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ARGUMENTS 
 
 TO PP9VE THE 
 
 POLICY AND NECESSITY 
 
 OF GRANTING TO 
 
 NEWFOUNDLAND 
 
 CONSTITUTIONAL GOVERNMENT. 
 
 IN A I.ETTER 
 
 TO THE 
 
 RIGHT HONOURABLE W. HUSKISSON, 
 
 PRINCIPAL SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE COLONIES, &c. &c. &c. ' 
 
 y 
 
 By p. morris, 
 
 AN INHABITANT OF THE COLONY OF NEWFOUNDLAND. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 Printed hy A . Hancock, Middle Row Place, Holborn. 
 
 PUBLISHED BY HUNT AND CLARKE, 
 
 YORK STREET, COVENT GARDEN. 
 
 1828. 
 
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 1 
 
 1 , 
 
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TO THE 
 
 
 RIGHT HON. W. HUSKISSON, 
 
 HIS MAJESTY'S PRFNCIPAL SECRETARY OF STATE 
 FOR THE COLONIES. &c. &c. «tc. 
 
 Il 
 
 ;! - 
 
 Sir, 
 
 Should I be so fortunate as, by the follow- 
 ing pages, to draw your attention to the neglected 
 colony of Newfoundland, and the baneful effects of 
 the system of government hitherto adopted towards 
 her, by which — settlement and agriculture are dis- 
 couraged, and the energies of the people paralyzed, 
 I am impressed with a firm conviction, that England 
 being so deeply interested in her prosperity, you 
 will loye no time in recommending his Majesty's 
 government, to grant her the same constitutional 
 privileges which havebeen bestowed upon the neigh- 
 bouring colonies, and v/hich, I trust, I shall be able 
 to prove, can alone render available to the motuer 
 country the great internal resources of this 
 the oldest and most valuable of the British pos- 
 sessions in North America — the first fruits of the 
 natal enterprise of England — and the greatest nur- 
 sery for seamen in the world ; and which can alone 
 save her from falling, at no very distant period, a 
 victim at the feet of the young and aspiring re- 
 
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1 
 
 public of America. If, gir, I prove the fisheries of 
 Newfoundland, which, according to the opinions 
 of the most able politicians and best writers, and 
 even of the legislature itself, as expressed in various 
 acts of parliament, are considered " the best nur- 
 sery for seamen to man the British navy," are, by 
 the policy hitherto pursued, converted into a 
 nursery for seamen, more for the American and 
 French than the navy of England, it is a subject, 
 I most humbly subnu't, worthy the serious consi- 
 deration of those ministers who direct the councils 
 of his Majesty. 
 
 In presuming to address you, I have made the 
 public press the medium, to afford an opportunity, 
 if the opinions or facts I shall advance and state are 
 founded in error or misrepresentation, of refuting 
 the one and exposing the other ; and, without at- 
 tempting a compliment, I can assure you, Sir, that 
 you are the last man in the empire whom I would 
 attempt to impose on by false reasoning or false 
 facts, as detection and exposure would be the in- 
 evitable consequences. My object is, in the first 
 place, to endeavour to prove that a local consti- 
 tutional government is absolutely necessary for 
 Newfoundland, and that it is vain to hope, that the 
 country can much improve without it. Secondly, 
 that the want of such a government to foster the 
 iuternel resources of the country, and to encourage 
 agriculture and settlement, has caused, within the 
 last twenty years, not less than from forty to fifty 
 thousand of our best seamen and fishermen to 
 emigrate to the United States, carrying with them 
 
all their knowledge and (experience, to enable our 
 rivals to compete with us in our fisheries, and, in 
 <^ a.^c ^^f need, io sfipply their fleets with seamen. 
 • I consider the present to be a most important 
 crisis in the affairs of Newfc undland. The act, 
 under the authority of which the present govern- 
 ment of the country is constituted, expires in the 
 early part of next year, and it will be matter for 
 the consideration of his Majesty's government, whe- 
 ther the present narrow system shall be continued, 
 or one more liberal and extensive adopted. And 
 I hope to be able to prove, though there may be 
 various plans proposed, that no other plan, than a 
 government founded on the fundamental princi- 
 ples of the constitvition of the parent country, will 
 be found dapted to the present exigencies of New- 
 foundland. All the other early English colonies 
 have had the advantage of being allowed to ma- 
 nage their internal afft^irs in the manner they con- 
 sidered best calculated to promote their prosperity 
 and happiness. To the provinces of Nova Scotia 
 and Canada, and the Island of Cape Breton, ceded 
 by the French soon after they came under the go- 
 vernment of Great Britain, to Barbadoes, Jamaica, 
 and all the British West India Islands, not except- 
 ing even the small rock of Bermuda, were granted 
 the same invaluable boon ; indeed, I believe there 
 was no other system of government ever contem- 
 plated for our American colonies. Blackstone, in 
 his Commentaries, in the chapter "On the Countries 
 subject to the Laws of England," observes that, 
 " with respect to their interior polity, our colonies 
 
are properly of three sorts, Ui, Provincial Establish- 
 ments, the constitutions of which depend on theres- 
 pective commissions issued by the crown to the Go- 
 vernors, and the instructions which usually accom- 
 pany those commissions^under the authority of which 
 provincial assemblies are constituted, with the 
 power of making local ordinances not repugnant 
 to the laws of England. Second, Proprietary Go- 
 vernments, granted out by the crown to individu- 
 als in the nature of feudatory principalities, with 
 all the inferior regalities and subordinate power* 
 of legislation which formerly belonged to Counties 
 Palatine. Third, Charter Governments, in the 
 nature of civil Corporations, with the power of 
 making bye-laws for their own interior regulation.'* 
 The sort of Government adopted for Newfound- 
 land is one, with which this great constitutional 
 lawyer was either unacquainted, or for which he 
 could not devise an appropriate designation. 
 
 England, like an indulgent parent, freely gave to 
 her wandering children, compelled to seek homes 
 and countries in a new and distant world, a fair por- 
 tion of their inheritance. She granted them the 
 greatest boon in he* power to bestow — the liberty 
 of forming their infant governments on the basis of 
 her own matchless constitution ; and when we look 
 back and observe the rapid strides those countries 
 have made in wealth, population, and imptove- 
 ment, we may exclaim with Sir James Mackintosh, 
 that " Liberty is the parent of commerce, the 
 
 PARENT OF WEALTH, THE PARENT OF KNOWLEDGE, THE 
 parent of EVERY VIRTUE." 
 
Unfortunately for Newfoundland, the withering 
 and blavSting influence of mercantile monopohf pre- 
 vented the parent government from acting towards 
 her with the same liberal and generous policy she 
 did to her other eolonies. I am free to admit that 
 this was not occasioned by any indisposition on 
 the part of government to promote the interests of 
 the country, or the happiness of the people ; the 
 cause is well explained in a Memorial presented 
 from Newfoundland to the Right Honourable Earl 
 Bathurst, under date of the 6th of December, 183^, 
 from which the following is an extract. 
 . '* The Committee now beg leave to call the at- 
 *' tention of your Lordship to the present state of 
 " Newfoundland, a country of great extent, the 
 " oldest of the British settlements in America^ 
 placed nearly in the same latitude as England, 
 with a climate peculiarly favourable to the health 
 " of its inhabitants, possessing more of the elements 
 of commerce than any other of the colonies of 
 North America, and of the greatest importance 
 " to the paient state, not only as a valuable acqui-- 
 " sition to the commercial interests of the empire,- 
 " but as the best nursery for seamen to supoort its 
 " naval ascendancy ; now, after the lapse of near 
 *' three centuries, being almost in the same slate as 
 *' when first discovered by Cabot. With a popu- 
 lation of one hundred thousand persons, without 
 any certain mode of employment or subsistence, 
 without a government efficient for any local pur- 
 pose, without roads, without means of education 
 '* for the peoplcj without aiiy of those institutions 
 
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 " which are necessary for (he gov jrnnicnt of every 
 " civilized country. The trade and fisheries, hi- 
 I' therto the chief support of the people, languish- 
 " ing for want of due encouragement. 
 
 " The Committee, in their endeavours to trace 
 " the causes that have led to the present state of 
 " things, have observed that it has been the con- 
 stant and prevailing policy to view Newfoundland 
 merely as a fishing establishment and a place of 
 trade ; this policy, so long adopted towards the 
 country, they do not hesitate to say, was the pri- 
 Hiary cause. 
 
 " From the earliest period, the attention of the 
 *' settlers, as well as transient persons, was exclu^ 
 " sively turned towards the fisheries, and the com- 
 " mercial pursuits coiinected with them. They 
 " were the only source which the inhabitants looked 
 '• up to for support, consequently they were sub- 
 "ject to the vicissitudes of such uncertain em- 
 " ployments ; when the fisheries flourished, the in- 
 " habitants were enabled to obtain a comfortable 
 "subsistence; when they declined, they sufi-ered in 
 "exact proportion to that decline; such has invari- 
 ably been the situation of the people ; and such 
 ^^ ever will be their state, until they can get more 
 " certain means of employment than can be aflforded 
 'I by the fisheries. Merchants will only employ 
 " their capital so long as there is a fair prospect of 
 " gain ; if that prospect be reversed, they will with- 
 ^^ draw from the trade ; and it forms no principle of 
 ''^ mercantile economy to enquire how the people 
 " are to exist, bv whnsplRhnnr ^^^a ;«j. .„*.....• 
 
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 * prosperous timjL'9, ihcy gained all their wealth and 
 "importance. If this mode ot* reasoning be true, 
 ** in reference to trade in general, how much more 
 ** applicable is it to the uncertain trade carri'id on 
 '* in the fisheries of Newfoundland ? 
 
 " From the earliest peiiod, t affairs of New- 
 *' foundland were mainly influenced by merchants 
 residing in England, the trp^e and fisheries were 
 a monopoly in their hands, to preserve which they 
 " exerted all their influence to prevent the im- 
 provement or settlement of the country, appre- 
 hensive that it would be fatal to their monopoly. 
 They represented the soil as barren and incapable 
 " of improvement ; the climate so extremely severe 
 " as to render it uninhabitable; aware that it was 
 a favourite object with government to inciease 
 the naval strength of the empire by the extension 
 " of the fisheries, they stated the moveable fishery 
 carried on by themselves as the best to promote 
 that object, and that the sedentary fishery of the 
 " natives would defeat it 
 
 " The parties thus interested in the trade, in- 
 fluenced government to second all their views ; 
 everv obstacle was thrown in the way of settle- 
 ment; a policy was pursued, and laws were 
 " formed, that had the direct tendency f- ". prevent- 
 " ing the cultivation of the soil, to which justly 
 " may be attributed the present wretched state 
 '^ of the island. 
 
 " The government of Newfoundland was in a 
 " great degree placed in the hands of a few mer- 
 Jf chants, and it is not at all surprising that they 
 
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 were influenced by the same principles which had 
 invariablj governed merchants, in every age and 
 country, to sacrifice every other interest to their 
 own. Their object was to make money, and in the 
 shortest time possible : the facility they found 
 during a hng period of a profitable trade and 
 successful fishery, to realize large fortunes, made 
 them consider their residence in Newfoundland 
 merely as a probation for a few years, after which 
 they expected to be able to retire; and enjoy the 
 fruits of their prosperous industry in other coun^ 
 tries. Within the last thirty or forty years, a 
 great number of persons have retired from this 
 country, carrying with them large sums realized 
 out of the trade and fisheries. Fortunes of from 
 fiO, 100, 200, and 3(K),O00^.have been made by 
 individuals who came to the island without 
 a shilling, and who are now removed to other 
 countries. It must appear evident that such a 
 continual drain of capital must have been most 
 injurious to its interests : and it was only a coun^ 
 try possessing an inexhaustible mine of wealth 
 in her fisheries, that could permit such to take 
 place. 
 
 " The adventurers to the other colonies Jiad the 
 improvement and cultivation of the soil to look 
 to as the chief source of wealth and commerce, 
 and even if they were successful enough to realize 
 a sufficient sum to enable them to retire^ they 
 could not carry away their improvements along 
 with them; the country was at least so much 
 benefited by liiem. 
 
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 " The peculiar siete of Newfoundland, where 
 the labour and skill of the people being exclu- 
 sively turned towards the fisheries, every other 
 interest being sacrific" ' to them, permitted the 
 " adventurer to accumulate a fortune without 
 " making the slightest improvement. He remained 
 " in the country only a few months in the summer, 
 " he had no object in making improvements beyond 
 " what was necessary to protect his goods from thq 
 ** weather, until they were shipped off. It is well 
 *^ known that the houses in which many of the per- 
 *' son$ lived, who made the largest fortunes in New- 
 foundland, were so mean, that the cottages of 
 English peasants \vould be considered palaces in 
 ♦' comparison. These kind of houses are the im- 
 " provements, if improvements they can be called, 
 •' made in Newfoundland by the most wealthy mer- 
 •* chants in the trade.*- 
 
 I can add nothing to this statement of the Com<- 
 mittee, more than that the same influence of which 
 they complain is, as you know. Sir, actively em- 
 ployed at this moment, in I hope the vain en- 
 deavour, to induce Government not to follow up 
 those measiircfi for the improvement of the Colony, 
 which have been so happily and so successfully 
 commenced. The party is alarmed — they are 
 vainly putting f^rth their paralyzed arms to arrest 
 the progress of justice and civilization — they have 
 all the wiU to keep m in bondage and barba- 
 rJAip ; but, thank God, they have not the power, 
 though they, like so many Hannibals, have sworn 
 eternal enniity to that country which raised 
 
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 their fathers and themselves to wealth and im- 
 portance. I tell them, and confidently, that the 
 spell is broken, and that they can no longer bind 
 Newfoundland in chains of worse than feudal des- 
 potism. The people are aroused to a sense of their 
 own rights—they feel the blessings of an equal admi- 
 nistration of the laws, and the happiness of indepen- 
 dence; and they knowthey can only obtain emanci- 
 pation from the bondage of mercantile monopoly by 
 claiming their rights as British subjects. New- 
 foundland will no longer be a plantation of the 
 merchants of Poole, and her people no longer 
 their slaves. 
 
 Fearing, Sir, that my language in reference to 
 this party may be considered too intemperate, ana 
 rather emanating from excited feelings, or inte- 
 rested motives, than warranted by facts, I will 
 quote *he words of one whose wisdom, learning, 
 and high character, must give weight to his 
 opinions and assertions, and who, not having any 
 personal interest to actuate or influence him, must, 
 in common candour, be supposed to have given 
 the subject calm and dispassionate consideration. 
 John Reeves, Esq. Chief Justice of Newfoundland 
 m his invaluable History of the Government of 
 •that country, commences his introduction in the 
 following words : - I intend to give a short history 
 " of the Government and Constitution of New- 
 "foundland. This will comprise the struggles 
 " ftnd vicissitudes of two contending interests—the 
 '' planters and inhabitants on the one hand, who, 
 " being settled there, needed the protection of a 
 
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 13 
 
 government and police, with the administration 
 of justice : and the adventiir^^rs and merchants 
 on the other, who, originally carrying on the 
 fishery from this country, and visiting that island 
 only for the season, needed no such protection 
 for themselves, and had various reasons for pre- 
 venting its being afforded to the others." 
 Again, in page 97, he says, " Some hope rnght 
 reasonably be entertained that the eiitablishment 
 of a Civil Government, and the appointment of 
 Justices of the Peace, with proper officers for 
 executing the law, would have been received hy all 
 as a desirable improvement in the state of society 
 in the island ; and it might be expected, that such 
 an appointment could not fail of its effect. But 
 the cause which had always operated to prevent 
 any sufficient authority being introduced into 
 that place, opposed itself to this new establish- 
 ment. The western merchants, who had been 
 silent while this measure was in agitation, were 
 ready enough to bring complaints of its conse- 
 quences, \ /hen carried into execution; and we 
 shall soon see the struggle made to prevent any 
 lawful authority taking root in Newfoundland." 
 And, in page 164, he states that "The Governor's 
 authority, whatever it n. ght be, was actually 
 carried into effect by an appointment of a Court 
 of Common Pleas and Judges, in the summer of 
 1789. This Court of Common Pleas transacted 
 business during the following winter ; but the 
 western merchants preferred very heavy com- 
 plaints against the proceedings of this Court ; 
 
" what ttiey allied against it may be seen shortly 
 " stated in the representation afterwards made by 
 " the Committee of Trade, and now printed by 
 " order of the House of Commons. Their great 
 "objection, which they do mtMate, hut which 1 
 " mUtyenture td do for them, w this; that they now 
 " saw a Court established (as they believed) upon 
 " good authority, with which they could not trifle, 
 *' «s they had been used to do with the feeble judi- 
 " catures before mentioned ,• those inefficient Courts 
 " they preferred, because they could make use of 
 " them when they needed their assistance, and couid 
 " intimidate the Justices, and obstruct their pro- 
 " ocedings, whenever they themselves were to be 
 " the objects of aniraadvetsion. They had been in 
 " the habit of seeing this species of weakness and 
 " a«archy ever since Newfoundland was frequented, 
 « imm father to son ; it was favorable to their old 
 '< impressions that Newfoundlaitd was theirs, and 
 "that all the planters and inhabitants were to he 
 " spoiled and devoured <it their pleasure ; in sup- 
 " port of this, they had opposed, as we have seen, 
 every attempt at introducing order and govern- 
 ment into that pUce. It was in this spirit, tfeat 
 " ihey questioned the king's r%bt to appoint a 
 " civi? Governor, to appoint Justices of the Peace, 
 " to appoint ComjiHssioners of Oyer and Terminer ; 
 " that they explained of the Custom House, and 
 '^even talked of presenting it as a n lisanoe, be- 
 " cause erected «n ship's room ; that they treated 
 " Stat. 15, Geo. HI, as destructive -to the fishery, 
 '-* becauseit compels the payment of servant's wages; 
 
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 '• and that they brought forward a bill in 1785, in 
 " order to expose the servants once more to iht 
 " will of their masters, as to the payment of their 
 " wages.** 
 
 The same spirit which actuated the western 
 merchants at the times alluded to by Mr. Reeves, 
 still influences all their actions and feelings, and I 
 am the more anxious to call your attention to the 
 subject, froni a conviction, that until it is subdued 
 — eradicated it never will be — neither the govern- 
 ment here^ nor the government at Newfoundland, 
 can do much to ameliorate the condition of tlie 
 country. 
 
 An imperative sense of justice having compelled 
 me thus to speak in terms of reprobation <^ the 
 conduct pursued by these monopolists towards 
 Newfoundland, I will now proceed to the more 
 grateful task of attempting to do jwitice to thenr 
 merits. In one of the first of the moral duties 
 vrhich in this degenerate age is, alas ! of too rare 
 occurrence^ these worthies, to a roan, coo^icuourfy 
 shine - A strict adherence to the creed and priocipkB 
 of their fathers, and a piouo observance of all their 
 wishes and commands as respects Newfoundland. 
 In filial obedience to which they religiously oppose, 
 with all the unitod energies of their influence «nd 
 their little talent, without regard to the trifling 
 punctilios of truth, of j'jstice, or humanity, everj 
 species of internal improvement, especially the €idr 
 tivation of the soil — the educatian of the peopl»^ 
 and the inUroductien of any government or iawo 
 calculated to irtfrittge upon the prerogatives of the 
 
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 16 
 
 iron rule which they have been taught by their 
 departed sires to consider was, by divine right, 
 conferred upon their favoured race, over the in- 
 habitants of Newfoundland. Shall men, who for 
 ages have been their vassals, the blind, helpless, and 
 devoted slaves of their omnipotent v^ill, impiously 
 attempt to shake off the yoke-consider themselves 
 entitled to the benefits of an equal administration 
 of justice— or dare to raise food from the bosom of 
 the earth, when they would bid them starve ?— 
 No! avarice, tyranny, ignorance, and prejudice,, 
 the worshipped deities of these monopolists, forbid 
 such sacrilege ! 
 
