The Sun.
London, England, 1841-08-19 00:00:00

FERNANDO PO-WEST AFRICAN COMPANY.

I shall now turn to the state of the liberated Africans
and others in the town of Clarence, where I now reside.
When the British Government gave up their esta-
blishment here Lieut.-Colonel Nicolls sold the houses,
&c., to a private Company for about 15,0001., arranging
that Government should have all back again in good
repair, at any time, by paying a stipulated sum ; vessels
were sent to take back the liberated Africans to Sierra
Leone, and many of. them left the place, but a few
were prevailed en by the representations of Captain
Beccroft to remain ; and to these the officer, while
in charge, acted • the part of a faithful friend ;
but since the property was again sold, and came
into the possession of the West African Com-
pany, little but oppression, cruelty, and injustice, has
marked the conduct of their agents towards the people.
All the houses and gardens formerly held from Govern-
ment are claimed by this Company, and a nominal rent
of palm oil is demanded each quarter. All, if required
by the Company, are forced to work for them at such
rate as the agent thinks proper to give. No objec-
tion is allowed, if one is made and persisted in ;
the person is handed over to constables, to
be put in a place called a guard house, but
more properly a dungeon, as it built in a cut across a
narrow point of land, and its eaves are level with the
surface of the ground. If resistance is made to the
authority of the constable, or passion cause the person
to give liberty to the tongue, he is flogged, loaded with
irons, and kept as long as the agent pleases in this
den of death. This last arrogates to himself the power
of doing what he pleases, and boasts of being account-
able to none but the West African Company, from whom
he says he has the fullest possible powers to do what he
thinks proper. Besides this dungeon, he has a house on a
small rocky island for persons to be banished to for a
time. This is chiefly for women who quarrel in the
street, or do any thing to offend the agent ; men have
occasionally been sent there, but not often. Frequently
men and women have been confined in the same place,
and conduct the most arbitrary and despotic has been in-
dulged in towards all. Taken few examples :—A canoe
full of refugees—four men and two women—escaped from
the Island of Princes last year ; they after great hardships
reached this island. They were sent off immediately to the
dungeon—one of them soon died in it, the others re-
mained about foul- months, and were let out a little be-
fore we reached the island, but are still on the " black
liSt," and are compelled to work for the Company for
rations alone, i. c., without pay, having food only suffi-
cient to support life. Prisoners have two pounds of yam,
cassava, or cocoa-nut and water—no meat, no salt ; those
sent over to the island have a still smaller supply, and
the poor kroomen who cut timber, and drag it
miles out of the woods for the Company, have only
five pounds of yam, rice, or cocoa per day, and one
bottle of watered rum per week, and one piece of
cloth containing seventeen handkerchiefs (made up
for Africa) per quarter. Headmen have a little more.
No meat is regularly allowed, so that the rum and the
handkerchiefs often are bartered for monkeys to eat with
the yams, &c. Another case of cruelty was the flog-
ging of three Kroomen, because one Headman said to
another that these men intended to run away. There
arose a demur about the work, and all refused to go out
until they had their " palaver" settled. Two of the
Headmen were picked out, and severely flogged, to inti•
midate the others. A sentinel fell asleep, and being
found out, got four dozen and three months in
guard-house, and was to work in the garden
all the day. While so employed some one left
open the garden gate, and a cow got in and destroyed
some maize. The poor man, with his unhealed back,
was tied up to a tree, and had two dozen more given to
him before our window. My paper is full and so is my
heart, but I could fill many sheets more with the op-
pressions
and cruelties practised here. We have down-
right slavery, and the people know not where to turn
for relief. Can you do anything for them ? Can a
British public put an end to their voea ? Mr. Thomp-
son has gone to England. Call him and the Company
he represents to account for their conduct. I conclude,
and remain your sincere friend,

JOHN CLAIIIiE.

