The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1821-06-02 00:00:00

HOUSE OF COMMONS, FRIDAY, Just 1.

Sir DUN DAS presented a Petition front the Guild
of Merchants in Edoibergh, against the Extra Pu►t
Ordered so he ou the table.
The Irish luland Navigation Bill was read the third lime,
and passed.
A. HAMILTON presented a Petition from the
Borges's' of Edinburgh, complaining of the conduct of the
goatrumrus of the but eb.—Oidered so lie on the table.
On the isuiloil of Mr. C. GRANT live Huu►e went into
• Cusewillee on the Irish Public Coal-laid Rill —The Re-
port was ordered to be received on Monday next.
Mr. BUXTON gave nosier, that, un the 14th J•se, he
should wove fur copies of the Corrnpoudeuee betwess the

Pram the colonies its which they lived. If he wese called on
to give an °Maims be stimuli, say, that, generally speaking,
they should Lot. The Host. Gilalemon concluded by mum
icy. Owl the Bill be read this day three mouths.
Mr. CA LCRA FT said, lie shirttail support the measure, fur
the purpose of introducing the quration before the tribunal,
where its merits could be properly ascertained. The motion
of his llou. Friend was merely to appoint a Committee up
stain., for the purpose of examining whether the measure
should pass into a law; and if the House rejected the proms-
, 'ldiom the consequences to those unfortunnte persona might
be dreadful. The only mimeo: to which lie should pledge
himself was, that a Committee should be appointed, in order
to ascertain whether the measure was practicable or nut.
Dr. PH ILLI MORE supported the amendment. It was
not the humanity or benevolence or Me. Maxwell the House
should consider, hat abettor it were wise principle to open
the dour to the practice of transporting slaves from the
island in whirls they were born to some foreign poesession
where it would be inure Is the advantage of their master.
This system wrouhtiiperrite against the benevolent principle
on which they had heretofore acted, fur it would locum*
their value, while it was univeisally admitted that it was lit
the redueltan of their value they were ultimately to *IS-
-
fur their WWI disfranehlusnent. >wi
Mr. WILBERFORCE said, the more he considered' the
gm-sawn, the more and mole impostant it appeared le him.
The idea oftransplasit lug to foreigu country three hundred
human beings from the country of their birth, to which they
bad been united by so many iliousnusl tits carried something
on the fare of it, sevoliing to all the best frelings of our
hear)—Beside• the Honer were to consider
the extreme difference between the tsar) places. la
the Island of Antigua thr se persons were conspara-
tea ly happy. The climate was far more healthy, their com-
forts were wore numerous. Besides, the House should bear
in mind the different state of society that existed. In the
island of Antigua, slaves wire admitted as evidence in a
Court of Justice, and they had votes at elections. All these
rolvatitagre Bien this measure killed to remove. If ever
there were a Prienoe Biel that Jeseeerd the name or a public
one, it was this, which affected so vitally the lives and lisp.
piness of so why human beings. Would the House then
consent to transplant these ittilividuals into a foreign clime,
la lime nothing but the gloomy psonpect i.f slavery swelled
them, and all hopes of emancipation were at an cod.? But
there was one cousideratiou more important than all the
rest. In the Island of Demerara, the Moravian religion
prevailtil very gEcerally.They were plunged into the grimiest
superstition. The odious soiree-stilton of Obi possessed el-
most universal away over their minds, which happily had been
banished from Antigua by the toil,' and beneficent spirit of
Cluialisnity. The institution of marriage too, which under
the blessings of Chi istianity tended more than any other to
the happoires of mankind, was unknown in Demerara. In
Antigua, the mural condition of the slaves was far superior
to that its the island to which the ',epeeist • proposed
to unitive 'limn. Althoneh the bright sun of Christianity
had nut yet appeared in its full splesolour, yet the faint rays
whir bit shed tlluuuuel their MIMIC, and dispelled the mists
of iguorauce iu which they were enveloped.—(l/ear, hear.)
Would the House the° give its unction to a use which
drove them from this dawning happiness to a place where
all was 'airbus+ and despair? On a former occasion they
had declined to interfere in the eolouial legislation; stud
*wild they now violate this principle, and interfere in a
manner w Welt would diminish the comforts and bappinees
of those unfortunate slaves. This iisterfercuee would be at
war wish all the first principles ofjostice.
The Marquis of LONDONDERRY expressed his sur-
pi lie at the application now under the consideration of the
Rouse. fie laniesioal that it could in any degree have been
justified on the ground of precedent. The roily fair question
be foe the House was, *hi titer on the principle of its being
legal and proper to allow the transferring of slaves from
island to island, it was Equally proper to allow that 'tauter
from insular to cuutioental colonies. If the affirmative of
that position were to be established, the advantage, whatever
it might be, ought to be emended to every island in the
West Indies. In his opinion to open the fell& lauds of the
South American Contitient to the truster of the West huhu
slaves would lead to the entire depopulation of the islands;
mew the Hun. and Learned Mover was prepared to take
up this measure or) the geueral principle, he would 1.31,C nu
arlioud for his particular ease. Mr. Maxwell bad an estate
iu Gienaila, why did he nut apply fur the trausfer of the
slaves to that estate I He applied to the House on the dry
principle of col *al speculation alone.
Sir .1. MAC( I NTOSH wee sorry dissent from Lin re-
spectable Friends, but he was compelled to state the reasons
OpOU *lnch he. was about to vote. The arguments of Isis
rcspertAlplc and %curable Friend near him, humane and elo-
quent as they wese, hail no applicatiott to the case. The
transfer and slisuniuts of this family of sieves (for such they
had been constituted through the mild and merciful treat-
Ulf tit of their owner). was not the matter its question. That
right Mr. Maxwell fully possessed by the law as it then
stood. Mr. Maxwell could nut cultivate his estates iu Asi-
liana without immedsate rosin. Ile must there dispose of his
Ames if not allowed to transit r them to ass estate which
would make their labour sufficiently profitable to maintain
them. The fair question therefore was, whether it would be
mime humane to transfer thew to an estate of his own, or leave
them to be disposed of IV the chances of traffic elsould de-
WI mita., He latrouted that Mr. Maxwell's zeal for the prin-
ciple of abolitiou should have laid him open to such re-
mark. as liad been applied to him. He blamed not his Hon.
and Venerable F. tend near boa; it was a cruel fatality be-
longing to the eubjeet which they were discussing. It bad
been argsall that thus Demerara laws were more harsh than
those of Asoligus. That was the fault of the Government for
stifferine their continuance. He maintained the right of every
Sete to alter the laws of province. ergo's rot by COUpleld or
evilest to them, if they found those laws snore severe Dims could
Lc justified OD the around of unwillingness to alter established
usages. He wished fur the Bill to be scut to a Committee.
The House ought to take nonce of the eussilitinos to which
• Mr. Maxwell wished to blunt himself. It had been elo-
quently described what gseal advantages arose to slaves
I from fixing their locality. The voice of history proclaimed
the tniproveinent which had tskeu place iu the condition of
abuse pomslatious, even in Ibis country, by the achscriptio
glebes. The coons xions which the slaves formed under those
circumstance~ wets favourable to their progressive counci-
lpatinas--and it was thus that the chains of slavery, having
become gradually lootested, is the end were tliresava off the

