The Sun.
London, England, 1840-06-22 00:00:00

body, saying, " the dog was in no faint, he was shamming." The s
Commissary stooped down again, examined the body, and replied
" the man is dead." The master hereupon called in two physicians
of Guauabacoa, and rightly counting on the sympathies of his pro-
fessional attendants, he obtained a medical certificate, solemnly de-
claring shat the negro had laboured under hernia, and had died of
that disease. lit the meantime the atrocity had reached the ears
of the Captain-General Falcon, the Alcaldes of Guanabacoa were or-
dered to inquire into the matter; they did so, and the result of the
enquiry was, of course, the exculpation of the murderer. Ge.
neral Facon, dissatisfied with the decision, immediately ordered the
military officer commanding at Guanabacoa to proceed to a se-
lemn investigation, de novo, without reference to the decision of
the civil authorities, and this gentleman, with whom I was well
acquainted, proceeded with all the energy and integrity belonging
to him, to the inquiry. The result of this inquiry was an able
report, wherein the Commandant declared that the testimony ad.
duced plainly proved that the negro had died under the lash in pre.
settee of Isis master, in consequence of the severity of the punish-
ment he received during three hours. 1 have entered at large
into this case, because I speak from actual knowledge of the ju-
dicial proceedings, and by the authority of the Judge in the
cause. Now what was the result in this case, why, in due time,
Use Captain-General communicates to the Commandant the law
opinion of the assessor or legal adviser °ibis administration to the
effect that the report was evidently erroneous, inasmuch as the
Commandant had examined negro witnesses on tliC investigation
when their masters were not present, which was illegal, and con.
sequently all the proceedings were vitiated. In plain English, the
murderer was acquitted, and the upright officer who declared
him guilty ss as rebuked, nay, more, he was ultimately removed from
his post at Guanabacoa The folly of talking about illegality in tee
proceedi sgs is evident whets it is considered that the setting aside the
civil autaorities, and putting the cause in the hands of the military
tribunal, was a course obviously illegal, but rendered necessary in the
mind of the Governor by the base corruption of the civil tribunal, and
the iniquity of its decision. On inquiry into the amount of money pa.d
by Manehado in the way of bribes to obtain the decision in his fa-
vour, and the costs of suit, I found that the expenses amounted to*
4,000 dollars. The next case I have to direct your attention to, has
been given to the world in the recent admirable work of Mr. Turn-
bull on Cuba, a work which it requires! more honesty, closer ob
servation, and a higher spin it of humanity to produce, than any
work on the West Indis s that has been given to the public. 1
hap, ened to be with Mr. Turnbull, on the journey of which he
speaks in reference to this case, when a person who accompa-
nied us on our return from a sugar estate in the vicinity of
Gullies, informed us that the estate in question was the
terror of all the negroes in the vicinity. Of this fact, what
we had ourselves witnessed of the management of the
property, and what we had heard from the mayoral himself, left
but little cause to doubt, but it was not without surprise we learnt
that this very overseer, who was still left in charge of the estate,
had recently been brought before the authorities of Guines on the
charge of flogging one of the slaves of the estate to death, and that
the result of this investigation was similar to that of the case a:
Guanabacoa ; the body of the murdered slave was examined by me-
dical men, and the usual certificate was givers in all due form, satis-
factorily accounting for the death of the negro, and in the eye of the
law of Cuba, the slave that was murdered by a white man and ex
pired under the lash of legitimate authority, died a natural death.
The wretch who committed this act left the Court, of course,
without a blemish on his character, and the employer of
this man, who had taken him back into his service, to
the terror of every negro on his estate, this respectable planter
was living at ease fifty miles distant from the scene where the b!ooci
of his murdered negro was shed with impunity, enjoying the plea.
sures of the Havana, and, perhaps, by the urbanity of his man_
ners, and the hospitality of his house, and the indulgent treat
meat of his domestic slaves, convincing the passing tourist, who
was fortunate to be his guest, of " the peculiar mildness of slavery
of the Spanish colonies." The next case—l know these horrors are
painful to be listened to. It is a sickly sensibility which refuses to
hear details, however shocking to humanity, that must be told by
those who have the misfortune to be acquainted with them, or the
wrongs they treat of cannot be redressed. The next case of negro
murder, committed by a mayoral, of which I have to speak,
came to my knowledge in the autumn of 1839. I was travelling
in the viciniiy of Matanzas, accompanied by a gentleman who
resided in that district. I was informed by my cornpa.
ilium that he had just received very unpleasant intelligence of
an acquaintance of his, a mayoral of an estate on the Pau of Ma.
tanzas, who had unfortunately flogged a worthless negro, and the
worthless negro had unfortunately died, and the soldiers had just
