"King William's People." 109 



the inhumanity of the planter — insensihle to local attachments —who 

 removed his Negroes from one plantation to another. Mr. Wilberforce, 

 as a Berbice Commissioner had approved of the abandonment of " St. Jan " 

 and the removal of the Negroes to " Dankbaarkeid." 



Some of the Berbice Commissioners, as Directors of the African In- 

 stitution, protested against the parting of " husband and wife " : as 

 Commissioners they removed the " wives " of many of the Winkel Negroes 

 to Pin, Sandvoort, because that plantation wanted field women. 



" Some of these very Commissioners " (concluded Mr. Marryat) " in 

 their other character of Directors of the African Institution, are now 

 actually endeavouring to manage and legislate for all of the British West 

 India Colonies ; it becomes important, therefore, in ascertaining their 

 qualifications for the task, to enquire wheth. r they have been faithful 

 over the few things before they are made rulers over many." 



In 1816 the labours of the Berbice Commissioners came to an end. 

 The 11th clause of the Convention between Holland and Great Britain 

 relating to the Navigation and Commercial Relations of the Dutch with 

 Demerara, Essequebo and Berbice (dated August 12, 1815, reads) : — 



His Majesty the King of the Netherlands having represented to 

 His Britannic Majesty that the Company of Merchants and Others 

 (styling themselves the Berbice Association) have a just claim to 

 certain estates formerly fettled by them in the Colony of Berbice, of 

 which they were dispossessed by the Revolutionary Government of 

 Holland, and which on the capture of the said Colony by His 

 Britannic Majesty were considered as Government Property, His 

 Britannic Majesty engaged to return to the said Berbice Association 

 within Six Months after the Exchange of the Ratification of the 

 present Convention, the Estates Dageraad, Dankbarheid, Johanna, 

 and Zandvoort, together with all the Negroes and Stock now actually 

 employed on the same, such Restoration to be in full Restoration 

 and Satisfaction of all Claims which the said Association may have or 

 may pretend to have against His Britannic Majesty or His Subjects 

 on account of any Property heretofore belonging to them in the 

 Colony of Berbice. 



So said so done. The four estates, as named, were handed back to 

 the Berbice Association. A Public Notice in the " Berbice Gazette " of 

 July 24, 1816, recognizes Mr. C. J. Swaving and Mr. H. Staal as the Agents 

 of the Association. The four erstwhile " Crown Plantations " (which we 

 have noticed but briefly) now pass beyond our ken. It may just be added 

 that in March, 1821, they were transported by " Hendrik Staal, as 

 Attorney of the Company of Dutch Merchants and others in Holland 

 styling themselves the Berbice Association," to and in favour of " Donald 

 Charles Cameron of this Colony, and Henry Davidson and ^Eneas Barkly 

 of London." 



Simultaneously with the surrender of the " Crown Estates " to the 

 Agents of the Berbice Association the " Berbice Commissioners " sur- 

 rendered to the Berbice Government the management of the Winkel 

 Department. They must have been happy to be rid of both. In the 



