The Sun.
London, England, 1840-06-20 00:00:00

THE SUN, LON DON „__ SAT UR DA Y, UN'E 20, i z4O.

Not only that, but laws had been framed for the avowed 1 Mr. Gurney said, " IA() not consider it to be my province
purpose of crushing the independence of the negroes, and to enter into a discussion of the laws which have been
which, if they _ were persevered in, they must, and will enacted in this colony during the last few months ; but I
enable the negroes to obtain free settlements for them- cannot, with a good conscience, refrain from expressing
selves where tyranny could not reach them, and the power my own opinion that some of these provisions have an un.
of the oppressor could not he felt.—( Hear, hear.) He favourable bearing on the'cause of equal rights and unre-
had mentioned the other day the case of one of the members stricted freedom. It is unquestionable that the Act for
of the church over which he presided, in order to show that, the recevery of petty debts affords great facilities for the
when not engaged in the cultivation of the sell, it was line of proceeding which have now described. On visit_
quite possible that they might be engaged in something ing the gaol of one of the parishes a few days since, I was
else ;. and as to the exorbitant rates they were charged alarmed by observing that, whereas the number of debtors
the following document would explain that point. It was confined in it during the whole of 1839 was only 12, more
from the proprietor of Buff Bay estate, parish of St. than double the number, viz. 25, had passed'through that
George's prisou•since the commencement of 1840—that is, in-a little
1839. • Mr. Wm. Wordsworth, more than two months. Of these, 16 were rent cases,
Dec. 31st. To • William Hossack, proprie- under the Petty 'Debt Act. If such be the operation of
tor of Buff-Bay River Estate. Dr. this Act in a single parish, what must it be in the whole of
•
For the tie, and occupation on said Estate; for JaMaica ! Arc we to forget that to cast a free labourer
one year to date, of one garden and one into prison, even for ten days, is to 'break down his respec-
house, at Is. Bd. per week £B 13 4 tubility, and to undermine his moral worth as a citizen of
For four. Cocoa-nut Trees, at sd• radii, per do 4 6 8 the State ? I own I tremble when I look at the too pro..
Fur one ground feeding self and children at bable case of a free labourer who cannot agree with his
Is, ed. per week
labour. He racy be charged one of these penal and ficti-
tious rents. Under the Petty Debt Act he may be. des-
poiled of his goods and be imprisoned for a short period.
Driven from his home by repeated vexations, or legally
expelled from it by his employer, he may be found tra-
versing the country in search of a new location, or sleeping
at night on the road side in the open air. Under the
Police Act he may then be questioned and seized by an
armed watchman ; and finally, under the Vagrant Act, he
may be punished with sixty days' imprisonment and bard
labour in a penal gang. If these things are so, what is his
alternative ? (t is to yield to the compulsion, to comply
with the requirements• of his employer, and to labour
against his own free will, for such wages, and for so many
days and hours in the week, as his master may see
fit to dictate. This surely is a perfect contravention
of the intent and purpose of the Imperial Act of
Emancipation. .1n plain English, it is SLAVERY.
Mr. Liutchins, of Savannah-le-Mar, in a letter addressed
to. a friend of his, stated that the Mr. M'Neil, who
had been croaking so ri uch about the ruin of the planters,
bad just purchased an estate for 4,6001., and that he would
not take 5001. for his bargain. He was an attorney, and
that might account for his croaking.—(A laugh.) He
had also purchased another valuable property in the same
district. No one ever knew of their being fur sale till the
purchase took place; but if the planters and proprietors
advertised these sales, they would find that at Trelaweev
they would obtain a much higher price—C Hear, hear.)
So long as the attorneys could persuade them that their
properties were going to ruin, so long they would be able
to purchase good estates at a cheap rate for themselves,
and they were not quite such idiots as to make good crops
under such circumstances for their masters.—( Hear.)
Would they assist the nearoes of Jamaica to put these
laws down ?—( Cries of Yes.) If they did not, the fruit
of freedom would be pulled before it was ripe. If they
did not, with them, and not with Jamaica, was the guilt.
Notwithstanding all that had passed, and all the opposi-
tion and annoyance they had received, the expectations of
the most int rested and the most sanguine had been more
than fully recognised.—( Hear, hear.) In the lame of
300,000 negroes of Jamaica, he thanked the people
of England for all they had done for them. There were
in the present assembly thoie who held sway in the Senate
of the country, and he trusted that they would
lift up their voices in behalf of the negroes -of
Jamaica. He (Mr. Knibb) would go there if
he could, and he would regard very little
the taunts and sneers of the. Members of that House in ad-
vocating the cause of his oppressed brethren. He called
upon the Hon. and Learned Member who sat near him
( Mr. O'Connell), on behalf of the persecuted children of
Africa, to throw the shield of his protection around them,
and give them that freedom which they were entitled to.
—(Loud cheers.) The Rev. Gentleman then alluded to
the subscriptions which had been forwarded to the Con-
vention from the Anti-Slavery Societies of St. Catherine's,
amounting to 100/., from Brownstown 301., from St.
Thomas in the Vale 501., from Berbice, in British Guiana,
1001—( Cheers)—and several other places. Had they not
a right, then, to anticipate the most favourable results ?
( Hear, and cheers.) They must not drawback; they
'must go on from one thing to another; and he could as-
sure them that if they did net their African brethren in
Jamaica were determined to do so. They might do as
they pleased, and he bad no doubt they would do well, but
in Jamaica .they were determined to have liberty or death.
—( Cheers.) Nat in a bloody manner ; no, he and they .
would not touch the head of the greatest tyrant—they
would work with noise but moral, mearis.—(Loud cheers.)
They feared not the frowns of the great, nor would they
be slackened in their endeavours by their smiles. They
were determined to go on, and eventually they • must
triumph, for on their side was every attribute of the Most
fligh—on their side was-the omnipotence of Jehovah, and
He would-crown them with success.—( Cheers.)
Mr.•Foween Boxeoe then rose, and was received with
loud cheering. He said it was not every one in that large
meeting that could appreciate or enter into his feelings of
painful satisfaction, and ,still stronger feelings of, intense
gratitude to the Great_ Creator, which filled his mind at
lazing allowed to .hear the statement made by his worthy
