The Sun.
London, England, 1832-04-05 00:00:00

colonies and injustice to the proprietors, interfering by sayiut
so long as you permit the colonies to have colonial legisla-
tures, and to decide questions regarding those islands, it is
unjust and illegal to interfere by those Orders in Council.
(Hear, hear.)—To dictate to those assemblies, not from
Parliament, but from the Council, and to state what ap-
pears to me very extraordinary, to say the least of it,
that they shall say,— to those legislatures, " we
have certain benefits to confer on those islands.
and if you do not agree to what we dictate, you
shall not receive the benefits even in the dis
trussed and sinking condition of your interests. But to
sty on one side, this is the reward of your non-
obedience, and we will sink the colonies if you
will nut do so, but can you siuk the coloni s
without sinking also the interests of the mother country?
It Was saying if you don't follow this advice, we will
punish the mother country through the medium of ay
colonies. Is there reason or justice in this, and look at
the state of the case, that duties alone, with the amount
of seven millions are produced from the imports,—
and upwards of five millions from the exports.
Is that to be sacrificed bee-lose the Orders in Coun-
cil are not obeyed ? How is it that the duties on
colonial produce :amounted to that sum 9 It would at
first appear to every person that any property on which
seven millions duty could be charged, must leave an enor-
mous profit to the proprietors. Is it so ? So far front
it, the duties levied on West India property is in some
cases so touch property confiscated.—(Hear, hear.) Can
a country go on in that state of things ? Is that, or is it
not, leaning towards the popular feeling in this country ?
It is important to me that I should state what
Was the impression in my mind on finding very recently
that certain resolutions had been passed upon the subject.
They left an impression on the public mind that nothing
had been done, and that all was yet to do regarding the
amelioration of the condition of the slaves. That was
not fair towards the West India body to keep out of sight
any amelioration that had been made in the condition
of the slaves. I ask, what has occurred since the
year 1823 ? Has there been a stoppage of improvement
in the slave population? Has there been any turning
back from the course of amelioration? No ; a progressive
state of improvement carried on. Then where is the
wisdom or the propriety of issuing orders in council which
seem to denote an utter disregard of the population ? It is
unfair, and it is strengthening the prejudice against
the proprietor of the slaves, and it is not just towards th,
efforts already cheerfully exercised --(Cheers.) I beg
to say again that in any observations I make upon the
Order in Council, I ant actuated by no political feelings.
I remark on those orders as in my conscience

_
I believe they will work, that is, injuriously, to the
peace of the Colonies. But as to the distresses, there
is an accumulation of hardshio, particularly as regard-
ing the colonies, one of which, flarbadoes, had
suffered from the visitation of God, which we
can only lament and not complain ef. The other was
fsom another cause, which has not only thrown back the
interests of the proprietors, many of whose property
was destroyed, but thrown back the course of civiliza-
tion. Those most anxious to promote the welfare of
that population were doing thus unwisely towards these
people and the proprietors, to allow any irritation or file
conceptions going forth to those colonies, as they can
only be injurious to the master, and throw back the civi-
lization of the slave. We are in such a situation

that we are complainants on the one hand and
beggars on the other.—(Hear, hear.) I therefore wish
to deal as leniently as I can, and come in fbrina pauperis
before the Government to give us relief. I can say no
more as to the mismanagement of colonial affairs, but I
could not resist stating what I have stated respecting
the orders in Council. I will therefore conclude by say.
ing, we are all thankful for any assistance we may obtain
in support of ourselves and property, under the tnisfor
tunes both at Barbadoes and Jamaica ; I say we are not only
thankful for what ha, been done, but state that we shall
be thankful for what we have a right to expect to be
done—a right which, as British subjects, we state
strongly, and we claim at the hands of Government that
protection which is due to every British su►eject who lives
under its dominion.
Lord SELKIRK rose to move the first resolution ; he said
the country bad prospered with thecolonies, and if the pro-
sperity of these colonies was to be overthrown and crushed,
it would bring ruin upon the commerce and con-
dition of England. He would not further occupy the in-
valuable time of the meeting, for it was not necessary for
him to say more after the able explanation which the Noble
Chairman had given of the objects for which this meeting
had been convened. He should merely move the first
resolution, which was declaratory of the objects which they
had in view.