TRADE BETWEEN RUSSIA AND

-
(From Alexander's East India Magazine.)
This trade is based on a mere interchanoe of the
respective national productions. On the part of the
Chinese, it consists chiefly in the barter of tea for va-
rious kinds of Russian produce and manufactured arti-
cles. In the regular course the traffic commences
between the dealers of the two nations in January,
and concludes in March, during which period the Rus-
sians obtain about 80,000 chests of different sorts of
tea, about one-half of which is destined for the annual
July fair of Nishninovogorod, and the remainder is
conveyed to Moscow, and other towns of the in-
terior. This barter forms one of the principal
branches of Russian industry, and has a very
beneficial influence on other commercial operations.
The traffic is always active and flourishing, for there is
constantly a great demand for the tea imported by the
way of liiaehta, and many Russian products, not much
in request in the home market, are disposed of in. large
quantities to tile Chinese. The transport of the respec-
tive articles is very difficult, and, in consequence of the
great distance they are conveyed, a long period must ne-
cessarily elapse before they reach their destination. The
transport gives employment,
on the Russian side, to the po-
pulation of 5,000 versts of country, for such is the ex-
tent of the distance between Perm, the most remote
town of European Russia, and Kiachta, the extreme
eastern point of Asiatic Russia. To this population
the trade affords not only a sufficient subsistence, but
even a considerable surplus gain. The Russian manu-
factories, chiefly in request by the Chinese, are
woollen stuffs and cloths, such as ladies' cloth, Dutch
camlcts, &c. The manufactory of the Counsellor Alex-
wicker in Moscow, produces these articles in the quality
and form best suited to the fantastic taste of the Chinese.
Next in order may be mentioned Rubnikov and Son, the
brothers Babkin and Dobrohtov-Maikov, also of Moscow,
as the most successful manufacturers for the Chinese
market. They have distinguished themselves by the
strange forms and fashions they give to the articles
they produce in pieces of from twenty-five to forty
arshins, and of different prices, according to the
quality. Last year 40,000 pieces of Russian cloth were
sent to Kiachta. The other gooods in request are plush
stuffs, leather wares, particularly the favourite leather
of Casan, and peltry, more particularly the lambskins
of the Ukraine. All these articles are exchanged for

SUN

tca ; large capitals are therefore employed in carryin
on this trade. The value of the Russian merchandis
sent last year to Kiachta exceeded 24,000,000 rubles.
The quantity of tea imported amounted to 80,000 chests,
of which 35,000 were of the finest sort, the remaining
45,000 being of inferior quality. There are about thirty
different species of tea. Of the green, which is distin-
guished from all the others in form and taste, only from
100 to 200 chests are imported. There is a verj remark-
able kind, called tile tea, the leaf of which resembles a
tile in form, and has also much solidity. It i:sprepared in
quite a different manner from common tea, being stewed
with milk, butter, salt, and herbs, and serve.l 11P as a
dish. It is accordingly rather an article of food than
beverage. The Russians do not use it themselves,
gut sell
it to the Armenians and Tartars, who distribute it to
the Caucasian provinces and Eastern Siberia. The Cal"
mucks, Kirghesis, and Bura.W, consume the greater vrt
of it. Besides tea, the Chinese bring other articles t°
Kiachta, the chief of which are satin, crape, pipes, to:, 'Et
cakes of ink,- and colours ; but the value of these du
net amount altogether to 30,000 rubles banco.

Before the Rtis'sians, tile greater number of whom remain
only a short time at liiachta, oiler to barter', they meet
and draw up in common a price current, to
;which they
str:ctly adhere. It saves them much trouble in their
dealings. The Chinese appear far snore ease, t° g1;11
off' their tea than the Russians are to exchangt the3-1/4:-
manufactures. The former have seldom any thinC,/311;
at the close of the market, whereas the Russians ot. 'ea
hold back considerable stocks. After the Russo-Aim:—
rican Company, which has a great share in this trade, the
most considerable Russian importers of tea are the Ko-.
lessovs, Lobkovs, and five other mercantile houses in.
Moscow, Bassin Kiachta and Medvednikov in Irkutsk.
The great advantages of this trade, not only to the
Russian merchants engaged in it, but to the inhabitants
of the intermediate route of transport, was rendered
strikinOy evident by the failure of the harvest and con-
sequent dearth in 1833-9. The employment then
afibrded by this traffic proved a great relief to the poor
people of those districts. It may, therefore, be looked
upon as the most beneficial branch of Russian commerce,
but more considerable funds are required for its develop-
ment than have hitherto been at the command of our
merchants.