and philanthropic friend, the Rev. Mr. Knibb He well
remembered the day when he land his Hon. - Friend near
him (Dr. Lushington) were treated with the utmost scorn,
because of what was-called their fanaticism, in thinking and
saying that the negro would do all those things ivhich"his
friend Knibb said they were Hew doing. lie remembered
the time when they were laughed to scorn for saying that the
negro would work for wages—when he was asked, Was he a
friend to humanity, for if his views were carried out, the
whites would be all massacred, the colonies would be ruined,
and the blacks themselves would again become barbarians.
These alarms did not come from slight authorities ; even
in 1832 a man of: high. standing as a merchant—the Go-
vernor of the Bank--etold the Government that euelee-nust
be the results of emancipation. These fears were'the
gseatest obstacles in their way; then with what kr.ieful
satisfaction- must he look back to the career of the emanci-
pated, when he foiled that every one of those predictions
had been fulfilled ? Where was the great increase. of,
crime ? He would tell them to look at the empty jails.
Was there any increase of immorality ? He would cite to
them the large spread of religion, and the increase of mar-
riages. Had the planter been ruined? He would point to
the fact of the enormous increase in the value of property
in Jamaica.—(Cheers.) It was said that the whites would
be liable to constant insults and assaults from 'the blacks.
It gave him great satisfaction to find, from the reports
made by the Governors of the Colonies up to a lase period,
that ever since the abolition there had been only one ease
of assault of that nature.--(Cheers.) Then bow they
were' taunted and contradicted and laughed at, when "they
affirmed the negro would work for wages. Their enemies
said they were friends-of freedom in the abstract; prove
to us that they will work for wages, and all our doubts
will be removed. The story now was very different, for
they have found the negro so very fond of wages,
so well acquainted with the principle, -chat they will
not work unless they are . well paid.-4 A laugh.)
The masters found them too astute upon the
question... Then let therreonlreonceive the immense spread
of education and Christianity. He bad hated slavery for
its cruelty to the body, but far more because of its cruelty
to the mind and to the soul —(Cheers.) There Was one
source of satisfection, and it was a very great one, consi-
dering the anxiety which he had upon the subject—it was,
to have heard those truly blessed statements from the
mouth of his friend Mr. Knibb. He had spent many.most
anxious nights and stays respecting h'm, for they had the
report: in own that he was an.outlaw—that the rope was
about his neck, and they were afraid that the next arrival
would bring.them the teewa of his execution—that he had
died a martyr in the -cause of 'ft eedom and humanity. Aw-
ful would have beon •th'e:eonsequences of such a deed;
'therefore he 'rejoined to see him, and to welcome hen
amongst them. England had done much, but it was the
duty of Abolitionists O'er to bear in mind that there wore,
millions of negroes in the world besides those its our colo-
sites( Cheers.) Considering the present state .of the
sugar market, he was gumh, afraid that a clamour would be-
got up in this couotry about.thehigh,price of sugar; and
he feared that it would be so great as to compel. the Go-
vernincnt to give way, and admit slave-grown sugar from
foreign countries into our market. All their energies
ought to be directed to prevent such a calamity, for if it
ever were allowed, there would be such scenes of aggra-
vated slavery, cruelty, and oppression, as the World ticl
not hitherto seen— Let them work without fal-
tering in this cause, because, if slaie-gro,wn sugar
were once admitted,. they would have thrown *away
their money, and ilaVei;y,Would once more become ram,
pant. He rejoiced. at the statements he had heard from
his Friend Knibb, because be had made it already appear
that' in a '
very few years free-grown sugar front our own
colonies would be exclusively and plentifully supplied. to
'this country. They were now trying the great 'experi-
ment whether free or slave-cultivated sugar was of the
most advantage ; and most sincerely he trusted the re-
sult would be according to their wishes. He would not
detain them, but he could not resist saying so 'much 'to
express his sense of satisfaction at the heart-stirring ac-
counts given the meeting by his friend Knibb.—(Cheers. )
Dr. LustuNorrori rose amidst loud cheering. He felt
proud to take an humble,pert on that great and interesting
occasion, where they had the presence of representatives
from all nations, who were
.animated by the same leading
and opinions as themselv,es, namely, an ardent detestation
of slavery; and he trusted that their meeting • would in-
duce all persons having. such feelings to unite together in
the most strenuous efforts for its entire extinction.. Les
them bear in mind—have it constantly before them-thatthe consequencel emantipation. in the Britisit'colonies,
provided it bore out in its results all that its friereN hoped
or expected from iclwould be. felt and prove of the utmost
consequence as ant eneho obtain vmancipatiuri all (Ave': the
world, and to eventually obtain the final Abolition of the
still more horrible traffic in man.e--( Cheers.) • He con_
fettled, therefore,
.that, looking to the subject they were
now discussing as a great experiment, he had been Most
anxious to see that the hopes held out to the . world
had not proved a' failure; for had it unfortu-
nately been so, it would not have been !towel
to the score of accident: hot, would be atirshwed
taken and erroneous principles. •It was, thoiefore, of the.
utmost importance that they should knoW the result Of
British emancipation; and that they should foster that re-
sult till it attained 'greater perfection, and that they should
strenuously oppose every attempt to interfere with the
freedom of the emancipated negroes, such as had been
done in Jamaica,—(Cheers.) The statement made by.
Mr. Knibb was made front facts which had come tinder
his own notice and.observation—the fruits of his own ex-
perience in one of the largest islapds of -the British ems
pire. And he had stated what the effect of these mea-
sures, which had been pissed by the Legislature of Ja-
maica, would be upon those who bad just escaped from the
trammels of slavery. He (Dr. L.) had looked into those
ahuadtiecsomoef to upon them was,
laws with the deepest attention, and the conclusion he
cheethresi that it was one of the first
They had not been framed, as every law ought to be, for
....ceotovlerniemcetnotnetoanrdefaelsled.othecmon.firmccthem—
(Loudheers.)
the administration of impartial justice between man and
man—not for the protection of the poor :man from thelop-
pressionfofstlae rich=—not for-the preservation of the gii‘at
bonne of society, but to arm the employer with ti;e
of exacting from the labourer more than he was justly re-

