Yale University Library

39002007188221

YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY

BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME
OF THE
MATTHEW C. D. BORDEN FUND

REMARKS ON THE STATE OP
SOCIETY, RELIGION, MORALS,
AND
EMC_AT I O N
AT
NEWFOUNDLAND ;
IN
REPLY TO THE STATEMENTS MADE AT THE
MEETINGS, AND IN THE REPORTS,
OF THE
NEWFOUNDLAND SCHOOL SOCIETY,
And also to a Part pf a
SPEECH DELIVERED BY THE BISHOP OF CHESTER
AT THE
Meeting of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel
in Foreigp. Parts, held at the Freemasons' Hall,
on the 25th of May last.

ADDRESSED TO THE
RIGHT HONOURABLE LORD BEXLEY.

By P. MORRIS,
AV INHABITANT OF THE COLONY OF NEWFOUNDLAND.

LONDON :
Printed by A. Hancock, Middle Row Place, Holborn ;
* *• AND SOLD BY SHERWOOD, GTI.BERT, AND PIPEK,
\''- '•*#'¦ PATERNOSTER ROW.
* ''' ?* ,.  1827.

REMARKS, &c.

My Lord,
The strange and most unnatural stories related
before your Lordship, whilst presiding at the Meeting of the
Newfoundland School Society, held at the Freemasons' Hall,
on the 15th of May, respecting the state of Society, Religion,
and Morals in that Country, will be a sufficient apology
for the liberty I now take of addressing your Lordship, with a
few Remarks, to prove that the imputationsn:ast upon the People
of Newfoundland are utterly groundless, and without the
slightest foundation. It must be within the recollection of your
Lordship, that I at that Meeting — with a warmth of feeling and
expression in some degree opposed to the solemn and regular
character of -its proceedings — did indignantly repel the disgusting
charges brought forward. With the defence then made, in
behalf of the People of Newfoundland, I should have rested
perfectly satisfied, but that I observed in a Report of the Pro
ceedings of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in
Foreign Parts, held at the Freemason's Hall, on the 25th of
May, assertions made with respect to Newfoundland, by a
Dignitary of the Church of England, well calculated to give
currency to the statements made at the Meeting of the New
foundland School Society, and to mislead the public with
respect to the true character of the people of that Colony.
Being a resident inhabitant of Newfoundland, and taking more
than common interest in its welfare, I consider it my duty to re
move, as much as any humble effort of mine can remove, the un
favourable and erroneous impressions which have been made on
the public mind ; and when I reflect on the high station which
your Lordship holds in his Majesty's Councils, and that you

[4 ]
may, as one of the advisers of the Crown, be Called on to decide
on the wisdom of granting to the people of Newfoundland those
liberal Institutions which have been granted to the neighbouring
Colonies, I am the more anxious to place their real character
before your Lordship. For if the people of Newfoundland are
in the savage, besotted state, in which they are represented to
be, without religious or moral character, it would be the ex
treme of folly to grant them those institutions which they are
seeking for ; and your Lordship would be fully warranted in
opposing any such measures : on the contrary, if, as I hope
to be able to prove, they are a religious and moral people,
remarkable for their peaceable demeanour and submission to the
Laws and constituted Authorities ; and that crimes of a public
nature are by no means common amongst them, it will, I am
sure, be a great inducement, in case the subject should come
under your Lordship's consideration, to recommend to his Ma
jesty's Government, that those rights and privileges which have
been granted to other Colonies in their infancy, and which are
the main causes of their rapid advancement in population,
wealth, and civilization, should also be granted to Newfoundland.
It appears to me, my Lord, most extraordinary, and what I
do not perfectly understand, that men, who profess to come
forward to promote the cause of Christianity, should commence
their labours by violating its fundamental principles. Cha
rity is the foundation on which the glorious structure of our
holy religion has been raised by its Divine Founder ; it is the
pivot on which it turns; — let those Gentlemen, who have so
repeatedly made such unfounded statements, with respect to the
people of Newfoundland, reconcile their conduct with Charity,
for in truth, my Lord, I cannot. I presume they would recoil
at the very thought of injuring an individual in society, yet they
appear to have no hesitation in traducing by wholesale the
character of a people. We are told, my Lord, that good name
to man or woman is inestimable ; if, then, it is of such impor
tance to individuals, of how much greater value must it be to the
people of a distant and unprotected Colony, depending for their
welfare and existence upon the will of a great and powerful
nation, and separated from it by a distance of 2,000 miles.
I am quite at a loss to devise the motives of those

[5 J
gentlemen ; possibly their object is to represent us as great
sinners, that they may have the merit of converting us into
very great saints. The truth is, my Lord, we are not very
great sinners ; nor will, I fear, the exertions of those on this
side the water, who take such an interest in our welfare,
ever make us very great saints. We are very much like the
people of. other countries — not much worse nor much better.
It appears to me that the error these gentlemen have fallen
into, is, that they are too fond of sounding their own
praise ; and I have therefore to recommend, in addition to their
zeal in circulating the Holy Scriptures to the benighted inha
bitants, that they will themselves carefully read, them. The
severe condemnation by our Divine Redeemer of the Scribes
and Pharisees, will, I fear, apply to their conduct respecting
the people of Newfoundland, and be at the same time a cen
sure and commentary on their proceedings. I shall repeat
the text for their edification : — " Take heed that you do
not your alms before men, to be seen of them, otherwise
you have no reward of your Father which is in heaven;
therefore when thou dost thine alms do not sound a trumpet
before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues, and in the
streets, that they may have glory of men : verily, I say unto
you, they have their reward." We read in the Scriptures,
that in battle, " justice and courage is a thousand men" — in
the conflict in which these gentlemen have engaged, with
ignorance, vice, and immoralityin Newfoundland, they will find, if
they take Truth and Charity to guide them, that these virtues
will have an effect equal to the distribution of a thousand Bibles.
I fear I have taken up too much of your Lordship's time in
making these preliminary observations, and I will now endea
vour to prove the utter falsehood of the charges so frequently
brought against the religious and moral character of the
inhabitants of Newfoundland. It is not necessary to detain
your Lordship with a repetition of the disgusting detail of
those charges : I shall endeavour to place the true character
of the people before your Lordship, and, by comparing it with
the statements made, at the late public meetings, your Lordship
will be able to form your own judgment on the subject.
Newfoundland is the oldest, and, according to the opinions

[6 |
of some of the greatest men, the most valuable Transatlantic
possession belonging to his Majesty ; yet, notwithstanding the
proximity of its situation, close connexion with the parent state,
and frequency of intercourse, little is known with respect to the
country, by either the government or people of England. For
upwards of three centuries she has proceeded in her silent and
submissive course, without scarcely a murmur of complaint.
Oppressed beyond the example almost of any other country,
she has been the inexhaustible source of wealth to those who
proceeded to her shores : she has fully proved the wisdom and
truth of a great French writer, who states that " her fisheries
are mines of national wealth, superior to those of Mexico and
Peru."* Cities, towns, and whole districts in England have
* It must appear most extraordinary to the transitory ob
server, that a country possessing such inexhaustible sources of
wealth, and which has raised more persons to independence and
fortune than any other colony of the same extent belonging to
his Majesty, should be, in respect to its internal improvement,
almost in a state of pristine barbarism. It may appear a
paradox, but I do not hesitate to say that it was the wealth of
the country, and the ready means which it afforded to those
who resorted to it of making fortunes in a few years, that
operated more than any defect in the climate or soil, to pre
vent its improvement. The adventurers to the other colonies,
not possessing such ready means of making independencies,
had at once to bid an eternal adieu to their native land. They
adopted their new countries ; they used every means in their
power to clear and cultivate the soil, which in most instances in
the first settlements of America afforded the only means of sup
port : they commenced their operations by forming miniature
governments on the most wise principles, which fostered every
improvement, and laid on the most solid basis the foundation of
those young countries in the western hemisphere, which bid fair,
at no very distant period, to leave behind at an immeasurable
distance the boasted empires of the Old World. Unfortunately for
Newfoundland, her fisheries afforded such means to gratify the
cupidity of the adventurers, that after a few years they were
enabled to retire, and expend their fortunes in other countries.
It is a singular fact, that since the treaties with the French
and Americans, which completely transferred the fisheries into
their hands and caused ruin to the British engaged in the
trade, more improvements in the way of cultivation have been
made than were made in the three preceding centuries.

[ 7]
been raised to wealth and importance by the capital there accu_
mulated ; vast fortunes were made by persons who came to the
country without a shilling, and were soon enabled to retire
and live in splendour in other countries. The only return they
have since made to those by whose labour, skill, and industry
they were raised from insignificance to importance, has been to
libel and calumniate the people, mislead the parent government,
and misrepresent the resources, soil, and climate of the country ;
and this for the unworthy purpose of perpetuating a system of
anarchy and misrule scarcely to be paralleled in the annals of
misgovernment. The government of Newfoundland was in the
hands of a set of needy, unprincipled adventurers, who exerted
all their power abroad, and all their influence at home, to mono
polize the trade of the country, and make worse than slaves of
the people. The unoffending native Indians were hunted down
like wild beasts, and had to take refuge in their woods and wilds ;
where they wisely preferred their own barbarism to the extermi
nating civilization that was offered them by their Christian
visitors. [Appendix, 1.] The descendants of the British settlers
were treated almost with equal barbarity ; and, until within a
very short period, they have been suffering under a Mercan
tile Tyranny — the most relentless and ruthless of all tyrannies.
During this unhappy period, vice and immorality prevailed at
Newfoundland, and in their most hideous forms : but, my Lord,
the perpetrators were not the inhabitants, but the hordes
of adventurers who came to the Colony during the fishing
season, and who considered themselves at liberty to commit
every excess, and to oppress the native inhabitants at their plea
sure. For the truth of these general statements, I have only
to refer your Lordship to Mr. Reeves' History of the Govern
ment of Newfoundland : in page 22 you will find that several
disorders attributed, to the inhabitants were chiefly occa
sioned by the adventurers ; in page 24 we find a report of a
petition of one John Dunning, to the King, complaining of the
conduct of the adventurers, in burning and destroying the
houses and stages of the inhabitants; in page 98 we find the
representation of a Mr. John Cunningham, who was specially
sent out by government to make inquiries, stating that the
Admirals, (who were the Governors and Judges ofthe country,)

[8 ]
and the servants of the merchants residing in England; were the
greatest knaves, and strongly recommending to government the
appointment of a civil governor, " so that the people may be
governed as Britons, and not as a forsaken people, without law
or gospel." Bythe Act of the 10th and 11th William and
Mary, for the direction of the Fisheries at Newfoundland,
the government of the country was placed in the hands of the
Fishing Admirals. These ignorant men, in whose persons the ti
tle of Admiral was dishonoured, were the skippers or masters of
fishing vessels ; the master of the first vessel that arrived
from England, in any harbour, in the spring, was the Admiral ;
the second the Vice Admiral ; and the third Rear Admiral. To
these wise and learned Judges was confided the government of
the country, and the administration of justice. [Appendix, 2.]
On their arrival they exercised every species of power, civil and
criminal ; they plundered, oppressed, and flogged the people at
their pleasure. What must appear a novelty in legislation, the
qualification of the " Governors" and "Judges " of Newfound
land depended on the vessel : the swiftest sailing vessel was sure
to make a " Governor." Their other qualifications maybe pretty
well estimated by referring to page 45 of Mr. Reeves' valuable
work, where it appears that out of seventy-eight Admirals,
(three in each of the twenty-six harbours of Newfoundland, that
were then inhabited) only four of them could write, or keep any
record of their proceedings. Mr. Reeves, in page 149, states,
" It has been too often repeated, in the course of this historical
inquiry, to need repetition, that the Admirals were the ser
vants of the merchants ; that justice was not to be expected
from them ; and a poor planter or inhabitant, who was con
sidered little better than a law-breaker in being such, had but
small chance of justice in opposition to any great West Coun
try merchant." Page 164, in speaking of the adventurers, he
states, " that they had been in the habit of seeing that species
of weakness and anarchy ever since Newfoundland was fre
quented, from father to son ; it was favourable to their old
impressions; that Newfoundland was theirs; and that all the
planters were to be spoiled and devoured at their pleasure."'
I shall conclude my quotations from Mr. Reeves with the fol
lowing, which will be found in page 43 of his History, for

[ 9 1
the purpose of showing that it is not irrelevant to my present
purpose to glance at the excesses committed in the olden time at
Newfoundland, and which have been continued until within a
very short period ; as it proves that the acts of vice and immo
rality which have been made the subject of so many pathetic ap
peals to the charitable societies here, were perpetrated by the ad
venturers, who came to Newfoundland for the fishing season,
and not by the inhabitants : — " The picture (Mr. Reeves states)
here given of Newfoundland is hardly to be heightened by any
colouring to be found in the representations made by successive
commanders : they are usually in the same strain ; the griev
ances and complaints, the remedies and expedients, are uni
formly the same ; and it is a remarkable circumstance in the
history of the trade, that many of the papers relative to it,
whether coming from the Commanders, (the Captains of his
Majesty's ships on the station,) or from the merchants and
adventurers, wonld apply t<o later times as well as those in
which they originated."
I have been particular in quoting from Mr. Reeves, he is
well known to the British public, and I am sure will be consi
dered by your Lordship as the best authority ; I have done
so with the more pleasure, as it gives me an opportunity of
Stating that the people of Newfoundland are greatly indebted
to him. He laid the foundation of every improvement that has
or will take place there ; he was the first to throw the shield of
the laws over the oppressed people of that country.
It cannot be a matter of surprise to those who may give
themselves the trouble of thinking on the subject, that whilst
such a state of anarchy prevailed at Newfoundland, little pro
gress was made in religion, morals, or education. Mr. Reeves
was appointed Chief justice of Newfoundland in 1792: since
that time there has been a gradual, though slow advance
ment to something like rational government. When the
power of the Fishing Admirals fell under the execration and
contempt of the people, Governors were appointed by his
Majesty, who were the Admirals commanding on the sta
tion : they exercised both legislative and executive powers,
and sent tlieir officers, who were called Surrogates, on
maritime circuits round the island to administer justice,

[ io ]
and to expound to the people the abstruse science of the
law. The administration of the Admiral-Governors was of little
benefit to the country. A comparison with the Fishing Ad
mirals may make a shade or two in their favour ; but the his
torian of Newfoundland must rank them together: the prin
ciples upon which they acted were precisely the same — a pure,
unqualified, and unmitigated despotism. Indeed, only that
I am not a believer of the doctrines of Pythagoras, I would
suppose that the souls of the Fishing Admirals, on their last
voyage across the Stygian Lake, were transferred into the
bodies of their successors.
The government of Newfoundland by the Admirals of the
British fleet, exhibits examples of the danger of placing uncon
trolled power in the hands of any man or set of men, and
affords melancholy proofs that English gentlemen, — the repre
sentatives of a constitutional king, — of the highest rank in the
truly honourable profession to which they belonged, — did, in
the exercise of power, act more like Persian satraps or Turkish
bashaws than men who, it is to be supposed, were well read
in the constitutional history of their country ; and who, from
the benefits they themselves derived from the protection of good
laws, should extend the same protection to the people placed
under their government and control. Only that it may be ne
cessary, as warning examples to their successors, sometimes
to hold up their capricious and arbitrary acts to public exe
cration and contempt, the fame of these distinguished in
dividuals would be better consulted in consigning to ob
livion the record of their government of Newfoundland, and,
ever undisturbed, to let it rot in " the tomb of all the Ca-
pulets." — [Appendix 3.]
Having in such terms of reprobation spoken of the system
that so long prevailed at Newfoundland, I beg to call your
Lordship's attention to the present state of that Colony, which
I am happy to say, assumes a more cheering and pleasing pros
pect. It may be considered that I have wandered from the sub
ject with which I set out, by introducing a summary of the
Government of Newfoundland ; but in the observations I have
made, not only on the history of that country, but of mankind,
I have observed such intimate connexion between good Govern-

