Ceremony and beginning of Bomi Hills Liberia

Address by
President W.V.S. Tubman

Our gathering here today climaxes in a most pleasing manner the several approaches made to the Liberian Government by individuals and companies of various nationalities, for the exploration and exploitation of the vast deposits of Iron Ore that has been embedded under those hills for a long time immemorial. Some of these approaches merely reached the negotiation stage and were broken off, while others progressed a little further to the point of exploration and extraction and shipment of samples of ore discovered
However, none of the agreements and arrangements concluded by the Liberian Government with forging Individuals and companies, previous to the granting of the Christie concession, were ever implemented to the point of undertaking practical solution of the complex, intricate and varied problems incidental to the successful and profitable exploitation of these deposits. This formal opening of the Iron Ore Mine under the concession granted the Liberia Mining Company six years ago by the Liberian Government, for which this ceremony is intended, is a very striking coincidence and an occasion of great significance. Coincidental because of the fact that it was on the 4th of January, 1944, the day after my first Inauguration, that his Excellency Lester A. Walton, the then American Minister, called on me during that day�s entertainment and insisted that �the Dr. Newhouse Survey Commission,� which had arrived in the country from the United States on the Government�s request, proceed at once to these Hills, for the purpose of re-survey, re-check and verification of previous surveys, reports of discovery of Iron Ore deposits and the extraction of samples for proper scientific analysis and grading.
Its great significance lies in the fact that the successful accomplishment of the Newhouse Commission of the objectives for which it was requested and dispatched to Liberia, placed the Iron Ore deposits of these Hills within the category of the world�s highest grade and determined them to be in appreciably large quantities. Immediately following the publication of the Newhouse Commission�s Report and Findings on the potentiality of the Bomi Hills Iron Ore deposits, applications were simultaneously received by the government from Mr. Clarke Babbit and Colonel Christie, both of the United States, for concession to exploit the same. Although the terms proposed by Mr. Babbit appeared more generous than those offered by Colonel Christie, it was not difficult to foresee that they were entirely impracticable. Thereupon, after study and discussion of the terms proposed by Colonel Christie, negotiations were entered into and agreement concluded, all of which culminated in the granting of concession, by the Fortieth Legislature of the Republic and its Third Annual Session in 1945, to him for exploitation of the Iron Ore deposits of those hills. It might be interesting, I think, for the shade of our public opinion which unjustifiably arrayed itself against the granting of this concession at the time it was under legislative consideration, to contrast its doubts and objections then with the actual contributions the Concessionaire is now making towards the economic development of the country, and the still greater benefits its continues operation portends for the future.
I should like to pay, in this public manner, high tribute to the zeal perseverance, determination and daring of the sterling and stoic character, in the person of Colonel Lansdell K. Christie, for the translation into sound realities of his desires and plan to tackle what a combination of Individuals, Companies and Corporations with far greater assets have, after obtaining the rights to do so, faltered and abandoned. For a considerable period of time, during the early stages of preliminary arrangements for the practical operations of concession, the Colonel was the only investor and almost sacrificed a great amount of his personal resources. I recall very vividly the occasion when everything seemed to have gone wrong, and, quite naturally, it was expected that this concession would go the way of the many others proceeding it. Never have I seen a man more resolute and more determined to succeed than was Colonel Christie at the time, and his courage and faith in a project that is destined to benefit not only himself, the Government and people of Liberia, but also the free nations of the world, have made possible more than any other single factor the formal opening of these mines which we so very happily witness today. Headed by such a worth and capable character and reasonably fair understanding of the aims and aspirations of the Government and people of Liberia as evinced by his consistent personal cooperation, the splendid relationship that has happily subsisted between Government and Concessionaire since 1945 will continue to grow closer and firmer, I hope with time. Special commendation is due the local management of Liberia Mining Company, under the able and efficient direction of General Manager Dewey, and in expressing this for and on behalf of the Government and people of Liberia, I do so with personal knowledge of the fine spirit of cooperation General Manager Dewey has shown, not only in matters affecting the interest of his Company, but also in situations where the necessity has arisen for technical and material assistance in the prosecution of Government construction projects. With the fervent hope that out of ores that has been and will still be extracted from these mines will be produced a portion of the worlds steel requirements for peaceful aims and for the manufacture of those facilities, utensils and other things so very essential to the comfort, safety and happiness of mankind. I declare the Iron ore Mines of Bomi Hills under concession to the Liberia Mining Company formally opened and in due operations as from this date.
Bomi Hills
Western Province
January 12, 1952
Program
Inspection train to Bomi Hills
January 12, 1952
8:30 A.M
Special 1train leaves Port of Monrovia
9:00 A.M
Train stops Kpo River Bridge
Dedication of Kpo River Bridge by Mrs. W.V.S. Tubman
10:30 A.M
Arrival at Bomi Hills
Introduction by Charles Dewey, General Manager of
The Liberia Mining Company, Ltd.
Address by L.K. Christie, President of Liberia Mining Company, Ltd. Response by His Excellency W.V.S. Tubman
President of the Republic of Liberia
Selection by Band
11:30 A.M
Inspection of Mine and Plant
12:30 P.M
Luncheon for Official Party and Visitors
2:00 P.M
Official train leaves Bomi Hills
4:00 P.M
Arrival at Port of Monrovia
Address by
Lansdell K. Christie

