The Sun.
London, England, 1848-02-04 00:00:00

16.111MMLOIEW
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InDideL ••••••••••
three times as dense as that of Ireland, and nearly three
times as dense as that of Englend--which was more
densely peopled than city other spot in the world, unless
it were Malta—the planters were nimble to compete
with the slave grown sugar of Cuba and Brazil,. although
they had a duty of as, in their favour? He behevedth that
there was no example of any country with free labour,;i
being able to compete with the labour of slaves. H. ' had
heard it said that Porto Rico was an example of this
kind; but in Porto Rico suear-planting was carried on
entirely, or nearly so, by slaves. lie was aware that.
Colonel Pinter, writing from Madr:d some eighteen
years ego, held a different opinion, but since that we
had entertained very contrary ideas on the subject.
Colonel }linter sail in 1830, and that opinion was con-
stantly quoted in the house of Commons in the debates
of 1833—that for one shilling sterling of daily wages a
free labourer would work in the fields of Porto Rico
from sunrise to sunset, and e-n a moderate calculation
would perform more work in that time than two slaves.
At the time that Colonel Flinter was thus speaking the
exports of sugar from Porto Rico amounted to 20,000
tons; while the exports for the year 1847, up to the 10th
of September last, according to ti:e circulars which he
(Lord G. Bentieek) had seen, amounted to 40,000 tons.
But how had this been arrived at ? Was it by free
labour that the-se results had been obtained ? lie held
in his hand an extract from a work, the truth of which
he had no doubt would be confirmed by an Honourable
Gentleman who was present. It was an extract from
a work by Mr. Macgregor, who stated that in 1828
there were 1,437,285 acres of land held there by 19,140
proprietors. At the same time, 423 individuals were
proprietors of estate a regularly worked by slaves, of
which 275 were sugar estates, and 148 plantations. Mr.
Macgregor went on to say that in 1822 there were but
29 sugar estates, and the value of the sugar exported
amounted to 57,000 dollars; but he said that, in conse-
quence of the liberal conduct of Governor Latrobe,
great encouragement was given to sugar planting under
his administration, and a considerable immigration took
place in this island. Mr. Macgregor said that the
planters from the neighbouring islands of St. Croix and
St. Thomas brought their slaves to Porto Rico, and that,
in cons, quence of the introduction of these slaves, and
the capital powssed by their ewnels. the island had
continued to proepe r since 1828, and hail been and still
continued to be a very considerable source of revenue
to the mother country. Thus it was shown
that the prosperity of Porto Rico was en-
tirely awing to the enceuragrment given to
slaveowners to come to Port Rico and bring their slaves
with them. But, if the evidence of Mr. Macgregor was
not sufficient, he had got another authority, which, per-
haps, would prevail more at the Colonial-otfice than even
that of Mr. Macgregor. He had in his hand an extracs
from a lecture on political economy, relating to the island
of Porto Rico, which said, " So loeg as the fertility of
the land remains unexhausted, it is probable that the
slovenly labour of the small proprietors may continue to
raise a considerable quantity of export produce; but it
cannot he doubted that most of its surface is no longer
in this condition. It is becoming less practicable to
cultivate it every day, excepting on large estates, with
the aid of much capital, and with numerous gangs of
slaves." The same author went on to state that an
enormous importation of slaves into this iland was going
on, and that the exports of sugar had increased from
20,000 tons in 1828, to 47,000 tons at the time when his
lecture was written. The author of this lecture on poli-
tical economy was Mr. Merivale, Under-Secretary of
State for the Colonies, and he hoped that Mr Merivale
would instil into the mind of his noble chief that nothing
could be more illusory than to suppose that free labour
could ever compete with slaves. But he (Lord G. Ben-
linek) wanted no better authority than that of Lord
Grey himself. He recollected that during the debates
of 1833 the Noble Lord, taking very much the same
view which he did now, retired from the Colonial offi :e,
where he had been, he (Lord George Bentinck) be-
lieved, for three years, and, in resisting the apprentice-
ship scheme, urged in that House, with great vehe-
mence, eloquence, and power, that apprenticeship was
only another species of slavery, which robbed the free
labourer of four-lifths (as we understood) of his labour.
