The Newhampshire gazetteer — Exeter, N.H., 1791-01-22 00:00:00, page 1

Newhampfhire
Extraa of a letter from a gentleman,in Cape-
Francois to the Printer, hereof. Nov. 3.
" rT"IHE leader of the mulattoes is
a person who, some time
since, for some seditious prac
tices in the vicinity of Port-au-prince.
was condemned to be broke on the wheel,
but escaped to the Continent. His name
is Oja,, and accounted an ambitious vil,
lain. About 14 days since, he arrived
here in a vessel from North-Carolina,com
manded by a Captain Brown, who con
cealed them till after he entered his vessel,
and then put Oja, on shore at Petit-Ance,
a little village about 2 miles to the foutn
caft of this city. The Captain was soon
after seized, imprisoned, and his vessel
and cargo confifcated, and it is said him
felf will lose his life.— Oja, brought with
him a quantity of arms and amunition—
and immediately set about cclleXing the
free mulattoes. In a few days he had
an army of near 3000 of that description,
and intrenched himfelf very Wrongly at a
place called Lemonad,about 12 or 15 mile#
from this. On Thursday last, an express
from the head quarters of the municipality
arrived with an account of these proceed
ings. The city was much alarmed, and
immediately the whole town was under
arms. —Fifteen hundred vuluuteers were
orderd to march, and that evening & the
next morning they all set out. Every day
but the firft some Ikirmifhes between the
parties has happened, without any advan
tages being gained till Monday, when a
severe engagement took place, and the
mulattoes dislodged from their intrench
ments ; but the fame day took po(Tedion
again, in spite of the exertion of Gerieral
Vincent, who is a brave and experienced
ioldier. I do not learn the number of kii
led & wounded, but it is certain that Oja,
was wounded, and his horse killed under
him. Yesterday 30 mulattoes, prison
ers, were lodged in the prison of this
pla<: e -\
gc A reward of five hundred joes was
offered foaOjaj's head,, after he escaped
from Port-au-prince, which has been since
continued. A day or two ago he had the
impudence to issue his proclamation, of
fering a reward of fifty Joes for our
commander's head, and go dollars a piece
for the head of every volunteer which may
betaken by them-.,
"On Sunday the Assembly received a
letter from the rebel Chief, in which was
inclofed a minature of himfelf. In,his let
ter, he mentioned, that he sent this mini
ature in case any one should offer to them
any other head instead of his own, and to
prevent the cheat._
" Oja, has been, if he is not flow very
rich, as many of his party are likewise—
They claim a right of a feat in the Legis
lature, and of holding offices in the civil
government, which it is asserted would
be a very dangerous step, because of their
number, which is very great, and would
put the balance of power into her hands.
They found their claim on a decree of the
National Assembly of France, who have
declared that all men are not only free, but
equal, and have a right to the. fame privi
leges. This, Sir, is the ground of the
present troubles, and when they will end
GOD knows."
DECEMBER I&
Extraa of a liter from C. Francois; of the
6th and Sth Nov. to the Printer hereof.
" IN my last, I mentioned that the
Assembly had advised the Editor of La
Gazette du four to forbear publishing any
thing concerning the infurreftion here,
which indeed was true ; but I was not
then apprised of the true motives of the
Assembly. It appears that a majority
of that House are Arifocrats, and have
consequently passed an edid, prohibiting
the publishing the grounds and progress
of the revolution, or any thing concerning
it. This Edift you will fee in the Ga
zette of to-day.—There are but few here
who relish it regarding it merely as if
a cock bad crowed.
From the Independent Gazetteer, printed at
Philadelphia by E. Oswald.
SATURDAY, January 22, 1791.]
WEST-INDIA TROUBLES.
EXET E R, (Ne'w-HampJhire) Printed and Publilhed by HENRY RANLET, at Nine .Shillings per annum.
opinions that at prclent divide the colony,
with refpeft to the decrees of the Na
tional Afembly of the Bth and 28th of
M^rch : ~ .
Confideringa that in contempt of that
decree, so necessary for public tranquility,
some seditious writers, now in an open, and
now in an obscure and allegorical manner,
blow up the flames of discord, and Sacri
ficing the public good to the meanest views,
continually endeavor to inflame the minds
of the people:,-
Considering farther,that the fundamen
tal basis of the moral constitution of St.
Domingo, isabfolutely different from that
of the rest of the kingdom,, and that the
least ihock given to that basis by ridiculous
and imprudent discussions may occafon
the most dreadful disorders and expose the
public fafety : .
And also considering, that when the N.