£43 7 8
Did they call that freedom ?—( Hear.) He ( Mr. Knibb)
did not—it was not worth one farthing, much less twenty
millions. But there was, he was rejoiced to say, an outlet
to that system in Jamaica ; they had at present at least one
thousand freeholds, and he believed they were below the
mark in that number. He (Mr. Knibb) had purchased
the other day, through a friend, from Mr. Colville, of
London, part of a inountaie, containing 45 acres, and al-
though there were only 10 acres of it at all accessible, he
had paid 501 sterling for it.
Mr. STURGE—What was it worth before emancipation ?
Mr. .W. KNIBB would not have given one half or one
quarter that sum. It might be asked how he had paid
for it, and he would tell them that forty families had come
forward and purchased the quantities they required, and
he had the pleasure of signing 150 titles to give 150
votes before he left Jamaica.—( Cheers.) He had received
the other day the most pleasing accounts from the settle-
ment—three or four houses had been already erected, and
before he had left; he bad seen the people there
in their proper places, and the Bible on the table.
—(Cheers.) It had been said that the negroes were
fond of change, brat he could tell them that wherever
they were properly treated they would remain, and as an in-
stance he would state that out of forty families who had
intended to move to a settlement about two miles from
the estate on which they were located, not one bad moved
after a new overseer had been appointed, who admitted
that they had been shamefully treated, and that all the
arrears, amounting to 1301. would be paid to them. There
were many similar cases which he could mention to them.
He had received the following letter yesterday from Mr.
Abbott, and it would show the meeting that there were
some good. proprietors in Jamaica, and if only a few more
went out much good might be effected, and they might be
indexed to believe that even something good might be
found in a Baptist parson.--( Hear, hear.) "As to the
working of the free system, which is a subject on which
you will need information which may be depended on, I
can report most favourably. You will recollect that on
many of the estates in the vicinity of this town, permanent
and fair arrangements for rent and labour (kept distinct)
were entered into between the managers and labourers be-
fore you left. These arrangements have been carefully
observed by both parties—no disputes have occurred on
those properties—no work for the Magistrates to do—the
people work well—get good wages, and pay their rent re-
gularly. I have it on good authority that on Seville estate
from seven to nine hogsheads of sugar are made per week,
more than was ever made. on it daring. slavery; and. Mr.
Pink, the proprietor of Drai Hall, told me a few days ago,
that the people on that estate were giving him great satis-
faction, that he expected the property would yield 300
hogsheads of sugar this year, which is full one-third more I
than its average crop. That he wishes to extend the cul-
tivation of the cane, and can do so, giving liberal
, wages, at an amazing profit,"—(Great. cheering.)
The Rev. George Clive wrote to him that he did not think
a single person in his congregation could justly be called
idle. It was stated that the Poor:rates had doubled in the
parish, and he had inquired how many of the emancipated
population were upon the books? The answer was, not
one.—(Cheers.) The fact, was the lazy persons who
once had slaves were now too idle to work for themselves.
—(A laugh.) It might be asked, how were they able to
know so much of the people ? and he (Mr. Knibb's) an-
swer was, that they made it their business, as it was their
duty, to become acquainted with the condition of the
people, and they knew their willingness to work by having
employed them themselves. A chapel was about to be
built, and a white gentleman proposed to erect it for 2,000/.
He (Mr. Knibb) said he would do it for less, and he sent
round to the•estates, arid offered the labourers the wages
their masters had Sworn they- were 'worth when they were
slaves, and he had built the chapel. for 8001. less than the
white man.—(Hear, hear.) It bad-been said that the Bap-
tist missionaries ,urged the people to demand higher wages
than they were worth. Why, the-rate of wages had been
fixed by the masters themselves—when they were valued
the masters came forward and swore they were worth so
much per day, 'and the valuaticin was fixed according to the
masters' reale. Was it to be supposed that they we-re of
less value when free than while they were slaves ? The
•
answer to that was that they did not do so much work' new;
but the scale was fixed according to the amount of labour a
man ought to perform. He had the scale with him, and
lie would prove to demonstration to any person who
wished to go into the details, that the masters had them-
selves to thank for asking too much for the poor negroes'
freedom.—( Hear, hear.) He would illustrate his position
by referring to the sugarcane planting. Before the Se-
leer Committee of the House of Commons on the Abolition
of Slavery, William, Taylor, Esq., supposes that this de-
scription of labour might be procured at St per acre.
Robert Scott, Esq;, states that 10/: and 111. ,is frequently
paid, and that 71. 10s,- is a low average. James Simpson,
Esq. at 71:-' William .Shand, Em., at 71: lbs. .1n the
tables furnished lo Mr.' Joseph' Sturge, Henry Hunter,.
Esq., attorney, of Latium Estate; in St.' James's, states
that-the cost at cane:hole digging by jobbers was "81. per
acre. We take the average of these Prices, leaVing out
the 101. and 1 1/. as stated by Robert Scott, Esq. and we
shall find it to be 71. The usual price that is now -paid is
3s. 4d. (2s. sterling) for 100 holes, or, as there are 2,722
holes in an acre, it amounts to about 4/. 10s. 10d. ; by this

