The National Register. — London, England, 1819-01-25 00:00:00

A / t i'll4l 4:4 • • 'l.!'rePl4.o!*. , • _:.x:^~ ~ ' . riPt No. 572.—V0L. XII. POLITICAL DISQUISITION. IHE TREATMENT OF SLAVES IN DOMINICA. SOME painful documents have been communicated from Dominica, relative to the treetinent of the un fertenete slaves. The facts which we have inserted, aed to ehieb we refer Our readers, appear to have been printed by order of the House of (emmons. on the authority of the Governer of Dominica ; end the rublication of them force: the subject of " ninth sur prise" on the part of the Colonial Honse or Assembly, as also of a ei rig, though rather a cool, correspondence between the Speater of that Rudy and Governor Maxwell. When we read of a lgty of 15 year , : of age, being tortured by a chain of iron round ttc neut., *stencil hr a padieel„ and weighiee ; of het; infaut giiis, only t weirs: ycar: obi, much la:tr!:cd by the met whip, &stetted together with iron ("reins round the neck; of en old man, GO roar:; of ale severely beaten and pieced in the steaks under s heavy chain ; fivally, of a male child about 12 years old, loaded with on iron collar, chains, and a log of weed, weighing 1.:611". !—when we read of such abominations as these, practised by men who call themselves Christians, we must wish that either the accounts may be grossly txaggerated, or that the inflictors of such cruelties might, for a little tine, be fuered to change conditioas with their slase , , if it were only to-Quid) tin the use of power, Ly mating them feel its abuses. We en tertain no visionary faecies about withdrawing the fs!c i ;,tra population of die West India Islands fre:a Oust wholesome Meestire of au; heti y and discipline, ever he which. :while involuntary eervitude exists at all, must the moat effective instraraeut bs which the sMve is im pelled to wert, and threegli whiLit he is restrained from mischief; but the app:ication of tonere to female infancy is not a wholesome o:* diiigenee : nor a fitting punishment, nor a tis..:o! Wo see that the Assembly of D•noinice It %el et tempted to re but tie aceueetioia thrown !tut against tome of the main line implicated i t .hischatw !or tyninnired treat malt te.the slaves, ity brin;iter te the bar the person complained of, and one of the Negroes who had suf fered. This gentleman doos not deny that he had chained the slave ; but he siys that the chain weighed leer than 41b.; and the poor 'Astro (who still remained uudeulds mintemeot) is represented as admitting th it a chain, produced by Mr. Cues, resembled that with w hi c h he spas loadixl. From this one trial the Aasein lily infer, that fib the ensue specified, the Gtoersor hail teat home errtmeotts infitrmation to the King's Mi nis em They seem desirous to hare it understwel that slaves in %Minim arc es comfit's* sitcated as those in the ether Wails. We. im the other hand, are rant to '•clit.vo,t at in the majority of the ether West India islands, neither chains, nor such dungeons Sits those of Dominica, have betel resorted to fur many years. Lord C.1 , 01 , ..re.tg1i experience) on Welnesanny a se vere relapse of the tvi dt con8ile:1 his LOT:lshii to his room. !, is vitc.l hetwoon thirty anti forty noblcmc!, a.. 13 to (line wtOi and not hk.in g abi, to meet them, t.oril Stewart did the henours of the table in his Lordsiiip's absence. Cuuirr Ow IMVuI o c : , : t irr e u,c took plate on ThurclAy twituing in Gray's Inn Hall. When the Lord Chief ILP:11 ordered tho next cause to he ' , allot on, the 11.-giter.ir i4tErserei that there MO no celer For this elle public are ina btcd to the Lora Chief who, Riiice he has pre-,ided in that o,ort. hjs illit1;1-1 hioor...if with so toadi th-a ace has ever' ~ .41.04e that stool it) the. I.:tpur r , r 'tog, t i .. v!itelt, f,r many year' vast, thcrs: lielPtl I...;reiat ttu H:r,Ae. Nit. 11.1 e •P)11 or' the ex-Chainnlin of the Iln:tri of rtintonts, it is said, o:le of thp new tAialis. prithig iltparttp:::at. ~ so.I itiftr + y till atonati Our littg, Coadtitution ant( itai336. MONDAY, JANUARY ??3, 1819. COCRZ' OF ALDERMEN. A Court of Aldjumen was held, at Guildhall, on Tuesday, whim the petition of Musys. 