The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1844-01-05

grown sugar on the ground that il will aid you in
sbolshing slavery, and is necessary to protect you
from the lmputaton Ut being influenced by mercan-
tile and pecunary considerations; whilst Mr.. Cal
houn and may add, such will soon be The opinion
OF the continental powers Of Europe) looks TO the
manher in which that question is treated by your Go
vernment conclusive proof that your per.everins
efforts 10 abolish slavery in Cuba and Brazil are at.
irbuable not TO any benevolent desire to ameoraie
the condition of the blacks, but TO conviction tha,
your scheme OF emancipation has entirely failed and
that the abolition of slavery elsewhere 10
bic TO the prosperity Of your colonies. PERM, me to
submit few facts in confirmation Of this.
One OF your correspondents, under date Of Kings
ton, Jamaica, September 29lh, says:
" Few of your innumerabe readers in any part of
the globe require To be informed that emancipation in
every useful point of view Is total failure and will
wind up with the total ruin of this colony at least
and convincing the world at large tina, the abstract
principle OF justice on which that found
ed Is incompatible toth the yell being of the mass for
,chose benefit Is lras intended"
In the debate last year, Lord Stanley said, that on
go sugar estates there had been clear loss Of $685.
600, outlay of 81 100000 and Sir Robert Peel
admitted that colony in which slavery had been
abolished, could not compete with district in which
he system continues to exist; and Lord Brougham,
in his speech on his bill entitled an act for the more
efectuaI Suppression of the slave ale,' said:
He was bound to state by clear and decided OPT
mon, that notwithstanding the decided enormity of
the sacrifice made on our part, the planters as body
had suffered very greatly in their pecunary interest
He did not wish to name names-it
would be invidOus to do so--but some most valued
friends of his both in that house and in the other
not 10 go beyond the precincts of Parliament, had
been losers to great extent by the act of eman-
cipation He knew persons who had once counted
their returns by thousands but they had now sunk to
hundreds He knew others who had drawn hun
dreds but who had now scarcely any West India
property at all. The question then at once suggest
ed ITSELF and this brought him to the leading feature
Of the present bill When parliament inflicted eman-
cpation the West India body, did they mean that
the planters should suffer for the gain Of foreign colo
nies not Tor that Of their own fellow subjects? =
Did parliament tell them, (the West lndians,) we
have taken your slave property from you in order to
endow others with it, that they may gain what you
have ost-ttat they may become your competitors in the
na4kets Of the Uorid for the supply Of produce ,chch zoe
longer ao,c you 10 you heret fore haze done
Quite the contrary"
And Sir Robert Peel when the same bill was
under consideration in the House of Commons
said
"What would be, he asked the condition of the
West India planters, if this bill were not passed -
They were prevented from employing British CAPT.
tall but they would be subject to the competition of
that capital employed in foreign countries. Never
""o s"C'C 81 OSSCI act Vi INJUSTICE tian would De
committed on the West India proprietors if that were
allowed He admitted that the West India planters
had received compensation for their direct losses
but none should be given for their indirect losses
They should not give the planters further compensa-
tion but they might relieve them from the connect ion
V British capital employed in foreign countries. They
would suffer most serious injury if the first clause
Of the bill were not agreed to- Suppose the legis-
lature were to allow the colonial produce of Cuba
and Brazs to be imported according t. the views Of
some gentlemen, would it be tolerated that British
capital should be employed in those countries in rails
ing colonial produce by of slaves to be import
ed hither' You'd not that the total ruin of our
coIonies?"
And again, in the debate Of the 22d June, Sir Ro-
bert Peel said:
81 was anxious TO make some inquiry upon that
subject and instead of any vague and general cacu-
lations obtained the particulars Of the estates of
one individual proprietor. These estates, when sla-
very was permitted, on an average Of years pro-
duced about e 10 600 Per annum During the APP
premiership system they produced an average Of
46 400 per annum, after payment of all expenses.
received an account, on the accuracy of which can
rely 1t appears that from the LIST Of January to the
3lst Of December, $780, the payments altogether for
labor wages the island taxes, repairs Of buildings,
and supplies Of various kinds such machines, inn
pemens, &c., amounted to Sl0, o6i the actual re
ceipts were 47,028. In 184l the payments were
60 $3.50, and the receipts Ct 042 and n the last year
1912, when it has been said there has been sufi-
cent interval for breathing time, the payments were
E9, 1875, and the receipts Fl, $50. So that these es-
ates which produced, during the existence Of slave
~ and slave labor, 100000 year net income, have,
since the abolition Of slave labor sustained an annual
average loss Of S308l."
These extracts shows conclusyely that YOU are
,ow convinced that free labor cannot compete with
ave labor IN the cultivation Of sugar and cotton
md that your prominent statesmen believe that the
abolition Of slavery in Cuba Brazil and the United
States, would affect their prosperity, rs that mea-
ue has affected the prosperity OF your West India
colonies.
This brings up the question Of how far the abo
ion of slavery would affect the competition between
Cuba, Brazil the United States, and your East India
)cssessions.
We have seen that the effect of emancipation has
been such, tina, estate which gave SlO, 900 per an
mum profit, is now cultivated at loss of f3 0Sl
per annum, notwithstanding the discriminating duty
On sugar, which ii is said gives them bounty of
near G5O00,000 per annum. Its effect would be
much the in Cuba, Brazil, and the United States
It would necessarily diminish the supply and greatly
increase the price of sugar, cotton, sc. Now Lord
Auckland in his communication dated 9th Of May,
lSil, says:
"On the effect Of caste in maintaining agricultural
,ervude even under circumstances in many res
poets favorable 10 freedom, instructive particulars
will be found in the evidence respecting the districts
Of Coorg and Malabar. In Coorg, many slaves
emancpated bv Government on lis own estates
have from various causes, been led TO destroy their
certificates Of freedom, and to place themselves again
N serytude under their former masters"
The fact that the estate referred to by Sir Ro, ert
Peel gave 10000 under the system of slavery,
sc, 400 under the apprenticeship system, and is now
cutivat at loss of e ,0el per annum proves that
system of coercion is indispensable FOR the pro6ta-
bic cultivation of sugar and cotton. AS the East In
dian is in that condition, that, although nomnally
free be is nevertheless slave you have there not
wthstanding your act of emancipation, all the advan-
tages of slavery and yon may well suppose that the
abolition OF slavery in Cuba, Brazil, and the United
States, would transfer the production of sugar and
cotton to India. This, if it could be done without,
prejudice to the rights of Others it would give you
a monopoly Of these great staples, and thus secure
your commercial and manufacturing superiority is
an object worthy of the persevcrng effort you have
made to accomplish it. But, with these proofs Of
the bearing which it would have your interests,