it will appear that if the wages of labour are settled
more At the will of the lOpurer than.at that of his em-
ployer," the labourer is, much more reasonable in his price
than were the owners of flesh and blood in the da}s of
slavery, requiring less by 21. 9s. 2d. for digging an acre
of cane-holes -than the white man received, by whom he
was held in unjust bondage—thirty per cent. less than that
acknowledged to be paid by the planters themselves in the
palmy days of stocks, dungeons, stripes, and blood.
He believed it was-a fact that the negroes were paid less
for their labour than the labouring population of Van Die-
men's Land, South Australia; or Canada. Already they,
hat: established in Jamaica a number Of free villages, one
of them bearing the name of their venerable president,
Clarkson,, another was called 'Birmingham, and a third
they h'ad named Victoria.--( Enthusiastic cheering.) For,
as liii.friend Barrett had said, on the Ist of August what
man could ,not de, a woman, had done for the slaves.--

(Renewed cheering.) To show their respect 'for that es-
teerepd man, Joseph Sturge—( Loud cheers)—they bad a
town which bore his honoured name, although that was nbt
needed, for it was deeply engraver) on,every negro's heart.
At all these places they had schools and chapels. and . the
people could obtain- the advantages of moral and religious
instruetibn. It 'might be asked who'had assisted them in
all that. It was their friend Joseph Sturge, who had ad-
vanced them money which had been lorig since repaid.—
' (Hear, hear ) To show how poverty-stricken they were in
Jamaica, he would State that one week'l,o9o/. had been
deposited in his hands to purchase land;, and he bad-lately-
given for 1.36 acres of land with One house on it 2,8001.
currency. Would the money be repaid.? Of course it
would, for these persons did nut spend their nights in ale-
housei, arid, festivity and riot, although their wages were
small, yet they reared fowls and kept pigs, and they were
not like the poor Irish obliged to sell them for their rent..
The .Rev, Gentleman then proceeded to point out the in-
creased attention, on the part of the negroes, to religion and
education, and read a list of the increased number who at.
tended the schools and chapels since the-Act of Emanci-
potion. "These' returns merely . referred to' the Baptist
Mission,' and he believed their brethren of other denomi-
nations had been equally successful. Where chapels had
bren destroyed, they were now erected twice the former
size—where ten formerly stood there were now twenty,
,and all" paid 'for by the 'voluntary contributions of the
emancipated negroes.--(Cheers.) Besides subscribing
15,000 dollars for religious and educational purposes, they
had sent 500 dollars to that Convention; and so lenff as
tyranny existed, P....they were kept free, they would ho
happy to assist them in freeing the world.—( Hear, and
cheers.) He was' happy to say that in Jamaica they
wantedirothing but the prayers of their English brethren,
every church there supporting its own miniAers,--
(Cheers.) He would now refer to another subject—
the Acts which it was proposed to introduce into the
island, and which were of the most unjust and iniquitous
character. One of them was the Vagrant Act, and
it enacted that " Every person wanderings abroad
and lodging in any outhouse or shed, or in any de-
serted. or; unoccupied, building,. or in any, mill, sugar, or
coffee works, watchhousc, trashhouse, or other buildings,
or within-any cane,'coffee, provision piece, pasture, or in
closure, not having any visible means of subsistence, and
not giving any good account of himself or ber;elf, shall
be deemed a 'rogue and vagabond within the true intent
and meaning of 'this' Act ; and it shall be lawful for any'
Justice of the Peace to commit such offender, being thereof.
convicted before him, on his own view, or by the codes-
siou of such offender, or by the evidence on oath of
one or more credible witness or• witnesses, to' the
house of correction, there, or on the public streets and
highways, to be kept to hard labour for any time
not exceeding sixty days,"—( Hear, hear, and cries
of " Shame.") What was to be done with such an
Act. Upset it at once. The opinion of' the Attorney-
General :—‘‘ In my opinion the charge of double rent is
not illegal, and it may be recovered by action at law,
varying as to the Court, according to the amount, either
before two Justices, under the Petty Debt Act, or in the
Superior Court in cases greater than the amount for
which the Betty Debt Court gives remedy." So that if
a man refused to work for a low rate of. wages, his rent
might be at once doubled on him, add if he refused to
pay it, by a summary species of ejectment he might be
turned out of his home, and if his furniture was taken, his
wife beaten, or abused, or anything of that sort, the Act
provided that the officer or constable was not to be con-
sidered a trespaiser, but the negro might have his
action at common law. Common law in Jamaica !
--(Hear.) They' might as well go to the confines of
perdition to seek for it.—(Cheers and laughter.) There
might be law in Jamaica, but there was no justice, Look
at the case of the Rev. Mr. Stainsbury, a man dear to all
--(Hear, hear)—who, for endeavouring to purify his con-
gregation from the contamination of a certain Judge, was
amerced in the sum of 2,500/. and not having wherewithal
to pay was thrown into gaol. The very defence of the
plaintiff was so filthy and disgusting that if he (Mr.
Knibb) even dared to allude to it heavould-be hissed from
that platform. Another'devoted and intrepid Baptist mi-
nister was similarly circumstanced. Speaking of these laws,