[ 11 J
ment and good Morals, that I could not separate them. To the
His tory of Newfoundland I shall refer with confidence for an
illustration of the principles. It will be most pleasing to the
divine and moralist, as well as to the legislator, to observe
religion, morals, order, and civilization, following in the train
of good government, and proving to demonstration that they
are the consequences naturally flowing therefrom. I fear, my
Lord, that there are many who differ with me in opinion, and
do not see the connexion. I have indeed observed so many
examples of persons exhibiting the greatest zeal for the propa
gation of moral and religious instruction, and the most intense
anxiety to secure for the objects of their tender solicitude
eternal happiness in the next world, while, at the same time,
they are strenuously opposed to any measure calculated to im
prove their condition in this, that I can have no doubt on the
subject ; but, my Lord, I have not the slightest hesitation in
stating, that though such as these may be very pious, they are
not very great, very wise, or very good men.
During the government of his Excellency Vice Admiral Sir
Charles Hamilton, who was the first resident Governor of New
foundland, and whose mild and benevolent character was in
direct opposition to the miserable system under which it was
his misfortune to be placed, some flagrant acts of cruelty and
injustice were committed by his Surrogates in the out-ports :
the injured parties instituted proceedings in the Supreme
Court of the Island ; but it was not in the power of that Court
to afford redress. The inhabitants took the alarm, and pe
titioned his Majesty and Parliament against the system
that had so long prevailed. It must be within the recollection
of your Lordship, that the grievances of the people of New
foundland were brought under the notice of the House of Lords,
by my Lords Holland and Darnley, and before the House of
Commons, by Sir James Macintosh, Sir John Newport, and
Mr. Hume ; they finally succeeded, after much trouble, in
bringing the true state of Newfoundland under the favour
able consideration of his Majesty's Government. It is quite
impossible for me to express how much the people of New
foundland are indebted to those distinguished individuals;
however, I am sure, if they were sensible of the lasting benefits

[12 ]
they haye been the means of conferring on that country, it
would afford to their noble and generous minds more than
a reward for all their exertions. It affords me equal pleasure
to state, that when the cloud of misrepresentation, with which
Newfoundland had been so long enveloped, was dispelled, and its
true state brought under the consideration of his Majesty's Mir
nisters ; they readily adopted measures calculated to confer the
most important advantages on the Colony : and when I reflect
on the conflicting statements that had been made to them, with
respect to Newfoundland— the interest and influence that was
used to mislead them — I must candidly confess to your Lordship,
that I was most agreeably surprized, not that his Majesty's Mi
nisters had done so little, but that, under all the circumstances,
they had done so much. — [Appendix 4,]
To the Earl Bathurst, late Secretary for the Colonies, and
to the Right Honourable Wilmot Horton, Under Secretary,
whose most particular attention have been directed to the
state of the Colony, Newfoundland is greatly indebted. Under
their auspicies a new era has commenced ; they have annihi
lated the wretched system that so long prevailed, and which
blasted the physical and moral energies of the country and the
people. To those, my Lord, who are in the habit of speaking
and thinking with contempt of every thing connected with Newr
foundland, this change may appear of little importance : in
deed, I know there are men whose minds are so curiously con
structed, that they think it a misfortune ; but to myself, and to
those who imagine they can observe in Newfoundland all the
elements necessary for the foundation of a great commercial
country, the late changes ' in its government afford real and
unmixed pleasure.
Short as the period is since the commencement of the present
Government, it has gained the affection and the confidence
of the peppie. The distinguished individual now at the head
of the Government, has already "done more to promote -the
internal improvement of the country than had been done by his
predecessors from the days of Cabott down to the time of his
appointment. The administration of justice is placed in the
hands of men of professional education ; and I have no hesi
tation in stating, that in no part of his Majesty's dominions can

[ 13 ]
a poor or a rich man obtain justice, and justice according to
the laws of England, with greater facility or with more purity
than at Newfoundland.
Having endeavoured, though, I fear, in a very imperfect
manner, to connect the state of morals with the Government
of Newfoundland, and to show that the one advanced in an exact
ratio with, the other, I shall now take a view of the present state
of society in that country, which will more fully illustrate the
principle, and prove to demonstration the statement I made
in the beginning of this letter — that the charges brought
against the religious and moral character of the people of the
Colony by the orators of the Newfoundland School Society,
and others, are, to speak most charitably of them, the pious
inventions and fabrications of wild and visionary enthusiasts.
The first authority which I shall give your Lordship as to
the true character of the people of Newfoundland, is the Rev.
Mr. Anspach, who for some time kept a seminary at St. John's,
for the education of young gentlemen, and was afterwards
appointed missionary' from the Society in this country for the
Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts. He had the care
of the district of Conception Bay, containing from twenty-
five to thirty thousand inhabitants, where he acted in the double
capacity of Minister of the Church of England and: Surrogate
or Judge ; and, from his long residence, ' had the very best
opportunities of forming a just estimate of the character of the
people. He states, in his History of Newfoundland, page 477,
that "if the character ofthe natives of Newfoundland in general
agreed with those of Conception Bay,, which he had greater
opportunities to appreciate • during a residence of upwards of
ten years among them, no where can a race be found more
remarkable for indefatigable industry * for contempt of danger,
for steadiness of '. temper and -ef conduct, sincerity and constancy
of attachment, and a strong sense of religious duty. The popu
lation of Newfoundland, with respect to religious professions,
consists of members- of the Church of England, -of Roman Ca
tholics, of Presbyterians, of Independents, and of Methodists."
In page 468 the same author states, that " the natives, of both
sexes, are equally remarkable for their ingenuity and industry;
the women, besides the very valuable assistance which they

[ H 1
afford during the season for curing and drying fish, generally
understand the whole process of preparing the wool from the
fleece, and of manufacturing it, by knitting it into stockings,
caps, socks, and mittens. Their worsted stockings are strong,
and well calculated for the climate. The women are also charac
terized by a steady attention to their domestic duties, and correct
ness of conduct in every point of view."
In the name of charity, my Lord, I call upon you to place
this character of the people of Newfoundland, particularly of the
female character, in opposition to the disgusting statements made
at the Meeting of the Newfoundland School Society ; and I am
sure your Lordship will at once admit that Mr. Anspach's
authority is worth that of a ship-load of such puny orators, and of
volumes of reports of speeches made by men, who, as I stated
to your Lordship at the Meeting, knew nothing of the people
of whom they presumed to speak.
The justice and correctness of the general opinions given
by Mr. Anspach, I shall endeavour to prove by the incontro
vertible evidence of facts. Crime committed against the peace
of society is, it will be admitted, a test of the general cha
racter of the people of every country. If the people of New
foundland are judged by such a test, a judgment the most
favourable must be given. For twenty-five or thirty years,
in a population of upwards of 100,000, not more than
three or four malefactors suffered death ; and I believe the
crimes for which they suffered were more of a private than of
a public nature.
House-breaking, street, or highway robbery, are crimes
never heard of in Newfoundland; notwithstanding that pro
perty is less secured and more exposed in that country than it
is in most others. It is a very extraordinary fact that during
the time that the late chief justice Forbes (now chief justice
of New South Wales), whose venerated name will ever
live in the grateful recollection of the people of Newfound
land; and the present chief justice (R. A. Tucker, Esq.),
the successor to his talents and his virtues, presided in the
criminal courts, a period of ten years, the severest punishment
inflicted by them on any culprit was a few months imprison
ment "^though during the greater part of that time the poorer

L is J
classes of the population were suffering great privations from
famine and other causes.
I have had frequently the pleasure of hearing these learned,
upright magistrates from the bench, congratulating the people,
particularly the labouring classes, on their orderly and peaceable
conduct ; and having had the honour, in some degree, of en
joying their friendship, I have heard them more fully express
the same opinions in private. I fear, my Lord, that when I state
the absence of public crimes at Newfoundland, and add that
the greater part of the working popnlation are Irish, and the
descendants of Irish, and that I have known frequently three
or four thousand emigrants, in one season from Ireland, in a
state of destitution, thrown into the town of St. John's,
I shall shock the faith of some of the members of the New
foundland School Society. But, my Lord, it is the truth ; and
1 must say, in justice to the wealthier portion of the community
at Newfoundland, that if the Irish of the poorer classes in that
country were not orderly and peaceable, they would be unde
serving of that character for gratitude and generosity which
even their bigoted calumniators, by the way of a make-weight
in the opposite scale, sometimes give them credit for. Invari
ably the greatest kindness and sympathy have been exhibited by
the higher orders at Newfoundland for the distressed Irish ; and
it is only a just tribute to them to say, that they are above the
paltry distinctions of countries or of creeds — that they have
long ago committed bigotry to the shades.
Of late years, my Lord, when the people of Newfoundland
began to have minds of their own, and to think for themselves,
innch opposition was given in the out-ports to the kind of justice
administered to them by men who were, if possible, less ac
quainted -with the principles of English law, than they were
with the principles of justice, and who handled an act of par
liament pretty much in the same way that a highlander would
handle his Andrew Ferrara : cut and slash on every side.
The people began to think that plundering and flogging
were not very agreeable things, and were opposed to their rude
ideas of justice. The consequence was, resistance was made to
many of the iniquitous decisions. [Appendix 5.] Breaches of
the peace and acts of violence were committed. It was no Un-

E 1.6 i
common thing at some of the out-ports for conflicts of a serious
nature to arise; the judge, supported by all the constituted
authorities, and well armed, endeavoring, to carry his just judgments
into execution on the one hand ; and the people, armed witKltheir
long sealing guns, resisting, the predatory invasions oftheir
rights and property on the other. In most instances the
judges and their, party had to make precipitate retreats,
though it might well be supposed that from their know
ledge qf warlike tactics they would have a decided advantage
over their opponents. This opposition on the part of the in
habitants of the out-ports, to the decrees of the Surrogate
Courts, was very much misrepresented, and tended to injure their
characters. I am not now, my Lord, speaking of the olden
times at Newfoundland ; I have merely stated what I know to
have occurred in some of the out-ports within the last seven
years : but, my Lord, it is most gratifying for me to have to
add that these acts of violence are not now heard of. A system
of jurisprudence has been established which guarantees justice
to the people ; and so deeply rooted is that opinion amongst
them, that I have no hesitation in saying that our present ve
nerated and beloved Chief Justice might open, his court in
the most distant parts of the island, and that the people them
selves would carry his judgments into execution. They know
that he will not permit " laws to grind the poor, or rich men to
rule the law."
Having stated the absence of crime at Newfoundland as a
proof of the moral character of the people, I shall conclude by
giving a summary of the state of religion and education. The
inhabitants of Newfoundland, are either English, Irish, or Scotch,
or their immediate descendants ; and, as it has been stated by
Mr.. Anspach, they are divided into a great variety of religious
sects; -—religious instruction is conveyed to them by clergymen
of the Church of England ; numerous missionaries from the Me
thodist Society in this country ; a Roman Catholic Bishop, resi
dent at St. John's, with numerous clergymen of his persuasion
acting under his authority iu all parts of the island ; and, lastly,
clergymen of the Presbyterian religion. The clergymen of the
Church of England and of the Methodist Society are supported
in a great degree by the Society for the Propagation of the Gos-

[ 17 ]
pel in Foreign Parts, and by the Methodist's Missionary Society;
those of the Catholics and Presbyterians are, I believe, entirely
supported by the voluntary contributions of their flocks. I
speak only the general opinion at Newfoundland when I say,
that a more pious, moral, and zealous body of clergymen there
is no where to be found; and the consequence of their pious
labours is, and I state it confidently, that in no country is the
genuine principles of the christian religion more uniformly
respected. The people are most remarkable for attention
to their religious duties; and though divided into various
sects, that bitter sectarian hostility, so frequently seen among
people of other countries, claiming a higher degree of civi
lization, and loudly proclaiming to the world their perfection
in christian doctrines, is not observed amongst them. The peo
ple of the various religious congregations at Newfoundland have
complied with the recommendation of our divine master,—
they love one another. It is, my Lord, a distinguishing feature
in the character both of the clergy and laity at Newfoundland,
that they are more anxious to become good members of the Church
of England, good Methodists, good Presbyterians, good Catho
lics, in short, good Christians, than to make proselytes to their
respective sects. If any clergyman at Newfoundland, no mat
ter what his creed, attempted to vilify the religion of his neigh
bours, he would be condemned by the enlightened christians of
that country. Each religion at Newfoundland stands upon its
own intrinsic merits : and if it would not be considered pro
fane I would say, that the principles of free trade in religion has
been adopted in that country, much to the advantage of ge
nuine Christianity. Thus though christians at Newfoundland
never interfere with .their neighbours' creeds, I am sincerely
of opinion that they have found out the true secret of prosely
tism : they recommend their different religions by the prac
tice df christian charity ; and, possibly, their plan would be
worthy of the imitation of those gloomy bigots who imagine
they cannot propagate their own favourite opinions without com
mitting the greatest outrage on the feelings of those who differ
from them, and with whose consciences they have the daring
temerity to interfere. c

[ 18]
It is possible, my Lord, that any general statement of
mine, with respect to the christian charity that prevails
at Newfoundland, may not pass current, as good autho
rity, unless substantiated by some facts, which, without
doubt, will bring the matter more fully before your Lordship's
mind. It is a very general custom at Newfoundland for the labour
ing classes, and others, in the winter season, as a compliment
to the clergyman, to bring him from the interior a quantity of
wood for fuel. The friends of the clergyman pf the Established
Church at St. John's, some short time ago, proposed, what is
there called a general haul of wood for his benefit. I had the
gratification of hearing the good, pious, and venerable Bishop of
the Roman Catholic Church address his numerous congregation,
and request of them that they would join in the haul of wood,
and that their general exertions in behalf of his brother of
the Established Church would be more gratifying than any
thing they could do for himself. The day of the haul of wood
it was most gratifying to observe the Roman Catholics uni
ted with their brethren of every other religious persuasion,
moving immense masses of wood in the direction of the house of
the worthy minister. The great body of the working people were
Irish, or their immediate descendants, and I can assure your
Lordship that it warmed my heart, though the mercury was
fifteen degrees below zero, to observe the perspiration float
ing down their manly brows whilst vying with the people
of other countries, and other religions, as to who should pay
the greatest compliment to the respected individual. The
quantity of wood hauled out by the united efforts of the people
was great indeed ; but it would be an act of injustice to the indi
vidual for whose nominal benefit this haul of wood was made,
not to state that it was soon conveyed from his residence to
warm the cheerless cottages of the poor, the sick, the widow,
and the orphan.
One or two other facts will more fully prove the good un
derstanding subsisting between the numerous religious societies
in Newfoundland. It is not unusual for the clergymen of the
various religions in that country, on particular occasions, to

[ 19 ]
attend at the Roman Catholic chapel to hear a religious dis
course ; and it is only a very short time ago I observed the
Roman Catholic Bishop, robed in his canonicals, at the Esta
blished Church, attending to a religious discourse delivered by
the worthy clergyman of that communion. I could recount
many other acts, both on the part of the clergy and the laity,
of Christian liberality, which I have no doubt would shock
the prejudices of the bigots of all parties. Thank God,
religious discord, if it ever existed at Newfoundland, is
completely crushed, and exists there no more. It is only in
the putrescent and fetid soils of the old countries that infernal
plant can flourish and luxuriate, spreading its noxious vapours,
and causing ruin and desolation within the sphere of its influ
ence. It is, my Lord, an exotic, and will not take root in
the young soil of America, though it may be wafted across
the " waters of the vast Atlantic" by the eloquence of my
lord Bishop of Chester, and his compeers at the Newfound
land School Society. I shall conclude my remarks on the
state of religion at Newfoundland, with only one observa
tion : That I must have, in this letter, stated many falsehoods
to your Lordship, or my lord Bishop of Chester must have been
most grossly imposed upon to be induced (no doubt from the
representations made to him) to say, in his speech at the meet
ing of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign
Parts, that " that island (Newfoundland) in respect to christian
instruction, was in a state approaching to destitution." [Appen
dix, 6.]
The next subject which I shall call your Lordship's atten
tion to, and which shall conclude all that I have to say
on the subject, is the state of education for the poor ;
Charitable institutions ; and the liberal support which the
inhabitants generally afford to objects requiring charity ; and
which I request you will place in juxta position with the
statements made by the orators at the Newfoundland School So
ciety meeting, who want to monopolize to themselves credit for
all the education, all the morality, and all the religion, in that
country ; though, even according to their own account, they
have not yet made much progress, or they would not boast of

[ 20 ]
one of their masters in Newfoundland succeeding, after a world
of paitis, in procuring a female there, " discreet and cleanly,"
and fit to be raised to the important situation of his " maid of
all work."
This I know is a world of cant : but, my Lord, of all the
cant, in this canting world, the hypocritical cant of religion
and charity is the most intolerable.
In the year 1802, during the government of admiral, tow
Lord Gambier, there was a school established for the education
of the poor at St. John's, under the denomination of a " Protest
ant and Roman Catholic School." This school owes its origin
in a great measure to Lord Gambier ; and, I believe, he was as
sisted in his laudable object at the time by the Roman Catholic
Bishop, Doctor O'Donnel, and by others of influence then in
that country. It has since been supported partly by aid from
the local government, and by voluntary subscriptions on the
part of the inhabitants. I have had a share in the management
of the school for some years, as one of the stewards, and 1 can
state, that the children educated there reflect the highest credit
on the establishment. The present master of the school
was educated there : and for talent, and attention to his duty,
is not Second to any holding a similar situation at Newfoundland.
From 260 to 300 children are educated at this school, which is
under the direction of a general committee, consisting of the
clergymen of the various religious persuasions, and the princi
pal gentlemen of St. John's.
Schools for the Poor have been established at many of the
out-ports ; and, I have been informed, by a pious and worthy
clergyman of the Methodist society, that they, the Methodist mi
nisters, were authorized by the parent society in England to es
tablish schools in all parts of the island. And, further, that
they had liberty to draw on the parent society for sums equal to
what might be subscribed by the inhabitants for that purpose.
In consequence, many schools have been established in various
parts of the island, by the clergymen of the Methodist persua
sion ; who are, in Newfoundland, most zealous and indefatigable
in the discharge of their duty, for the benefit of the people of
their congregations.

