(3vdJb,i.in ^a/u^c^j. Uic^, K^^ W /yut-ti-nyi^^yC' iyV' tic. 03x.t-fc^^ p^t dyu^^i Avxc^ ctuwidlAJl., ^^iiqar is produced by slave-labor, \/ there is always an awful destruction of negro life, owing to the severely hard pressure of work, continued night and day, during one particular season of the crops. Tim RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. 5 At the time when the planters were complaining of such excessive embarrassments, they had a monopoly of the sugar v^ maKket in Great Britain, so close that not even the East India Colonies were allowed to compete with them ; a mo- nopoly, ^Wiicli cost the comsumers $25,000,000 annually. They paid no wages to their laborers ; and furnished them merely with rags to tie about their loins, and enough of coarse food to keep them in working condition. Yet while they produced from a prolific soil the great staples of com- merce, without paying for the labor, and with an enormous premium from the consumers in Great Britain, they were so nearly reduced to "ruin," that they were compelled "ear- nestly to solicit relief from Parliament." A few facts will help to explain this apparent anomaly.^ In the first place, the system of slavery contravenes all the,^ laws of human nature, and therefore contains within itself *" the seed of ultimate ruin. It takes away the motive power from the laborers, who naturally desire to shirk as much as possible of the work, which brings them no pay ; conse- qiiently, overseers and drivers must be hired to force out of them their unwilling toil. It makes thera indifferent to the destruction of property on estates, in whose prosperity they iiave no interest. It stimulates them to theft, by perpetual privations, from which they have no prospect of relief. It kills their ingenuity and enterprise, by rendering them utterly unavailing for any improvement in their own condition; while all their faculties are stupefied by the extreme igno- rance in which they must necessarily be kept in order to be held in slavery. The effects on the white population are quite as injurious, though in a different way. Slavery una- voidably renders labor a degradation, and consequently, it is a matter of pride with them to live in idleness. Extrava- gance and dissipation follow of course. All, w^ have examined into the subject, are aware that inte^Rrance, licentiousness, and gambling, are fearfully prevalent in slave- holding countries. One hint will suffice to suggest the im- moral condition of the West Indies, during slavery. It is a well-known fact that the white subordinates employed by planters were very liable to lose their situations if they married ; because it was for the interest of the proprietors to have them live with slaves, and raise up laborers for the 1* 6 THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE \^Y. estates. As for the slaves, being regarded as animals, and treated like live-stock, thev unavoidably lived like animals. Modesty and self-respect were impossible to their brutalized condition. In this Tract, I merely aim at presenting a biisi- ness-vieyf of the subject. Tlierefore, I will not describe the cruelties, which were contijuuiUy practised, and which kept the worst passions of both masters and slaves in perpetual excitement. The barbarities recorded. were the same that always 77iust prevail, under a system of coerced labor and irresponsible power. In addition to the unavoidable expenses, and inevitable deterioration involved in the very nature of slavery, the West India planters had another difficulty to contend with. " Nearly the whole of the sugar estates were owned by ab- sentees, the greater part of whom never set foot in the islands." This involved the necessity of hiring managers and attorneys to look after the property. Mr. Bigelow com- putes the average annual expense of an estate to have been $^3,000, solely to pay for the absence of the proprietor. The Rev. Henry Bleby, who was a missionary in the West In- dies before emancipation, and has resided there ever since, says : " Let us look at the condition of a West India estate under slavery. Thera were four or five hundred slaves. True, there w^as little expended for their food; but their masters had to sup})ly.them with so many yards of cloth a year, and several other small articles. That w^as one item of expense. Then, to superintend the labor of these slaves, there must be four bookkeepers, as they were called ; one to superintend the still, another the boiling-house, another the cattle on the estate, and another, vsometinies two or three others, to superintend the people in the field. All these had to be fed and salaried. Then there was the overseer, with his harmi, living at considerable expense out of the estate, and aHPhigh salary. Over all these was the attorney, who took his commission out of every thing the estate produced, and lived in the great house with his servants and harem. Then there was the proprietor living with his family in princely style, in France or England. All this was to be drawn out of the produce of one estate ! I should like to know whether there is any property that would not be brought to ruin, with so many living upon it, and out of it." THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. 7 Everybody knows how property is cared for, when there are none but hirelings to look after it. All accounts of the West Indies abound with the complaints of proprietors con- cerning the neglect, wastefulness, and fraud of their subor- dinates. Accumulation of salaries being the principal ob- ject in view, one manager often superintended many estates. Dr. Davy, in his work on the West Indies, speaks of twenty- three estates in Montserrat, managed by one agent. Ho reports nineteen of them as " imperfectly cultivated," or "abandoned;" which is by no means surprising, under the circumstances. Mr. Bigelow met in Jamaica, a gentleman who had come from England to ascertain why he w^as al- ways sinking more and more money upon his estate. Upon inquiry, he discovered that his manager lived sixty miles from the property, and had never seen it. With such drains upon their income, the proprietors were, of course, obliged to borrow money continually. Year after year, a gambling game was carried on between them and the merchants of London. The merchant would advance money to the planter, on condition tliat all the produce of the estate should be consigned to his house, and that what- ever was needed on the estate, in his line of business, should be bought of him. The merchant charged what price he pleased for his own articles, and took wiiat commission he pleased for selling the produce. " Thus," says Mr. Bige- low, " the planter's candle w^as burning at both ends." If there was a hurricane, or a severe drought, or an insurrec- tion of the slaves, wliich caused a ft^ilure of the crops, the proprietor was obliged to mortgage his lands to get the necessary supply of money. Thus a great many of the es- tates passed into the hands of British merchants, and had a heavy interest to pay in addition to other expenses. Such was the state of things, when the Britisl^^eople, ignorant of this financial chaos, and actuated sole^Poy mo- tives of justice and humanity, started the idea of abolishing slavery. When the planters became aware that the meas- ure migli^ be carried, they met it with a furious storm of opposition. They characterized it as an " impertinent in- terference with their rights," and threatened to withdraw from the British government, unless the project were relin- quished. Still they petitioned for relief; any kind of relief, 8 THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAY. e:scept from the destructive system., which had brought them to the verge of ruin. To that they swore they never would submit. Missionaries, who went to the West Indies to im- part rehgious instruction to the slaves, were assaulted with brickbats and.im[)risoned on false pretences. Their houses were attacked, and their chapels demolished. A Colonial Union was formed, the object of which was to drive away every instructor of the negroes. Those in England, who sought to help on the cause of emancipation, were hated with inconceivable intensity. Women in the West Indies expressed a wish to get hold of Wilberforce " that they might pull his heart out." With these wrathful" vocifera- tions were mingled every form of lamentable prediction con- cerning the ruin " fanatical philanthropists " were bringing on the Colonies. They said if their mad designs were car- ried into execution, the masters would all have their throats cut, and their liouses burned. What they seemed especially concerned about was that " the negroes could not possibly take care of themselves." They were too lazy to work without the whip. They would abscond to the woods, and live there like animals. The few% who might be willing to work, would be robbed by the others ; that would lead to continual fighting, and there would be prodigious slaughter. Tliousands also would die of disease, from want of the fos- tering care of their masters. In short, blacks and whites would all be swallowed up in one great gulf of swift de- struction. The Colonial press was, of course, on the side of slavery. There was all manner of suppression of truth, and propaga- tion of every sort of falsehood on the subject. But through all these obstacfes, the work of reform went slowly and steadily on. It took twenty years of hard labor and violent agitati^^to abolish the ^XaxQ-trade ; then eleven years, still more S^miy, to abolish the system. But, at last, the Act of Emancipation was passed, and went into effect in 1834. Tlie slaves received nothing from the British government for centuries of unrequited toih But £20,000,0^0 ($96,- 900,000) were paid to the masters, for ceasing to extort labor by the lash. That was called Compensation. With the idea of preparing the bondmen for freedom, the Act of Emancipation was unfortunately clogged with an Appren- THE RIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAY. 9 ticesliip System, by which it was ordained that the -emanci- pated hiborers were to work six years for their masters, without wages, ^s before. But they were to work nine hours a day, instead of twelve ; and were to have half of Friday, and the whole of Saturday, for themselves. The power of punishing was also taken from masters, and trans- ferred to magistrates. Household slaves were to become entirely free in 1838, and field slaves in 1840. Men long accustomed to arbitrary power are not easily convinced that it is both right and politic to relinquish the exercise of it. Moreover, we are all, more or less, the creatures of custom and prejudice. Therefore, it is not sur- prising that the great body of the planters were opposed to emancipation, until the eventful crisis had actually passed. Up to the last month, they remonstrated, and threatened, and entreated the Home Government not to consign them to such inevitable destruction. Many judicious and kindly men among them thought otherwise. They were convinced that the present system was certainly bringing ruin upon the Colonies, and they felt persuaded that nothing worse could come in its place. Their belief in the safety of emancipa- tion was partly founded upon general principles of human nature, and partly upon their experimental knowledge of the docility of the negroes, when justly and humanely treated. But very few of these individuals dared, however, to ex- press such opinions ; for the community was in such an ex- cited state, that they were sure to suffer for it, in some form o]- other. Mr. James Scotland, of St. John's, Antigua, said to Mr. Thome : " Whoever was known or suspected of being an advocate for freedom, became an object of vengeance, and was sure to suffer by a loss of business, if in no other way. Every attempt was made to deprive my son of business, as a lawyer ; and I was thrown into prison, without anj^ form of trial, or any opportunity of saying one word in my own defence. There I remained, till discharged by the peremp- tory order^of the Colonial Secretary, to whom I appealed for relief. The opinions of the clergymen and missionaries, with the exception of a few of the clergy, were favorable to emancipation ; but neither in their conduct, preaching, nor prayers, did they declare themselves openly, until the meas-? 