11 Gibbons and S. Stiaith,.of the Ward of Wa'brook, n nplaining of the undue return bf the Common Csuncil oftliat Ward upon the last eluctirn, upon the ground that Mr. G. E. Shotticworth was not put in tunutostion by the Return ing Officer (the Lor.l Mayor) akkough duly proposed and seconded on that octasioay was taken into consider .. The Court migrated that witnesses Amnia be relied in support of the petition, awl the petitioners only king first :Omitted, Messrs. Weol, Wuithinan. and others, submitted that the ipvesti . *ition should he -,t7b lie, and that all the of NValbrepAr were entitle, to admission ; when, after a debate of nearly two hours, Ow Court was tlirAvii open. The Lord Mayor ordered the Petition to be read. It vi as of great length, and the substance of its allegations was as 1611.AVS:-- " That on the 21st of December last, the annual election ww: held at Salter's Hall, on which occasion the names of sixteen persons, among Whom were seven of the former Common Council, were returned by precinct to the Wardinote; and that, on a slimy of hands, as to such precinct, the said seven appeared to be re-elected ; and that upon the name of Mr. T. N. Williams to new Candidate), bring duly propmed and sccoreled, and another with him being merely rettinieal, the Petition er (Mr. B. Gibbons) proposed that his Lordship, in consequence of the pro c ee..dings, should adjourn the Meeting before the retort was deelar:ll; that his Lord. ship refused two to ski ; whereupon the Petitioner im mediately propo.,ed the name of E Shuttleworth, as one ut the Commou Conned of the Ward ; and that the said proposition was duly seconded by Mr. S. Smith, the other Petitioner. That his Lordship en quired of Mr. Shuttlewortle, whether, it he were elected, he would servo the office; and, being answer ed that he did not wish to do so, nor had he any de sire of roo:ring forward, the I.ord Mlut or refused to put hint its nomination. That the Petitioner, 11 Gibbons, insisted that he should be put in nomioation, urging that it was nut for hint to deride whether he should or shotild not be in the Common Council, and pledging iiiinsrif that if he was e!ected, he. would make hint serve. That the Lord Ntayor persisted in refusing to nut 11r. Shattletructh in nomination, not withstanding that hp immediately afterwards empi ired whether any other persona were to be nominated. That the Petitioner, Gihbobs, said he had a list of four other respr,o able persons to nominate, but it was IVie leAs to name them if his Lordship Avonitt only nomi nate whom :to pleased. That the situ! Petitioner then ad.ireased himself to the Lord Mayor, saying, Re ' member I demand a pall fur M r. Sinittleworth!• and that neverthele-s the eight persons returned by the precinct were sworn in before his Lordship. That the said G. E. Shuttleworth wi:s in every way lualitied to be one of th , . , outman Council of the Ward, and that he tees in feet a candidate, am? polied, in the year 1817, 37 votes That the Lord Miyor, sitting at the Wardinote as Retorting Oflicer, bad no right to tie tertnine who shot;hl or should not b proposed. for then it would nut he an election of the freemen and lautseholders of the %Vont, but of the Alderman him self,_cau:rary to the spirit of real franchise, and of the pre..‘pt for election in:11. The finally, the Peti tion mtpared the o ki. aof Common Councilman to the of Saeritt of 1.-ndon, or the Inonestman of a ‘Var,l, where the party chosen to sery • such offices arc left without any c,ptiou; and that by the nature their oath, upon being entailed as freemen, they Ale bAtltOt to serve, or subject theuv:elves to certain oun6inuents and penalties. Under all the circum stance!, the ptitionerg prayed that the Elation of the eight Co;.Lto:on Couneilm, ,t, as aticresaid, might be declared its tool void and a new one appointed." After the Petit Ou was real, the Court enquired if the Petitioner had any tl:ing to odd. Mr Oibbans rc lOLA in the aißramire. and entered into an illustra tion of the lie complained of the unt. - arratuable nvstis resorted to of calling a Wartimote on Monday to lisews the merits of hi: Petiiion, and prejuikin i g it the ay be ia.c. it was to ho aJitatod by the proper He 15'33 proceeding to cite cages where Coln man Cona,Arolen hail been eleeted and oboiged to serve . sophist th.:Or tetil ; !••i he v•as stopped by the Ro -1 corder, who said, the Cowl wanted its, nut argu. nr.mts, a Mt . • L 'limit 944.. Alderman *Waithman said, they should hear th• case first, and then the evidence. Sir J. Shaw was of Ow same oli lion. (P bons sail, ii, thone,la his case so clear that he did not einplty Cu , .:asel; ite 1.31, a right would have been insisted upon to state things more filly. an it would lint have b:en vial utcd. lic ~ neltoled asserting, that there never was a more illegal anti 1.