, 1869-06-18
OF
THE
Colonial Council
FOR ST. CROIX.

sary for him to point out the great Importance
OF the present case, which claimed the Councils
most careful consideration. On the gath ultimo
two of the members of the Council, Messrs.
Christmas and Rltcliffe, had handed him a PEE
tltlon from several of the estate-prOprietors in
the Island soliciting that measures be adopted
for granting advances from the public funds to
such OF the estate proprietors who may require
it for Meal and Money Wages to their laborers
during the remaining part of the year, on their
giving Bureau-mortgage in next years crop
and he had in consequence of that petition in
vited those two gentlemen together with the
Council-members Sarauw, Dubois and Knight,
and also Councillor Forsberg and Mr.. w. II.
Hey!iger, to a meeting ON the 26th ultimo for
the purpose of considering on the matter. He
would here repeat what he had stated in that
meeting, viz: that those advances on Bureau
which for some years back during the time of
the Burgher Council, used frequently to be
granted from the Landtreasury's funds, had
since been discontinued agreeable to instruction
from the Ministry of Finances in letters of l4th
August 1860 and eide June 1861, according to
which such advances must be generally con-
sldered as being beyond the scope of communal
action, and because the Intervention on the part
OF the Municipality in the supplying of food to
the Island could only then be in its place where
there was an actual want of food. It must be
acknowledged, however, that the present cir
cumstances, owing to the disasters that have
latterly befallen the Island together with the
subsequent unusual drought, are of a perfectly
extraordinary nature, thus rendering the pro-
posed measure even more urgent than ever be-
fore,-and the Colonial Treasury has Just now
been granted a subsidy of S28, 900 from the
finances of the Mothercountry, the application
of which is left to the Colonial Council by
grants or extra-grants, agreeable to the Cole
NAL Law, subject to His Majesty's sanction.
lie referred in this respect to the 18th s of the
Law of 9th March 1869 and the accompanying
motives thereto laid before the Imperial Diet. (")
() The respective section of s 18 of the Law
of 9th March 1869 concerning an Extra Grant for
1869-O runs thus:
"Ihe following amount is granted for defraying
other and extraordinary expenses of the realm:
The amount of the contribution to the St. Croix
Colonial Treasury $28. 900 calculated at $500
Rigsdollars."
The Remarks to this part of the Draft of the Law
run thus
It is true, st. Croix escaped the epidemics and
the hurricane of 29th October last year, with which
st. Thomas was afflicted; but that Island has suf-
fered from the earthquakes, where they commen-
ced at the same time as in the other Islands. Ac-
cording to investigations which the Government
caused to be made, the injury sustained by the
Estates on the Island has been estimated to an
! amount of $l54,268. The towns of Christiansted
and Frederiksted also sustained considerable loss
by the demolition of houses and destruction of
furnitures etc.. in the latter town many wooden
buildings were destroyed or at least removed from
their foundations. and a large quantity of goods
and provisions destroyed or damaged in the stores
and warehouses, and the loss of property sustained
in Frederiksted mas on the whole far greater than