10 THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. ure of abolition was determined on. The missionaries feh restrained by their instructions from home ; and the clergy fliought it did not comport with their order to take part iti politics. I never heard of a single planter, who was favor- able, until about three months before emancipation took place ; when some few of them began to perceive that it would be advantageous to their interest." Mr. Thome, in his work on the West Indies, says: " We were informed that, some time previous to the aboli- tion of slavery, a meeting of the influential men in Antigua was called at St. John's, to memorialize Parliament against the measure of abolition. When the meeting convened, the Hon. Samuel O. Baijer, who had been the clianipion of tlie opposition, was called upon to pr»i)ose a [>lau of pi-ocedurc. To the consternation of the pro-slavery meeting, their leader rose and spoke to the following effect : ' Gentlemen, my pre- vious sentiments on this subject are well known to you all. Be not surprised to learn that they have undergone an entire change. I have not altered my views without deliber- ' ation. For several days past I have been making calcula- tions with regard to the probable results of emancipation; and I have ascertained, beyond a doubt, that I can cultivate my estate at least one-third cheaper by free labor, than by slave labor.' The honorable gentleman proceeded to draw out the details of his calculations, and he presented an array of pecuniary considerations altogether new and imposing to the majority of the assembly. After he had finished his remarks, Mr. S. S hands, Member of Assembly, and a wealthy proprietor, observed that he entertained precisely the same views with those just expressed ; but he thought the honorable gentleman had been unwise to utter them in so public a manner ; for should these sentiments reach the ear of Parliament, it might induce them to withhold compen- i_ sation. * Colonel Edwards, Member of Assembly, rose and ^ said he had long been opposed to slavery, but had not dared to avow his sentiments." When the question came before the Colonial Assembly similar discussions ensued. The abolition of sl^'cry was now seen to be inevitable. The only alternative presented to the colonists was the apprenticeship system, or immediate, unconditional emancipation. When the question came to THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAY. 11 this issue in the Antigua Assembly, both ho^\ei unanimously passed a bill in favor of immediate emancipation ; on the ground that it was the w'lse&i policy. The first of August, 1834, was the day fixed by Parlia- ment for the Abolition Act to go into effect. As the time approached, a heavy cloud lowered over the minds of most of the white population. A merchant of St. John's told Mr. Thome that several American vessels which had lain in the harbor, weighed* anchor on the 31st of July, through actual fear that the island would be destroyed on the follow- ing day ; and they earnestly entreated the merchant to escape with them, if he valued his life. ]\Iany planters be- lieved it would be unsafe to go out in the evening, after emancipation. Some timid families did not venture to go to bed on the night of the 31st. They waited anxiously for the hour of midniglit, fearing that the same bell which pro- claimed " Liberty throughout the land, to all the inhabitants thereof,'*" would prove the signal for general conflagration, and massacre of the white inhabitants.* * Tliere were in Antigua, at that time, 1,980 whites; 29,537 slaves; and 3,895 free colored people. CHAPTER II. A^;TIGUA, 4rTER IMMEDIATE, UNCONDITIONAL EMANCI- PATION. When ^he clock hegan to strike twelve, on the 31st of July, 1834,' there were nearly 30,000 slaves in the island of Antigua ; when it ceased to strike, they were all freemen ! I extract from Thome's West Indies the following ac- count of that glorious transition : " The Wesleyans kept * watch-night ' in all th.eir chapels. One of the missionaries gave us an account of the watch-meeting at the chapel in St. John's. The spacious house was filled with the candi- dates for liberty. All was animation and eagerness. A mighty chorus of voices swelled the song of expectation and joy ; and, as they united in prayer, the voice of the leader was drowned in the universal acclamations of thanksgiving, and praise, and blessing, and honor, and glory to God, who had come down for their deliverance. In such exercises the evening was spent, until the hour of twelve approached. The missionary then proposed that when the cathedral clock should begin to strike, the whole congregation should fall on their knees, and receive the boon of freedom in silence. Accordingly, as the loud bell tolled its first note, the crowded assembly prostrated themselves. All was silence ! save the quivering, half-stifled breath of the struggling spirit. Slowly the tones of the clock fell upon the waiting multitude. Peal on peal, peal on peal, rolled over the prostrate throng, like angels' voices, thrilling their weary heart-strings. Scarcely had the last tone sounded, when lightning flashed vividly, and a loud peal of thunder rolled through the sky. It was God's pillar of fire ! His trump of Jubilee ! It was fol* lowed l3y a moment of profound silence. Then came the outburst! They shouted < Glory ! Hallelujah!* They clapped their hands, they leaped up, they fell down, they THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. ^ 13 clasped each other in their free arms, they cried, they hiughed, they went to and fro, throwing upward their unfet- tered hands. High above all, a mighty sound ever and anon swelled up. It was the utterance of gratitude to God, in broken negro dialect. " After this gush of excitement had spent itself, the con- gregation became 'calm, and religious exercises were re- sumed. The remainder of the night was spent in singing and prayer, in reading the Bible, and in addresses from the missionaries, explaining tlie nature of the freedom just re- ceived, and exhorting the people to be industrious, steady, and obedient to the laws, and to show themselves in all things worthy of the high boon God had conferred upon them. "The first of August came on Friday; and a release from all work was proclaimed, until the next Monday. The great mass of the negroes . spent the day chiefly in the churches and chapels. The clergy and missionaries, through- out the island, actively seized the opportunity to enlighten the people on all the duties and responsibilities of their new relation. "VVe were assured that, in every quarter, the day was like a sabbath. A sabbath indeed ! when ' the wicked ceased from troubling, and the weary were at rest.' Many of the planters informed us that they went to the chapels where their own people were assembled, and 'shook hands with them, and exchanged hearty good wishes. "At Grace Hill, a Moravian missionary station, the emancipated negroes begged to have a sunrise meeting on the first of August, as they had been accustomed to have at Easter; and as ft was the Easter Morning of their free- dom, the request was granted. The people all dressed in white, and w^alked arm in arm to the chapel. There a hymn of thanksgiving was sung by the whole congregation kneeling. The singing was frequently interrupted by the tears and sobs of the melted people, until finally, they were overwhelmed by a tumult of emotion. The missionary, wdio was present, said the scene was indescribable. "Planters and missionaries, in every part of the island, told us there was not a single dance, by night or day ; not even so much as a fiddle played. There were no drunken carousals, no riotous assemblies. The emancipated were as 2 14 THE EIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAY. far from dissipation and debauchery, as they were from vio- lence and carnage. Gratitude was the absorbing emotion. From the hiil-to})3 and the valleys, the cry of a disenthralled people went upward, like the sound of many waters : ' Glory to God ! Glory to God ! ' '' Dr. Daniell, who has been long resident in Antigua, and has the management of several estates, told us that after such a prodigious change in the condition of the ne- groes, he expected some irregularities would ensue. lie an- ticipated some relaxation from labor, during the week that followed emancipation. But on Monday morning, he Ibund all his hands in the field ; not one missing. The same day, he received a message from another estate, of which he was proprietor, that the negroes, to a man, had refused to go into the lield. He immediately rode to the estate, and found the laborers, with hoes in their hands, doing nothing. Accost- ing them in a friendly manner, he inquired, ' What is the. meaning of this? How is it that you are not at work this morning ? ' Tliey immediately replied, ' It's not because we don't want to work, massa ; but we wanted to see you, first and foremost, to know what the bargain would be.' As soon as that matter was settled, the whole body of negroes turned out cheerfully, without a moment's cavih Mr Bourne, manager of Millar's estate, informed us that the largest gang he had ever seen in the field, on his property, turned out the week after the emancipation." In the days of slavery, it had always been customary to order out the militia, during the Christmas holidays, when the negroes were in the habit of congregating in lai-ge num- bers, to enjpy the festivities of the season. But the December after emancipation, the Governor issued a proclamation, that, " in consequence of the abolition of slavery,'' there was no fur- ther need of taking that- precaution. And it is a fact that there have been no soldiers out at Christmas, from that day to this. The Legislature of Antigua subsequently passed "an Act for the better organizing of the militia, the pream- ble of which reads thus : " Whereas the abolition of slavery, in this island, renders it expedient to provide against an unnecessary augmentation of the militia," etc. The public security and confidence were also strikingly indicated by the following military advertisement in 1836 : " Recruits THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAY. 15 wanted ! The freed men of Antip:na are now called Li])on to show their gratitude to King William, for the beneiits he has conferred on ihem and their fiimilies, by volunteering tlieir services as soldiers in his First West India Regiment. By doing this, they will acquire a still higher rank in so- ciety, by being placed on a looting of perfect equality with the other troops in his majesty's service, and receive the same bounty, pay, clothing, rations, and allowances." TESTBIONY OF PLANTERS IN ANTIGUA, IN 1837. The Rev. James A. Thome, son of a slaveholder in Ken- tucky, visited the British West Indies in the autumn of 1836, and returned to this country in the summer of 1837. He published a book, soon alter, from which I quote the follow- ing extracts : — " We delivered a letter of introduction to Mr. James How- ell, manager of Thibou Jarvis' estate. He told us that be- fore emancipation took place, he had been strongly opposed to it; being exceedingly unwilling to give up his power of command. ' But,* said he, ' I shall never forget how differ- ently I felt when freedom took place. I rose from my bed exclaiming, " I am free ! I am free ! I was the greatest slave on the estate ; and now I am free." ' He said that plant- ers, who retained their harsh manner, did not succeed un- der the new system ; but he never had any difficulty in man- aging his people. He found by experience that kindness and forbearance armed him with sufficient authority. The laborers on the estates he managed had been considerably reduced,* but the grounds had never been in a finer state of cultivation than at present. He said there would be a fail- ure of crops, not from any fault of the laborers, but on ac- count of a drought more prolonged, than he had known for tliirty-six years. He said, ' When ray work is backv/ard, I give it out in jobs ; and it is always done in half the usual time. Emancipation has almost wholly put an end to sulk- ing, or pretending to be sick. That was a thing which * This is accounted for, in many instances, by the women bemg withdrawn from field labor, to attend to their households ; and by children being sent to school. 