Mr. BARING thought that great mistakes prevailed on
the policy of slave keeping. Where slaves fell in valve, the
only effect was, that they became neglected and subjected
to cruelty. The abolition laws had proceeded upon that
mistake; the consequence was, that slaves had become inure
valuable than they ever were befure,cspecially in the striation
States of North America, where the saute principle had been
acted on. It was a fallacy to look for any benefit in the condi-
tion of slaves from a reduction of their value. He would
not vote for the Bill before the House, if he did not think
the principle • sound one; he mairsta.ned the necessity of
allowing a free transfer of slaves from nue colony to another.
Mr. PEEL tlitaight that lie had never heard of a case which
Ipeicloudly calleil.& eight almost have said, for the indignant
wejeetion of the Hesse: He was astonistul at the narrow
wicwovhiclt had been-taken of the subject, lie did nut know
whither ur not the opinions expressed by his gallant Fries's!
opposite, wlriele had been judged su severely by the Hun.
Geullensan who had just sat down, were in accordance with
the finer priuciples of p economy; but this appeared
plaits to Io i 11l , that if that lion. Member could eatablish his
principle av s general one, he would du away with every
thing which could be urged for the particular case. Why
was any one 'number of the community to be allowed
au advantage denied to all the rest ? lie greatly doubted,
however, that any such general principle could be set up.
What he chiefly deplored, however was, to have seen the
learning, eloquence, and plsilos.rphy, of the Mo. and
Learned Gel/titling' Oppo.llte 111 setting lip a specious"
and flimsy opposition to the humane awl unanswerable appeal
of the Hon. Member for Bramber. The case must be hope.
less indeed when such an alvocate was compelled to have
recourse to suet, weapons. He had dwelled upon the ad.
vantages of the adseriptio gleber. He had de.eathed it as
giving rise to those feelings and canuexions whurb were the
unly solace of slavery; the local atiartments, the ties u
place, kindred, and friendship, which were to be preserved
by that valuable regulation. Turning to the Bill, larseever,
bc found that it was a measure to transport 350 slave,' from
Antigun to D.-merge", What necessity fur ? Why
not sell them in Antigua? Surely all the estates were
Out in this unprofitable and dilapidated state. if the
estate were to he dismembered by it, this would
not be that absolute description of social sympsthie•
and courier:ions which must take place ru the removal
to Dc . It would be more humane to sell *hens
the neighbouring islands; the consequences would
not be half so grievous ; they woad some of them live iu
sight of their native laud, and all of thesis would have
occasional oportunitire for visiting it. He considered the
Bill as an attempt to revive a qualified slave trade. Of any
principle, whether of justice, humanity, or precedent, be
was opposed to the Bill.
Mr. BARHAM thought that the only quistion for the
House to consider and determine was, whether or nut it
would be for the benefit or injury of the 3t9 slaves to be
removed to Demerara; if fur the benefit, the Bill should be
allowed to pass.

Sir 1. COFFIN koew something of the West fathom
culimies. He was certain that there were 1113 where more
kind masters than in Autigua, slid so conscious were the
slaves of this, that he really believed that they would prefer
basing their thrusts cut to being transported from the
island.

The House then divided on the second resdiogafthe Bill—
Ayes
Noes