02 ' LON 
not bring the remaining 3s, on the next clay, the flogging 
ihould be repeated ; that the next day he was tied to a 
tree, and flogged for fuch a length of time, with the thong 
of the whip doubled, that his head fell back, and he 
could bawl no more. From thence he was carried to the 
fick-houfe, and chained to two other negroes ; that he 
remained in this confinement during five days, at the end 
of which time his companions broke away, and thereby 
.releafed him ; that he was unable to run away ; that he 
went to the negro-houfes, and (hut himfelf up ; that he 
was found there dead, in a ftate of putrefaction, lbme days 
afterwards; that crawlers were in his wounds, and not a 
piece of black flefli was to be feen on the hinder part of 
his body where he had been flogged. 
Stephen M‘Keogh, a white man, who had lived as ma¬ 
nager on Mr. Hodge’s eftate, depofed, that he faw the de- 
cealed Profper after he had been fo feverely flogged ; that 
he could put his finger in his fide; he faw him tome days 
before his death in a cruel ftate ; he could not go near 
him for the blue flies. Mr. Hodge had told the witnels, 
whilft he was in his employ, that, if the work of the eftate 
was not done, he was fatisfied if he heard the whip. 
The prifoner’s counfel, in their attempt to impeach the 
veracity of the witneffes, called evidence as to his general 
charafter, which difclofed inftances of ftill greater barba¬ 
rity on the part of Mr. Hodge. .Among other examples, 
Pareen Georges fwore that he had occaiioned the death of 
his cook, by pouring boiling water down her throat.- - 
The jury brought in a verdict of Guilty-, but recommend¬ 
ed him to mercy. There were fix other indictments on 
fitnilar charges again it the prifoner. 
To the lalt moment of his life Mr. Hodge perfilted in 
his innocence of the crime for which he was about to fuf- 
fer. He acknowledged that he had been a cruel matter; 
that he had repeatedly flogged his negroes; that they had 
then run away, when, by their own negleft and the con- 
fequent expofure of their wounds, the death of lome of 
them had poflibly enfued. 
The recommendation of the murderer to mercy by the 
jury, and the neceflity of proclaiming martial law in or¬ 
der to enforce his execution, were proofs of the difficulty 
which will always be experienced in eltablifting a l'yftem 
of equal juftice, where fociety is compofed of claffes fo 
radically different in their civil condition as matters and 
flaves. It was doubtlefs the conviction of this truth that 
produced a refufal of the Britifh conftitution to the newly- 
acquired illand of Trinidad, on the ground that its white 
inhabitants were not to be trufled with the power which 
the formation of juries, and other prerogatives of magif- 
tracy, limited to themfelves, would give them over the 
people of colour. 
Some papers were printed, by order of the houfe of 
commons, confifting of a correfpondence relating to pu- 
nifhments infiibted on certain negro-flaves in the illand of 
Nevis, and to a profecution inftituted in confequence, 
wherein the defendant was acquitted. The circumftances 
which led to this proceeding are detailed in the following 
ext raff of a letter to governor Elliot, dated 7th Septem¬ 
ber : “ Your excellency will doubtlefs be told, that they 
who have exerted themfelves in bringing to punifhment 
the authors of fuch crimes, have been actuated by a fpirit 
of party. Of that you will be well able to judge, when- 
acquainted with all the circumftances. When I arrived 
a twelvemonth fince in this country, Mr. Cottle, the pre- 
fident, made me an otter of a feat in the council, which I 
declined on the ground of ill health, and want of fight; 
nor Ihould I have thought of meddling in public affairs, 
but for the horrid outrages lately committed in this illand, 
and the open violation of law and juftice which have fol¬ 
lowed them. Mr. Huggins, the author of thefe evils, 
when I was here fixteen years ago, was then as diftiu- 
guilbed for his cruelty as in the prefent day, and his con- 
duft held in abhorrence by every good man in the com¬ 
munity, and by no one more than by Mr. Cottle, fince 
become his Ion-in-law, himfelf deficient neither in under* 
I) O N. 
ft an ding nor humanity. Mr. John Stanley, late attorney- 
general for thefe iflands, fome years fince affured my fa¬ 
ther, that he was examined before a committee of the 
houfe of commons respecting a murder committed by Mr. 