16 THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. caused a vast deal of trouble duriui? slavery. Every Mon- day morning, regularly, I used to find ten or a dozen round the door, waiting for my first appearance, to beg that they might be let off from work, on account of sickness. It was seldom that one-fourth of them were really unwell ; but every one maintained he was sick ; and, as it was hard to contend with them, they were sent off to the sick-house. Now, that is done away with. The hospitals on many estates are put to other uses. Mine is converted into a chapel. At first, the negroes showed some disposition to put on airs of inde-. pendence ; but that soon disappeared. They are always respectful in their manners. In that particular, there has been mutual improvement. Planters treat their laborers more like fellow-men, and that leads them to be respectful, in their tin-n. They have now a growing regard for charac- ter; a feeling unknown to them in the days of slavery. Their religious and moral condition was formerly very low, notwithstanding the efforts of the missionaries; but now it is rapidly improving. " Mr. Armstrong, manager of Fitch's Creek estate, said to us ; ' During slavery, I often used to lie sleepless in my bed, thinking of my dangerous situation ; the only white per- son on the premises, ftir from help and surrounded by slaves. I have spent hours devising plans of defence, in case my house should be attacked by the negroes. I said to myself it would be useless to fire upon them. My only hope was to frighten the superstitious fellows, by covering myself with a white sheet, and rushing into the midst of them, like a ghost. But now I have the utmost confidence in my people. They have no motive now to prompt them to insurrection. They show great shrewdness in every thing that concerns their own interest. They are very exact in keeping their accounts with the manager. To a stranger, it must be in- credible how they contrive to live on such small wages.* Mr. A. informed us that the spirit of enterprise, formerly dormant in Antigua, had been roused since emancipation. Planters were now beginning to inquire as to the best modes of cultivation, and to propose measures of general improve- ment. One of these measures was the establishment of Free Villages, in which the laborers from all the neighboring es- tates might dwell, by paying a small rent. Real estate has THE HIGnT WAT THE SAFE WAT. ' 17 risv^n, and mercantile business greatly improved. Several missionaries were present while we talked with Mr. A.; and the wliole company heartily joined in assuring us that a knowledge of the actual working of aBblition in Antigua would be altogether favorable to the cause of freedom. They all agreed that the more thorough was our knowledge of the facts in the case, tiie more perfect would be our confidence in immediate emancipation. " Dr. Ferguson, of St. John's called on us. He is a Member of Assembly, and one of the first physicians on the island. He said it had always appeared to him that if a man is peaceable while he is a slave, he would certainly be so when he was a freeman. But though he had anticipated beneficial results from the abolition of slavery, the reality had exceeded his most sanguine expectations. Had it not been ibr the unprecedented drought, the island would now be in a state of prosperity unequalled in any period of its history. The mercantile business of the town had increased astonishingly. He thought stores and shops had multiplied in a ratio of ten to one. Mechanical pursuits were likewise in a flourishing condition. A general spirit of enterprise was pervading the island. The streets and roads, in town and county, were much improved. The moral character of the ,y^ white population was brightening; one proof of it was that the old custom of concubinage was becoming disreputable. Eman- cipation was working admirably ; especially for the planters. The credit of the island had decidedly improved. Immediate freedom was infinitely better policy than slaver}^, or the ap- prenticeship either. " We visited Green Castle estate, about three miles from St. John's. The manager, Samuel Barnard Esq., received us kindly. He had been on the island forty-four years, en- gaged in the management of estates. He is now the owner of one estate, the manager of two, and attorney for six. He has grown old in the practice of slave-holding, and has sur- vived the wreck of the system. Stripped of arbitrary pov.'er, he now lives among the freed people, Vvdio were once his slaves, in the house where his grandfather was murdered in his bed by his slaves. The testimony of such a man is in- valuable. He said the transition from slavery to freedom Avas like passing suddenly out of a dark dungeon into the sunlight. 18 * THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. He thought the Assembly had acted wisely in adopting imme- diate emanc'i}>alion. The endless altercations and tronbles of the apprenticeship system had thus been avoided. The ne- groes made no rio^or disturbance when they received their freedom ; and he had no ditficulty about their Avorking. Some estates had suifered for a short time. There Avas a pretty general fluctuation, for a month or two, owing to the laborers leaving one estate and going to another ; but that was because the planters overbid each other, to get the best hands. The negroes had a very strong attachment to their homes, and would rarely leave them, unless harshly treated. Very few of his people had left him. There were some in- conveniences connected with the present system, but they were incomparably less than those connected with slavery. " Dr. Daniell, manager of the Weatherill estate, has long been a resident of Antigua, and is thoroughly acquainted with its internal policy. He is a Member of the Council, owns an estate, manages another, and is attorney for six. Being a prominent member of one branch of the body which gave immediate emancipation to the slaves, his testimony is entitled to great weight. Pie said, ' We all violently resisted abolition, when it began to be agitated in England. We re- garded it as an outrageous interference with our property and our rights. But noAv we are rejoiced that slaver}' is abolished.' He did not think the system of apprenticeship had any tendency to prepare the slaves for freedom. The arbitrary control of a master could never be a preparation for freedom. Sound, wholesome legal restraints were the only preparation. Apprenticeship vexed and harrassed the negroes, and kept them in a state of suspense. The reflec- tion that they had been cheated out of their expected liberty six years would sour their minds ; and when they at last ob- tained freedom, they would be less likely to be grateful. The planters in Antigua had isecured the attachment of their people by conferring u[)on them immediate emancipation. There had been no deficiency of labor. E-tates throughout the island were never in more advanced condition. Noth- ing was wanted but rain. He frequently employed his people by the job, for short periods, and ahvaj^s with gratifying re- sults. The negroes acconipli>bed twice as much as Avhen they worked for daily wages, because they made more money. THE RIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAT. 19 On some days tliey made three shillings ; three times the ordinary wages. He managed them altogether by mildness, and found it extremely easy. He had quite as much in- fluence over them, as he ever had during slavery. But Avhere managers persisted in habits of arbitrary command, they fiiiled. He had been obliged to discharge a manager from one of his estates, on account of his overbearing dispo- sition. If he had not dismissed him, the people would have abandoned the estate. Love of liome was such a passion with negroes, that nothing but bad treatment could force them away. He did not know of more than one or two planters on the whole island, who did not consider emancipa- tion a decided advantage to all parties. " Dr. Nugent, manager of Lyon's estate, has long been Speaker of the Assembly, and is favorably known in Europe as a man of science. No man in. Antigua stands higher. He owns one estate and manages another. He told us that, previous to emancipation, no man dared to express opposition to slavery, if he wished to maintain a \, respectable standing. Planters might have their hopes but they could not make them public, without incurring gen- eral odium, and being denounced as enemies of their country. The most general prediction was that the negroes would not , work after they were free ; but time had proved there was no foundation for that apprehension. The estates were never in better order than at present. On account of the stimulus of wages, there was far less feigned sickness, than during slavery. The sick-house used to be thronged with real or pretended invalids ; now the negroes don't go near it. The one on his estate was now used for a stable. He thought the capabilities of the blacks for education and for trades, were conspicuous. Emancipation had proved a bless- ing to the masters, and as for the advantages to the slave, they were too obvious to need to be pointed out. Lisurrec- tion or revenge was in no case dreaded ; not even by those planters who had been most cruel. After slavery was abol- ished, there remained no motive for rebellion. The expenses of cultivation were greatly diminished, and machinery and cattle more generally used than formerly. " Mr. Hatly, manager of Frey's estate, told us the im- proved industry and efficiency of his people had encouraged 20 THE EIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAY. him to bring several aclditi«nal acres under cultivation. They did not require such constant watching as formerly. They took much more interest in the prosperity of the es- tate, than the}^ did when they were slaves. He showed us his accounts for the last year of slavery, and the first year of freedom ; they proved a reduction of expenses more than one-third. He said, ' The old habit of feigning sickness is broken up. During shivery, this was more or less the case every week, sometimes every day, and it was exceedingly annoying. One would come, carrying his arm on his hand, declaring it had such a miglity pain in it, he couldn't use the hoe no way ; another would make his appearance with both hands on his breast, and, with a rueful look, complain of a great pain in his stomach; athird came limping along, with a dreadful rheumatlz m liis knees ; and so on, for a dozen or more. It was in vain to dispute with tliem, though it was often manifest that nothing on earth ailed them. They would say, " Ah, me, massa, you no tink how bad me feeh It's deep in, massa." But we have no feigned sickness now, and much less actual illness than formerly. My people now say they have no time to be sick. We formerlj^ h;Kl strong prejudices against the plough ; but now it is begin- ning to be extensively used, and we find it greatly reduces the necessary" amount of labor. I have already seen such decided benefits growing out of the free labor system, that I never wish to see the face of slavery again. We are re- lieved fi'om the painful task of flogging. Formerly, it was nothing but whip, whip, whip. Now we know no more of the las'h.' " David Cranstoun, Esq , manager of Athill's estate, and a magistrate, said to us : 'I get my work done better than formerly, and with incomparably more cheerfulness. I em- ploy fewer laborers, but my estate was never in a finer state of cultivation. My people are always ready and willing io work. I occasionally employ them at jobs, and always with great success. When I give out a job, it is accomplished in half the time it would have taken, if paid by the day. On such occasions, I have known them turn out before three o'clock in the morning, and work by moonlight : and when the moon was not shining, they sometimes kindled fires among the dry cane leaves to'work by. They would continue THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. 