網頁圖片
PDF
ePub 版
[blocks in formation]

acts which our pages will allow. The abotion of slavery throughout his Majesty's dominions was the great object to be attained; ut whether the petitions recommended

be presented to parliament, should olicit immediate or gradual emancipation, as a point on which several were divided opinion. It appeared to be the general Fish, that all negro children born after a ven day, should be free; and the first of anuary, 1831, was proposed as the ausicious moment. To this Mr. Brougham, nd some others, objected; as the time was carcely sufficient, should it pass the Houses f Parliament, and receive the royal sancon, to conduct it through the various Cages, and give it circulation in the Coloies. On these accounts, the day was mitted, and the early and universal abotion of slavery substituted in its stead.

During the meeting, Mr. Henry Hunt nade several attempts to speak, but the auitory, finding that his aim was to institute a comparison between the negroes in a state of slavery, and our own population in their present degraded and suffering condition, e was not permitted to proceed; and after everal ineffectual efforts, he sat down under much evident disappointment. But the

nature and design of this meeting will be best gathered from the resolutions that were passed; a copy of which is here subjoined. A faithful outline of all the speeches may be Found in the "World" newspaper for MonHay, May 24th, and in the "Anti-slavery Reporter," No. 61, for June.

Resolutions passed at the Annual Meeting of the Anti-Slavery Society, on the 15th May, 1830.

1. That on the 15th of May, 1823, Parliament, by ts unanimous Resolutions, recognized the evils of slavery, and the duty of providing for its ultimate extinction: and that his Majesty's Ministers then undertook to carry those resolutions into effect.

That although during the seven years which have since elapsed, the Colonial Legislatures have persisted in refusing to comply with the Resolutions of Parliament, and the recommendations of the Government, Supported by the voice of the British nation, yet hitherto the measures proper for giving effect to them have not been adopted.

That even in the Colonies, subject to the legislation of the Crown, the orders in Counsel issue on the subject, including the late revised and consolidated order of the 2d of February last, fall far short of the official and parliamentary pledges of 1823; and though containing several important and salutary provisions, yet afford no adequate means for the final extinction of slavery, or even for its effectual mitigation.

That while these pledges have thus remained unfulfilled, the West India body in this country, setting at Dought the wishes of the British people, have not scrupled to declare, by their standing Committee, that they make common cause with the local legislatures u the course they have pursued, and more particularly in rejecting all idea of compulsory manumission; thus confirming the Colonial Assemblies in their contumacy, and making any effective reform on their part still more hopeless than before; and thus also plainly avowing that it is their purpose and intention that slavery shall be perpetual

That under these circumstances of disappointment and recognizing the incurable injustice, as well as the inhumanity and impolicy of slavery, its direct hos lity to every cherished principle of the British Con

686

stitution, and its utter repugnance to the spirit and to the precepts of the Christian religion, the Meeting take this occasion to declare anew their unalterable determination to leave no proper and practicable means unattempted for effecting, at the earliest period, its entire abolition throughout the British dominions. -Moved by T. F. Buxton, Esq., M. P.; seconded by the Right Hon Lord Milton.

2. That this Meeting cannot forbear to express their deep regret, that a system, productive of so much misery and crime as Slavery is now admitted to be, should not only be tolerated by this christian land, but should, by means of our fiscal regulations, and in des pite of the contumacy of the Colonies, even find favour and encouragement at our hands. Such a policy, it appears to this meeting, not only being most injurious to our national interests, but tending directly to aggravate and prolong the sufferings of the slaves, and to involve this nation in the guilt and shame of maintaining, at a heavy expense, a system which it has recognized as inhuman, immoral, and unjust.Moved by T. B. Macaulay, Esq. M. P.; seconded by the Right Hon. Lord Calthorpe.

3. That in addition to the physical evils of Slavery, the moral and religious condition of the slave popula tion in the British Colonies, has long claimed the commiseration of every benevolent mind, a claim which is greatly strengthened by recent occurrences, and particularly by the intolerant acts of the Legislature of Jamaica, and by the persecution which Christian Missionaries and their negro converts have had to endure, and are still enduring, in that island; and this meeting desire to urge it upon Christians of every denomination, and especially upon all Christian Ministers, to manifest the grateful sense they entertain of their own religious blessings, by uniting their efforts to vindicate to the unhappy negro, his equal right to the unobstructed enjoyment of the light and liberty of the gospel.-Moved by the Rev. Daniel Wilson; seconded by George Bennet, Esq.