 What would be the delight of their venerated 
 ancestors, the Fishing Admirals, from which honor- 
 able stock they proudly trace their descent, and to 
 following whose worthy example they owe their 
 wealth and fancied importance, could they rise 
 from their graves, and behold all the virtues and 
 wisdom for which they were so eminently distin- 
 ^ished still animating, i„ dl their pristine force, 
 the bosoms of their faithful descendants? How 
 would they applaud their present worthy endea- 
 vours to preserve inviolate the despotic heritage 
 which they bequeathed them ? But, let them not 
 be wafted on the wings of the eastern gale across 
 the Atlantic, for what would be their horror to 
 behold the apostacy of the present degenerate race; 
 to see them sinking from their former state of 
 happy ignorance and barbarism, into one of intel- 
 lectual improvement ; to see some of them skilled 
 in the cabalistic art of writing, impiously daring 
 
 ( 
 
 i 
 
^^ 
 
 -.ft" ■_ 
 
 to read over their merchant's accounts, und pro- 
 farnoiy questioning their correctness. Instead of the 
 hoops, nailed to the table, out of which they spa- 
 ringly eat their cod*s heads and sound bones* with 
 more than Spartan temperance, to see them regaling 
 themselves on fish and bang, off the plate of Staf- 
 fordshire'; and, in place of the ancient boat's kettle, 
 whose well besooted sides bore ample testimony to 
 its long and useful services, to see in the centre of 
 the table a dish of the same precious material as 
 the plates ; to see them despising those useful 
 organs with which kind Nature has supplied them 
 for conveying their food to their mouths, and which 
 alone they ever used for the purpose, and substi- 
 tuting in lieu knives, forks — and even spoons! 
 All ihh would bo horrible, X)ery horrible ! ! — ^but 
 should an unpropitious breeze convey them to the 
 capital, or some of the other principal towns, there 
 still greater horrors would await them — there they 
 would behold the merchants and respectable in- 
 habitants, instead of the once blue flushing jacket 
 and trowsers, economically besmeared with pitch 
 and tar, and fish slime, to preserve their nap, and 
 the soap-saving checked shirt, the quondam uniform 
 of these Admirals, dressed in coats of the finest 
 produce of the western looms, with shirts of the 
 purest white, evidently no strangers to the washer- 
 woman's tub ; and appearing in the character to 
 which their education, their principles, and their 
 station entitle ihem—the character of Gentlemen. 
 If they entered their houses, they would see them 
 
 * These narts. not beinff cured, are now used for manurCi 
 
 , t 
 
 
i,'j 
 
 ''a 
 
 18 
 
 furnished with chairs, sofas, and ottomans, instead 
 of inverted butter firkins and deal benches ; the 
 well carpeted, instead of the dirt-covered flooi . 
 Thejr would see cleanliness, order, and all the ele- 
 gancies of refined life, instead of Hottentot filth 
 and the want of common comforts and conve- 
 niences ; they would sec them sitting down sur- 
 rounded by their friends to a table spread with a 
 cloth of the finest damask, ard supplied with every 
 delicacy, instead of a board covered with a bread 
 bag, on which they might perhaps, once in each of 
 their lives, have committed the heinous sin of hog- 
 pit&.ity, by regaling their friends with a piece of 
 salt pork. They would see the finest wines of 
 Portugal and France sparkling in rich cut de- 
 canters and glasses, instead of spruce beer and cal- 
 Ubogus,* in black tea Settles and tin cans. In the 
 Courts of Justice they would see the leato they once 
 filled on the judicial bench, to decide their <rwn 
 causes, usurped by disinterested, learned, and en- 
 lightened judges,patiently listening to the statements 
 of the parties, and the testimoay of their witnesses, 
 and delivering luminous and impartial charges to 
 intelligent and upright juries. They would see, oh, 
 degenerate age! the poor man standing as a suitor 
 on equal grounds with his wealthy opponent. They 
 
 ♦ A fevorite beverage with the Fishing Admirals, composed 
 of spmcebeer, new rum. and molmeut in jvhich, though in 
 England th«y wm^t good protestants, they were «ccH3tomfid io 
 their hours of revelry, to drink the impious to^st of, " The 
 Pope and ten donar8."-Hi8 Holiness being the patron saint 
 •f the fishery, and ten dollars being vhat they considered • 
 »avm^ price for a quintal of fish. 
 
 ! 
 
 

 would see the streets thronged with elegant equi- 
 pages^ and beautiful and accomplished females, 
 dressed in the newest costume of the British Me- 
 tropolis, instead of ignorant, homely dames, clad 
 in linsey woolsey of gothic shape. Throughout 
 the island they would see churches and chapels, 
 with their spires and towers pointing to the 
 heavens; schools crowded with the rising genera- 
 tion, eagerly availing themselves of the advantages 
 which the prejudice and avarice of their oppressors 
 denied their forefathers ; nay, they would even see 
 the foundation of a college ! They would see the 
 germ of cultivation bursting, as it -yere, through 
 the matted woods, and requiring but the beneficent 
 hand of a liberal government to train it to future 
 universal luxuriance. In short, they would see 
 the glorious light of education and civilization dis- 
 pelling the dark chaos of ignorance and barbarism, 
 and plenty and independence supplanting famine 
 and slavery. Should they venture into the presence 
 of our beloved Governor, who their hopeful des- 
 cendants have endeavoured to defame and vilify, 
 by the " magic" influence of whose liberal and 
 enlightened mind all these wondrous metamor- 
 phoses have been even still more fostered and en- 
 couraged, they would find him surrounded by all 
 the lovely of the one sex, and the wise and the 
 good of the other ; all looking up to him with 
 reverential gratitude for the blessings he has show- 
 ered on the country ; whilst, with courteous hospi- 
 tality, he supports the dignity and honour of his 
 Royal Master. All this they would see — and know 
 
 u 
 
 P^f 
 
I m : i 
 
 that the despotic rei^ of monopoly tottered to its 
 very foundation ; they would retire to their silent 
 graves, ..nd— rest if they could. 
 
 As a proof that the present generation of Poole 
 i& worthy of their renowned sires, I beg. Sir, most 
 respectfully to call your attention to a pamphlet 
 bitely published there, entitled " A View of the 
 Rise, Progress, and Present State of the New- 
 foundland Fishery,'' and dedicated by the author 
 to " Benjamin Lester Lester, Esq. M. P. with 
 great personal esteem^ and a high regard for the 
 zeal and ahilltt/ with which he has uniformly en- 
 deavoured to promote its interests." 
 
 This admirable production has been gratuitously 
 circulated through all the principal towns in Eng- 
 land, Scotland, and Ireland, connected with New- 
 foundland, and no doubt the Colonial Department, 
 as well as the members of the Finance Committee, 
 have been favoured with copies also. It is a work 
 of great promise, and the author, though not a 
 "mighty magician/' must be a mighty oracle, ^s 
 he scarcely condescends to give itny authority for 
 his assertions but his own ipse dixit. In the com- 
 mencement of his -View of the Rise and Progress 
 of the Newfoundland Fishery,*' he states "that the 
 imperfect information of official men, whose transi- 
 tory acquaintance with the place, acquired during 
 their limited periodical residences, does not qualify 
 them to take an " enlarged view" of the subject." 
 This, I naturally conceive, *o be an implied promise 
 by the authur himself to do so. I can assure you. 
 Sir, it wa« to me, acquainted an Inm wifh ih^ 
 
 m 
 
I 
 
 history of the island, a most amusing idea to think 
 of the oracle of the Pc 1e merchants taking " an 
 enlarged view" of the state of Newfoundland ; and 
 if yoi^ Sir, should think it worth the trouble, and 
 will only glance over Reeves's or any other History 
 of Newfoundland, you will gain a relish for a part 
 of the joke yourself. Indeed, from tlie title of the 
 production, and the absurdities and incongruities 
 80 liberally dispersed through it, I am inclined to 
 consider the author a facetious wag, who, under 
 pretence of espousing the cause of his pure and im- 
 maculate fellow burgesses, has roguishly endea- 
 voured, and successfully too, to expose its irra- 
 tionality and weakness. 
 
 But, before I take further notice of his "enlarged 
 view" I will just point out one statement of his, to 
 shew how extremely correct has been his informa- 
 tion respecting Newfoundland, and which will 
 prove how little faith his theoretical opinions are 
 entitled to when he betrays such gross ignorance of 
 facts. 
 
 In page 1 5, he states that " an act was passed in 
 1792 by which power was given to the Governors, 
 with the advice of the Chief Justice, to institute 
 Courts of Civil Jurisdiction, &c., and that in this 
 way the judicature of tbe island was conducted 
 until the year 1824." ^- 
 
 Now it happens that the act of 1792 was repeal- 
 ed by the act of the 49th of the late king, under 
 the authority of which the country was governed 
 till the promulgation of the act of 1824. The au- 
 thdr vf the "enlarged view" must have been, like 
 
i' 
 
 22 
 
 Rip Van Winkle, in a profound dose during these 
 seventeen years ; and, like the renowned Dutchman, 
 he appears confounded at the wondrous changes 
 which had been effected during his longs'umber. 
 
 The avowed object of this " enlarged view," 
 whatever might be the real intention of the writer, 
 is to impress on his Majesty's Government, 
 
 First, ** TLat the new form of Government lately 
 establi^'^ed under Sir Thomas Cochrane is on too 
 expensiive a scale. That a Vice Regal Court, 
 with ill: splendour of sovereign authority, are 
 highly objectionable ; that the house now building 
 for the use of the Governor is on too magnificent a 
 plan ; and that the old system of an Admiral Go- 
 vernor was much less expensive; that while he 
 maintained, with becoming dignity, the honourable 
 station in which he was placed, he still avoided all 
 unnecessary display, as being inconsistent with the 
 government of a iishr^Mir town." 
 
 Secondly,** That th ni'j^ewt admiv -'s^ration of jus- 
 tice, under a Chief Justice and otheit duly qualified 
 judges and law officers is equally objectionable ; 
 that the summary justice of the naval surrogates 
 would be best adapted ibr a ^fishery, and certainly 
 less expensive/* 
 
 Thirdly, ** That the agricultural improvement of 
 Newfoundland is a wild chimera ; that cultivation 
 to any important profitable extent is opposed by na- 
 tural obstacles, which are insurmountable; a thick- 
 ly wooded country, and a scanty soil, every where 
 encumbered with huge rocks , that would never re- 
 pay the enoraiuus labour and expei e of clearing. 
 
23 
 
 and a cUmate uncongenial for the production of 
 the fruits of the earth." 
 
 There are some other matters in this pamphlet 
 on which I may possibly make some remark8,€n pas- 
 sant, but these being the chief ones, I 8^uU confine 
 my principal observations to them. With espect 
 to' the first objection, the expense of the govern- 
 ment, I hope to be able to prove that the former 
 gov srnmeiit, if it could be called by such a name, 
 was knuch more expensi ' 3 than the present. The 
 Admiral Governor was allowed salary as Gover- 
 nor, pay as an Admiral and Commander in Chief 
 on the station, allowancos for his table, servants, 
 with other followers (not speaking of the great pa» 
 tronage he had of promoting his friends and r*?- 
 taiuers to j\\ vacancies in the fleet), amounted from 
 about 3,800/. to 4,000/. per annum. What were 
 his services for these great allowances ? Why he 
 came to Newfoundland in the month of July or 
 August, sometimes in September, and left on the 
 25th of October, so that I may safely say these go- 
 vernors, on an average, were not more than four 
 months in the year at the seat of their government, 
 for which they were paid at the rate of from 11,000/. 
 to 12,000/. per annum. 
 
 Our present governor is allowed, I understand, 
 about 4,000/. per year ; out of which he has to sup- 
 port the splendo'jr of "vice regal authority," a large 
 retinue of servants, entertain tae principal inhabit- 
 ants of Newfoundland at his table, and all strangers 
 wh^ visit the seal of his government ; to subscribe 
 
 11 1.1-. _1 :j.! „«.4 ^no4t4ii4irkne A OTf^at 
 
 CO aii IlUOiiC CiiaiiiivB »«« i»i3V4«.wv»v-.-i. - — ^j 
 
24 
 
 i;-^i 
 
 
 11} 
 
 part of his income h expended in the country r so 
 ^'lat if the author of this pamphkt only just takes 
 an " enlarged view" of the subject, he will find 
 that he was egregiously in error in supposing that 
 bis &,Yourite Admiral Governor was a cheaper 
 Governor, for it appears that the matter of 
 pounds, shillings, and pence, is his only criterion of 
 judgment. If a comparison be made between the 
 relative systems, with refercjice to the benefits con- 
 ferred on Newfoundland, the difierence will ap- 
 pear more striking ; our present governor has been 
 *ince bis arrival improving the condition of the 
 couiitry and the people, and though I do not mean 
 to say that he is a "mighti/ magician," still I main- 
 tain that he has done more real good to the co- 
 Ipny, since his appointment, than all his predecessors 
 put together. He has, as far as his limited authority 
 permitted him, given every encouragement to the 
 cultivation of the soU, and himself shewn the ex- 
 ftinple; he has encouraged every measure calcu- 
 lated to promote the internal resources of the coun- 
 Uf I he has made roads, some of them at his own 
 QXpense ; he has been the patron of education for 
 jthe poor ^nd the rich, and he had scarcely landed 
 on our shores when he recommended the estahlisk- 
 mmt of a University for the education of our 
 respectable youth, to prevent the necessity of 
 seeding them to the United States and other 
 pwte; in short, he has felt a sympathy for the 
 l^untry and the people beyond what was ever felt 
 by any of his predecessors, and the country feels 
 gratefu? to him for it j an^ in proportion as the gra- 
 
titud^ of the people of Newfoundland has in<*reiasecl 
 towards him for honestly and impartially administer- 
 ing the high trust placed in his hands, to the honour 
 of his royal master, the benefit of his country, and 
 the advantage of the people over whom he presides-, 
 so has increased the hatred of those who are inimi^ 
 cal to the true interests of Newfoundland ; they 
 never will forgive him for what he has already done; 
 their hatred will be as lasting as it is deadly ; they 
 attempt to prevent the finishing of a house for his 
 residence, not so goodas is enjoyed by many private 
 merchants in this country, who accumulated their 
 wealth in Newfoundlar.d. 
 
 In speaking in these terms of eulogy of the pre- 
 sent governor, I am sure neither the distinguished 
 individual himself,nor any person who knows me at 
 Newfoundland, will suspect me of giving him un- 
 due praise. I never did, nor ever will, a«k a favour 
 from him or any other governor for my own benefit'; 
 and the greatest favour he can confer on me is to 
 continue ic do justice to the people over whom he 
 is placed by his sovereign. 
 
 I now come to the second objection of this wri- 
 ter, where he mourns the downfall of the system of 
 justice which in the halcyon days of monopoly pro- 
 duced such " beneficial" results to the monopolists. 
 I shall just prove his unblushing effrontery in as- 
 serting that the naval Surrogate System was less 
 expensive than the present. I believe the present 
 allowance to our Chief Justice is 1,200/. per year; 
 700/. per year each to the other assistant judges, 
 with the salaries of the Lttorney general and the 
 
m 
 
 26 
 
 other law and mi isterial officers, not speaking of 
 the expense of hired vessels to convey them to their 
 respective districts. Now, by referring to page 3^ 
 of papers relating to Newfoundland, laid before the 
 House of Commons, on the 25th February 1824, 
 on the motion of Mr. Hume, and ordered to be 
 printed, we find the following charges for Chief 
 Juatice and Surrogates; viz. — 
 
 Francis Forbes, Esq. Chief Justice . £.1,000 
 John Toup Nicholas, Esq. Surrogate, 
 
 Captain of H. M. Ship, Egeria. . 60 
 
 David Buchan, Esq. Commander of H. 
 
 M. Ship, Grasshopper 60 
 
 James Murray, Esq. Captain of H. M. 
 
 Frigate, Valourous 60 
 
 Charles A. Baker, Esq. Commander of H, 
 
 M. Ship, Little Drake 60 
 
 , William Minchin, Esq. Comrapnder of 
 
 . H. M. Ship, Pelter 60 
 
 William Martin, Esq. Commander of 
 
 H. M. Ship, Clinker 60 
 
 George Holbrook, Esq. Commander of 
 the Surveying vessels ..... 60 
 
 Robert Carter. Esq ,60 
 
 With which was a Supreme Surrogate 100 
 Clerks of Arraigns .,,.... 150 
 
 £.1730 
 
 To this is to be added, the cost of two fri- 
 gates, two ships of war, and two gun-brigs : this 
 I aia not sufficiently acquainted with the naval 
 service to calculate; but if we say that the ves- 
 
I 
 
 27 
 
 sels employed in conveying the surrogates, cost 
 government, one with another, after the rate of 
 5,000/. per month, it would amount, for the six 
 vessels, to 72,000/., making the cost of the adminis- 
 tration ofjustice just 73,730/. per annum ; to which 
 is to be added the loss of two or three of his Majes- 
 ty's ships, one of them, the Little Drake, Com- 
 manded by the lamented Captain Baker, who, to- 
 gether with the greater part of his officers and 
 crew, met with a watery grave. But the author 
 of the " enlarged view" will say, what was the ex- 
 pense of ships, or the loss of vessels or lives to us ? 
 the parent country, not the fishery, had to bear the 
 burthen. Having disposed of the matter of ex- 
 pense, I shall now make some remarks on the be- 
 neficial effects of the system, the loss of which he 
 so feelingly and so sincerely deplores. 
 
 The judges, on uls favourite system, were the cap- 
 tains, lieutenants, and sometimes sailing masters in 
 the navy, and other persons, who, from their doubt- 
 ful character and subservience to the monopolists, 
 were much more objectionable. The gentlemen of 
 the navy are educated from their youth in a system 
 of their own, apart from the civil institutions of 
 the country, and necessarily less conversant with 
 those institutions than any other class of his Ma- 
 jesty's subjects ; yet to such men the administration 
 of justice was intrusted— and justice according to 
 the laws of England. The absurd, and ridiculous, 
 and often unjust and arbitrary proceedings of the 
 surrogates are so well known, they have been so 
 fully exposed in parliament and in Newfoundland, 
 
 $!-!' 
 
mi 
 
 
 ■ I 
 
 if 
 
 ii 
 
 28 
 
 and so long since consigned to the tomb of all the 
 Capulets, without even a hope of resurrection, (for 
 I would just as soon expect that the Inquisition 
 would be established at Newfoundland as the sur- 
 rogating system restored) that I do not think it ne- 
 cessary to make any further observations on the sub- 
 ject ; at the same time I can duly appreciate the 
 motives of the writei of the "enlarged view" 
 whilst lamenting over the downfall of that sum- 
 mary justice under the authority of which the poor 
 inhabitants of Newfoundland were plundered and 
 oppressed lor centuries, and a few individuals en- 
 riched by the ?noil, whilst the best interests of the 
 parent countrj were sacrificed, and the people kept 
 in ignorance, and the country in barbarism. Par- 
 don me. Sir, if I should in the warmth of my zeal 
 against the monopolists seem to forget the respect 
 due to the dignified individual to whom I am 
 addressing myself, and which no man feels more 
 profoundly than myself; but I have seen so 
 many acts of cruelty and oppression committed 
 at Newfoundland under the authority and pre- 
 tence of summary justice, that I lose all pa- 
 tience even at the very mention of its being re- 
 established. I am ready admit that summary 
 justice would be the best of all justice, if, along 
 with being summary, it would be really just ; but 
 what goes under the name of summary justice, is, as 
 far as I have had an opportunity of judging of it at 
 Newfoundland, the per/ec^eow of injustice. Sum- 
 mary justice may answer in the first rude stages of 
 
 society, ciiiiOiigst 
 
 
 11 
 
29 
 
 or J '^ wandering tribes of Arabia ; it i i an admira- 
 b e E^ *em with a Persian Satrap or a Turkish Ba- 
 shaw ; but. Sir, I hope you will not allow it to be 
 established even in the most distant colony of 
 this great empire. I am grossly in error if it is not 
 opposed to the fundamental principles of our glo- 
 riousc onstitution, which throws Ihe mighty shield 
 of its protection over the cottage of the peasant 
 as well as the palace of the prince ; its privileges 
 and protection are the natural right of every Briton 
 throughout England's wide domain, wherever her 
 proud flag floats in the breeze, as a proof of her 
 dominion and supremacy. 
 
