Star.
London, England, 1826-08-22 00:00:00

EMIGRATION.

The Select Committee appointed to invoke into the Expediter, of
encouraging Emigration from the United Kingdom, and to-re-
port their Observations thereupon to the Home,; and to whom
the Reports of Sessions 1823, 11124, and 1823, on the State of Ire-
land, and the-Esnploysnent of the Poor there ; and she the Peti.

. .
don. s and Memorials to the Colonial Department from Persons
desirlous of emigrating froth the 'Jnited kingdom, were severally
referred ; have, pursuant to the Order of the liouse, examined
the Natters to them referred ; and have agreed to the following

Report :
Tout Committee are induced to consider, that the following im-
portant facts have been established by the evidence which they have
collected for the information of the House t
First—That there are extensive districts in Ireland,
and districts In England and Scotland, where the po-
pulation is at the present moment redundant; in other
words, where there exists a very considerable propor-
tion of able-bodied and active labourer; beyond that
number to which any existing demand for labour can
;Afford employment. That the effect of this redundancy
is not only to reduce a part of this population to a great
degree of destitution and misery, but also to deteriorate
the general condition of the labouring classes. That by
its producing a supply of labout in excess as compared
'with the demand, the vines of labour are necessarily
reduced to a minimum, which is utterly insufficient to
supply that population with those means of support and
subsistence which are necessary to secure a healthy and
satisfactory condition of the community. That in Eng-
land, this redundant population has been in part sup.
rotted by a parochial rate. which, *cording to the
Reports and evidence of former Committees specially
appointed to consider the subject, threatens, in its ex-
treme tendency, to absorb the whole rental of the coun-
try ; and that in Ireland, where no such parochial rate
exists by law, and where the redundancy is found ink a
still greater degree, a considerable part of the popula-
tion is dependent for the means of support on the pre.
carious source of charityt or is compelled to resort to
habits of plunder and spoliation for the actual means of
subsistence..

Secondly—That in the British Colonies in North
America (including the Canadas, New Brunswick, Nova
Scot. and Pritli Edward's Island), at the Cape of
Good Hope, andrin New South Wales, and Van Die-
rnen's Land. there are tracts of unappropriated land of
the most fertile quality, capable of receiving and sub-
sisting any proportion of the redundant population of
this country, for whose conveyance thither the means
would be found at any time, present or future.
Thirdly—That while the English, Scotch, and Irish
evidence, taken before your Committee, appears to
establish the fact, that this redundant population is
practically found to repress the industry, and even some-
times to endanger the peace of the mother country; the
colonial evidence, which has been taken by your Com-
mittee, uniformly concurs iu the opinion, that the in-
dust: y and the safety of the colonies will be materially
encouraged and preserved by the reception of this popu-
lation. The unemployed labourer at home necessarily
consumes more than he produces, and the national
wealth is diminished in that proportion. When trans-
ferred to new countries, where soil of the first quality
of fertility is unappropriated, and where the rate of
wagesis-consequently high, it will be found that he
produces infinitely more than he consumes, and the
national wealth will be increased by the change, if the
colonies are to be considered as integral parts of the
nation at large.
If the foregoing positions be correct, your Committee
feel justified in recommending the subject of emigra-
tion to the most serious and deliberate consideration of
the House, as one obvious and immediate measure for
correcting, in some degree, t%is redundancy of popula-
tion, and for mitigating the numerous evils which op
-
pear to result from its existence. But in the prosecu-
tion of their examination of this most important, and
comparatively unexamined, subject, they have not bad
either the time or the opportunity to perfect that scope
of inquiry which woul4 justify them in offering to the
House ray specific recommendations, with respect to
the manner in which it might be convenient to make
any experiment of emigration on an extended scale ;
they therefore propose to limit themselves to an exposi-
tion of the principles by which the examination of the
evidence taken before them has been uniformly directed,
and to a short enumeration of the points which have
formed distinct objects of inquiry.
They bare considered that no system of emigration
could be recommended to the attention of Parliament,
which was not essentially voluntary on the part of the
emigrants, and which did not relate to that part of the
community which may be considered to be in a state of
permanent pauperism. They also consider, that it
would be in the highest degree desirable that any ex-
pense incurred for the purpose of emigration, to be con-
tributed from national funds, should be ultimately re-
pal I s so that no gratuitous expenditure should be ne-
cessary, except in cases which might justifiably be made
esceptions to the general rule. It is true, the emigra-
tions carried into effect in 1823 and 1825, under the
superintendence of Mr. Peter Robinson, were supported
by Parliamentary giants of money, for which no repay-
ment was pledged ; but those emigrations were fleets.
sary for the put pose of experiment, and the justification
of employing public money for that purpose was spe-
cially pleaded, on the ground of their being experiments
which: were necessary to precede any more extended
scheme. The principal, if not the only, objections which
were raised against these experiments, rested on the
around of the expenditure of public money which they
involved being unrepaid.
Your Committee, therefore, did not pause to consider
the question. whether the benefits which might be ex-
pected to accrue, both to the mother country and to the
colonies, from a measure so calculated to benefit both
parties, would be sufficient to justify an outlay of na-
tional capital; but they proceeded to satisfy themselves
with respect to the actual expenditure incurred in the
emigration of 1823 (which, as an experiment, may be
considered to have entirely succeeded), and to ascertain
whether an equal or a less expense incurred in subse-
quent emigrations could be coupled with arrangements
to supersede the necessity of any national outlay with-
out repayment. In illustration of the views which they
entertain on this part of the subject,, they beg to refer to
the following extract from an original papa, which was
laid before the Committee of 1828, on the employment
of the poor in Ireland, which is given at length in the
Appendix to this Report
4. 4 is coes.idered as unquestionable, that although
this measure is not in the slightest degree compulsory,
that the poor man who offers his strength and energy as
a labourer, but who, finding no demand, or at least no
adequate demand, for his services, is compelled to receive
;wish relief' for the preservation of his own existence