21 working all day, till four o'clock : stopping only i)r break- fast, and dispensing Avitli the nenal intermission from twelve to two. During slavery, the weekly expenses on the estate averaged £45 ($218.02). After em.ancipation, they aver- aged £20 ($1)G.90). The negroes are a remarkably tem- perate people. I have rarely seen^one intoxicated. We have no cause to fear insurrections now. Emancipation has freed us from all danger on that score. Among the advan- tages of the present system is the greater facility of managing estates. It saves us from a world of trouble and perplexity. I have found that the negroes are easily controlled by law ; more so, perhaps, than the laboring classes in other countries. I do not know of a single planter, who would be willing to have slavery restored. We feel that it was a great curse ; a curse to the planter, as well as the vslave.' " We breakl'asted at the Villa estate, within half a mile of St. John's. We found the manager less sanguine in his views of emancipation, than the planters generally were. This is easily accounted for. Tlie estate is situated. so near the seaport town, that his people have many temptations to leave their work, from which those on more distant estates are exempt. He admitted, however, that the danger of in- surrection M'as removed, that crime was .lessened, and the moral condition of society rapidly improving. " Mr. Bourne, manager of Millar's estate, said : ' Fearing the consequences of emancipation, I reduced my cultivation in 1834;, but soon finding that my people \vould work as well as ever, I brought it up to the customary extent, the next year ; and this year, I have added fifteen acres of new land. I have no hesitation in saying that, if I have a sup- ply of cash, I can take off any crop it may please God to send. Nothing but bad treatment ever makes the negroes leave estates on which tliey have been accustomed to live ; and in such cases, a change of management has almost uni- formly proved sullicient to induce them to return. Tlicy are decidedly less prone to be insolent now, than during slavery. The expense of managing estates has diminished one-third. Before emancipation, very little was thought about expedients for saving manual labor ; but many im- provements have already been introduced, and more are Buggestecf. Emancipation has proved an incalculable bless- 22 TDE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. ing to the planters, by releasing them from an endless com- plication of responsibilities, perplexities, temptations, and anxieties ; especially, because it lias relieved them from the bondage of the whip. It was hard work to be a Christian in the days of slavery. Yes, I assure you, sir, it was very hard to be a Christian in th«se days.' " Ralph Higinbotham, Esq., U. S. Consul at Antigua, in 1837, bore the following testimony: 'The general conduct of the negroes has been woi'thy of much praise; especially considering the sudden transition from slavery to unrestricted freedom. Their demeanor is peaceable and orderly. What- ever may have been the dissatisfaction of the planters at the commencement of the present system, they are now well sat- isfied that their properties are better worked, and their la- borers more contented and cheerful, than in the time of slavery.' " Some difficulties always attend every change in the struc- ture of society ; but if the change is based on true princi- ples, the difficulties are always temporary. They are like a stony pathway from a cavern into sunlight. So it proved in Antigua. Mr. James Scotland, the venerable merchant already alluded to, said to Mr. Thome: "The troubles at- tending emancipation resulted almost entirely from the per- severance of the planters in their old habits of dominion. Their pride was wounded by seeing their slaves elevated to equal rights, and they were jealous lest they should aspire to be on the same footing in all respects. In the early stage of freedom, they frequently used their power as employers to the annoyance and injury of their laborers. For the slightest misconduct, and sometimes without any reason wiiatever, the poor negroes were dragged before magistrates (who were planters, or the friends of planters), mulcted in their wages, fined otherwise, and committed to jail, or the house of correction. Yet those harrassed people remained patient, orderly, and submissive. Their treatment has now much improved ; for the planters have happily discovered that they sacrificed their own interests by keeping the culti- vators of their lands in agitation and suffering." THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. 23 TESTIMONY OP MAGISTRATES AND TEACHERS, IN ANTIGUA, IN 1837. Mr. Thome says : " The governor spoke to us unreserv- edly of the past and present condition of Antigua, and stated various particulars in which the Colony had been greatly improved by emancipation. He said planters from every part of the island assured him that the negroes were industriously disposed. They all conceded that emancipa- tion had proved a blessing to the island, and-he did not know a single individual who wished to return to the old system. He said that, during the recent Christmas holidays, the Po- lice Reports did not return a single case of arrest. He had been acquainted with the country districts in England, and travelled extensively in Europe ; and he had never yet found such a peaceable, orderly, law-abiding peasantry, as those of Antigua. The great crime of the island, ancVindeed, of all the West India Colonies, had been licentiousness; but they were certainly fast improving in that particular. " By invitation of tlae Governor, Ave attended him to the annual examination of the parochial school in St. John's. He requested that all the children emancipated on the first of Au- gust, 1834, might be called up. It was a most interesting and beautiful sight. Nearly one hundred children, from black to the clearest white, who two years ago were slaves, stood there before us free. When we spoke to them of emancipa- tion, their animated looks and gestures, and their lively tones in answering our questions, showed that they felt it was a blessing to be free. There was as much respectfulness, at- tention, and general intelligence, as we ever saw in scholars of the same age. His Excellency expressed himself highly pleased with, the appearance and proficiency of the school. Turning to us, he said, in a tone of pleasantry, ' You see, gentlemen, these children have souls/ "Teachers, missionaries, clergymen, and planters, uni- formly testified that the negroes were as capable of receiv- ing instruction as any people in the world ; and it was con- firmed beyond all doubt by facts we ourselves witnessed. We were happy to learn that the emancipated negroes mani- fested great anxiety for the education of their children. They encouraged them to go to school, and labored to sup- 24 THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. port them, though they hhd strong temptation to detain tliom at home to work. They also contributed a small weekly sum for the maintenance of schools." Concerning the moral condition of Antigua, IMr. Thome furnishes a quantity of Police. Reports, from" which I quote the following, as fair samples of the whole : " St. John's, Sept. 1835. Capital offences have much decreased in number, as well as all minor ones. The principal crimes lately sub- mitted for the investigation of the magistrates seem to con- sist chiefly in trifling offences, and breaches of contract. " Oct. 1835. Although instances do occur of breaches of contract, they are not very frequent ; and, in many cases, I have been induced to believe that the offence has originated more in want of a proper understanding of the time, intent, and meaning of the contract into which the laborers have entered, than from the actual existence of any dissatisfaction on their part. "Jan. 1836. (Immediately after the Christmas holidays.) At this period, when several successive days of idleness oc- cur among the laboring classes, I cannot but congratulate your Honor on the quiet demeanor and general good order, which has happily been maintained throughout the island. During the holidays I had only one prisoner committed to my charge, and his offence was of a minor nature. " Feb. 183G. I beg leave to congratulate 3^our Honor on the vast diminution of all minor misdemeanors, and the total absence of capital offences. " Sept. 183 G. The agricultural laborers continue a steady and uniform line of conduct, and, with some {"ew exceptions, afford general satisfaction to their employers. Eveiy friend to this country, and to the liberties of the world, must view with satisfaction the gradual improvement in the character and behavior of this class of the community, under the con- stant operation of the local enactments. " Jan. 1837. (After the Christmas holidays.) I cord- ially congratulate your Excellency^ on the regular and steady behavior maintained by all ranks of society, at this particu- lar season of the year. Not one crime of a heinous nature has been discovered. I proudly venture to declare my opinion that in no part of his Majesty's dominions has a pupulation of 30,000 conducted themselves with more strict THE KIGIIT WAY THE SAFE WAY. 25 propriety, at this annual festival, -or been more peaceably obedient to the laws. " Feb.^837. Crimes of any heinous nature are very rare araonj:^ the laborers. I may venture to say that petty thefts, breaking Fugar canes to eat, and offences of the like descrip- tion, principally swell the calendars of our Quarterly Courts of Sessions. In general, the laborers are peaceable, orderly, and civil ; not only to those who move in higher spheres of life, but also to each other." The foregoing Reports are all signed by " Kichard S. Wickham, Superintendent of Police." TESTIMONY OF CLERGY AND MISSIONARIES IN ANTIGUA, IN 1837. Rev. Mr. Jones, Rector of St. !MiilIips, said to Mr. Thome : — " The planters have always been opposed to im- provements, until they were etfected, and the good results became manifest, 'i'hey first said that the abolition of the shwe-trade would ruin the Colonies; next they said the* aboli- tion of slavery would be the certain destruction of the islands ; and now they deprecate the education of the emancipated children, as a measure fraught with disastrous consequences. But emancipation has proved a great blessing to the people, and the planters in this i)art of the island are gratified with the working of the system. The benefits of education are extending, and religious privileges greatly increasing. There has been manifest improvement in the morals and manners of the children, since education has become general. With regard to mari'iage, there has been a complete revolution in the habits ol the people. " The Superintendent of the Wesleyan Mission informed us tliat the collection in the several Vfesleyan Chapels, in 1836, independent of occasional contributions to Sunday Schools, missionary objects, etc., amounted to more than $6,000. Besides giving liberally, according to their small means, to the Bible Societjfl, the emancipated slaves formed several Branch Associations among themselves, for the cir- clilation of the Scriptures. The contributions from Antigua and Bermuda, the only two islands which had then adopted entire freedom, were double those from any other two islands. 