[21 ]
There are many schools also in the out-ports supported by
the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts.
The clergymen of all the other persuasions have schools for the
education of their respective poor.
There is a charitable society at St. John's ,• the Benevolent
Irish Society, established as far back as 1806, by Colonel, now
General Murray, late Governor of Demerara, and James M'Braire,
Esq. now of Tweed Hill, Berwick, who were the first presidents
of the society, and are note vice patrons, and have, since their
departure from the island, been most liberal supporters of the
institution. The object of the society is, in the first place, to
give relief to the aged and infirm ; to encourage industry among
the poor ; and to promote education and good morals. Since
the establishment of the society there has been expended
for charitable purposes upwards of £8,000 ; and the society
have invested in the public funds, in the names of trustees,
James M'Braire, Esq. Thomas Meagher, Esq. and myself, £1500,
besides £200 balance of interest remaining in the hands of the
agents of the society in this country. The society is supported
by the annual payments of members ; but a great part of the
money expended has been the voluntary subscriptions of the
labouring classes of the Irish, and their descendants, through
out the island.
In the distribution of the funds of the society, they confine
their issues to such infirm and aged persons who, from these
causes, are deemed incapable of earning their support.
The undivided attention of the society has been directed
to the encouragement of industry among the labouring classes ;
they have used every argument and persuasion to induce the
people to clear and cultivate the §oil, and, as a further induce
ment, the society engaged in their individual, as well as in their
aggregate capacity, to procure small lots of ground for the poor
and to assist them in clearing it ; and, lastly, to give them seed
to plant therein. The society have, for some years, faithfully
redeemed this pledge, as far as their very limited means allowed
them ; and it is impossible for me adequately to state the im
portant benefits that arise to the poorer classes in Newfoundland
from the measures adopted by the Irish Society ; not so much in

[22 ]
fhe direct aid given to the poor, but in the example of success
ful industry given to others, and which, thank God, is extending
itself in every part ofthe island ; and the poor people are raising
themselves, by their own exertions, from a state of wretched
pauperism to one of comparative comfort and independence.
The fishery on the coast until of late years was the only support
ofthe inhabitants, if it were successful they were enabled to pro
cure food for themselves and families ; if it failed, they were
plunged in distress, and had to eke out a wretched existence
during the dreary period of a cold Newfoundland winter. Though
last year the fishery was a complete failure, little or no distress
has-been experienced; none whatever by those persons who
have attended to the cultivation of their little farms and gardens.
A similar failure ofthe fishery, before the attention of the people
was called to the cultivation of the soil, would have caused uni
versal distress ; and the inhabitants would, as heretofore, have
been compelled to emigrate, or starve, or be supported at the
expense of government, and the wealthy inhabitants and mer
chants. [Appendix, 7.]
It will no doubt surprize your Lordship, when I inform you
that the measures adopted by this humble charitable institution
for the encouragement of agriculture in Newfoundland, was in
direct opposition to the insane policy of the local government.
Until of late the cultivation of the soil was prohibited ; it was
considered high treason against the petty despotism that so long
prevailed, and which, like the simoom of the desert, caused
ruin and desolation to surround it on every side. This, I am
quite sure, must have been the local policy of Fort Townsend;
I cannot suppose, for one moment, that such gross injustice, and
worse than ridiculous absurdity, could ever be sanctioned by the
enlightened policy of the parent government.
It will be gratifying to your Lordship to hear that the Be
nevolent Irish Society, in addition to their exertions to relieve
the distresses of the poor, and to encourage them in habits of
industry, have not neglected their education. For the pro
motion of this object the society has expended a considerable
portion of their funds ; they have a school containing between
250 and 300 children, of both sexes, under the care of a master

[ 23 ]
and mistress ; and the society is now erecting a building, on
ground granted to the society by our most excellent governor,
Sir T. Cochrane, that will contain 800 children. To prove the
geal of the Irish at Newfoundland for the promotion of educa
tion, I have to state that individual members of that society,
independently of their annual dues, have subscribed very large
sums for the erection of the new school. Some subscribed
£100, others £50, and the other members have subscribed
proportionably. In addition to the subscriptions of the mem
bers of the society, most liberal donations have been given, un
solicited, by his Excellency, Sir Thomas Cochrane, C. B. Bren
ton, Esq. his secretary, the Chief Justice, the Judges, the At
torney General, the clergymen of the different religious persua
sions, andmany other gentlemen of the army, navy, and town. It
may be necessary for me to state, that though the title of the
society is Irish, there is no distinction whatever made in
the distribution of the charity. By their rules they are bound
to " afford relief to the unfortunate of all nations, as general
philanthropy is the object of the society ;" and as the society is
patronized by every man of rank and worth in the country, it is
the best proof that they religiously observe these rules in every
particular. [Appendix, 8.]
There are other charitable institutions at St. John's and the
out-ports ; and I have ample evidence to prove, if necessary,
that no where is charity more generally practiced than it is by
the generous inhabitants of that country.
This, my Lord, is the case that I have endeavoured to make
out for the calumniated people of Newfoundland, if I have
failed, the fault alone is to be attributed to the incompetency
of the advocate. In the course of my remarks I have made use
of some language that may be considered harsh and severe ; I
have particularly to request, that it will alone be placed to the
account of those individuals of the Newfoundland School Society,
who, from their connexion with Newfoundland, or local know
ledge, knew, or ought to have known, that they were uttering un
founded, and most slanderous imputations ; for them, and them
alone, the language is intended. To those good and benevolent
men, who, like your Lordship, generously came forward to

[ 24 ]
promote the great cause of education at Newfoundland, I, in
common with every person interested in the welfare of the
Colony, must feel truly grateful ; and I most sincerely hope that
any expression that may have fallen from me, in the course of
this letter, will ntrt prevent them from continuing their support.
The Institution, under good management, is calculated to do
much good, and I am not without some hopes that my proving
that the people in that country are not the half-savage monsters
they have been represented to be, will be an additional induce
ment to the enlightened and liberal public of England to extend
their benevolence to the oldest, and, until of late, the most
neglected of their Colonial offspring. However, I must candidly
confess to your Lordship, that I would not condescend to
notice the " trash" circulated by the itinerant orators of the
Newfoundland School Society, at their Meetings in this country
and in Ireland, but that I considered it of great importance to
the future welfare of the Colony, that the erroneous impressions
generally prevailing respecting it should be removed ; and my
great object is to prove that the people of Newfoundland are
peaceable, moral, and religious ; and are ripe for and in a fit
situation to receive those enlightened and liberal institutions
which have been granted to Colonies of much less importance
in their neighbourhood; and without which it is vain to hope
that the country can make much progress in population, wealth,
and internal improvement. [Appendix 9.] For the life of me I
cannot discover one principle of reason, or sound policy, in with
holding from Newfoundland some sort of local Government
calculated to rouse its dormant energies : it would, or I am
grossly in error, promote at the same time the interest of the
Mother Country, the merchants, and the inhabitants ; there
are no conflicting interests, and it can be made as clear as the sun
at noonday, that any measure calculated to foster the neglected
internal resources of the country, would also promote the best
interests of the trade and fisheries, [Appendix 10.] and
make the Colony a more valuable appendage to the British
Crown. In conclusion, permit me to say, that I have made no state
ments in the course of this letter, that I do not know or believe

[25 j.
to be true : that, indeed, my Lord, must be a miserable cause
that requires the aid of falsehood to support it : humble as the
individual is, who has the honour of addressing your Lordship,
he would disdain to have recourse to such means to support
that cause which, above all others, he has most at heart, the
happiness, welfare, and good government of the people of New
foundland. I have the honour to be,
My Lord,
Your Lordship's most obedient,
Most humble servant,
Somerset Hotel, Strand, Patrick Morris.
London, June 23rd, 1827.

APPENDIX.

Note 1 . Page 7.
Jn making such serious charges against the adventurers it is
necessary for me to give proofs ; or accusations so shocking to
humanity would scarcely gain credence with those not acquainted
with the history of Newfoundland. For the truth of my state
ment I have only to refer to the proclamation of Governor
Montague, issued on the 6th of May, 1766. It states, "that
it has been represented to his Majesty, that his subjects re
siding in Newfoundland, instead of cultivating a friendly inter
course with the native savages inhabiting the island, as might be
for their mutual benefit, treated the said savages with the
greatest inhumanity, and in some instances had destroyed them
without the least provocation ; that it was his Majesty's royal
will and pleasure that the governor should express his Majesty's
abhorrence of such inhuman barbarity."
Little is known of the state of the Aborigines ; they have re
sisted every attempt to form a friendly intercourse. It is sup
posed, and most justly, that they were treated so barbarously
on the first settlement of the island, that they fled to their
woods ; and the recollection of the cruel treatment experienced
by them, has been transmitted from generation to generation,
which accounts for the unconquerable antipathy which they have
ever entertained against their more civilized brethren.
Some years ago Lieutenant Buchan, of H. M. S. Pike, was
sent on an expedition by the governor to the interior of the is
land, for the purpose of forming a friendly intercourse with the
natives. He proceeded in the Pike, I believe, to the Bay of
Exploits, where he laid up his vessel for the winter ; and taking
with him a sufficient armed force, proceeded by land towards
the interior. After traversing a great part of the country,
he came up with a tribe of the Indians, whose camp he sur
rounded ; not understanding their language, he conveyed to
them by signs the friendly object of his visit, which in a
short time they appeared perfectly to understand. After con-

[27 ]
siderable negociation, it was agreed that Lieutenant Buchan
should leave two or three of his men, as hostages, with the sa
vages, and that an equal number of them should proceed with
him to his ship, to carry the presents to the camp, with which
he was furnished by the governor. The Indians proceeded with
Lieutenant Buchan on board the Pike, where every attention
and kindness was shewn to them. The presents were got ready,
and Lieutenant Buchan and his party proceeded on their return,
accompanied by the Indians ; but when they got within a short
distance of the camp the Indians suddenly darted into the woods
and fled ; ¦ and when Lieutenant Buchan and his party got to
the camp they found it deserted by the Indians, and the head
less bodies of the poor fellows who had been left as hos
tages lying on the ground. It is uncertain whether the Indians
when leaving their party, had concerted the murder of the
hostages, or whether they smelt the blood of the murdered men
when they approached the camp. This relation of Lieutenant
Buchan's expedition will be found substantially correct.
In 1820, Captain Buchan, (the officer before mentioued) with
H. M. S. Grasshopper, was sent on another expedition, by his
Excellency Sir C. Hamilton, for the same purpose. After spend
ing the winter in fruitless exertions, he returned the following
year to St. John's, without meeting with any of the natives,
though he found traces of them in many parts that he traversed.
Note 2, page 8.
The transactions of the Fishing Admirals would scarcely be
credited were it not that they are authenticated by evidence
that is unquestionable. On the arrival of these Admirals in
their respective harbours, they selected for themselves the best
situations for carrying on the fishery. The ceremony they went
through in taking possession of property was by planting a
green bough on any place they took a fancy to, and it was
without further ceremony wrested from the unfortunate pos
sessor. If any of the inhabitants attempted to clear the ground,
and plant a few potatoes for the use of themselves and fami
lies, they were sure to bring down the vengeance of these
little tyrants : a green bough was immediately struck into the
offending soil, and the seed torn from the ground ; for they

[28]
dreaded nothing more than the improvement of the soil, appre
hending that it must interfere with their monopoly in sup
plying the people with provisions. Being the judges in all
cases, if any of, the , planters were indebted to them for
supplies, whether from the badness of the fishery, or other
causes, and were not likely to be able to pay all their other
creditors, these just judges proceeded to the premises of the
person, and sent away fish, oil, and every thing else of value
they could find, which they put on board their ships,- and
with which they proceeded to England, paying the other cre
ditors with a " flying top-sail." Note 3, page 10.
The Governors appointed by the King generally came to
Newfoundland the latter end of June or beginning of July, and
returned to England on the 25 th of October. Their arrival
was dreaded by the inhabitants as the angry visitation of
offended power more than as a dispensation of the just laws
of a Prince, who was considered the father of all his people.
To give some faint idea of the manner in which an English
King was represented in Newfoundland, I have only to state
that the inhabitants were not permitted to cultivate the soil,
nor were they allowed to build houses on their ground ; and,"
what must appear most extraordinary, they were not allowed
even to repair their old houses. Clearing an acre of ground,
building a house, putting a shingle on the roof to protect the
inmates from the " pelting of the pitiless storm," or a brick
upon their chimneys, was sure to bring down upon the delin
quents the most dreadful vengeance. Shortly after the arrival
of the Governor, in each year, he took a circuit of St. John's,
and it would be in vain to attempt to give an idea of the alarm
of the inhabitants during his perambulation ; for if he observed
a new house built, an old one repaired, or a few new bricks
used to repair an old chimney, he ordered it instantly to be
razed to the ground, and the offending party might consider
himself leniently dealt with if he was not shipped off by the
first vessel that sailed. These statements, I fear, will not
easily obtain the credit of persons who have not been in
Newfoundland in these halcyon days. During the govern*-

[ 29 J
ment of Sir John Duckworth, there was a very respectable
shopkeeper lived in the most public part of the town: his
house was so very bad that he ran the risk of having all his
goods spoiled by the weather : he made frequent applications
to the Governor for leave either to repair the house or to build
a new ane ; but no such leave would be granted. He then
hit upon a bold expedient ; he privately built a new house
inside the old one, when it was finished he managed, early
one morning, -by employing a great many hands, to have the
old materials carried away ; and his Excellency passing along
in the course of the day, found a new house erected as if by
magic, staring him in the face, and setting his authority at de
fiance. The joke was such a good one, that his Excellency was
most graciously pleased to allow the rebellious house to rest
unmolested on its foundation. The Governors claimed not only
the power of regulating the property of the country ; they fan
cied they had authority, under the old customs, and particularly
under the " glorious and immortal Act of the 10th and 11th of
William and Mary," to send out of the country any man,
woman, or child, that they thought proper.
Note 4, page 12.
Being in London at the time the last Judicature Bill was
passed for Newfoundland, I had some opportunities of knowing
the difficulties which stood in the way of the Colonial Ministers
coming to a correct judgment on the state of that Colony,
from the conflicting and opposite statements that were made.
A change at that time appeared to all parties as absolutely ne
cessary for the government of Newfoundland. Some persons
(whose names I could not learn) recommended a system of their
own for that purpose, and the heads of a bill were drawn up
accordingly on the plan proposed by them ; but such a hetero
geneous mixture of despotism and absurdity never before was
planned for the misgovernment of a people. It was more objec
tionable than the former system, for this obvious reason, that
under its provisions all the excesses of the former Governors
could be legally acted over again under the sanction of an Act
of Parliament. Mr. Wilmot Horton was pleased to admit me,
in company with Mr. Dawe, to an audience to discuss the pro-

[30 ]
visions of that bill, and I denounced them in such strong lan
guage, that I fear, for the time, that I had forgotten that I was
in the presence of a Minister of State. Mr. Horton did not
inform us that he would make any alteration ; but when the
bill came to be printed, I presume from the united interference
of my Lord Darnley and the other friends of Newfoundland,
nearly all the objectionable parts were omitted, and the Act
rendered as beneficial to the country as it is honourable to the
distinguished individuals who presided over the colonies, and
who, I am sure, only required correct information respecting
the country, to do it ample justice.
Note 5, page 15.
It is only common justice and candour for me to state,
that the gentlemen of the Navy, generally speaking, had an
indisposition to be elevated to the bench of justice, and,
with a few exceptions, they acted with great humanity and
kindness to the inhabitants. It would be a gross libel on the
noble character of British seamen for me to attempt to insi
nuate any thing to the contrary; and in denouncing the con
duct of Surrogates in Newfoundland, I wish to be particularly
understood as alluding to other persons, of dubious character,
appointed to fill that office, and not to the gentlemen of the
Navy. At the same time, it must appear ' preposterous to any
one of the least reflection, that gentlemen educated in a pro
fession which separates them more than any other from the
relations of civil society, should be fitted for dispensing the
abstruse science of the law. It would, as was remarked by
Sir James Macintosh, when presenting the petition of the in
habitants of Newfoundland to the House of Commons, be as
ridiculous for naval officers to turn judges, as it would be for
lawyers or judges to take upon themselves the command of
a British Fleet. In the last year of the government of Sir C.
Hamilton, Captain M  was appointed Surrogate, and was,
as usual, ordered by the Admiral to proceed on a maritime
circuit with his frigate, to dispense law to the inhabitants
of the out-ports. The gallant Captain remonstrated with
the Admiral, and represented his utter incapacity ; but, as
I believe it is usual in the navy, the orders were peremptory.