Huggins, who has not fcrupled to acknowledge to a friend 
that he (hot a negro. It was underftood at the time, that 
the body had been thrown into a negro-hut, and burnt 
with it. An inqueft was taken on the body of another 
negro, who died (hortly after a moft inhuman flogging; 
but the overfeer, who is ftill in the illand, refufed to give 
any iatisfaftory evidence to the grand jury who examined 
him. Two wretched fuicides, weary of life, and the luf- 
ferings they endured, were taken out of a ciftern, with 
their chains about them. Not whips and chains alone, 
but iron collars armed with (pikes, have been ufed, and I 
-believe ftill are, as inftruments of punifhment by this 
man. Ignorant and brutal as he is, he has amafled ail 
immenfe fortune, and ftill is grafping at the poffeflion of 
more land and more negroes. His doctrine was, that it 
was cheaper to buy negroes than to breed them. He has 
publicly boalted of five attempts againft his life by poi- 
lon ; and there are medical men who u'ell know the faffs. 
In the firft fix months after he took poffeflion of the eftate 
called Pinnings, nine negroes died without any epidemi¬ 
cal difeafe. A wretched old woman came to me a few 
days ago, to tell me (lie was compelled to work in the 
field. She was a favourite houfe-negro in her former 
matter's family, and had nurfed one of his children. Be¬ 
ing ordered to throw a mixture of gunpowder and fait 
water on the mangled bodies of the negroes whipped in 
the market-place, fhe refufed, and incurred the difplea- 
fure of her matter; and her intellects have fince been evi¬ 
dently difordeYed. An Englifli groom, who had been 
witnefs to many of thefe (hocking fcenes, quitted the ef¬ 
tate with horror, and returned to England, where his tes¬ 
timony will have fome weight, as he bears a very good 
charafter. The negro Fanny, who died, had not been ac- 
cuftotned to hard work for many years before Mr. Hug¬ 
gins got poffeflion of the eftate ; but he put her into the 
field, and (lie was one of thofe ordered to carry out dung 
by night. She never worked with the hoe again after the 
whipping; and died of an atrophy. J. W. Tobin.” 
In the month of September, there was an infurreflion 
in the illand of Martinique, of which the following nar¬ 
rative has been publiflied. On the 17th of September, 
information was fent to the procurcur du roi (king’s attor¬ 
ney), that an infurreflion of the free people of colour 
and the negroes was to take place on the enfuing evening, 
when the town of St. Pierre was to be fet on fire in feve- 
ral places; and, on the alarm given, the (tores containing 
cutlaffes and bill-hooks were to be broken open, and a 
general tnaffacre to be made of all the white men who 
Ihould appear in the ftreets. In cafe this plan did not 
meet with all the defired fuccefs, they were to (form St. 
Martin’s battery, and turn its guns upon the town. On 
the difclofure of this plot, meafures were immediately 
taken to prevent its execution. Some of the chiefs were 
feized, and others left the town. In the evening, people 
were feen on the heights which overlook St. Pierre; and 
an inhabitant brought the intelligence that from 70 to 8o 
of the confpirators, armed with (words, piftols, and other 
weapons, were affembled at his houfe, and that the num¬ 
ber was faft increafing. The commandant, lieutenant- 
colonel Mackie, inliantly fent a detachment to furround 
them, at vvhofe approach they fired, and then ran away : 
they were purfued, but only three or four could be ap¬ 
prehended : on the following morning, however, leveral 
of the ringleaders were taken up ; and parties from the 
garrifon and militia were lent out to fcour the country. 
On the 21 ft, the town was alarmed by the attempt of a- 
body of 4 or 500 (laves to enter the town, where they ex¬ 
pected to be joined by the domeftic flaves; but, by the 
exertions of the commandant, the negroes were difperfed, 
and three of their chiefs taken. The head of the con- 
fpiracy, a free man of colour named Moliere, privately 
entered 