4. That deeply deploring the continued prevalence of the unnumbered evils of the colonial system, and among them the affecting circumstance, that under the allegiance of a British Monarch, and within the legislative jurisdiction of a British Parliament, thonsands of children continue yearly to be born to no inheritance, but that of a hopeless and interminable bondage-a bondage now admitted to have been imposed on their parents by the most flagitious meansthis meeting feel it to be their imperative duty again to address their most urgent representations to both Houses of Parliament, imploring them no longer to postpone the consideration of this momentous subject; but to proceed forthwith to devise the best and wisest means of ensuring the early and universal extinction of slavery in all the possessions of the British Crown, and to fix the day upon which all children born in the British dominions shall be free.Moved by C. Brownlow, Esq., M.P.; seconded by H. Brougham, Esq. M.P.

5. That this Meeting most earnestly invite all who are friendly to the Society's objects, to join in perse. vering and concurrent exertions to induce Parliament to take effectual measures for freeing their country from the foul reproach and the deep moral guilt attendant on our continued toleration and encouragement of slavery; and to this end they are entreated to employ such means of public discussion, or such other expedients as they may deem advisable, for diffusing, in their respective vicinages, a more complete knowledge of the nature and baneful effects of that criminal system, and for uniting every heart and hand in petitions to Parliament for its early and universal abolition. Moved by T. Denman, Esq.; seconded by Dr. Lushington, M.P.

6. That the cordial acknowledgments of this Meeting be most respectfully presented to his Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester, for the undeviating support he has uniformly given to the principles on which this Society is founded.-Moved by W. W. Whitmore, Esq. M.P.; seconded by Z. Macauly, Esq. 7. That this Meeting are anxious to express their heartfelt satisfaction in seeing the chair occupied this day by William Wilberforce, Esq., the revered champion of injured and outraged Africa; and they desire to offer to him the tribute of their grateful acknowledgments, for his unceasing efforts in the vindication and relief of suffering humanity; and to testify their strong sense of the many services he has rendered to his country and to the world at large.-Moved by T. S. Rice, Esq. M.P.; seconded by D. Sykes, Esq. M.P.

GLEANINGS.

Increase of Attorneys.-There have been no less than 242 articled clerks admitted as attorneys in the Court of King's Bench at Westminster, during the present Term, and upwards of 120 in the Court of Common Pleas; and for the next Easter Term, 183 notices are given for admission into the Court of King's Bench, and 55 for the Court of Common Pleas.

687

Gleanings-Literary Notices.

Burning of the Protestant Dissenters' Charity Schools Bartholomer Close.-On Monday, 3d May, about halfpast Twelve o'clock at noon, a fire broke out in the premises adjoining the School, which spread so suddenly and rapidly, that the School Room, and the apartments occupied by the master and mistress, were in a few minutes laid in ashes, together with the fittings-up of the School, the books, and a considerable quantity of the children's clothing. The loss, it is feared, from the necessity of obtaining other premises, in which considerable expense must be incurred to fit them for schools, with residences for the master and mistress, can scarcely be less than £850. This School was formed in 1717: among its founders and supporters, are to be found the venerable names of the Rev. Samuel Wilcox, Daniel Neale, Thomas Bradberry, and Dr. Watts; it has continued emphatically a Protestant Dissenters' School from the day of its foundation to the present hour. In consequence of this calamity, a temporary place for the children's instruction has been kindly granted to the managers by the Committee of the Rev. Dr. Bennett's Sunday, School, and they are now taught in the late MeetingHouse in Monkwell Street. The managers are also in treaty for premises in Jewin Crescent, on which to form School Rooms, and residences for the master and mistress, lately occupied by a Society calling themselves "Free thinking Christians." They therefore trust, under Providence, that from the increased energies of the patrons of the School, the support of the Christian public at large, with the sympathies of the dissenting communities of every denomination, this School shall still continue to hold the station it has occupied for 113 years, and to afford to the children of the poor the elements of human learning, and the principles of religious knowledge. With these objects in view, the case is now submitted to the consideration of the Religious Public, soliciting such aid as sympathy in an event so calamitous may excite, and the importance of the objects contemplated may demand. THOMAS LAWRENCE, Ilon. Sec. Recommended by the Rev. R. Winter, D.D.; Rev. J. Bennett, D.D.; Rev. S. Humphries, D.D.; Rev. A. Tidman, Rev. J. Dean; Rev. J. P. Dobson. Rev. J. Clayton, Jun.; Rev. J. Arundel; Rev. W. S. Palmer; Rev. Thos. Wood; Rev. S. Moase; Rev. J. Price: Rev. J. Blackburn; Rev. J. Pyer; Rev. R. H. Shepherd; Rev. G. Pritchard.