 I come now to the third objection, that the soil 
 and climate of Newfoundland present insurmount- 
 able obstacles to agricultural improvements— the 
 author of the " enlarged view," after denouncing 
 the soil and climate, with all the zeal and virulence 
 of a false prophet, sneers at, ard gives us the fol- 
 lowing quotation from the Public Ledger : 
 
 " Newfoundland (hitherto considered barren and 
 " sterile) is soon likely to become a great agricul- 
 " tural country, under the auspices of the present 
 " governor, who having himself put the plough in 
 « requisition, has by the force of his example so 
 '^ stimulated others, that there are now to be seen 
 on every hand corn fields springing up, as if by 
 magic, in the place of woods and forests." 
 " Those acquainted with the country," says 
 the author of the " enlarged view," " know such 
 " representations to be altogether fallacious, and 
 " consider them to be mischie .3. That tiie 
 
 (( 
 
 ft 
 
 \m 
 
■K;-, 
 
 1 ii^< »j i Bij^" "i 'rr ii i i Trmr | nj fa 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
 ft 
 
 30 
 
 " governor may have promoted and encouraged 
 " the cultivation of the soil in the immediate vici- 
 " nity of St. John's, is, perhaps, not to be disputed; 
 " but that within the short period of his govern- 
 "ment such extraordinary changes have taken 
 *' place, as those represented in the statement al- 
 " luded to, is not the fact; and it is well known 
 " that, for many years previous to the appointment 
 " of the present governor, individuals had at great 
 " labour and expense devoted their utmost skill and 
 " attention in vain, to attain the object which the 
 <' Newfoundland Public Ledger endeavours to 
 make the public believe had been accomplished 
 in the short space of two years by this mighti/ 
 
 magician." 
 
 After this tirade against the soil, the climate, the 
 governor, and the Public Ledger, he triumphantly 
 asks, " If more unquestionable proofs are wanting, 
 ^' the unfitness of Newfoundland for the purposes 
 " of cultivation might be inferred from the cir- 
 " cumstance that it never has been cultivated— if 
 ' the soil and climate are so well adapted for cul- 
 " tivation as the Newfoundland Public Ledger 
 « would have us believe, how has it happened that, 
 « with a population of 90,000, dependent on 
 « other countries for food, cultivation has never 
 *' been resorted to as a source of supply — the inha- 
 " bitants of Newfoundland are not insensible to 
 " the advantages of a productive soil, and are as 
 " much alive to their own interests and comforts 
 " as the people of any other country ; and it is a 
 " known fact, that there have been individuals 
 
 i 
 
 t€ 
 
 tt 
 tt 
 
 II i 
 
31 
 
 ''who have in vain endeavoured to obtain sub- 
 " sistence for themselves and families from the soil, 
 " in preference to the pursuits of the fishery." 
 
 The memory of the author must be very treacher- 
 ous indeed, to have forgotten the sole cause why 
 the soil v.as not cultivated, when he had so satis- 
 factorily before stated it himself in his « enlarged 
 view/'— In page 7 he says,--- 
 
 - In the early stages of the fishery, a few simple 
 " local laws or regulations were sufficient for its 
 
 - o-overnment, and to preserve the relation betvveen 
 « master and servant ; and although they may have 
 
 - been, and probably were, rude and barbarous m 
 « their construction and operation, still the u«hery • 
 « prospered and increased; and we find little or no 
 
 < legislative notice of the island until nearly two 
 
 - hundred years after its discovery, when the act 
 " of 10th and nth William III. to encourage the 
 " trade to Newfoundland was parsed. This act was 
 ^< founded on the ancient poliet/ of discouraging 
 « residency, and considering Newfoundland to be a 
 
 ship fishery ; and, notwithstanding the evidently 
 increasing population, the same views influenced 
 the legislature nearly fourscore years after, in 
 passing the act of 15th Geo. III. the object of 
 which was also to discourage residency; and, m 
 'fact, the same principle has in some measure 
 " prevailed in all the legislative acts on the subject, 
 « almost to the present day; and this discordant 
 « policy has naturally been attended with a want 
 *' of permanency and consistency in the measures 
 ^' 07 govcrnTuerit. 
 
 <( 
 
 tt 
 
 t( 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
:i I 
 
 32 
 
 He first tells us that the laws discouraged resi- 
 dency, and were rude and barbarous in their con- 
 struction, and, a few pages after, asks, Why the soil 
 was not cultivated ? That the laws were rude and 
 barbarous is the only truism in the whole " enlarged 
 view;" and the construction put upon them by ihe 
 Fishing Admirals, their only interpreters and 
 administrators in the island, was more rude and 
 barbarous still. By the western charter no in- 
 habitant was allowed to live within six miles ot the 
 sea, and might, under its authority, be driven out 
 of the country. When the poor inhabitants built 
 houses, OF stages for curing their fish, or cleared a 
 little spot of ground for cultivation, the houses 
 were burnt or destroyed, and the ground wrested 
 from them. 
 
 By the statute of the iOth and Uth of William 
 and Mary^ the Fishing Admirals assumed uncon^ 
 troUed dominion over the country, and prevented 
 the people from cultivating the soil. They dreaded 
 pothing more than cultivation, as they supposed it 
 WQuld interfere with their monopoly in supplying 
 the people with provisions. If a poor man cleared 
 9. spot of ground, the iOth and llth of William 
 ^d Mary was immediately put into operation in a 
 mannei never contemplated by the legislature: 
 under pretence oC its authority outrages revolting 
 io humanity were committed by those vandals ; {« 
 gfeen bough was stuck on the offending soil, the 
 seed was torn up, and the ground, as a punishment, 
 covered with a fish flake. The Admiral Governors 
 were scarcely less opposed to the improvement of 
 
m 
 
 the country, or the cultivtion of the soil, without 
 casting the slightest imputation on them for what 
 they did. They came out to the country only for 
 a few months in the summer, and their instructions 
 were dictated by thct influence of which I hr;*e 
 before spoken. The governors went so far as to pre- 
 vent people not alone from cultivating the soil, but 
 they absolutely prevented them from building 
 houses on their own g round, building new chimneys, 
 or even repairing old ones. I have frequently wit- 
 nessedhousesbelonging to some of the first merchants 
 of St. John's razed with the ground, and any man in 
 those days that would attempt to cultivate the soil, 
 without special leave, which was confined to a few 
 favouicd individuals, was shipped off by the first 
 vessel to whatever part of the world she was sailing. 
 It was not till the government of Sir Richard 
 Keats, in 1813, that leases of small plots of ground 
 were granted, (with the exception of some trifling 
 lots that were cleared by suff'erance before) but clog- 
 ged with many restrictions ; and even waste lands 
 were subject to annual rents, from 2s. 6d. to 20s. per 
 acre. It is only so late as the year 1824, that a 
 clause was introduced into the act of 5th Geo. IV. 
 chap. 51, sec. 15, authorizing the governor to 
 make grants of land, " any thing in any charter 
 « granted by any of His Majesty's Royal Predeces- 
 « sors, or any Act of Parlianvent to the contrary 
 « contained in any wise notwithstanding." I believe 
 I may take the liberty of saying that this clwse 
 was introduced at my r ecommendatron ; I made 
 ^.,^u ^ -.^,x^a* */^ *Ih» Ritf-Wt Hon. R. W. HortoH, 
 
 liu 
 
■r 
 Ji- 1'. 
 
 r > 
 ' I > 
 
 
 Kl 
 
 ^i ! 
 
 i|! 
 
 34 
 
 and soon after this clause appeared in the act be- 
 fore mentioned. And here I may be allowed to ex- 
 press my feelings of gratitude to that Right Hon 
 Gentleman for the great benefits which he conferred 
 on Newfoundland, and for the consideration he 
 gave to the very humble individuals to whose xe- 
 comnoendation he was pleased to attend. 
 
 I think I have shewn sufficient cause for the want 
 of general cultivation in Newfoundland, without 
 placing it to account of the soil and climate. As 
 •I shall have occasion to revert to this subject be- 
 fore I conclude, I shall take no further notice of 
 the opinions of the writer of the " enlarged view" 
 •upon it. Having already expended much more of 
 mv time upon this publication than its palpable 
 absurdity rendered necessary, I shall take no notice 
 of his objection to Roads, Hospitals, Public Mar- 
 kets, and, what makes his hair almost stand an end, 
 '** in due time, perhaps, an University !" What 
 dark age was this man born in ? What materials 
 must his mind, his body, or his soul be composed 
 .of? What kind of a head or heart must he possess, 
 who can attempt to throw the slightest obstacle 
 in the way of such noble objects ? The opinions 
 of this man of " enlarged views," and those of 
 whom he is the mere mouth-piece, remind me of 
 a nation of savages, who inhabit the banks of a 
 remote river of Africa, they adore darkness as 
 their deity, and on the approach of night they 
 assemble to offer incense at their infernal shrines 
 — but as soon as the dawn appears, they set up 
 the most dreadful bowlings and yells, to frighten 
 
35 
 
 of 
 
 away the approach of light, and on the rising 
 tli€ blessed sun they fly affrighted to their dark 
 and filthy caverns. 
 
 The best apology I can make for this digression 
 from the subject I commenced with— the proving 
 the ne<;esBity of a Constitutional Government for 
 Newfoundland— is, that I owe to the wise men of 
 the West, on the part of that colony, a debt of 
 gratitude, and the sooner it is paid off the better. 
 
 I shall now proceed to meet the objections that 
 have been made to the establishment of such t 
 government at Newfoundland, and conelude by 
 endeavouring to prove that it would promote Ihe 
 welfare of the parent country, a* well as that of 
 
 tke cdonj. 
 
 The objections arc. First, by those who admit the 
 principle, but say that the country is not ripe for 
 such a government, and that there would be a di«* 
 Gultyin finding at Newfoundland persons suffieieirtly 
 qualified or educated to constitute a represcntAtivi^ 
 
 Secondly, That the country could not raise a 
 sufficient revenue to pay the charges oi a Consti- 
 ttttional Government, which ''ould be much more 
 expensive than the present system. 
 
 Thirdly, That it is only for a stationary agricul- 
 tural population that such a government is required; 
 that Newfoundland is only calculj^ti^d for a place 
 of trade and a fishery, and that the soil and climate 
 present such insurmountable obstacles to cultiva- 
 tiott, that the idea of making agricultural improve- 
 ™^^*„ „4 \r«».f/^inHli«id is wild and visionary. 
 
 irrciiis res' i.T\-rT " 
 
 F 
 
 !:n 
 
 li 
 
'■f 
 
 Hi 
 
 I ) 
 
 36 
 
 Fourthly, That if such a government was esta- 
 blished at Newfoundland, in consequence of the 
 prevailing influence of the mercantile body, par- 
 ticularly in the out ports, that an assembly would 
 be almost entirely composed of persons elected 
 through the mercantile influence in this country, 
 which has been so inimical to the internal im- 
 provement of Newfoundland. 
 . Fifthly, That Colonial Assemblies have been 
 found troublesome and inconvenient, in conse- 
 quence of the great differences which have arisen 
 between the Assemblies and the Governors. 
 • I shall endeavour to reply to these Objections in 
 the same order that I h-ve stated them. 
 
 As respects the ripeness of Newfoundland for 
 such a government, I am at a loss properly to un- 
 derstand what is meant by the term ripeness. It 
 occurs to me that those who make this objection 
 want to invert the order of human events. In the 
 vegetable world, before the fruit can arrive at matu- 
 rity, the seed must be sown, the plant must be nur- 
 tured, when the p .^'^uce at length crowns the 
 anxious care of th bandman. In the progress 
 
 of infant countries, to the maturity of civilizatt* ^n 
 and government, the same order prevails; audit 
 would be just as reasonable to expect fruit or ripe- 
 ness without the germ being planted, in the one 
 case as in the other. This point will be better il- 
 lustrated in the language of Mr. Baring, on present- 
 ing a petition from the inhabitants of the Cape of 
 Good Hope for f Constitutional form of Govern- 
 ment, in renlv in iht^ Hi H/^p W ViT U^-*^,, ,..u^ 
 
J ' 
 
 37 
 
 stated that there were other English Colonies that 
 had not a Representative Government ; — I made use 
 of thes^ opinions of Mr. Baring before, and to en- 
 force a similar object, but they are so much to my 
 present purpose that I think it necessary to repeat 
 4|iem: — 
 
 " The^ight Hon. Gentleman had said that there 
 " were other Colonies in v/hich the same system of 
 " Government prevailed. That was true, and dis- 
 *' graceful it was to this country. But the Colony of 
 " the Cape of Good Hope was difterent in its cha- 
 " racter from the Colonies to which the Right Hon. 
 " Gentleman had adverted. It was not inhabited by 
 " the stewards of individuals, who themselves, per- 
 h. ,ps, resided in Portman-square. It was settled 
 by Engl'GQ firmers, by men of English habits 
 " and feelings. It was not circumscribed in extent 
 *' like a West India island. Its population might 
 " eventually be augmented to many million^. The 
 " cases, therefore, were wholly dissimilar. The 
 " Right Honon ble Gentleman talked of the Cape 
 " not being rip for the enjoyment of free institu- 
 " tions. J.t never would be ripe unless these insti- 
 " tutions were introduced. The same had been 
 •* said of South America. It was with a country 
 " as with a child. Unless a child were placed on 
 '- its legs, it -icver would be able to walk like a 
 " man. Unless free institutions were introduced 
 " into a country, it could never become capable of 
 " enjoying them imbecility must continue to be 
 " the characte ^^ any country not inoculated 
 " with the principles of strength.' 
 
 t< 
 
 <i 
 
 m 
 
38 
 
 ^ I! 
 
 I may possibly form too high an estimate of the 
 inhabitants of Ne^vfoundland^ but I have led myself 
 into the greatest delusion, if there are not at this 
 present moment at that colony as many men of 
 intelligence^ integrity, and general information^ as 
 would be necessary to constitute a respectable i^ 
 presentation for the Island. For the wsm/: of those 
 Institutions which would foster and draw forth 
 talent, they remain in comparative obscurity j but 
 let a representative body be once fornaed, and it 
 will soon be found that in no colony in its neigh- 
 bourhood will there be less difficulty in procuring 
 men of ability, information, and integrity. It would 
 induce many persons who now, when they have 
 accumulated a capital in the country, emigrate to 
 the United States and other places, to remuin where 
 their property, and their talents would be sure to 
 gain for them that consideration and importance 
 to which they are entitled, and where they could 
 make themselves more eminently useful than in a 
 strange country ; in which they would have to form 
 new connections, to conform to new manners and 
 customs, and where it would require a residence of 
 years before they acquired that importance they 
 possessed in Newfoundland. A representative go- 
 vernment and a constitution sound very high, but 
 let a not be forgotten that the representative body 
 would not have any very difficult subjects to legis- 
 late on, further than the propriety of making 
 roads and bridges, and other useful local improve- 
 ments, and affording due encouragement to the 
 trade, fisheries, an<l agriculture of the country. 
 
 • 
 
39 
 
 I again repeat that tliere would not be the slightest 
 difficulty in procuring a sufficient number ; an4, 
 without pretending to a spirit of prophecy, con- 
 temptible as the fSng may appear to those who 
 endeavour to degrade Newfoundland in the esti- 
 Bftation of persons not acquainted with the coun- 
 try, tbit there would be no lacx of highly res* 
 pectable candidates to fill the honourable situations 
 of representatives. 
 
 I shall now say a few words respecting the charac- 
 ter of the people who would be electors. They 
 would be principally the natives of the €(mn«ry,aU 
 descended from the free born subjects of Bri- 
 tain, who carried with them all their rights and 
 privileges as British subjects, which neither thsy 
 nor their descendants ever forfeited ; and the with^ 
 holding from them those privileges which were 
 freely granted to other colonies of less importance in 
 the neighbourhood, and nt)t more deserving of sup*, 
 port from the parent country, is a violation of the 
 fundamental principles of the constitution, and for 
 which they have every right to petition, to remon- 
 strate, and just cause to complain. The native in- 
 habitants of Newfoundland, as well as those who 
 have emigrated there, are as regular and orderly, 
 and possess as much good sense and information as 
 people of the same class in any other part of his 
 Majesty's dominions. Scarcely since the present 
 enlightened judges have dispensed the criminal 
 justice of the country have they failed, when open- 
 ing their courts, to compliment the industrious 
 classes on their peaceable and general good con- 
 
 V 
 
Ill 
 
 ■il'f*. 
 
 I-.:! 
 
 
 40 
 
 duct. This part of my statement may be easily 
 proved to be correct or otherwise, by a return of 
 the cp'ninal convictions and a report of the differ- 
 ent charges of the judges. I lUll appeal to them 
 as proud testimonials of the superior character of 
 the industrious and labouringclassesof the inhabit- 
 ants of Newfoundland. The aexi qualification for 
 electors is property. In that the people, even 
 amongst the labouring classes, are not deficient; 
 and but for the immense failures amongst the mer- 
 chants in 1814, 1815, nd 1816, which swept away 
 their savings for a great many previous yeai.^, 
 there would not be at this moment a part of his Ma- 
 jesty's dominions where there would be mere pro- 
 perty amongst even the most humble class of the in- 
 habitants. In consequence of there being no encou- 
 ragement for investing money in the improvement 
 of land, or in other solid security, the poor people 
 placed the hard earned fruits of their industry in 
 the hands of the merchants, who speculated upon 
 them, and in one fell swoop carried away from them 
 from three to four hundred thousand pounds in 
 the years I have mentioned. Notwithstanding 
 these, and the great losses by fire, the resident in- 
 habitants of Newfoundland are rapidly increasing 
 in wealth, and I question whether there is another 
 population of equal extent, where property is more 
 generally diffused. Since the people have turned 
 a little of their attention to the cultivation of the 
 soil, a? rn auxiliary— and the best auxiliary— to 
 the fir e- y, they are making rapid advances in 
 proper^ rid independence. 
 
41 
 
 I hope I have not been altogether unsuccess- 
 ful in proving the weakness of the first objection, 
 and I shall now proceed to the second : As to 
 the revenues of the country being inadequate to 
 the additional expenses which would be entailed 
 on it by the establishment of such a govern- 
 ment. I confess it does not appear to me how 
 the addition of a few persons to represent the 
 general interests of the country can add to the 
 expenses of the government ; in my own opinion 
 it can not. All the great expenses of the civil 
 government are incurred already, in the pay- 
 ment of salaries to the governor and other officers ; 
 it may be said, the assembly will be i rising money 
 to make roads and bridges, and other improve- 
 ments ; but, surely it is not necessary to use 
 much logic to prove that money laid out for such 
 purposes would not be lost to the country, but, 
 on the contrary, form its best capital. The lands 
 on the margins of the roads would, I am quite sure, 
 in a little time pay all the expense of making them, 
 and leave a revenue to the crown. Roads are the 
 first steps to ci ilization : they would prove the 
 best capital of the country; and any man of com- 
 mon understanding must be satisfied that money 
 jadicioulsy laid out in such and other useful ob- 
 jects, so far from being sunk or misapplied, would 
 revert back to the community with manifold ad- 
 vantages. Mr. Burke, I believe, states, what any 
 reflecting man must be convinced of, " that it is 
 not taxes, but the injudicious appropriation of them 
 that is an injury to a country." The people of 
 
w 
 
 ** 
 
 42 . 
 
