The Sun.
London, England, 1839-05-04 00:00:00

ment were justified on the grounds which they
rested this Bill, that they had no vindication, in jus-
tice or equity, for the coerse which they proposed.
He agreed with Mr. Canning in the sentiments which
he expressed in 1824, with regard to the power of Par-
liament over the Colonies : "No feeling of wounded
pride, no motive of questionable expediency, nothing
short of a clearly demonstrated necessity, should induce
us to moot the awful question of the transcendental power
of Parliament, over our colonial dependencies. That is
an arcanum of the empire, which ought to be kept
within the penetralia of the Constitution. It
exists, but it should be veiled. It should not be pro-
duced upon trifling occasions,—on temporary refrac-
toriness. It should be brought forward only in
the utmost extremity,—when all other remedies have
failed to stay the progress of some moral or poli-
tical pestilence." (Hear, hear, hear.) Now he
could not say that he considered this " utmost
extremity" had arrived.—(Hear.) Let the House con-
sider the nature of the proposed measure, and the cha-
racter of the society which it would affect. He
wished that be could impress the House with
one-half of the deep sense he entertained of the
vast importance of this question—of the apprehension
which he felt for its consequences—and the general un-
easiness which it might excite in other Colonies.—
( Hear, hear.) The enacting clauses of the Bill were
included in two pages. It was certainly brief and
compendious—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear.")—and
wisely so. Its absolute necessity required its passing, but
it was neither more nor less than the establishment of
complete despotism.—(Hear, hear.) In the days
of colonial misgovernment, it surely would not be
thought sufficient to promise that the despotic power
would not be abused.—(Hear, hear.) The Imperial
Parliament would not trust to those lucky accidents by
which tyranny might be averted, but would carefully
provide those guarantees whereby a nation would
be protected against it.—(Hear, hear, hear.)
But this Bill suspended a popular and representative
form of government, which had endured for at least
150 years. He wished not to be charged with the slightest
exaggeration in describing this Bill, but he would ask
if there was any colony under the Crown not having
, a charter, never having possessed any popular rights
t of representation, which was subjected to such regulations
as this Bill imposed upon the Island of Jamaica ; was
there ever any conquered colony, which immediately
after the heat of conquest, had been subjected to such
regulations as these ? In the case of a conquered
colony there were generally some stipulations for the
maintenance of existing laws, and for the upholding of the
rights and privileges of the people. No such stipulation
for the maintenance of the existing laws, or rights, or
privileges of the people of Jamaica were to be found in
this Bill. The powerwhich it gave the Government might
or might not be abused, but it could not be denied that it
took the Government out of the hands of the constituted
authorities, placed it in the hands of Commissioners
with unlimited powers, and upon whom there was no
check from the local authorities, and whatever laws
were thus passed might endure for 18 months. An Act
had been passed last Session suspending the Constitu-
tion of Canada, but of that Act distinct notice had
been given. The Assembly had refused the Supplies ;
resolutions were passed giving distinct notice to the co-
lony of the intentions of the Government, and, the colony
still refusing the supplies, the Bill was passed. Bat did
they pass a Bill like this ? Not at all. There was not a
word in the preamble of the present Bill stating the in-
tention of the measure, but in the Canada Bill the pre-
amble distinctly asserted the Bill was passed with a view
to ensure the formation of another Constitution.
(The Right Honourable Gentleman here read the
preamble of the Canada Bill, and laid particular em-
phasis on that part which stated the measure to be
merely of a temporary nature). There was not one
word of this sort in the preamble of the Jamaica Bill ;
and did not the Ministers know that a part of the
support they received on this Bill was founded on the
hope that the Bill would be of permanent duration ?