3 . 26 THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAY. Among the Wesleyans, the freed negroes had formed four Friendly Societies, to help the aged and infirm, nurse the sick, and encourage sobriety and industry. In lf536, they raised money themselves and expended for those objects £700 currency ($2,100). In 1837, they had £600 ($1,800) m their treasury." To estimate this liberality properly, it must be remembered that the wages of these poor people was only a shilling a day, about twenty-four cents : and that they boarded themselves ; also, that, until the last three years, they had received no wages at all for their labor. There was no public poorhouse in Antigua ; a fact highly creditable to the emancipated people. A Report published by the Wesleyan Brethren, alluding to the emancipated slaves, says : " They always show a readiness to contribu%i to the support of the Gospel. With the present low wages, and the entire charge of self-main- tenance, they have but little to spare. Parham and Sion Hill (taken as specimens) have societies composed almost entirely of rural blacks; about 1,350 in number. In 1830, these contributed above $1,050, in little weekly subscrip- tions ; besides giving to special objects occasionally, and con- tributing for the support of schools." The West India Association for Advancement of Chris- tian Faith, in its Report for 1836, makes a statement which shows that marriages in one year, at that time, were twice as numerous as in ten years, during slavery. TESTIMONY OF THE ExMANCIPATED SLAVES IN ANTIGUA, IN 1837. Mr. Thome says : " A young negro, who had been a slave, rowed us across the harbor of St. John's. We asked him about the first of August, 1834. He said : ' Dar was more religious on dat day, dan you can tink of.' When we questioned him about the laws, he said the law was his friend. If there was no taw to take his part, a strong man might knock him down ; but now everybody feared the law. The masters would sometimes slash a fellow, let him dp his best; but the law never hurt anybody that behjived well. " We asked an old negro what he did on the first of Au- THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. 27 gust. He replied : ' Massa, we went to church, and tank de Lord for make a we all free.' " We' asked two men, who were masons on an estate, how they liked liberty. They replied : ' O sir, it is very comfortable ; very comfortable indeed. The day when free- dom come, we was as happy as though we was just going to Heaven. We used to think very much about being free ; but we did not hope it would ever be, till death delivered us fi'om bondage. Now we've got free, we wouldn't sell our- selves for any money. The money would soon be gone ; but freedom will last as long as we live.' We asked if they wouldn't be willing to sell themselves to a man they were sure would treat them well. They immediately replied : * We should be willing to serve such a man ; but we wouldn't sell ourselves to the best man in the world.' They said they were very desirous to have their children learn all they could, while they were young; for education was a great thing. " On our way to Grace Bay, we met some negro men at work on the road, and stopped to chat with them. We asked them if they danced on the first of August. They quickly replied, ' Oh ! oh ! no fiddling den I No, me massa. All go to church dat day.' One of them said, ' I always thought much about freedom, but I no hope eber to be free. One morning, jjout four o'clock, I was walking along de road, all lone, and I prayed dat de Saviour would make me free ; for den I could be so happy ! I don't know what made me pray so ; for I wasn't looking for de free ; but in one month de free come.' They told us they worked a great deal better, since they were paid for it. I asked one of them whether he wouldn't be willing to be a slave again, if he could always be sure of a good master. He exclaimed : * Heigh ! me massa ! Me nebber be slave, no more ! A good massa a bery good ting; but freedom till better.' They told us it was a great blessing to have their children go to school. • " An intelligent colored gentleman informed us that while the negroes were slaves, they used to spend, during the Christmas holidays, all the money they got during the year ; but now they saved it carefully, to buy small tracts of lan(5 for their own cultivation." 28 THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. At the examination of one of the schools, several Tvomen who worked on the estates, who had children in the school, put on their Sunday's best, and went to hear the classes re- cite. When Mr. Thome spoke to one of them about the privileges her children enjoyed, her eyes filled with tears, and she replied, '' Yes, massa, we do tank de good Lord for bring de free. Never can be too tankful." She said she had seven children present, and it made her feel happy to have them learn to read. Another said, wdien she heard the children reading so well, she wanted " to take de words out of da mouts, and put 'em in her own." She added, " I tell you, massa, it do my old heart good to come here." " Old Grandfather Jacob, wdio had been a deacon in one of the Moravian churches, told us of the dungeons in which the slaves used to be confined ; and with much feeling, said his wife had once been put into a damp dungeon. Some got sick there, and were never well afterward. He knew one that died there. He had been flogged twice for leaving his work to bury the dead. ' Can't put we in dungeon noiv!* exclaimed Grandfather Jacob, with a triumphant look. 'No lick we ! If dey no like we, tell we to go away; dat's all.' We asked if he was provided for by tlie manager. He said no, his children supported him. ' Now, when ole man die, him children make cotfin, and put him in de ground ! ' We asked whether it was not better for an old man to be a slave, so as to get food and clothing from the manager. He darted a quick look at us, and said, ' Rad- der be free.' " Mr. and Mrs. Mohne, Moravian missionaries, told ug that, though the low rate of wages was scarcely sufficient to support life, they had never seen a single individual, who desired to be a slave again. Even the aged and infirm, who sometimes suffered, from neglect of the planters, and the inability of their relatives to provide adequately for them, expressed the liveliest gratitude for the great Ijless- mg the Lord had given them.^ They would often say, ' Missus, ole sinner just sinkin in de grave; but de good Lord let me ole eyes see dis blessed sun." ' CHAPTER III. IHE WINDWARD ISLANDS, DURING THE APPRENTICE- SHIP TESTIMOMT OF PLANTERS IN BARBADOES, IN 1837.* Mr. Thome says: "Soon after we arrived in Barbadoes we visited Mr. C., manager of Lear's estate, about four miles from Bridgetown. He bad been a planter for thirty- six years. He was attorney for two other large estates, and had under his superintendence more than a thousand apprenticed laborers. He said, ' I often wished that slavery might be abolished, and other planters of my acquaintance had the same feelings ; but we did not dare to express them. Most of the planters were so violently opposed to emanci- pation, that even up to the 31st of July, they declared it could not and should not take place. Now, these very men see and acknowledge the benefits which are resulting from the new system. Slavery was a reign of terror. I have often started up from a dream in which I thought my room was filled with armed slaves. But all such fears have passed away. There is no motive for insurrection now. On the first of August, 1834, the people labored on the estates the same as usual. If a stranger had gone over the island, he would not have suspected that any change had taken place. I told my people, the day before, that under the new laws they were to turn out at six o'clock in the morning, instead of at five, as formerly. I did not expect they would go to work that day ; but, at the appointed hour, they were all in the field ; not one was missing. They do more work in the nine hours required by present laws, than they did in the twelve hours, exacted under slavery. They are more faith- ful, than when they were slaves. .They take more interest * The population of Barbad )es was 14,959 whites ; 82,807 slaves ; 5,146 free colored people. 3* 30 THE RIGHT TVAY THE SAFE WAT. ill the prosperity of the estate, and in seeing that things are not destroyed. There is less theft, because they begin to liave some respect for character. They can now appeal to the law for protection ; and their respect for law is very- great. They are always willing to work for me during their own time, for which I pay them twenty-five cents a day. I have planted thirty additional acres this year, and have taken a larger crop tlian I have ever taken. The island has never been under such good cultivation, and it is becoming better every year. Real estate has increased in value more than thirty per cent. Emancipation was a great blessing, to the master, as well as the slave. It was emancipation to me. You cannot imagine the responsibili- ties and anxieties that were swept away with the extinction of .slavery. There are many annoying circumstances con- nected with slavery, which have a pernicious effect on the master. There is continual jealousy and suspicion betwe(m him and his slaves. They look upon each other as natural enemies. A perpetual system of plotting and counter- plotting is kept up. Flogging was a matter of course throughout the island, while slavery existed. It was as common to strike a slave, as to strike a horse. Very often, it was merely because the master happened to be in an irri- table mood, and the slave had no idea what he was punished for. I have myself, more than once, ordered slaves to be Hogged, when I was in a passion, and after I was cool I would have given guineas not to have done it. I believe emancipation will save the souls of many planters. If it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven, it is much harder for a planter. I sometimes wonder at myself, when I think how long I was connected with slavery ; but self-interest and custom blinded me to its enormities. I lately met with a planter, who^up to the last of July, had maintained that the mother country could not be so mad as to take a step that would inevitably ruin her Colonies. Now, he would be the last man to vote for the restoration of slavery. He even wants to get rid of the apprenticeship, and adopt immediate, unconditional emancipation, as they did in Antigua. Such changes of opinion are very common among the planters. I think the expenses under appren- ticeship are about the same as during slavery ; but calci^a- THE RIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAT. 81 tions I Lave made convince me that under an entirely free system, I conld cultivate this estate for $3,000 a year less than it formerly cost. I have no doubt the negroes will work, when their freedom comes in 1840. There may be a little