The Sun.
London, England, 1847-12-06 00:00:00

THE StN,

THE MAURITIUS ASSOCIATION.
We have received a copy of the following corres-
pondence :

Downing-street, sth Nov., 1847.

Gentlemen,—l am directed by Earl Grey to ac-
knowledge the receipt of your letter of the 28th ult.
It has not been without some degree of disappoint-
ment that with the full acknowledgment of the ad-
vantages which will accrue to the colony from the
measures which her Majesty's Government have just
adopted for its relief, the members of the Mauri-
tius Association should now press for further
measures, such as his Lordship conceives they must
be aware are far beyond what he has the power to
grant. _ _

Lord Grey does not think that any useful purpose
would be answered by his entering into a detailed
examination of the various suggestions contained in
your letter, and the arguments on which you have
relied for the support of them, although he is of
opinion that it would not be difficult to show that
many of those arguments are ill-founded. His
Lordship considers it sufficient to refer you to the
former correspondence which has passed on these
subjects, from which you will learn that while he is
anxious to afford to the Mauritius Association the
utmost practicable relief, by the reduction of taxation,
and by facilitating a supply of labour upon the easiest
terms for the colony, it is not in his power to give
to the governor the peremptory instructions fLr the
immediate removal of particular taxes which are
sought for in your letter.
In conclusion, Lord Grey directs me to add that he
is anxious at once to put an end to any expectation
which the Mauritius Association may have formed,
that he can ever recommend to his colleagues that
they should propose to Parliament an alteration in
the existing duty upon sugar of the nature which you
have suggested. Such an alteration would, in his
Lordship's opinion, not only be highly unjust to the
British consumer, but, in the present state of the
finances of this country, would be impracticable with
safety to the public credit. And even if it were rot
so objectionable on these grounds, his Lordship feels
convinced that in its ultimate results it would not
prove of advantage, even to the colonies.
I have the honour to be, Gentlemen, your obedient
servant,
B. HAWES.
Messrs. Barclay, Hunter, and others.

TO THE RIGHT HON. EARL GREY, SECRETARY OF
STATE FOR THE COLONIES.

London, Nov. 18, 1847.

My Lord,—The Mauritius Association have the
honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Lordship's
letter of ith November, addressed to them by Mr.
Hawes.

In reply, the association beg leave respectfully to
state that in their memorial of the 28th of October,
they only expressed what they really felt, " extreme
gratitude" for the casual relief afforded to their
brethren in the colony in the hour of extreme need.
The association now beg leave to express their sin-
cere regret that your Lordship should signify " some
degree of disappointment that, with the full acknow-
ledgment of the measures which her Majesty's Go-
verr ment have lately adopted for the relief of the
colony, the Mauritius Association should now press
for further measures, such as your Lordship conceives
they must be aware are far beyond what your Lord-
ship has the power to grant."
This remark on the part of your Lordship con-
vinces the association of their too well grounded ap-
prehension, that in the measures of casual relief re-
cently granted, your Lordship and her Majesty's
Government considered that something had been done
of such a substantial character, as to leave the colony
nothing further to ask for.
It was the duty of the association to prevent such
a fatal misconception, and that was the object of their
memorial of the 28th of October. It is equally their
duty now to repeat that the casual relief thus ac-
corded will serve only to keep the distressed and
much oppressed people in existence for a few months ;
and unless followed up immediately by the " sub-
stantial relief" asked for, that is, " fair encourage-
tnent to their industry in the colony," it would have
been far more humane to have left them to their fate,
even to immediate extermination.

My Lord,—Your Lordship and her Majesty's
Government are called upon to replace the colonies
of the Crown in a position to enter fairly into the
contest against the slave produce of foreign colonies—
the subject to be thus contended for is the supply of
our own, the British market. No other country ever
offered to the world, as an open stake, their home
market to be competed for—no other country seems
likely to follow the same course ; but if such be the
purpose, the fashion, or policy of our day, surely it
should be your Lordship's agreeable duty so far to
afford fair play to your own people, and your own
colonies, that they should not carry " extra weight"
in the contest.