 Newfoundland cannot hope the country can be 
 improved without expense ; and I am sure they are 
 not so unreasonable as to expect that it will be de- 
 frayed by any but themselves. The evils of taxa- 
 tion i» a favourite theme with those who want to 
 prevent the improvement of Newfoundland, and 
 they wish to impress on themikids of his Majesty's 
 government thrt the coiony is so miserably poor 
 that it cnmaot bear a slight rate of taxation : they 
 raise the cry, not from any feeling towards the 
 resident inhabitants, but from an apprehension thai 
 it would reduce their own fate of profit. They 
 usually charge froiti 33-^ to 100 per cent. o» 
 their goods, but when they hear of a small ta,x 
 for the improvemfwt of the country they exhibiif 
 aff that " ignorant impatience of taxation" vritli 
 which the people of anotlier country were unjustly 
 charged by a minister of the crown. 
 
 A more flimsy and ridiculous argument cannot 
 be well imagined, than that Newfoundland i» not 
 €u\\j competent to pay all the expenses of her civit 
 government; this being a tangible subject, it can^ 
 be grappkd with by the simple rules of vulgar 
 arithtnetic ; figures will prove more than words on* 
 the occasion : the value of imports tO' Newfound- 
 land is now, in the depressed stat^ of the fisheri«9,. 
 close upon a million sterling annually ; the exports 
 are the same; in 1813 and 1814, the exports 
 were worth nearly three millions, but, estinn^ing 
 &em at the lesser sum, surely it is not too much< to> 
 suppose t^at a small rate can be imposed on arti- 
 cles of luxury, quite sufficient to meet all necessaiiy 
 
43 
 
 expenses. From the papers published on Mr. 
 Hume's motion, by order of the House of Com- 
 mons, it appears that — 
 
 A duty on rum of 6rf. per gallon, for ten years, 
 from 1813 to 1822, produced £85,368 11 
 On brandy and gin, Is. 6d. ditto 19,982 18 
 On wines from British ports, at 
 
 10s. per tun 938 10 1 
 
 Ditto from Foreign ports, at £7 do. 2,386 10 I 
 
 £ 108,676 9 2 
 
 ^ A duty of Is. 6d. on rum, at this 
 
 average, would give, awwMfl% 25,610 11 3 
 On br mdy and gin, at 3s. per gallon 3,996 117 
 On wine, 221 tons, 56,576 gallons, 
 
 at 3s. per gallon . . . 8,486 8 
 A moderate impost on other articles 
 
 of luxury 20,000 
 
 ' £58,093 1010 
 
 To which may be added rents of lands, licenses, 
 and many other sources of revenue.* 
 
 This would be quite a sufficient revenue for all 
 the purposes of the country. It appears that the re- 
 venue of the neighbouring colony of Nova Scotia 
 comprising a duty on spirits and wine, and a 
 duty of f:om 3| to 5 per cent, on importations, 
 (extracted from a statement now before me) 
 amounted for the year 1 822 to 39,940^. 18s. bd. By 
 
 ' * My object in making this statement is merely to prove 
 that the people have the means, if they possessed the constitu- 
 tional power, of raising a revenue. . 
 
 I 
 
 W 
 
I"f 
 
 looking over the History of Newfoundland you 
 will find it a favourite system with those opposed 
 to its improvement, to misrepresent the resources 
 of the country; to prove that I am not singular 
 in the opinion which I have given, that Newfound- 
 land is capable of raising a moderate revenue, I 
 beg to call your attention to an extract from a 
 Memorial of the inhabitants of Newfoundland, 
 presented to the Right Honorable Earl Bathurst, 
 under date of December 6th, 1822. 
 
 " It has been said, that the people of Newfound- 
 " land are not in a situation to pay the expenses 
 " necessarily attending a local government. The 
 " Committee have no hesitation in saying, that such 
 " is not the case ; and have not the lightest doubt 
 " of the competency of the country, even in its 
 present depressed state, without inconvenience, 
 to bear all the necessary expenses for that pur- 
 " pose. It has been a favourite object with inte- 
 " rested persons to throw a cloud of misrepresenta- 
 tion on everything connected with the country; 
 its resources were little known, except to those who 
 *' were making them subservient to their interest. 
 " If Newfoundland has not possessed the means 
 of paying the expense of a civil government, it 
 must appear extraordinajy that so many persons 
 " who came there without a shilling in their pockets 
 " were able, in the course of a few years, to realize 
 " fortunes, to retire from the island, and live in 
 " splendour in other countries. The Committee 
 can point out to your Lordship individuals re- 
 siding in London, Poole, Dartmouth, Bristol, 
 
 ct 
 
 ft 
 
 ti 
 
 tt 
 
 (t 
 
 <c 
 
 t( 
 
 St 
 
45 
 
 " Edinburgh, Greenock, Cork and Waterford, and 
 " other parts, not alune of the United Kingdom; 
 " but even in the United States of America, who 
 " made their properties in Newfoundland. If in- 
 " dividuals could in a few years realize from the 
 " labour and industry of the people sufficient to 
 " enable them to retire from Newfoundland to live 
 " independently in other countries, surely it is not 
 " too much for the Committee to say, that the same 
 " people can pay the expenses of their govern- 
 " ment which would revert back on themselves 
 '* with manifold advantages. 
 
 " To prove the ability of the inhabitants to pay 
 " the expenses of their government, the Com- 
 " mittee beg to state a few well known facts: The 
 " town of St. John's is the capital of the island, 
 and the principal depositary for the supplies and 
 " productions of the fishery ; the ground on which 
 the stores, wharfs, and dwelling houses are erected, 
 is chiefly owned by persons residing in Great 
 " Britain, whose ancestors gained a title to it 
 " merely by occupying it ^or the purposes of the 
 fishery ; in consequence of the great increase of 
 trade and population, the ground has become va- 
 luable, and the rent now charged for that situate 
 " at the waterside of St. John's, is from 20s. to 40s. 
 " per foot, per annum, on which large sums have 
 " been expended by the tenants in making the le- 
 " cesaary erections ; a sum not less than £20,000 
 " is annually remitted from the town of St. John's 
 for rents; can it then be doubted that a people 
 who pay such large sums to absentee landlords. 
 
 (S 
 
 (€ 
 
 it 
 
 Ct 
 
 tc 
 
 €( 
 
 tt 
 
 it 
 
 5 7 
 If 
 
■xae 
 
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 Cf 
 
 €t 
 
 tf 
 
 tt 
 
 46 
 
 " who do not contribute in the slightest degree to 
 •' the support of the country, could pay the expenses 
 " of a civil government? 
 
 " It is well known, that the mercantile houses 
 which accumulated all their capital in this trade, 
 have, in prosperous times, made profits of from 
 20 to 30,000 pounds in one year, a sum more 
 than adequate to the support of a civil govern- 
 " ment." 
 
 The clamour raised against a fair rate of taxation 
 for the improvement of Newfoundland, comes with 
 a bad grace from a few merchants on this side the 
 water, the ])atrons of the able work of which I 
 took some small notice in the former part of this 
 letter. The opposition to the improvement of New- 
 foundland comes exclusively from them. The great 
 body of the merchants residing in, and connected 
 with the country are favorable to any reasonable 
 plan of improvement, and, I trust, that any expres- 
 sion of mine will not be construed as having any 
 reference to them ; these expressions are only in- 
 tended for those who want to raise an insuperable 
 barrier to all improvement, I say that opposition to a 
 fair assessment comes from them with a very bad 
 grace indeed, when the great advantages which 
 have lately been conferred on the trade and ship- 
 ping interest, is taken Into consideration. I do 
 not hesitate to state, that an advantage has been 
 conferred on the trade and fishery of not less than 
 <£200,000 per annum, by the liberty of importing 
 pork, bread, flour, and other provisions, for the 
 
 use 
 
 .f ih^ 
 
 
 iu: 
 
 liiis sum 
 
47 
 
 may appear large, but when it is taken into account, 
 that pork can be purchased at New York for 35». 
 per barrel, suitable for the fishery, and that 70s. 
 should be paid for it at Liverpool, and that biscuit 
 can be had at Dantdc and Hamburgh at dt. and 
 10«. which would cost 18«. at Liverpool ; the large 
 sum I have stated, and even a larger can be easily 
 proved to be gained by the trade and fisheries, or 
 rather by the people of Newfoundland. Along with 
 this great boon, the fees of customs have been taken 
 off vessels in Newfoundland, which, I should con- 
 ceive, amounted to 6 or 7,000/. per annum. 
 . Here, Sir, may I be permitted to make a slight 
 digression f m the subject I have under consider-* 
 ation, for the purpose of proving that the charges 
 that have been so frequently brought against you 
 by the shipping interest, for throwing open the 
 trade of the colonies to foreigners, is without the 
 slightest foundation ; and that, instead of being an 
 injury, it has been a benefit to them. Since the 
 passing of the act, not one foreign European vessel 
 has entered the ports of Newfoundland, nor any 
 of those of our neighbouring colonies; nor, as 
 far as I am capable of judging, is it likely they 
 will. I am sure the nature of the Newfoundland 
 trade is such, that though it may be permitted to 
 foreigners, it will, and must be, carried on by 
 British shipping only. 
 
 I shall now proceed to state what has been the 
 ruinous consequences to the British shipping :«^ 
 We arc obliged to give from 30s. to 40si per 'ton 
 to 
 
 i 
 
 A_ V.-: 
 
 I J 
 
 «**«^ ^%^\m^wm 
 
 VI^BSUIS W ILIiiilg VUlf UUI UiCI^U, auu vi.uct 
 
!f 
 
 >■:*■ 
 
 provisions from Dantzic and Hamburgh^ when, 
 if we were not permitted to get our supplies 
 from those places, and obligated, as under the 
 old restrictive system, to purchase them at Liver- 
 pool, and other ports in England and Ireland, ves- 
 sels would gladly take them out at lOs, or 12s. per 
 ton freight. Since the opening of the trade from 
 the north of Europe I have had every year to char- 
 ter vessels to take out supplies for my trade, and 
 have given the freights I have mentioned, whilst I 
 had vessels of my own going out from ports in 
 Britain, in '»* " h I had sufficient room to ship 
 them. If they could have been procured at the same, 
 or even near the same rate, in British ports. 
 
 If I have taken a correct view of the subject, 
 the shipping interest have been gainers, not losers, 
 by the change that has been madein the colonial sys- 
 tem; and for the mere offer of acting liberally on the 
 part of our government, of which foreigners have 
 not, nor do I think it likely they will, take advan- 
 tage, a great and substantial benefit has been con- 
 ferred on the shipping interest of this country. It 
 may appear a species cf knight errantry on my part 
 to shiver a lance of straw in your defence, on this 
 subject, when it is recollected that you wielded the 
 thunder of Jove against your opponents on the even' 
 ing of the 7tb May last, when General Gascoioe 
 brought forward his motion, in the House of Com- 
 mons. Notwithstanding your splendid defence on 
 that occasion, which made those who came to curse 
 remain io pray, you must have observed that you 
 are stili the object o\ attack from persons who ate 
 
 • 
 
49 
 
 determined not to be convinced, however clear the 
 proof, however lotrong the argument. 
 
 1 shall now endeavour to reply to the third ob- 
 jection, That Newfoundland presents insurmounta- 
 ble obstacles to agricultural improvement; that it is 
 viewed more as a fishery and a place of trade, and 
 that, consequently, it does not require a local repre- 
 sentative government. — I am at a loss to understand 
 the logic of those who object, on the ground of 
 Newfoundland being a place of trade and fishery. 
 Trade and fishery require the aid and support of 
 good laws and g-overnment as well as any other 
 interests. This truth is b. clear, that it would be 
 an insult to the most common understanding to use* 
 arguments to prove a proposition, so evident in it" 
 self; I shall therefore confine myself to replyirg to 
 the objections brought against the soil and climate, 
 for if, as it has been attempted io be proved, they » 
 present insurmountable obstacles to cultivation, or 
 if I cannot prove that the soil can be made a 
 source of profitable employment, it would be the 
 extreme of folly to attempt it. 
 
 The advocate for Newfoundland is called on to 
 prove, on every occasion, that white is not black, and 
 black is not white ; and I can assure you. Sir, it is a 
 more difficult task, than at first appears, particularly 
 when people are determined ot to be convinced. 
 I think that any man, taking the map of New- 
 ibundland, and looking at its geographical situa- 
 tion, will be Csiivinced, from its great extent, that 
 there must be land capable of cultivation, particu- 
 
 i__i.. 1 L _ .'_ '—x? 1 j.i-_i j._"__ 1-. J: 
 
 iiil'iy WliCU iiC i!S$ iiliOi iiiUU Uiui COUiitriwa VHiy Ui- 
 
 I 
 
 ^!!i|- 
 
50 
 
 vided from it by a few leagues of sea, abound 
 with rich soil ; that in the interior there are tribes 
 of native savages who have no intercourse with ci- 
 vilized man, and who support themselves by hunt- 
 ing and fishing ; and that there are thousands of 
 deer, and other wild animals in the country, that 
 subsist there both summer and winter ; it must re- 
 move all reasonable doubt from his mind that if the 
 savages and wild animals can support themselves 
 from the spontaneous productions of the eaith, 
 tLat the same country would give far greater 
 facilities to the subsistence of civilized man, when 
 agricultural improvement is brought into active 
 operation, so as to incr***"^ and multiply the pro- 
 ductions of the earth. These being my own spe- 
 culations, which I do not presume to offer as 
 authoritie8> I shall state fact& aad opinions, both 
 of ancient and modern date, which I hope wilt 
 be sufficient to convince any mind not impervious 
 to the rays of reason and common sense, that the 
 prejudice that has been riised against the soil and 
 climate of Newfoundland is uiyuit and unfounded. 
 Captain Hayes, second in command to Sir Hum- 
 phrey Gilbert, who made a voyage to Newfound- 
 land in the year 1583, writes in 
 
 " A brief e relation of the Newfound lande, ana 
 " the commodities thereof, 
 
 " That which we doe *;all the Newfoundland, 
 and the Frenchmen Bacalaos, is au Hand, or 
 rather (after the opinion of some) it coosisteth of 
 " sundry Hands and broken lands, situate in the 
 North regions of America, vpon the gulpL and eu-^ 
 
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 trance of the great riucr called S. Laurence in Ca- 
 nada. Into the which, nauigation may be made 
 both on Oie South and North side of thin Tjand. 
 The land l^'eth South and Nortl. containing in 
 length betweene three and 400 miles, accounting 
 from Cape Race (which i^ in 46 degrees 25 minuts) 
 vnto the Grand bay in b)i degrees of Septentri- 
 onall latitude. The Hand round about hath very 
 many goodly bayes an ^ harbors, safe roads for 
 ships, the like not to be found in any part of the 
 knowen world. 
 
 " The common opinion that is had of iirtempera- 
 ture and extreme cold that should be in this counr 
 trey, as of some _ ^rt it may be verified, namely 
 the North, where I grant it is more colde then 
 in countries of Europe, which are vnder the 
 same eleuation : eueu so it cannot stand with 
 reason and nature of the clime, that the South 
 parts should be so intemperate as the bruit hath 
 gone. For as the same doe lie under the climatt 
 of Rriton, Aniou, Poictou, in France, betweene 
 46 and 49 degrees, so can they not so much differ 
 from the temperature of those countries: vnless 
 vpou the out coast lying open vnto the Ocean 
 and sharpe windes, it must in neede be subject to 
 more colde, then further within the laude, wher'^ 
 the mountaiues are interposed, as wallcs and bul- 
 warkes, to defende and to resiste the asperitie and 
 rigor of the sea and weather. — Some hold opinion, 
 that the Newfoundland might be the moresuiect 
 to cold, by how much it lyeth high and neere 
 Vflto the middle region. — 1 grant that not in 
 
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 Newfoundland alone, but in Germany, Italy, and 
 Afrike, euen vnder the Equiuoctiall line, the 
 mountaines are extreme cold, and seeldome un- 
 couered of snow, in their culme and highest t >ps, 
 which commeth to passe by the same reason hat 
 they are extended towards the middle region: 
 yet in the countries lying beneth them, it is found 
 quite contrary. Euen so all hils hauing their 
 discents, the valieis also and low grounds must be 
 likewise Lot or temperate, as the clime doeth giue 
 in Newfoundland : though I am of opinion that 
 the Sunnes reflecticji is much cooled, and cannot 
 be so forcible in the Newfoundland nor generally 
 throughout Amerin, as in Europe or Afrike : by 
 how much the Sui le in his diurnall course from 
 East to West, passeth ouer (for the most part) 
 dry land and sandy countries, before he arriueth 
 at the West of Europe or Afrike, whereby his mo- 
 tion increaseth heate,with little or no qualification 
 by moyst vapours. Where, on the contrarie, he 
 passeth from Europe and Afrike vnto America 
 ouer the Ocean, from whence it draweth and 
 carrieth with him abundance of moyst vapours, 
 which doe qualifie and infeeble greatly the 
 sunne's reuerberation vpon this countrey chiefly 
 of Newfoundland, being so much to the North- 
 ward Neuerthelesse (as I sayd before) the cold 
 cannot be so intollerable vnder the latitude of 
 46. 47 and 48. especiall within land, that it 
 should be unhabitable, as some doe suppose, see- 
 ing also there are very many people more to the 
 North by a great dcale. And in these South 
 
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 53 
 
 " partes there be certain beastes, Ouaces or Leo- 
 " pards, and birdes in like manner which in the 
 " Sommer we haue scene, not heard of in countries 
 " of extreme and vehement coldnesse. Besides as 
 " in the monethes of June, July, August, and Sep- 
 *' tember, the heate is somewhat more then in 
 England at those seasons: so men remaining 
 vpon the South parts neere vnto Cape Rece^ 
 " vntii after Hollandtide, haue not found the cold 
 " so extreme, nor much differing from the tempe- 
 " rature of England. Those which have arriued 
 *' there after Nouember and December haue found 
 " the snow exceeding deepe, whereat no maruaile, 
 " considering the ground upon the coast, is rough 
 " and vneuen, and the snow is driuen into the 
 " places most declyning, as the like is to be scene 
 " with vs. The like depth of snow happily shall 
 "■ not be found within land vpon the playner coun- 
 " tries, which also are defended by the mountaines, 
 " breaking off the violence of the winds and 
 " weather. But admitting extraordinary cold in 
 those South parts, aboue that with us here : it 
 cannot be so great as that in Swedland, much 
 " less, in Muscouia or Russia ; yet are the sfirov^ 
 countries very populous, and the rigor of cold 
 is dispensed with by the commoditie of Stoues, 
 warme clothing, meats and drinkes: all which 
 " neede not to be wanting in the Newfoundland, 
 " if we had intent there to inhabite. 
 
 " In the South parts we found no inhabitants, 
 " which by all likelihood haue abandoned those 
 " coastes, the same being so much frequented by 
 
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 Christians: But in the North are sauages alto- 
 gether harmlesse. Touching the commodities of 
 this countrie,seruing either for sustentation of in- 
 habitants^ or for maintenance oftraffique, there are 
 and may be made diuers : so and it seemeth Nature 
 hath recompenccd that only defect and incommo- 
 ditie of some sharpe cold, by many benefits : viz. 
 With Incredible quantitie, and no less varietie of 
 kindes offish in the sea and fresh waters, as Trouts, 
 Salmons, and other fish to us vnknowen: Also 
 Cod which alone drawetli many nations thither, 
 and is become the most famous fishing of the 
 world. Abundance of whales, for which also is 
 a very great trade in the bayes of Placentia, and 
 the Grand Bay, where is made trane oiles of the 
 whale. Herring, the largest that haue been heard 
 of, and exceeding the alstrond herring of Nor- 
 way : but hitherto was neuer benefit taken of the 
 herring fishing. There are sundry other fish 
 very delicate, namely the Bonito, Lobsters, Turbut, 
 with others infinite not sought after: Oysters 
 hauing pearle but not orient in colour : I tooke 
 it by reason they were not gathered in season. 
 " Concerning the inland commodities as wel to 
 be drawen from this land, as from the exceeding 
 large countries adioyning : there is nothing which 
 our east and northerly countries of Europe doe 
 yeelde, but the like also may be made in them as 
 plentifully by time and industrie : Namely, rosen 
 pitch, tarre, sope ashes, deel boord, mastes for 
 ships, hides, furres, flaxc, hempe, corne, cables, 
 cordage, linneu cloth, tnf^Ha,l», and many more. 
 
