The Sun.
London, England, 1826-01-07 00:00:00

COLONIAL. EVIELLiGEng,

(Prom the Bar 1,., r,? (7,44 e.)
BRIDEL.TOWN, Nov.' 24.
We' have 'much . pleasure in I qi3g,betuire our reader:
address which Fused the flortouraLle Musa of Askieszi6iy
its mieting on the 15th instant, in rid), ti the speech deiii , r
ed by his Honour the President at the opening of our. Cotaiiiril
Parliament, It will be found to curtail a full and just acr,
saver to that part of his Honour's speect: in which the wisitru
and intentions of his Majesty's Government are submitted for.
the consideration of the House.

BA R BADOKS.
TO THE RON OURAIILE JOHN BitATHWAITE SKEETI # ,

PRESIDENT, &C.
Muy it please your Honour,-We, the representatives of the •
people, in general assembly aseembled, beg eo return rot.'
Honour our thanks for the congratulations which you were
pleased to offer us in your speech at the opening of the pee-
sent Session, on the 'dispoeition of He 51roesty's Ministeie,
daring the last Session of" Parliament, to restore these colooiee
to the prosperity they fotnierly erjoyed. We, however, 17.:
gret extremely that wu cannot coincide with your Ilimeto; ii
expressing our conviction .diat the proeorcts of a return to
tnorepropitibus thre; has been realized. If xlratsai,wt re.), ui
hope' had dawned upon ee, that dawn is as suddenly overciee*
by the repulsive clouds of censure and menace which pervade''
that portion .of the dispatch of the
.Noble. Secretary for tlie
Colonies which your Ilonour has been pleased to communicate
to us, and wide:l'i forms so prominent and so important a part.
of your Honour's epeech-censure and menace aimed, as it ai,.
pears, exclusively et the House of Assembly, as if the House of
Assembly could pass any act, or bad parted the act to whieb
his Lordship alludes, without the concurrence arid went of
die other branches of the Legislature ; and there is, we are
sorry to observe, in this dispatch of his Lortiship'e, an indi-
rect charge of presumption against the General Assembly,
_he.
cause they did not frame a bill in exact couforrnity with the
experienced judgment of the principal West India proprietot
resalent in England." Now, with all due deference to his
Lordship, it appears to' us, that we, who are immediately ors
the spot, must possess better means of information is to wha...
eneesures should be pursued with the view to the safety of the
inhabitants, the interests of their property, and the permanent
welfare of' the slaves themselves, than gentlemen at a distanee
of 4,000 miles-whatever their tormer jurhonent and experietiee
might have been, and however, kind elleir intentions-eon, in
the Present times, possibly possess.
It is a well known fact, that the Assembly of Ilarbedoes had
commenced the revision, amendment, and consolidation of our
slave code, long before his Alajesty't orders in Council reached
this island,-on the receipt of those orders, the Assembly can.
tinued their labours, and adopted such of their ir wisiote
appeared, at that time, to be consistent with the security and
well.being of the country ; arid, at the period when this act • ;
passed their house, they expreseed their willingness to adopt
every other measure suggested to them, which should be found,
on ?unsure deliberation, to he compatible with the interests or
; an although the Assembly were nor, after the reasons as.
signed for rejecting the Sc. Vincent's Stave Act appeared in this
island, very sanguine as to the fate of their own, they never-
thelees expected from his Lordship, a plain and dietinet Mute.
meet of his objections to what had been done, and which might
have formed tie groundwork of future deliberation ; it wail nut
expected that, if unfortunately the • Barbadoes Act should ho
found totally inadmissible, it would be submitted to the peruse)
and criticism of thoee who are well known to he Dot less die ert,:.
rules of his Majesty's Government .than they are of the Wet
India Colonice, and by whom garbled quotations were made
from the Act during the last Session of Parliament-thus fur.
nishing our adversaries with fuel to increasethet flame ofinjuee
tics, and invective, which has so long blazed forth against the
Colonists in general ; and which, if not subdued by the timely
interference, the justice, and pond sense of his Majesty's Go.
vemment, can only end in their ruin.
His Lordship has been pleased to expatiate at considerable
length on the benefits which the Colonies generally, .and the
island of Starbadoes in particular, have experience by the corn-
inertial regulations recently determined on in the British Par.
liament. We regret, however, that those benefits, are at lerot
questionable, inasmuch as the discussions which have of late so
frequently taken phiee in the British Parliament on Colonial
affitire, have not only determined the value of our property
and destroyed our credit, but left us without the necessary
funds to benefit by imports, however abundant; the ineetov
whereby we were once enabled to make extensive commercial
