, 1908-01-08

Draft be Referred to Il Committee of 7 Mem.
bers, as usu d.-On)y Il very few remarks
would he make today. As regards HIS Ex-
c~ellency's remark about land being rented
out to Squtters ut { to 10 dollars an acre.
which goes to increase the value of an acre
beyond $50, he would only say that it might
be 50 if only the Squatters paid for the land
they rent from Planters but in most cases
they rent one bat have the benefit OF ) or I
acres, in other cases they rent, reap, and
leave, without paying for the land. More
oyer the whole system is only the cloak for
Stealing and robbin@; at the Police Otfse
YOU Will find information Of the deprela.
tons committed on his property alone
As regards the Horse Tax, sooner than raise
1t rather give 1T up In regard to Planters
and others who mend the roads aul use
their c0Ayeyahces for that purpose. Not
long ago 2nd Member for Frederiksted
Country District (Lunney( had brought up
the matter here, calling for Il relief for plan
tiers, who are always mending roads, every
body having $50 acres of land or more should
be relieved from paving Horse Tax. His
EX cheney promised that he would take the
matter under consideration, he (Syitzer)
s merely hoped that something would be
done soon. Concerning the sending home
Of prisoners, he too would Recommend that
IL ne OJHtI 10 previously, lOE PRISONERS
i'll he prison do no work, but enjoy them
selves 10 different ways, rs has been men
toned here before from several sides.
3rd Member for Christiansted (Pretto)
would beg to say that in his opinion squat
ters are very useful people; they rent the
land and pay for II, as a rule; it is not always
and not even frequently SO, that they reap
and leave, but they remain if they are allow
ed by the land owner.
4th Member for Christiansted Country
District (SGit&et) said in one year he lost
over $1,000 III that way, lis books will show
that every year he loses money Sy tile squat
tiers on his estates.
3rd Member for Christianstad (Pretfo)
1t must be SO only in the case of the honour
able Member, but with no one else, stis he
who turns away the renters out of time.
2rd Member for Christiansted (Snlith)
would beg to say to the honorable Country
Member (Svitzer), that it is q prevailing
and well founded opinion, that sqnatters
are q small body of men, but without whom
it would be difficult under our circumstances
to get on they are honest men, as honest
as are 10 be fohnd among other mon.
Sometime ago he heard u remark in this
Council that Planters are the best friends
Of the lahO .Iers; the remark has ever since
grated On his ears he failed to see it so,
or how it could be said the spirit OF the
planter allows of no such sympathy, nor is
it seen anywhere; to-day agaiA we hear
wholesale accusations thrown olt agIinst a
whole set of men, who do not in any way
commit any Of the dis orders complained of,
or in any degree less than 9th 7 men, who
arc not thu, arraigned. He colld see no
reason why the labourer and tile squatter
shall be held up to con umcly in that re-
spect by the one party, who after all are the
very ones to provoke OF forward dishonesty,
if it did exist, inst by the way in which they
deal with the labourers and the Bquatter;
week alter week the poor labourer gets no
more than perhaps 3 cents of his hard
carmel wages, while the rest goes in tile
pocket of the planter; hence they have no
clothes.
4th member for Christiansted Country
District (SviteGr The Member (Smith} is
mistaken; be (S~vitzer) never intended any
personality when speaking of the depreda-
tons committed by the squatter, he simply
mentioned facts, such as there are the OK
perience is gained in his own instance; it is
well known that squatters cut and cart canes
in another's name, and even to a different
factory and they cut wherever they like
they and those working with them steal any,
Ill.,. A., - L. H., AZ -. L.. L.