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 " All which the countries will aford, and the soyle 
 " is apt to yeelde. 
 
 " The trees for the most in those South parts, 
 are Firre trees. Pine and Cypresse, all yielding 
 Gumme and Turpentine. Cherrie trees bearing 
 fruit no bigger then a small pease. Also peare 
 trees, but fruitlesse. Other trees of some sorts 
 'to us unknowen. 
 
 " The soyle along the coast is not deepe of earth, 
 ' bringing foorth abundantly peason small, yet 
 good feeding for cattel. Roses, passing sweet, 
 ' like vnto our muske roses in forme, raspascs, a 
 berry which we call Harts, good and holesome 
 " to eat. The grasse and herbe doth fat shecpe in 
 " Tery short space, proued by English marchants 
 " which haue caried sheepe thither for fresh victuall 
 " and had them raised exceeding fat in lesse than 
 " three weekes. Peason which our countreymen 
 '* haue sowen in the time of May, haue come vp 
 faire, and bene gathered in the beginning of 
 August, of which our General! had a present ac- 
 ceptable for the rarenesse, being the first fruits 
 " coming vp by art and Industrie, in that desolate 
 " and dishabited land. 
 
 '* We could not obserue the hundredth part of 
 *' creatures in those vnhabited lands : but these 
 « mentioned may induce vs to glorifie the mag- 
 " nificent God, who hath superabundantly reple- 
 «' nished the earth with creatures seruing for the 
 " vse of man, though man hath not "vsed the fift 
 " part of the same, which the more doth aggrauate 
 " the fault and foolish slouth in many of our nation, 
 
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 " chusing rather to Hue indirectly, and very miae- 
 " rably to Hue and die within this realrae pestered 
 *' with inhabitants, then to aduenture as becommeth 
 *' men, to obtaine an habitation in those remote 
 lands, in which Nature very prodigaUy doth 
 minister vnto mens endeauours, and for art to 
 " worke vpon." 
 
 Mr. Chief Justice Forbes, in a Statement ad- 
 dressed to the Colonial Department, under date of 
 the 14th of August, 1822, writes— 
 
 '•' As a general remedy, whatever tends to revive 
 " the fisheries must also have the effect of relieving 
 the people. It were desirable that with the view 
 of opening some auxiliary employment to the 
 "inhabitants of Newfoundland, every restraint 
 " upon the cultivation of the soil should be re- 
 *' moved, and 'every encouragement given to the 
 breeding of sheep, cattle, and other live stock. 
 " The necessity of cultivating the soil, as an 
 auxiliary to the fishery, is not disputed, nor is 
 " there any existing law which prohibits it ; but 
 " there is none to encourage it; and there is still 
 ^' maintained in the island an ancient opinion, that 
 it is against the policy of Government— as if that 
 could be called policy, which, in a country over- 
 stocked with people, and distressed for food, 
 would prohibit so plain a dictate of natural law 
 " as that of raising subsistence from the earth. 
 
 " This cannot be, is not, the policy of the British 
 ** Government ; and nothing is wanting but a fair 
 " apprehension of the case to induce its enlightened 
 " rulers, not only to remove every shadow of ob- 
 
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 " struction from the cultivation of the soil, but to 
 " encourage and protect it by every means in their 
 *' power. To preserve the transient fishery has 
 " been found impracticable ; to attempt to revive 
 " it \vo"ild be to shut our senses against the light of 
 " rem n and the lessons of experience. As a broad 
 " proposition, it may be maintained that if the 
 " fishery were to be taken up as it is, de facto j and 
 " a system adapted to the present state of things, 
 " openly avowed and directly pursued by the local 
 " authorities, Newfoundland would become, what 
 " it ought to be, a prosperous settlement, subsisting 
 itself by internal resources, drawing its manufac- 
 tured supplies from the mother country, and re- 
 " paying her care by a valuable trade, and a nume- 
 rous race of seamen, trained for her service, and 
 ready to attend her first call in the di:fence of 
 " the empire." 
 
 The Committee of the Inhabitants of Newfound- 
 land in their Memorial to Lord Bathurst, dated the 
 6th of December, 1823, state tl^ — 
 
 ". Having endeavoured to trace the principal 
 " causes that have led to the present state of New- 
 ii foundland, they now beg to recommend to your 
 " Lordship such measures as they confidently hope 
 " if adopted, will lay the foundation of its future 
 ** prosperity, and make it a more valuable append- 
 " age to the empire. 
 
 " It is admitted by every person conversant with 
 ** the affairs of Newfoundland, that the trade and 
 " fisheries are not capable of affording employment 
 ** and subsistence to the large population that has 
 
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 58 
 
 ** grown up in the country. If not, it becomes a most 
 " important question. How are they to be supported ? 
 *' In reply, the Committee state, the soil affords 
 " ample means, and that it is only by its more ge- 
 *' neral cultivation the present population can be 
 **. maintained in the country. In Newfoundland 
 *l there are millioni of uncultivated acres, capable 
 *' of producing food for a population much greater 
 ''than it now contains. If agriculture were more 
 ^* generally encouraged, the country would afford 
 '" a comfortable settlement, not only tc the present 
 population, but to a great proportion of those 
 persons who now find their way to the United 
 ** Siiates. The Committee are aware a very general 
 *' opinion has prevailed^ tliat the produce of the 
 soil is not adequate to the labour and expense of 
 *' the cultivation, than which nothing can be more 
 " illfounded; as every day's experience most fully 
 ** disproves it. In no one instance where skill and 
 *' industry have been employed in improving or 
 " clearing the 8oil» have they failed amply to repay 
 ^^ the cultivator, in oppc^ition to the greatest ob- 
 " stacles, fine farms have been cleared and success- 
 " fully cultivated in the neighbourhood of St. 
 " John's, in Conception Bay, and in several other 
 ** parts of the island; manure can be obtained in 
 ** the country with very little trouble ; the offal of 
 " the fish mixed with the earth is found to answer 
 *' for all the purposes of husbandry ; at present, in- 
 stead of its being used for that purpose, the greater 
 partis thrown baek into the sea. With proper 
 ''attention, inost of the natural productions of 
 
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 " England can be brought to perfection in this 
 " country. It is only on the margin of the coast 
 " that cultivation has been attempted, the interior 
 *' remains unexplored, and there can be but very 
 '* little doubt, that there are many parts of the in- 
 ** terior more favourable to agriculture : it is found 
 " that the soil at the head of the large bays, which 
 
 run a considerahle distance into the country, is 
 " much more luxuriant and productive than that 
 " close to the ocean. As a proof of the advantages 
 " of cultivation, the Committee would only refer to 
 " the respective situations of the labouring classes ; 
 " the few, who even in he present backward state 
 " of agriculture, attended to their little farms, are 
 " in a comfortable situation, at least beyond want ; 
 
 while those who exclusively turned their labour 
 
 towards the fisheries are very little removed from 
 " pauperism. 
 
 " Persons most obstinately opposed to the possi- 
 " bility of advantageously employing the soil of 
 " Newfoundland for the purposes of husbandry, ad- 
 "mit that it is particularly favourable to the 
 " growth of potatoes and other esculent roots ; an 
 " increase from tv/elve to twenty fold is the usual 
 ** produce from the cultivation of the potatoe, and 
 " the quality not inferior to that of any other 
 '' country. With proper encouragement a suffi- 
 ** cient quantity could be raised, which, with the 
 " abundance of fish to be had on every part of the 
 " coast, would supply the labouring classes with a 
 '' wholesome nutritious food, which being a pro- 
 " duce of their own labour, would make them inde- 
 
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 " pendent of foreign supplies, at least for the neces- 
 " saries of life. 
 
 " The causes which operated in the early stages 
 of the fishery to prevent the cultivation of the 
 soil, have long since passed av^^ay, and it is now 
 "as much the interest of the merchant, as it is of 
 *f the more resident part of the community, that 
 " every just encouragement should be given to the 
 improvement and cultivation of the soil. The 
 " interest of all classes are the same ; the prosperity 
 " of the one naturally leads to the prosperity of the 
 " other. 
 
 " If the great body of the people of Newfound- 
 " land remain ii: their present state of beggary 
 " and want, it is an illusion if the trading part 
 " of the community expect to be much better in 
 " their condition. To enable the people to buy 
 " and pay for their goods, a proportion of their 
 " labour must be turned into some more produc- 
 "' tive channels than the fisheries can afford. The 
 ' experience of the last eight years ought to be 
 " sufficient to convince the few merchants who re- 
 " main in the country, and who were able to stem 
 " the overwhelming torrent which brought de- 
 " struction on so many respectable houses, that the 
 "trade and fisheries of the country are not alone 
 " adequate to the support of the people, and if they 
 " follow up the old system of supplying in the 
 *' fishery, their ruin is equally certain. 
 
 " To enable the merchants of Newfoundland to 
 " cope with their rivals in foreign markets, fish 
 " must becatched at much less expense than hither- 
 
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 61 
 
 " to, which cannot be done as long as every thing 
 *' necessary for the maintenance of the people must 
 " be imported from distant countries. By the more 
 " general cultivation of the soil, the people would 
 " be enabled to raise a great proportion of their 
 " food ; it would afford profitable employment for 
 that part of the population which cannot be era- 
 ployed in the fishery ; and it would be far the 
 most eff'ectual and best auxiliary to it. It is well 
 
 " worth the trial. 
 
 "The Committee, therefore, recommend this 
 " most important subject to the consideration of 
 " your Lordship ; and they again repeat, that it is 
 by a more general cultivation of the soil alone, 
 that the present population can be supported in 
 
 "the island." 
 
 The honourable Judge Des Barres, at a public 
 dinner, given to him at Harbour Grace, in Novem- 
 ber 1827, in returning thanks to the company, on 
 his health being drank, adverted to the internal im- 
 provement of the country in the following words : 
 
 « I approve of agriculture, as forming one of 
 ''the best auxiliaries tothe trade and fisheries; the 
 « soil and climate seem good, and not inferior to 
 " those of Scotland, for it has been abundantly 
 
 proved that wheat can be raised amongst us with 
 
 much facility. If agriculture were extensively pur- 
 "sued, not only would population increase,but also 
 « would the price of labour be enhance : ; those, 
 " therefore, who advocate the improvement of the 
 "soil are our best friends, and likely to produce the 
 
 most permanent benefits. If," said the honorable 
 
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 judge, " my opinion be asked, I nuiRt say, make 
 "roads, and give free grants of land: flic former 
 *' might be easily aceomplished, if the inhabitants 
 " would resolutely co-operate." 
 
 The opinion of the learnv^J and honorable judge 
 is entitled to great consideration. He was born in 
 one of the neighbouring colonies, of which his fa- 
 ther was the governor, where he not only rendered 
 important services to the crown, but also essentially 
 promoted the agriculture and internal improvement 
 of the country under his jvovernment, as well as the 
 neighbouring colonies ; in which the learned judge 
 is the proprietor of extensive estate? ; and, conse- 
 quently, no man is better qualified to form a cor- 
 rect judgment on the relative qualities of the soil 
 and climate of Newfoundland,compared with them. 
 
 The opinions of his Excellency the present 
 Governor of Newfoundland, are no doubt for- 
 warded to the office for the Colonial Department, 
 and I have little doubt but they are in substance 
 the same as the opinions that I have stated. It is 
 rather a curious " coincidence," that the represen- 
 tations of the present day are in effect the same as 
 those which were made by almost the first persons 
 that visited the island ; but it is easily accounted 
 for, when it is considered that those representations 
 were made by persons whose judgment was not 
 warped or influenced by cupidity or monopoly. 
 
 But, Sir, if there was not one opinion on the 
 subject, I have facts to bring forward that must set 
 the matter at rest ; for one fact proves more 
 than a thousand ojiinions. Large farms have been 
 
 I 
 
63 
 
 successfully cultivated in all parts of the island, 
 north and so th in St. George's Bay, in Fortune 
 Bay, in Placentia Bay, in r\ Mary's Bay, in 
 Trepassey Bay, and Ferryland, near all the har- 
 bours between Ferryland and St. John's, in the 
 neighbourhood of St. John's, all along to the north 
 of St. John's, very extensively in Conception Bay, 
 in Torbay, Bell Isle, and in every other part of the 
 island, where population has increased; and I do 
 not hesitate to state, that in no single instance, 
 where industry and care have been employed in 
 clearing and cultivating the soil, has it failed in 
 amply repaying- all the labour and trouble employed 
 upon it. All this cultivation has grown up in 
 Newfoundland, not under the fostering protection 
 of the laws, but in direct opposition to them, for, 
 until the commencement of the new era, and under 
 the present Governor, the restrictions on the im- 
 provement of the soil were almost equal to a pro- 
 hibition, as I have before proved. 
 
 Last year, H. Thomas, Esq. of St. John's, cleared 
 from the wood and cultivated eighty acres, and had 
 an excellent crop of turnips off forty acres. There is 
 a farm to the south west of St. John's, where the 
 proprietor feeds upwards of forty head of horned 
 cattle, and a great many sheep and horses, and cuts 
 upwards of 120 tons of hay, yearly ;* and such is 
 
 * It has becu said, by the author of the " enlarged view," 
 that it is only round St. John a, the capital, that any thing like 
 cultivation has taken place j now the fact is, that the farms in 
 the outports are many of them far superior to any near bt. 
 John's, and for this reason, that the soil is generally better. 
 
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 the richness of the soil, tliat he has no occasion to 
 use manure for his meadows. There are in other 
 parts of the island, farnis on a very large scale, and, 
 I am assured from indisputable authority, thai *hc 
 land in St. George's Bay is naturally so excellent 
 as scarcely to require manure. 
 
 The last example I shall give of the advantages 
 of cultivation is, that after the ruinous years of 
 1815, 1816, and 1817, which brought many of 
 the mercantile houses to bankruptcy, and caused 
 those merchants who were able to stem the ruinous 
 torrent which rushed upon them after the treaties 
 with the French and Americans came into opera- 
 tion, by which far the best portion of the fish- 
 eries were ceded to them, to reverse the system 
 which themselves and their ancestors had pursued 
 for centuries, of supplying the people with food, 
 clothing, and every necessary ; they found that the 
 produce of the labour of the people waL inadequate 
 to repay them for their advances, and at once shut 
 the door of their warehouses, refusing them even 
 bread; and no other alternative appeared to the un- 
 happy people but to abandon the country of their 
 forefathers, Oi starve. At this mome^it of horror, a 
 few benevolent individuals came promptly forward, 
 soothed the despair of the p^^ople; pointed out to 
 them that their calamities might be averted, and 
 a future recurrence of such misery prevented by the 
 cultivation of the soil. They not only gave them 
 the advice, but also the means of carrying it into 
 effect, by liberally subscribing to procure seeds, and 
 implements. The " Society for the Improvement of 
 
65 
 
 the Condition of the Poor" at St. John's, and an- 
 other Society, of both of which I am proud io say I 
 have the honour to be a member, were amongst the 
 foremost upon the occasion. The poor people, in 
 consequence, returned to their homes, animated by 
 tl ..if hopes, and witli a firm determination to de- 
 pend in future on their own industry, and not on the 
 capricious will of tiiose, who, after having glutted 
 themselves on their labour, deserted them in the 
 
 hour of need. 
 
 That benevolent hand which " tempers the wind 
 to the shorn lamb," crowned their labours with suc- 
 cess. Those who attended to the advice are now 
 in a state of independence ; and instead of being 
 compelled to receive, in return for the produce of 
 their fishing voyages, slops, and often unwhc ; 
 provisions, at whatever price the merchant,, -ui- 
 posed upon them, they now demand and receive 
 payment mcflsA, with which they are enabled to 
 purchase necessaries at the lowest rate, and are 
 as independent as the merchants themselves. 
 
 I possibly cannot illustrate the truth of the doc- 
 trine I am endeavouring to support more forcibly, 
 than by relating the case of an oM man, who emi- 
 grated to Newfoundland from Somersetshire up- 
 wards of seventy years ago, and over whose head up- 
 wards of a century has now pasjed, he informed me 
 that he was mov/ing in a field in England with his 
 father when they receiv . the news of the great 
 Battle of Fontenoy, and he was at that time up- 
 wards of twenty-one years of age. It is unneces- 
 sary for me to repeat the vicissitudes he experienced 
 
 i*\ 
 
 |: 
 

 I 
 
 60 
 
 during his long sojourn in NewfoUiidland. The 
 fishery appeared to be the barometer which regu- 
 lated his happiness or misery; if it was successful, 
 he rioted in profusion — if the reverse, he endured 
 misery and want. At the period I am now 
 speaking of, he was, with a grand-daughter, and 
 a number of her small children, reduced to a 
 state of the greatest misery and distress. He 
 disclosed his situation to a gentleman of St. John's, 
 who gave him at once relief for the immediate 
 necessities of himself and family, and at the 
 same time asked him if he had not a small 
 grant of land from Sir Richard Keates, auv^ 
 why he did not endeavour to cultivate it ? The 
 eld man replied, that he had the land, and 
 though old, was still pble and willing to work, 
 but he had not the means. The gentleman im- 
 mediately to'd him he would provide him the 
 means of doing so ; he gave him a barrel of po- 
 tatoes, and procured him another from the bene- 
 volent Irish Society. The old man procured one 
 more by some other means. He planted them on 
 his land, and after using a considerable quantity of 
 the produce during the autumn, he put into his 
 cellar forty-five baireis for his winter support, a 
 part of his family were enabled to prosecute tha 
 fisher}^ by which means a sufficient quantity offish 
 and other little necessaries were procured, and 
 from that hour famine and necessity have been 
 strangers to his humble cottage ! — I am not at 
 liberty to mention the gentleman's name, but he 
 alone knows the heartfelt gratification he expe- 
 

 67 
 
 Fenced when passing by the cottage of this good 
 old mail ; be beheld him cheerful and happy, sup- 
 ported by bin grand daughter, surrounded by lier 
 children, basking in the sunshine of comfort and 
 of plenty, with a moral certainty of never again 
 suffering those dreadful calamities to which they 
 had so nearly fallen victims. If I can form a just 
 estimate that gentleman's feelings, he would not 
 barter the delight he t .periencedon witnessing thti 
 happiness he bad Cicated, for all the wealth of all 
 the monopolists. 
 
 I understand there are now five hundred appli- 
 cations for land on the governor's list, which he 
 has not yet had tii.^e to attend to, so numerous 
 were the previous ones ; and I have no hesitation in 
 otatii. r, that if one or two main roads were made 
 through the country, that the applications for land 
 would increase in a ten-fold proportion and that 
 in less than twenty years the populatio vi'ould in- 
 crease almost in the same degree. 
 
 It is vvithin the recollection of myself, and many 
 respectable gentlemen now in this country, and 
 cotemporaries of mine at Newfoundland little 
 more than ten \ears ago, that if a piece of fresh 
 beef or mutton was required to " smoke upon the 
 board" on a Sunday, or some other gala day, that 
 we had tc^ solicit the butcher some days before it was 
 wanted, to oblige us with it as a favour, and when 
 he was kind enough to do so, we had to pay at the 
 rate of from 28. 3(1. to 2s. 9d. per pound. Milk, 
 vegetables, potatoes, &c. were equally scarce, and 
 more than proportionally dear. I have known half- 
 
 ^• 
 
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 ■iiiiili 
 
 ^-aypB-cta^apfg^ 
 
68 
 
 ill '! 
 
 II 
 
 »-crown paid for a cabbage ! In ihc year 1816, 
 English potatoes were sold after the rate of 35s. per 
 barrel, equal to 'bout 20s. per 1001b.!! What 
 is the state of the case at present? Beef, veal, 
 mutton, and lamb, will be contracted, to be de- 
 livered, at from 6d. to Id. per pound, all the year 
 round ; and at some seasons fresh beef is not more 
 than from 4rf. to bd. per pound. Potatoes of the 
 best description, the produce of the island, are 
 freely offered by the farmers at 4s. and 5s. per bar- 
 rel. Fresh butter, eggs, poultry, and other farm 
 stock, is nearly as cheap at St. John's as in many 
 parts of Ireland, and at least 25 per cent, cheaper 
 than in London. 
 