excited, experimenting feeling, for a short time, but I am confident that things generally will move on peaceably and prosperously. The slaves were well acquainted with the efforts made in England for their emancipation. They used to watch the arrivjd of every packet with extreme anxiety. If Parliament had refused to abolish slavery, there would have been a general insurrection. While there was hope, they waited peaceably for release ; but if hope had been destroyed, slavery would have been buried in blood. The apprenticeship caused some dissatisfaction among them. They thought they ought to be entirely free, and they sus- pected that their masters were deceiving them. At first, tliey could not understand the conditions of the new sys- tem ; and there was some murmuring among them ; but they concluded it was better to wait six years more for the desired boon, than to lose it by revolt.' " Samuel Hinkston, Esq., manager of Colliton estate, and one of the local magistrates, gave an account similar in all respects, to that given by the manager of Lear's. He had been a planter for thirty-six years, and was universally es- teemed for his humane character, and close attention to busi- ness. He said his apprentices never refused to work in the hours required by law, and during their own time, they were always ready to work for him, for wages, whenever he needed them. When he had no occasion for them, they often let themselves out to work on other people's grounds. Real estate had risen very much, and it was universally conceded that the island had never been under better culti- vation. In every respect, the new system worked better than the old; but he looked' forward with pleasure to the still better change that would come in 1840. He believed unconditional freedom would remove all annoyances. His only regret was that it could not come sooner. " We were invited to visit Col. Ashby, an aged and ex- perienced planter, who resides in the southernmost part of the island. He told us he had been a practical planter ever since 1705. He had violently opposed abolition, and re- 32 THE KIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT, garded the anti-slavery members of Parliament with nn- mingled hatred. He thought no punishment, either in this life, or the life to come, was too bad for Wilbei-force. When he told us this, he exclaimed, ' But, oh, liow mistaken I was about that man ! I am convinced of it now. The abolition of slavery has proved an incalculable blessing.' He dwelt much on the trustiness and strong attachment of the negroes, when they were well treated. They were never disposed to leave their employer, unless he was intolerably passionate and hard with them. He said he avoided, as much as pos- sible, carrying his apprentices before a special magistrate ; and he always found it easy to settle difficulties himself by a conciliatory course." Mr. Thome was introduced to one planter, whose name he does not mention, probably because his neighbors gave him the character of having been a cruel master, during slavery. He retained the prejudices natural to that class of men. " He complained that the negroes were an un- grateful, perverse set; the more they were indulged, the more lazy and insolent they became. He said he knew that by his own experience. One fault he had to find witli all his apprentices, both in the house and in the field ; they all held him to the letter of the law, and were always ready to arraign him before a special magistrate for any infraction of it. He also considered it a great grievance that wom'en with young babies were unwilling to work in the field, as they did formerly ; now 'they spent half their time taking care of their brats.' He however acknowledged that his apprentices were willing to work, that his estates were never under better cultivation, and that he could say the same for estates all over the island." Dr. Bell, a planter from Demerara, was on a visit to Barbadoes, and Mr. Thome made some inquiries concern- ing the results of abolition there. " He said the Colony was now suffering for want of laborers ; but after the appren- tices were free, in 1840, there would doubtless be increased emigration thitlier, from older and less productive Colonies. The planters were making arrangements for cultivating sugar on a larger scale than ever before, and estates were selling at very high prices. Every thing indicated the THE RIGHT WAX. THE SAFE WAT. 33 fullest cor.fidence that the prosperity of the country would be permanent and progressive." Mr. Thome says : " We had repeated interviews with gentlemen, who were well acquainted with the adjacent islands ; one of them was proprietor of a sugar estate in St. Vincent's. They all assured ns that in those islands there reigned the same tranquillity that we saw in Barbadoes. Sir Evan McGregor, Governor-General of all the Wind- ward Colonies, and of course thoroughly informed respect- ing their internal condition, gave us the same assurances. From these authentic sources, we learned enough to satisfy ourselves, that in all the Colonies, conciliatory and equita- ble management has never failed to secure peace and in- dustry." Mr. Thome says : " The Governor, Sir Evan McGregor, told us lie had been five years in the West Indies, and had resided at Antigua and Dominica before he received his present a{)pointment ; he had also visited several other islands. He said that in no place he, had visited had things gone on so quietly and satisfactorily, to all classes, as in An- tigua. The apprenticeship system Avas vexatious to both parties. It kept up a constant state of warfare between master and apprentice, and engendered bitter feeling on both sides. To some extent, that was the case in Barba- does ; but it would doubtless pass away with the present im- politic system. He was so well satisfied that unconditional freedom was better, both for the masters and the laborers, that, if he had the powei-, he would emancipate every ap- prentice to-morrow. " Hon. R. B. Clarke, Solicitor General, candidly owned that while abolition was pending in Parliament, he had de- clared, publicly and repeatedly that it would ruin the Colo- nies; but the results had proved so different, that he was ashamed of his forebodings. He said there were many fears about the first of August. He rose early that morn- ing, and rode (twelve miles over the most populous part of the island ; and when he saw all the negroes peaceably at their work, he felt satisfied that all would go well." 34 THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. Major Coltliurst, Special Magistrate, gave a written tea timony to Mr. Tiiome, from which I extract the following : " The number of apprenticed laborers in my district, is 9,480. In consequence of its vicinity to the large seaport of Bridgetown, it is perhaps the most troublesome district in the island. In the more rural districts, not above half as many complaints are made to the magistrates. There has been no trouble in my district, occasioned by the appren- tices refusing to work. They work manfully and cheerfully, wherever they are treated with humanity and consideration. I have never known an instance to the contrary. When the conductor of the estate is wanting in this respect, disin- clination to perform their duties is the natural consequence ; but the interference of the magistrate soon sets matters right. The number of complaints brought before me are much fewer than last year, and their character is also greatly improved. Nine complaints out of ten are for small impertinences and saucy answers ; which, consider- ing the former and present condition of the parties, is nat- urally to be expected; but the number even of such com- plaints is much diminished. It is amazing how few material breaches of the law occur in so extraordinary a community. Occasionally, there are a few cases of crime ; but when it is considered that the population of this island is nearly as dense as that of any part of China, and wholly uneducated, either by precept or example, this absence of frequent crime excites our wonder, and is highly creditable to the negroes. I do not hesitate to say that perfect tranquillity exists in this Colony, though passing through one of the most momentous changes, that ever took place in any age, or country ; the passage of nearly 80,000 slaves from bond- age to freedom. The apprentices are inclined to purchase their discharge ; especially when misunderstandings occur with their masters. When they obtain it, they generally labor in the trades and occupations, to which they were pre- viously accustomed, and conduct themselves well. They seldom take to drinking. Indeed, the black and colored population are the most temperate people I ever knew. The experience of nearly forty years, in various public sit- uations, confirms me in this very important fact." Testimony similar to the above is adduced from a number THE KIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAT. 85 of magistrates and police officers. They all agreed that vice and crime had diminished, and were disrainishing ; that^ the feeling of security was universal ; that land was rising ; and that even the most prejudiced planters would not re- turn to the old system, if they could. TESTIMONT OF CLERGT AND MISSIONARIES IN BARBA- DOES, IN 1837. Mr. Thome says : " Rev. Edward Elliott, the Archdea- con at Barbadoes, informed us that the number of clergy- men and churches had increased since emancipation ; relig- ious meetings were more fully attended, and the instructions given manifestly had greater influence. Increased attention was paid to education also. The clergy, and the Moravian and Wesleyan Missionaries had put forth new efforts, and were opening schools in various parts of the island. Before emancipation, the planters opposed education, and, as far as possible, prevented teachers from coming on their estates. Now, they encouraged it in many instances, and where they did not directly encourage it, they made no opposition. He said the number of marriages had very much increased. He was convinced that no bad results would have followed, if entire freedom had been granted in 1834, as in Antigua. While slavery continued, people did fear insurrrections ; but he' did not think five planters on the island had any fear now. " Rev. Mr. Fidler, Superintendent of the Wesleyan Mis- sions, told us the Methodists had been violently persecuted in Barbadoes, during the reign of slavery. Their chapel in Bridgetown . had been utterly demolished by a mob, and some of the missionaries obliged to fly for their lives. But things had very much altered since emancipation. Several estates were now open to the missionaries, and churches were being built in various parts of the country. One man, who helped to pull down the chapel, had now given land to build a new one, and had offered the free use of one of his buildings, for religious meetings and a school, until it could be erected. " Rev. Mr. Cummins, Curate of St. Paul's, in Bridge- 36 THE RIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAT. town, told us his sabbath school had greatly increased since emancipation. The negroes manifested an increasing de- sire for religious instruction, and he was convinced thej had as much capacity for learning, as the whites. All the churches were now croAvded, and there was an increasing demand for more. Their morals had greatly improved ; es- pecially with respect to marriage. " We visited an infant school, connected with the Episco- pal church, established two weeks previous, for the chil- dren of the apprenticed laborers. The teacher, who has been for many yc^ars an instructor, told us he found them as quick to learn, as any children he ever taught. He had been surprised to see how soon the instructions of the school- room were carried home to the parents. The very first night, after the school closed, he heard the children repeat- ing what they had been taught, and the parents learning the songs from their lips. " Rev. Mr. Walton, from Mgntserrat, told us the planters on that island w^ere getting tired of the apprenticeship, and, from mere considerations of interest and comfort, were adopting free labor. There had been repeated instances of planters emancipating all their apprentices. He said a new impulse had been given to education. Schools were spring- ing up in all parts of the island. Marriages were occur- ring every week. The planters now encouraged missiona- ries to labor among their people, and were ready to give land for chapels, which were fast multiplying." NEGRO TESTIMONT IN BARBADOES, IN 1837. Mr. Thome says: "The tender of the sugar-mill at Lear's- was an old negro, with furrowed brow and thin gray locks. We asked him how they were getting along under the new system. He replied, ' Bery well, massa, tank God. All peaceable and good.' ' Then you like apprenticeship better than slavery?' 