The National Register. — London, England, 1819-01-24 00:00:00

•• J gd. U,Vc0i4,14 y f ' . goi.o ~~,...., ~tT OJ_A - 4t-mr; nub if /IWO. No. 57t—VoL. XII. SUNDAY, JANUARY 24, 1819• COURT OF ALDERMEN. POLITICAL DISQUISITION. ON THE TI FATMENT SLAVKS IN DOMINICA. A Court of Aldermen wa.4 held at Guildhall, on Tuesday, when the petition t Messrs. B. Gibbons and S. of the Ward of ‘. albrook, complaining of the untlue return of the Cor.mon Council of that Ward SOME painful documents have been commenicaled frdin Dominica, relative to the treatment of the on fortunate slaves. The facto which we have inserted, auu to which we refer our reader, appear to have been printetl by order of the House of COMMOLS. on the authority of the Governor of • Dominica ; and the publication of them forms the subject of " much sur prise" on the part of the Colonial House of Assembly, as also of a civil, though rather a cool, correspondence between the Speaker of that Body and Governor MaxwAl. When we read of a boy of 15 years of age, being tortured by a chain of iron round the neck, fastened by a padlock, and weighing ; of two infant girls, only twelve years old, much marked by the oart rrh:p, fastened together with iron chains round the neck; of an old man, GO years of age severely beaten and placed in the stooks under a heavy chain ; finally, of a male child about 12 years old, bottled with an iron collar, chains, and a log of wood, weighing f 2 (jib. !—when we real (leech abominations as these, practised by men who call themselves Christians, we must wish that either the accounts may be grossly exaggerated, or that the indictors of such cruelties might, for a little time, be forced to change conditions with their slaves, if it were only to teach them the use, ation. The Court suggested that witnesses should be called support of the petition, and the petitioners only being first admitted, Messrs. Wood, Waithman. and others, submitted that the investigation should be pub and that all the inhabitants of Walbrook were entitled to admission ; when, rifler a debate of nearly two hours, the Court was thrown open. The Lnr Mayor ordered the Petition to be read. ft n as of great length, and the substance of its allegations was as : -••• " That on the 21st bf December last, the annual election was held at Salter's Ehdl, on which occasion the names of sixteen persons, among whom were seven of the former Common Council, were returned by precinct to the Wardmote ; and that, on a slew of hands, as to such precinct, the acid seven appeared to be re-elected ; and that upon the risme of Mr. T. N. Williams (a new Candidate), being duly proposed and seconded, and another with him being merely returned, the Petition er (Mr. B. Gibbons) Proposed that his Lordship, in consequence of the prozeedi:Ts, should adjourn the Meeting before the return was declared; that his Lord. ship refused so to r.o ; whereurx.n the Petitioner int 'medial* prcipoled the name of G. '.. Shottlevvorth, us of. the Common Council of 'awl; and that i4 .ll sairl proposition was duly secon ed 'by Mr. S. Smith, the other Petitioner. That hii Lordship en quired of Mr. Shuttleworth, whether, if he were elected, he would serve the office ; and, hying answer ed that he did not wish to do so, nor had he any de sire of Lord Mayor refused icioner, B. of power, by making them feel its abuses. NVe en tertain no visionary fancies abnut withdrawing, the Negro population of the West India Islands from"that wholesome measure of authority and discipline, ever be which, while involuntary servitude exists at all, must the most effective instrument by which the slave is pelted to tv Sc lief; but the application infancy is not a wholesome lesson of fitting punishment, nor a• useful example. We see that the Assembly of Dominica have attempted to re but the accusation thrown o.tt, against t.:tie of the managers implicated in this ,:harge of ty:annical treat ment to the slaves, by bringing to the bar the penult complained of, and one of the Neg:o•.:s who had suf fered. This gentleman dt.es not deny that he had chained the slave ; but he says that the chain weighed less than 41b.; and the poor Negro (who still remained under his management) is represented as Omitting tint a chain, produced by Mr. Cross, resembiol that with which he was loaded. Front this ere trial the Assem bly infer, that in the cases specified, the Governor had Font home erroneous information to the King's