 I possibly cannot close this chapter upon the 
 agricultural capability of Newfoundland in a more 
 convincing manner, than by relating an anecdote of 
 a late governor of Newfoundland ; and as it was told 
 me by a gentleman who sometimes resides not a 
 hundred miles from the Colonial Office, I can refer 
 you to him for its correctness ; he is a gentleman 
 o^ really " enlarged views" respecting the colonies. 
 
 His Excellency being in the habit of frequently 
 seeing this gentleman, and often conversing with 
 him about the climate and soil of Newfoundland, 
 which he represented as incapable of producing 
 the fruits of the earth as the flagged pave- 
 ment of a London street, so often, that at length it 
 became an *' oft told tale." One day he enter- 
 tained him with an account of a dinner he had 
 given at the government house, in honour of some 
 public day, to the officers, civil and military, and 
 
69 
 
 the principal merchants of St. John's. He gave a 
 most favourable account of the richness of the beef, 
 the delicacy of the veal, the venison-like fla- 
 vour of the mutton ; and the fatness of his ducks, 
 geese, and turkeys, and affirmed that his green peas, 
 and cauliflowers, his melons, grapes.and other fruits, 
 were most excellent. *' And where did your Ex- 
 cellency procure all these luxuries, the very thoughts 
 of which are enough to distil water from the mouth 
 of f* London alderman", enquired the gentleman ? 
 *' Why from my own farm yard and garden, to be 
 sure," replied the governor. *'And is this the 
 country your Excellency has so often represented 
 as barren, and incapable of bringiijg forth the most 
 common productions of the earth I I could not 
 provide my table better from the London Markets ** 
 His Excellency did not again, in his subsequent 
 visits, favour this gentleman with any more accounts 
 of the barren nature of the soil of Newfoundland. 
 
 The fourth objection, comes from the friends 
 to improvement in Newfoundland, who are ap- 
 prehensive that if a representative body was es- 
 tablished that the mercantile interest would pre- 
 ponderate, and that the evil of mercantile influ- 
 ence would be increased. — I. think a little calm re- 
 flection will be sufiicient to convince those persons 
 that there is no ground whatever for their appre- 
 hension. There is no doubt but in any assembly 
 that could be collected at Newfoundland, there 
 would be a preponderance of mercantile influence ; 
 merchants, or persons connected wiih trade, would 
 no doubt form five-sixths of the whole body ; and 
 
 II f 
 
 i 1 
 
 w ■ 
 
 II 
 
 *v-^ 
 
70 
 
 f 1 
 
 i 
 
 their first object would be to foster and encoun.gc 
 the trade and fisheries ; this would be a paramount 
 consideration; but does it follow that they ire to in- 
 jure the other interests of the country by doing so ? 
 Far from it. The interest of trade, and the true in- 
 terest of agriculture, go hand in hand, and I think 
 it can be made appear as clear as that two and two 
 make four, that any measure calculated to improve 
 the trade and fisheries must, as a matter of course, be 
 equally advantageous to agriculture, and every 
 other interest conr. acted with it. If there are men 
 whose minds are so constituted, as only to see 
 that they cannot improve their own condition 
 but by sacrificing the interest and happiness of 
 others, they are only fit for ages long gone by ; they 
 should domicile themselves under the happy sway 
 of the " beloved Ferdinand," or, if they wish to 
 go further, they may become denizens of the 
 Cham of Tartary, or the Dey of Algiers, for I am 
 quite sure they will not find a community of feel- 
 ing amongst the subjects of our enlightened and 
 beloved sovereign. But admitting, for the sake of 
 argument, that the persons sent forward to the as- 
 sembly wculd end'^avour to sacrifice the other in- 
 terests of the country, would they have thv power 
 to do so ? Certainly not. All the harm they could 
 do would be of a negative quality; they may prevent 
 good, but they cannot do evil. It is not to be sup- 
 posed that any partial measure, passed by them, 
 would receive the sanction of the Governor and his 
 council, or of his Majesty's Government. But, as 
 as I stated before, (here will bo no cause for alarm ; 
 
mtTSiL .rsss ...■^.:.^ 
 
 
 71 
 
 when people meet together for the public good, 
 there is no doubt but there will be a preponderance 
 of good feeling and sound principles, to overrule 
 any petty particular interests. It has been objected 
 against the House of Assembly at Nova Scotia, that 
 the greatest portion of the members are landed pro- 
 prietors and farmers ; yet, notwithstanding, we find 
 those persons passing laws for encouraging the trade 
 and fisheries of the province, as they plainly see that 
 by doing so they promote their own interest. By 
 the last packet from Halifax we find the local as- 
 sembly busily employed p^issing laws for the en- 
 couragement of agriculture and roads, and at the 
 same time, granting out of the revenue of the 
 province the sum of 5000Z.as a bounty to the curers 
 of merchantable fish, that is fish of a superior qua- 
 lity, suitable for the South American market, and 
 which the merchants of Halifax have been in the 
 habit of purchasing at Newfoundland. The legis- 
 lature of Nova Scotia, though chiefiy agriculturists, 
 have the good sense to perceive that they cannot 
 more efi'ectually promote their own interests than 
 by giving every encouragement to trade; they 
 know, what every reflecting man must be convinced 
 of, that agriculture could not advance beyond the 
 pastoral, or first stages, were it not for the support 
 of trade— it gives value to the produce of agricul- 
 ture, and agriculture, in return, gives life and 
 animation to trade— the former is the body, 
 the latter the soul. If this act of the colonial 
 legislature of Nova Scotia, coupled with tne 
 advantages which the Americans and French 
 
 mi 
 
 i I 
 
 

 ,ii 
 
 
 I! I 
 
 1 1 
 
 nil 
 
 '1 
 
 enjoy by bounties and other means, do not open 
 the eyes of the merchants and others interested 
 in the prosperity of Newfoundland, and prove 
 the necessity of a similar authority to foster our 
 own resources, which only want fair play, their eyes 
 must be obscured with a darkness more fatal to 
 that colony than the darkness of the grave. 
 
 The case at present stands thus ; — The French 
 have the best part of the coast of Newfoundland 
 to fish on, ceded to them by treaty ; they have the 
 advantages of cheap labour, and cheap supplies. 
 The French government grants a large bounty for 
 every quintal of fish caught, and for every man em- 
 ployed in the fishery. The Americans have a common 
 right of fishery with the English, with cheap sup- 
 plies, and also a bounty from the government. 
 The fishermen of the neighbouring colonies have 
 also the advantage of fishing on our coast; they 
 are supplied with the produce of their own farms, 
 along with which the local governments give boun- 
 ties. What a contrast does Newfoundland offer ? 
 obliged to iinport from distant parts of the world 
 nearly all the supplies necessary for the fishery; 
 without bounties or other encouragement from 
 the Parent Country, and without a local govern- 
 meiit to afibrd its fosterin-p; protection. Is it, I ask, 
 in the nature of things, that Newfoundland can 
 resist such fearful and powevhil competitors ? 
 
 I now come to the Jlftl , nd last objection, 
 TJbat Colonial Assemblies have been found trouble- 
 some and inconvenient, from the contentions be- 
 tween them and the Governors, and that it is pro- 
 
73 
 
 blematical whether Local Assemblies have been ad- 
 vantages or evils wliere they have been established. 
 
 These are arguments that mean a great deal, or 
 they mean nothing. While men's minds are con- 
 stituted as they are at present, and until they arc 
 changed by a fiat of the Deity, they will be influ- 
 enced by the passions tliat agitate them ; their in- 
 terests and prejudices, and I hope a desire to promote 
 the happiness of mankind w^ill direct their con- 
 duct. So long as these various motives govern the 
 minds of men, so long will they come in collision j 
 and there is, in my opinion, no remedy for the evil, in 
 a general sense, but for mankind to throw themselves 
 at the feet of absolute despotism, and submit with- 
 out murmur or complaint to its capricious will : 
 this is a state of degradation that few would be 
 induced to submit to ; and I am sure the angry 
 strife between authority grasping at additional 
 power, and the people endeavouring to restrain it, 
 is a state of things, with all its inconveniences, 
 much to be preferred It has always been the com- 
 plaint of power, that the people were infringing on 
 its prerogative ; but a very little acquaintance with 
 the history of the world must convince the most 
 transient observer that, in the struggle, the people 
 have, with very few exceptions, '* few and far be- 
 tween," been the vanquished party. At length 
 they are obtaining the vantage ground — "the 
 School-masters are abroad" — and men in authority 
 will not, in the present c' «y, *' play such tricks before 
 high heaven" as they Uid in the days of chivalry, 
 which, thank God, are gone by, and for ever. 
 
 ■ 
 
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 1: 
 
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 ii^ 
 
 •4; 
 
 , ^' 
 
 ^ 
 
J«''i 
 
 ii' 
 
 There is no science so essential to the happiness 
 of mankind as the science of legislation; and 
 none in which less improvement has been made ; 
 but the rapid advances in every other, has 
 dragged along even that sluggish science on the 
 high road to improvement. Whether the establish- 
 ment of local representative Governments have 
 been an improvement in legislation, or an advan- 
 tage to the people oi the colonies, they are them- 
 selves the best judges, and I think it would be 
 difficult to convince them to the contrary ; and if 
 we put in the opposite scale, the evil of the many 
 differences that have unfortunately arisen, I am 
 sorry to say too frequently, between the colonists 
 and the governors, there can be little doubt which 
 would preponderate. I am quite certain that in 
 the differences that have existed, and do still exist 
 between the colonists and the governors, there has 
 been, and are, faults on both sides. At the same time 
 I do not hesitiiLC to lay it down as a broad propo- 
 sition that if the governors of his Majesties colo- 
 nies, of the present and former days, only evinced 
 the same desire and anxiety to do justice to the 
 peoph under their respective governments, as bis 
 Majesty's ministers do to promote the interest and 
 happiness of the people of these countries, that 
 those colonies which are now separated for ever 
 from the British crown, would form a component 
 part of the empire, and a murmur of complaint 
 would not be heard from any of the others. 
 
 I am fully of opinion that it was the influence of 
 the local assemblies on the colonies that eave vi- 
 
75 
 
 goiir and life to the respective governments, and 
 which laid the foundation of their improvement and 
 prosperity on a solid basis. The animating and 
 vivifying breath of the peopl.; is as necessary for the 
 health of the political body, as air is to the natural 
 body— death ensues if you stop the current of the 
 one, and what is a thousand times worse than 
 death, despotism and arbitrary power ensue if you 
 stop the current of the other. It is the extreme of 
 folly to suppose that until the people of Newfound- 
 land have a legitimate share in its government that 
 much progress cnn be made in improvement. I 
 will not go so far as to say, that if a local assembly 
 is formed in Newfoundland, circumstances may 
 not arise to cause differences between the assem- 
 blies of the people and the government, but I will 
 say that the same elements of strife do not exist at 
 Newfoundland as in other colonies. 
 
 I think, if it should please his Majesty's govern- 
 ment to establish something in the semblance of a 
 legislative assembly, that by appointing, perma- 
 nently, the salaries of the Governor, the Judges, 
 and other principal Officers of the Crown, one 
 chief cause of the bickerings in the other co- 
 lonies would be prevented, and all danger of 
 disputes on private grounds, which too often 
 are the secret springs, would be as much as 
 possible done away with. Tlie present revenue of 
 the country could be established on a permanent 
 footing, and I believe it would be quite adequate for 
 that purpose ; and let the assembly have power, in 
 the usual way, to raise and expend money for the 
 
 1.. 
 
 !i 
 
 ilj I SI 
 
77 
 
 '1 1- 
 
 in 
 
 ^1 
 
 76 
 
 general improvement of the country. In new coun- 
 tries, where there are not those hereditary props to 
 the just authorilvo^the crown, it would be desirable 
 to make it properly independent of the other au- 
 thority, and I approve of it the more because I 
 think it would afford much greater security to the 
 people; I am one, that at the same time that I am 
 enthusiastically attached to the people's rights, am 
 of opinion that the constitutional prerogatives of 
 the crown is one of their greatest bulwarks. I am 
 as strongly opposed to democratic tyranny as to any 
 other. Despotism in whatever shape or form it 
 may appear, is equally to be abhored ; no matter 
 whether it appears in the form of the thirty tyrants 
 of Athens, the ten of Rome, or the five hundred of 
 France '; in the deep toned cruelty and hypocrisy of 
 Cromwell, or in an attempt to establish those prin- 
 ciples which caused the contemptible race of the 
 Stewart's justly to be hurled from the throne. If I 
 should unfortunately be driven to a choice of ty- 
 rants, I shall prefer the tyranny of the one to the 
 tyranny of the many ; humanity may possibly in- 
 fluence the former, but it never moves the bowels 
 of the latter. 
 
 The inhabitants of Newfoundland are desirous to 
 give every support to the prerogative of the crown, 
 for they have often had much cause to seek protec- 
 tion under its wing — to " fly from petty tyrants to 
 the throne." It possibly would be worthy of con- 
 sideration, whether, if the legislative council that 
 would be necessary under the constitutional system, 
 should not, instead of being appointed by the go- 
 
 t 
 
tt 
 
 €€ 
 
 tt 
 
 te 
 
 tt 
 
 77 
 
 vernor, be elected by a certain class of the people; 
 The mode proposed by Mr. Fox, when Mr. Pitt's 
 Canada Bill was discussed in the house of Com- 
 mons, May 11, 1791. 
 
 " Property," Mr. Fox said, •' was and had ever 
 " been held to be the true foundation of aristo- 
 cracy ; when ho used the word aristocracy.he did 
 not mean it in the odious sense of aristocrat, as 
 it had been lately called, with that he had no- 
 " thing to do. He meant it in its true sense, as an 
 " indispensably necessary part of a mixed govern- 
 **ment, under a free constitution. Instead, there- 
 *' fore, of the king's naming the council at that dis- 
 tance, in which case they had no security that 
 persons of property, and persons fit to be named^ 
 " would be chosen — wi ' 'ng, as he did, to put the 
 '' freedom and stability Oi the constitution of Ca- 
 " nada on the strongest basis — he proposed that the 
 " council should be elective. But how elective ? 
 " Not as the members of the House of Assembly 
 " were intended to be, but upon another footing: 
 " he proposed that the members of the council 
 " should not be eligible to be elected unless they 
 " possessed qualifications infinitely higher than 
 " those who were eligible to be chosen members of 
 ** the House of Assembly ; and in like manner the 
 electors of the members of Council must possess 
 qualifications also proportionably higher than 
 'f those of electors to representatives in thellouse of 
 " Assembly. By this means," Mr. Fox said, ''they 
 *' would have a real aristocracy, chosen by persons 
 *' of property from among persons of the highest 
 
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 tt 
 
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 M i 
 
»«M«KlMiliHMi!«, 
 
 *' property, and who would thence necessarily pos- 
 " 8C89 that weight, influence, and indepcndcncyi 
 *' from which alone could be derived a power of 
 'f guarding against any innovations that might be 
 ** made either by the people on the one part, or the 
 i' crown on the other." 
 
 This recommendatioLi of Mr. Fox laiay appear at 
 first sight as interfering with the prerogative ; but 
 I am much in error if it would not give i more 
 healthy vigour. According to the present system, 
 throughout the colonies, I believe the legis'ative 
 couDcila are virtually appointed by the governors ; 
 they, not having an opportunity of knowing much of 
 their character, very often appoint incompetent per- 
 sons, who, being in some degree their creatures, 
 imagine it to be their duty to support every measure 
 that the governors may wish to propose; they 
 are not sufficiently independent, and they are so 
 diametrically constituted to the popular branch, 
 that I think it is out of the course of things ihat 
 they can act in unison. And I question much whe- 
 ther the present plan of appointing the legislative 
 councils throughout the colonies is not the real secret 
 why so many disputes have arisen between the gover- 
 nors and the assemblies. I do not presume to oflfer 
 this plan to supersede the present ; I merely state 
 the opinion of Mr. Fox on the subject, and I can- 
 not help thinking that it is an opinic: worthy jf 
 that great and good states.nau.* 
 
 * Mr. Fox, during the discussion on the Canada bill, strongly 
 recoinniended that (Tppcr a?id Lower Canada should be placed 
 under one government, but hn was opposed by Mr. Burke, 
 with his chivalry and icudalisu^. Had this measure been 
 
79 
 HaviIl^ endeavoured to reply to the principal 
 argu •fc.iis raised against the establishment of a 
 constitutional local government at Newfoundland, 
 I shall conclude by endeavouring to prove the 
 justice, the necessity, and the policy of the mea- 
 sure. 
 
 adopted, it would have been a bene'at to both, and would, no 
 doubt, have been submitted to by the Canadians without hesita- 
 tion } but what was then wisdom, under existing circum- 
 stanced would be the extreme of folly to attempt. The 
 measuie, in the abstract, may be on sound principles, but if op- 
 posed, even by the prejudices of the Canadians, it would be un- 
 wise to press it; for, as far as I am capable of judging, there is 
 no portion of his majesty's subjects, in the colonies, more loyal, 
 or attached, from principle, to the British Government, than 
 the French Canadians ; and they gave so many splendid ex- 
 amples, during the last American War. of their loyalty and at- 
 tachment, that I think there cannot be a reasonable doubt on the 
 subject. The governor of that day, to whom, I verily believe, 
 the preservation of Canada is to be attributed, acted on the 
 very reverse of the system of the present government ; he 
 attached himself to the prevailing interest of -he country he 
 governed, and, in return, the people rallied round him, and 
 bravely fought in defence of their kin- and their country. If 
 I was asked to account for the infatuated conduct of the 
 executive in Canada, for the last few years, judging from 
 their measures, 1 should say that instead of being paid fe>r 
 doing the king's business, they were bribed for promoting 
 what the Americans vainly atteuipted by their arms. I am 
 far from attributing much of the blame to the distinguished 
 officer who now goveras that country. Whilst governor oi Nova 
 Scotia, he was both a wise and a popular governor, and that pro- 
 vince is mn-h indebted to him for its agricultural aad other im- 
 provements. In consequence, I shall be .low to attach much of 
 the odium of his unsuccessful government to him, but I shall put 
 the saddle ou viie right horse, and say at once tVat it was the 
 council w!)^ led hira into error} they cannot see a jot beyond 
 their own petty, paltry, interests, and, i verily believe, they are 
 not capable of acting wisely, even by mistake. 
 
 ■t 
 
'il 
 
 mi 
 
 i 
 
 80 
 
 I am not at all apprehensive ihat those who are 
 acquainted with the history --f Newfoundland, down 
 to a very late period, will think my language too 
 strong, when I say, that the distant provinces of 
 Rome in her worst days, and under the most bar- 
 barous of her piietors, were not treated with more 
 injustice than Newfoundland has been for centu- 
 ries. The whole course of her unhappy history 
 presents a scene of oppression and petty tyranny I 
 sincerely and honestly believe not to be paralleled 
 in the history of either antient or modern despotism. 
 It was not one cruel prsetor, that at each period 
 ruled the country ; every Jittle town, every little 
 settlement, had not one, but twenty praetors, with 
 all the ferocity of more dignified tyrants, and even 
 with a more keen scent for prey and vengeance — 
 the consequence of having unlimited power, united 
 with irreclaimable ignorance. These persons ex- 
 ercised their power under the authority of the Star 
 chamber— of Charters without number — Orders in 
 Council — Rules and Regulations, and additional 
 Rules — and, lastly, under the Act of the 10th and 
 1 1th of William and Mary : the cry for justice 
 was continually raised by the unhappy people of 
 Newfoundland!, but it was drowned it* the deep 
 bosom of the ocean, before it reached the quar- 
 ter where hunu nity and justice are presumed to 
 dwell! • 
 
 In 1615, Captain Richard Whitburne was sent 
 out with a commission from the High Court of Ad- 
 miralty, authorizing him to impannel juries, and 
 make enquiry upon oath of sundry abuses, and dis- 
 
 f( 
 
 tc 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
81 
 
 orders committed every year, among the fishermen 
 upon that coast. 
 