'Great deal better, massa. We'se doing well, now.' ' You like apprenticeship as well as free- dom, don't you ? ' ' Oh, no, me massa. Freedom till better.' * What would you do, if you were entirely free ? ' ' We mus work, massa. All hab to work, when de free come. THE EIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAT. 37 *How are jou treated now?' ' Bery well, tank God/ No flogging, no sliutting np in dungeon, now.' ' But Avhat makes you want freedom? You are so old, you coukln't enjoy it long.' ' Me want to die free, massa. It good ting to die free. And me want to see children free, too. 4 CHAPTER IV. TESTIMONY CONCERNING THE WEST INDIES, FROM 1840 TO 1859. Joseph J. Gurney, of England, visited the British West Indies in 1840. At St. Chri.^topher's, the Solicitor General of the Colony told him that a small estate on the island sold shortly before emancipation, Avith all tlie slaves on it, for £2,000. He said, six years afterward, it would sell, without the slaves for -^6,000. IMi-. Gurney adds : "This remarkable rise in the value of i)roperty is by no means confined tc particular estates." " In this island, the negroes perform a far greater amount of work in a given time, than could be obtained from them under slavery. One of my informants said, 'They will* do an infinity of work for wages. ' " Sir William Colebrook, Governor of Antigua, and Mr. Gilbert, a clergyman, both gave the following testimony to Mr. Gurney : "At the lowest computation, the land, with- out a single slave upon it, is fully as valuable now, as it was, including all the slaves, before emancipation." Mr. Gilbert told Mr. Gurney that the compensation he received for his slaves, from the British government, was " a mere present put into his pocket ; a gratuity, on which he had no reasonable claim. For his land, without the slaves, was at least of the same value that it formerly was with the slaves ; and since emancipation, his profits had increased." At Dominica, Mr. Gurney found the emancipated laborers " working cheerfully, and cheaply to their employers, as compared with slavery." Concerning the islands he visited, Mr. Gurney says : " The change for the better, in the di'ess, demeanor, and welfare of the people, is prodigious. The imports are vastly increased. The duties on imports in St. Christo- THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAY. o'J plifi-'s were £1,000 more in 1838 than they were hi 1837; and in 1839, they were double what they were in 1838, within £150. This surprising increase is owing to the de- mand, on the part of the freed laborers for imported goods ; esf)ecially for articles of dress." In May, 1846, Dr. John Davy, author of a work on the West Indies, and brother of the celebrated Sir Humphrey Davy, wrote from Barbadoes, where he was residing, in official and professional employment, to the well-known Mr. George Combe, of Edinburgh. The letter was published in Tlic Liberty Bell, for 1847, and I make the following exti'acts from it : — " I could wish that those who still approve of slavery, or who may consider it a necessary evil, would pay a visit to the West Indies, especially to this island, and witness the effects of emancipation. I am much mistaken if they would not go back satisfied that the abolition of slavery has here been, in every respect, advantageous ; to the negroes, to the planters, and to the population generally. I have been in Barbadoes very nearly a year, and I have conversed on the subject with proprietors of estates, who formerly owned slaves, with merchants, and with colored people, who had been slaves. Among them all, there seemed to be but one feeling; that emancipation was a blessing, and that were it i)0ssible to bring back slavery, all would be opposed (o it. " When slavery existed, there was always fear of insur- rection, especially in times of danger, whether connected with war, or other calamities, such as fires and hurricanes. Then, it was necessary to have a standing militia, always ready to act. It was necessary to have ))eacons and forts, to give the alarm and afford defence. Now, there is a per- fect feeling of security. The population is considered as one ; bound together by common rights and common inter- ests. The militia has been disbanded, and is not likely to be re-organized, except on a threatening of war. Forts are no longer required. Some of them have been dismantled and are forgotten. Some are converted into stations for the police ; a body chiefly composed of colored men. Prior to abolition, from what I can learn, crime of every kind was more prevalent ; especially robbery. Then, there was al- ways at large a certain number of runaway slaves, who 40 THE RIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAT. supported themselves by nightly depredations, and, occa- sionally collecting into large parties, broke into and plun- dered the houses of the opulent. Since the abolition of slavery, I have not heard of the murder of a white man, nor of any instance of revenge taken by the liberated for cruel treatment inflicted before liberation. I have not heard of any instances of house breaking, or of robbei-y, except of a petty kind, commonly designated as pilfering. The security, as to property, in which the opulent live here is re- markalile. But it is not surprising, v/hen we reflect on the easy condition of the people generally. Want is almost unknown, beggars are almost unknown ; yet there are no poor laws, and no provision made by law for the support of paupers. ' " The freed laborers are contented with a shilling sterl- ing (twenty -four cents) a day for their work, men and women alike. This is sufficient to supply their wants, and to enable them to have some comforts, and even lu-xuries, where the ordinary articles of diet are cheap, and where most laborers have a portion of land, for which they pay rent. Commonly, on every estate requiring over a hundred laborers, there is a village, where those who work on the estate reside. To be near their work is an advantage to both laborers and proprietors ; and it being for the interest of the latter to attach the former to them, they are dealt with kindly and liberally. If other treatment is experi- enced, the laborers seek employment elsewhere, and have no difficulty in finding it. This, it must be admitted, is a happy change, and worth some pecuniary sacrifices ; but it is doubtful whether it entailed any such. I have been as- sured by many managers of estates, well acquainted with the minute details of expenditure under the former and the present systems of slave labor and free labor, that free labor is more economical. I admit that in some of the islands, especially the smaller ones, the landed proprietors have been great sufferers, and their estates have become depreciated in a remarkable manner, owing to a new direction of labor. But I am disposed to think that their misfoi'tunes have, in great part, been brought on themselves, by their injudicious conduct. In the first instance, they paid the freed laborers at a low rate, and thus tempted them to emigrate to the THE RIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAT. 41 larger Colonies, where biirlier reniiineralion was offered for labor ; as in Trinidad and Demerara. Next, they endeav- ored to keep them at home, by allowing them to have as much land as they chose, and to keep as many cattle as they chose, without payment. This did, indeed, keep them at home ; but its tendency was to keep them from laboring on "the estates of the proprietors. Tiiey found it more for their interest to cultivate land on their own account. " Sometimes, a single fact will prove more convincing than a multiplicity of arguments. I will state one fact, of which I am assured on the best authority. The value of land in Barhadoes is so much increased since emancipa- tion^ that an estate will now sell for as much as it did for- merly, when the slaves necessary for its cidtivation ivere in- cluded in the purchase. Who would have believed this to be possible, before slavery was abolished ? "Now let us compare the moral coiidition of the popula- tion with what it was previous to emancipation. It is ad- mitted that, in the time of slavery, planters, attorneys, man- agers, merchants, etc., were licentious. Concubinage w^as common, and not held in discredit. There was a looseness of conduct and conversation, which could not fail to have an injurious effect on the mind. Youth was particularly exposed to this degrading and enervating influence, when there was no check to indulgence, no call to exercise control ; when too often a gentleman's house was a kind of brothel, and when instances occurred of planters keeping in slavery their own offs])ring by slave mothers. From what I have seen and heard, the higher classes of the white population now appear to be exemplary in their conduct. A natural change has also taken place with regard to the emancipated race. Formerly, a colored woman esteemed it an honor to be the kept mistress of a white man. Now, she considers it disreputable ; and ^iiw sucli connections are found. Mar- riage is more common among the black and colored people. The understanding is, that marriage is right, and concubin- age wrong. There is still a good deal of irregtdar connec- tion among them ; the marriage tie is loose, and the senses little under the control of principle. But these remarks apply to. the older portion of the population, whose habits were formed in slavery, when the marriage ceremony was not 4* 42 THE RIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAY. permitted, and Avhen chastity was not known, even by name. I believe they do not apply to the rising generation, a cer- tain proportion of whom have come under the influence of moral and religious training. The children of tlie laborers manifest great focility in learning at school ; and the men have great aptitude in learning whatever they take an in- terest in, belonging to their trades and occupations ; such as the use of implements in husbandry, and improved methods in the useful arts." Dr. Davy states that three-fourths of the laborers in An- tigua had cottages of their own, and small freeholds. Small as that island is, there were, at the time he wrote, about eighty-seven villages, all built by emancipated laborers, near the estates on which they were formerly ciiattels. Pie says : " It is a mistake, often committed, to suppose the African is by nature indolent, less inclined to work than the European. He who has witnessed, as I have, their inde- fatigable and provident industry, will be disposed perhaps to overrate, rather than underrate, the activity of the ne- groes." In 1857, the Governor of Tobago published this state- ment : " I deny that the peasantry are abandoned tc sloth- ful habits. On the contrary, I assert that a more indus- trious class does not exist in the world ; at least, when they are working for themselves." When Louis Philippe sent Commissioners to the British West Indies, to inquire into the state of things, with a view to emancipation in the French Colonies, they published a Report, from which I translate the following extract: "In Guiana, some planters declare the impossibility of getting along with the existing system. Others, on the contrary, assure us that they never want for laborers ; they pi-aise tlie assiduity of the blacks, and say they produce as much as under the former system. So much for the old planters. But when we consult the new planters, men who know co- erced labor only by tradition, we find among them entire unanimity. They all tell us that the labor is satisfactory, and that their agricultural operations succeed welL" Rev. Henry Bleby has been a missionary in the West Indies for thirty years. He resided there before emancipa- tion and since. On the 1st of August, 1858, he delivered THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. 