Ladies and Gentlemen:
This is an ideal occasion to tell you about the iron deposit called Bomi. Geologists believe that Bomi is at least five hundred million years old. That is a long time and during those many centuries Bomi has remained remote and tough and self-sufficient. It didn�t propose to have its slumber interrupted, it didn�t propose to get unceremoniously uprooted and it made the task as difficult as it ingenuity would permit. The development of Bomi has taken seven years since efforts were first initiated to obtain a concession from the Republic of Liberia. It has been a fascinating experience to be a witness through those years as one hurdle after another has been successfully overcome.No one man, no single group of men has brought this project to fruition. Two governments, Liberia and the United States have given there blessing to this endeavor, various departments of those governments have put their shoulder to the wheel. Private business has served as the medium to effect the realization of this project. The result has been that Liberia on the one hand has taken a great step forward in the economic development of its country, and America on the other hand has brought about a flow of much needed iron ore to its furnaces. This is the steel age in the history of man and from Bomi will flow, for many years to come, approximately one percent of America�s requirement of iron ore; ore of quality unsurpassed anywhere in the world. Before proceeding further it is appropriate to pay tribute to those men and agencies who have contributed so much to bring about a successful outcome.
Bomi was a challenge. The inspiration to meet that challenge came from many unselfish people who assisted with their time and efforts. Liberia�s President Wm. V.S. Tubman from the beginning has had faith in Bomi�s soundness and the benefits, which would accrue from its development. A sagacious and wise leader, he has pursued a policy of national progress with unremitting zeal, and by cooperating with foreign investors he has been able to attract the capital, which is so necessary for the development of Liberia. President Tubman has one acid test which he applies to all proposals for his consideration; �Is it good for Liberia.� The plan to bring Bomi into production met this test and accordingly he welcomed us to Liberia. He has extended to us every possible courtesy, every possible assistance and we on our part must be mindful of the trust he and his countrymen have reposed in us. Only in that way can we consider ourselves eligible to carry this undertaking on through the years.

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Thanks to Joellen McPhail we have a official company bulletin, It is full of facts about the company that we worked for so long ago. If you would like to read any page please click on the page and it will send you to a my briefcase where it will be much larger. Then when you have finished reading that page, click back on your browser and it will send you back to this page. Thanks again Joellen for all the wonderful things you have done for me and the website.

Liberia Mining Company Bulletin

November 24, 1970

Thanks to Joellen McPhail we have a official company bulletin, It is full of facts about the company that we worked for so long ago. If you would like to read any page please click on the page and it will send you to a my briefcase where it will be much larger. Then when you have finished reading that page, click back on your browser and it will send you back to this page. Thanks again Joellen for all the wonderful things you have done for me and the website.

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Jungle Jim

As usual, during the dry and monsoon seasons, I would make many flights to numerous villages. On this particular day during the monsoon season I was scheduled to deliver eight boxes of dynamite sticks, (blasting caps were always flown separately for obvious reasons), to an iron-ore mine called
“Bomi-Hills,” 80 miles north west of Spriggs Payne airfield, my home base airfield in Monrovia, Liberia West Africa.