been sent down to arrest the mayoral, and they did not find him.
The misfortune of the mayoral touched me indeed less than the
murder of the slave ; but if my sympathies had been ever so
strongly directed to the inconvenience the mayoral had been
put to by his flight, I might have been comforted by the assurance
that he had only to keep out of the way for some time, and the
thing would pass over ; or, if he were taken, at the worst he had
only to suffer in purse, and perhaps in person by imprisonment for
some time, if he was a poor and friendless mayoral. This was
only another vacancy in the negro gang to be filled up by the
purchase of a new bozel—another life taken away under the lash
to be added to the list of Cuban crieacs—atestSer item
in the long account that slavery has to settle with a just God.—
(Hear, hear.) I know it is painful to dwell on these topics
but the renort I have alluded to has proved how necessary it is to
enter on them most fully, and to show how greatly the people of
France,—and, I fear, I may add, of England,—have been deceived
with respect to the su ject of slavery in Spanish colonies. The last
case of murder perpetrated on a slave by a white person, to which I
will refer, took place at the Havaria in the last year. This crime
was committed by an American woman on a poor negro girl, unds r
such horrible circumstances of cold-blooded cruelty, that I doubt it
there is tiny parallel to be found to it in the records of crime in
Cuba. The girl that was murdered belonged to a Spaniard of the
Havana, who was the paramour of the American. This woman was
possessed of property to a considerable amount. She had been
lung resident in Havana, and was somewhat remarkable for
her personal attractions. Her friend, flue Spaniard, had sent to
her house one of his slaves to assist her, and this girl became the
victim of her jealousy, it is supposed—for no other adequate reason
has been assigned for the cruelties practised on her. The cries of
the unfortunate girl had been heard in the adjoining houses : at
length the usual screams were heard no longer, but night after
night the sounds of continued moaning were noticed by the neigh-
bours, and at length they gave information of the matter to tile
police. The commissary of police proceeded to the house of the
American lady. On searching the outhouses in the yard, in one
of these offices, converted into a dungeon, they found a dying
negro girl, chained by the middle to the wall, in a state that
shocked the senses of all who were present, so loathsome
and withal so pitiful an object the persons who discovered
this unfortunate girl never beheld. On releasing her
from thin dreadful dungeon, where she had been else
could not tell how long, it was found that the chain
round her body had eaten into the flesh, and the ulcers
in it were in a state of gars retie. She was taken to the hospital,
and she died there in two or three days' time. If I have added one
iota to the truth, or exaggerated a single point in the statement I
have given, I ant content that every fact I have stated should be
disbelieved ; but in truth the horrors of the place, and the wretch-
edness of the condition in which she was found, are understated.
In fact, they could not be described. The monster who committed
this murder, when I left the Ilavana, in October last, was alive
and well; in prison, indeed, but in one of the halls of distinc-
tion, (salas de disinction,) where the prisoner who has money, no
matter what his crime, may always obtain superior accommodation.
She was visited frequently by persons of my acquantance. She did riot
admit that she had committed any crime, and she had no fear for the
result of the process that was going on, except on the score of
its expense. She looked on her imprisonment as a conspiracy
only of the Spanish lawyers to get money from her, because they
knew she was rich; and in this she probably was not much ruts.
taken. The leinente Gebernardor, one of the principal officers of
state, was in the habit of visiting her in prison, and encouraging
her with the assurance that her suit would speedily be terminated,
and that she had nothing worse than banishment to fear. A lawyer
of the name of Garcia had defended her some short time before
her committal on the present charge, in another case of cruelty
practised by her on a slave, and he publicly boasted that if she
had come forward in the present case with a sufficient sum, he
would have brought her through her present difficulty without any
more inconvenience than in the former instance. Such is the
administration of justice its the island of Cuba, and the execution
of those laws which are thought so mild in their character, and
benevolent in their principles, that the slave who lives under them
is protected from injustice, and in consequence of their excellence
the slaves in Spanish colonies are comparatively happy. It was
said by the late Mr. Canning, that all laws for the partial arnelio.
rations of the condition of slaves were necessarily defective, because
such laws had no executive principle, inasmuch as the persons
who were expected to carry them into operation were interested
in defeating them. My experience entirely bears out the assertion
of Mr Canning; and both, I am sorry to say, are at variance
with that part of the report to which I have referred, and with
the common opinion of the Spanish entertained even by well-in-
formed persons in this country.