He knew that it was said the Bill was to be tempo-
rary ; but were they not aware that there were some
who gave it their support, in the hope that this tem-
porary eclipse of public liberty would not be allowed
to expire—that there were some who hoped that if
this disastrous twilight were once extinguished, there
would be found no Promethean fire by which it might
be renewed ?—(Cheers.) He did not think they would
find it such an easy matter to re-establish popular
power in the island, if they once put an end to
it. Did they believe it possible that the island
would tamely acquiesce in the loss—that the
Bill would be received by the inhabitants with
satisfaction ? Was it in human nature that they
should do so ?—(Cheers.) After the demonstration of
public feeling which had been shown by the proprietors
of Jamaica in this country, did they for a moment sup-
pose that the three salaried Commissioners would give
satisfaction.—(Cheers.) They were to be given the
power of unlimited taxation.—(Hear, hear.) Their
principles were, that the people should not be taxed
without their own consent that power was to
be taken from them, and was- to be- .given
the Governor and Council a Governor in the
appointment of whom the people had no voice. He saw
an incredulous smile upon some faces opposite ; was there
any limit to the taxation ? They might impose any taxes
they pleased—there was no limit to the nature or num-
ber of the acts they might impose. Suppose they met
with resistance—with opposition—could not they at
once suspend the Habeas Corpus Act.—(Cheers.) The
press of that country seemed tolerably violent : suppose
it were to persevere in that course—suppose it were to
use inflammatory and inciting arguments against the
Bill, and the acts of the Governor and Council—what
check was there upon, the Council? Could they not at once
abolish the liberty of the Press. He might be told that
it would not be done, but where was the security for
that ?—(Loud cheers.) -He did not for a moment
say that the Council would resort to such measures,
but where was there any security against the possibility
of abuse ? During the continuance of the Bill there
was no security, no constitutional security or guarantee
—all depended upon the single will of the Council.
There was none.—(Cheers.) They gave that guarantee
in the case of the rebellious colony. In the case of the
island of Jamaica, which had not yet learned
their intention, they refused any such guaran-
tee.—(Cheers.) In Canada you impose this re-
straint. The Council you appointed in Canada,
had no such power, you said they should have no power
to impose any tax, or duty, or rate, or impost by any
law or ordinance; except so far as they were then
payable.—( Hear, hear.) The new Council imposed
upon Canada had power only to keep on such
taxes, rates, or imposts as they found in existence ;
they were prevented from increasing them or ex.
ceeding them in any degree. Their whole
consisted in continuing those impositions
which they
found existing when they entered upon their offices.
No such security was taken for Jamaica. In respectxtwn,
to liberty, in respect to property, in respeet to taxation,
the power now taken, departing from the precedent of
the Canada Bill, was perfectly unlimited ; nor was
he in error as to the nature of its provisions.
What was the society to which they were to
be applied. Let it be borne in mind that this
colony of Jamaica represented one half of all our
possessions in the West Indies. A temporary despotic
authority was about to be established over one-half of
the population of our West India possessions, in which
he included our dependencies in South America. The
precedent in the first instance applied to one-half of the
population of our dependencies in the West Indies and
South America, and also to one-half of every thing that
constituted the importance of Colonial possessions. The
whole population of Jamaica was equal to one-half
the white population of our West Indian posses-
sions. The slatest estimate of the total revenue of
our West India and South American dependencies,
was 540,000/., sterling. The revenue of Jamaica
was 300,000/., being more than one-half of the whole
amount of revenue. The expenditure of all our colonial
dependencies. was 551,000/. The expenditure of Ja-
maica was 300,0001. He believed this was greatly 'un-
derrating both the revenue and expenditure of Jamaica.
—(Hear, hear.) But the whole of the taxation
was to be raised by the new Council, and the wltple
of the expenditure was to be appropriated under
their direction.—(fletar, hear.) The imports of the
whole of our West India and South American depen-
dencies were estimated at 5,806,000/. The imports of
Jamaica at 3,000,000/., being more than one-half. The
total amount of exports was 9,932,000/. The exports
of Jamaica were calculated at 4,000,000/. He men-
tioned this, that the House might be well aware
of the importance of the precedent, and the ex-
tent to which it was about to be applied. It was
in
about to be applied to the Government of one
point of population—one half in point of revenue—
one half in point of trade of the whole of re
our Nest
Indian and South American possessions.—(Hear, hear.)
So much for the importance of the colony. Now he
entreated the House to recollect the nature of
society in that colony, and the people whom
they were about to legislate for. Their power
was unlimited, but they were not free from the
obligation, whether, in point of constitutional right,
they were warranted in suspending this Constitution.
It was impossible to hear such matters broached with-
out recollections being awakened of fearful conflicts.
There might be great differences between the United
States and the West India Islands. The power of the
mother country over the latter might have greatly ex-
hausted that which it had over the former in 1774, but he
entreated the House not altogether to disregard some simi-
litudes there were. He wished they would read again the
speech of Mr. Burke upon conciliation, and to consider
whatever might have been the differences between
the United States and the West Indies, how far
the present differences with Jamaica bore a similarity
to them. Mr. Burke had said that there was no colony
in the British empire, in which there was not a refrac-
tory spirit ; and the difficulty they had to deal with was,
to solve the problem of how that refractory spirit should
be allayed. It was one of the hard conditions of their
lot in governing a Representative Assembly, to meet with
a refractory spirit ; it was therefore necessary that every
alternative should be resorted to before extreme mea-
sures were adopted. Mr. Burke enumerated several