Donations and Subscriptions will be very gratefully received by Mr. John Moginie, Treasurer, 16, Smithfield Bars; Mr. S. Bagster, 15, Paternoster Row; Mr. Thomas Lawrence, 64, Goswell Street; also by any Gentleman of the Committee, and the Master of the School. May 25, 1830.

Cattle Imported. The cattle imported into Liverpool from Ireland during the past year :-Cows, 6,735; sheep, 145,221; pigs, 168,788.

Criminals.-No less than 99,000 offenders are said to have been committed, within the year, to different prisons in England and Wales, the expense of which establishments exceeds half a million.

Expediting Devotion.-Among the Kalmuck Tartars small wooden windmill-wings are placed at the entrance of their huts, which are termed praying-machines: the owner of the hut pays the priest for writing upon these machines certain prayers that may be turned round by the wind, and he be freed from the trouble of repeating them himself. The priests of these people have likewise a very commodious method of expediting their prayers. When they have a number of petitions to offer up for their flocks, they make use of a cylindrical wooden box, into which they put the written prayers, and, having placed it perpendicularly on a stick, they sit down beside it and pull it backwards and forwards with a string, gravely smoking their pipes while performing the ceremony. According to their doctrine, to render prayer efficacious, it is only requisite that it should consist of moving petitions; and, whether the motion be operated by the lips, a cylinder, or a windmill, is indifferent.

[blocks in formation]

688

No. XV. of the National Portrait Gallery: Dr. Young; the Bishop of Chichester, and Earl Spencer. Part IV. Devonshire and Cornwall Illustrated. The Remembrance of Christ's Love a Stimulus to Missionary Exertions, a Sermon, by the Rev. James Sherman, 8vo.

Third Edition of "The Traveller's Prayer," by A. Clarke, LL.D.

The Hundred-Weight Fraction-Book, containing 125 Tables, exhibiting the precise Value of each respective Weight, from 11b. to 3q. 271b. By John Gayner, lately a Warehouse Clerk to the CoalbrookDale Company.

Four splendid and accurate Views of the Frigates Shannon and Chesapeake; during the Action, Ist of June, 1813, by Mr, Haghe, under the inspection of Capt, R. H. King, R. N.

The First Volume of " Sharpe's Library of the Belles Lettres."

The Pocket French Grammatical and Critical Dietionary. By G. Surenne, F.A.S.E. Author of a French Grammar, a New French Manual, and of several other Popular Works.

Robert Montgomery and his Reviewers. By Ed. ward Clarkson.

Exodus, or the Curse of Egypt, &c. By T. B. J. Universal Mechanism consistent with Creation, Nature, and Revelation. By G, M. Bell.

The Anthology, an annual Reward Book for Midsummer & Christmas. By the Rev. J. D. Parry, MA. A Comprehensive Grammar of Sacred Geography and History. By W. Pinnock.

Delectus Grammaticus, or Progressive Lessons in Latin Construing and Parsing. By Alex. Webster.

The Holy Bible, according to the established Version, with the exception of the substitution of the ori ginal Hebrew Names, in place of the English words Lord and God. Part II.

The Family Baptist, a Treatise on Christian Baptism. By George Newbury.

A Sketch of the History of the Indian Press during the last Ten Years. By Sandford Arnot.

A Letter to the Moderator of the Presbytery of London, concerning the Sinless Humanity of Christ. By the Rev. J. Millar.

The Essay on the Signs of Conversion and Unconversion in Ministers of the Church, &c. By the Rev. Samuel Charles Wilks, M.A.

Dialogues on Popery. By Jacob Stanley. Sermons by the Rev. Henry Moore, with a Brief Memoir of his Life.

In the Press.

The Journal of a Tour, made by Senor Juan de Vega, the Spanish Minstrel of 1828 and 1829, through Great Britain and Ireland: a Character performed by an English Gentleman.

The Nature and Properties of the Sugar Cane; with practical directions for improving its Culture, and for the manufacture of its various products. By G. R. Porter.

British Zion's Watch-Tower, in the Sardian Night, being Four Sermons on Psalm ixxxii. 5. By the Rev. Henry Cole, A M.

By an Officer of the Line, Author of "Sketches Scenes, and Narratives," a Poem entitled "Visions of Solitude."

The Second Edition of a Volume of Sermons, by the Rev. Charles Taylor.

Theological Meditations; by a Sea Officer; to be comprised in one volume, demy 12mo.