 In the year 1650, the Council of State gave a 
 commission to John Treworgay, merchant, who was 
 then in the island, to order affairs there for the 
 best advantage of the state; which commission was 
 renewed in 1653. A commission was also obtained 
 in 1655 by Sir David Kirk (who had been one of 
 the grantees in the charter of 1628), together with 
 John Claypole, John Goffe, and others, but it does 
 not appear that any thing was done thereupon. 
 
 In 1667 the fishery of Newfoundland underwent 
 a more mature discussion than it seems before to 
 have received. In August of that year several 
 petitions were presented to the Privy Council from 
 the merchants, owners of ships, and other inhabi- 
 tants of Totness, Plymouth, Dartmouth, and places 
 adjacent, concerned in the trade. They stated that 
 
 several persr s, upon specious purposes, and for 
 
 sinister ends, were endeavouring to establish a 
 
 governor, which had always been pernicious to 
 
 the fishery." 
 
 In 1669, Captain Robert Robinson petitioned for 
 
 a governor. 
 
 In 1675 we find another petition '' for a governor 
 and government," but the merchants, and owners 
 of ships in the west of England, protested against a 
 settlement, together with what the petitioners could 
 allege in behalf of a colony. It was further stated 
 by these antient worthies, *• that besides the charge 
 '* of forts and a governor, which the fish trade 
 '* could not support, it was needless to hare any 
 
 t< 
 
 tc 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
 i I 
 
 I I 
 
 1 1 
 
 
 I 
 
I 
 
 82 
 
 *' such defence against foreigners, the coast being 
 '• defended in winter by the ice, and in summer by 
 " the resort of the king's subjects ; so that unless 
 " there were proper reasons for a colony there 
 *' could be none for a governor" 
 
 From these representations, their lordships pro- 
 posed, " That all plantations in Newfoundland 
 " should be discouraged, and that the western char- 
 " ter should be put in execution, by which all plan- 
 *« ters were forbid to inhabit within six miles of the 
 *' shore, from Cape Race to Cape Bonavista." 
 
 In 161^5 we 6nd Sir John Berry denouncing the 
 conduct of the adventurers, and most strongly re- 
 commending to His Majesty's Government the 
 establishment of a colony at Newfoundland. 
 
 In 1676, John Downing, an inhabitant of New- 
 foundland, petitioned the King against the ad- 
 venturers for pulling down the houses, and burn- 
 ing the stages of the planters, in order to drive 
 them out of the country. 
 
 In 1677, to bring this matter (a colony) into 
 full discussion, it was ordered by the King that 
 both the adventurers and planters should be heard 
 by their counsel, and thus was the questior. of the 
 convenience and the inconveniences solemnly ar- 
 gued before the Council. I shall pass over a great 
 variety of petitions and remonstrances, all tc the 
 same effect, and opposed by the same interest, and 
 shall confine myself to a very few, which, I con- 
 ceive, bear more immediately on the subject. 
 
 Mr. Reeves remarks—" In the year 1711, 1 find, 
 " what is called, a record of several laws and 
 
 re 
 
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 it 
 
 tr 
 
 *€ 
 
 t€ 
 
 tt 
 
 *t 
 
 rt 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
tt 
 
 tr 
 
 83 
 
 ** orders made at St. John's for the better disCt- 
 *' pline and good order of the people, and tr cor- 
 recting irregularities committed contrary to 
 good laws, and acts of parliaments, all which 
 " were debated at several courts held, wherein were 
 " present the commanders of .nerchant's ships, 
 " merchants, and chief inhabitants ; and witnesses 
 " being examined, it was brought to the following 
 " conclusion between the 23rd day of August and 
 " ^rd day of October, 1711. Then follow fifteen 
 " articles of regulation, that must have been very 
 " useful ; and it is worth considering whether such 
 " a local legislature, which the people seem in 
 " this instance to have created for themselves, 
 " might not legally be lodged somewhere, for 
 ''making bye-laws and regulations, as occasion 
 " should require. The commander Captain Crowe 
 presided at this volunta,.^ assembly. His suc- 
 cessor, it seems, followed his example, and held 
 i meeting of the same sort. These assemblies 
 '' were somewhat anomalous, a kind of legislative, 
 " judicial, and executive, all blended tog'e^^he. ; 
 *' anu yet perhaps not more mixed than I ^ iiro- 
 " ceedings of parliaments in Europe, in very early 
 *' times." 
 
 About the year 1728, we find a ^^ood govern- 
 ment for Newfoundland recommended, " so that 
 " the people may be governed as Biitcas, and not 
 *' like a banditti, or forsaken people." 
 
 I have quoted a number of authorities, but if. 
 Sir, yv J have a taste for antiqmiif's oi this descrip- 
 tion, you have only to re>iir to the archives of the 
 
 .* 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
 tt 
 
 
 fWJ 
 
i 
 I 
 
 84 
 
 Colonial Office, and, 1 think, scarcely a year has 
 elapsed for the last two hundred, that some repre- 
 sentation or another has not been made respecting 
 Newfoundland. 
 
 I sha'l now call your attention to some few re- 
 commendations and petitions, that have been made 
 at a much later date, for something like a Colonial 
 Local Government, on the principles of Represen- 
 tation. John Reeves, Esq, Chief Justice of New- 
 foundland in 1793, whose invaluable and impartial 
 History of its Government I have had so often 
 occasion to refer to in the course of this letter, and 
 who, you know. Sir, has not been celebrated for 
 recommending much extension of popular privi- 
 leges, suggests, whether '' a local legislation, which 
 " the people seem, in this instance, to have created 
 " for themselves, might not legally be lodged some- 
 " where for making bye-laws and regulations, as 
 " occasion should require." 
 
 Mr. Chief Justice Forbes, in 1823, recommended 
 something similar, in a communication to the Co- 
 lonial Office. 
 
 In 1821, petitions were presented by Lord Hol- 
 land in the House of Lords, and by Sir James 
 Mackintosh in the House of Commons, praying 
 for the same, out o^ which has arisen the late very 
 beneficial change iU the administration of justice. 
 
 In 1822, a Memorial was presented to Lord 
 Bathurst for the same object, from a Committee of 
 the inhabitants. 
 
 In 1823, another petition was signed by the in- 
 habitants, and the heads of a Bill drawn up at 
 
d 
 
 l- 
 
 it 
 
 85 
 
 Newfoundland, which was lodged in the Colonial 
 Office. 
 
 In the Act of 18^4 a clause was introduced, 
 empowering his Majesty to create corporations in 
 the principal towns in Newfoundland, which com- 
 pletely admits the principle. After a great deal of 
 discussion, and various meetings at St. John's, 
 for forming a plan of a local Government for that 
 town, which was opposed by many, in conse- 
 quence of being confined to that place alone, and 
 not including the whole island ; one was ulti- 
 mately arranged, and forwarded, through his Ex- 
 cellency the Governor, to the Secretary of State for 
 the Colonies, with his recommendation. Notwith- 
 standing which, no measures have been adopted 
 to carry it into eflfect by his Majesty's Govern- 
 ment. 
 
 On a review of these facts, I think. Sir, it must 
 be admitted that; if Newfoundland has not been 
 well governed, it is not for want of remonstrc*nces, 
 representations, and petitions from the inhabit- 
 ants. We find various measures recommended, 
 every one has his own nostrum. Do, Sir, for the 
 sake of justice and humanity, put an end to this 
 quackery; like a good physician, infuse a little 
 of the wholesome blood of the Constitution into 
 the government of that neglected country; let it no 
 longer be the theatre of experiments. If Mr. Ma- 
 ryatt had cause, and just cause, to complain in 
 the House of Commons, a few evenings since, of 
 the manner in which Trinidad has been treated, with 
 how much more justice has an advocate of New- 
 
 
 ! ; 
 
 'if 
 
86 
 
 foundland cause to complain ; and to nse the words 
 of the Hon. Member, I shaii say, let Newfoundland 
 " in future be a field for improvement, and cease to 
 be a field of experiment." And, Sir, great as your 
 fame is, important as the advantages are that you 
 have conferred on your country, and on mankind, 
 and it is only future ages that will be able to form 
 a just estimate of them. The giving to the people 
 of the oldest colony belonging to his Majesty, the 
 most faithful and the most important, the rights and 
 privileges of British subjects, will not be amongst 
 the least of the claims which you will have on 
 the applause and gratitude of posterity. 
 
 The expediency of granting to Newfoundland 
 any privilege calculated to draw forth into action 
 all the dormant energies of the country, must ap- 
 pear not only advantageous to the country itself, 
 but equally so to the parent state. This is a pro- 
 position laid down by yourself, in your Speech on 
 the Colonial Policy of the country, March 21st, 
 1825, wherein you say, " and I feel myself equally 
 " warranted, in my next inference, that whatever 
 ** tends to increase the prosperity of the colonies, 
 ** cannot fail in the long run to advance in equal 
 ** degree the general interests of the parent state." 
 If the truth of the doctrine is admitted, in reference 
 to the coloni^'S generally, surely it will not be 
 disputed, as respects Newfoundland, individually. 
 The trade, fishery, agriculture, and other interests of 
 the neighbouring colonies and countries, receive the 
 greatest support from their respective governments, 
 and they have prospered. It is not too much to say. 
 
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 tbat the same causes would lead to the same effects 
 in Newfoundland. The trade and fisheries, as well 
 as agriculture, require the aid of local laws, and 
 how, I would ask, is agriculture to improve 
 in a country, no matter how rich the soil, or 
 favourable the climate, without roads; yet at 
 this time of day, after three hundred years of 
 the mockery of legislation, there is not any 
 legal power in the governor, the magistrates, the 
 juries, or in any other authority i»i the island, to 
 make roads, or any other local improvement or 
 regulation. The improvements that have taken 
 place, have almost been effected by stealth, and in 
 opposition to the government. But the greatest part 
 of a country, competent to give employment and 
 support to millions of inhabitants, still remains in a 
 state of useless waste. The injury is not alone felt 
 by that neglected country, but it also reverts back 
 upon the parent state, and is in its consequences 
 more ruinous and alarming than, I fear, I shall be 
 able to make you. Sir, believe. But the facts that 
 I am about to state, and the conclusion I am about 
 to draw from them, can be easily enquired into ; 
 and if false or erroneous, can be exposed, with 
 very little trouble. 
 
 I state as a fact, that has appeared clear to every 
 intelligent man in Newfoundland, who ever gave 
 himself the trouble of making observations on the 
 subject, that that colony is a stepping-stone to the 
 United States of America; that in consequence of 
 the difficulties in the way of making settlements in 
 Newfoundland, the fishermen and other emigrants^ 
 
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 88 
 
 in a short time direct their course to the United 
 States, carry with them often the fruits of their 
 labour at Newfoundland; but always, what is 
 more important, the experience and knowledge 
 which they have gained from their employment 
 in the cod and seal fisheries ; thereby giving the 
 Americans all the advantages of men nursed in 
 our fisheries to prosecute their own, and, in case of 
 need, to man their navy. I am prepared to prove 
 that, for the last fifteen years, the great bulk of. 
 our fishermen, not less than from forty to fifty 
 thousand, have emigrated to America. In former 
 periods, the fishermen generally rcHirned to Great 
 Britain and Ireland ; but the tide has turned the 
 other way, and at present scarcely any return 
 to the parent country, except old or disabled per- 
 sons, to add to the mass of human misery and dis- 
 tress already existing. 
 
 The only remedy, and I think it is worth the 
 trial, to prevent our seamen and fishermen from 
 proceeding from Newfoundland to America, is to 
 give them the means of battlement by encouraging 
 the internal resources of the country,which can only 
 be done by giving due encouragement to agricul- 
 ture and roads, the first necessary step to improve- 
 ment in cultivation. 
 
 Khis Majesty's go\ ernment does not soon direct its 
 attention to this important subject, Ibeg to recom- 
 mend to them a preamble for their next Act of Par- 
 liament for Newfoundland, and instead of com- 
 mencing in the words of the 15th Geo. III. " That 
 the Newfoundland fisheries have been found to be 
 
89 
 
 the best nurseries for able and experienced seamen, 
 always ready to man the royal navy when occasion 
 requires, and it isof the highest national importance 
 to give all due encouragement to the said fisheries," 
 substitute the following:" That the Newfoundland 
 fisheries have been found the best nurseries for sea- 
 men to man the British navy, but as they are no 
 longer required for that purpose, be it enacted 
 that the advantages be now transferred to the 
 United States of America/' 
 
 Whatever appearance of reason there was at an 
 early period, and whilst the other provinces in 
 America remained true to their allegiance to the 
 British crown, to prevent cultivation and settle- 
 ment in Newfoundland, it exists no longer; it was 
 then unjust ; but at present, madness and folly is 
 added to injustice. No sooner was the flag of in- 
 dependence raised in America, than it was the ob- 
 vious interest of England to reverse the course of 
 her former policy towards Newfoundland ; to en- 
 courage settlement, to encourage agriculture, to 
 encourage the trade and fishery, by which means the 
 foundation of a naval power could be laid there su- 
 perior to any other that could be formed on that side 
 the Atlantic. Newfoundland is a country as large 
 as England, is situated nearly in the same position 
 with reference to the continent of America, as Eng- 
 land is to the continent of Europe ; it is an island that 
 can always be defended by a superior naval mrce ; 
 her shores are indented with harbours, some of the 
 finest in the world; with an iron-bound coast, is 
 the key of the St. Lawrence, and could command 
 
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 a great part of the American coast ; possessing more 
 of the elements of commerce than any other country 
 in North America, her fisheries the greatest in the 
 wcrld (only limited by the means of consumption), 
 the produce finding a market in every quarter of the 
 globe; her situation, placed midway between the old 
 and the new world, evidently points her out as the 
 porper emporium for the productions and commerce 
 of both, with a soil capable of giving sustenance to 
 millions of inhabitants, and a climate possibly more 
 favourable to the health of the human species than 
 most others on the face of the globe. With such 
 advantages, is it, I ask, too much for me to say,that 
 under the fostering care of a local government, 
 under the mighty shield of England's protection, 
 Newfoundland would in a short period become the 
 Holland of America. [^Note 1.] 
 
 The policy of granting to Newfoundland a con- 
 stitutional government I shall prove, chiefly from 
 authorities which the country looks up to, and 
 I trust ever will, with veneration and confidence. 
 My first shall be that great and good man, that 
 " statesman, yet friend to truth," whose name and 
 character is the property of posterity, and now, 
 when the political and angry contention of the 
 eventful period in which he lived has subsided, 
 no man will be found in this mighty empire 
 who has one spark of the Promethean fire of 
 the constitution animating his breast, who will not 
 mention his name with gratitude and respect. — 
 My second shall be yourself; and I do it with the 
 greatest* pleasure, as I find the statesman of 1625^ 
 
91 
 
 thougli belonging to a different party in the state, 
 uttering the same sentiments which brought down 
 upon the statesman of 1791 the obloquy, not only 
 of his political opponents, but of his oldest and his 
 dearest friend : but though those men in high 
 stations who make undeviating principle the guide 
 of their conduct, may be misrepresented and ma- 
 ligned by the corrupt and interested, yet their pure 
 and honourable motives will sooner or later shine 
 with redoubled splendour. I believe it is Sir 
 James Mackintosh who says that " in politics, as 
 well as in morals, there is a stern undeviating 
 principle which admits of no relaxation, that, in 
 politics, as in morals, a breach of a part is a 
 breach of the whole." A little reflection must 
 convince every man that the observation is as pro- 
 found as it is generous and noble. 
 
 During the first discussion on Mr. Pitt's celebrated 
 Canada Bill, Mr. Fox expressed himself as follows. 
 " He agreed with the Right Honorable Gentle- 
 " man, that it was impossible to concur in any 
 " plan like that proposed, until the Bill was be- 
 " fore the House, but he was willing to declare 
 " that the giving to a country, so far distant from 
 '^England, a legislature and the power of go- 
 "verning for itself, would exceedingly piepos- 
 " ses8 him in favour of every part of the plan. 
 "He did not hesitate to say, that if a local legisla- 
 "ture was liberally formed, that circumstance 
 " would incline him much to overlook defects in 
 "the other regulations, because he was convinced 
 " that the only means of retaining distant colonies 
 
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 " with advantage,wa3 to enable them to govern them- 
 " selves." 
 On the llth of May, he further said — 
 *' He trusted that the House would seriously con- 
 sider the [^articular situation of Canada ; it was 
 not to be compared to the Wes^ Indies, it was a 
 country of a different nature ; it did not consist 
 of a few white inhabitants, and a number of slaves, 
 " but it was a government of great growing popu- 
 " lation, which had increased very much, and which, 
 he hoped, would increase much more. It was a 
 country as capable of enjoying political freedom, 
 in its utmost extent, as any other country on the 
 face of the globe. This country was situated near 
 " the colonies of North America; all their animosi- 
 " ties and bitterness on the quarrel between them 
 " and Great Britain was now over, and he believed 
 there were very few people in those colonies who 
 ''Vt^uld not be ready to admit every person belong- 
 ing to this country into a participation of all 
 their privileges, and would receive them with 
 open arms. The governments now established in 
 " North America were, in his opinion, the best 
 " adapted to the situation of the people who lived 
 " under them, of any of the governments of the an- 
 " cient or modern world ; and when we had a colony 
 *' like this, capable of freedom, and capable of a 
 " great increase of population, it was material that 
 " the inhabitants should have nothing to look to 
 " among their neighbours to excite their envy. Ca- 
 " nada must be preserved in its adherence to Great 
 " Britain by the choice of its inhabitants, and it 
 
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 " could not possibly be kept by any other means ; 
 '* but it must be felt by the inhabitants that their 
 *' situation was not worse than that of their neigh- 
 " hours. He wished them to be in such a situation 
 " as to have nothing to envy in that part of the 
 " king's dominions. But this would never prove 
 " the case, under a bill which held out to them 
 •' something like the shadow of the British Consti- 
 " tution, but denied them the substance ; where the 
 principles of liberty were gaining ground, which 
 would increase in consequence of the general dif- 
 •' fusion of literature and knowledge of the world* 
 they should have a government as agreeable to the 
 general principles of freedom as was consistent 
 " with the nature of circumstances. He did not 
 think that the government intended to be esta- 
 blished by the bill would prove such a govern- 
 ment, and this was his principal motive for op- 
 posing it." 
 
 With respect to the mode of appointing the 
 council^ Mr. Fox said— 
 
 " That he would throw out generally his ideas as 
 " to the means of substituting what he could not but 
 *' conceive to be a better mode of appointing a 
 " council than the mode adopted in the clause as it 
 "stood. First, he laid it down, as a principle 
 " never to be departed from, that every part of the 
 " British dominions ought to possess a government 
 in the constitution of which, monarchy, aristo- 
 cracy, and democracy, were mutually blended and 
 *' united ; nor could any government be a fit one 
 *' for British subjects to live under which did not 
 
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 " contain its due weight of aristocracy, because that 
 " he considered to be the proper poise of the consti- 
 " tution,the balance that equaliaed and ameliorated 
 f the powers of the other two extreme branches, and 
 gave stability and firmness to the whole. It be- 
 came necessary to look what were the principles on 
 " which aristocracy was founded, and he believed it 
 would be admitted to him thatthey were two-fold; 
 namely, rank and property, or both united. In 
 " this country, the House of Lords formed thearis- 
 " tocracy, and that consisted of hereditary titles 
 in noble families, of ancient origin, or possessed 
 by peers, newly created, on account of their ex- 
 " tensive landed property. With regard to foreign 
 " colonies, he was of opinion that the power of the 
 " crown ought to be kept low. It was impossible 
 " to foresee what would be the fate of distant colo- 
 " nies, at a distant period of time ; but in giving 
 " them a constitution, his idea was, that it was our 
 " interest, as well as our duty, to give them as 
 ** much liberty as we could ; to render them happy, 
 " flourishing, and as little dependent as possible. 
 ** We should make the free spirit of our own con- 
 " stitution applicable, wherever we could render it 
 " so ; and if there was any risk or danger, he was 
 *' persuaded the danger was not greater on one side 
 'f than on the other ; indeed, he thought the more 
 *' despotic the constitution we gave a colony^ the 
 more we made it the interest of that colony to 
 get rid of such constitution ; and it was evident 
 the American States ha: revolted because they 
 \' did not think themselves sufficiently free." 
 