Speculations being almost totally 'exhausted by high duties.
. low prices, and other inietintunes which we have so long had- to
contend with.
.Although we shall ever gratefully acknowledge any benefits.
preient or prospective, which it may please his ,Majesty's Go-
vernment to vouchsafe to us ; and although we obierve with
pleasure the reduction on sortie of the home duties which
have recently taken place, and the entire repeal of others+, to
the great relief of our fellow subjects in the mother country ;
yet we must be allowed to say, that the case is widely difilrert
with regard to us, especially in the duties on our staple
commodities, which, with your Honour's leave, we will pre.
ceed to show.
When, in the midst of the late arduous and expensive
the duty on sugar, our staple commodity was raised to 2,7 a.
per cwt., we were told that the exigencies of the State re-
quired It, anti something, not very unlike a pledge, was held
out, that when the nation should attain be restored to the bleee.•.
ing•s of peace, we might look with contiderice tbr a corree-
ponding reduction. We sobniitOd without a murmur fee
there is no sacrifice which the people of Barbadoee have no:,
at all times, been ready to make for the support of the tin-
nom cud dignity of' the mother country. riot, notwithetap.
ing the nation has been restored to, rind been in 'the cejo).
meat of, the blessings of peace for ten yenta, we find our.'
selves still labouring under this increased and heavy burden.
We admit that the rum duty has been reduced to Ps. ;M.
per gallon : but this benefit will no longer be boast-
ed of, when we show that a puncheon crl one hundred
gallons of our rum will not, by the latest priceii current, yield
the planter or shipper more than flow rounds-not more than
half the first cost ; exhibit the sante 100 gallone of rum pay
duty to the Government of no lees a sum than OM'S.. sterlinge
no very_ equal division or the proceetle, it must be acknowledg-
ed. 'Whilst on this subject We take leave to notice the duty er
impasitien of dit per cent. on the general produce of our isinnd,
paid on.exportation-a duty which never has been appropriated
in any one instance, that we are aware of, to the purposes for
which it was granted, and from which duty the captured and
ceded colonies in our neighbourhood ate exempt-an advantage
which renders ue unable to compete with them on terms of
equality in the markets for our produce. The consideration of
these circumetances we however submit, with all possible
ference, to the justice and impartiality of his illajesty'e Govern-
ment ; end should not have Mentioned them on the pre/tent oc-
casion, but for the purpoee of showing that our situation is by
no means so enviable cc some may Mole:hie.
But, may it please your Honour, suppose we were to
the actual enjoyment of all - the benefits which have been
enumerated by the noble Earl, is it expected that, in re. .
turn tbr them, we should surrender thae chattered tighte
which .we have posseetted for nearly two centuries? Is it
expected that we should aixendon the right of enacting suet/
laws as are necessary for our own 'preservation, and the
security of our property P Is it expected that oar slave code
shall contain no provision for the security of the lives and
property of the whites, but be a mere catalogue of indulgan
cies to the blacks, who, we are proud to any, experience, ~t
this moment, less of care anti more of comfort than the per:.
sentry of any country in the world--England herself not enc.
toted P This, Sir, would really he expecting too, mach.
lte however, such expectations had, unfortunately, for us,
entertained by those under whose contrerel wie. are play-
ed-if nothing lees than implicit conformity with otdette
its
`Council, the ruinous effects of which are published almost
daily in the Gazettes of A neighbouring colony-r 4, in short, a
plan had been already organ zed for our destruction-4 it is
determined that we shall be the victims of fanaticism, par.
judiee, and injustice, we must submit ; but neither threats
n: t persuasion will ever induce usto glut the finiehing-tuiett
tv our own political, perhaps. natural, existence • anti we have
too touch relience an the justice of our beloved:1;0;104M to
believe that he ever will. We, however, beg so **sure
.your
Boronr, that if the noble Secretety for the Cidontete will con.
de eerie to point out the. defects eriennoibeeyielseteinfettfire:gael•xwiretoit
; tieseti' the late Donee of As:serially, for comeditiatitiwour elan
hove, amelioreting elk condition of thet clam of peop,le
inunt.dintely dependent upon us, we will take his suggestions
into cur tastiest consideration-peon:oW, as we Ate, both: )s)r
loinuirdly had by interest, not only to do all that can safely be
'areomplistied-for their beneht, but
meet, if it be possible, the teietiew of his Majesty's (loi.ernenent;
ard to this end, we will readies end earnestly eo.opeeete wine
the other branches of the Leieisleture.