fili niccrs. They seem desirous to have it :mkt-stood that slaves in Dominica arc as contfur:ably situated as those in the other islands. We, on the other hand, are ru:st willing to belicve,that in the majority of the other West India islands, neither chains. nor such thingennl as those of Dominica, have been resorted to for many y cars. pledging himself that if he was elected, he would I make him serve. That the Lord Mayor persisted in refusing to put Mr. Shuttleworth iu nomination, net withstanding that Le immediately aftetwards enquired whether any other persons were to be nomivated. That the Petitioner, Gibbons, said he hod a list of four other respectable persons to nominate, hut it was Me leS4 t..) Millie carte if his Lordship me ad o n ly nomi nate wham he pleased. That the said Petitioner then addressed himself to the Len' Mayor, saving, ' Re. member I demand a poll ii.r :Jr. `4huttiewor.:l!' and that nevertheless the eight r rums returned by the precithe were sworn in befi:re his Lordship. That the said G. E. Shuttleworth was in every way qualified to be one of the Comumn (Vaned of the Ward, and that he was in titet a candidate, and polled, in the year 1817, 37 votes. That th... I.ord 'Mayor, sitting at the Wanlmote as Returni.:g Officer, lied no right to de termine who should or should not be proposed, liar then it would not be all election of the freemen and householders of the Ward, bat of the Alderman him self, contrary to the spirit of reel franchise, and of the precept 'tor election itself. That finally, tbe Yeti. tion compared the otli at of Common Councilman to that of Sheri& of London, or the inquests/tan of a Ward, w:iere the party chosen to serve such offices ore left without any option; and that by the nature of their oath, upon . suctii:g •enrolled as freemen, they are boutsd to serve, or subject themselves to certain punishments and penalties. Under all the circum stances, the petitioners prayed that time Election of the eight Common Councilman, as aforesaid, sight be dechtredquall and void, and :t new one appointed." After the Petition was read, the Goart enquired if the Petitioner had any thing to add. Mr Gibbons re plied in the attiraneive, and entered into an .illustra don of the fasets lie complained of tile unwarrantable means resorted to of calling a Wardmote on Monday to discuss the merits of his Petition, and prejudging it the day before it was to be acit;Aed by the proper tri bunal. He was Froreoling to cite cases where Com mon Couneihuen had been elected and obliged to serve I against their will ; when he was stopped by the Re corder, who said, the Court wanted facts, net argu. ments. T.ord Castler:ngh experienced on Wednesday a se vere relapse of the goat, which confined his Lordship t: , his uoom. Ili. Lordship had invited between thirty and forty noblemen and gentlemen to dine with him, and not being able to meet them, Lord Stewart did the lutstotirs of the table iu his Lordship's absence. Coup - r OF Esettrovan.—.l novel occurrence took place on Thursday morning in Gray's Inn Hall. When the Lord Chief Baron ordered the next cause to be cdled on, the Registrar answered that there was no ether cause. Fur this the peblie are ind bted to the 3.t.rd Chief Baron, who, since he has presided in that Fetal. has applied himself with so much assiduity, that he has heard every cause that stood in the paler for hearing, of uhich, for ninny years past, there has been so great all arrenr. Mr. Roe on of the ex-Chairman of the Hoard of Customs, it is said, will be one of the new Comatis siouers of that department. --, .~ -~ . . .. . 40 . salt . ° n. • ♦ it Au, k r 3, U , ... I \ - -_. i4441* P : Pr 140 4 .4% t Our ;ling, (ton itituttou >44 1 . 7 ' . Alderman Waithmari said, they alsoald hear the case first, and then the evidence. Sir J. Shaw was of the same opinion. Mr. Gibbons said, he thought his ease so clear that he did mot employ Counsel: if he had, a right would Have been insisted upon to state things more fully, and it would not have been disputed. He concluded by asserting, that there never was a more illegal and un justifiable proceeding than that of which he complain ed, nor a more &trine attempt t.