KAIVIERUN, kit'ine-ririn. A German colony on the west coast of Central Africa, bounded by Lake Chad on the north, French Congo on the east, French Congo and the Spanish Rio Mufti on the sonth. and the Bight of Biafra and Nigeria on the west (Map: Congo Free State, 13 1). Area, 190,300 square miles. The narrow coast region, about 200 miles long. is flat, partly swampy in the southern part. In the north it rises about 13J)00 feet in the volcanic mountain group of Kamerun. Between the coast region and the Hinterland extends an elevated region from 90 to 125 miles in width.eovered with impassable forests. The Hinterland, or interior, has net been fully explored, is a vast grass•covered plateau ranging in altitude from 2000 to 4000 feet. and assuming a more mountainous character in the north toward Manama (q.v.), where it attains an altitude of some 9800 feet. The coun try is watered by many rivers flowing to the coast, and, as a rule, interrupted by 1111111C1'011S rapids. The chief of these rivers include the Sonaga, draining the central part of the coun try and entering the ocean south of Duala ; the Xamerun. which flows through the mountainous region of the same name, and is joined at its mouth by the Thing° and a number of other streams; the Njong, south of the Sanaga: and the Djah, in the southwestern part of the colony. The climate is unhealthful on the coast. It is more favorable and agreeable in the interior and in the mountain regions. The average annual temperature oil the coast is 77° F.. being mod erated by the !tea breezes. The rainfall is ex tremely heavy, especially in the cool period from June to September. Storms visit the land at all seasons. The warmest months arc March, April, and Nay.
The inhabitants of the interior, especially toward Adamawa. are well advanced in agri culture. They cultivate large farms of corn, tobacco, manioc, yams, etc. The European plan tations are confined to the coast region and produee chiefly cacao, tobacco, coffee, and rice. Only the lirst two products arc raised in suffi cient quantities for export. In 1900 there were over 7600 acres in plantations, of which about 7500 acres were under cacao. The development of the colony has so far been very slow, although in natural resources Kaincrun ranks probably first among the German colonial possessions. One reason for this slow advancement is found in the lack of labor. and in the fact. that German au• thority is hardly recognized beyond the coast region. The natives, who under ordinary cir cumstances would furnish the neeessary labor, are reluctaM to work on German plantatiens, on account of the cruelty manifested by indi vidual planters. Another and more important reason is that the inhabitants of the Hinterland, the most intelligent in the colony. are still tribu tary to the Emir of Yola. and their trade goes mostly to British Nigeria. The military forces maintained at present in the colony are not sufficient to establish German authority in the interior, and communication between the coast region and the interior is maintained only through the natives. In spite of these unfavor
able circumstances, the trade of the colony is growing. although, as in most German colonies, the imports are increasing at a faster rate than the exports. The chief exports are rubber. palm oil and kernels, ivory, cocoa, •ola-nuts, and tohae co. Thz? imports consist largely of textiles, food products, hard‘valT. beverages. instruments. ma chinery. etc. The exports rose from $882017 in 1896-97 to $1.400.977 in 1900-01, while the im ports increased during the same period from $1,403,100 to $3,390,313. The plantation prod ucts, chiefly cacao and tobacco, constituted only one-twelfth of the total exports in 1900.01. The chief seaport is Duala, formerly known as Koine run. The shipping amounted in 1900 to about 124,000 tons, over one-half in German vessels.
The colony is under the administration of a Governor appointed by the Crown and assisted by a council of three representative merchants. '['here are four districts—Dnala, Victoria, Eden, and Kribi. The seat of the Government was re moved, in April, 1901, from Duala to Biwa in the Kamerun chain. The military force of the colony consists of 900 colored troops and 100 whites. There is also a police force of 200 men. There are two public schools with German teach ers for the natives. The Baptists, Presbyterians, and Catholics are represented by missions. The budget for 1902-03 was estimated at $1.043,630, including an Imperial subvention of $576,772. The revenue is derived chiefly from customs du ties. Besides Duala and Biwa, the chief settle• inents in the coast region are Victoria and Rio del Rev. Duala is conneeted by cable with Bonny in Nigeria, and thus with Europe. The population of the colony is estimated at 3.500.000. The inhabitants of the coast region and forest regions belong to the 13antu race, and consist of a number of tribes, among which the Dilating are prominent. The Dilating are engaged in trade and agrienIture and do some wood-carving. The inhabitants of the interior arc Sudanese. intermingled with Fulahs.
In :fitly, 1884, several German merehants by treaty with the native chiefs of Duallaland ob tained possession of that region, which they transferred in the same year to the German Government. The boundary lines were fixed by treaties with Great Britain in 1SS5, 1536, and 1893, and with France in 1S85, 1894, 1901, and 1902. Consult Billow, Deutschlands Kolonien and Kolonialkriege (Dresden, 1900) ; Aleineke, Die deutsehen Kolonien in Wort and Bild (Leip zig, 1899) ; Allan, The Land of Duallas; Life in the Cameroons (Newcastle, 1S85) ; various arti cles in the Globus (Brunswick. 1S79 et seq.) ; Riechenow, Die deutsche Kolonie Kamera» (2d ed., Berlin, 1SS5) ; Buchner, Kamera)! (Leipzig, 1887) ; Schwarz, Kamera)) (2d ed., Leipzig, ISSS) ; Htibler, Zur Klimatologie von Kamerun (Munich, 1896).