The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1833-05-31 00:00:00

effects of the panic of 1825, but if this measure passed, the
events of that period would be nothing compared with what would
flow from it. Having read the resollion, lie would just observe
that if the proposed measure passed, there would be no security
for funded property. (Hear.) This:property was secured by
one, act of Parliament. West India. property was, on the con-
trary, secured by .100 acts. If, then, one-fourth of the labour
of the slave were taken away;tkere .was no reason why the
principles of Messrs. Cobbett and: 4.ttwood should not be
realized, by which one-fourth would be taken from the property
of the landholder. That slavery ought to be done away with
as soon as possible every one admitted; but it ought not to
take place without perfect and satisfactory compensation.
When compensation was awarded, then ought it take place.
(Hear.) He concludd by moving the adoption of the resolu-
tion, which he had previously read.
Mr. LEWIS seconded the seventh resolution, and observed that
having for some years held the office of Speaker of the House
of Assembly in Jamaica, he felt a warm interest in the welfare
of that colony. The resolution which he had risen to second
had been so ably dwelt upon that but little remained for him to
say. The public policy of the country began that system of sla-
very which was now so much condemned, and the crime of which
was most unjustly ascribed to the planters, who were the mere
instruments in carrying it on. Commercial enterprize carried
on the trade, and slaves were imported into the colonies to work
for the planters who had a direct property in them. Those slaves
were granted to the planters on the express stipulation that the
land should be cultivated by them, and the property of the planter
in his slave was not only recognised by the Colonial Legislature,
but by the Court of Chancery in England, in several cases of
appeal. So far indeed was this right acknowledged, that so late
as the years 1808 and 1809 the Government granted, land and
slaves to individuals for a consideration in money. Lord Stow-
ell, in a judgment which he delivered, recognized the same prin-
ciple, and, after expressly stating that a slave was as much the
property of his master as his house, proceeded to state, that if
slavery was a sin this-country- had a full share of it, and ought
in justice to share in the price of the slave's redemption. (Hear,
hear.) Were those principles, propounded by one of the ablest
judges that ever sat in a court ofjustice, to be repudiated now;
and was no compensation to be afforded to those who were de-
clared by Lord Stowell, that slaves were the property of those
who purchased them ? If the property of the West India pro-'
prietors in their slaves was thus to be surrendered at the will of
government, he would only observe that no species of property
would be secure if the government were determined to lay vio-
lent hands upon it. No property, however strongly guarded
and hedged in by law, would be considered sacred, tor the law
of expediency would overrule the law ofjustice. As a native of
the West Indies he felt the strongest affection for the colonies,
and with that feeling he should with pleasure second the reso-
lution.

