Report of Society's Meetings. 423 



The Hon. N. D. Davis brought forward his motion, 

 of which due notice had been given, for $200 to be 

 placed in the hands of the Agricultural Committee to 

 carry out an experiment in the introdu6lion of families of 

 agricultural labourers. In introducing his motion he 

 stated that up to and including the present year, the 

 colony had spent about ;{^4,6oo,ooo on immigration 

 since the abolition of slavery, and still they had no 

 regular labour supply. It was certain that in the pre- 

 sent condition of things the colony could not afford 

 to continue the importation of labourers to the number 

 of four or five thousand every year. By immigration 

 they had increased the population of the colony from 

 100,000 to nearly 290,000, at a cost of about £^0 a 

 head. East Indians did not settle here to any great extent 

 nor did the people from the Islands, probably because 

 their families were left behind. He would suggest as a 

 commencement that the Agricultural Committee should 

 find out what agricultural labourers on the plantations 

 here had families in the Islands, and whether they would 

 like them to be brought over at the Society's expense. 



Mr. Daly in seconding the motion said he thought the 

 amount was too small for the experiment. 



The Hon. Mr. Jones also said the amount was too 

 small and that it was a matter for the Govern- 

 ment rather than the Society. In fa6l it had al- 

 ready been under the consideration of the Government, 

 who had obtained the opinion of the Planter's Associa- 

 tion, with certain recommendations. Attempts had also 

 been made by individual enterprise with the result that 

 some families were already located on estates. The 

 Society had over and over again recommended the 



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