influence, the °penalise of which would 'be quicker thin it
hadbecte in the cause of British slavery.—( Cheers. ) Now'
as to the value of property at the present moment, he would
make it evident before he sat down that it 'was: not in so
low a state as had been :represented by a largo body of
planterri:—( Cheers.) He was not a planter himself, but it
happened to hire frequently that he had the disposal of es-
tates, tied: in all those cases he had been perfectly' beset by
people requesting the preference of purchasing those estates;
ande,o longer ago than on his voyage to this country he had
been solicited to obtain the preference 'for a gentleman
to *hone he had. been'under some trifling obligations; for
the lease of a valuable estate, for which he was disposed
to :give a handsome • rent. He did not. think -at that
moment that a property . without slaves would- •bring the
enormous price it didyeare.age ; far. from I,- it in those times
princely fortunes were invested in estates.; but since the
lest:year of slavery, when property was depreciated' in the
Way in which he had stated •by exposing the truth of the
system, and destroying•the security of the planter, since
that time property
~had risen very much. The .value of
property its the neighbourhood of towns, he could state
from experience,' had in many cases doubled, and be had
bitterly' repented of many sales of property he had
made in consequence of the increase in its value.
There wee ' another feature of their prosperity in
Jamaica, in the establishment of banks. What did
the Meeting think' of three banks being established in
KingStrae; Where there 'were no banks before, and those
.banks were established for the purpose of advancing me.
ney and making profit? Some of those banks which.:bad
only set up last year, had realised 50 per cent. upon their
-original stock ; and one bank had already divided le per
cent., and laid by a considerable reserve fund.—( Cheers.)
He was not able to speck: eloquently, but he hoped- the
eloquence of these facts would not be lost sight of.—
( Cheers.) There bad been a great deal said that day,
• and justly, too, with respect. to the very strenge.position
in- which they. 'were placed in Jamaica; in eonsecieence of
the manncrin which agricultural pursuits were followed
ire that country.—(Cheers.) He was •sure those present
would call them unnatural when he told them that he was
feeding his horses with bay that came from England.
The business of Jamaica was labouring under a vicious
:system, and the sooner it was altered the better.—
( Cheers.) He -was desirous that the real state of
matters in Jamaica should be understood, there could be
no doubt that there were many impedimpete to the proper,
working of freedom in jamaica.—( Cheers.) 'Fie would
in the first place state what those impediments were' not,
and then what they were. The impediments did not con-
sist in withdrawing female labour from the field, there
had not been anything like withdrawal of female labour,
the labour of married women had to a great extent, and he
'.hoped ' utyiversally, been Withdrawn---(Cheers )—but,
young healthy women, who had no ties of that kind
!worked in the field as he bad seen them in England, and
he did not think there was any degradation in that. In
the next place he asserted that idleness waenot one of the
'impediments. The negro felt the misery of idleness as
much as the European did.—( Cheers.) It had been As-
-serted that one impediment was the negroti devoting their
iattention to the cultivation of their provision grounds,
while they neglected their labour. Such was not the case,
becauseif the negro attended more to his provision
!grounds than his labour the r esult would be that the pro-
vision market would be glutted, and the negro would vet
:be enabled to receive, so much from his grounds as from
his labour an the fields. No persen felt more pride than
?the negro in having every thing comfortable about him.
?The negro would not be content with his meal of yams,
he wished to be well dressed, together with his family ; he
liked a well furnished house; -and for his own part be
:knew ho person so sensibleto the proprieties of life as the
'negro.-( Cheers.) He thought, therefore, that the hue-
.aod.cry which had been made on these topics had shown
that there were some ether motives at work.—( Cheers. )
Having stated what were not the impediments, -he would
!now endeayour to state. what were the inapedirn..nts that
'heel arisen to the full working out of the, principles
of liberty in Jamaica. In the first place, during.
slavery, as they, all knew, the negro was ac-
,customed to view 'his master as his landlord,
labour was not compensated, and he had just as much
'right to his little ground for his support as the horse had.
In many cases the poor man had planted cocoa-nut trees,
;or his father had before him, and for those 'very trees the
!landlords were now charging rent. The negro had never
been accustomed to pay rent, but the cases were. rare in.
deed in which they had shown an unwillingness to recog-
nize the principle. They were all willing- to recognize
the landlord's right to receive rent for his ground, now
that they-had received the boon of liberty.—( Cheers. )
But the landlords had acted most harshly in the mode in
which they charged the rent and extracted it.--(Cheers.)
Land in the West Indies was charged as high a rent as
land' in one of the most beautiful parts of Kent. They•
must all know perfectly__ well that laird in the colonies
generally was not of ma' ialee-. Frequently an acre
of exceflcnt land was bought for 61. sterling,' and- the
common rate of— purchase was 51. currency, Or 31.
sterling. • In Kent land fetched from !OW. to 1501.
an acre-, and yet the negro was charged a higher
rente and added to this, he was charged a rent according
to the number of his 'family. The rent he was charged
generally was 21. 12s. for himself, the like .sum -for his
wife, and children above a certain age were generally
charged half, and he had known cases where children in
arms had been charged sd. a week for rent. He depre-
cated snot a system, because it was well known that skilful
men would make land Worth six times as mild' as other men:.
Tife'tiegio was disheartened on amount of the principle of
charging
.rent ; -and, the. landlOrd in Jamaica assumed the
sight of ejecting his tenants wherk.he found they,wo,uld,uot
agree to-his terms. After a :man had expended-ranch
iaeour on a plot of land he was sometimes, after three or
four weeks occupancy, compelled to quit, a practice which,
if followed in Englander Scotland, would be sufficient to
set there countries' in a flame this was a great obstacle
to the successful working of the system in Jamaica. An-
otherevir Gad arisen from nis--the Proprielor:said that in
action;" thus fie was doing no more than exercising ."legal
right. ••This,had been much discussed among the labour-
ers in. Jamaica, feat whether eight
.or wrong_, it was quite
clear that if any, parly had this legal right, and insisted on .
is, to the viehition of Abe most. equitable principles of hu-
manity and. equity, -he was guilty of great dishonesty—.
( Hear, hear)—and ; would be pitied by no person if he •
brought down the consequences of 'such' eoradtict"one his'
own head.' -The negroeselewevere were told :this-Was a
legal right, and they must submit to the law, and be
(Mr. Andersen) knew no people:in the world so'ready to
obejt. the -law when they' knew what- it was. (Hear,
hear, hear.) e Were he to hear that Jameica, was in
flames, • and full of massacre and Of. bleod, he
should no more hesitate, on account of the ncgroes,. to go
there,witii his,a,i(e and children, that be would to go to
the next State.—(Hear,- hear.) He believed. •Sir Lionel
Smith; 11l a despatch, had expressed a similar opinion, and
said he .we unable to find words to express his admiration
of the conduct of these people. Was it then to be won-
dered at, if- the 'proprietor insisted on the strict letter of
his right; the negro should sometimes do the same in self-
'defence ? He was not prepared to say that the negro did-
'not do, sr:felted
.o.metilette say ter the proCrietor," You
;have.tuened myself and family. out of our habitation at a
eveefes•hotiee: upon the naked world, uncreteeted and un-
proVided foilebecauee you say you have 'a legal right to do
so. Well; I have a legal righteto work only when I please,
.and theraure your canes may lie perishing on the ground,
.for I trill-thus teach you a lesson."—( Hear, hear.) He
might mention also, that almost all the negro houses- in the
•island" Were built by the negeocs themselves when they
'were slaves, 'yet the koprietora charged rent for.tbem.
This was the real picture of matters in the West Indies,

