Page:Emancipation in the West Indies.djvu/4

 poleon. Yioldiiig io the Mvgcnut his vast ariuies were desli'oved l)v war aui disease, aiul in 18')-t ihe i''reneh wore finally driven front the Island Siiii;e then, the fortunes of Uayti have oeeu varittus, bat, osi the whole, erediiahle to her poojile ; es[)ccial!y when we I'eniemhei- th;it when s:he gained her iiidejiendcmee, near- ly half her people were slaves, who hail been inip.oi'led from A.friea, and that uine-tenths of them had only the vieious trainiuLr of .-^laverv to fit them to lie eiti/.ciis. Tiiey have iii- I'veasGtl in itopidation and in wea!;li, in sj)ite of the exactions <sf I'rance and Spain, and miY own most illilieral treatment of them. Their (ii)vernment has l)een more staide tliaii tl'.at. of Mexieo, -ar the South American lie-, prJdies ; their inslit-utiuns sliow an honest -^^ffiirt for liberty. uud(.'r the restraints of law ; j tiieir literature, thouLrli seantv. will endure a •eomparison with that of Cuba or of Canada. iiut whatever have been the u'.islurtuiies of ilayti, lOmaucipation w^as not their ean.-.'d the old curse ut' slavery. "77<.(isril OuU niemio lires iij'f,-/r fhi>)/i.'' It was Slavery, uot I'l-eodom. thai ruiued the fair hojxjs of St. Domingo ; it will be .Freedftm. not Slavery, that will resfoi'e her to her ancieiU ajul over-estiinated splendor, j She may yet be our most faitlifnl ally. our i I'cst friend, aiid. to the doliglit of Milk street and Wall street, our unlimited custofner.* j l^oth jn.-^tice and policy reipiire us to recog- j !ii;;e her iudependmice. and to ofier her our j ulliauci.' and pi-oteclion. I t is uow a iiijies- i tion whether she shall belong to us or t."'Ji;if<' J(?m<') c'' our i=Dul.-'," — i come ti oonuiiercial piower of the first rank ; shall we allow it Si:ch was the first grojit experinuMit of uc- •jro l"'manei • :!iou ; nnw for the second. In the .ery midst of the "I lori'ors of vSr. .Donungo" the Fnglish Abolitionists were waging theii' war agrdnst the slave trade. 0)1 tht! oth of y:y, ITTS, Mi'. J'itt brough: forward in I'arliamcnt his motion against it.; a year later. A'ilbevforee made his first speech against it. suppi'rted by Pitt. Fox, and l>urk(.'. (^larkson and the t^biakei's had. moved still ea.vlier ; aud /ia<.diary .Macaulay, father of the brilliant historian, joined with them. In 1 St)7 their i-libi'ts ab(dished the infamous ti'afVie. a year befoi-e it was eudeil here by act of Congress, (.'hi'istian of niMiniark had still earlier, in 17'.'-, fbrb'idden his subjects to lake rAii in it. In 18'2o Mr. Cainnng's re.M)lutions, looking to the final abolition oi' slaviuy itsedf, p.as-ed the [louse oi' C'onnnons, sujiported there, and in the im- tion at lai'ge. by W'iibevfoi'cc, Buxten, the two Maeaulays. Lord liroughan, and uiany other illustrious men. In is:!:!, by act of Fariiameiit, after long discussion, slaveiy was deidared forever aboli.*^|ied in all the l>ritish colotnes. This law went into effi.'ct, on the 1st of Augist 1^:)4, in all th<.' colonies save Mauritius, where it took' eileet b'ebi'uary 1st., 1 8:>5. It provided, for an intermediate state between slavery and eiifiiv. fr<.'e(lom, a .tl, in Maurifin.s. The small i.--]aiid of .Viifigna. liowever, haii ;it iii'.-t cho:-en immediate frc(.'dom, rejecting: the supp-',i.-('d adv.ainaiies of apprenticeship, "whicti sy.'': ; they were .•"C-iltered through nine- teen colonic,-;, conti^illed. by a strong centia.l giivenimeut : the nieasnre.- I'-ir their liberation h:id been pie])ari)!g f<'r t(.'n years, and were carried out by humane and resoliite govei'u- ors. iu a time of unival jieace. 'J'hcse cU'cn instance-- .>-how the stiouwesL ceiiij-a.-t in almo.st eV'.'i-y p;!i'lic'iia!', tcs the events oi
 * ind the Shive Trade in all the Froncli ccdo-