OCR Text |
Show 54. ANTIGUA. . . dst the profusion of evidence poured in acknowledgmg that, ami f 1 r rable workin"' of freedom, we . th f I nd o t 1e ,avo " upon u. sh, m a pIoS sam "' ' testi.m ony. It was that of a wealthy old met Wit one op " d in the streets and of whom, every I whom 1 met one ay • gent e1m an · ·t s Ant1.g ua I.S pret ty sure to hear. No sooner w.e re one w 10 VISid h' th,an he be"'an to pour forth his comp\amts mtroduce to lm, ' " · · & & It owfe the mt.s con d uct of the laborers, impendmg nun,· c., c. fli d £ 1 ppens however, tha t not an acre of "O Tound lS o. ere or sol e1 aw 1.t hm. ' h1. s 1.e acI 1 , w Iu .c h he does not purchase with t.h e ut-sa 't 'dity. so that his landed property, already large, IS con-mstaous tlayv l on th' e m. crease. His words were sad e.n ough, but every one acknow Ie d ge d ' that ample was the refutatwn of ltdh emI , furm.s hed by hI'S d ee d s. Confident we are, that our e er y fn.e n d 1. s ,ra r to o much alive to his own interest, to form anyd eNx- . t the followitw declaration of the Governor an . cGeiplbtwernt. oO n our ask 'm g "them' whether t.h ere was any. person on the 1. slan d w h o W.l sh ed for the . rest. oratiaO n~ of slavery,, they an-swered, without a moment's hesitatiOn, l'io- not one. I l'lm, &c. &c. LETTER VL DOMINICA. Flushing, L. 1. Sixtlt41Wntlt (June) 5tlt, 184.0. Mr DB.\R FRutND, Our voyage from Antigua to Dominica, was one of thirty-six hours. W c passed under the lee of Guadaloupe just before night closed upon us. The appearance of that island on the west side, of which alone we had a view, is mountainous and barren-not without much of picturesque beauty. We were informed however that on the other side, it is highly cultivated, which is also the case with that still more beautiful island, Martinique. It is an evidence that slavery in these French colonies, is not without its hardships, that several hundreds of the slaves, since the British net of emancipation, have made their escape to Dominica--chietly I believe from Guudaloupe. The poor creatures run prodigious risks in their attempts to cross the watcf, in small open boats ; and we were informed that at least one thit·d of them perish before they can reach the land. One hardy fellow arrived on the shore of Dominica, after extreme peril, on the remains of a small raft which he had constructed of the pithy sterns of the great aloe, or century plant. When at Dominica, we heard excellent accounts of the behavior and industry of these' runaway slaves. About two hundred of them remain on the island-the rest have migrated, in pursuit of higher wages, to Trinidad. Devoutly is it to be desired that the steps already taken by the French Government towards the emancipation of the slaves, in these colonies, may be carried forwmu to their completion without delay. It is. a circumstance worthy of observation, that the coiiUnission appointed to enquire into the subject, after the most |