warded
.for—(Cheers)—to strengthen the arm of the
strong, and to weaken the weak.—(Cheers.)
The first
and bounden duty of the Government—and he wenld
show that it was its;interest as well as its duty,—vvas to eye
the laws made for the colonieS were just.—( Hearse)
They had done nothing in passing the Emancipation Act
if they did net take care to carry_ it out in. justice, and in
its full spirit.--( Cheers.) What had been the state of
justice in all oar depecdencies? There bad been no just,
no faithful administration of any law intended for the pro-
tectien of the low, and weak, and -oppressed. What they
required was the faithful administration of justice ; and if
they had it not,abey -would.haveno constant and continuous
labour. A greater mockery could not be' than for the
planter to hope that cruel and oppressive laws would pro-
mere them the labour of the negroes on their own terms.—
(Cheers.) The great body of the negro 'population wet e
too enlightened to put up with them, and they would de-
riVe, their Sustenance by means equally useful to theme
selves, but by means that must prove entirely destructive
to the interests of the planter.—(Cheers.) He never
doubted bat that the .negro would improveas he had done,
but be had scarcely dared to hope that they would have
been so entirely free from crime ; such a freedom from crime
as Jamaica had evinced bad never before been seen—
(Cheers)—and he congratulated. the Anti-Slavery Society
and the Anti-Slavery public. Those present must ever
keep before their eyes that they were only a portion of the
public—they must not fail to remember, that .there were
other interests, powerful interests At work against them,
Nothing could be so detrimental to their_' cause as the
shutting of their eyes to the difficulties which were in
their way. That had been one of the greatest difficulties in
their way for the last thirty years: Let them look care-
fully and deliberately at their present state and condition.
The revenue of sugar had formed-one million during the
last eleven years. The short price—to talk technically
was now 465., being *a difference of one-third between
that and the foreign sugar, which was 235. Many would
say that if this state of things were to continue we. would
be obliged to import foreign sugar, instead of home,—
they would say that this was a tax upon the people, and
that we were adopting a different principle in regard to
sugar, to that adopted with regard to cotton and coffee.
He quite agreed with his Hon. Friend, Mr. Buxton. that
nothing could be more calamitous to the , cause of the
Abolitionists than the admis.ion of foreign slave-grown
sugar. It would discourage industry in our own colonies
and greatly encourage slavery ahr,i,d, He would appeal
to his worthy friend Mr. Knibb, for ,the sake of an example
to foreign countries, to use all his i,'fluaice, and he knew
it was extensive, to give encouragement to the growth of
home sugar. Let him strain his te most exertions in Ja-
maica, cot to induce the people to labour for no coesidera-
Hon, but as far as lioesible, and consistent with justice and
due reward, to turn the attention of the people to the cul-
tivation of sugar in place of other articles, It was a
question which he pressed earnestly, because he considered
it of the last importance. This country had done much in
the emancipation of our own negroes, but much was Set
left to be done. Men of the world had not time to at-
tend to the subject; for instance, he did trot believe
that there were above twelve : men in London who
were acquainted with the state of the Mauritius ; and
he believed further, that not above rix of them were
honest enough to tell what it was. —( Cheers, and laughter.)
Let them- then strenuously keep tia-ir shoulders to the
wheel—let them show the world that the great experiment
was prospering, and would prosper. Let them
.bear in
mind that the great object was to put an end to slavery,
but that the chief end and aim of ter. Society was to put
an end to that accursed traffic itself. So long as it was
the opinion of a certain portion of the world that it was
profitable to employ slave- labour, se long it would con-
tinue. Thus, let their exertions be continued until they
had finished the good work. Although he believed that
they were -in the right course, he was bold enough to
tell them there were other right coursel, and he would,
under Divine Providence,' avail himself of them, and do ail
in his power to put an end to the accursed traffic.
Mr. KNIBB begged to be allowed to assure the Conven-
tion that the intention of himself and his friends ire Jamaica.
was to promote the cultivation of sugar, but it must
be upon principles of justice. If the Government would
protect the cultivation the increase in tho cultivation of
sugar would be upwards of tenfold ; but it not, it must di-
minish. He would not have his brother by the vagrant
laws turned out of his house, and his sister put into gaol
because she had no house to 'ge to. They must de justice
or let England be ruinedstill JaMeica would be free.
Mr. O'Coivreeee rose amidst loud cheers. He would.
not repay with tediousness the character of that reception.
They had heard much to delight them that. day. They
had found that every thing. of evil and mischief that had
been .predicted had been confuted. by .the fact that there.
had been no violation of property, that. the white men
were all alive,.that no injury had been done to 'a Human
being, that peace 'and contentment reigned—ill- were the
blessed effects of emancipation.' There Wei another Society'
instituted for the -purpose of carrying out 'Civilization and
Christianity into. Africa. It was a feasible plan, asiwas de-
monstrated by what-had taken place in Jamaica; and, he
trusted thit the two Societiee would .be, enabled to pursue
the good work.in a congenial spirit.... That Society num-•
bered amongst its supporters the greatest benefactors of the
human race. .He was. sure the .Convention would think-
that he was fully borne out in making that Statement;
when he stated that his two Hon. friends whO had 'ad.-
dressed the meeting were members of it..(Cheers.) For
himself he was willingto make' any -sacrifice to promote
thc'end in view by' both Societies. They had to show 1
to France and America that 'emancipation might be
safely given: In Jamaica they had a free people,
but now' they had a slave code enacted under
the sanction of the unworthy -successor' of Sir Lionel
Sinith.-7( Immense ,cheering.) Sir Charles Metcalfe was
mischievous in his situation. He bad had •a glorious ex--
ample set him, but he had neglected-it;-or he would never
have given Lis 'sanction' to •flzose laws 'which had be'en
made for the express purpose of swindling Edgland -brit
of her money, for they decidedly' Would perpetuate, the
abominable principle of slavery. Wily; should not a•depu-
tation from that body wait upon the Minister.?-,(Cheere.)
He was informed that there had been a refusal to receive

