The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1819-03-05 00:00:00

DIVORCE.

The Ila Word Divorce Hill was read a ford tWie, and or-
dered to be ri ad a second time to-mortiosi fortnight.
INSOLVENT HEIITOHq.
Lord HOLLAN 7) presented a Petition from the Inhibi-
tauts of the Borough. of Southwark,. in Ciiimeon Hall as-
sembled, praying either that the Inalitweet D..1-tors Act be
suffered to expire, or, if renewed, beau aliened end amended,
to prevent Ore fraudulent debtor from ilefrauiliiig his
creditor. The Noble Lend said it was needless in him to to-
rtillas the House that his sentiments did tint 'concur with
those of the Petitioners, because be abould liars imme-
diately to prceeut another Petition of • directly contrary
tendency. He, however, so fair concurred a ith them, u• Ist
hope fur some improvements in what was c ty
called Lord Redeedule's Act, as it was probably in the re-
membrance of many Noble Lords who heard lour, Met tho-e
who promoted that measure among whom he had the
honour of enrolling himself, did ever C AV it as a math r
of experimeal, in which subsequent experience must be
expected to produce great improvements. The Petit
which he now offered tie the attention of the House, aas
judiciously and lempeiately expressed, and tindontiteilly
meriteePtlie utmost attention of their Lordships. The Pc.
Hues being read,
Lord HOLLA D again rose, and presented a Petition froth
certain Prisoueis confined in Isis Mrieety's gaol of
in Somersetshire, for debt, praying that the Insolvent
Debtors' Act be nut suffered to expire.—Laid on the table_
. _ .

The Noble Lord also presented a Petition front the lithe-
bumnts of the Ward of Aldgate, against the renewal of the
Insolvent Debtors Oct. Oa presenting this Petition, here-
marked, that even were the wisheiuf the Pr' limo( .4 nlitaiso
in that the Act should nut he revived, they wirrild be stirl
far distant from th► ultimate object of thrir pruyer, namely,
that fraidedeat debtors might nut escape from their cs ells-
tore.—The Petition was laid we the table.
CONVENTION WITH THE UNITED STATES.

The Earl of DAR:ILLY inquired irlteihrr it wag mit nded
to Isy before the House the reeeut Conventiun cuucluded
between Great Britain and the limited States of North Muf-
fin?

The Earl of Ltuatroot. replied, that oo time shuuld be
foot is presenting it to the House.

' SLAVES IN I'IIE WEST INDIES.

Lord Herii.eito rose, in pursursice of his notice,
to muse for certain papers relating to the state of
the /blames in the British West huh* leletias, IN
which he anticipated no objection. They consisted
of the Acts paved in the several Colonial Legisla-
tures, for rarrystig into execution the suggestions
contained in the Address presented be their Lord.
slops to the Crown in the year 0316, respecting
the negro population. But although he cool.' In.e
suppose that the papers would be refused, I e sheultt
trespass so far on their Lordships' indulge ce, u to
say a few words respecting the three.fuld objeet of
that Address. and the ineasures adopted for carry.
tog it into e&ci. That Address hail been closed
by certain unhappy events which had ui.corred iu
the Island of Barbadoes, in consequence, as it vial,
supposed, of certain delusions and hopes
in %loch the negroes had i!idulgerl, and which it
W 11.4 thought expedient by the Ilouse to dn.
countenance end remove. Fer that purpose lie
proposed the Address, aid had the lizippioriw, of
seeing it receive their I.cii &hips' fullest concurrence.
The Address likewise prated the Executive Audio.
toy to exercise its ii.fluence with the Colonial Le-
guidelines to induce them to adopt ineiirorea fee the
purpose of effectually preventing the illicit nu..
port:num of slaves, end for eucourogiog avid pro.
mono,' the general improvement of the riegrors.
Hehad the happiness of believing that those Or.
lusions and hopeti alluded to, bad altogether soh.

