40 



IMPOTENCE OF THE LEGISLATURE. 



rent on real estate of not less than one hundred and forty 

 dollars, or pay yearly taxes to the amount of fifteen dollars. 

 The first consequence of these restrictions is, that the people 

 of the island are not only ineligible to the legislature, but 

 they have nothing to do with making a selection from 

 those who are. I say people, for of course the great bulk 

 of the adult population are poor ; they are colored people 

 who, only sixteen years ago, were, with no considerable 

 exception, slaves. Of the 400,000 people who, according 

 to the received estimate, constitute the present population 

 of Jamaica, but 16,000 are white. The remaining 384,000 

 are colored and black people. The last census taken upon 

 the island fixed the proportion of these as follows : colored, 

 68,529 ; blacks, 293,128.* The average vote of this en- 



* A census of the island was taken on the third day of June, 1844, and the 

 following- results were obtained : 



Males. Females. Total. 



White, 9,289 6.4*7 15,776 



Colored, 31,646 36,883 68,529 



Black, 140,698 452 430 293,128 



Totals, 181,633 195,890 377,433 



The ages of the population were thus classified : 



Males. Females. Sex not specified. Total. 



Under 5 years 20,575 22,884 8,248 51,707 



Between 5 and 10 18,472 21,534 7,215 47,221 



Between 10 and 20 25,916 27,432 9,385 62,733 



Between 20 and 40 50.834 50,919 20,006 121309 



Between 40 and 60 27,896 29,532 11,069 68,499 



Over 60 9,576 12,628 3,759 25,963 



Total 377,433 

 By the above tables, it appears, that every thousand inhabitants are, according 

 to color, in the following proportion: White, 41 '79; Colored, 181 '56; Black, 

 776 '63. 



The proportion of females to every 100 males is 107 '79 ; according to color 

 for every one hundred white males, there are 69 '83 white females ; for every 100 

 colored males, 110 '22 colored females ; and for every 100 black males, 108 '33 

 black females. 



