Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-06-06
Causes Much Annoyance In
Island of Jamaica.
is NOT A RACE MATTER
Yet the Negroes Do Not Like the I'M
p0rtatiOn of W0rkingmen From
the Adjoining Islands or From
Foreign Countries.

correspondence OF Associated PreSS).
Kingston. Jamaica, May 3O.--Recent ad-
vices from the French island of Guada-
loupe indicate the continuance of the So
called race war there which led last
month to the partial destruction
OF the industrial capital, Pintc-a-
Flnte, by force. The war is not
raclal in the American sense of the
acJectlve, and the use Of the term has done
good deal to mislead public opinon. It
is not revolt Of the colored ponnlation
against the white French element. but
P"ielS trouble between the native labor
ne population and the immigrant labor
ers who have been INTRODUCED from the Eng
ilsh colonies to work on the sugar estates
| Nor is the difficulty new. The French ne
gioes have always been recalcitrant refrs-
ing to work on the sugar plantations for
wages such as the planters could pay.
Ultimately the situation became SO Sc
rous that system of labor immgra don
was resorted to. Thousands of laborers
We're introduced from Japan and neigh
boring West Indian islands. So acute was
the race trouble with the Japanese that
they had to be repatriated in short order.
II was then thought that the negroes, be-
| ing of the same race as the natives, would
do better There was little difference how
ever, although the immigrants from DONE
mica and Santa Lucia already spoke the
local French patois and those from Barba
dos quickly. mastered IT, At the bottom
the difficulty was not racial, but economi-
! cal. Th natives have never allowed Eng
4 IiSh Immigrants work in ha
! ,l.w has maintained peace between the
! rival factions.
! The late strained relations between
Great Britain and France seemed to have
aggravated the situation. The natives
| planned a general attack on the English.
| 1t was to be made as soon as war was de-
clared. War did not come off, but the ma.
! tive negroes We're not to be deferred by
! that fact. An attack was made although
| not so general as originally intended and
I llie immigrants from the estates in large
rrmbers sought protection in the city of
/ Pcnte-a-Pitre. Thither they We're pursued
and for long time the local officers were
! incapable of restraining disorder In the
midst of it all the city was fired simulta-
neously at several points, with the result
| lHat Is KNOWN troops from the capital
! have suppressed the rioting but the trou-
BILE continues and assumes the form of
! Il serious problem. The natives accuse the
! English of having fired the town The
| English reply that the French negroes
| planned the fire, as to have an excuse
| for eXpelling the English. Meanwhile, the
| English immigrants, individually and col
| lectively. are in danger of their lives.
| They dare not return to work except un-
der military guard, so that every estate
| where work has been resumed is now a
| sort of arsenal.
| The British consul is said to have ap-
| rtaled to the imperial government and
! possibly an international question may
arise. The planters throughout the island
are represented as exercised over the
situation. If the plot-forsuch it is gem
orally believed to amount to-that aims at
the withdrawal from the island of the i'm
migrant laborers should succeed. planters
will be thrown back upon the native labor
ers and be at their mercy. This, it is
thought, would practically result in the
Suspension of cultivation.