Mr. WATSON TAYLOR rose and said that he h.id

great ple.isure in seconding the first resolution proposed by
the Noble Lord. tie must confess that he had not fre-
quently presented himself at public meetings upon this
übject, woen he felt that the interests of the
colonies would be best taker. care of by those who

presided over them, but at the present alarming
crisis, when the interests of the colonies, and those of
many other countriea were at stake, when one of the
deepest and most deadly blows which could ever overtake
a great and flourishing nation was about to be inflicted, he
had no hesitation in confessing that he felt it his duty to
come forward. It was too much the fashion to depre-
ciate in one way the interests of the colonies, and
this might be traced to the fanatical, fantastical,
hypocritical speeches of a party to which the country
had been unfortunately too prone to listen. He
hoped to see the day when not only those who
were Immediately interested in the colonies—not only
those who lived in another country, and lived upon their
colonial incomes, but when every person who understood
a national question would be convinced, that England in
every branch of its interest, was as deeply interested in
this question as ttie colonists themselves.—(Applause.)
He was happy to second this resolution, conscious as he
was of the importance that the connexion between
the colonies and the mother country should be
as intimate and uninterrupted as possible. If the
colonies were injured, every interest in the mother
country, the glory of the nation, and every re-
source and branch of commerce would sympathisa in that
injury. If the West India connections were despised,
the arts, manufactures, and industry of England would
be injured, for they were vivified and invigorated by the
capital which flowed into the mother country from the
colonies. Sorry was he to see that such invaluable in-
terests were likely to be sacrificed to the fan itical by poet ites
who had forced their notions on Government and when
they had ruined the country, those whom thy had im-
posed on, would turn round and say, how could we have
been so blind to a calamity, the importance of which we
ought to have foreseen. They would sacrifice that which
contributed to their resources in war, and which
tended to support every department which gave stability
to the country, which supported tt.e arts, and which ren-
dered society the greatest blessing. It might be invidi-
ous, or at least indelicate, if lie were to speak of
himself ; still he thought he could not do better
than to advert to conversation which lie had
recently held with a great Anti- Slave politician in his own
country. This partisan had expressed his regret that an
approaching meeting might injure his interests. He (Mr.
Watson Taylor) had answered that he would attend the
meeting and explain his views, and that his interests could
not be so much injured, fcr Mr. Simon Taylor, whose
property he inherited, had put his family beyond the
reach of any such destruction. Nevertheless, he
felt it his duty to act as if his only hope depended on the
colonies. As far as his interest was concerned, the ques-
tion was only one of degree, but whether lie had kept
twenty horses or two; whether he employed a
hundred labourers or less, did not concern the ques-
tion of the activity and support which he could give
to the industry of his neighbourhood. Not upon him, but
on the town in which he resided would the injury fall, of
separating the colonies from the mother country. From a
small individual scale they might argue to the great scale
of the nation. The wealth from the col nies
was dispersed in this country, and the arts and
industry which dignified society, would suffer, if
the colonial interests were depressed. He saw before him
a venerable personage by whose taste for letters and patron-
age of the fine arts much had been contributed to his na-
tive country. He attempted to produce the same results,
though at an humble distance ; but when he reflected
that even by the next packet he might learn that his West
Indian property hail vanished, he felt it his duty to can.
tract his expenditure, but he lamented that the loss
would fall on artisans, and persons employed in various
branches of industry, i❑ the aggregate of which consist••d
the happiness of nations. He could not trust himself to do
more than advert to recent phti•al mis anagement, ex
rcpt to lament tt.e weakness of iir giving way
in
such a p„reat national question to that p irty Wl,O, pro_
c,edinga he had witnessed in the House of Coisan.ws,
which he could not but confess lie had witne•sed with in-
dignation and and disgust.
Toe roil lotion was then put and carried unanimously.
The E irl of ST. VINCENT then rose to Iv ive the
second resolution. He telt ii. would not be necessary to
preface the resolutionw Inch he had the honour of itilimitting
to the meeting by ail, ohs, rva•ions of his own, particu-
larly after the ample address of the No►,le Cli•airman on the
general state of the West India Colonies, acid on the merits
of the question they had now to decide. He should be
brief, for he felt he 'night impair the force of what the