, 1898-02-05

able to law.
3rd Member for FredeI iksted's Country
District (BldcktOoOd) No man with com.
mon sense would be able to say that Il
planter SlaIing rum by a snaps to a man on
the es.a e after hard Iabour and exposure.
is selling rum; lie could never be Questioned
for giving away what is his undeniably.
But the pratice OF a snaps is old and rs.
cognized by GOO authority. No one,
planter or any one. gives aWay rum except
on a benefit of some sort.
4th Member for Frederiksted's Country
District (ROJerts) sud he failed to see how
the fact Of estates Icing in the Factory
could prevent them from distilling rum Of
their own; and certainly 10 man las ever
shared or will ever lhir\ Of sharing rum
except as u sort of acknowledgements or
consideration or encouragement to his people.
and it is done frequently to even bare
strangers. There is nothing to prevent
Factory estates from having tleir own
stills, and really when you look at it, that
the labourer, no less than the PLANTER, on
estates outside the Factory have to be at
work from Is to 20 hours out Of the "a,
while the Factory planter can do 0s he
chooses and cmn let alone work as 10
chooses. he did not think TINT there could
he any complaint if the Factory estates
labomers got no snaps; but if they do not, 10
is the fault Of The Factory estates owners
he shares rum when needed yet he had no
orelt1oN Of laboureIS; so much so that he
had to buy immigrants for his estate, to get
the work that does not 20 to support
tie statement of the honorable 4th Mem.
Der for Chistiansted's Country District
(SchmeigeloW).
LIST Member for Chtistionsted's Country
District (Stakemann) would say, that it has
now been stated repeatedly that rum is
shared and given as a recompense for benr-
fits received; but that is decidedly an illtg gal
sale Of rum; it falls directly under the penal
code and CEN not be sanctioned.
3rl Member for Frcdeliksted's Country
Distric; (B3ockoood): The snaps given oc-
casionrlly on estates forms no part of the
labourel's wages the Iabourer gets his full
amount in wages regularly but it seems
beyond a doubt, that amy disposal Of a mans
own production, his property, to whomsOever
lie pleaScs and when he pleases, for benefits
received or not received, as a compliment
or as "A duty, could never fall within tho
scope Of q sale, much less an illegal sale
there is not even an exchange of commodity
going ON. II a planter give lum of his own
to those Of his household, should that also
constitute an illegal sale?
lst Member for Frederikstcd's Country
District (Hepit0 said, that when the hon
Durable 4th Member for Christiansted's
Country District (Schmiegelow) complained
of a disadvantage for estates not delivering
canes to The Factory, then if there be such
q disadvantage. it arises from the planter
himself; the Factory estates could just az
we'll have THEN own stills, and make lum 10
share like others, when they wont buy; but
many do now give, although they. do not
make rum. and if SOM estates don't make it,
that is, rs he had said, owing to the planters
own Incidence and because they don't rc-
onire to do so. They get fcticiOus prices
for their canes; they can afford to sit down
and work as they like and choose, and they
have but a few hours work from themselves
or their people Whenever they do work
if they were to give snaps Of rum, it would
10 doubt be without getting amy benefit for
it they don't require TO do so. But they
are labouring under no disadvantage, except
of their W choice and a result Of their
own indolence; the Planter making his own
crop has to keep his people at work for Is
to 20 hours regularly day and night; to
keep up the people, a snaps OF lum is advi-
sable and has be n freely given from time
immemorial. He agreed that we had better
drop the whole Draft and motion; as long
as nothing but half measures leading to worse
results can be g%ran'el, let us remain with