The Sun.
London, England, 1838-03-31 00:00:00

and the three-fourths of the time was a portion of the consi-
deration. If that Act were looked at, what was the intention
of the Legislature admitted of no doubt. Whether it was wise
or unwise that this contract should have been entered into, he
believed the slaves to be precisely in the same situation as they
were before the Act passed. He was not then speaking of the
propriety of treating their fellow-creatures as property, but he
was speaking of that which was treated as property, which
was assignable as such, disposable as such, by will or by
any other testamentary disposition. As the property was un-
der certain clauses of the Act saleable, the property had
been sold, and whole gangs of their fellow subjects
who were not affixed to the soil, had been bought, and sold,
and also were mortgaged—and now belonged, or were
supposed to belong, to the persons who had advanced
their money on the slaves.—( Hear, hear.) Some of the
highest persons in the State had given it, as their opinion,
that there was no contract, but that the apprenticeship
Lad been agreed upon for the benefit of the slave himself,
and in order to teach him the habits of civilized society.
A Itight Rev, Prelate had stated that there was no contract,
lecause without the negroes there could he no contract—and
the negroes were not a party to this agreement. The answer
to that was, that the argument was an utter fallacy,
for the law must be taken as it was ; ail law could
not be east aside ; and the subject could not be
viewed as under a totally new light. The negro
was not a party to, but subject to the contract.—( Hear,
hear.) A Noble and Learned Friend of his (Sir
Edward Sugden's) had contended not that the negro
should have been a party to the contract, but that there was
in fact t.o contract at all. He ( Sir E. Sugden) was not in-
different to the slavery of the negroes, for he held that the
condition of the negroes now, though under the name of ap-
prenticeship, was virtually slavery still.—( Hear, hear.) He
was sincerely desire us to do justice to all parties,—to the negros
as well as the planters.—(Hear, bear.) And if he could
safely and justly do so, he would gladly strike off the negTeeis
fetters.--( Hear.) He thought a case 'steer' fnII.Y ril9td°
out of violations of the Ts.,-Tia.tems of the Legislature by
the
ailasitera, which jus4i4e.ii tl4 interference of the Parliament,
Thgn game the last question—Whether it would be ilor the
benefit of the Negroes thgmeebsea, that they should go to the
cateet of the reef on ef 'the Hon. Baronet; and whether .ire
case celled for it ? That there had been such a ~reach of the
lengagement on the part of the.
• • • ;:ianters, but more particularly
in Jamaica, as to authorise the House to interfere, he, for his
own part, did not dolibt.--( Hear.) Whether it would be wise
or prudent, however, for them to do so, was another conside-
ration. The case against the planters was certainly a very
powerful one. He could not agree with the Hon. Baronet
(the Secretary for the Colonies), that it was not fair for the
Honourable Baronet who brought forward the motion, or the
Ilonourable Member who had seconded it, to cite particu-
lar instances of ill-treatment and cruelty on the part of the
planters ; for how was the case to be made out except by
particular instances ? Did they expect the whole negro popu-
lation to rise up in insurrection, or to be tied up altogether
by the planters, before they could prove a breach of the en-
gagement? The case could only be made out by particular
instances, and the only question was, whether they were suffi-
ciently numerous, or strong, to establish the general charge ;
and with respect to Jamaica, as he had before stated, he had
made up his mind in the affirmative. That they were confined
to a particular district he did not deny ; but that a general dis-
position and tendency towards cruelty on the part of the plan-
ters, was sufficiently evident, even from the carefully-
worded provisions of the Act of Parliament, by which
slavery was abolished, and the apprenticeship system substituted
in its place. There was not a provision of that Act, that was
not framed with a view to correct some vicious propensity or
habit on the part of the planters. The first section regulated
the hours of labour. Why was that necessary ? Because the
planters were in the habit of depriving their slaves of the
leisure time which it was intended they should have, and mak-
log them work nine hours, intead of eight. The next provi-
sion was to correct certain irregularities as to food. In all
these cases, it was clear that the planters acted contrary to
the intention of the Legislature. It was intended that the
apprentice labourer should have the sane allowance as before.
