Maple. 



sary of life ; as we never can have cane sugar without the 

 help of slaves ; seeing that nobody, without dire compul- 

 sion, will work in the producing of it ; what a noble open- 

 ing is here for the indefatigable exercise of the humanity 

 of Mr. Buxton and his associates ! It is now about fifty 

 years, I believe, since Massa Wilberforce commenced his 

 eulogised labours in favour of the blacks. If he had then 

 caused a hundred quarters of Sugar Maple Seed to be 

 brought from Nova Scotia, which he might have done at 

 a thousandth part of the expense that silly people were put 

 to in purchasing the Negro tracts in the course of one 

 year ; and if he had caused those seeds to be sown, 

 and all the humane people had joined together in causing 

 the trees to be planted and cultivated, there would have 

 been more sugar raised in England at this time than would 

 have been necessary for twice its consumption. But, is it 

 too late now ? It never can be too late to do good ; and 

 here is good unequivocal. The tree would first give sugar, 

 and, when cut down, make beautiful tables to use the sugar 

 upon ; beautiful chairs to sit upon while sipping the sugar ; 

 and besides this, Michaux tells us that " the ashes of the 

 " Sugar Maple are rich in the alkaline principle," and that 

 " it may be confidently asserted that they furnish four-fifths 

 " of the Potash exported to Europe from Boston and New 

 York." Nor do the virtues of this tree end even here ; 

 for MicHAUx says, that the Charcoal of this wood is pre- 

 ferred to every other, it being heavier, and of course 

 stronger, and it must therefore be the best for the manu- 

 facture of that article, in the making of which our old 

 despised Dog Wood has become so highly esteemed, which 

 article is so notoriously efficacious in the thinning of a 

 " surplus population," an object which now appears to be so 

 near to the hearts of his Majesty's faithful Commons. 



q2 



