THE ISLE OF FRANCE. 265 



it is gradually becoming a thriving business 

 place, and its commercial importance is yearly 

 increasing. 



The French used to procure their slaves from 

 the neighboring island of Madagascar, and the 

 present black natives of the island are the descend- 

 ants of these slaves. The British emancipated 

 these, and as their descendants will no longer til) 

 the ground of others, but rather live contentedly 

 on their own little patches of soil, eking out a 

 scanty subsistence, with little labor, the govern 

 ment now annually imports numbers of Hindoos 

 principally from the Malabar coast, who take the 

 place of the former slaves. These poor people 

 engage themselves for five years. They labor for 

 from four to ten rupees (two to five dollars) per 

 month, and are treated much worse than slaves. 

 In Port Louis, extensive grounds and buildings 

 are set apart for their lodgings when first arrived. 

 Here the planter or citizen in want of servants 

 comes to engage them. They are chosen, and 

 whether they desire it or not, must go with their 

 new masters, on such terms as are customarily 

 given on the island. 



Unused to the severe labor which is exacted of 

 them on the sugar plantations they soon become 

 low spirited, and not unfrequently commit suicide. 

 Great numbers desert from the plantations and 

 conceal themselves among the mountains or in 

 the town. Policemen are constantly upon the 

 watch for these runaways, and when a Malabar is 