The first act of the planters was to strike off the allowances,
but now It was proposed to restore them. The hospital abuses
were very bare. This Bill compelled the masters to provide
them with food in hospitals and prisons, during the time they
might remain there, There was another measure which
seemed to have escaped the attention of the House, on which
no man could entertain the slightest doubt as to the intention
of the Legislature, and that was the privileges allowed to
women, It must have been a matter of surprise to the slave
population to find themselves in a worse condition. That was
intended, and properly, to be restored by this Bill. The next
provision was for the appraisement and valuation of the negro
apprentices, That was evaded by the Local Legislature, and
thin Bill proposed that Special Justices alone khould act, which
was another instance of abuse, The most crying abuse he
had ever witnessed in his life, as regarded the violation of this
Act, was that of the whipping of females.—( Hear, hear.)
He had read the clause over and over again to satisfy himself
if there was a shadow of doubt—(Hear)—and he must say that
a grosser and more wanton outrage never existed than had taken
place in these colonies in the flogging of females.—( Hear. )
The 17th clause of the Act admitted of no doubt whatever.
The 17th clause provided that no Court Judge or Justice of the
Peace should punish any apprenticed labourer being a female
for any offence by whipping or beating her person. In viola-
tion of that clause thousands of females bad been flogged.—
( Hear, hear.) Taking a period of 22 months for the five largest
colonies, and a period of from nine to twenty-two months for
the smaller ones, it appeared that 29,000 persons had been
flogged.—( Hear.) He had never in his life witnessed a greater
violation of any Act than had taken place in these colonies. It
would be excedinglv wholesome in discussing the case
that the matter should be probed to the bottom. Without
that they could not come to any safe conclusion upon the
subject. Instead of throwing a veil over the evils that had
taken place, it was their duty to ascertain where the mis-
chief had occurred,—( Hear, hear.) With regard to the
local Legislature, it appeared to have taken its power from
some words in a proviso at the end of the Act, which
authorized them not to inflict any punishment on the appren-
ticed labourers which would not be inflicted upon the free
coloured population. The result was, that these persons were
sent into the workhouses under the authority of a local magis-
trate, where they were made to " dance the mill,"
and subjected to the lash on every occasion.—(Dear.)
It was true that the punishment of the females in many in-
stances arose from obstinacy, but then they were punished
with a severity which their taskmasters had no right whatever
to resort to. The question now was, what should the House do
There were two propositions. One was total emancipation, and a Bill
to Carry out the intentions of the Act of 1833..—(hear, hear.) In
adopting either there must be a breach of contract.—(Hear, hear) To
give one issuance of this in the new Bill, in the case of any abuse of the
apprentice, it was provided that all controul should be taken from the
planter. What was infraction if that was not ?—(Hear.) In either
ease the principle was lost. What, then, was the proper remedy for the
evil ? He found a great difficulty its forming an opinion on this sub-
ject. First he had to make up his mind as to whether we should inter.
fere at all ; and, secondly, whether the present was a case that jus-
tified interference, The Flight Hon. Baronet opposite had triumphed
in the amelioration of the slaves under the apprenticeship system,
but he (Sir E. Sugden) could not compliment the Government much
00 that result. Who had first discovered the bad treatment of
the slaves ? Was it the Government.—(Hear, hear.) He very
much disapproved of the conduct of those who did discover it, but
Government were asked for a remedy, and they ought to have provided
an effectual one. But this was not Isis charge against them. Its charge
was that after the Bill was passed, they did not pay that attention to its
working that the necessities of the ease required.—(Hear, hear.) Now,
there was a remark he wished to snake—one that had struck everybody
—and that was on the niggardly provision made by the Government for
the support of the special justices ; and, in fact, they could not maintain
themselves. The income of the special justice was so small, and his
expenses so great, and he was so pressed upon by the planters, that
although intended by the Bill to be provided against inconvenience,
the income was so small that he could not maintain himself.—(Hear,
hear.) The consequence was that he was obliged to become the guest
of the planter on whom he was sent to execute justice.—(llcar, hear.)