43 an address jh Ablngton, Mass., from which I extract the fol- lowing : " Since I have been here, I have heard that emancipation is understood to have been a failure. I am prepared to give that statement an unqualified contradiction. In no sense whatever has the emancipation of the slaves in the British Colonies proved a faihire. I am at present laboring as a minister among the colored churches in Bar- badoes, and I can tell you that never, even in the most palmy Jays of slavery, was there such prosperity as now. This year, a long drought has lessened the crop of sugar ; yet they have raised more than double the amount of prod- uce they ever raised under slavery ; and with no greater amount of labor, than in the time of slavery. You cannot get an acre of Land, in any part of the island, for less than ibur or five hundred dollars. In my own neighborhood an estate of not more than two or three hundred acres was sold for nearly $90,000 in your money ; paid in cash. The case is the same in Antigua, where I lived three years. A mem- ber of my own church there bought an estate, which was sold under a decree of Chancery for $24,225. He has takm oiF three valuable crops, which have more than re- paiar shipped from this island this year, than in any one year since it has been peopled ; and it is a re- markable fact that there will be more laborers' sugar made this year, than previously. By laborers' sugar is meant that raised by the negroes on their own patches of ground, and sentto the proprietor's mill for manufacture." The Report for 1853 announces "vast increase in trade. So far the success of cultivation by free labor is unquestionable." Report for 1858: " A great increase in the value of the exports." " The large proportion of land acquired by the laboring classes furnishes striking evidence of their in- dustry." Bahamas. In 1851, the Governor reports, " a great and impor- tant change for tlie better," in the condition of the people ; which he mainly attributes to " improved education." The rapidity with which these islands are advancing is indicated by the fact that the exports and imports increased in one year, from 1854 to 1855, £102,924 (S498,6G6.78). Grenada. Returns in 1851 and 1852, show an increase of trade, amounting to £88,414 ($428,355.83). Report of 1858: " Contentment appears to pervade all classes of the community." "A proprietary body, of considerable magnitude and importance, has already risen from the laboring class." " State of the finances most satisfactory." " A greatl}^ extended surface is covered by sugar cultivation." A considerable increase is noted in the exports of sugar, rum, and cocoa. Some remarks on the want of labor. Antigua. — Reports for 1858: " Satisfactory evidence is af- forded, by the Revenue Returns, of increase oi trade and mer- cantile business, consequent upon the revival of agricultural pros- perity." (There had been a depression in consequence of a great fall in the price of sugar in 1847.) Dominica. — Report for 1853: "The steady maintenance of production is full of promise as to the future." Report for 1857 : " The exports show a considerable increase." " Very considera- ble increase in revenue, and an equally marked improvement in the amount of imports." In the Report for 1858, the Governor speaks of the growing independence of the laborers, manifested THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAY. , 51 " ill the small patches of canes, and little wooden mills hero and there dotting the plains around." Guiana. — Iii 1.S52, the Governor reports that the fall in tlie price of sugar, in 184 7 and 1848 (owing to tlie repeal of the tariff), was "so sudden and enormous, as to have almost annihilated the Colony, at that crisis." But he goes on to ^tate that " the revenue is now flourishing, population augmenting, education spreading, crime diminishing, and trade increasing." Montserrat. — In 1853, the Governor reports "increase of con- fidence, enterprise, and industry." " The improved and im})rov- ing state of the community is allowed on all hands." " Ko island in these seas exhibits a more decisive tendency to social and moral regeneration and improvement. The rural population are quiet, contented, and orderly." Nevis. — (This is a very small island ; about the size of a com- mon New Englaftd town.) Report for 1857 : " The roads appear as if the greater part of the population had new clothed them- selves ; and in the harbor, so often deserted, I now count ten ships of considerable burden." " There appears now to be at work an industrious spirit of improvement." St. Kitts. — Report for 1856: A larger quantity of sugar is produced now than in the time of slavery " (though on a smaller area). Report for 1858: "The agi-icultural prospects of the island are most encouraging. Its financial condition continues satisfactory ; so do the education returns. Attendance in schools is steadily increasing. Crime is steadilv diminishing. In one year, from 1856 to 1857, trade increased £106,233" (S514,G42.88). St. Lucia. — Report for 1853 : " At no period of her history, has there been a greater breadth of land under cultivation, than at the present moment." Between the four years ending 1842, and the four years ending 1856, the increase of sugar exported was 1,803,618 pounds. St. Vincent. — In 1857, the Governor describes "a really sound and healthy state of the Colony at present, and a cheering and ])romising prospect for the future." He describes the rising villages, the grov/ing number of freeholders and leaseholders, and the steady progi-essive increase in the value of imports. In one year, from 1856 to 1857, imports and exports increased £156,633 (§758,886.88) ; and he expressly attributes it to "increased cul- tivation and prosperity." In 1858, he describes tlie Colony as " in a most satisfactory state." " Agricultural operations largely extended." " Anticipations of continued progress and prosperity fully realized." Tobago. — The accounts had been dismal in 1852 and 1853; but an improved financial system was adopted in 1856, the result of which was a Report in 1858 announcing a " marked improve- 52 ' THE RIGHT WAY THE SAFE WAT. ment in tlie revenue returns." The Governor describes the la- borers as " well-behaved and industrious." Tortola. — This island, under slavery, exported 15,559 cwt. of sugar. Now it exports none at all. But the change is wholly an advantage. It is remarkably well adapted for the raising of stock. " The people, with few exceptions, arc owners of cattle, wjiieh they dispose of to great advantage." " The laborers appear fully sensible of the advantages of education to their children, and the latter manifest a great desire to benefit by the opportunities offered them." Trinidad is highly flourishing. In 1852, the crop was the largest ever shipped from the island ; and it has been extending since. The whole trade greatly increased since slavery. The Ilc' port for 1853 speaks of " marked improvement in the cultivation of the sugar estates." Export of sugar rose from an average of 310,79 7 cwt. under slavery, to 426,042 cwt. in the seven years ending 1854. The writer in the Edinburgh Review says : " These spe- cific accounts of the several islands are borne out by the statistics and Reports that relate to our West Indies en masse. Lest it should be thought that these extracts are carefully culled, to produce a particular impression, and that if the reader had the tvhole Reports before him, he would find complaints and lamentations, we may at once say that they appear to us to be fair samples of the- views en- tertained by the Governors, and also by other gentlemen acquainted with the West Indies. The language of com- plaint is no longer heard. Throughout these Colonies, hope and congratulation seem to have taken the place of ir- ritation and despair. In all cases, the later the Report, the more gratifying it is found to be. " To men of business, one fact will seem almost enough by itself to show the sound commercial state of these Colonies ; viz., that, in the year 1857, the Colonial Bank received bills from the West Indies to the amount of more than £1,300,- 000 ($6,298,500) ; and less than £8,000 ($38,7G0) were returned. Nor was there a single failure in the West India trade, during the severe commercial crisis of that year. Furthermore, coffee, cotton, wool, sugar, rum, and cocoa, are all exported in increasinof quantities. The total exports from Great Britain to the West Indies in 1857 were valued at THE RIGHT WAT THE SAFE WAT. 53 half a milliom more ($2,422,500) than the average of the preceding ten years." Mr. C. Buxton made a speech m the British House of Commons, March, 1859, in which he said : " Because labor is free, and trade is free, the West Indies are now rising to a pitch of wealth and happiness unknown before. It would be impossible for me to lay before the House the immense mass of evidence, which demonstrates that fact. I am as- sured of it by mercantile men, I find it strongly set forth in the Reports from the Governors of the Islands, and in the statistics furnished by the Board of Trade. In the four years between 1853 and 1857, there has been an increase in the exports and imports of the West Indies and Guiana of £4,500,000 ($21,802,500). Considering what mere specks these islands look on the map of America, it is as- tonishing that their trade to and fro, in the year 1857, should actually amount to £10,735,000 ($52,011,075). It is altogether absurd to suppose this prosperity is owing to Ihe immigration of a few thousand laborers ; and in fact the islands which have received no immigrants are quite as flourishing as those that have. Interested parties describe the negroes as barbarous and idle ; but I find ample evi- dence that they are living in a high degree of industry and comfort; though I admit that they someAvhat prefer work- ing on freeholds they have purchased, to laboring for hire." The Edinburgh Bevieiu concludes its array of evidence, by saying : " A long and thorough investigation of the case has borne us irresistibly to the conclusion that, merely as a dry question of ecowow??/, emancipation has paid ; that it was an act of prudence, for which we, as a nation of shopkeepers, need not blush before that golden god, whom we are thought to worship so eagerly. Slavery and monopoly were bear- ing the West Indies to ruin. Under free labor and free trade they are rising to wealth. They are yearly enriching us more and more with the wealth of their fertile soil. In- stead of being the plague of statesmen and the disgrace of England, they are becoming invaluable possessions of the British crown. Never did any deed of any nation show more signally that to do right is the truest prudence, than