sided as 000 ng the slaves ; and •a it was a satisfoiliii
at all baits to !sins to give praise "where be thotiAlst
it merited, Ire shoold add that this happy result was
produced by the judicious, temperate., yet firm weirs
cures of his Majesty's Government, sod of the lo-
cal administratisnas in the Colonies. Ir was also
highly gratifying to think that the strict enforcement
of the Abolition Law, of which no good or hoot.' malt
could now be found either in the Mother CLUiiiry
Or the Colonies to speak, except in terms of it •:Jr(t
and admiration, was carried into tiftCt no: sa•lr
with alacrity and cheerfulness, but eve a with a z,.dl
and earnestriess that merited the highest. assionkr-
lion. All the Colonial Legislatures had passed Re-
gistry Acts, which, whatever may be their &title's-
ctes, have stone that can be attributed to a want of
sliscerty. Those measures were crowned with sue-
cese, for he could with confidence affirm, although
his information had tries eirce chiefly to the stupor.
trust and flourishing colony of Jamaica. tins( since
the year 1816, and lie might say with respect to
Jamaica many years before it, nut olle Platt lutist hero
illegally imported. So far. therefaie, the papers fur
which lie should move would be highly sataitcrury.
IVith respect to the religious improvement of the
ignrgoe,
the
although the het:gels:ll:i
uWraes noto
s.
at t equally 1
of
Jamaica, hati not been unmindful of the subject.
—Those who made pecuniary sacrifices towincla
its li u
firt
the attainment of their object, prove at least sin.
cerly in the put suit, and such was an Act of the

Agsenthlies of Jamaica. whereby 20 Curates we're
appointed with salaries or 3001. currency ; but ii is
tout being considered sufficient to mince resprcht-
hle Clergymeri ot• the Church of En0...1 io pro.
ed thither, the Hower of Assert)lnv nrocceded
to
iss u 13iI1, lucre:smug this stiproul to 5011/ rurrency.

to this *object he could not refrain Isom stating.
:not while the Colonial Lego,loughs displayed
•ooelo seal and anxiety to obtain the means of
ems hist t uction for their le Roses, the Es-
hntrut uf the Church of Eloglai d seemed
• remiss. He of course could nut he wider..
to divert this isuput otion against the Right
Reverend Prelote (the Bishop of London), who
lid ever evinced a motet laudable earnestssesso
in
promoting the means of religume instruction ; boot
it saes vertain that larger impends were required by'
professor- of the Cliorch of England, to Mauve
Oren to becoone than by persons of
other ,Neci,. It way to he lamented that lawy should
eta,-t in the Colonies that tended to prevent the all-
Itesei,os of persons of other PeCtii, and threw too
extvonsive it power into the bends of the (lovernots,
for restioneing the freedom of religious worship. It
was but four to add, that, with the exception of one
seet, these laws were temperately enforced, and might
tedeed, with the exception already stated, be regard-
est 40'11,14 as Brad hotels. Their very txtidesice, how-
ever, otiottio hare' posier of deterring, and therefore
it woo to be lamented. Some sent of -encouragement
"howls! Ire held oust to persons of inch previous
leoloits ut as Would not hesitate to become fa-
ieloar with the feelings, habits, and prejudices of
the iwgroes, and who would, therefore, be most
bkely to address iheesselres with advantage to their
stilderetendiog. There was one sect, which had
:.new' a very marked eeol in the diffusion of Chrts-
fiats knowledge, he meat the erct of the Moravian
Urethren, which lie wished was more distinctly
encenreged by the Colonial Asseintolies; lie could
wish that the Moravian Brethren were made sub. •
sisliary to the Church of I".itgland, as the Dissenters
as re to the Church of Seoteird, who had exerted
themselves w.tli such distiegulshed 'Merest% in the
lambert parts of the American Colotimed. With
respect to the third object of the Address, namely,
improvement of the state the slaves, it could
*weer Ile Ins-witted that their Lordshirs linsl con-
fined themselves solely to a regard for the mere
support and clothing of the negrues. These were,
or. doubt, of great importance; hut with them it
war •cessary for the Home to interfere, as they
might well be left to the Colonial Legislatures.
who snub), of course, feel interested in attending
to these points. The object of the Address was,
that the religious sod moral condition of the slaves
might be Unproved. He had conversed with litany
enlightened colonists residing in this country, and
It was their unanimous opinion, confirming his
own MIMI the subject, that the uneatorul supply
of labour having erased by the Abolitani Lew, tee
existing slaves were thereby placed in a situation
requit log great improvement in their civil cowls-
Ors this subject a plan had passed through
his head, which, however, was not sufficiently wa-
tered to be Matra to tht Ilouse, lost of whirls
hr begged leave to slate the principle, as, to
his siew of it, It coilililited the three (objects
01. their Lorroiships' Asklietr. The registry, it
linty he recollected, was always regarded by
the fowls& of the abolition as the important
11).../.1111 of tutoring it. 'llw registry contained
MI at I'olllli of the noirolwr of slaves soul of their
Mgrs; tout to these he should recommend the atl.h.
ti:m of Ilir smoother of o.e.,:tors who had been hap-
sisvot, 141111 tlir pro,:sers of their religious notryle-
tkok. lr was Oleo his object, that en snug as in the
of the Rector, Cur de, mud other c privet
prisons, ally slave should Imre acquired sufficient
tv.iowlesl4e in the nature of Cluirdisit duties, and of
hoe el-sheet of an oath, lie skunk' be alittlittr4l
to got . vith•itee ill n Court of Justice. It must
ni.netr 11l 11 t Ir Lord-hips that alien members of the
Church required large temporal in-
slucemestis to tempt slits.o to undertake the (Art
..f Cbnstian illoisitolioieri it would not be inadvisa-
ble to extend smile is tupreal ituduremeist to I lie too.
enlightened isegro, that he might Ise ilochised to
engineer the tenets of Choistiaility, and steely its
doctrines. It was desirable that some Penefitel dot-
shtnild How 110111 their eXertions, soul how.
rail' laden alai degraded the Ilygio was in the stale
or I malty, their teas use person with whom even
a irifloug personial dosuuctio., had a stronger influ-
ence That this distinction should come through
the mowers was all ativatatagr, as it would tesid to
dispel the deliesioni that oust usihapisily prevailed
g the iirgruer. that their niasters, in (sr( )))))
teg tiiiir religious instruction, were isofluttocral
9.4.110.1 by a regard to their own interests. 11 return*
here irgularly made of the progress made so this
respect among the slaves, he thought it might tit-
list on the aide of humanity and policy the lion. st
'sooty of the 'dottier, who In such a county would
put wish that his estate Contained freer firliglitti.etl
ue..roes that, that of another.. lit iintsentg Ibtlt plan
to their Lordships he slid not &Hie that they
should adopt any poet of it, fur in his 'mind a Bro.
tikii House of Parliament was out the most looter
place for entertaining such a question. Ile hoped
in God that the time would never arise when they
should have to disc's** what were the rights of a
British Parliament and what of a Colonial Legisla-
ture ; but of this he was convinced, that nothing
short sit absolute necessity should ever indoce them
to pursue mra-Ores, however salutary. which might
wish equal pro/suety he left with the Colossi:II A.-
hear.)—The Noble Lool,
tiller a few rfirllWT lIIINCIVAINIIe tot the
of throwing out buggestiour in pi.-elice of those
whose office might enable them, it worthy of
attention, to give them effect, concluded by
moving au humble Address to the Prince
Rt-
gent bur coulee of all Acts posed by the Colonial
Legisluture, in isureuatice of their Lordahipe' Ad-
area. In the Crown in the year 1y 16.
Earl fleiliunsT ruse, not to object to the motion,
hat to offer a few explanations which the silt tell of
toe Noble Lord rendered necessary ; and, first, be
'begged leper to return his lint thanks to the Noble
'Lord for the judgment and moderation of exores-
emu anti which he had iistroducerl the ,inject to
the 14outwe With respect to the Colonial
1,,r,... ebe Noble Lord and his b Wilds might think
them tardy, while they, 1111 the Other hand. Magill
think ihor momenta 11110'Llilelii, 11114 probably
this of on aright not br very. Iticotrret. The
Address of lee House, lie the Noble Lord statvd,
bad origiusted ill the excesses COllllllltted in the

