110] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1818 



master. This argument would 

 go to prevent all discussion on 

 the subject, as well here, as in 

 the West India islands. It was 

 the custom to attribute every 

 insurrection among the slaves to 

 those who took an active interest 

 in their condition of late years. 

 The charge was unfounded. 

 Revolts were much more frequent 

 before the abolition, than they 

 had been since, for which there 

 was a very good reason, because 

 the treatment of slaves was much 

 better now than in former times. 



The motion was then agreed 

 to, and a Select Committee was 

 appointed. 



The same indefatigable friend 

 of mankind, Sir Samuel Romilly, 

 rose on June 3rd to make his pro- 

 mised motion for a copy of depo- 

 sitions taken before the coroner 

 in the island of Nevis on the 

 body of a negro, named Congo 

 Jack. In brmging forward this 

 case, he said he did not call the 

 attention of the House to the 

 extraordinary barbarity by which 

 it was accompanied, for that, 

 glaring as it was, appeared to him 

 much less important than the 

 light it threw on the mode of 

 administering criminal justice in 

 the West India islands, where the 

 protection of slaves was at stake. 

 The facts which had occurred 

 were simply these : A rev. Mr. 

 Rawlins had the management of 

 an estate in St. Christopher's (a 

 neighbouring island to Nevis) 

 belonging to a Mr. Hutchinson. 

 A slave had run away from it on 

 the Tuesday, was taken and 

 brought bat;k on the Wednesday, 

 flogged in the severest manner on 

 Thursday, and chained to another 

 slave, who had committed some 



offence, and dragged to work with 

 the rest of the men on Friday 

 morning. He was still chained 

 to the other slave, and when 

 brought to his work, was incapa- 

 ble of doing anj' thing, and com- 

 plained of severe pain, hunger, 

 and sickness. He tried to lie 

 down in this state, but was 

 severely flogged by the sticks of 

 one or two drivers. The conse- 

 quence of this treatment was that 

 the wretched being died in the 

 course of Friday, actually chained 

 to his fellow-slave. He was buried 

 privately on the same day, and 

 no coroner's inquest was at the 

 moment called, though his body 

 was covered with marks of 

 violence. Some intimation of this 

 cruelty had been giVen to the 

 magistrates, and a coroner was 

 then ordered to sit on the body, 

 which was dug up for examina- 

 tion. The present object of this 

 motion was, for the depositions of 

 the coroner to be transmitted to 

 this country, which, strange to 

 say, had not yet been done. But 

 it appeared from the evidence 

 given on the subsequent trial, 

 that at the coroner's inquest Dr. 

 O'Mealey deposed, that he at- 

 tended at Hutchinson's estate on 

 the 9th of September, accom- 

 panied by two other doctors ; 

 that he had examined the deceased, 

 who was then taken out of his 

 grave, and found several marks 

 on hisbody ; one on his right eye, 

 one on his right jaw, one on the 

 right arm, one on the right breast, 

 one on the right side of the belly, 

 and some on his thighs : there 

 might have been others, but those 

 described were the most remark- 

 able. Two of his teeth were 

 recently broken. The contusions 



must M 