That was not the way that the ends of justice should be pursued. There
ought to be no familiarity between the prosecutor and the criminal. Ile
now cameo the important question of what that House should do. Ile
was prepared to visit the whole island of Jamaica with the sins
of individuals of that island ; but he could not visit those sins
upon other colonies. (Cheers, hear, hear.) He was the less
disposed to this because Monserrat had already liberated her slaves,
and Barhadoes was about to do so ; and he would rather, if possible,
have a voluntary than a forced emancipation from all.—(Hear, hear.)
For immediate abolition it was said the negroes were already prepared.
He was not prepared to think so, nor did he think they would be so in
1840, because no official steps had been taken to make them so.—
(Hear, hear.) He was not one of those who thought that the steps
necessary to precede total emancipation should be left to the last rms.
ment. —He thought those things that were left to the last were always
the worst done.—(lfear, hear.) He did nut think there were sufficient
grounds for the punishment of all the colonies, but quite sufficient for
the Bill of the Noble Lord. He should not vote for the resolutions of
the Hon. Baronet, not to screen the planters, but because he thought
they would not benefit the apprentices themselves. But he must say
that his vote that evening would depend on the answer he should receive
from the Right Hon. Baronet to some questions he intended to put. If
he did not find sufficient provisions in the Bill of the Right Hon. Baronet
for the correction of local abuses in the administration of justice, and a
clear recital of the preamble of the Bill of 1833, in which it was stated that
the apprentices were to be put on the footing of workmen, he would
not vote for his Bill. There was another important consideration on which.
he wished to be satisfied. In the Bill of 1833 it was enacted that the
apprentice who should happen to be imprisoned during the intervening
time between that and 1840 was to be kept the amount of his impri.
sonment after the expiration of his apprenticeship, with the proviso that
it was hot to extend beyond seven years. This was actually affording
his master an inducement for putting him in prlson.—(Hear, hear.)
Now, this clause required a remedy, anal if he was to support the Bill he
must be assured that ono would be provided. If he was not assured
that all slavery would cease in 1840 he must Vote for the resolutions.
B..fore he sat down he must allude to a remarkable letter from the
Chief Justice of England, He understood that that letter stated that
emancipation ought to be granted on the grounds that Parliament had
no right to legislate at all on the subject; that their legislation WO
power without right, acting rot caps.iersey, arid that 011PeilienoY now
demanded immediate abolition. tie (Sir E. Sugden) did not defend the
I,tw which allowed of slavery—no mats detested slavery more than he
aid—but, in considering whether the proposition of the Chief Justice
was a sound one, he must say that it was utterly unfounded in point of
law. He had now stated his opinions to the House--he hoped, calmly
and without excitement ; and he could assure the House that his vote
would Ise influenced by no motive but anxiety for justice.—(Hear.)
Mr. ITC° NNgI,I4 said tie thooaht it was perfectly plain that the
Queen's Government could nqt resist the demand for negro emancipa-
tion. The public sentiment had lwri pronounced so distinctly, the
public feeling had been excited so strongly, that he did not think he was
fieing too far when he said that the question must be conceded.—
(Cileerio The RIO Ilefiatifebie fitingall It 40 hail itlAt ktict4c4i
would find th 9 utter imposibility of carrying out his own
principle in
any other way than by supporting the resolution, adding, if he pleased,
another by way of qualification, but not standing upon the Bill pro-
posed by the Government, in which case it would be utterly ir,V9l7t;'
hie for him to realise the principle ;044 i4iinselflaid down', or t,C),
ta-
tisfy hid "own
same
last of h sf tai' reettiodi' tali& fO italaifie the paiie. mind op tai I
stiWl4; 4. S!iTile:Pe.rsaas t d treWitti d.isrw.asix thg virtues and
services of men in the cause of liberty which they did not deserve.
The matter was distinctly understood by the people of England. They
understood that they had paid 20,000,000/. they knew that they had