[ 31 ]
Under these circumstances, Captain M  applied to the Chief
Justice, Mr. Forbes, for advice ; and after stating his dis
tressing situation, the Chief Justice recommended a plan for
his adoption, by which he would at the same time conform to
the orders of his superior officer, and save his conscience from
the charge of taking upon himself an office which he considered
he was not competent to fill. Mr. Forbes observed to Captain
M  , " The Admiral and the law both unite in saying that
you must be a Judge — That you must proceed on a maritime
circuit, and open Surrogate Courts — You must obey — But,"
said Mr. Forbes, " I know of no law that obliges you to decide
any case that you don't understand ; and you are entitled to
the privilege of all other Judges — You can take full time to
make up your mind." Captain M  retired with a light
heart, exclaiming, " A Daniel, a very Daniel come to judg
ment." He proceeded according to his orders, opened his
courts in the different harbours, heard the pro's and the con's,
but took especial care that he did not give one solitary de
cision. This gallant officer who, in defence of that flag which

" has braved, a thousand years,

The battle and the breeze,"
would shed his blood to the heart's core, yet had not sufficient
courage to do an act of injustice.
There were other naval officers not quite so squeamish as the
above gentleman, and who, stumbling upon an odd volume of
Blackstone, or Burns' Justice, were quite anxious to display
their legal lore ; imagining they were competent to decide cases
involving principles of law the most intricate, connected with
the Bankrupt Laws, Bills of Exchange, and the Law of In
surance : some of them- in the course of a month or two de
cided three or four hundred cases ; and it may be with great
truth said, they knocked them off the reel at the rate of twelve
knots an hour. I recollect one case in particular, of a Surrogate
in an out-port, who by some unaccountable accident decided
right ; but he gave so many wrong reasons for doing so, that
on an appeal to the Chief Justice, Mr. Forbes, he considered
it necessary for the ends of justice, to quash the proceedings
and order a new trial.

[32]
Noted, page 19.
When reading my Lord Bishop of Chester's speech at the
meeting of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in
Foreign Parts, I took it for granted that his Lordship was
guided by reports that had been made by some of the mission
aries at Newfoundland. Though intimately acquainted with the
greater part of them, there were some of whom I had no
opportunity of forming an opinion ; and it occurred to me,
that it was possible there might have been a " Judas" amongst
them, who, for the hope Pf base lucre, did betray the trust
reposed in him, and unjustly traduced the character of the
people. I am gratified beyond measure to have it in my power
to say that there is not the slightest ground for the suspicion
expressed in my letter. The Report of the Society for the
Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, is now before me,
for which I have to thank a Rev. Clergyman of the established
church, by a referrence to which it will be seen that the clergy
men at Newfoundland report most favourably of the state of
religion in that country. The Rev. Mr. Coster, the Arch
deacon, speaks highly of the state of religion ; and most par
ticularly of the charitable disposition of the people, " as ready
to give, and glad to distribute." They entered with promptitude
into his proposals for the relief of those " who were ready to pe
rish ;" and there was not a single instance in which the means
of relief came too late. This truly pious and worthy divine
recommends the practice of charity, by precept and example
too,- he has displayed the greatest anxiety for both the spiri
tual and temporal interest of the people in his district, and has
shewn the greatest indifference to his own interest —
" Far other aims his heart had learn'd to prize,
More bent to raise the wretched than to rise ;
Careless their merits or their faults to scan,
His pity gave ere charity began."
The Rev. Mr. Blackman, in the Report, gives an interesting
account of his journey to the south-west part of the island.
This gentleman assures the Society, that "notwithstanding the
very disagreeable means of proceeding from harbour to har
bour, often in tempestuous weather, his journey has afforded

L»S ]
hiin sincere satisfaction. The kindness and hospitality of every
person under whose roof he sojourned, their readiness in for
warding his views, and their exertions in every way they thought
conducive to the more easy completion of his mission, were no
ungrateful contrasts to the misery of a small boat, and other
inconveniences ever attendant on casual conveyances by water."
s The Rev. Mr. Bullock, missionary at Trinity, reports most
favourably of the progress and state of religion and education
in his district.
The Rev. Mr. Chapman, from Twillingate, complains of his
church being too small for the people on many occasions, and
praises these good christians, as well for their behaviour during
the time of service, as for the respect paid to him at all times ;
and concludes with observing, that he is well satisfied with his
situation. The Rev. Mr. Laugharne, whom I am happy to call my friend,
and to whose laborious exertions I can bear ample testimony,
says, " that the three out-harbours, under his care, are, with re
gard to religion, in a very flourishing state. The churches at Por
tugal Cove and Petty Harbour are crowded to excess : indeed, at
the latter place they must, if possible, again enlarge the church."
Here then is the united testimony of the clergymen of the es
tablished church at Newfoundland, opposed to the statement of
my Lord Bishop of Chester. Where, in the name of wonder, I
would ask, did he obtain his information respecting the state of
religion in that country ? Orators as well as poets are allowed
sometimes to take romantic flights ; but before his Lordship, by
a figure of rhetoric, swept away the religious character of the
people of Newfoundland, he ought to have read the Reports of
the very Society he was addressing, and which were, point blank,
opposed to his inspired oration. The reports of the respective
clergymen of the established church at Newfoundland, reflect
the greatest credit upon them, and must endear them still more
to the people of that country, of every religious persuasion.
My testimony in their favour ought to be considered conclusive
by my Lord Bishop of Chester, as I am one of that class of
christians (Roman Catholics) whose admission to political and
religious rights his Lordship so eloquently and so unjustly op
poses.

[34 ]
The following Letter, from Archdeacon Coster to the Lord
Bishop of Nova Scotia, presents such a comprehensive view
of the State of religion in Newfoundland, that it is extracted
entire from the Report alluded to : —
" My Lord,
" I have, during the past summer, visited three out of the
" five missions which, exclusive of my own, are all that have
" been as yet permanently established by the Society for the
" Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, in this island ;
*' and have the satisfaction to be able to affirm that I found the
' ' several missionaries, entrusted with the care of them, all
" doing their duty, and the work in all of them proceeding, to
" all appearances, prosperously upon the whole. In the long-
" established mission of St. John's, I found the church well at-
" tended, and every thing conducted in a regular and orderly
" manner. In the extensive districts of Conception Bay, and
" Trinity Bay, as well as in Bonavista Bay, in which I myself
" reside, new churches and schools-houses are continually
" springing up, and there appears to be little difficulty in pre-
" vailing upon the people, by the offer of some pecuniary as-
" sistance from our society, to contribute all that is necessary
" oh their part for the erection of such buildings, whenever they
" are called upon to do so. This is the more to their credit,
" when their very limited means, in this time of extensively pre-
" valent distress, are considered, and indicates a disposition
"'* which, with due exertion on our part, may be improved to
'' their everlasting advantage. The three out-harbours in the
" neighbourhood of St. John's, which have now for some time
" enjoyed the advantage of the frequent visits of a clergyman,
" are by this time, each of them, provided with a place of wor-
" ship, either appropriated exclusively to our use (as in the case
rt of Petty Harbour and Torbay), or one which we use conjointly
" with the preachers of the Protestant Dissenting Societies
" (as in that of Portugal Cove). The church of Petty Har-
" bour, though built, I believe, not long ago, has been lately
" enlarged for the accommodation of an increased congrega-
'• tion. The two remaining missions of Twillingate and
*' Ferryland I have not yet visited, and, consequently, for

[35 }
" an account of their condition I must refer to the reports of
" their respective missionaries. The report which has been
" made to me respecting Ferry land is favourable upon the
" whole; but it is to be regretted that no progress seems to
" have been made towards the erection of a church by the in-
" habitants of that place, though they have had for a consider-
" able time the benefit of a clergyman's residence, who is pro-
" perly anxious on the subject. The missionary at Twillingate
" expresses much satisfaction at the state of things in that re-
" mote district. The religious dissentions among the people
" had greatly abated. There is now no organized sect of Pro-
" testant Dissenters in the place. A building, which was for-
" merly used as a Dissenting place of worship, has been con-
" verted into a Sunday School-room ; and those who used to
" frequent it, now attend the church. The Sunday School is
" in a very flourishing condition, consisting of one hundred and
" twenty-six children.
" The daily schools attached to the established church, and
" in part supported by our society, have not hitherto attained,
" generally speaking, a very prosperous state. We have heen
" under a disadvantage in having no central school in the island,
" in which the teachers we employ might be instructed in the
" Madras system.
" There is now a prospect of improvement in this respect,
" and we may hope that ere long our schools will put on a more
" pleasing appearance. I ought not, however, to omit to men-
" tion that I never heard the answers in the Church Catechism
" better given than by a number of the scholars belonging to a
" charity school, which has been for a considerable time esta-
" blished in St. John's, at a public examination in the church
" while I was there. It was plain that great pains had been taken
" with the boys, and that they had greatly profited by it.
" The school in Bonavista does not succeed in proportion to
" the pains bestowed on it ; but that is owing to causes of a
" nature only temporary, and I do not apprehend that we shall
" always have cause to complain of it. The miserable poverty
" of the far greater part of the over population of the place has
" left great numbers without the means of providing even de-
" cent and necessary apparel for their children, so that many

[36 ]
" of them CPuld not now be sent "to school, how much soever"
" they might desire it. I am fully aware of the importance of
" this branch of our duty as ministers of religion, and shall dff
" my utmost in its discharge both within my own district and
" elsewhere.
" When the nature of the ground we occupy, and the small
" number of labourers employed on it are considered, I trust your
" Lordship will see no cause to be dissatisfied with the state
" of things I have described. It is undeniable that considerable
" good is done with very small means. In each of the three
" extensive bays above mentioned, another missionary is greatly
" wanted, and I have received the most urgent applications
" from the inhabitants of more than one large and populous dis-
" trict for a resident missionary. A memorial most numerously
" signed, has just been presented to me from the inhabitants
" of a part of Trinity Bay, which well deserves the Society's
" earliest attention.
" Until the wants of these districts can be effectually sup-
" plied in the way they desire, all is done that can be done by
" the appointment of the fittest men that can be found, as Lay-
" readers and Catechists.
" I have lately made an appointment of this kind, to which I
" request your Lordship's sanction. It has not been made
" without due enquiry into the . fitness of the person recom-
" mended to me, and after the answers I have received to those
" enquiries, I can entertain no doubt on the subject. Every
" care is taken, both by myself and my brother missionaries,
" that the persons holding these situations fulfil the duties of
" them ; and, so far as I can learn, in general they do so to the
" extent of their abilities.
" Upon the whole Ican conscientiously give it as my opinion,
" that the religious affairs of this portion of the diocese are di-
" ligently and zealously managed by the several agents of our
" church and the Society, and ever thing is in a state of pro-
" gressive improvement. " I have the honor to be,
" My Lord,
" Your Lordship's obedient, humble Servant,
" George Coster."

[37]
Note 7, page 22.
The most deep rooted prejudices have existed, and dp exist,
With respect to the climate and soil of Newfoundland. When
mens prejudices and what they suppose to be their interests
unite in support of a particular doctrine, one may as well
argue with the winds and the waves as with such men ;
the policy that from the beginning had been adopted to
restrain the cultivation of the soil, can be traced to those
narrow contracted principles of mercantile monopoly and cupi
dity which, I again and again repeat, have been the curse of New
foundland for centuries. The trade and fisheries ofthe country
were in the hands of a few persons ; they had the supplying of
the people with food and all other necessaries ; they charged
for them what they pleased ; they received in payment the fish
and other produce of the fisheries, for which they also allowed
what they thought proper. Under these circumstances, they were
Opposed to the settlement and the agricultural improvement of the
country ; every barrel of potatoes grown at Newfoundland would
reduce the importations of provisions ; and every settler in the
country would, as they considered, interfere with their monopoly.
The persons interested in the* trade of Newfoundland resided for
the most part of their time in England ; they used all their in
fluence with the government to second their views ; and the point
which they Invariably put to the government, (for governments
as well as individuals have their weak sides) was, that a move
able fishery, the precise fishery they carried on themselves, was
fhe only means of increasing seamen ; and, that if a resident
fishery was encouraged, it would be ruinous to the British navy.
By these preposterous and ridiculous arguments the mono
polists completely gained their object with the government ;
and this alone can account for the monstrous power placed in
the hands of the first rulers of Newfoundland, and for the re
gulations, sanctioned by the government at home, which prevented
the inhabitants from cultivating .the land, and which absolutely
gave power to the commanders to force the people from the
country. These were the barriers to the improvement of New
foundland, and not the barrenness of the soil, or the severity
of the climate.
Soon after the effects of the ruinous treaties with the French

[ 38 ]
and Americans, in 1814 and 1818, came into opperation, the mo
nopolists had to contend with rivals whom they could not op
press and persecute ; — the consequence was, a universal panic,
and a general crash among them. Those that were not com
pletely ruined, had to withdraw their capital from the trade,
or to employ it in a way directly opposed to the system adopted
by them for centuries ; they were obliged to employ it in a way
that must operate to encourage settlement and improve the
country. During " the panic" in 1815 and 1816, in the New
foundland trade, the monopolists on this side pf the water had
sufficient influence to get a committee of the House of Com
mons to enquire into the state of Newfoundland. The ob
ject was, to persuade the government to grant a bounty. • Mer
chants from all parts, I believe, were examined before the com
mittee ; they were loud iu their complaints of the ruinous"
state of the trade ; but when asked if there was a possibility of
improving the soil at Newfoundland, they were unanimous in
their opinions that it was impracticable.
After all their exertions, the government, fortunately for
Newfoundland, gave a deaf ear to their application for a bounty ;
and on finding themselves disappointed in that, they threw
the country and its inhabitants over-board — they might perish
for aught they cared ; and, indeed, two or three winters since that
period they were reduced to a most perilous state; for if vessels
with supplies of provisions were delayed, in some instances only
ten days, nothing could possibly prevent the greater part of the
people perishing from famine. The causes which I have men
tioned will be suflicient to any reasonable mind to account
for the soil of Newfoundland not being generally cultivated, and
for the ridiculous prejudices that exist with respect to both the
climate and the soil. The opinions of any man, though he
may be worth two or three hundred .thousand pounds, can have
very little weight against the evidence of facts: The best argu
ment that can he adduced, that the soil of Newfoundland is ca
pable of agricultural improvement, is, that it has been improved ;
and the fact of a poor man in that country clearing a few acres
of ground, and comfortably supporting himself and a large fa
mily by its produce, must carry more weight with it than the
opinions of a host of such interested men as were examined

[39 ]
before a committee of the House of Commons ; and who,
I believe, were very rich, very respectable, but even as far
as their own interest was concerned, proved that they had
more money than brains, The agricultural improvements that
have taken place since the inhabitants have been thrown
upon their own resources, must set the question of the
practicability of improving the soil of Newfoundland at rest
for ever. Fine farms have been cultivated in the neighbourhood
of St. John's, in Conception Bay, St. Mary's Bay, Placentia
Bay, St. George's Bay, and in every part of the island; and
I state, without fear of contradiction, that in no one in
stance, where labour, skill, and industry have been used in
cultivating the soil have they failed in amply repaying the
husbandman's toil. . Potatoes, turnips, and esculent roots of
almost every description are produced in Newfoundland, and of
the very best description. Oats, barley, and wheat, where they
have been cultivated with care, have ripened, and come to per
fection. I have exhibited to corn-factors in this country samples
of the produce, and they assured me they were of the finest de-
cription ; and it is a fact can be proved, that potatoes and oats
grown in Newfoundland now command at St. John's a higher
price than articles of the same kind imported. The meadow
ground in Newfoundland, is very fine, and I have heard good
judges state that the quality of the grass, and its prodoce, in
many instances was equal to good grounds in Ireland, and better
than the generality of ground in Scotland. I have got a small
estate in the neighbourhood of St. John's, part of which I farm ;
I have planted annually, for the last four years, from sixty to
seventy barrels of potatoes, and they have averaged in pro
duce twelve to one; and I have been assured by others, that
they have frequently had twenty and twenty-five barrels of pota
toes produced from one barrel. There is a very fine farm ad
joining mine, owned and cultivated by Messrs. William and
Henry Thomas, one of the first mercantile firms in St. John's.
They have a Scotch steward, a Mr. Read, to manage their farm,
a man of intelligence and well acquainted with the' principles and
science of agriculture. This farm has produced, under the ma
nagement of Mr. Read, most excellent crops of hay, oats, wheat,
barley, and potatoes ; in fact, that gentleman has most unequi-

