460 HISTORY 



abandoned in practice, still these representatives of the slaveholding constitu- 

 encies were unwilling to give the sanction of legislative approval to its aboli- 

 tion."' In the Council there was better success. A provision for this purpose 

 passed there, however, was thrown out on the first reading in the House."' An 

 appeal was made to the clergy of the Colony to use their influence in educating 

 the people to a more humane feeling, and to use their influence against the 

 practice,'°° for the Governor realizing that the only way in which the abolition 

 of female flogging could be brought to pass was by the reaction on the Assembly 

 of the public sentiment of the community."* 



Flogging of Female Slaves. 



This meeting of the legislature had closed in the spring of 1831. An- 

 other session was found necessary in order to enact some provision for the 

 jury law, which expired during the year. The Assembly was accordingly 

 called to meet early in June. The Governor had purposed to be unremitting 

 in his efforts to secure the passage of a statute abolishing the flogging of 

 female slaves, and he availed himself of every opportunity to call the attention 

 of the members of the House to it, and to urge them to take action for that 

 purpose. He had prepared an address to the House on the question, and was 

 on the point of presenting it, when information was brought to him of a bold 

 act of cruelty to a female slave."" John Wildgoos, a member of the House 

 for western New Providence, had ordered a female slave, belonging to himself, 

 to be punished in the workhouse, where she had been confined for several weeks, 

 following a former severe punishment, also inflicted by his order.'" Governor 

 Smyth merely called the attention of the House to the conduct of this member, 

 trusted it to take the course which humanity would have dictated, by the 

 expulsion of Wildgoos from its membership. In spite of the former disappoint- 

 ment at the tolerance of the community as to flogging, he still confidently ex- 

 pected to find sufficient humane feeling among the members of the House to 



"" H. v., 1831, p. 95. The members of the House appeared not to think it worth 

 while to reiterate the arguments against the flogging of women. They referred the 

 Governor to a former address of the House upon the same question. 



™ Smyth's Ds., No. 88. 



^^Loc. cit. 



™ See this address printed as enclosure No. 2, in Governor's Ds. of April 5, 1831. 

 Sess. P., 1831-32, 46, p. 287 (24). 



"»H. v., 1831 (extra session), p. 36. 

 "" Log. cit. 



