Semi-weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1852-1853, 1853-06-18


referred to, with President Roberts Proclamation,
and Judge then of British love and philanthropy
for the African races
The present connivance of the British Govern
ment in this masked slave trade, to subsurve Brit
ish cupidity, stands out in glaring contrast with
the direct and emphatic threat of Lord Palmerston
in 1851, in his correspondence with the Marquis
of Mirafores, Minister of Spain, with reference to
the suppression of the Cubun slave trade After
stating what the Spanish Government ought to do,
the British Minister of Foreign Affairs said
But far different is the conduct of the Captain
General; and while, on one hand, he shuts his
eyes to criminal and disgraceful practices which it
IS his bounden duty to prevent, he returns angry
and discourteous answers to communications which
it is the duty of Her Majesty's officers in Cuba to
make to him.
The Spanish Government will do well to consid-
er that if such course of proceeding shall con-
tinue the people of this country instead of looking
with displeasure at attempts which may be made
to sever Cuba from the Spanish monarchy, may be
led to view, with satisfaction, the accomplishment
of an event which, in consequence of the Spanish
colonial authorities, will have become the only
means of putting an end to the commission of
crimes which the Spanish crown solemly bound it.
self many years ago utterly andforever to prevent
any Spanish subject from committing.
PALMERsToN."
From the Baltimore American.
A MASKED BRITISH SLAVE TRADE
The decline of prosperity m the, British West In
dies has been generally ascribed to the abolition of
slavery, which took place about fifteen years ago.
1t seems, however, from recent reports in Parlia-
ment, that the islands began to suffer even before
the experimental philanthropy of England was
fairly tested. The British planter was never the
American planter. The home of the British plant
er in the distant island of his ancestors, and
not in the tor1id region that produced his wealth.
but in the meanwhile, the whole management of
his property was left to overseers and agents whose
returns were liberal as long as the old-fashoned
slave trade allowed them to replace, with fresh
importation, the negroes they killed by labor.
But, with the cessation of the trade the West In
dia nabobs began to experience a comparative ces-
sation of income; and in few years the lordly
a6sentee-whose tastes, habits, or Incidence still
kept him aoof from his property-was in the
hands of the money-lender, with his crops and his
estates Incidentally mortgaged for their entire
value. This is the true beginning of West India
decad ence, under the slothful mismanagement of
the British planters. A few who abandoned their
luxurious homes in London and manfully devoted
themselves to the of their servants and prop
erty contrved to stay the evil hour; yet it is we'll
known that since the slave was entirely emancipa-
ted, both laborer and owner have suffered COM
mon fate from the unwillingness of the former to
work for others, even for the most liberal recon-
pence.
In the strife, in Jamaica, to retain the prosper
Gus estates which were once so important to the
commerce of Great Britain, the planters and the
government have used their best efforts to supply
the island with cheap labor. Schemes of coloniza-
ton have been proposed to the Portuguese from
Madeira and to the Irish: Appeals were made to
India and in 1e46-'7, about four thousand five
hundred Coolies were imported. But both pro-
jects failed. The Irish and Portuguese could not
endure the climate, while the Coolies, who were
not agrcultursts in India, but chiefly the scum of
populoIs towns along the coasts, soon proved that
they were not worth the cost of importation, and,
in five years, mustered but half their ginal
number. For eleven years, ending in lS4S, the
charge for importing immigrants into Jamaica from
India and elsewhere, f1SO,252, or near
million of dollars yet, in 1851, the reports tell
that the greater portion of these d" discharged
from the estates, in consequence of disease in
efficiency, and were wandering about half naked
and half starved, injecting the negroes with their
idleness and profigacy."
In this condition of the Island the proprietors
and government have directed their attention once
more to Africa, and are continuing system, which,
we think, is but masked slave trade, and cannot
fail to keep up the slave-catching wars which have
SO long been maintained on the coast to supply the
Spanish and Portuguese dealers. At one time
these African importations were liberated negroes
taken from slave ships and passed under the name
of apprentices, but under the scheme their depart
ure from Africa will no doubt be quite as involun-
tary, while they will enjoy the more respectable
title of emigrants."
1t seems that the commercial house of Hyde,
Hodge & Co., of London, have contracted with the
British Government to supply its West India pos
sessions with this class of laborers. In pursuance
of this speculation, they have sent ships to the
coast and offer an advance of ten dollars for ev-
cry person who may be induced to emgrate." The
value of such an inducement will be readily IN
derstood by any one who knows what an African
savage was under the old system, and what ideas
of the value of emigration" he is likely to have.
Besides this, ten dollars nearly equivalent to
the amount formerly paid for slaves to the chiefs
and catchers during the prevalence of the trade
so that, inasmuch as there is large supply still
in the hands of the petty Kings and " headmen -
Throughout the country, the new offer of that sum
can amount to nothing but masked renewal of
the horrid traffic among such barbarans 1t must
result, we feel confident, in re-establishing and
supporting the wars which were waged to supply
the 6arracoons for, ten dollars head for every
emigrant prisoner, is quite valuable to the AT
rican King, as ten dollars head were to him, in
former days for the " emigrant" SLAVE. We do
not choose to trust men implicitly, when they are
under the temptations of a specializing contract
Messrs. Hyde, Hodge & Co., may be respectable
persons and amiabe task-masters but they are
making commerce out of humanity and not simp-
ly employing their vessels in the transportation of