[40]
vocally proved that the soil of Newfoundland is capable of great
improvement. By the advice of Mr. Read, the Messrs. Thomas
have got a grant of 200 acres of new ground in the neighbour
hood of St. John's, from the governor ; and, I understand, that
though they only commenced clearing it in October last, there
will be fifty acres of it under cultivation this present year. The
labour and expense of clearing the ground at Newfoundland is
by no means so great as might be supposed; I have been as
sured by many, that the produce for the first year, under a
judicious management will more than pay the expense. Tlie'
Rev. Mr. Brown, the Roman Catholic clergyman residing at
Ferryland, gave me a statement of the expenses that he was at
in clearing 10 acres of land, in which he charged for the labour
of clearing and planting, the manure, and the seed ; and by
his statement, there was a profit of six or seven pounds
in the very first year's produce. I regret that I have mis
laid his paper, or I should have given the account in his own
words. The same opinion I have heard from my much esteemed
friend, Dr. Carson, an individual to whom Newfoundland is
indebted for her agricultural and other improvements more
than to any other person, and who has been indefatigable in his
exertions to remove the obstacles that have been raised against
the cultivation of the soil : he has frequently assured me that the
first year's produce will pay the expense of clearing the land.
But when I speak of the practicability of cultivation in New
foundland, I have more particularly in view the industrious
individuals who will labour themselves at the soil; it is for
the comfort of such persons, and to give employment to
them, that the friends of Newfoundland are so anxious for culti
vation. Gentlemen farmers seldom, even in this country, make
much money by their out-lay of capital ; and I by no means
wish to be understood as recommending farming as a profitable
speculation in Newfoundland, for I am fully of an opinion that
" He who by the plough would thrive,
Himself must either hold or drive,"
The labouring classes at Newfoundland who of late years have
turned their attention to cultivation have been made quite inde-

[41 ]
pendent, and many of them have accumulated considerable pro
perties. I could, if necessary, bring such a host of evidence to
prove the truth of this statement, that the sceptics themselves
would believe. The soil of Newfoundland is not as good as the
soil in the neighbouring colonies ; but when the advantages of
the home market for the produce, created by the trade and
fisheries, is taken into account, it leaves not the shadow of doubt
but that ground in a state of cultivation in Newfoundland is
of far more intrinsic value, than ground in Nova Scotia, Prince
Edward's Island, New Brunswick, or the Canadas. Newfound
land has been the chief market for the produce of the neigh
bouring colonies, which are all agricultural, and more particu
larly for the colony of Prince Edward's Island. I have no
hesitation in stating that more money has been paid by the
people of Newfoundland for the last twenty years, for agricultural
produce, to the inhabitants of Prince Edward's Island, than would
this day purchase the fee simple of that island. As a proof
that I am not singular in my opinion with respect to the value
of ground at Newfoundland, I may remark that Major Green,
the Town Major at St. John's, (a keen farmer,) and who has
large tracts of land of the very best description in Nova Scotia,
of which country he is a native, assured me that though the
land there was better than at Newfoundland, that he would
sooner have ten acres of land, in a state of cultivation, near
St. John's, than a farm of a hundred acres in Nova Scotia.
The Local Government at Newfoundland have taken off some
of the restrictions on the cultivation of the soil ; and the
Governor gives every facility in his power to those who may
be inclined to look for grants ; but until there are roads, or
some power or authority to make them, it is in vain to expect
that much progress can be made in agriculture. The Governor
may make grants of land, but if there are no means to get
access to it, few will accept of the boon ; the want of roads
through the country, must, in itself, operate powerfully against
the general cultivation of the soil.
Some short time after my arrival in town, a gentleman in
the representation of a borough, in the west of England (raised
to importance by the capital accumulated in Newfoundland)
did me the honour of calling on ine, to get some information
F

[r42.];i
respecting Newfoundland ; and he, I am quite sure, would bej
very anxious to do all in his power to promote the^ interest of
that country, inasmuch as it suited the views, or rather the
prejudices, of his constituents. Soon after entering on the dis
cussion of Newfoundland affairs, we were as " distant as the
poles asunder:'' with unfeigned astonishment he asked me what
we wanted with roads at Newfoundland ; — with equal astonish
ment, I promptly replied " To walk on them.'' If the honourable
gentleman had asked me what we wanted with bread at New
foundland, I should have as promptly replied, " To eat it."
Note 8, page 23.
The Irish at Newfoundland are desirous to extend the bless
ings of a moral and religious education to the poor of all per
suasions, and to do so in such a manner as not to give the
slightest cause to suspect the purity of their motives and inten
tions. In the school established at St. John's, precautions
have been taken to prevent any thing like undue influence
in the religious instruction of the children : by the rules,
they are only to receive instruction on that most impor
tant head in such manner, and from such books, as may be
approved of by the clergymen of their respective religions ; on
pertain days in each week the children are to receive such in
struction, either at their respective places of worship, or in
some part of the establishment, where the children of each
religion are separately instructed. The clergymen of all reli
gious persuasions can at all times enter into the school, examine
the books and the children, and satisfy themselves that every
thing is fair. The friends of this establishment, which I have
no doubt will be of the greatest benefit to the country, con
sider it of the greatest importance to give every satisfaction on
the score of religion, to act up to the spirit and letter of their
rules, and not to make a profession of liberal principles, and at
the same time to be insidiously working to promote particular
views. Such base conduct is a violation both of the laws of
God and man : it is a vain attempt to promote the cause of
truth by falsehood and fraud. Institutions for the promo
tion of religion and education, above all others, should act most
faithfully up to their professions : they should not only be pure,

[43 ]
but, like Caesar's wife, beyond suspicion. In consequence of
the unhappy differences that have existed in Ireland, with
respect to the mode of conveying instruction to the poor, the
Irish at Newfoundland, wisely profiting- by the melancholy
example, have endeavoured to steer clear of those rocks and
qnicksands, which the pious and wise men in Ireland, who take
such an interest in the future welware of that idolatrous race, are
sure to run bump against whenever they attempt to educate the
poor. The Scriptures, with notes and commentaries, and with
out notes and commentaries, are permitted to be placed in the
hands of our children at Newfoundland, as it may meet the
approbation or suit the views of their parents and religious
instructors. I know of no despotism more to be abhorred, than
that species of despotism which is attempted to be exercised
by those Quixotes in religion and education in forcing children
to read books because they approve of them, and in opposition
to the wishes of their clergymen and parents, their natural in
structors in matters of religion. The Irish at Newfoundland
have adopted such rules for the government of their schools as
will secure to the children of the poor a religious and moral
education on the one hand, and, what is of almost equal impor
tance, promote that harmony which happily exists between the
professors of all religions on the other. The Roman Catholic
Bishop, Dr. Scallan, has given his sanction and liberal support
to this plan of educating the children of all religions in the
same establishment. Very little is known in this country
about the state of the Roman Catholic religion at Newfound
land. The greater part of the people are Irish, or descendants
of Irish ; and not having any very great inducements to return to
their own unhappy country, more of them have settled at New
foundland than of any other country. The greater part of them
are Roman Catholics. The first Roman Catholic Bishop that
was appointed for Newfoundland was Dr. James O'Donnel, who
I believe arrived in that country in 1784. At the time he
arrived, religion and morals were at a very low ebb, particu
larly amongst the Irish, as there were no regular clergymen of
the Roman Catholic persuasion to instruct them. In a very
short time, by his pious and zealous exertions, a most wonder
ful change was brought about. He is considered, and justly, to

[44 ]
be the Apostle of Newfoundland. He was assisted in the mis
sion by some clergymen that were equally eminent for their
piety and learning. Dr. O'Donnel was not more remarkable for
his wisdom, piety, and zeal in promoting the genuine prin
ciples of Christianity amongst the people/than he was in con
ciliating the prejudices of those who were opposed to him on
his arrival at Newfoundland. Any one who looks back to the
degraded state of the Catholics forty-three years ago, will not
be surprised at a Roman Catholic clergyman meeting with some
obstacles on his first arrival in a colony where those in autho
rity, and many others, had the most frightful opinions respect
ing the order to which he belonged. But he soon surmounted
all his difficulties : some of his opponents he remonstrated with ;
some he argued with ; and some he laughed at. He was not more
distinguished for his piety and learning, than he was for his
suavity of manners and his wit. In a very short time his great
est enemies became his greatest friends : he gained the unbounded
confidence of the Governor, the then constituted authorities, and
the affection and love of all classes of the people ; and to this
day the Protestants speak, if possible, more affectionately
of him than even the members of his own church. The name
of the " Good Bishop O'Donnel" will be long remembered -
by the people of Newfoundland — and indeed he was good: — he
possessed as much of the milk of human kindness in his com
position as any man that ever lived, and, like Dr. O'Leary,
" would as soon quarrel with a man for the colour of his coat as
he would for his religion." He gained the affections of the old
and the young ; —
" Even children followed, with endearing wile,
And pluck'd his gown, to share the good man's smile,-
His ready smile a parent's warmth exprest,
Their welfare pleased him, and their cares distrest.
To them his heart, his love, his griefs were given,
But all his serious thoughts had rest in heaven."
He laid the foundation of the Catholic church in Newfoundland
on the most solid basis. To the judicious, wise, and bene
volent conduct of Dr. O'Donnel, on his first arrival, may

[45 ]
justly be traced the cause of that harmony which now hap-*
pily exists amongst all denominations of Christians, and which
I most devoutly pray may long continue. Dr. O'Donnel was
succeeded in. the mission by Bishop Lambert, whose piety,
zeal, and exertions to promote the good work of his prede
cessor were incessant ; and on his retiring from the country,
the present Bishop, Dr. Scallan, was appointed. His learn
ing, unostentatious piety, and most strict attention to the
high and important duties of his station, have gained for him
the respect and admiration of those who differ with him on
religious points, and the love and veneration bf his own people.
Dr. O'Donnel and Dr. Lambert received a small stipend, some .
paltry 50/. or 60/. from Government, which has been, from
what cause I cannot suppose, discontinued to Dr. Scallan ;
though I understand the late Governor, Sir Charles Hamilton,
most strongly recommended to Lord Bathurst the continuation
of it. As a Roman Catholic, I rejoice that it has been discon
tinued : the Roman Catholics of Newfoundland are both able
and willing to pay their Bishop and clergy, and I trust they
will long remain, there and elsewhere,
" Unplaced, unpensioned, no man's heirs or slaves."
The Roman Catholics at Newfoundland, under the direction
of Dr. Scallan, are very numerous : he has clergymen esta
blished in different parts of the island, supported by the people,
nearly in the same way that the parish priests in Ireland are
supported by the contributions of their flocks. The Vicar-Ge
neral acting under Dr. Scallan, the Rev. Mr. Ewer, resides
at Harbour Grace, the principal town in the large and most im
portant district of Conception Bay, containing from four to five
thousand inhabitants. Mr. Ewer is the oldest Roman Catholic
clergyman at Newfoundland : he was a cotemporary of Dr. O'Don
nel, and has done much for the promotion of religion and educa
tion. He has expended upwards of 5000/. in building a chapel, a
house for the residence of his clergy, and a steeple, which is
an ornament to the town ; and is now about establishing a
school, on a large scale, for the education of the poor at Har
bour Grace. Those who know him, and there are many in this
country who do know him, will agree with me in saying, that

t 46 ]
in his person is united the divine, the scholar, and the gentle-,
man. There are many other clergymen of the Catholic church
established in all parts of the island, and whose labours are far
above any praise of mine : they are indeed good shepherds —
they take care of their flocks.
¦ A person going to Newfoundland, unacquainted with the true
character of the frish, and only judging of it from the vile calum
nies which are so industriously circulated in this country, must
be struck with the contrast. In Newfoundland the Irish Roman
Catholic clergy are pious, learned, and liberal : the Irish Roman
Catholic people are religious, moral, and peaceable. Surely it
cannot be the climate or the voyage that has caused this
change ; no, it can be traced to a very different source : there
they are protected by the government and the authorities ;
justice is administered to them without affection or favour; the
higher orders (English and Scotch, as well as Irish) treat them
kindly, sympathize with them in their afflictions, and relieve
their wants. It is, then, the evident interest of the Irish at
Newfoundland to be orderly and peaceable ; they can as
quickly discern their interest as most people. It is a mat
ter well worthy of consideration amongst the higher orders
in Ireland, whether, if they treated the people in the same
kind manner at home, they would not make them a suit
able return. No one thing struck me, during my residence
at Newfoundland, with more surprise than to observe how soon
the Irish got clear of their local feuds and prejudices after their
arrival. Bigoted Orangemen and bigoted Roman Catholics,
just reeking from that stew of religious and political bigotry,
after a few months' residence in Newfoundland become the
best friends, laugh, or rather weep, at their folly, and fairly
acknowledge that in their own country both Protestants and
Roman Catholics, Orangemen and Papists, have been used as
puppets by the jugglers behind the scenes, for the purpose of
perpetuating the misery and degradation of their native country.
The Irish character is little understood, and is most foully
traduced. I do not blame Englishmen for having prejudices,
because I know the apostolic zeal that has been used to mislead
their honest hearts and generous minds ; but I wish I could
command language to express my contempt of those renegade

[;47.1
Irish who draw their existence from the heart's blood ofthe
people, and who are loudest in their charges against them —
" Oh ! for a tongue to curse the slaves."
They pretend, good souls ! to feel the greatest anxiety
for their countrymen's eternal welfare, whilst at the same
time they are, to a man, opposed to their civil and political
rights. They oppress and grind the people in this world,,
I suppose, for the purpose of giving them a stronger zest for
the joys they are so anxious to procure for them in the next.
When I hear of these arch hypocrites preaching and whining
over the benighted state of the Irish, I compare them to the cro
codiles on the banks of the Nile, who cry over and devour their
victims at the same time. Note 9, page 24.
It must appear extraordinary to those not acquainted with
the cause, that Newfoundland, the eldest born of his Ma
jesty's colonies, the most faithful, and the most important, should,
until this day, be without a government efficient for any local
purpose whatever. Such governments were granted to the
pther colonies in their infancy; and the same power was
granted to those colonies in the neighbourhood of Newfound
land which fell into the hands of the British at a very late peT
riod, and which formerly belonged to the French. It was the,
policy of England, as a thing of course, to grant to her colo
nies the power pf making such local regulations and laws as they
thought proper, and to manage their affairs in their own way.
Unfortunately for Newfoundland, the withering and blasting in
fluence of mercantile monopoly prevented her from reaping the
advantages of the wise and generous policy adopted by the pa
rent country to the pther colonies ; the consequence has been,
that with respect to internal improvement, the country is in,
little better state than it was three hundred years ago; and until
those liberal institutions are granted to Newfoundland, so ne
cessary for the good government of every enlightend country, it
is indeed vain to hope for improvement. It is only under the
fostering care of a local government that the trade, fisheries,
and agriculture of the country can advance ; it would give life
to the dormant energies of the country, which are now Ian-

