The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1807-10-10
europe.
Report ef~ Comnifts q. sbs BIRTHS Rssts Of Cemmsa.
On tie Wtf-[sdf& Ceionie1.

On roe w fP-<1ns GoSoHsef.
REPORT.
The committee who were appointed to take into
confederation the Commercial State Of the WEsr-
INDIA CoLoNiEEs, and report their proceedings,
from time to time, to the Houfe of Commons; and
who were empowered to report the minutes Of evil
dence taken before them; and to whom all minutes
Of evidence whioh ,were taken before the committee
in the laa FELTON, of Parliament. on the Wet-Iuda
Planters Petitions, together with their proceedings,
were referred; have, pur(uant to the order of the
Houfe, examined the matters to- them referred; and
have agreed to the following Report:
Your committee have thoughsit their duty, in the
frn plsce, inquire into the ltuaton of the Wen,
India Planters the prefent moment and for feveral
years preceding and have examined various refpeet
able wineG-s, proprieors Of eares, who have reii-
ed many years in the Wet Indies and who have had
the properties of (everal ablensees under their
syenene & alto many merchants intimately aequaint
ed with the eIpenes and profits Of great variety OF
Shares and generally eonverfant with the Well India
Commerce. From their te(imony il appears, that
finee the year i7ss there has taken place aprogref
five deterioration in the tuaton of the planters
fulting from progrefive dmunition Of she price Of
Sugar, although at the fame time the duty, and all
the expences attending the cultivation have been in
creating till length the depreiop OF the market has
become uch that the price obtained for the lat years
crop will not pay the expence of cultivation, except
Upon etlates of very grea; leae making fugar Of
very hyperion quality enjoying other eHtraordina
~ advantage. Calculations have been laid before
soo corn,;rr.-. from, the accounts OF the ettates
both in Jamaica and the other Hands by which it
appears, that the Brth fupplies aud aand expentes
2os, lod. in the former, and 9s Cd in the
latter, on the cwt al ugar. after accounting and gi
wing credit for the amount received for the ale Of
As ,hcfe calculations are formed upon an
age OF years and upon efates of the ordinary feale
aud IN no repe4s unaiualy circumfanoed it appears
to your Committee, that thefe fums per cwt. of
fngar may be taken the average expence o.. cult
yation, independent of interea upon the capital &
your Committee are confirmed in this opinion by
finding imilar calculation in the report made by the
Sugar Dillilery Committee, in the Ian Parliament.
To this mue be added exPepee OF IS. Cd. to S..
per cwt. nece1arily ucrrred for freight, niurance
and other mercantile charges, between the fhipring
the goods III the Colonies and their being offered to
market in thi, Kingdom, forming together an amount
Of SIS TO SOS. which appears upon thi, evidence to
be the aboluts con the Planter per cwt of fngar,
before any return of capital attach. Upon refer
to the average price pubIfhed in the Gazette,
for the lan eight months, which vary rem SIS to
SIS giving mean price of SIS Cd. it appears evident
that the Planters mu have cultivated their eiates
a lofs. p-
The iutereR which has been tated to ysur COM
mt,ee as what houd be the fair profit upon the capi
tai of fuch nature as that Of fugar eiiae, conifing
not merely of Negroes, but OF buildings of great
extent and colt neeeaary for carrying on iueh a
manufacture, and fubiett various and peculiar res
aud v;eiii.udes, is not lef, than 10 per cent,
Daring the period ofprofperity, previous to 800,
Ii is Gated that in general THE profits did not exceed
that fun, ard that from that PERIOD they have gra
dually diminhed to l-2 and l-2 per cent. till at
the prefent moment, there is no return Of interea
whatever. -f
1T may perhaps be right to notice one exception,
namely, Of an eilate mott favoraby crcumaanced in
every repea, where the profits are Rated to have a
mounted, during the four years 1895, 1896, 1897,
and 1898 to I2 per cent. but they appear ALTO to
have declined ever fince, in 1901, 1907 1908, and
1904, to have been reduced to about 6Per cent and
in 1905, to about per cent. and fubiequently to
have fuffered fill furtker reduction.
In the ceurfe Of their inveGgation of the tuation
sf the Planters, your committee thought it right to
afcertan whether it mig not be in their own power,
in many inanees, to remedy the evils OF their fitua
tion by converting their iugar efta,e, to other
profitable cultivation but the evidence that point
lews, that iuch a conversion muR be attended with
70 great acrice of capital to be out of the qdef
fien as meafure of relief.
With view 70 the profpea for the future, they
have obtained return ofthe Quantity offugar pre-
fent in the Wei. India Docks; from which. and from
other evidence, it appears that the quantity on
hand is unufuay great for the time of the year. The
crop of lat year i. alto the point of coming into
abe market.
1t ihould not be omitted further to ftate, that for
many wears pat the lands have alnot entirely eica-
ped the natural calamities (of hurricanes, &c which
have occalionally proved deRruive to the property
an thofe countries
In inveagating the caufes of tina, deprefion Of The
market from whence the whole of the Planters DIFF
tres appears originate, the fr object which rikes
your Committee, is tina. extraordinary ftuation in
which he is placed, which prevents him alone lin ex
cepcon to every other iimlar caie) from indemnify
ing himfe for the nereafe of duty, and OF other
pences attending his cultivation, BY an equivalent in
create Of price to the confumer For appears that
fnce the year 1899, the duty on fugar has been raj
fed from 2os 27s, and contngenty TO sos per cwt.
tie eYpenees Of the eaates calculated TO have RI
fen in many articesi5o and in others above 100 PER
cent and the price has fallen from COS 39s. Cd.
pei cwt. the average Of the laa eight months AS it
appears obvious from the above fatement, that the
duty heavier than the article bear at its preent
price, it is fuggeed that it insight be e1Pedient for
the relief Of the home market, extend the principle
which has been adopted the contingent increafe Of
duty from 27s. 9Cs. 70 that from the maximum of
duty then i1sd grofs price Of Sos afording sos.
duty, and so to the planter, the duty ihould be
thrown back on fmilar cze in proportion to The de-
preion Of the market, till the price arrives at SOS.
erefs leaving eos the original duty to government
40, to the Planter in other words, reduction of
is Of duty on areduion Of Is Eroi price from the
Verage then fixed for the impoGion Of the new duty
as far as COS.
An acreafe Of the bounty on the export has been
ALTO recommended and your Committee are ofcpi-
MON, that it would afford great relief il given
accompaniment to neafures OF reilri6aon upon neu-