. .
a deputation ; if so, there could, bcooly one reason• for it,
that was, tht they had deterinined.th,refuse their sanction
to these laws.—(Cheers.) There were • Member- sof
Parliament present—there was his lion. Friend, who for
thirty years had :been a warm friend of the cause ; why
'should not he in his place in ParliaMent put's question
to the Minister upon that important subject.—( Cheers.)
If these lar-s received the Royal Assent, they had f..r
better re-enact the slave laws et .once. One universal
shout of reprobation Would be raised from all parties and
all sects, and from every corner of th 6 land. They ought
to encourage emigration, which could. never be done
under these laws, for no man would have the courage to
face them. He was moat anxioas to notice the argu-
ment now .used by .the planters, that •we were men in the
habit of using slave-grown coffee and cotton. -However,
before the Convention was concluded,' he trusted that
something would be done for those -slaves still belonging to
England in the .East Indies. Already interested., parties
were getting up :petitions favour of Vlive grown'
_sugar..
They most steadily set their fate 'against, any plan of that
kind; for most undoubtedly it was to,.establish slavery in
its worst form. •

Mr. SCOBELL begged to ask the Hon. Member whether,
:n his views of cinigration, he included the transprta-
tion of Hill Coolies from their own counteyin the West
•

Mr. O'CoNNELL—Mest undoubtedly! not. He did
not allude to the Hill Coolies, for he was convinced that
they might as well proclaim the slave trade igaid;, besides,
he did not think that the planters of the Mauritius were the
best possible parties to be entrusted with the welfare of
those men.

and lie grieved for it, because he believed it was urged as
an Lrinment by those Who only looked to one side of the
question, against the successful working of the free system
in Jamaica. It had been said that great losses had ensued
:to the:proprietors in consequence ; but if this were so,
they 'were &veil:ea,' -for they could only have' been 0.0-dueedby
dueedby the Misconduct of the proprietor. There were
many estates in Jamaica. going on gloriously, and he
had it from the highest authorities that they would not on

Sir SARDLEY WitstoT had nct intended to have taken
any part in the discussion of the day, but be could not re-
sist the solicitation of his friend and constituent,
Sturge, nor abstain from giving his hearty adhesion to all
the proceedings of the day.• He trusted that the Con-
vention would do all in their power to put an 'end to those
laws recently enacted in Jamaica." He agreed with Mr,.
O'Connell that' the queition'stould be immediately asked
in the House of Commons whether the Government would
sanction this or not. He pledged_ himself to do all in his
power to earery out the objects of the Cdrivention.
It being no wTwo . o'Clock, the Convention adjoo-
T`

any account return to the old system. Indeed, lie had been
frequently told that it was not polite to refer to it
(Laughter)—when he had answered be bad no desire le'
do so unless compelled by their conduct.---(Hear, hear.)
It was not .his intention. to detain the Coavcntion long
with :respect to the effect of missionary exertiona in Ja-
maica. Ho would, however, mention one circumstance,
which hat been rela•ed to• him by a most' respectable and
high-minded mar. there; Mr. M. Parkinson; who had
lately died, and who told him that ho had received great
assistance 'froth Mr. Knibb, in The management df an ex-
tensive estate 'near Falmouth, and that by the influence of
that yentte.man he bad got negroes to work at a mush
'lower rate -0 wages than. be could" otherlise have done.
Hear, hear.). He bored that would go forth to •the
world. It was quite clear, however, these evils were

ijourned.

'he Convention reassembled it, Four o'Clock.
The Rev. Mr. 'SCaLas stated that the Chairman of the
morning, Dr. Grey-ale, was prevented, from attunding the
evening sitting in consequence of, particular business, and
should, therefore propose that Mr. Blair should take the
chair.