[48 ]
guishing for the want of such encouragement. No man is more
ready to admit, than I am, that his Excellency, the present go
vernor, is most anxious to promote the internal welfare of the
country; and that he possesses both wisdom and talents ofthe
very first order, which qualify him to bring a new country
into existence. But he is stopped at the threshold ; the
glorious prospect lies before him, but«the system presents an
unsurmountable barrier. If Sir Thomas Cochrane was armed
with that constitutional power which is placed in the hands of
the governors in the other colonies, and, much as I respect him,
I trust that no other power will even be placed in his hands
(better that discord should prevail for ever), he would soon give
to Newfoundland a very different aspect. At present, before
the slightest permanent regulation can be made, he has to re
commend to his Majesty's ministers to have an act passed in the
Imperial Parliament ; — he will then have to wait two or three
years before the ministers can spare time to attend to his re
commendations : But, after devoting his best attention to the
subject, and obtaining an Act of Parliament to meet the locality,
when it arrives in Newfoundland, it is found quite wide of the
object intended. But no matter how ridiculous in some parts,
how cruel and unjust in others, it is pressed on the people ; it
operates like the persecution of Percrustas : — " if too short,
stretch it — if too long, lop it." Every Act of the British Parlia
ment hitherto enacted for the local purposes of Newfoundland,
has most miserably failed in its object. Having, I trust, as
orthodox opinions of the omnipotence of Parliament as any man,
I do not hesitate to state, that any future attempt at legislating
in this country to meet the localities at Newfoundland will more
fully prove its folly.
It may be necessary to give an example, to prove the ab
surdity of legislating for a distant colony without a know
ledge of its localities. Immediately after the destructive
fires of 1816 and 1817, which nearly destroyed the town of
St. John's, the Governor and the Chief Justice consulted the
principal inhabitants, on the necessity of having some regula
tions for the rebuilding of the town in respect to the disposi
tion, breadth of the streets, and fire breaks, so as to prevent as
much as possible any future fire spreading to the same alarming

t 49 1
extent: and accordingly a memorial, praying for an Act of
Parliament to meet the exigency, was forwarded to England by
the first vessel. After, two or three years, an Act of Parlia
ment arrived ; in the meantime the principal part of the town
had been rebuilt. The Act had a retrospective operation from
the date of the application; and the consequeuce was that it
failed in its object, and the town of St. John's, is in a great
degree built in direct violation of the provisions of an Act of
Parliament, In the same Act there is a clause which directs
that when parties build with wood, the streets are to be fifty
feet wide ; with stone, forty feet : one man builds with stone,
he pitches his house ten feet in front of his neighbour, who
builds with wood- — how admirable ! But
"Order is heaven's first law."
If, for the sake of argument, we admit the competency of
the British Parliament, will they have time, or will they spare
time, from the great subjects that every day come under their
consideration, to attend to the trumpery cases that will be
daily submitted to them for the local regulation of a few
people residing two thousand miles distant, of whom they know
— I would almost be inclined to say, for whom they care — no
thing ? , Or is the minister of the colonies aware of the trouble
he is bringing upon his back by such a ridiculous system ? He
must know, as the situation of the people at Newfoundland
improves, their demand for local regulations for their se
curity and comfort will increase ; and he may rest per
fectly satisfied, that from year to year he will be pestered with
applications from Newfoundland. The drafts on his patience
and attention will be so great, that I do believe that if he had
no other business to attend to, the affairs of Newfoundland
will give him quite sufficient employment; except he wisely
throw them off his shoulders on the people themselves.
Local legislatures have been granted to the Canadas, Nova
Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward's Island, Bermuda, Ja
maica, Barbadoes, and, I believe, all the English Islands in the
West Indies. No man of thought will deny that Newfoundland
is of more importance than any one of these colonies ; and
viewing the country with reference to the advantages that have

[ 50 j
been derived to the parent country, from her trade and fisheries,
and more particularly as the greatest and best nursery for seamen,
the country is of more value to England than the Canadas, New
Brunswick, Nova Scotia," and Prince Edward's Island, put toge
ther, even though we should throw half a dozen of the slave
islands in the West Indies in along with them. Those who are
in the habit of associating Newfoundland with eternal frost and
snow, and know nothing but that the dogs are excellent ; and
others who pretend to know every thing about it, but who are
so wedded to the old system, that they cannot think or speak
rationally on the subject, will treat this opinion with ridicule.
To the unprejudiced it will not appear quite so visionary. There
is in Newfoundland a population of upwards of 100,000 British
subjects, with manners and feelings as much British as if they
were one people. Go where you will in the neighbouring colo
nies, and you must observe amongst the people strong symptoms
of the American character growing up amongst them, whilst a
stranger arriving at St. John's, or any other of the populous
towns in Newfoundland, must be struck with the British cha
racter of the people, and imagine he was entering a town in
England or Ireland. Yet to such a country, to such a people —
who amongst the convulsions, and wars, and changes that have
taken place around them, have clung most faithfully unto the pa
rent stock — is denied the advantages freely given to others,
certainly not more deserving of protection from the parent
state. The policy which weighed with the Government and
prevented them from extending a good government to New
foundland, was that miserable and ridiculous policy which op
posed settlement on the ground that a sedentary fishery, a
fishery carried on by residents would not promote the growth of
seamen so much as a transitory or moveable fishery ; as if the
trade and fishery of a people were not better calculated to make
seament han that confined to a few monopolists. There is nothing
so easy, as to prove that a resident fishery and a resident popu-
tion is best calculated to promote the growth of seamen. The
grounds there were for the former policy of England towards
Newfoundland no longer exist : when the flag of independence
was raised in America, it was evidently the clear and obvious
interest of England to give every encouragement to settlement
and population in Newfoundland, to form a counterpoise to the

[51 ]
rapidly increasing power of that young and haughty republic,
which has, even in its very infancy, the hardihood to avow its
favourite object, at no distant day to grapple with mighty-
England for the dominion of the ocean.
I cannot help thinking, that if England had, from the com
mencement, adopted the same liberal policy towards Newfound
land that she did to the other colonies, she would have, at this
day, the materials of a naval power there that would be a match
for any that could be raised in any other part of America. Those
who may take the trouble of glancing their eye over the map
will observe Newfoundland, placed almost midway between the
Old and the New World — which points her out as the empo
rium of both — situated in nearly the same position with reference
to the continent of America, as England is to the continent of
Europe. Her insular situation, her iron-bound coast, indented
with harbours, the finest in the world, the key of the St. Law
rence, possessing in her fisheries more of the elements of com
merce than most other countries ; her produce finding, scarcely
without competition, a market in all parts of the world.' If along
with these advantages, we consider the salubrity of her cli
mate, and, no matter what may be said to the tontrary, the
capability of her soil of giving support and maintenance
to millions of inhabitants, the opinion, that if they were,
as they ought to be, fostered by England, Newfoundland could
be greatly raised in the scale of countries, will not be found so
visionary as at first sight it might appear. The fisheries raised
Holland from a swamp, to be, for a time, the greatest commer
cial country in the world : she had to surmount the disadvan
tages of soil, climate, and a most dangerous coast. But the
fisheries of Holland, in her best days, will not stand a compa
rison with those of Newfoundland ; and the other advantages
she possesses are vastly superior.
Newfoundland has been looked upon by the legislators of
former days, and I fear by their successors of the present day,
merely as a nursery for seamen ; it is well worth the trouble to
inquire if their favourite policy, sanctified as it is by the wisdom
of ages, has had the effect they intended it should have. I
contend that it has not ; and I shall prove to the contrary, that
the fisheries of Newfoundland are more nurseries for seamen

[52 ]
for the Americans than for the British.' I do not allude to the
fisheries carried on by the Americans and French, agreeable
to their treaties, and which they are encouraging by bounties,
and by every other means, and for no other purpose than to
increase their marine ; but it is our own fisheries, the British
fisheries, that I say are a better nursery for them than even their
own, arising from the effects of the policy so long adopted.
In consequence of the discouragement given to agriculture, the
fishermen have no means of making a settlement in the country,
and after they make a little rooney, or, what is a more effectual
cause, after an unsuccessful fishing season, they endeavour to get
to America (the United States). Within the 'last twelve or
fifteen years, not less than forty or fifty thousand of our best
fishermen emigrated to America ; their places have been rapidly
filled up by emigrants from Ireland, England, and other places,
but as soon as they accumulate a little money, and gain a know
ledge of the fishery, they follow in the tide of emigration to
America : and what is most extraordinary, for a great many
years after unsuccessful fishing seasons, the local Government
here procured passages fpr thousands ; which has caused the
remark to be made by many, that Newfoundland is a stepping-
stone for America, and that it is that country which is reaping
the advantage of her fishermen* if there is an advantage in
them, and not the parent country. The only way to prevent
the departure of the fishermen from Newfoundland, is to give
them the rpcans of settlement, which can only be done by a more
general encouragement to the cultivation of the soil in New
foundland. There are millions of uncultivated acres, and if they
^are susceptible of improvement, it appears to me far better policy
jn his Majesty's Government to encourage emigration and settle
ment there, than in the Canadas, or any other, of the Colonies
divided from the American Republic only by an imaginary line.
It appears to me that any outlay of capital on the part of the Go
vernment tp encourage emigration and agriculture in Newfound
land would be much better secured than inCauada: Newfoundland
is an island, and can be at all times protected by the superior
navy of England. Immense sums have been expended in improving
and defending Canada and the other Colonies in the immediate
neighbourhood of the United States ; and I think it may be

[53 ]
fairly asked of the English Minister, whether the money that
has been expended in the improvement of Canada, and the
other provinces, did not as effectually promote the ambitious
views of the republic of the United States, as if it was laid out
in the improvement of New York or Boston. It may be stated,
that this expenditure is for the purpose of enabling a success
ful defence to be made in the event of an invasion on the part
of the Americans. I fear that canals or locks, no matter how
large they may be, must present but a weak barrier to the am
bition of that power, from whom more danger is to be appre
hended from the federal principles of their Government, (which
insidiously pretends to conquer only to give freedom and
independence) than even the power of their arms. It is only a
native Government, that will identify itself with the country
and people, that can promote the prosperity of Newfoundland,
and give inducements to the seamen and fishermen to remain
there. I ain clearly of opinion that the establishment of such
a government must be of equal advantage to the parent state ;
what would forward the interest of the one would be equally
advantageous to the other. If I saw that granting a local re
presentative government to Newfoundland would be opposed to
the interest of the mother country, I should consider her case as
hopeless : for the first consideration with an English Minister
(and with none more than with the distinguished individual
who has lately been placed over the Colonies) is his country ;
the second is his country ; and the third is his country. How
ever high my opinion of that individual is, I fear, if justice to
Newfoundland was placed on the one hand, and the interest of
England on the other, even he would incline to the side of his
country. However, I am quite sure, if he turns his liberal and
enlightened mind to our neglected situation, he will see that jus
tice can be done to Newfoundland without compromising, in
the slightest degree, the interest of England ; but, on the
contrary, be the most effectual way to promote her welfare. It
is time to take us in Newfoundland out of leading strings.;
three hundred years is in all conscience a sufficient minority.
We are now of sufficient age to take care of our private
affairs. The arguments, if arguments they can be called, which
have been, from time to time, adduced against our obtaining a

[54 1
local Government, are, first, that we are not able to pay the
expenses of such a government ; that there are no roads by
which the members could travel to the seat of the government ;
and, lastly, that we have not sufficient material amongst us to
form legislators. God knows, if those that use these arguments
had the same opinion that I have of the qualifications necessary
to make a legislator, they would not make such a fuss about it.
These are the only arguments that I have heard against the
establishment of a local government at Newfoundland, they are
so contemptible I shall not reply to them — our opponents may-
have the full benefit of them.
As I have before stated, local governments have been ceded
to all the other English Colonies. It has been given to Ber
muda, containing only twelve thousand inhabitants, eight thou
sand of whom are slaves ; and to the other Slave Islands ; to
'Prince Edward's Island, containing only thirty thousand inhabi
tants, and to many other places ; whilst from Newfoundland
alone the advantages of such a government have been withheld.
The just and statesmanlike reasoning of Mr. Baring on the
subject of Colonial legislation, when presenting a petition a
few days ago, in the House of Commons, from the inhabi
tants of the Cape of Good Hope, expresses so much better
what I would wish to say, that I cannot resist the temptation
of inserting his words ; they bear particularly on the situation
of Newfoundland, and say all that can be said on the subject :
"The Right Honourable Gentleman had said that there were
other Colonies in which the same system of Government pre
vailed. That was true, and disgraceful it was to this country.
But the colony of the Cape of Good Hope was different in its
character from the Colonies to which the Right Honourable
Gentleman had adverted. It was not inhabited by the stewards
of individuals, who themselves, perhaps, resided in Portman-
square. It was settled by English farmers, by men of English
habits and feelings. It was not circumscribed in extent like a
West India island. Its population might eventually be aug
mented to many millions. The cases, therefore, were wholly
dissimilar. The Right Honourable Gentleman talked of the
Cape not being ripe for the enjoyment of free institutions. It
never would be ripe unless these institutions were introduced.

L 55 ]
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 never would be able to walk like a man. Unless free insti
tutions were introduced into a country, it could never become
capable of enjoying them. Imbecility must continue to be the
character of any country not inoculated with the principles of
strength." These arguments of Mr. Baring are unanswerable,
and must set the question, as far as argument is concerned, at
rest for ever.
It is full time to do justice to Newfoundland ; her internal
resources have been too long a prey to a withering monopoly,
which blighted and blasted every germ of improvement in the
bud. It professed to be a " nursery for seamen to man the
British Navy," but instead of fostering the infant committed to
its care, it most unnaturally gorged itself on its vitals ; and
now, after three centuries of folly, injustice, and misrule, aban
dons it, and throws it into the arms of the powerful and ambi
tious rivals of England. Then, before it be too late, let it be
placed under the care of its natural guardians. There are a suf
ficient number of intelligent honest men in Newfoundland to
manage their own affairs ; they cannot mistake their way ; the
old beaten path lies before them ; the beacon light o'f the con
stitution will direct them in their course ; they will not have to
se,nd to Egypt or Greece for laws ; it will not be necessary to
have a Solon or a Lycurgus amongst them ; they have not to
apprehend the cruelty of a Draco, or the tyranny of a Decemvir ;
they will have no visionary systems or theories of government
to adopt, it will only be required of them to form their infant
government on the principles, and under the mighty shade of
the British Constitution. i
Note 10, page 24.
In reviewing the past and present state of Newfoundland, I
have used such strong language in speaking of the mercantile
influence which so long governed there, that it may be
supposed that I am prejudiced against the trade of that country ;
but so far from being opposed to it, I am most anxious to
promote it, by every means in my power. I may be permitted
to state, that I am a merchant, carrying on business at New-

• [ 56 ]
foundland, and that I am deeply interested in the prosperity
of the trade. I have always looked upon the trade and fisheries
as the main stay of the country, and the foundation on which its
future prosperity must be laid. I have the most unconquerable
hatred to monopoly, because it has been opposed to the true in
terests of commerce. I am an advocate for the cultivation of
the soil, because I think agriculture will be found the best aux
iliary, and the most effectual support of trade. I am quite sure
that they go hand in hand ; they are not opposed to each other ;
so that by being the friend of the one, I am not the enemy of
the other. My object at present is to take a short view of the
trade and fisheries of Newfoundland ; to account for the causes
which so suddenly brought ruin on the greater part of those
engaged in the trade ; and, lastly, to submit what I conceive
the best means that can be adopted to avert the danger that is
to be apprehended from the competition' of the French and Ame
ricans (more particularly of the latter) which is continually
sapping and undermining the foundation of the trade and fishe
ries. The importance of the Newfoundland trade and fisheries, and
the great extent to which they maybe carried, have seldom been
duly considered or justly estimated. During the reigns of Ed
ward the Sixth, Elizabeth, James the First, Charles the First
and Second, there are many legislative enactments which most
fully acknowledge the great national importance of the New
foundland fisheries. The act of the 10th and 1 lth of William
and Mary, which secured the monopoly of the adventurers, yet
most fully acknowledges the value of the trade, and the im
portance of the fisheries, as the best means to increase the
revenues ofthe empire. The preamble of the act ofthe 18th
of his late Majesty, George the Third, entitled " An Act for
the Encouragement of the Newfoundland Fisheries," states that
they have been found to be " the best nurseries for able and
experienced seamen, always ready to man the Royal navy when
occasions require ; and that it is of the highest national im
portance to give all due encouragement to the said fisheries."
Sir Josias Child, who wrote his work I believe in the early
part of the reign of Charles the 2d, was fully impressed with
the advantages of the trade and fisheries of Newfoundland. The

[ 57 J
author of Considerations on the Trade of Newfoundland, in
serted in Churchill's Collection of Voyages, observes, that " in
the reign of Queen Anne the French had so increased their
riches and naval power as to make all Europe stand in fear of
them ;" which plainly shows, that twenty years quiet possession
of this trade is capable of making any power the most formid
able by sea and by land, by the equally increase of men; ships,
bullion, &c. He states that " the naval power of France, and
which enabled her for a time to fiercely contest with England
for the dominion of the ocean, owed its foundation and support
to her Newfoundland fisheries." In the course of the negociations
for the definitive treaty of peace concluded at Paris on the 10th
of February, 1763, France unequivocally acknowledged her
sense of the importance of the Newfoundland fisheries, by sur
rendering and voluntarily giving up all claims to the extensive
country of Canada, stipulating, as an equivalent, for the privi
lege of fishing on the coast of Newfoundland. The wisdom
of the French negociators cannot be questioned ; the posses*
sion of the Canadas would be a source of weakness to France1,
the fisheries of Newfoundland are a source of her strength. In
the treaties entered into with the French at the close of the late
war, the negociators appear to have retained a due sense of the
importance of the fisheries, by stipulating that they should have
the right of fishing on the coast of Newfoundland, from Cape
Ray to Cape John, with the sovereignty of the small islands of
St. Pierre and Miquelon. It is well known that the great Col
bert, in his anxious endeavours to promote the trade and marine
of France, seized with avidity on the means presented to him by
the fisheries of Newfoundland. Abbe Raynall states that the
fisheries of Newfoundland are mines of wealth, superior to those
of Mexico and Peru ; andMr.Burke observes, ," the most valuable
branch of trade we have in the world is that with Newfoundland."
In the same speech (on American affairs), he emphatically ex
claimed, " that the Newfoundland trade, which is one of your
greatest and your best, is hardly so much as seen on the Custom
House entries, and is not of less annual value to the nation than
£400,000." There is a living opinion still greater than these,
Mr. Huskisson, who has frequently, and particularly on a late
occasion, acknowledged the value of the trade and fisheries of
H