-destroy the franchise of the City of London. Mr. J. Dawes, Mr. N. T. %illiams, and another, were produced us witnesses of the facts which took place 420 the day of election. They all underwent a strict cross-examination i)y several of the Aldermen, and more particalarly by the Lord Mayor himself. Their testimony, however, strongly bore out all the allegations of the Petition, as to the names of two persons for each precinct being read over, from which one was returned; as to the proposition of Mr. Shut tletworth, as a Common Councilman, before the return of the eight successful Candidates had been declared ; and the positive refusal of the Lord Mayor to put him • in nomination. "~;`" The Court was then ordered to be cleared ; when after a.vcry long discussion, it was decided that tim l'etition of Messrs. Gibbons and Smith was fully sob. stantieted ; that the election of which they complained was null and void ; and that a new election should im moilkately take On Frilly the Lord Mayer held another Court of Aldermen, for the general despatch of busi ness, at .Bich several Aldermen, the Sheriffs, and City Officers attended.—Twelve hers of gold. weigh ing clB6 ounces, and 35 bars of silver, weighia 4 up. ward11.6£24,000 ounces, were produced in Court, and swore off for exportation.--A petition and memorial from the sworn twofers, relative to sundry recent re. gulations, and for the adoption of mesw•res to protect them in their rights, was presented, and referred to a committee of the whoic Court, to consider and report upon immediately.—The presentments of the Ward. ed to , taken tlireon.- 2d of appointed for licensing the victuallers, and precepts directed to issue accordingly. An amusing report has crept into the Barhadoes per 3, by the waY, as it is 'laic, of Martinique, vie,: that St. Helena had been attacked, and Ruonapartc rescued. We are not informed as to any particulioa respecting the force by which this grand exploit was acsannplished ; whence it had sailed, or how it wea cmnposed; or whether it betook itself afterwards. The Martinique intelligence says nothing as to the mode the attack ; whether it was by sea or land, or both whether the garrison was beaten in the open field, ( r, the British Admiral was sunk or captured; or whethce the Iltionapartists came in the night and caught Sir fludaon napping. Fur all such interesting and able details we must wait with as much patience as the • thing admits of, in the hope that some other Captain may, peradventure, arrive from Martinique; or that a. prcelaination by the great Napoleon may appinr in due films, dated " from our Palace at Loa f ,,- wood ;" and promising his fai::.1111 English, that :he Imperial Eag!cs shall fly from island to island, they roost upon the cross at St Paul's. The Barlat. does Editor does, indeed, appear to he troubled with a twinge of incrAulity on this subject ; inasmuch as the ' ex-Emperor was snug in his birth on the 17th of Au gust last, although a band of worthies from the Champ d'Asyle bad sworn to liberate their patroa. The si7!y rumour from Martinique, it' it prove nothing. seems to counteaance a belief, that sonic sort of projea been really in contemplation for the escape of Kama parte. That the conspirators should boast of abea,:y succeeding in an enterprise which they had not vet st , tempted, is natural to that consummate arrogance, through which, in order to gain a victory, their leash.: has "pore than once f,rgotten that it would be necea- , • nary to fight a battle. • Mr. Cullen, a ten - dealer in Dublin. who was prose- , -a s- ;:::•- cuted on the charge of selling ;purities tea, utter . days' investigation, has proved that the aporioos tear found among his stock were recciVt.d from the [IC; horse, and cousequen,ly must either. b.tvc Lc e u tuatca in LtAtieuluill-street, or in China. : • upon the last eleeticn, upon the ground that 51r. G. E. Nhuttlesvortb AVIS not put in tuuninatiou by the Return. F . ins °dicer (the Lord Idayos)-Othotsh. tly proposed and seconded on that occasion, Vias Lain intesonsider4 , . !rich the slaver ing• Aire of coming forward, the Lord Mayor refused upon immediately.--The presentments of the Ward. iaLint i ,444140.114 to ut him in nomination. That the l'etitioner,. B. mote Inquests of ate several Wards, as returned on of torture to femiTe • laslasaski alalatkintd,r eU te.n ka.l_?ittlU v ill Plmigh.Mouday. of non.tieeinen, ruinous houses , . eta- urging that it was not fo . tti aec ^o,lW°4' Cat senses, dte. were read, and 'Use 1111Wayttf. itivadipost• , • of diligence, nor a should or should not be in the Common Council, and ed to be taken th-:reon.—The 2d of March next was MI • ~"nVNff `NI Ii ~'