NEWSPAPER PRESS BENEVO-

LENT ASSOCIATION.

The third anniversary festival of this excellent institution
took place yesterday evening at the London Tavern, Bishops-
gate-street, when the friends and members of the associstion
assembled to the number of upwards of 200. The tables were
graced] by the presence of ladies ; and the whole entertainment
was conducted with great spirit and judgment. The musical
department, under the direction of Mr. T. Cooke, fot med one
of the principal attractions. The vocal corps included Signora
Tusi, Madame Dorus Gras, Mrs. Fiddes, Misses Hawes, Ilain-
forth, anti Williams; Signori Coletti, Robini, and F. Lab-
'ache; Messrs. Atkins, Bennett, Chapman, Collyer, Harrison,
Hawes, Hawkins, and Morgan. Amongst the company at the
cross table, we noticed the Marquis of Norrnanby, (Chairman),
Lord Nugent, h. L. Shiel, Esq., M. P., the Hon. Thomas
Denman, Sir Milley Doyle, Thomas M. Gibson, Esq.,
Percival W. Banks, Esq., M. D. Hill, Esq., Charles Ilindley,
Esq., M. P., &c.
We Lught nt,t to omit to state that Mr. Kiallmark, at a very
short notice, attended, and rendered most efficient assistance to
Mr. Cooke, in presiding at the piano forte.
After the usual loyal toasts had been p:oposed, and receivcd
with the utmost enthusiasm,
The NOBLE. CHaramAx gave, in an eloquent speech, in
which he enforced on the attention of the company the com-
manding claims of the Institution, " Prosperity to the News-
paper Press Benevolent Association.
Mr. THORNTON (the Chairman of the Directors) returned
thanks; and, in the course of an able speech, said that the
Directors had thought it better to relieve the company front the
task of listening to a Report, and had left it to him to state the
result, which he could do in a single sentence. The Institu-
tion was prospering as much as could reasonably be expected ;
for the permanent fund, after providing for all encumbrances,
amounted at the end of this year to more than 1,090/.
The healths of the chairman of the by, the vice-presidents
and donsrs, and the ladies, were drunk with great applause, arid
the hilt:l-Ay of the meeting was up kept till a late hour. The
Noble Chairman resigned the chair at twelve o'clock to Mr.
Shiel.

In the course of the evening the Treasurer read the list of
subscriptions since the last meeting. Amongst the names
were—the Marquis of Normanby, 101. ; the Earl of Lonsdale,
101.: a friend and editor, 201. ; W. Ellis, Esq., Si. ; Henry
T. Hope, Esq., 10/. ; Mr. Justice Erskine, 101. ; W. Att-
wold, Esq., M.P.; 51. (2,1 donation) ; the Attorney-General
(2d donation), 10 guineas; Viscount Strangford (3d donation),
5 guineas; John Murray, Esq , 10 guineas ; B. B. Cabb,ll,
Esq. (2d donaticn), 10 guineas ; It. L. Shiel,lE.q m.
51. ; C. HiniVey, 201.

ASittfurotindalvimrmoinrgnii,t,:rng at
s x,onAaNd. —train
Lust ,o.place, a gentleman of the name of Cotwell, of the flan
at
of Cut. ell and Co., American merchants, of Liverpool, arrived
N HONEST
t h arrival A
theß M m
by the train. On alighting fronci it his luggage was placed iu
a cab, and driven with himsel. to Guilford-street,
square. After returning to the stand, the driver on opening
the door discovered a pocket-book tied up, and on opening it
curitry and Bank of England notes, amounting to upwards of
2,7001., were found in it. The driver instantly drove off, a. nd
restored the book to the owner, who at the time was uneon-
si ions oF his loss. The honesty of the cabman was most libe-
rally rewarded by the gentleman.
ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL.—Oit Tues-
day last, at E cuing, near Newmarket, as a horse belonging to
Mr. W.n. F;son, was rubbing himself against the frame work
tf a field well, the wooden cur) that encircled the brink
'
\V y, and in he went, and slipped backwards to the bottoM a
deticii of 15 feet, the water standing 4 fee :eel,. The circuin..
f. rer,ee of the well being much greater at the bottom than at
h top, the horse, tiainju-el by the descent, was able to
turn himself and get on his legs, and before the day was ov.,r,
was deg on cf his perilous situation, perfectly safe and sound.
—lpswich Express.
HUNGERFORD•—A remarkably fine trout was
taught the other day, weighing nearly 61b. Many very fine
trout have been caught in the Hungerford fishery this season.