Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1862-08-06

liament.~Mr Bright said, the distress
of the West India colonial body Is unpiT-
alelied in the country" \ report OF me
commercial state OF the West ind.es, IS
. copied in the West India Reporter. ON,
tains ths language;
There are the strongest concurrent
testimony and proof that unleas some
speedy and efficient measures OF rehe4 arr
adopted, the ruin OF Il great number 81
the planters must inevitably very soon
take place"
This was under the halcycu rule Of sia-
very. The planters were e.eIwneimeU
with debt; their estates were moftSdged
10 English capitalists Tor large. amounts.
In 1855. in the little island eiSt. Lac.a,
estates were m~ortgageJ to the amount 81
over IS, 900, 900 for debts incurred under
that delightful state OF slavery wnFca my
colleague Mr.. Cox isso solIciIoUs 10 per.
petuaIe in this country.
Nh. Bigelow, of the New York Evening
Post, whose intelligence ana integrity
will not be questioned, as the result OF ms
careful observations in visiting the Islands
as to their condition prior 10 emancipa-
ton. says U#a 1HT
The island of Jamaica Was utterly IN
solvent; nearly every estate was mort
gagged for more than II was worth, anu
was liable for more interest than 1t could
possibly pay-bankruptcy was inevitable.
/ have gwen my Reasons 1of believing that
the emancipation act I'D mol cause, tut on
" p~recapadted a result which was meyIta-
bic. II compelled a balance to be struck
between the debtors and creditors, winch
revealed rather Uhal begat the poverty
which no effort can conceal
Other proof equally satisfactory might
be cumulated on this point, but II Is un-
necessary. The fact Is established beyond
controversy or doubt that II Was slavery
which, in 1880, was running the West In
dies. The cotton States at the commence
ment OF this rebellion were In a similar
condiaon. 1 have no doubt that their
indebtedness to the commercial Statesa c-
CELEBRATED the rebellion, and added fuel TO
the flame which slavery had klndled.-
This Indebtedness probably was not less
than two hundred and fifty or three hun
dred millions. This was quite a motive
W TO a revolution which would wipe
1t out by repudiating it. Southern rebel
conventions and legislatures were quick
to- confscate this Indebtedness TO loyal
people; but my colleague Mr.. Cox Is as
quick to oppose the contiscation OF rebel
DTODSIlN lOT the DSuSUlOl ACI Ivy al AAAOAAs
fearing it will irritate those dear traitors
whose company he is go DESTROYS OF keep
ing. He initiates some generals, in the
field, who are more energetic IN protect
ing rebel property than IN suppresslng the
rebellion.
Ii Is Perfectly natural, yes, inevitable,
that SUCH a change in the social and po-
liticaI condition OF a people, as from sia-
E.z1lo-, eharrL1 prn1upa ramnn-
rary confusion and Inconvenience. Inns
will apply to business or political affairs.
1t takes time for society to adapt itself TO
q the new condition of things. 1t does not
therefore. follow that the change is not Il
wise one and should not havebeen made.
The former Shareholders tried to avoid,
by all means in their power, ~the dread
full necessity of treating with respect, and
alIuring by wages, those whom not long
before they could order to be put down
and ioeged for the least incidence
VERY many of the planters also gave
their negroes notice TO quit their cottages
and grounds, under the idea that by such
q threat they would force them to work
for less wages. The result was, TO make
the negroes shift elsewhere"
An able article in the February mum
Der 1889 of the Westminster 'Revlew a.
serts that 1.-The diminution of labor was
the direct and immediate consequence o.
the mismanagement of the planters. =
OIner causes not directly attributable T.
slavery or freedom contributed 10 bring
about In the West Indies that dreadful
crash in lS47, which has inc ~resounded
through the world" and the main cause
of the falling of of exports was the tai
of the price OF sugar. In lS4OSugar solo
for ass Der cwt.; in 1913 it sold for only
23s. Sd. Sugar in the eight years, ending
with 1916, averaged BIS. Sd. per cwt., n
IN the eight following years 1t averaged
only 24s. cd. per cwt. In the first eight
years the amount produced was 2O,OOO,-
900 cwt.; in the second eight years it had
increased to "A, SOC, 900 cwt. the sugar
planters realized for their sugar Sl5,OOO,-
600 less than they would have realized al
the old prices. Sugar being the principal
article OF export, such a falling of would
of course, cause great commercial embar-
rassment but p~ro-slavery writers and or
ators have charged this embarrassment t.
the account of emancipation. The eyi
dence from reliable sources Is overwhelm
ing, that the West India Islands, undo
free labor, are rapidly recoyeringfrom the
insolvency which slavery had caused
Wealth is increasing, crime dlmlshlng
and the material and social condition o
the people rapidly improving. l Nigh
multiply evidence upon these points Il
almost any extent. l quote a few state
ments from colonial reports made to Par
lament. as quoted in the April number
1859, of the Edinburg Review:
tBarbGdosS-In ten years between lSE
and 1852, increase of sugar exportedis "a
90 hogsheads." The report for 1881
states, There has been more. sugar ship
ped from this island this year than IN any
one year since it has been peopled; andl
is a remarkable fact that there viii %,
more E1borers' sugar made this year thar
previously. By laborers' sugar Is mean
that raised by the negroes on their owl
patches of ground, and sent TO the pro
prietor's mill for manufacture There
bort for 1853 vast increase in
trade. So far the success of cultivation b!
free labor is unquestionable.' Report foi
1858: a great increase in the value o.
the exports The large proportion o
land acquired by the labOring classes
furnishes striking evidence of their indus
try
a. Baharas.-In 1851, the Governor re-
ports, "a great and important change for
the better in the condition of the PEG
pie; which he mainly attributes to i'm
proved education The rapidity with
which these islands are advancing is indi-
Gated by the fact that the exports and i'm
ports increased in one year, from 1854 to
1855, fl02, 924, (S49S, 666.1S.
observation-disclosures in 1851 and 1852
show an increase of trade. amounting to
E8S,4 (S42S,355 80 Report of 1858;
-Contentment appears to pervade all class
es of the community A proprietary
body, of considerable magnitude and i'm
p~ortance, has already risen from the la
boring class State of the finances most
satisfactory "a greatly extended surface
Is covered by sugar cultivation A con-
siderable increase is noted in the exports
of sugar, rum, and cocoa Some remarks
on the want of labor.