•.- justifiable protteedin.4 than that of which he cmnit!;l: , • - el, nor a more glarLig attetupt to destroy dm frauehi.c of the City of Loat!on. Mr. J. Dawes, Mr. N. T. IA illiaros, enl'.• another, were pro.lueed us witnesses of the facts which took plaice on the day of electbu. The♦ all underwent a stet crosF...;:xamioation !)y several of the Aldermen. and loom panic/I:leg by the Lord Mayor hinoelf. Their t::stinv,iiy, IDr.vever, strongly bore out all the allegation) of the Petition, us to dim names of twn persons fur each pt.:Tina being mid over, from which one was returnel ; as to thc •,roposition of 'lr. Shut. tleworth, as a Counnon Ct.uncilinan, before' thc return of the e'<ht successful t'rintlidates had been declared ; amt the positive refusal of the Loth Mayor to put Lint in nomination. The Court Iva, then orcicred to be cleared ; when after a very long discussion, it was decided that the. Petition of Nlcssrs. Gibbons and Smith was folly Sub stantiated ; that the election of which they complained was null %mid ; and that a new election it;ioultl mcdiately take place. On Friday the Lord Mayor held another Court of 'Aldermen, for the general despatch of busi ness, at %%hie!' several Aldermen. the Sheriffs, end City Officers attended --'Twelve bars of gold w;•ig).- ing 2181 i winces, and 3.5 laws of silver, wei . :;;liinz ur_ wards of '211,4)00 ounces, were produced in Court, and sworn off for cspoitation.—A petition and mensoria: from the sworn brokers. relative to sundry recent re. .;.11ations, and fisr the adoption of measures :o protect them rights, was pre.ented, and ret'etred to committee of the whole Court, to consider and repura upon immediately.—The presentments the ‘Vard. mote lnques's of the sever4l Wards, as rethr.ted on Plough Ilotiday, of non-freeto , o, ruinous hoti,ei, &v. were road, an the oretNsztry st, ps be taken thereon.—The tf March next was appointed for 14!citsioe the viet'..alltal:, ..;lid prorepts dire-led to issue accordingly. An arousing report has crept into the Barhadoes pa pore, by the way, as it is said, of Martinique, vix, that. St. !Hera had been attacked, al,nl floonaparte rescued. We are not informed us to any partictshos respecting the tinier by which this gland exp:oit Was accomplished ; whence it had sailed, or how it wcs composed ; ur whether it betook itself aftetaur.l4. The Martinique intellipmw.:ays nothing as to the mode o f the attack ; whether it was by sea or or both _ . whether the garrii'on was beaten in the open field, o-; the British Admiral was sunk or caw s ureti; or whether ;he Ihmttp.atists came in the ni,ht. and caught Sir Hudson slapping. For all such interesting and velu. aide details WC must wait ;Nish as much p a tien ce a s t:,, 2 t admits of, in the hope that sonic otlwr Captain may, peradventure, arrive from Alartinipie ; or that a prcclamatiou by the great Napoleon may appe: r in due thrin, dated " trout our Palace at Lon,,. wood ;' and promisiny his faithfUl English, that thl! Imperial Eagle , shall "Hy frmn island to island, un it Cloy mist upon. the cross at St Paisl - s. The Bar? 3.• does Editor does, indeed, appear to !!e troubled with a twinge of incredulity on this subject ; inasmuch as he es-Emperor was sang in his birth on the 17th of AL. gust last, althoug:s a band Id worthies from theCharap d'Asyle had sworn to liblprate their patron. The silly rnmour.from Martinique, if it prove nothing, seems to countemince a belief; that some sort of project had been really its emrsemplation thr the escape of Buena. parte. That the cons2irators should boast of rirea.'y succeeding in an enterprise which they had not yet . tempted, is natural to that consummate arrogant. , throw). winch, in order to ! zoin a victory, their :cede.- lets more than once forgotten that it would be ilea': - fary to %lit a battle. ' Mr. Cullen, a ton-dealer in Dublin who was prosy. ritd on the charge of sailing spuriuts tea, after days' invc;tiption, has proved that the sporith.s leaves found among his stuck svere mei..o trout the India and consequently must st:thor Imvc-bcen ado!- ..crated itt Leadeohall.strect, or in Chino. • . 1 1 t•r 7.4 :14 gtt ,"Is :.