Assembly did decree in favour of the pro
pagation of ufeful knowledge, the liberty of
the rtfs, they did not mean to authorife its
licencioufnefs, especially when that licence
tends to the subversion of public order,
which local conveniency makes it indispen
sably necessary to preserve :
It is therefore decreed, That every citi
zen, journalist, printer and bookfcller of
the Province, be, and is prohibited from
composing, printing, felling, distributing
or publishing any writing whatsoever on
the infurre&ion of the people of colour and
the causes thereof; and likewise, all wri
ters are expressly forbid all dissertations on
the different principles that have been
established by the several Assemblies of the
colo,y,and all observations on the Nation
al Decrees of the Bth & 28th of March last,
under the penalties expressed in the,decree
of the zzd of Odober last, the execution
of which is hereby again expressly en
joined. 1
It is further ordered, that the present
decree (ha,ll be printed,publifhed and pall
ed up in all the towns,boroughs and parish
es. of the Province, and notified by the
Officers of Police to all Booksellers and
printers, that they may conform thereto,
Signed, ,
Chefneau de la Megriere, PreJident.
Bouyffon, 7
Blanchard, > Secretaries.
-Paquot, j
- After publishing the above Decree, the
French printer continues as follows :
After reading this Decree, the indul
gent reader will not require of us exerti
ons above our strength ; we cannot at once
speak and be silent, We are willing to
believe, that local convenient, compels us to
silence ; but local urgent, requires also that
we should propose a course of politics in a
country where that, feience is in its in
, fancy—We will not pretend to give lec
tures to the public, which we, stand our
selves most in need of ; but we shall felea
;the best political maxims from the best au
thors that have written on the fubjed,and
by that means they may perhaps be read
and known-—ls we ,should be fuccefaful,
then man will know himfelf.
Alas! we want much reading !!! *
'' Since writing my letter of the 6th,
the infurredion of the Mulattoes has nearly
been put to an end; and yesterday the
greater part of the volunteers returned,
having left a few to watch the motions of
the few remaining rebels, who are about
400, the rest having dispersed, and with
them their leader, whose name is Oge, not
Ojay, as I before wrote it, who has fled
to St. Jago, in the. Spanish part of the
island. Thus has a dahgerons infurrectiari
been qadl©4 by the spirited exertions of
the volunteers." : ,
Translated for the Independent Gazetteer,
from La Gazette du Jour, a daily paper
published at Cape-Francois by L'Honorey
Dabuiffon and Co. 6th Nov. 1790.
In the Provincial Assembly of the North
ern part of the island of St. Domingo,
November 3d, 1790, ; .
THE Assembly considering. that the
object of the civic oath, decreed on the
zzd of October last, and taken by all the
citizens in a body, on the 24th.following is
to bind all evil-minded pprfons, and com,
pel them to wait peaceably and in filenee
for the determination of the nation on the
✓Qtf^™fi^
THE
Yesterday about 11 o'clock, A. M. the
army returned to the city, except the re
gular troops and a corps of free men of
colour. Why must a fatal policy fetter
even our gratitude ; why are we forbid to
give a detail of fads, where the names of
T, L, C, P, D, G, &c. &c. would shine
confpicuouly? As many names perhaps
as there are regular and patriotic soldiers?
And if we, are not permitted to expatiate
on their aaions, what would fignify the
names of those zealous defenders of their
country ; of that ardent youth, who have
suddenly passed from the effeminacy of a
Creolian life, to the activity of Roman
heroes ?—Bus policy which knows every
thing, is always in the right, and we must
fay with the good Panglofs, that all is for
the bes, in this best of all pofible worlds.
: '; Cape-Francois, Nov. 3..
La Chalotais (an eminent French po
litical writer, formerly President of the
Parliament of Brittany) has said: " Not
to be master of one's property, is to be a
slave : not to have the freedom of one's
person, is the hardest Slavery that the
world knows of. This lass stage ,of human
debasement ,supposes ,the last stage of def
potifm.'' What Shall, we then fay of a
thinking, being, who is not permitted to
speak? What denomination flhall wegive
to him who fetters the thoughts of a free
born mao, who makes him appear sediti
ous in the eyes of the multitude and covers
his owncriminal designs py impeaching
them by whom he was himfelf on the
point of being impeached ?- Nothing
is eafiel than to impose on the minds of
the vulgar by the great words patriothm,
liberty,; tranquility, public fafety ; nothing
is so coffimon as, the use of those words,
and consequently nothing so rare as true
liberty.^
From.fear to fear, fays;the Abbe Rou-
BEAU,aII your liberties will be annihilated
—and, at last, your exigence. This day
you will fetter my hands, to-morrow you
will tie up my tongue, and the next day
I Shall be no more „
An inflance of thist This morning it
was in agitation, whether the .Editor
fliould not be publicly reprimanded for
having spoken of the decrees of the Sth
and 28th of March 0! Roubeau!
. .The Provincial Assembly of the North
have pronounced a judgment that does
them honor. One Larcheveque, charged
with seditious language, has been carried to
prifop, to be frtyn thence conveyed to
France, without form of process. We have
seen with fatisfa&ion several members
rife in his defence, and especially those
who had.been most abused by his speeches.