Your Lordship acquaints the association that you
have not the power to grant what has been prayed
for. This they do not perfectly understand ; but
this they most distinctly know, that on the emancipa-
tion of slaves, the possession of the British market
was pledged to the British colonist—that privilege
has been taken away by power, and the colonists are
all but ruined! Look again, and you see their mar-
ket given to the slave colonies. Last year they
supplied 40,000 tons of sugar for our home consump-
tion, equal to the labour of some 60,000 slaves. A
few years more, and our colonies will cease to grow
sugar. The prosperity of the slave colonies will thus
be advanced by the existing measures of her Majesty's
Government, and hereafter from those colonies alone
will this country derive her supplies of sugar.
And thus England, instead of carrying out the
much-wished-for general emancipation of slaves, and
being the means of extirpating slavery from the face
of the earth; she will, as the largest consumer of
sugar, become the greatest encourager of the slave
trade, and consequently be the immediate cause of
adding one million of slaves to the present number of
our fellow-men in bondage, with all their misery upon
her heal.

My Lord,—We entreat your Lordship will be
pleased to give these views your deliberate considera-
tion. It may be alleged that the colonists are inte-
rested parties—that they have been speculators, and
have been unfortunate; but when your Lordship
looks around, and you see such a fearful catalogue
of misfortune, the inference is, that there must be
organic wrong. We have presumed to declare that
the wrong is, untimely or hurried legislation, forced
on, perhaps, by a power that it is very difficult to
resist; but if " wrong," it is surely your Lord-
ship's duty, in justice to her Majesty, to yourself,
and to the people of this country, to amend that

We have endeavoured, humbly and most respect-
fully, to point out what occurs to us as remedies, and
have placed them before your Lordship in the me-
morial of the 28th of October; but it is for your
Lordship and her Majesty's Government to judge of
these remedies, or to find others, to meet the exigency
of the case ; and it will be our duty to work them out
tothe best of our power and opportunities.
To concluCe, we would submit to your Lordship
that to Great Britain her ships, colonies, and com-
merce have been our wealth in peace and our strength
and sinews in war ; these have taken ages to build up
—they form together one body ; each depends upon
the other and upon the country for support. Our
home market is their best support. Let us then sup-
port each other—at least to a reasonable extent of
preference; as one family let us "live and let live;"
and if we have been seduced from these first princi-
ples of nature, and have by any act hazarded our own
destruction, we ought not to be ashamed to retrace
our steps. _ _

Your Lordship's next paragraph refers to previous
correspondence with the association, as showing your
anxiety to afford all practicable relief by the reduction
of taxation and supply of labour. The association do
frankly admit your Lordship's apparent disposition to
remedy these evils ; it has seemed to the association
that your Lordship even admitted that these reliefs
should have preceded, rather than have been left
tardily to follow the introduction of free-trade princi-
ples ; but, nevertheless, after twelve months of such
negotiation, one step has not been advanced ; that most
unprincipled tax, the duty of 11. per ton on the gross
produce of the island exported, is not repealed: when
that burden is removed, the association will most
cheerfully and gratefully admit that something has
been done to reduce the cost of protection.
In your Lordship's conclusion a decided: negative
is given to any expectation that her Majesty's Go-
vernment will propose an alteration in the existing
duties upon sugar, of the nature suggested, " because
it would be unjust to the British consumer, and
also, in respect to the finances of the country, . im-
practicable.' "
The association beg leave to express their opinion
that had the relief now prayed for been granted some
years back, that much less now would be required;
the merchants and planters would have received them
as a boon, and profit thereby ; but reform and relief
sterling,
come so late, that matters proceed from bed to worse,
until the whole capital in the colonies, 130,000,0001.
nextgone
is gone ; 20,000,0001. paid for emancipation,
also
; and your Lordship must anticipate that in
the °
stage there will be a demand made on the
revenue of this country for money to feed the popula-
tido of the col •
'
e 3.
These are appalling
considerations, so much so, as
to impress the association
with a firm belief that if
the question was fairly puttitothe consumers of sugar,
they would, to avert such fearful contingencies, gladly
consent to pay an additional id. oLrolrda. per lb. for sugar
position of credit sahniCril could place
strength to
Itinitrdies.
of British growth, until your
the colonies in a
compete successfully with
Your Lordship lastly states
on sugar " would t i it
no , _n __s res.ults, prove of advanty
association regret
has not favoured them with the
tage even to the colonies. The" associ •
that your Lordship
t
arguments which enable your Lordsh-
p to arrive at