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 95 
 
 In t/our speech on the Colonial policy of the 
 country, March 21st, 1825, in speaking of the 
 North American Colonies, you say — 
 
 " There you have a white popul ation; all free, 
 prosecuting their various pursuits and avocations 
 of life, for their own benefit and happiness, many 
 *' of them born in the country, and almost all 
 " looking to it as their home, and as the home 
 " of those by whum they are to be succeeded. 
 " That population, taking all the Provinces, is 
 " not sh»^» ;, perhaps, at this moment, of one million 
 of people, and their numbers increasing very ra- 
 pidly. With the fertility of the soil in many of 
 " their districts, with their natural productions, 
 " their harbours, and extent of coast, both upon 
 '' the ocean and their internal lakes, with their 
 " fisheries, and other advantages, I cannot doubt, 
 " that without any other encouragement than 
 " freedom of trade, and a lenient administration, 
 " these Provinces will, henceforward, make the 
 '* most rapid strides towards prosperity ; that con* 
 " necting their prosperity with the liberal treat- 
 " ment of the Mother Country, they will neither 
 *' look with envy at the growth of other States on 
 " the same Continent, nor wish for the dissolution 
 " of old, and the fokmation of new political con* 
 " nections. "With a tariff of duties, accounted for 
 " to their own treasury, and moreover far lighter 
 " than those paid by their neighbours, — with a 
 " trade as free, — with their shipping in possession 
 *' of greater privileges, — themselves in the enjoy- 
 '* ment of the same civil rights, — they will not 
 
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 96 
 
 be easily moved to acts by which all these ad- 
 vantages may be placed in jeopardy or danger. 
 Such a course is not in human nature. At any 
 rate, let us, as the Parent State, fulfil our duties 
 with all proper kindness and liberality. This is 
 true wisdom, affording us, on the one ha:id, the 
 best chance of perpetuating a solid and useful 
 connexion, and on the other, the best hope if, 
 (which God avert) in the progress of human 
 events, that connexion is ever to be dissolved, 
 that the separation may not be embittered by 
 acrimony and bloodshed ; and the certain con- 
 solation that, however brought about, it will not 
 have been hastened or provoked by vexatious in- 
 terference or oppressive pretensions on our part." 
 And again you say — 
 
 " Contemplate the p'^ssibility of another set of 
 Provinces, emancipated from commercial thral- 
 dom, but firmly maintaining their political con- 
 nexion ; — their commercial marine a part of our 
 commercial marine, — their seamen a part of our 
 seamen, — their population a p?rt of our strength. 
 Consider whether it be not worth while to at- 
 tempt a course which promises, both to those 
 Provinces and the Mother Country, all the com- 
 mercial benefits of a free trade, together with all 
 the political advantages of our continuing part 
 of one great Empire, and enjoying alike, under 
 the sway and protection of the same Sovereign, 
 all the rights and privileges of British subjects.'* 
 When speaking on the Revenues, you say,— ■ 
 " The importation of foreign goods into the Co- 
 
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97 
 
 " lonJes, I propose^ should be made subject to mode- 
 " rate duties, but such as may^be found sufficient tor 
 '* the fair protection of our productions of the like 
 " nature. The particulars oii these duties will be 
 " found in the Resolutions. They will, of course, 
 " form part of the revenues of the respective Colo- 
 *' nies in which they may be collected,upon the same 
 " principle, and subject to the same system of ap- 
 " propriation by the Legislatures of those Colonies, 
 *' as the duties already collected under the Acts 
 "of the 3rd of the King. 
 
 " It is for the Colonies that the benefit of these 
 " arrangements is intended, the duties will form 
 " a revenue which will be theirs, and will be car- 
 " ried to their account. They can, therefore, have 
 " no jealousy of the new system, as one likely to 
 " trench upon their constitutional privileges in 
 " those respects." 
 
 Though you were addressing the House of Com- 
 mons on commercial subjects, and Mr. Fox on con- 
 stitutional ones, you have incidentally introduced 
 sufficient of the latter principles in your speech, to 
 confirm the general principles laid down by him. 
 
 All that is asked for Newfoundland, is the exter.- 
 sion of your own principles to her. 
 
 Have they at present the control over their own 
 revenues, which the other colonies have, so as not 
 " to trench on their constitutional privileges in 
 " those respects?" 
 
 Have they, " under the sway of the same sove- 
 " reign, all the rights and privileges of British 
 " subjects ?" ' 
 
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 98 
 
 Have they no cause to " look with envy at the 
 ' ' grovvrth of other States on the same continent?" 
 
 The colonies and other states in the neighbour- 
 hood of Newfoundland are making rapid strides to 
 Vvealth, population, and prosperity ; though some 
 of them are on^y of yesterday, and not possessing a 
 ty the of her advantages, they have already out- 
 stepped her, and left her at an immeasurable 
 distance behind. Out of many examples I shall 
 only adduce one, the small island of Bermuda, 
 which, with a population of not more than 5000 
 free inhabitants, has, under the protection of its 
 local government, become a place of great import- 
 ance, having the carrying trade of the West Indian 
 Islands, and possessing large capital. Natives of 
 the country filling some of the most important 
 situations in the empire ; some in the army, some 
 in the navy : — at this moment, the important situa- 
 tions of Chief Justice of Bermuda, Newfoundland, 
 and New South Wales, are held by natives of that 
 island. Many of them hold high situations in the 
 colonies, as well as in this country ; which proves 
 the correctness of the opinion of a distinguished 
 and noble individual, whose invaluable and unos- 
 tentatious labours in the cause of the constitu- 
 tional liberty of his country, will add fresh laurels 
 to those which must ever bloom around the illus- 
 trious name of Russel— that, "Half a century of 
 " Freedom, within the circuit of a few miles of 
 
 " ROCR, BRINGS to PERFECTION MORE OF THE GHEAT- 
 " EST QUALITIES OF OUR NATURE, DISPLAYS MORE 
 '• FULLY THE CAPACITY OF MAN, EXHIBITS MORE EX- 
 
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 " AMPLES OF HEROISM AND MAGNANIMITY, AND EMITS 
 " MORE OF THE DIVINE LIGHT OP POETRY AND PHILO- 
 
 '' fWi:f, r::AN t?»cusand9 of years, and millions 
 op people, collected in the greatest empire in 
 the world, can ever accomplish under the 
 *' Eclipse of Despotism." 
 
 I liave expressed opinions in the course of this 
 letter, which a more cautious man possibly would 
 have thoug'ht it prudent to restrain ; but I hope^ 
 Sir, I have e:ipressed no opinion that an honest 
 man need be ashamed of. I know there are 
 drones that buzz and flutter round the ears of great 
 men, that may attempt to misrepresent my princi- 
 ples ; but, conscious of the integrity of my motives, 
 and the ardent purity of my loyalty, and that my 
 object is ni< :e firmly to cement the connexion be- 
 tween Newfoundland and the Parent State, to pro- 
 mote the interests of the one by adding to the 
 power and glory of the other, I shall find myself 
 perfectly at ease under their imputations ; and if 
 they should threaten, if they should denounce, I 
 shall only reply in the words of the Athenian, 
 " Strike, but Hear ! " 
 
 I have the honour to be. 
 Sir, 
 With the greatest respect und veneration. 
 
 Your obliged and obedient Servant, 
 PATRICK MORRIS 
 
 Somerset Hotel, Strand, 
 April 26th, 1828. 
 
 
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KX) 
 
 Note 1, page 90. 
 
 When I state that Newfoundland, under the 
 fostering care of a local legislature, aided by the 
 mighty protection of the parent state, would be- 
 come the Holland of America, I know that I shall 
 be sneered at by those who are always misrepre- 
 senting Newfoundland and its resources, and that 
 many of the friends of the country will think that 
 I am pushing the thing too far ; as to the censure 
 of the former 1 am perfectly indifferent, but before 
 the latter pass a final judgment, I have to request 
 that they will consult the History of Newfoundland, 
 from the earliest period, and remark the great ad- 
 vantages that have been derived, not alone by 
 England, but by France and other countries, from 
 trade and fisheries; let them also consult the 
 opinions of some of the best writers and greatest 
 men of England, France, Holland, and America, 
 on the great importance of Newfoundland, and if, 
 afterwards, they say that I am in error, they must 
 acknowledge that I have erred in right noble good 
 company. It is an error most people fall into 
 when speaking of Newfoundland, that they do not 
 give themselves the trouble of considering that the 
 British fishers are only a portion, and by far the 
 smallest portion, of the Newfoundland fishery: 
 the French have by far the best part of the 
 
101 
 
 coast of Newfouudland, from Cape Ray to Cape 
 John, with the sovereignty of the small islands 
 of St. Pierre and Miquelon : the subjects of the 
 United States of America have a common right 
 of fishing ; and the British subjects of the other 
 colonies have very justly the same privilege. In 
 estimating the extent of the Newfoundland fishery, 
 we have to take into view the American, and Anglo- 
 American fisheries, as well as those carried on by 
 British subjects immediately connected with New- 
 foundland. It is quite impossible to make ii 
 correct estimate of the fisheries carried on by 
 foreigners; but when it is considered that the 
 French grant large bounties, not only for the fish 
 catched on the coast, but also for every green 
 man employed; that the Americans also grant 
 large bounties, and that the Colonial legir.lators 
 of the neighbouring colonies are following their 
 example, it cannot be surprising that the fisheries 
 must be extensive, and increasing in magnitude 
 every day. From all the information that I have 
 been able to collect on the subject, I have come to 
 this conclusion, that the fishing carried on at New- 
 foundland by the French and Americans is .bout 
 two-thirds of the whole, and that the residents of 
 Newfoundland, with those who annually arrive 
 there from Britain, carry on the remaining one- 
 third. There is one branch of our fisheries at New- 
 foundland, the growth of the last twenty or twenty- 
 five years, which has not as yet been encroached 
 on by foreigners, and which bids fair to become 
 one of the greatest magnitude and importance ; I 
 
 
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 103 
 
 mean the seal fishery, which gives employment to 
 about 350 sail of vessels, of from 60 to 120 tons 
 burthen, manned with about twenty men each. 
 This fishery is chiefly carried on in the months of 
 March and April, and is over before the cod fishing 
 commences; and it is, in my opinion, like the cod 
 fishing, capable of being extended to meet any 
 amount of consumption. 
 
 Colquhoun, on the Wealth and Resources of the 
 British Empire, gives the following statement : 
 
 
 Tnhabi- 
 
 Ship 
 
 Ton- 
 
 Men 
 
 Exports 
 
 
 tantB ping 
 
 nage 
 
 
 
 '» Canada, Up- 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 per & Lower 
 
 300,000 
 
 661 
 
 143,893 
 
 6,610 
 
 1,302,827 
 
 New Bruns- 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 wick 
 
 60,000 
 
 410 
 
 87,690 
 
 4,100 
 
 713,987 
 
 Nova Scotia . . 
 
 100,000 
 
 SIS 
 
 42,222 
 
 3,280 
 
 607.330 
 
 Cape Breton . . 
 
 3,000 
 
 7 
 
 948 
 
 70 
 
 9,302 
 
 Piince Edwd's 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Island .... 
 
 6,000 
 
 32 
 
 5,917 
 
 320 
 
 111,434 
 
 Newfoundland 
 
 18,000 
 
 495 
 
 61,543 
 
 4,950 
 
 705,594 
 
 Imports 
 
 1,180,000 
 
 579,148 
 
 492,634 
 
 7,326 
 
 94,445 
 572,338 
 
 " Aggregate value. 
 
 " Upper and Lower Canada ^3,413,360 
 
 New Brunswick 4,726,000 
 
 Nova Scotia 9,803,000 
 
 Cape Breton 493,000 
 
 Prince Edward'i, Island 1,022,500 
 
 Newfoundland 6,973,000 
 
 " Newfoundland gives employment annually to 
 495 vessels, measuring 61,543 tons, navigated by 
 4950 seamen, besides 2000 fishing shallops, uieasur- 
 ing about 2900 tons, which may employ at least 
 6000 men more, taking 600,000 quintals of fish 
 which, at 1 5s. per quintal, together with salmon, 
 cod oil, and seal oil, amount at least to jS500,000 : 
 this fishery, viewed as a capital, may be fairly 
 
103 
 
 valued at £500,000, inasmuch as the fish taken an- 
 nually cannot amount to less than a sum equal to 
 legal interest on that amount. £250.000, and a like 
 sum for labour and extras; and it may be remarked, 
 that if the fishery was carried on ' its utmost ex-* 
 tent, there is no dcubt but it would yield three 
 times that sum, or, indeed, to any -mount for which 
 consumption could be found." 
 
 He is perfectly correct in the general view he 
 takes of Newfoundland, he states that her fisheries 
 can be carried on to any extent for which consump- 
 tion can be found; though his calculations res- 
 pecting the produce of the fisheries at Newfound- 
 land, must have been made on false representa- 
 tions. I shall give, on his plan, a statement of the 
 fisheries and present productions of Newfoundland, 
 adding to it what 1 suppose the production of the 
 fisheries carried on by foreigners, in the proportion 
 of one-third for the former, and two-thirds tor the 
 latter. 
 
 Inhabitants Vesseh. Tonnage. Met.. | Exportg, Imports. 
 
 100,000 Shipping 800.. 88,000.. 5,800, 1,000,000 1,000,000 
 Seal ShipsSSO. .24,500. .7,000 
 Shallops 
 & Boats7,50O. . 10,000..30,000 
 
 42,800 
 Deductfor Men employ- 
 ed in the Seal fishery, 
 afterwards in the Cod 
 fishery 7,000 
 
 35,800 
 
 To which are to be addod, the productions of the 
 French and American fisheries, which, if I calcu- 
 late them on their increased value in these coun- 
 tries^ I mav safely put down at two millions. If the 
 
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 il 
 
estimate is a correct one, the productions of the 
 Newfoundland fisheries are worth, annually, three 
 millions, which is six times as much as Colquhoun 
 puts down for them ; so that, according to his cal- 
 culation, the fisher) must be i^alued as a capital 
 equal to thirty millions. When he estimated the 
 value of the other colonies, he took into considera- 
 tion the value of all the various productions of 
 those countries which have had every opportunity 
 of developing themselves; but in Newfoundland 
 it is only one branch of her resources, that has been 
 calculated; the agricultural, and other resources 
 of the country, remain dormant. Is it then too 
 much to say, that if Newfoundland had a govern- 
 ment that would bring her great resources into 
 operation, that she must become " what she ought 
 to be, a great commercial country, subsisting her- 
 self by internal resources, drawing her manufac- 
 tured supplies from the mother country, and re- 
 paying her care by a valuable trade, and a nume- 
 rous race of seamen, trained for her service, and 
 ready to attend her first call in the defence of the 
 empire?** 
 
 I have observed, with no email degree of interest, 
 a report of some discussions that have taken place 
 in the House of Commons, respecting the new form 
 of government for New South Wales. If I un- 
 derstand the object of Mr. Huskisson, it is to ap- 
 point a governor, and council, nominated by the 
 governor, or recommended by him, with legal pow- 
 ers to rule that colony. I must say, if there is one 
 mo:^.e of govsrnraent mere objectionable than an- 
 
:^i' 
 
 105 
 
 other for the colonies, it is that of a Governor and 
 Council ; and I do not hesitate to say, that a more 
 effectual way could not be taken to make the peo- 
 ple of any colony discontc- ^ed. Such a govern- 
 ment was proposed for Newfoundland in 1824, and 
 a clause to that effect introduced into the bill of 
 that year, but from the remonstrances that were 
 made to the Right Hon. R.W. Horton, by Lord 
 Holland, Lord Darnley,* Sir James Mackintosh, 
 Sir John Newport, and Mr. Hume, he was in- 
 duced, with that consideration which has marked 
 his proceedings, as regards Newfoundland, to with- 
 draw the clause respecting a legislative council. 
 If Mr. Huskisson knew the characters of the per- 
 sons ^hat the governors of colonies generally ap- 
 point as their consellors, iie would not give them 
 the government of the small island in St. James's 
 Park. It is a mode of government unknown to the 
 constitution — it is a monster in legislation — and 
 it will not, nor can it produce any thing but mon- 
 sters more hideous than itself. If Mr. Huskisson, 
 in legislating for the colonies, is guided by any 
 othei chart than the chart of the constitution, 
 stupendous as his talents are, were they ten times 
 greater, he must not expect any thing but ship- 
 wreck. By avoiding Scylla, he is sure to run upon 
 Charybdis. 
 
 H 
 
 \\M 
 
 ; i. 
 
 Mi^ 
 
 * In 1834, I was, in conjunction with another 
 gentleman, appointed by the inhabitants of New- 
 foundland to attend to the bill passed that year for 
 
If' h 
 i 
 
 iMfi 
 
 106 
 
 the government of t^at colony. In consequence, 
 we had frequent occasion to wait on Lord Hol- 
 land, Lord Darnley, Sir James Mackintosh,Sir John 
 Newport, Mr. Hume, and Mr. Wilmot Horton. 
 We were always received by these distinguished 
 individuals with the greatest courtesy and atten- 
 tion ; but I consider I owe on my own part, and 
 on the part of the inhabitants of Newfoundland, a 
 particular debt of gratitude to Earl Darnley, for the 
 great trouble he took to forward the views of the in- 
 habitants, and for the uncommon kindness shewn to 
 myself when I had the honour of waiting on his 
 Lordship. It made an impression on me that can- 
 not be effaced to the latest hoar of my existence, 
 and the only return I can make to his Lordship is, 
 thus publicly to acknowledge my obligations to 
 him, and t'^ say, that I shall not lose any opportu- 
 nity of proclaiming to the people of Newfoundland 
 that he has been one of their greatest — noblest 
 benefactors ; that they are indebted to him, in a 
 great degree, for the first and greatest boon that 
 has been conferred on them — a pure administration 
 of justice, which must cause the people of that 
 country, as well as those of another, to bless his 
 name to the latest posterity. 
 
 i 
 
I 
 
 i 
 
 109 
 
 To W. Carson, Esq. M. D. St. John's; Henry P. 
 ThomaS; Esq. St. John's ; Mr. James Pitts, Bell 
 Isle, Conception Bay, Nerofoundland. 
 
 Somerset Hotel, London, 
 April 26, 1828. 
 Dear Sirs, 
 
 I have taken the liberty of sending, by thjs 
 opportunity, 500 copies of a small pamphlet I have 
 published, on the State of Newfoundland, which 
 you will be pleased to hand over to Mr. Winton, 
 for srle. The proceeds you will please dispose of 
 in small premiums to such persons as you may think 
 have made the greatest improvement in agriculture 
 throughout the island. I am induced to give you 
 this trouble, with the hope that it may tend to the 
 establishment of an Agricultural Society, which is 
 much wanted iv Newfoundland, 
 
 It is said by an eminent writer, that the 
 man who makes two blades of grass grow where 
 only one grew before, is a benefactor to mankind. 
 Then how stronr your claims are on the gratitude 
 of the people of Niiwfoundland ; you have the me- 
 rit, more than any other individuals I could men- 
 tion, of breaking down the prejudices which exist- 
 ed against the soil and climat< of the country; 
 you have made frightful inroads on barbarism ; 
 under your auspices corn fields and meadows have, 
 as if by magic, superseded woods and forests. 
 I have the honour to be, Gentlemen, 
 
 Your faithful Servant, 
 
 Patrick Morris. 
 
 1 i i' 
 
 I 
 
 1* .1 
 
 ^1 
 
r 1 
 
 London s Printed ky A. Hancock, 
 Middle Mow Place, Holborn.