[58 1
¦Newfoundland. Authbrities might be multiplied to prove
what in itself is a self-evident proposition, That the trade and
fisheries, whether we look on them in a national point of view,
as a great nursery for seamen, or in a commercial one, as an in
exhaustible source of wealth, are of the greatest importance
and vaine to Great Britain. As early as the reign of Eliza
beth there were 260 ships employed in the trade and fisheries of
-Newfoundland ; in the succeeding reigns the trade and fisheries
occupied the attention of the English people. " Political events
(observes Mr.Forbes) conspired to raise the fisheries of Newfound
land to an unusual height of prosperity during the late war, the
naval ascendancy of Great Britain gave her subjects exclusive
possession of the fisheries ; in the hands of one nation they in
creased in size and profit far beyond any thing which could have
been anticipated by the most sanguine speculator."
To give an idea of the extent of the trade and fisheries when
in the sole possession of England, I shall give in round numbers
a statement of the Value of Exports from Newfoundland, in
1814, vizv
£. t. d.
1 ,200,000 quintals of fish  40*. . . 2 ,400,000 0 0
20,000 ditto core fish  ...12s... 12,000 0 0
6,000 tons of cod oil  32/... 192,000 0 0
350,000 seal skins  5*. . . 87,500 0 0
4,666 tons seal oil  36/... 171,876 0 0
2,000 tierces salmon  5/... 10,000 0 0
1,685 barrels mackrel  30*.. . 2,527 10 0
4y400 ditto capelin sounds and
tongues  20*.. . 4,400 0 0
2,100 ditto herrings . ,  25*.. . 2,622 10 0
Beaver, otter, and other furs, 600 0 0
Board, plank, and heading . . 300 0 0
Pine timber  500 0 0
400 puncheons berries  2,000 0 0
£2,886,326 0 0
A correct idea may be formed of the great extent of the
Newfoundland trade in this year, when it is taken into consi
deration that the imports alone must nearly equal the value of

F. 59 ]
the exports, Mr. Burke, in the speech before alluded to,
states that the exports from Great Britain to North America
and the West Indies were in
1704  569,930
1 ?72. The exports to North America and the
West Indies  4,701,734
To Africa  866,398
£5,557,132
The export trade of Scotland in the year 1772 was 364,000/,
If this statement, be correct, the value of the exports from
Newfoundland in 1814 was 2,316,396 more than the wholeof the
exports of England to America and the West Indies in 1704}
more than half as much as the exports to North America, the-
West Indies, and Africa, in 1772 ; and more than eight times
as much as the exports from all Scotland in 1772. To
tise again the words of Mr. Forbes, extracted from a pa
per now before me, " Viewing Newfoundland from the van
tage ground which the commerce of Great Britain has at
tained, it seems diminished to a mere speck in the horizon,
and almost unworthy of attention ; but it should not be for
gotten that the fisheries were one of the first nurseries of that
naval strength which has gained for England the command of
the seas, and with it the trade of the world."
It would not be fair for me to state these opinions, from
Mr. Forbes's manuscript, favourable to the view I have taken
of the importance of the fisheries, if I did not also give the
opinions of the same high authority, and from the same paper,
when they have an opposite tendency : " In its natural
state (Mr. Forbes says) a fishery is perhaps the poorest
of all branches of trade  It is well known that the use
of fish in Catholic countries is founded in a religious ob»
servance, which, however time may have interwoven with the
habits and necessities of the people, time, in the same manner,
is capable of eradicating. These dangers may be remote, but
they are certain ; they may approach slowly, but they will ap
proach progressively ; and, reasoning from analogy, there is
no reason why as little foreign fish should not, in the course of
a few years, be consumed in Spain, Portugal, and Italy, as \s( at

[ 60]
present consumed in Great Britain." The opinions of Mr.*
Forbes on subjects connected with Newfoundland, or on any
other subjects, deserve the greatest consideration, but I hope1
his opinion with respeGt to the ricketty foundation which our
fisheries have to rest on, has been given without that deep con
sideration for which he is so remarkable. It is well known that
the obligation of abstaining from flesh-meat is not a fundamental
principle of the Catholic religion : it is a matter of discipline,
and the Bishops have power to dispense with the obligation. If
the Pope is such a determined enemy of England as some presons
whose imaginations are continually haunted with the dread of
Pope and popery, pretend to believe, must it not appear
extraordinary that he has allowed the people of Catholic coun
tries to be the principal consumers of a staple article of com
merce, and which has been a support to the naval power of
England. It would be, indeed, a serious cause for alarm, if
the existence of the Newfoundland trade and fisheries depended
on the will of the Pope, or any other potentate. Fish is con
sumed in all the southern countries in Europe and America, as
a, principal article of food ; and good fish is prized as much in
Portugal, Spain, and Italy, the West Indies, the Brazils, and
the other countries in America, as beef or bacon in England.
The ivell-beloved Ferdinand has taken much more effectual
means to prevent the consumption of fish in Spain, than if the
Pope was fulminating bulls for eternity ; he has laid a very high
import duty on it of from 1 5*. to 20*. per quintal. Yet a con
siderable quantity of fish finds its way into Spain, and the con
sumer there has to pay double as much for a pound of New-r
foundland salt fish, calculating the nutiitious qualities of both,
as in England is paid for a pound of the best beef or bacon.
Newfoundland fish is ,exported to the Brazils, where it is
sometimes consumed at a most extravagant rate by the people
of that country. In our own West India Islands the slaves, who
are all Protestants, consume large quantities of fish, and, as far
as I can learn, they prefer it to salt beef and pork. In warm
climates, salt beef becomes as hard as mahogany, which is the
cause of Newfoundland fish being preferred to the junk beef of
South America. These, and many other proofs which I could
adduce, will be sufficient to prove that yix. Forbes' opinions are

[61 ]
liable to objections. When Mr. Forbes says that " a fishery is
the poorest of all branches of trade," he must mean a fishery in
a rude state of society ; certainly not such a fishery as raised
Holland in arts, arms, and science, nor such as those now car
ried on by England, France, and America.
In addition to the cod fisheries of Newfoundland, there is
another fishery, of a modern date, the growth of the last twenty
or twenty-five years, which bids fair to rise to great magnitude
and importance. It is little more than twenty-five years since
the first vessel sailed from Newfoundland to the seal fishery ;
and for many years after there were not a score vessels out of
the island : of late there have been from three to four hundred
vessels employed in that trade. The greater part of these vessels
are built by the natives themselves, rigged by them, and they
proceed in them to the seal fishing. When first they com
menced, it was considered a good voyage if they brought in five
or six hundred seals, now some of the vessels bring in as many
thousands. This is a most important branch of the Newfound
land fisheries ; and it is particularly calculated to form steady
and adventurous seamen. Along with nautical knowledge, they
learn the use of fire-arms, as a great part of the seals are killed
by shooting at them. When the number of men employed in
shallops and open boats, and those employed in eight hundred
sail of vessels engaged in the foreign trade of the country, are
added to those employed in the sealing vessels, a correct idea
of the vast importance of the fisheries may be formed.
Having attempted to give some idea of the extent and
importance of the Newfoundland fisheries, I shall now endea
vour to account for the causes which so suddenly reduced the
country from the height of commercial prosperity to one of
almost universal ruin. In accounting for the difficulties with
which the British fishery in Newfoundland has been so long
struggling, the first subjects which claim our attention are the
treaties with France and America, entered into at the end of the
late wars. By looking at the chart, it will be observed that the
French have a much greater extent of coast, from Cape Ray to
Cape John, with the islands of St. Pierre and Miqueloni than
was reserved for the British ; and that part of the coast of
Newfoundland ceded to the French, is by far the best for carr

[62]
rying on the fishery. This is an opinion so generally acknow
ledged in Newfoundland, that it will not be questioned. The
rights given to the Americans of a joint right of fishing with
the British, have raised even more dangerous rivals. Here I
shall take the liberty again to quote from Mr. Forbes' paper.
" Another cause of the difficulties of Newfoundland is the
admission of American citizens to participate in the British
fisheries. It would be improper to offer any remark upon this
measure, further than to enumerate it among the causes which
have co-operated to produce the depression. As an act of
policy, it was doubtless founded on wise considerations of
general benefit ; but the effect has been to raise up new and
powerful competitors in the fisheries. Americans have many
advantages over British fishermen ; they obtain their outfits at
a cheaper rate, they have certain local encouragements in the.
nature of bounties, they have a home market for their fish, they
are unfettered by the necessary restraints of a colonial trade,
they have the means of employment during the winter, and are
not compelled to charge the expenses of the whole year upon
the labour of a few months in the fishing season. Advantages,
which are more than sufficient to counterbalance the facilities
of our local situation, and which must have been severely and
extensively felt in their effects, had they not in a great measure
been neutralized by the continued over production of the British
fisheries, and the immense sacrifices of British capital."
The French are equally active in promoting their Newfound
land fishery, and it is carried on by them to an extent
scarcely to be credited : they are enabled to supply their fishery
entirely from France ; labour, provisions, salt, and other neces
saries, are there to be had on very low terms. Along with
these advantages the French Government like the Americans,
give bounties; so large, that I understand they defray all the
expenses of catching and curing the fish. The effect of those
treaties will at once account for the sudden ruin that came
upon the trade of Newfoundland. It was quite impossible for
the British to contend successfully with rivals that had the
best fishing stations, supplies at little more than half the price,
and, to add to their pther advantages, large bounties from their
respective Governments. I am not surprised at the French

f 63 ]
giving bounties ; but knowing that the principles that regulate
the American government in that particular are opposed to the
System of bounties, 1 am a little surprised that they should de
viate from their general policy, and grant bounties to their
fishermen : it can only be accounted for from the desire they
have to increase their marine. The Americans are too wise to
Carry on any branch of trade that is not able to support
Itself, unless they have some important object in view. Their
object is the same with that of the French— -to make seamen as
quick as possible — no matter at what expense. My Lord Cas-
tlereagh, when concluding these treaties, did not appear to
have been governed by the natural policy of England ; he
stipulated for no advantages ; he surrendered into the hands of
her rivals the best portion of a trade and fishery, which has
been found to be the best " nursery for able and experienced
seamen to man the royal navy." He was not aware of the
disastrous consequences that were to flow from these treaties.
No British Minister would give up an iota to any prince
or power, that could in the slightest degree interfere with
the maritime pre-eminence of his country. This chivalrous
generosity to the Bourbon is not much to be wondered at ;
but that equal privileges should be surrendered to the Republi
cans is inexplicable. An English Minister once asked if trees
grew upon the banks of Newfoundland : the Ministers who
concluded these treaties had just as much knowledge of the
country as Lord North, who, it is said, made the inquiry — it is
the only way their folly Can be accounted for.
The reduction in the value of the staple of the country — the
extravagance and want of economy consequent upon the bloated
prosperity' of former years — the difficulties that all classes
found in retrenching their expenses and conforming themselves
to their altered situation — the folly and over-trading of the
merchants, still intoxicated with the recollection of their golden
days — contributed to hasten the effects that immediately fol^
lowed : — A general stoppage amongst the merchants, houses of
the greatest credit and longest standing suspending their pay
ments — dishonoured bills, to the amount of 4 or 500,000/. thrown
back upon the country — the property of the indorsers sacrificed
to pay them — the savings of the labouring classes, which were

[ 64 j
very considerable, and were in the hands of the merchants,
swept away, and they thrown out of employment. These
events operating in conjunction with the effects of the treaties
before alluded to, paralyzed the energies of the people, and
reduced the country to a state of torpid despondency. The
losses of the merchants descended in regular gradation through
every class, until ruin and bankruptcies became almost univer7
sal. These great calamities were succeeded by the devastating
fires of 1816, 1817, and 1819, which followed in such alarming
and regular succession, and appeared only to have been want
ing ,to make the work of desolation complete.
The great calamities with which Newfoundland was visited,
from the bankruptcies of the merchants, the losses by fire, and
other causes, would be temporary in their effect, as the trade
of the country would soon regain its wonted vigour, but for the
competition of the French and Americans, arising out of the
disastrous treaties of 1814 and 1818. These are incontinual
operation ; they meet the merchants, like their evil genius,
wherever they proceed ; and are continually undermining and
sapping the foundation of the trade and fisheries" of the island.
This is not an exaggerated state of the case, any one who
knows the state of Newfoundland must feel that it is true, and
if it be the true state of the case, the point for determination
(using the words of Mr. Forbes) is not an issue between dif
ferent interests at home, but between the fisheries of Great
Britain and the fisheries of France and America ; whether the
oldest settlement in America, the first fruits of the naval enter
prise of England, shall be maintained, or allowed to fall a
victim to ambitious, aspiring, and powerful rivals.
It may be asked, how it has come to pass that the fisheries
have continued to be carried on under the pressure of those
domestic calamities, and what is stated to be worse, the com
petition of our foreign rivals ; and if they were so numerous as
they have been represented to be, how comes it to pass that
the British did not desert the island, and leave the fisheries
altogether in the hands of their rivals. There is no one thing
easier to be proved, than that the effect of foreign competition
was in itself a sufficient cause to drive the British fishermen from
the shores of Newfoundland ; and that the fisheries have been

[ 65 ]
preserved by a resident population, who were driven, probably
more from necessity than choice, to look to the cultivation of the
soil for a great portion oftheir food ; it was the auxiliary sup
port drawn from that source that has been the means of preserv
ing the trade and fisheries of Newfoundland from falling alto
gether into the hands of the French and Americans. To prove
the correctness of this opinion, it is only necessary to state
the advantages that foreigners possess over the British. The
American proceeds on his fishing voyage supplied with the
cheap produce of his country, in many cases with the provisions
produced from his own farm ; his government gives him a
bounty quite equal to the whole amount of his outfit. The
French obtain their supplies of provisions and salt for little
more than half the price for which British fishermen could
obtain them ; they have the best parts of Newfoundland to fish
at ; labour is cheap with them : added to these advantages, the
French Government grants a considerable bounty, more than
equal to the value of the fish.
The French and Americans have, along with their home con
sumption, all the principal markets open to them in Spain,
Italy, the West Indies, and South America, on equal terms with
the British. There is some little advantage, of ten or fifteen
per cent, in favour of the British in Portugal. Here it may
not be improper to remark the difference between the New
foundland trade and that of any of the other Colonies, which
will shew its value, and its independency of support even from
the mother country ; aud that all it requires is fair play, a clear
stage, and no favour. It will also prove that it was not on slight
grounds that the opinion of that great statesman, Mr. Burke,
was formed, when he exclaimed from his place in parliament
that the Newfoundland trade was the greatest and best be
longing to England.
The British is the chief, market for the consumption of the
sugars and rum of the AVest Indies ; the timber and corn of the
Canadas, and the other colonies ; and the monopoly is secured
to them at an immense cost to the English people. The United
Kingdom consumes little, comparatively speaking, of the produce
of Newfoundland, though she was bound to take nearly all her
supplies of provisions and manufactured goods from the British
I

[ 66 ]
market. She suffered most severely from the monopolizing
principles of the colonial system, without receiving an equiva
lent like the other colonies in the supply of the British markets.
But to return to the proposition that I have been endeavour
ing to prove, which is, that without a wide deviation from the
policy that has been so long pursued towards Newfoundland, it
is quite impossible for the British engaged in the trade and
fisheries to make head against the competition of their rivals,
supported as they are by the immense advantages which they
possess. To make the matter more intelligible, a calculation is
submitted, shewing the expense of carrying on the fishery at
Newfoundland on the old system of a Transitory Fishery, and on
that by the Residents depending wholly for their support on the
produce of the fisheries.