Lord Grey sai that it was proved beyon all doubt
that the highest estimate for a slave's subsistence was
455, a year ; and, at a later period of the discussion,
this statement was confirmed by Lord Stanley, who
said that 50s. was a high estimate for the cost of a
°lave's maintenance in the West Indies. It should be
recollected also, that these people were slaves during a
!nitigated period of slavery. With respect to the nurn-
,ne.r of hours during which they were bound to work,
they were bound to work five days and a half during
the week ; and, even in the Crown colonies, they
Were expected to work nine hours a day.—(llear,
the What was the state if free labour now ?In
i West Indies, and in Jamaica particularly, it was
daysdifficulty that the people could be got to work four
"Ya in the week ; and, when they did work, they were
'2nly employed, on the average, seven hours a day,
Iwhieli they got wages, even when provision grounds
Wereor given in, of is, 3d. a day. He had a statement
made
leajd° to him by a Noble office Lord high in under her
labourer Government, informing that in the last year
the
ibourer who worked the greatest number of days
hisonn estate, where there were 1,500 labourers, worked
164 days, and that labourer was a woman. The man
who worked the greatest number of days worked but
154 days in the year; so that three days a week on this
estate was the utmost labour that could be obtained
from these free labourers, and the Noble Lord was not
a gentleman who was backward with wages.—(A Voice
7-ss Where is this estate?") In Jamaica. He paid
half a dollar a day for work, though he could only get
that work from six hours anda half to seven hours
a day How then, he (Lord G. Bcntinck) asked,
could these free labourers in Jamaica ever be brought
into competition with slaves, who, he presumed, could
be maintained in Cuba and Brasil at least as
cheaply as ever they were maintained in the Bri-
tish
slavery in the British colonies, since 1823 at least, was
slavery of a most mitigated character. They had
twenty-six days allowed them by law, exclusive of Sun-
days, and holydays at Christmas and Eister, and this,
7120 t only in the Crown colonies, but in nll others. In the
Crown colonies slave labour was limited to nine hours a
day. but it Was iiOt so in Cuba or Brad. In Cuba the
and worked sixteen hours a day, and during crop
titlell twenty hoursianta a day. It was said that the negroes
iolthe susg.arAp
ri
ten Year
he stated that
1 a planter in that roes • Nobletions there lived, on an average, for
Friend of his was in Cube lately,
he visited for a single day an estate
country. lie saw these wretched
!ig driven to their work. There were 100 men and
i eight wernen on the estate, and on the day that his
l'o if übt Ihee Fri e n d was there the agent informed him that two
But if Tcri_ ha't hanged themselves.—(Bear, hear.)
place - negro hanged himself in that country his
th_.
.Wa ,eveti filled up. How (lid the house suppose
eet the , A . .
d6etnii e•nrivers in Cubs were prepared to enforce
to bre nel Ile remembered the horror which used
drive". exulted in that House by the mention of a
that hipstrjarrin a whip with him, though it was asserted
whip 'e a was only the emblem ot wer.But a
maw, sus not enough in Cuba. No driverventured to go
ge arid hllitVtS unless armed with a cutlass and a ditg-
of „"e would probably also be attended by a couple
• hounda'utlinie, as the slaves were more afraid of blood-
s than or me, This was the way in which slaves
wtheltrte treated in Cubia., and this was the kind of slavery
eugar ie w',re stimulating by admitting slave-grown
t, nto this court try.— (Cheer:: ) He saw the Right
.ion, Ge ,
the p. at'enlan (Mr. Labouchere) take a note of that;
contraught Hon. Gentleman, he was sure, would not
grow. diet him when he said that the admission of slave-
enotun sugar would stimulate slavery, because he was old
the 'll t° runeenber the Right Hots. Gentleman using
Co_ same argument hiceseif. What free labour could
Pri9seeP4etie, ew
ri, t
h . the slave I ,bour of Cuba and Brazil, at the
t
jansritar,tieblin,henuoifa.