island of Robsdoes, where the negroes were taught
to believe that they hail all bten ennuicipated by
the route Regent or the Narlitionelit. The regis-
try required by that Address had lore:, adulated
all the islands. tl oh not in precisely the terms
sterol by the Bill which Rata heels introduced tai the
House of C . The sevetal Bigotry Acts
also differed in solar instances Irons each other, hut
in 'lone of them (...uld any want of zeal or bia.cerity
be discerned. l'he Bill here had declared that all
slaves not registered should be ipso fiat° made tree,
loot in s lI the Colonies it w,is thought Inure advis-
able to follow the poinciple laid down with regard
to the tiestonetot of slaves claiitlestiiiely impoo tea,
161111 1111tiog apprenticed those omitted from the re-
wooly for seven years, then ti) make !limn free. Ile
esid it was his 9644 for the purpose of rendering
a strict ollserviiiite of the Regis' ry At is absolutely
necessary, that a law should be passed here, by
which all mortgages of estates, &e. to the West
negoctated in this country, t;hould be
declared illegal, if made general, without a specifi-
cation of the number of slaves on the estate, de-
. scribing accurately their ages and persons; and
oleo, that in all eases where slaves were omitted
front this annexed registty, such slaves should not
be considered as transferred. A BM to this effect
will shortly be I ght into she House of Com-
mons. To prove the zeal of the Legislature of Ja-
- 11141411, in the proiuuUml of Christimt knowledge,
he alluded to ass Act, granting to Curates 500!. a
year; and to esciise ilie Established Church fiiiin
the charge of indifference, he stated, that by the
Callon Low no) Bishop could ordain a person, 11111..
less for the purpose of immediately filling a vacancy,
anal that Bishops were prevented from ordaining
persons who described themselves as intruded for
colonial service, from the nopossibtlity there existed
of obis' • g any sectiiity room the persons to or-
(hoisted, that they would inimeoliately 'proceed to
the Colonies, or on distaste return. lie paid is
compliment to the seal of the Bishop of Loudon, but
folded, that the Bishop or London had no more
croutexion with the West Indies. than uny other
of the fieverend Prelates on the Bench. With re-
regard to the scheme of the Noble Lord for pro-
motiog religious iostruction, he should say nothing.
Much might be done by giving instructions to the
Clergy, but tie did toot conceive it advisable to pro-
ceed at once to give all the negroes, indiscriun-
tritely, the advantages of education; this should
he done gradually, by selecting • certain number
of children. To ascertain the progress of Chris-
than knowledge, he had sent a circular letter tome
time since to tile Governors of the several islands,
by which he required an account of the number of
parishes, the churches, the ouniber of persons bap-
-1
toed, the fees paid on baptism of negroes, and by
I whom, and the returns he should lay before the
House. They would, he doubted not, prove highly
satisfactory.
The Bishop of LONDON felt himself called upon
to make sonic obseovati 111 l s. in cousequelice of what
fell hoots the Noble Lord, who had brought this
subject so tenoproiitcly and judiciously before their
Lordships. He could not avoid expiessing his ac.
knowledgments for the favourable terms iu which
he had been noticed, mod he could assure the Noble
Lord, that he did bun only justice ito attributing
to him au rattiest desire to promote cm all of:ca-
sinos, as far as in liim lay, the extensiou of Chris.
Dan knowledge. tie, however, could nut ogees
with the Noble Lord in esery thing that had fallen
from him, arid he could nut but think him over-
hasty in concluding, that because little had hitherto
been dour by the Members of the Church of Rap
land, the Church should have recourse to the es-
.i.tanee of other sectaries. Hitherto the Church of
England had no means of educating the negroes,
or of' isteressing the Humber of Clergymen. He
Own noticed the Act of the Jamaica Legislature.
granting to twenty Curates 300/. a year currency,
or about SlOl. sterling. arsd which, on his suggess
tion of its inadequacy to support • Geastleman, was
afterwards raised to 300/. currency, or 36W. stir-
, hog. Tsar only means hitherto possessed of ex-
tending religious instructiou was by means of a
chartered Society, founded to administer a property
Irlt by a Mr. Boyle fur that purpose, and two
Clergymen and Schoolmaster* were appointed by
that Society. The Rev. Prelate then gated at
sonic length his desire to promote the instroction
of Ow negroes, and complimeuted his Majesty's
Ministers on the willingness they had ever muted
to hitters to his suggestions, and correct every error
pointed out to their attention,.
Lord HOLLAND, in explanation, said that he
had 'audition-41 from giving any opinion upon the
propriety of admitting u.grors generally to give cvi-
den. e, and merely repeated whit Ise had heard from
others respecting the necessity of giving the slaves
Will religious instruction before they could enjoy
that slistioction.-1 he question wee then cariied.
('OA I. DUTIES.

