Evils in connection with the Labour traffic. 205 
evil. It is productive of evil in two ways: in the first place 
it gives rise to those fearful atrocities which occasionally, and 
to a certain extent inevitably, are committed upon the natives ; 
and in the second place it degrades and ruins nearly all those 
natives who are the subjects of it. 
Lately a great deal has been said and written—and not too 
soon—upon this first point. The frightful revelations which 
from time to time have come before the public have been. 
of too serious a nature to escape condemnation, even by those 
who formerly were staunch upholders of the traffic. The pub- 
lic mind has been thoroughly aroused, both in Great Britain 
and the colonies ; an act has been passed constituting kidnap- 
ping a felony; and several gunboats have been ordered to 
cruise these seas for the purpose of suppressing these out- 
rages. 
I can hardly believe, however, that these measures, though right 
as far as they go, will do much permanent good. It appears to be 
an easy matter for the labour vessels to put on such an appear- 
ance of innocence when they are boarded, as will satisfy the. 
inspecting officer—as witness the case of the “Carl,” which, 
I understand, was boarded and examined, and passed by a 
British officer, not long after that frightful massacre took place. 
The gunboats will no doubt impose a partial restraint on the 
actions of the unprincipled villains who are working such mis- 
chief, and save some of the islanders from their horrid cruelty ; 
while the representations of the masters of these vessels may 
lead to the adoption of more stringent measures, and finally 
to the abolition of the traffic, should the regulation of it be 
found impossible. 
This first matter then having been so warmly taken up, so 
well exposed by competent authorities, and in a manner ad- 
judicated upon for the present, I shall say nothing upon 
it, beyond a remark or two upon the following points -— 