—Humanity is so much the more indebted
to them for this generousaaion that they
had to combat in the cause of liberty, ab
jured all connection with it. Alas !is it
then written, that we (hall forever remain
ignorant of that wife maxim of the great
AIFRED, thatjuflice ought to be brought to
ewer, man's door. ;
? M. Larcheveque was only reprimanded
at the bar * * * * *
,From the above extraas.it appears,
that the inhabitants of St. Domingo, in
order to. secure the Jlaver, of the Blacks,
have destroyed the liberty of the Whites.
Here,is a new field for the observations
of the philosophers and friends to human
ity. If it be true, as the experience of
the inhabitants of St. Domingo seems to
evidence, that the slavery of a large part
of society must of course destroy the liber
ties of the remainder, the people of the
United State ought to make the most seri
ous reflexions on this important fuXjeX,
Yesterday several addresses .were pre,
fented, of, which we know the contents,
but are forbid to reveal !- t
An fcdrefs privately read, and imme
diatelyireferred to the secret committee.
The next paper, Bth Nov. as follows :
CAPE-FRANCOIS.
Provincial Assembly of the North,
{ NOTHING!
In the next paper, of Nov. 7, the arti
cles under the Cape-Francois head are as
follows:
CAPE-FRANCOIS: ;..
Provincial Assembly of the North.
Gazetteer.
[Numb. 25 of Volume—s.
Extrema of a letter from Aux-Cayes, to a
gentleman in New-London, dated, No
vember 23.
r/' The National Assembly of France
gave the Mullattoes a right of represen
tation equal with the white people, which
the whites are determined flhall not be the
case; and exped their representatives,
that went home from St. Mark's, &c. will
have the decree revoked. The Mulattoes^
on their part, fay they are Frenchmen and
have a right to every privilege of French
men ; and feerc determined ?o have their
own way by force of arms. They were to
have struck thro' the whole Island at ouce,
but failed in that, and I believe are quel
led pretty much, except here, and here
they cannot Band it long, as there is
daily expefled a number of troops from
Port-au-Prince. They are about 700
strong here, gad well fortified in a moun
tain about fix leagues from this. The
whites are encamped on the plain near
them, have made one attempt to florm
their works, but were repulsed with the
loss of several killed and the general, or
commander, and several others woundeq
—the white people keep the bloody flag
displayed. You can eafify conceive that
buficefs must be very much interrupted,
when the planters are in fear, of their
plantations,being de^royed in a moment ;
however,, this day we are informed that
they have sent in for a pardon ; the an*
fwer is, there is no pardon for thetn
as their case is desperate, it is probable
they will fight desperately to make
their efcapp. Some of them are men
of property —their heads or chiefs, will
have no mercy given them."
" The conversations of this place now
is, the contents of La Gazette du Jour,
which I herewith enclose to you it con
tains some severe ftriXures on theproceed
ings and sentiments of the Assembly of
this diftri&, which is called the North.
In consequence of this freedom, they have
made an attempt to curb the licenciovs
pen : but at present, it has no effect.
The parties here are considerably em
broiled; and many of the volunteers
have declared that, should he (Mr. Du
buiffon the Editor of the paper) be treated
as despots and arbitrary Judges ever treat
men of his sentiments, they will unfheath
their (words and return them not to the
scabbard, until they are amply revenged."
Further extraasfrom La Gazette du Jour,
publijhed at Cape-Francois.
December 2s.
Extras of a letter from a gentleman in Caph
Francois to the Printer hereof, dated No
member Ig.
: "My last contained a &etch of the
tranfaftions of the volunteers from this
town and its vicinity, and the mulattoes,
to that date. The fame day an account
arrived that in a few days after, Oge had
fled, he was delivered up to the officers of
this government by the Spanish Governor
°' §fyj ß g°b where he had takfip refuge.
Be'is expected in town every day, toge
ther with a number of the principals of the
revolt. His life, with those of a number
of his fellow prisoners, it is said, will pay
the forfeit of their temerity.
" Yesterday the remainder of the troops
returned from the , expedition : consequent
ly the troubles from this source may well
be said to be at an end.
THE 'Editor has favoured us with fev
veral of his,papers ; from which it ap
pears, that M. Dubuiffon, on account of
some of the paragraphs translated in our
last, had been summoned to appear at the
bar of the Provincial Assembly of the North,
where, having offered to speak in his
defence, he was silenced and ordered to
withdraw. Os these proceedings he ( gave
a narrative in his paper, of the loth o-
November, and a particular paragraph of
his publication having given frefh of
fence, the matter was taken up in the.
Assembly of the iith. We have not re
ceived the paper of the loth of Novem
ber, that contains the whole of the ob
noxious publication, but we have the
Gazette of the izih, which contains the
PHILADELPHIA, DEC. 2fo ;