History of Africa. 19th century. Messenger carrying a 'mukanda'. This represented, in terms of credit, a great progress in the regions of the Congo, as it facilitated the operations of the trader and the explorer's enterprises. It was a kind of debit note which the trader or explorer gave to the chieftain to whom it was convenient to make a gift or to the native to whom a service was to be paid. It indicated the goods to be delivered to the bearer, the trading station or factory where they were to be paid for, the date and the signature. Even if the natives did not understand what was written on the mukanda, they were fully assured that a white man would not deceive them and that the European's signature was similar to a solemn oath. Engraving. El Congo y la Creacion del Estado Independiente de este nombre. Historia de los Trabajos y Exploraciones Verificados (The Congo and the Founding of its Free State. A Story of Work and Exploration), by Henry M. Stanley. Edited in Barcelona, ca.1890. Spain.