The Martinis of Latesou*n presented a Petition from
certain individuals against any uneasier, fur equalising the
Duties ton Coals. Thit: Pttition was similar to one which
bowl been offend In the Mouse on $ former evening by his
Noble Friend (Lord Granville) and which was then with-
drawn, (runs in opini )))) that ouch a Petition haring refer.
t ion to a subject nut before the House, and that subject re.
biting to taxation, conbl not he reicired, according to the
rftnbllOVll USIVICC of Parliament. Much stress was then
laid on the practice of the other house of Parliament ; but
he had since banned that in the Hunve of Comnsoua Peti-
t' were received against any measure, excepting agaiust
a Tax Hi • Actually pending. The reason fur this was ohr/b..
stars—hat Representatives might he directed front the true
interests of the cuointry, by too peat s deferetsaa Is the
Weal IlitcreOlt of partiesslar places.
The Petition win Own send. anti lag on Ihe table.
Lunt tiltAXIlll4.l.: presented the Petition MIS the &wet
of wow., so she Como y of York, which had beats previously
a iihdrawll, and which now, after a few whearvations frees the
Earl of tiltaftrabory, the Marquis of lamidowts, Lord Mel-
litus!, and Earl Hasruwby, was received, and laid on the
table
During the conversation on this Patitiee, Lord GRAN-
twat expressed his satisfaction et learaiag that Ministers
not only did unt mean to prepare aay altaratioe in Ilse pre-
sent Coal Duties Inn sere sesuleed se oppose every rope-
sitinu having that object
The Hume then adjourned.