Mr.. BLAIR having taken the chair; said that' it was'now
proposed, that a vote should be taken upon the Report -of
the Free Labour Committee, which had been 'bretight up
in the morning ',by' Mr. Sturge, and had led to a long dis.
cussion ;,• and after the Convention had agreed to 'receive
that Report, ceitain'resolutiOns would b,e proposed founded
upon it, for the consideration and ad9ption-of the meeting.
On the motion that the Report be, received, • .;
Mr.' WIC W..INYSs ,Annsasost, ftem•Jamaica, rose .to:
address the Delegates. -He went to Jamaica at the of
1833, one year before the' expiration of the old systetn of
slavery,and • he bad' continued • there till he set out for
this country. He 'had been intimately' actfiiiinted- with
all classes. of society • there, from the G4Vernot to the
poorest menial; and his attention hn been awiikeried
the while •tif themperatiori of the various sySeen:ef thr,(kad.
been at work since he went to_ the 161.90:: Withlespect-.
to ; he slave', systeni. aljth,e. evils that had been urged
agiiinal it be tied found to be' perfeetly:trne--,in4net,.it.l
• was tinpnosibie. to; ,exaggerate the eviis o4.oavery..—„,
( Ch rers. 1. . • All the .eviis, too, that halo t:ieen- said •to.ee.ult
froM the. 4pyrouticesbip systeM.•is ere foondtd• -in
( Cheers.) Lord Howiek; when that. nrensui propose-11H
'in Parliament bad the clearness to .perceive anti!all
• he bad 'pre-dieted of'it had eolne to bass.-:-.(.7fia'erx.) •
• as to the- present. system 'there, Could 'be no dr;uht ii; the I
mind of any well'
principled :man :ma of, its rnalizillg all .
bad • been expected, fruit! ) 11.•
e.;
statement of importance
.to Son time. before.
slavery Was• abolished in Jatio.iei f.hr. moral it iluenee,
of the . complete exposure of all the evils of the sys.
tern, which, up. to • the last. •hota th planters had
denied.--the comliktc convictieni that why Reemn
plished• niiuds. . of. • thO..e , very' 'mach '
dispoSed. to. receive 'conviction, had so' eorripletely nil-
sett.W the security of slave ptoiyieitY,,:that' that' Tll.o'l'3l
power alone would haie it frc
mentioned this particularly to their irien s
that they might take courage, and be Assured lant if they
persisted in tbi r
r present laudable chae of. cxpnan)g. .
the
evils of the system,. that at. last; like -the drops of water
upon stone, they would make • a hollow
in the
system,—(Cheers.) Had no compensation at all been
conceded, he would assert that the planters would have
be` Compelled for their own protection, to abandon the
System,_( Cheers.) He might mention as an
ion
of that, that there wero many purchases of property at
that time made ‘iith a view to compensation; 'and iR
almost eVery,' case, the amount the
liasice
o.
sl au Pr e_ n
as a :
lion money- conceded, not, only paid the
motley ®f the estate, but enabled the party purc
ray in:alarge stock of .eve, Ything requisite-for-the manage_
no°
renttho estate.. Seivral. cases of that kind hail'oe,enotge,t-
in Jaintlic.3, aid it woOlif be very soon the
• America
if the agitation of this great question t,
( Cheers.) But he hoped they wool have Solute greater

,only Leropntary, and . that the ',system would-soon work
as successfully and cheaply, aye more successfullyiand•
cheaply than the system of slave labour had ever done.--
(Hear, hear.) Would they believe that lap te",'the pre-
.sent .finie the use of the plough bad been systemati-
cally excluded from Jamaica ?-=(Hear, hear.) They
had, however, now begun to bethink themseliek of
means for supplying the deficiency of, human lab Our, and
he was Informed that an' estate "under the management
kf .Stewart" _which. would require the labour of 100
pe4roes, was now managed entirely by the plough, and
• only three men and a boy: There were many other me-
thods : by. which human labour • might be obviated,
but lie thought nothing would be more advantageous
to Jamaica, than for a fi•-:w English farmers to go there and
niatiace the estates. naording to the English system, He
s‘irrie the Essex farmers, many of whom he tin-
ciet,t,ii, belonged to the .Societrof Friends, would do so.
,tis sure their: .ebuciliatory manners, their most
rig Lwow, dealing, and their strong good senie,rtwOuld
miike the worst faints in Jamaica work to admiration.
chie.fly an improrument ,in the-morale of society
;i0 Jamaica which was wanted. He had seen lately a
etus in a newspaper of a Jamaica Land Company,
atiO. hr N/10.0i1 rejoice to hear of such a scheme being.car-
ried into fleet.
A DELEGATE informed the Convention that a meeting
"t cite , rotnoters of this Company had been held that
and that there was every probability of its esta-
blishment_"
:V., AN I;ERSON Ile was delighted to hear it.
the itiivoeates of lyee labour a test to
appc4 ;,,7 the real working of the sys-
e, c. which now bc-
luh,,,--d to it, am' (:)tigratula.ted the iriends of freedom
on the advantages the cause might derive from it. But
there was another important subject arising out of this—
namely, the- establishment of villages in Jamaica: He
was sure the Convention would see the necessity of this.
A DeLsoars—That is (no of the main objects of this
CoMpany.
Mr. ANDVISnN—He was glad to hear it. On this sub-
ject thy Would remember Adam Smith stated that
.on the
abolition of the English system of slavery in the time of
Queeti' Elizabeth,-frcedem found a refuge in the neigh-
bouring towns which. then were to be incorporated. And
so it•WAS in Jamaica. The proprietors, by making their
tenure, so. precaricus, compelled the people to. reaort,-as
, the F,:iglish serfs had done, to villages for the establish-
u, he was glad to hear that the names
,:f as (laikson, Lionel Smith, and
Sturgc,were to be perpetuated in these nurseries of freedom.