Sir Isaac Newton and the Modern Socinian foiled in their Attempt to prove a corruption in the Text of 1 Timothy iii. 16. By E. Henderson, Professor of Divinity and the Oriental Languages at Highbury College.

Preparing for Publication.

An Exposition of the Doctrine of Original Sin, by a Layman.

By the Author of " May you like it," a new Edition of his "Fireside Book, or, the Account of a Christmas spent at Old Court."

Part V. of the Rev. John Morison's Exposition of the Book of Psalms.

By the Rev. J. Topham, M.A. F.R.S.L. A Small Collection of Prayers, in Easy Language, for Every Day in the Week.

By Charles Lamb, Author of Essays by Elia, a volume of Poems entitled Album Verses.

Geographia Antiqua or School Treatise on Ancient Geography, adapted to Schools and Private Families, and also to Undergraduates at Colleges. By Mr. Guy, University of Oxford.

By Mr. Barclay, a Work on the effects of the late Colonial Policy of Great Britain, addressed to the Right Hon. Sir George Murray, principal Secretary of State for the Colonial Departments.

LONDON: PRINTED AT THE CAXTON PRESS, BY HI. FISHER, SON, AND CO.

[ocr errors]
[graphic]

The South West End of the Volcano of Kirau e a in Hawaii

THE

Emperial Magazine;

OR, COMPENDIUM OF

RELIGIOUS, MORAL, & PHILOSOPHICAL KNOWLEDGE.

AUGUST.]

"PERIODICAL LITERATURE IS THE GERM OF NATIONAL LEARNING."

THE INFLUENCE OF CATHOLIC ON SLAVE EMANCIPATION, &c.

"Tis liberty alone that gives the flower Of fleeting life its lastre and perfume; And we are weeds without it."

Cowper's Task.

Ir, after the lapse of six years, the philanthropist had no ground for anticipating the mitigation or termination of slavery, through the medium of colonial legislation; if the cause of African freedom, through the apathy of public men, and interested clamour, appeared to retrograde rather than advance; and if he have at times been disposed to place this desired consummation upon the forlorn hope, it is cheering at length to perceive a brighter prospect dawning in the political horizon.

As many of the different branches of physical science- have a close affinity to, and dependence on, each other; so, various departments of legislation, depending on a common principle, mutually contribute to the promotion and establishment of each other. In this view, we think, the relief of the Catholics, and the abolition of slavery, have a much more intimate connexion than some persons may imagine. Civil and religious liberty has an immediate dependence on personal freedom, without which it cannot be correctly said to exist. Hence, we are not at all surprised, that in public life, with very few exceptions, the advocates of political slavery at home, and personal slavery abroad, were the same men. at the majorities and minorities on the great questions of the abolition of the slave trade, and of Catholic emancipation, and allowing for the difference of three-andtwenty years, we find nearly the same individuals opposed to both, and vice

versa.

Look

[blocks in formation]

[1830.

cause, mutually supported each other, in a triumph of the few, over the common rights of humanity. Protestant ascendancy, and colonial bondage, were to be maintained, in opposition to civil and religious freedom, and the social happiness of mankind. But we trust, that as the day of Ireland's oligarchy is up, so that of the slave-holders is nearly so too. We trust the able tactician, now at the head of the government, will act vigorously for the benefit of the country at large, unfettered by the prejudices of interested party advisers, and that, through him, our national councils will be emancipated from the thraldom in which they have been held during the two preceding reigns. In the course of that period, we have had only one man (Mr. Pitt) long at the head of the government, who could be at all pronounced capable of wielding the destinies of this great empire; and he kept his place solely by a compromise of principles which he had declared to be all-important, at the dictation of his

master.

So fatal an effect had the system of tutelage under which he was educated, upon the late monarch, that such men as Chatham, Fox, and Grenville, could not retain their offices but for a very limited time, without sacrificing their paramount duty to their country, on some of the greatest questions of society, to the prejudices of the royal mind. Our public affairs were consequently left to the guidance of the mere tools of office, who were altogether incapable of originating any great measure for the good of the public, determined in their opposition to any attempts of the kind, and who had no idea of justice but expediency. The opponents of slave, as of Catholic emancipation, will concede nothing but by compulsion,--they are as true to the cause of oppression and injustice, as the needle to the pole; and in each, under the pretence of serving the national interests; resolved,

"Et propter vitam, vivendi perdere causas."

The advocates of slavery were not only very consistent, in vehemently contending for civil and religious exclusion, as founded on a common principle; but they were

2*

« 上一頁繼續 »