Keep in mind this is Bushpilot flying. The weather was not good. It about a 300- foot ceiling with visibility a half-mile and raining. Whichever Bushpilot felt like going up to check the weather, he would. Since my Piper Tripacer, with a 160-HP engine in it, was like a hot rod car, (loaded with dynamite), I said, I would go. I joked what a blast it will be if I crashed. At age 23, nothing bothered me. If the weather was not to bad on top I would rev the engine high and low two times, meaning it was not too bad, telling the guys to come on up. I would then be on my way to make my delivery. If the weather was very poor, and I have had to do this many times, I would head out over the ocean, which was nearby, and let down until I could see the water. I would hold an altitude of about a hundred feet, because to go lower would be to dangerous. One cannot judge too well over water just how close the water is. Maybe a seaplane pilot could, but I was a land pilot. I would then make a 180 back to the airfield and ever, and I mean ever so slowly, lower my altitude because, once you see the breaking white caps of the waves; then, and only then, could I push the nose down fast to get right down on top of them. I would then look for the car head lights my compatriots had so generously supplied. They were there but off to my left. Throttle back, bank hard left, careful not to dip the left wing tip into the ocean! For the occasional night landings, my friends would also put a car on the airfield with headlights facing me so I could line up easier. The other Bushpilots would also put a car on the airfield at the threshold with the tail lights facing the aircraft; the headlights shining down the airfield. Of course, I would also us my landing light if the bulb was not burn out. Parts were very difficult to get.

I gave them the roaring of my engine as I passed over the airfield, and I was on my way to Bomi Hills. There was one catch. I had no idea what the weather was like between me and Bomi Hills. This is where being a Bushpilot comes in. I am all alone there is no one to talk to about weather conditions. I must figure out myself if I can go on. Well, at first things didn’t look too bad: rain, broken cloud layers, visibility varied. After 20 minutes things started to look ugly. I lost visual contact with the ground and had to go IFR, on instruments. Rain got very heavy so I started climbing in the goo, thinking I could get above some of the clouds, but luck was not with me. It was looking real black in the direction I was heading and knew it was time to turn back. At 1500 feet I started a left downward spiral. I knew there was a railroad track below me. A Bushpilot will use whatever is available to navigate by…..Railroad tracks, beaches, mountain ridges, water falls, rivers, and even the white bark of a tree. That’s another story while I was flying a Piper Apache twin, also in monsoon weather.

I saw a hole in the layers of clouds below me and kept a tight spiral on it, eventually getting low enough to see the railroad tracks. One thing about flying in the rain, a pilot can usually see straight down in any precip. I saw the tracks and came over them around 100 feet. I lined up them and made like a locomotive back home, or so I thought. The weather was getting worse and blacker than it was before when it should have been getting better. I knew the weather was better behind me. I began to think that perhaps the weather was getting worse in the direction of my home base airfield. This is where you start to sweat.

I thought it best, as of right now, to get set up for full IFR conditions and I tightened my seat belt. A quick scan of all my instruments were reassured me. I was level, oil pressure was good, cylinder temperature good, I had plenty of fuel, the cargo was secure, volts good. But!! The compass was not reading the correct heading towards my home base! I thought, it’s stuck! But it wasn’t. Then I said, “Oh, my God, I rolled out after one too many turns! I was (focusing)on the railroad tracks and not
looking at the compass after my last turn; a lesson that was never repeated. I made a fast 180. Needless to say, the weather got better in time and I landed safely at my home base.

I would like to mention the Bushpilot’s rules of flying using railroad tracks, beaches, rivers, and mountain ridges. We always stay to the right side going to and from. In the two years I was there, there was never a midair collision although 19 aeroplanes went down. I was in two of them. Some were pilot error but most were due to mechanical failures. My two were mechanical One fuel starvation, in a Piper Tripacer on take off, and the other a Howard DGA-15 oil return line broke and I lost all the oil. I had to come down; there was no choice. Both are another two stories. I guess I did a fair job of crash-landing because I am here to write about it.

I must say at this time I cannot take all the credit for my skill as a pilot. I owe a lot to my former flight instructor and good friend till this day. His name is Roy, now a retired FAA pilot examiner and accident
investigator. He was, and still is, one hell of a flight instructor and pilot. It was his training that helped me save my backside many times.

Jungle Jim

10 cents worth of palmnuts, approx 7 cups
11/2 lbs of meat cut in cubes
2 dried fish, well boned
4 pieces of chicken
5 2 bouillon cubes, beef or chicken
1 onion, sliced or pounded
pepper to taste (hot)
seasoned salt to taste

Wash palm nuts well, cook until tender. Beat palm nuts in a mortar with a pestle. Wash beat up palm nuts (once separating nuts from chaff.) Strain the watery part and throw the chaff away. Season meat, fish and chicken together. Put meat and dry fish into a medium size pot half filled with water. Cook until meat
And fish becomes tender. (More water may be added.) Now add your chicken. When mixture is well cooked and dried add the prepared palmbutter. Let palmbutter cook on high then switch to a medium heat. When palmbutter becomes thickened or dry it is ready to serve.

