Antigua and the Antiguans, Volume 1 (of 2): A full account of the colony and its inhabitants from the time of the Caribs to the present dayLanaghan, Mrs.
History
Antigua and the Antiguans, Volume 1 (of 2): A full account of the colony and its inhabitants from the time of the Caribs to the present day
Lanaghan, Mrs.
Antigua -- Description and travel; Antigua -- History
By order of his gracious majesty George III., Lord Lavington
invested Sir Samuel Hood with the order of the Bath, as some
reward for his gallant achievements in these seas. Upon this
occasion his excellency Lord Lavington made a very powerful
speech, which has been justly praised, but which is too long for
insertion here. Antigua was visited (1805) by the very clever
author of “The Chronological History of the West Indies,” Capt.
Southey. This gentleman mentions seeing a female slave, with an
iron rivetted round her ankle, which had two bars, sharp at each
point, crossing each other, and projecting about a foot in four
directions. Her owner informed Capt. Southey it was to keep her
at home, which was impossible to do without it. This historian
alludes to the melioration act, which passed in 1798, prohibiting
such punishments except, (and, as Mr. Southey justly remarks, the
exception neutralizes the prohibition) _such as are absolutely
necessary_.
On the 13th of November, died Mr. John Baxter, the head of the
methodists in Antigua. Mr. Baxter, who was by trade a shipwright,
had been sent out from Chatham dock-yard to English Harbour in
1778, and upon his arrival exerted himself in gathering together
the little society of methodists which Mr. Gilbert had
established, but which since his death had been scattered about
for want of a pastor. A further notice of Mr. Baxter and his
praiseworthy exertions will be found in another part of the work.
In 1806, the abolition of the slave trade was again brought
before the English parliament, and considerable progress was made
towards its accomplishment. A bill was also passed prohibiting
the exportation of slaves from the British colonies after the
first of January in the succeeding year. On the 22nd of January,
1807, the total abolition of the slave trade was accomplished,
and the bill ordained that no slaves should be landed in any of
the British colonies after the 1st of March, 1808.
Thus this great work was ended, which had been annually discussed
since 1787; and Mr. Wilberforce reaped the reward of his labours.
For two hundred and forty-four years had England allowed this
blood-stained traffic, and shut her ears to the cries of the
distressed Africans; but a more glorious era had dawned—liberty
was exerting her power, and paving the way to the future freedom
of that despised race.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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