. The little town of. Kiachta, on the river of the same
name, distant only three versts from the •Chinese vil-
lage Maimadshin, is two and a half versts in circun der-
ence. All the wants of the inhabitants of Kiatehta are
supplied by their trade, and the town ranks as a 1. 'cc
port. In order, however, to prevent every" kind or
smuggling, the strictest vigilance is observed day ann.
night by the officers of the customs, and nothing importel
or exported escapes inspection. As stations for mercan-
tile deposits must have market-places and warehouses,
and as those of Kiachta are decayed, and have not sulli-
cient space for great stores of goods, an elegant new
market-place is about to be constructed,! for the expense
of which 1,072,000 rubles are destined, in accordance
with the architect's estimate. The merchants are also -
building a church, which, though not yet finished, has
cost 400,000 rubles. The houses, which are entirel7,- of
wood, are large and spacious within, and have a hand-
some appearance. During the period of barter in the
winter months the surplus population cannot be
accommodated without difficulty, and lodgings are, there-
fore, very dear. The ordinary resident population does
not exceed 400 of both sexes. Kiachta has fourteen
merchants of the first guild, but only seven of them have
fixed residences in the place. The others, who reside in
European Russia. employ factors, and only visit Kiachta
occasionally. A school for instruction in the Chinese
language was . established in 1835. The young men.
taught in it will be employed as interpreters. In 1840
the first seven. were dismissed, having completed their
studies. The number at present in the college is fourteen.

MARRIED.—On the 16th inst., at White-
chapel Church, Mr. James Davies, second son of the late
Mr. Davies, of the North and South American Coffee-
house, to Susannah, eldest daughter of Mr. Thorn, far-
mer,Epsom, Surrey.

Unpropitious weather, still I Rain and cold
winds ! What. will become of the sliding scale ? What
of those who have taken their stand upon it. The diffi-
culties of Sir Robert Peel begin to take shape and dis-
tinctness as the hour for his inauguration draws nigh.
.Five hundred Sir Roberts rolled into one would not be
able to maintain the present Corn-laws—to abandon them,
will disappoint and kindle the rage of the long list of
country gentlmen, M.P.s, who imagine that the seasons
were made to wait upon their pleasure, and the heavens
themselves to revolve about them as a fixed centre.
These sapient philosophers would not allow of a
man's having done his duty, if beaten at
last, even if omnipotence were his antagonist
—and should Sir Robert sacrifice himself in a bootless
attempt to preserve his political consistency, these would
be the first to trample upon his remains. They are sel-
fish and ignorant enough to gnash their teeth at Provi-
dence. because Providence is against them—but seeing
that would be fruitless, they would gladly vent their dis-
pleasure upon the unhappy statesman whom Providence
shall overcome. The accounts from various quarters of
the country represent the crops as having sustained very
partial, if any, damage. Such representations, however,
are not to be relied on. They are usually com-
municated by farmers to journals circulating pin-
cipally among farmers. And it is to the far-
mers' interest, now, to prevent corn from rising
until after the harvest. Few of our agriculturists could
avail themselves of high prices until their corn is housed,
for the simple reason that most of them have disposed of
their stock already—and if, in consequence of the next
averages, bonded wheat should come into the market before
harvest terminates, the golden prospect now before the far-
mer would turn out but a gloomy one. It is, therefore, of
importance to the landed interest to have favourable- re-
ports—that present prices may not be raised until the
farmers can avail themselves of the advantage. We be-
lieve the authority on which we stated that the crops
were already a fifth below the average, will be found to
be borne out by the event. If so, the country must be
prepared for a general crash.—.Nonco7fformi.-vt.
COMMITTAL, ESCAPE, AND RE CAPTURE
of A B URGLAIL —On the morning of Saturday last infor-
mation was received at the station-house of the T divi-
ion in the town of Staines, that on the previous night
the premises of Mr. E. Carruthers, of that town, had been
burglariously entered, and that the thieves had been dis-
turbed in their proceedings, having only stolen a silver
watch, a tea-caddy, a pair of sugar-tongs, a glass sugar-
basin, and a rosewood workbox. Serjeant Burton of the 'l'
division, having reason to believe that a well-known cha-
racter, named Collyer, had been concerned in the
robbers}', traced him to Hounslow, and from thence
to Chooham, Surrey, where he:succeeded in apprehending
him, and on searching him found the duplicate of the
watch in his pocket. On Monday he was conveyed before
the petty sessions at Feltham, and fully committed to
Newgate for trial. While awaiting the arrival of a cart
to convey him to Newgate, he was allowed to remain in
the bench-room on the ground-floor of the inn, the win-
dows of which, owing to the crowded state of the room,
were wide open, when, watching a favourable opportu-
nity, he jumped out of one of the windows, and bounded
with the speed of a deer across the country. In-
spector Otway, of the T division, and Inspector Dow-
sing, of the V division, who were both present, imme-
diately mounted their horses and galloped off in pursuit,
followed by a number of policemen and other persons,
when after a severe run the prisoner took refuge in Han-
warth Park, the seat of Mr. Henry Perkins, the brewer,
whose demesne
'being closely wooded for some time
afforded him a •secure shelter from his pursuers. The
police, however, immediately divided themselves into
small parties and scoured the wood, and ultimately the
prisoner was discovered in a high tree, and after much
difficulty got down, when he was instantly handcuffed
and brought back to Feltham, whence he was conveyed
to Newgate.
CROMWELL AT HOME.—The members of
Cromwell's family were all persons of more than ordi-
nary accomplishments, intellect, and moral character,
and there was the greatest love and harmony existing
among them. "His own diet was spare and not curious
except.Aio
it
ay e
publicN.treatments,ery
week t whichl
th were constantly
cceorisi sitna n
they
agrimv
en
the
not below a. captain, when he used to dine with them. A
table was.ilikewise spread every day of the week for
officers as should casually come to Court. He was a
great lover of music, and entertained the most skilful in
pay and family. He respected all
that science in his
persons that were eximious in anyt 0 art,h. and would procure
t
hem to be sent or brought Sometimes he
would, for a frolic, before he had half dined, give order
for the drum to beat,
be i
jocund
clait
dtfootwith g
foundusaerm guards, s ,
N
kept; and
o bootye u
da l
of
of the
and would tell them what company they had
rhae k
when and where they had drunk the King's
health on the
and the Royal Family ; bidding them, when they
table. N-er permitted
so
lnetintl
eo
did it again, to do it more privately, and this without any
passion, and as festivous, droll discourse." He surrounded
himself also with the master minds of his time: Milton
was his Latin secretary and intimate ; Andrew Marvel
was a frequent guest at his table ; Waller was his friend
and kinsman • and the youthful Dryden was not left un-
noticed.—London, No. XX.