Guiana,
a' wages for the former? He held in his hand
aamstoalzitn, t of wages given for free labour
rit went which rested on the autho-
recYtiv4,9overnor Light. He stated that 25,000 labourers
sh • '1 300,000 dollars a month. If, therefore, there
eutd be any attempt
i
labourers, he hoped that the people of this country would
think a little of what they had already done for the ne-
gliteo_ee in the West Indies. The people of this country,
.. %Pprehended, were willing to make a sacrifice in order
so see the .
slaves in the West Indies emancipated, but he
,iconceived they never intended that those emancipated
tha_°e, bliould be suddenly raised to a conditioi? far above
, .
ett7r own. They never intended that the negro, whose
e• theneileation cost 20,000,000/. sterling, should repay
Them by
by idlenese, and refusing to compensate
' '.. skillet bY his labour for the millions which had been
iti
at • The wages of field labourers in British Guiana,
in, *itcd by Governor Light, were for navigators, work-
drains^ r°nl 7 to 8 hours, 4s. 6d. a day ; digging small
to
e '7to 8 hours, 4s. 6d. ; cutting and carrying canes,
6 h
la, ours, 4s. Gd ; shovel ploughing, sto 6 hours,
luid.. . . •
hosing- relieving and supplying, sto 6 hours, 2s. Bd.;
(=leaned lands, 5 to 6 hours, Is. Bd.; weeing asset
moulding '
• trenchus
a)otrog canes, 5 to 6 hours, Is. Gil. ; clearing
thresh' grass, 5 to 6 hours, is 6d. ; weeding and
5 hourlsnagr'il to 6 hours, le. 6d. ; making on au average
Wages of `2s. 5-4 minutes of work done per day, at average
engaged
withq-Lhd• There were also in•door labourers
these were th e mills, who were not so well paid, but
There were the
e wages which the field labourers got.
they could l'e those in Dereerara who thought that if
thoughvt,oregtehte;oo 000 or 150,000 free labourers—ll
`ugh
we're to be procured he could not tell
izust
be be be utile to beat down competition ; but it
Britieh _recollcted that there were 25,000 labourers in
ei in _ Guiana already, which extended about 200 miles.
e,;',7l37,utlivntirry, therefore, where food coul.l be grown so
I%bour by „At possibility was there of beating down
could work tom f 5
to the point at which slaves
although there yv "ide
s'
it must be perfectly clear that
West Indies now 4 great desire to immigrate into the
tiese Governmenetziqing in Madeira, where the Portu-
in order to prevent wa)s obliged to have a steamer of war
the West Indies, a 1 ortuguese subjects from going to
the paint
desired, the wish
as wages were beaten down to
the
would be remiZiiwiell of the Portuguese to get
tthought that this object eaolsuold, Ili
(I,et
bwase
a(tstriari
boofdthbey)s those
mwmhio.
etion. into. Barbadoes
et ing might be (h
t r 4 h tenrinAntigua, though perhaps
o Juanaica, but not enough
cnable free laheurers t
, se
wgsr produced b , 0 compete with slave grown
;04. a year. Avyh..l 6145" maintained at a cost
Heat 31/. a year, and :he a free labourer in Demerara
bsc:tired in Cuba for e'
subsistence of a slave could be
e. work,
4(41
and,
1101
Onr;s., the slave did three times as
'Le w,so, but did the work when it
tikh anted to Ise done. The great loss which was sus-
thleel in the West Indies arose in so measure from
114 'act that the negroes frequently didinneot vvork when
eaves were •
i tette, ripe, and that the canes consequently
pan of sugar. Ile thought
''. it that °, and ruined a whole
, Eel'
roillovi regarded immigration, much might be done in
of h.,., 4.'te obstructions and in cheapening the conveyance
ef-"ki_n,gratits. He could not uneerstand why any f,.81,
ol), ante-trading should prevent the British plantar from
th 4nlitte
ette , elabourers on the coast of Africa, so long as
%tee labourers were free when they left the shore, It
b 4
411P011ible to doubt that the condition 01 the African