Lord WILLIAM POULETT then rose, and said that the task
devolved on him to propose the eighth resolution, namely,
" That petitions, grounded on the resolutions which had been
unanimously agreed- to by the meeting, should be presented to
his Majesty, and to both Houses of Parliament." He fully
acquiesced in those resolutions, and should' ot have come for-
ward at all if he danot feel that they were founded in justice.
He believed further, that the measure proposed by his Majes-
ty's government would be found impracticable, and that they
never could be carried. (Hear, hear.) He admitted the evil
consequences of slavery, and believed further that all parties
were agreed on that point. He would ask, were the \Vest In-
dia proprietors to be the victims of the flagitious legislatures of
former times, by whom slavery was fostered and encouraged ?
(Hear, hear.) He kiwi no instance, either in ancient or mo-
dern history, of slavery and liberty existing together;
.yet this
was a part of the plan proposed by his Majesty's ministers.
He was of opinion, that if the slaves were entirely free, it would
be much better for the planters than the sort of half liberty that
the government intended for them. The noble lord concluded
by moving the eighth resolution.
Mr. GEORGE HIBBERT promised the meeting that he should
not detain them many minutes, for the question had been so
fully and so ably discussed, and the resolutions expressgd so
admirably the feelings of the meeting, that very lilttle remained
for him say. He could not avoid observing, however, that if
' the measure proposed by government should be carried, it
promised to give a death-blow to the colonial, commercial, naval,
and financial interests of Great Britian. If those ereat com-
manders who he knew in his youth, he meant Rodney, Nelson, and
St. Vincent, were to arise from their tombs, and sit in judgment
on the defunct body of the West India interests, they would
return this verdict, that the body came to its death by suicide,
committed on itself in an interval of mental derangement
(Hear, hear, and laughter.) The hon. gentleman concluded
by seconding the resolution.
The Earl of HAREWOOD wished, before the meeting retired,
to say a few words both on the general question andon a matter
which concerned himself individually. When last they met in
this room, it was on the subject of the orders in council, the
spirit of which, he would just observe, exhibited a spirit of dis-
trust on the part of the Government in every thing that re-
lated to the. -West Indies. The instructions directed to the
crown colonies were ordered to be obeyed without the slightest
alteration of a single letter, and those directed to the legisla-
tive colonies were ordered to be carried into effect also. The
orders were subsequently withdrawn from the latter colonies,
and some hope was entertained from that circumstance that
Government intended to relax some portion of its severity to-
wards the West India interests generally. How well that hope
had been fulfilled he would leave the meeting to judge. Now,
with respect to the matter in which he was personally con-
cerned. Having taken a deep interest in the affairs of the West
India proprietors and his own, and wishing to stand well with
those whose cause he had advocated, it might be a matter of
surprize to some, if on the presentation of the petition to the House
of Lords, he should not be in his place to support its prayer.
He would not pledge himself that he would not be there, and
he believed the meeting would do him the justice to believe that
if any one question could, induce him to give his attendance in
support of it, the question which they were now met to discuss
would be that question. But he repeated that he should not
pledge himself not to be in his place, but if he should not, he
hoped that the meeting would not consider his absence as any
desire to disregard their interests. It might be that in the de-
bate on the question he should feel that it would be out of his
power to do good to their cause by any advocacy of. his. Ex-
perience told them that a question of great national and indivi-
dual interest might not possibly meet with support in that branch
of the legislature to which he (Lord Hares, ood) was attached.
That branch of the legislature had often done service to the
cause of the country, but it could not be disguised that attempts
had been made to dverrule and overawe its decisions, and that
circumstance had placed the interests of the West India pro-
prietors in a situation from which he could not augur any very
flattering result. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. FULLER moved that the thanks of the meeting be given
to Lord Harewood, for his proper and dignified conduct in the
chair.

Mr. K. DOUGLAS seconded the motion, which was carried
with acclamations.

Lord ST. VINCENT then moved a vote of thanks to George
Hibbert, Esq., for his exertions in forwarding the West India
interests.

Agreed to unanimously.
The Committee have been endeavouring to make out a list of
the persons present, but find it would have been an useless task.
A member of almost every banking or commercial house in the
city attended, and numerous noblemen, M.P.'s, &c. It is cal-
culated that full five thousand persons attended in the course of
the day.
The meeting then separated.

LONDON GAZETTE.-TUESDAY, MAY 28.

INSOLVENTS,

May 27.—Francis Hoad and John Wadey, Prospect-place, St.
George's-fields, bricklayers.

BANKRUPTS.
Robert Oaks, Liverpool, painter, June 13, July 9, at the Clarendon
Rooms, Liverpool. Solicitors, Mr. Robinson, Liverpool ; and Messrs.
Biackstock and Bunce, Sergeant's Inn, Fleet-street.
Richard Lloyd, Liverpool, brewer, June 13, July 9, at the Claren-
don Rooms, Liverpool. Solicitors, Mr. Broadhurst, Liverpool ; and
Messrs. Adlington, Gregory, and Faulkner, Bedford-row.
Robert Woodward, Lime-street-square, tailor.
William Woolcott, Exeter, grocer.
Henry Wyatt, York-street, Covent-garden, boarding-house-keeper.
Thomas Thirlwell, North Shields, wine-merchant.
John Kaberry, Leeds, leather-cutter.
Charles Hugh Linter, Portsea, grocer.
Charles MorrisVilks, Greetham, Rutlandshire, innkeeper.
John Gardner, Preston, joiner.
Gervase Cressy Hall, Alfreton, Derbyshire, money-scrivener.
John Turner, Langport, Eastover, Somersetshire, corn-factor.
Robert Collier and Horatio Collier, Witney, blanket-manufacturers.
William Gibson, Pendleton, Lancashire, broker.
Seth Burge Grant, Bristol, hatter.