GELATINE.—At least thirteen years ago, phi-
lanthropy and science united their efforts and invented
the. gelatine ; that is to say, a new kind of food made
out of a pretended juice drawn from the meat-bones.
I remember having denounced this deceptive nutriment,
and given it the name of button soup. For fifteen years
they have been feeding with this famous gelatine the sick
in the hospitals, the poor in the charitable establishments,
and the prisoners in gaols. They were going to intro-
duce the article to the soldiers barracks, when some.
sceptical person said—" Excuse me, but suppose
we see first if this food be really nourishing."
Much displeasure was called forth by this doubt ;
Science shrugged her shoulders, and proceeded, from
a weakness with which she reproached herself;
to make new experiments on the subject. It re-
sults from a Report signed by Messieurs Magendie,
Chevreul, and Thenard, that the supposed nutritive pro-
- perties of gelatine have no existence : of two dogs, one
fed with gelatine, the other with pure water,. the latter
lived longer than the former ! Thus, thanks to the
united efforts of philosophy and science, all those who,
in prisons, hospitals; and poor-houses have been fed
during fifteen years upon gelatine, have literally died of
hunger. What an escape for the army !—Alphonse Karr.
UNFORTUNATE ACCIDENT.—We arc sorry
to observe, from the Jersey Gazette of the 9th inst., the
death of Mr. William Clerk, fourth son of Sir George
thliPn's't.w,haot was
Gros u
iniFfzTui in a thatte
ly
drowned
a rotn. ,
Friday,of c ut
iiicok
6,
island. It appears he had gone from Oxford, in company
with two young gentlemen from that University ; and
while standing on the rocks, where they had climbed to
see the tremendous surf, a huge wave swept him into the
sea. So great was the swell, that no boat could be
brought into the bay until the sea subsided, when his
bodywas found, on the Monday following. Mr. Clerk
was a young gentleman of high promise, and had lately
gained several prices for superior proficiency in his studies.