Serve it with rice or fufu. Serves 4 people.
Plantian chips
3 or 4 plantains 2cups of oil
Peel very green plantains and slice very thin. Fry in deep oil until golden brown and crisp then drain on paper towel. sprinkle with salt. Keep in sealed containers. Stays for two weeks to a month.
Bonnie Pepper Soup
5 dried bonnies(dried fish) 1lg. onion
1/2 qt. water 2 pods hot pepper
1 tbsp tomato paste,
salt and pepper to taste.
Peel bonnies and pick bones out. Put bonnies into pot with other ingredients. Boil until bonnies are done.
Goat meat soup
2 lbs goat meat
2 tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 med. onions
2 qts. water hot peppers to taste
salt and black pepper to taste stockfish and dried bonnies may be added if desired.
Cut up goat meat into pieces about 2-3 inches. Wash and season with black pepper, hot peppers and salt. Season with sliced onions. Let stand for 30-40 minutes to allow seasoning to soak in. Put in 2 quarts of water in the pot and add the well seasoned meat, few slices of onions, fresh tomatoes, and tomato paste and put on stove to boil. continue cooking until meat is tender.
serve hot-
LIBERIAN SWEET POTATO PONE
Yield: 9-inch square potato pone
In a 3-quart saucepan:
Combine: 3 cups GRATED RAW SWEET POTATOES
1 cup MOLASSES OR DARK CANE SYRUP
2 tsp. GROUND GINGER
2 tsp. BAKING POWDER
1 tsp. SALT
1/3 cup VEGETABLE OIL.
Simmer slowly, stirring constantly, for 10 minutes
Pour into well-greased 9-inch baking pan.
Bake at 325′ for 30 minutes, stirring up every 5 minutes for the first 20 minutes.
Smooth down the top and allow to brown.
Cut into squares and serve either hot or cold
JOLLOF RICE
Yield: 8 portions
Jollof Rice is served with variations in many countries of West Africa. In Liberia pigs’ feet are used with salt pork and bacon as well as with chicken. This dish may be made from scratch with fresh chicken pieces, alone or in combination, but it is also an excellent dish for leftover chicken, veal, turkey, tongue, ham, bacon, etc.
In a 10-inch skillet:
Saute: 2 Ibs. COOKED MEATS (such as chicken, bacon, shrimp, smoked pork) cut in 1-inch chunks in
1/2 cup VEGETABLE OIL until slightly brown.
In a 4-quart kettle:
Saute: 1/2 cup YELLOW ONIONS, finely chopped
1/2 cup GREEN PEPPERS, finely chopped
1/2 tsp. GROUND GINGER (optional), in
1/4 cup VEGETABLE OIL until onions are soft.
Add 1 16-oz. can WHOLE TOMATOES (2 cups).
Simmer for 5 minutes.
Add: 2 6-oz. cans TOMATO PASTE
2 quarts WATER
1 Tbs. SALT
1/2 tsp. BLACK PEPPER
1/2 tsp. THYME
1 tsp. CRUSHED RED PEPPER.
Add the cooked meat and simmer 20 minutes longer.
In a 2 quart saucepan:
Cook: 2 cups WHITE RICE in
5 cups CHICKEN STOCK or WATER until tender.
Correct the Seasonings with salt, pepper, etc.
Combine the sauce of the meat with the rice.
Pour the Jollof Rice in a deep bowl, arranging the meat in the center.
Rice Bread
1 c rice meal
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp soda
1/4 c sugar
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c mashed plantain
3/4 c milk or water
1/4 c vegetable oil or margarine
Mix all dry ingredients; set aside. Combine mashed plantain and liquids; add to dry ingredients and mix well. Bake in greased 8- x 12-inch baking dish or pan at 350 degrees F for about 1 hour.
Peach Fool (Liberia)
Yield: 8 1/2-cup servings
In a 2 quart bowl:
Fold: 2 cups STEWED PEACHES (drained, pureed, and cooled) into
2 cups CUSTARD, boiled, or VANILLA PUDDING (from a mix) cooled to room temperature.
The term “fool” (also the Egyptian word for lentils) comes from the English and means essentially a fruit puree folded into a soft custard or whipped cream. You may begin with any good custard recipe, vanilla pudding, or whipped cream. Use one part custard or cream to one part pureed, mashed, or cut fruit.
Boiled Cassava
3 medium cassava
3 cups water
1/2 tsp. salt
Peel and wash cassava. Slice up cassava into desired size. Put into pot and add salt and water. Bring to boil until cassava is tender. Boiled cassavas are usually served with butter or gravy.