Transitory Fishery. — Statement of the Expenses of four fisher
men, employed on the old system of a Moveable Fishery, giving
credit for their catch offish.
Dr. Cr.
£ s. d. £ s. d.
To Passages of 4 By 240 quintals of
Fishermen from Eng- fish (which is 60 quin-
land  16 0 0 tals for each man, and
Hire of a Fishing- is more than the av-
Boat, to cover the erage catch for the
expense of anchor, last 10 years) at 10*.
roads, cordage, out- per quintal. ... 120/.
fit, &c  20 0 0 Charges of dry-
Provisions for 4 ing and curing
men, from the 10th the fish, at 3*.
May to the 10th Oct. per quintal. .. . 36/.
during the fishing sea-  84 0 0
son, at 12/.  48 0 0 Loss to the mer-
Hooks, lines, chant or planter on
seines, 30*. each . . 6 0 0 whose account such
Cost of catching fishery has been car-
bait for 4 fishermen 6 0 0 ried on  ,,104 0 0
Wages of 4 fisher
men, 20/.  80 0 0
Passages to Eng
land, 31. each  12 0 0
£188 0 0 £188 0 0

[ 67 ]
Sedentary Fishery. — Statement of the Expenses oj Four Fish
ermen at Newfoundland, carrying on the fishery on their own
account, and depending on the profits of the voyage for their
sole subsistence, giving credit for their catch offish. ,

Dr. £ s. d.
Hire of a Boat . . 20 0 0
Provisions for five
months while engaged
fishing  48 0 0
Boots, slops, and
clothing, 5/. for each
man  20 0 0
Bait  ,6 0 0

Cr.
240 quintals of fish
at 10*. 120/.
Charges of cur
ing, &c. 3*. 36/.
Loss on the voyage
without one shilling
wages for the men or
any means whatever
to support them and
their families for the
remainder of the year

£ *. d.

84 0 0

10 0 0

£94 0 0

£94 0 0

I have made these calculations on an average catch of sixty
quintals of fish per man, and on very moderate expenses for the
voyage. My own experience in the trade enables me to state
that the average is more than it really was for the last ten years,
and the expenses stated, particularly in the latter calculation,
are much less than they have been generally. I have had more
frequently a loss of 40/. or 50/. in supplying four men in the
fishery, than 10/. as given in this calculation. These state
ments will be sufficient to prove the effects of foreign competi
tion, and at what an immense sacrifice of British capital the
fisheries of Newfoundland have been carried on for some years ;
and the utter impossibility of supporting them, were it not for
the auxiliary support the inhabitants have been enabled to pro
cure from the culture of the soil. It is not the least extraordi
nary feature in this trade, that notwithstanding the reduction
in price, and the ruin of most of the merchants engaged
in the fishery, the catch of fish has not fallen much short
of what it was in the most prosperous years. In 1814, when
the price was 40s. per quintal, the catch did not exceed
1,200,000 quintals ; in 1820, when the intrinsic value of it was

[ 68 ]
not 10*. the catch amounted ta 1,001,159 quintals, and, I be
lieve, in every year since, the catch averaged from 800,000 to
1,000,000 quintals : the average catch per man in these years
falls far short ofthe catch in 1812, 1813, and 1814. Calculating
on the catch, I have no hesitation in saying, that since the
Peace there have been as many or more hands employed in the
catching of fish than during the war, when there were such
tempting prices for the commodity : but the people had grown
up in the country, and they must catch fish or starve. To this
large catch of fish many attribute the low state of the trade and
fisheries in the country ; and think that the population of New
foundland is too great ; that the catch of fish is too great ; and
that both should be reduced.
If these men had the monopoly in the supply of fish, they
might (and I am sure they would if they could) govern themselves
by the policy of the Dutch in destroying their spices — and
heave the surplus quantity of fish back into the sea ; transport
the people out of the country, aud consign it to eternal
sterility and barbarism • and they would only then act upon the
same principles on which Newfoundland has been governed for
centuries. But, thank God, the reign of the monopolist is no
more. To prove the fallacy of the arguments for a reduction in the
population, and the consequent catch of fish at Newfoundland,
it is only necessary to state that the Americans and French
would increase their catch in the exact ratio with our decline,
and if we left off catching it altogether, they would supply all
the markets in the world. The only means left to us to pre
serve the fishery is to increase the quantity as much as possi
ble, and to catch it at the lowest possible price; this may in
time wear out the patience of the French and American govern
ments, and they may get tired of giving bounties when they find
them not sufficient to attain the object which I have no doubt
they have had in view — the annihilation of that branch of British
commerce which they know, possibly better than we know our
selves, was the foundation, and is the best support of our naval
greatness. The advantages of a resident fishery and a resident popula
tion, over the transitory fishery carried on by the French and

[ 69 ]
Americans, are so great, that I am sanguine enough to hope
we shall be able to surmount all our difficulties, provided the
means are used which we have in our hands to foster and sup
port it. The late Acts introduced by Mr. Huskisson, which
allow the importation from foreign parts of supplies of provi
sions for the use of the fishery, against which an ignorant, un
just, and unmeaning clamour has lately been raised by the advo
cates for the shipping interest, are of the greatest service to
the trade and fisheries ; and, no matter who has a right to
complain of the effects of these measures, the shipping interest
is, as well as the fisheries, greatly benefitted by them.
The advantage of obtaining supplies to the fishery on mo
derate terms, with the additional support it must derive from
the general cultivation of the soil, will, I have no doubt, soon
have the effect of enabling us to support the trade and fisheries
against our more favoured rivals. The advantage of cultivation
as an auxiliary to the trade and fisheries will more fully appear
by the following opinions of Mr. Forbes.
" As a general remedy, whatever tends to revive the fisheries
must also have the effect of relieving the people. It were de
sirable that with the view of opening some auxiliary employ
ment to the inhabitants of Newfoundland, every restraint upon
the cultivation of the soil should be removed, and every encou
ragement 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 overstocked with people, and dis
tressed 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 Govern
ment ; and nothing is wanting but a fair apprehension of the
case to induce its enlightened rulers, not only to remove every
shadow of obstruction 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

[70 ]
attempt to revive it would be to shut our senses against the
light of reason and the lessons of experience. As a broad pro
position, it may be maintained that if the fishery were to be
taken up as it is, de facto, 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 manufactured supplies from the mother country, and
repaying her care by a valuable trade, and a numerous race of
seamen, trained for her service, and ready to attend her first
call in the defence of the empire."
It may appear somewhat singular that I should in a letter, the
professed object of which was to defend the religious and moral
character of the people of Newfoundland, introduce disquisitions
on the History, Government, Trade, Fishery, and Agriculture of
the country. To some it will appear extraneous ; others I
fear will be more severe, and say that I should be prosecuted
for high-treason, for daring to dispute doctrines made venerable
by their antiquity, and sanctioned by Kings, Parliaments, Go
vernors, and legions of Admirals, Vice Admirals, and Rear Ad
mirals. But if they only reflect that it is not often one writes a
book, and that many people judge more from the size than the
matter contained in it, they will not blame me for stuffing as
much as possible into this ; and it will be a consolation to them
to reflect, that by my rashly flinging myself into the field of
conflicting opinions, my punishment will follow on the heels of
my offence. It is a consolation, however, to find that some of
the opinions wliich I have ventured to give are sanctioned by men
of sound judgment ; and, what is better, of generous and bene
volent hearts ; who can feel for their fellow men in every quar
ter, of the globe — in the frozen regions of the north, as well as
under the burning sun of the south. These reflections arise out
of a letter, put into my hands by my much valued friend, Charles
Fox Bennett, Esq. which he received from a man, who, without
any connexion whatever with our country, yet feels most warmly
for our welfare, and has taken up the most correct view of our
situation. I observe by the style of the letter that this generous
stranger belongs to the Society of Friends, which lessens my
surprize at his taking such a warm interest in our welfare.

[ 71 ]
I think I have noticed more truly philanthropic men belonging
to that society, in propPrtion to their number, than amongst
any other. Without the consent ofthe writer, or of my friend,
Mr. Bennett, I have taken the liberty of inserting the letter,
which merits attentive consideration.
" My dear Friend, " Shaftesbury, 18th 3 mo. 1827.
" Charles Bennett,
" Thy brother, Thomas Bennett, junr.'s letter, dated St.-
" John's, 13th January, 1827, affords a pleasing account of some
" little improvement going on in Newfoundland, by forming a
" new line of communication, or at least of its being commenced,
" between Portugal Cove in Conception Bay, and St. John's,
" which he thinks will be conducive and encouraging to agricul-
" tural spirit and exertion. He also mentions a proposed bridle
" path to Placentia. It is only surprizing that useful and be-
" neficial works of this kind have been so long neglected or so
" little pursued there ; but the old restrictive and partial system
" of government and of management has been too slowly super-
" ceded by a more liberal mode of proceeding.
" I know not how the resident mercantile part of the popu-
" lation in Newfoundland would be disposed to favour any ma-
" terial steps for the increase of cultivation and of colonization,
" in that island, but I rather marvel that it should be wholly
" overlooked in any plans that have been proposed for relieving
" this country from some part of its superfluous population.
" Newfoundland is, indeed, vastly inferior to Upper Canada in
" soil and climate, and, in less degree, to Lower Canada and Nova
" Scotia, or New Brunswick : but the facility of access is much
" greater, and some tracts may be found, and have indeed been
" pointed out, as far superior to the peninsula in which St.
" John's is situated, and indeed preferable in soil to any of the
" southern parts of Newfoundland.
" Among the highly interesting topics of discussion in Parlia-
" ment and in the public journals, one, and not the least of them
" is the question of emigration ; particularly as it was brought
" forward by Wilmot Horton, Esq. I rather admire that he
" did not think of Newfoundland, or of some corner or inlet of

[ 72 ]
" it, as a refuge for a few of his destitute Irish or Englishmen,
" I do not apprehend that you want much increase of your num-
" ber at St. John's, or amongst the settlements iu the neighbouring
" bays ; but if the officers of government were empowered to
" establish a little colony, by way of commencement, or experi-
" ment, in the lands adjacent to the Bay of Exploits, or to
" White's Bay, or other place on the eastern coast, or rather
" more in the interior, and people it at first with a few of the
" best and cleverest of your labouring hands, or with a few of
" such people from this country (including Scotland and Ireland)
" such a colony might form a nucleus or a receptacle for the ad-
" dition or admission of other persons of a more common stamp,
" either as settlers, or as servants to the former. The bays on
" the western side of St. George, and of Islands, might ac-
" commodate a similar colony ; and, in course of time, settle-
" ments might be made further northward, on both sides of the
" island, in proportion as the people become accustomed to the
" climate and other circumstances.
" It is remarkable (as I believe I have mentioned in conver-
" sation) that some of the most favoured parts of Scotland, in
" both soil and climate, are situated considerably northward,
" particularly Moray audits neighbourhood; and it is probable
" that some of the lands north westward of Cape Freels have a
" better climate than those to the southward of that cape ; es-
" pecially as they are further removed from the larger parts of
" the great bank, and are probably less subject to the influence
" of its fogs and mists.
" I have lately felt an inclination to write to the Under Se-
" cretary of State, W. Horton, on the subject of emigration,
" and, indeed, had written a page or more intended for him ; but
" I did not find my ideas expressed with sufficient clearness and
" brevity, and therefore did not proceed with my letter.
" I shallbe obliged by any hints on the subjects I have men-
" tioned, and in the mean time I remain, " Thy sincere Friend,
" William West.'

[ 73 ]
Most fully agreeing in principle with Mr. West, I must ex
press my dissent from the practicability of establishing colonies
in the distant parts of the island. If we look back to the first
settlers in America, we shall observe the difficulties they had to
encounter in making settlements in places now the most popu
lous ; which arose in a great degree from the want of communi
cation with other places. These difficulties would not arise in
Newfoundland to the extent that they were experienced in the
first settlements, but I fear sufficiently to prevent a colony from
taking root. Any improvement that may take place in the
agriculture of Newfoundland must commence in the neighbour
hood of populous and commercial districts ; the support which
it will there obtain, will more than counterbalance the differ
ence in the quality of the soil. It is only from these parts
that agriculture can branch off, by the construction of good
roads, to richer and more congenial soils.
The opinion of Mr. West, that the land in different parts
is superior to the land in the neighbourhood pf St. John's,
and the other inhabited parts of the island, is perfectly correct.
The land on the boundaries of St. George's Bay, Conception,
Trinity, and Bonavista Bays is very superior. The banks
of the river Humber, which runs sixty or seventy miles into
the country, are bounded by land equal to any in the neigh
bouring colonies. What is not generally known, limestone,
gypsum, and coal, abound in Conception Bay, St. George's Bay,
and in many other parts of the island.
Those who are opposed to the agricultural improvement of
Newfoundland, raise their unfounded calumnies against the
country into first principles ; -they say the soil is barren and
incapable of improvement, and the climate presents an insuper
able barrier to agriculture. They say
" No vernal blooms our torpid rocks array,
But winter, lingering, chills the lap of May :
No zephyr fondly sooths the mountain breast,
But meteors glare, and stormy glooms infest."
From these false premises, they draw even more false conclu
sions. Their opinions would be of little consequence, but it is
to be apprehended that they have succeeded in giving a tinge
R

[ 74. },
of their opinions to those persons who, from their] situation,
have the destinies of the country in their hands. Along with
Mr. West, I cannot refrain from expressing my astonishment,
that Mr. Wilmot Horton, in his zeal for emigration, never cast
a thought upon Newfoundland, the place above all others where
it would be the policy and interest of England to promote set
tlement. Before the country is sentenced to eternal sterility,
surely it ought to get a fair trial, and its friends should be
heard- in its defence; but even inquiry has been considered unne
cessary. If I may be allowed to compare small things with great, a
comparison might easily be drawn between the different inte
rests connected with Newfoundland, and those of a cpuntry of
much greater magnitude. In Newfoundland, it is Land versus
Trade; here it is Trade versus Land ; which proves that both
can play the tyrant in their turn ; that human nature is the
same everywhere; and that what men consider to -be their
interest they will cling to, even though it may be in oppo
sition to the light of reason and justice. To talk to a mer
chant of the old school, connected with Newfoundland, of the
possibility of cultivation, he laughs the idea to scorn, and the
moment he hears one word about roads, he loses all temper —
from the ridiculous opinion that it is himself and not the people
that must pay the expense of making them. If -you say that
agriculture and roads would be the very best support to his
trade, he considers you downrigtit mad, and that an hospital
for incurables is the only fit place for a person holding such
dangerous opinions. Notwithstanding the opposition of such
men, and the danger of their representations in a high quarter,
the country must and will improve, the impetus has been given ;
and though her course be impeded by difficulties — may be slow,
it will be certain.
I hope the Government will see the necessity of encouraging
roads. In no country in the world can they be made with more
facility ; the materials are to be found on the spot, and from
the nature of the fisheries, labour can be had in the spring, be
fore the fishiug commences, and in the fall, after i,ts close, on
lower terms than even in Ireland. Three or four main roads,
that would open a communication with the interior, and the

[;75,]j
heads of the great bays, and which will appear quite .practicable
to any one who may take the trouble of looking at the map,
would be of infinite service to the country. The cost will be
inconsiderable; the expenses now incurred in carrying the
Governor and Judges round the island in ships, according to the
present system, will, if applied to the making of roads, be more
than sufficient. When I reflect that 4 or 5000/. is expended annu
ally in carrying the Governor and Judges round the island, which
would in a short time make roads for them to travel by land, I
cannot help saying that I fear Newfoundland is, for some time to
come, to be the theatre of absurdities. The outrage committed
on two poor men by the naval Surrogates, called the attention of
Government to the ridiculous system of administering justice,
and they abolished it. When two or three of the Judges, with
their clerks and ministerial officers, are wrecked or lost on the
coast of Newfoundland, in some stormy November day, it may
awaken the attention of Government, and we may possibly then
get roads.
It was in contemplation with the Minister for the Colonies
to introduce an Act of Parliament to impose duties on all the
imports into Newfoundland, for the avowed purpose of meeting
the increased expenditure : the intention has been abandoned
for the present session, but it is said it will be again resorted
to. No measure could be more ingeniously contrived to pro
mote three objects which I am sure did not enter into the
views of its advisers. Firstly, it would add to the advantages
already possessed by the French and Americans in the trade;
since any tax levied on the necessary supplies for the fishery
must operate in the nature of a bounty to our foreign rivals.
Secondly, it would interrupt that harmony and good feeling
which now so happily exists between the local government and
the people of Newfoundland. And, lastly, it would have the
effect of damping the hopes, and weaning the affections of the
people from the parent government, and convince them that
under no change is justice to be expected. I am the more sur
prised at this unwise and unconstitutional measure, when I
contrast it with the enlightened principles avowed by Mr.
Huskisson, and which it was understood were in future to
direct the policy of England towards her Colonies. Is it be-

[ 76 ]
cause the people of Newfoundland are loyal and submissive,
that they are -to be trampled upon ? I congratulate the Minister
on his wisdom in abandoning this measure, and hope that he will
not be induced again to bring it forward. No man is more
willing than I am to acknowledge the important benefits con
ferred on the country by the annihilation of the old, and the
adoption of a new system of government. The improvement in
the administration of justice is in itself a boon of the utmost
value. But if such measures as those lately proposed are"
adopted, I must acknowledge that I have been too sanguine in
my expectations, and that Mr. West has taken a more cool view of
our situation, when he states that the " old restrictive and par
tial system has been too slowly followed by a more liberal mode
of proceeding."

THE END.

London : Printed by A. Hancock, Middle Row Place, 326, Holborn.

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