north american indians, lacked both iron and the wheel (thing that were available to natives of africa's gold coast and congo,) but north american indians (well the first ones encountered) frequently lived settled lives, (in Northeast, Long houses)and farmed, (corn, beans, squash and tobacco) There lives were not that different than the poorest of the poor tenent farmers of england..and in some ways were better.
Indigious American in Mexico and South America had highly evolved societies...(and these were well known about) and besides, at first, every one thought they were just in a remote part of asia. (just London was civilized, but one didn't expect the same ammenites if you were in northern scotland.)
The "taking of the land" in many cases was miscommunication.
the North american held all lands in common... they extended to the europeans the right to farm and hunt. They expected to share in the produce. europeans had different ideas.
and quickly, problems arose because of internal strife between different indian nations. european diseases killed off tribes and settlements, and other tribes tried to move and take over..
Indians didn't start out as savages.. but as time passed, and it became clearer that they were not asian, and not part of some great civilization (with a goverment and strong army behind them)the europeans (and second and third and fourht generation americans)became more and more cruel, and justified there actions because the indians were just savages.
There are fewer domesticated crops in tropical africa, and most african nations/groups had exposure to trade goods (arab traders started at the west coast- Dar es sallam, and were deep into what is present day east congo ages ago.) but central africa does not count among it riches large resources of copper, iron or tin. compared to the berbers and "moors" encounted in north africa, the central africans lived very differently. (and while shakespear's moor is portrayed as black, most of north africa's inhabitants are not much 'blacker' than souther italians, greeks, or arabs--but the blacks of central africa are negroes. )
There are very real reasons that America was "forested" and africa had "jungle".
