shipment and, probably more important still, a market
capable of absorbing them. Petroleum has been discovered in large quantities,
but the Emperor is currently believed to regard as the most important of
Abyssinian activities the cultivation of his fertile table-lands.
The hope of the country
does depend upon agriculture. A bountiful Providence has given Abyssinia a
climate and a soil which produce two, and even three, crops a year. On the
table-lands of Ethiopia nearly every grain can be grown that will grow
anywhere. Here is the original home of the coffee plant, and cotton has been
successfully grown here for many years. This fact has inspired half a dozen
French cultivators to undertake cotton-growing upon a large scale. They have
had such success that others are about to copy them, and there will probably be
systematic efforts to make Ethiopia an important cotton-exporting region. But
stock-raising, including beef, sheep and goats, is now by far the most
important industry of the empire.
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| King Menelik and his suite entering Aderach |
A visit paid to the
American encampment by the Emperor was the certain signal that our serious
business discussions were practically over and that we might prepare for our
homeward journey. The final audience with h his Majesty was arranged for Sunday
afternoon, December 27th. He received us in the small audience chamber. The
serious business of the hour was to affix the official seals to the treaty,
which had previously been drafted in the Amharic and French languages.
As the actual comparison of the two copies of the treaty had
preceded the audience, nothing remained to be done except to affix the
signatures and the official seals. The Emperor never signs any documents,
attaching instead to his letters his seal, impressed with black ink, and to
formal documents the great seal of state. A white-robed secretary appeared with
the instrument by which this is imposed, and, placing it on the floor, stamped
the lion of Ethiopia under the sign manual of the President's Commissioner. We
all shook hands and exchanged congratulations. Our soldiers presented arms and
retired. Then the officers bowed low and followed.
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| Marines celebrating their last day in AddisAbaba |
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