PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :+
C.O. 882
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-
COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
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Nous sommes plus avancés à Maurice qu'on ne l'est dans l'Inde: on n'a pas besoin de nous inculquer l'amour des institutions libres, ni de nous enseigner cette grande vérité que nos affaires ne sauraient être mieux administrées que par nous-mêmes. Il est de mode dans certains milieux de prétendre que notre admiration pour les institutions électives eat toute platonique, qu'au fond, nous n'avons que de l'indifférence pour notre Municipalité, et que nous avons dédaigné les Comités de District que le Gouvernement nous a concédés. Nous avons dejà répondu, et cette réponse nous semble péremptoire, que notre indifférence pour la Municipalité n'est que relative et qu'elle s'explique par le peu d'importance des attributions de cette corporation. C'est pour la même raison que nous n'avons attaché aucun prix aux Comités de District.
Maurice n'est inférieure à aucune des Colonies Anglaises dotées de Législatures électives; elle est supérieure à plusieurs d'entr'elles. Pourquoi serions-nous traités moins favorablement que Natal, le Cap, la plus grande partie des Antilles. Pourquoi y aurait-il une différence entre nous et la Jamaïque, à laquelle on va bientôt octroyer de nouveau une Législature élective?
Nous adressons au Gouvernement de Sa Majesté un second et suprême appel. Nous n'avons à faire valoir auprès de lui que les considérations de justice et d'équité dont nous nous sommes étayés, et qui sont d'autant plus puissantes qu'elles se fondent sur les engagemente que la Couronne Britannique a contractés envers nous et sur des doctrines que le Gouvernement et les hommes d'Etat de l'Angleterre ont reconnues avec éclat.
Il nous est difficile de nous faire à l'idée que le Gouvernement de Sa Majesté persiste à ne pas se rendre à nos vœux. Si nous sommes déçus encore une fois, si les vieux préjugés contre lesquels nous nous débattons et qui sont si incompatibles avec la politique de l'Angleterre à l'égard d'autres colonies, si ces vieux préjugés l'emportent encore sur les titres indiscutables que nous invoquons, nous nous courberona devant cette décision; mais nous ne renoncerons pas à nos patriotiques espérances.
Il serait aussi puéril que peu respectueux de faire entendre au Gouvernement de Sa Majesté un langage comminatoire. D'ailleurs, à supposer que, cédant aux fatales suggestions du désespoir, nous voulussions payer de notre sang la conquête de nos libertés politiques, nous sommes si faibles que nous serions bientôt écrasée. Nous ne menacerons même pas le Gouvernement de Sa Majesté, à l'exemple des habitants de la Jamaïque, de ne payer nos taxes qu'à la pointe de la baïonnette, si l'on reste sourd à nos pressantes prières. Nous continuerons pacifiquement, et en ne suivant que les voies constitutionnelles, la campagne que nous avons entreprise, jusqu'au jour où nous aurons atteint notre but. Au-dessus des gouvernements qui passent, au-dessus du Parlement lui-même, il y a ce grand peuple qui juge en dernier ressort toutes les questions qui intéressent l'Angleterre de près ou de loin, et qui n'a jamais déserté les causes justes; une heure viendra infailliblement où nous finirons par triompher.
W. NEWTON,
24 Janvier 1884.
Enclosure 2 in No. 13.
Rapporteur.
Port Louis, January 29, 1884.
BIR,
I HAVE it in my charge as president of the committee entrusted at the public meeting held on the 6th October 1882 with the duty of taking all the necessary measures to further the objects of the petition which was adopted at that meeting, to request that you may be kind enough to forward to his Lordship the Secretary of State for the Colonies a report relating to his Lordship's Despatch on the question of the reform of our Constitution, which was unanimously adopted by that Committee. the same time I beg that you will transmit to his Lordship the prayer of the committee that Her Majesty's Government should reconsider the whole matter before coming to any final decision.
His Excellency Sir John Pope Hennessy,
Governor of Mauritius.
I have, &c.
(Signed)
Lola RAOUL, President of the Reform Committee.
At
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No. 14.
GOVERNOR SIR J. POPE HENNESSY, K.C.M.G., to the RIGHT HON. THE EARL OF DERBY. (Received March 12, 1884).
Government House, Mauritius.
January 30, 1884.
(No. 50.)
MY LORD,
I HAVE the honour to enclose a printed letter, addressed to your Lordship by Mr. B. H. Colin, which he has published in the local papers, on the reform question.
2. In commenting on this letter, the local journals remark that there is a con- tradiction between the only two Mauritians who have written to your Lordship against the reform movement, as Mr. Antelme seems to fear that the proposed representative system would give too much influence to the Indian population, whilst Mr. Colin fears it would give too little weight to the Indian population.
3. There are a good many intelligent Indians in this Colony who are not incapable of understanding what is best for themselves, and, as far as I have been able to ascertain, they do not seem to agree with Mr. Colin on this question, but rather with the Acting Protector of Immigrants who in the recent debate said that the interests of the Indian population would not be endangered by the proposed introduction of an elective element into the Council.
The
Right Hon. the Earl of Derby,
MY LORD,
&c.
&c.
&c.
I have, &o. (Signed) J. POPE HENNESSY.
Enclosure in No. 14.
Port Louis, Church Square, Mauritius,
January 27, 1884.
ALTHOUGH in your answer to the reform petition you state that you agree with Mr. Broome, that few of those who have signed the counter petition could understand the political question involved still with all the deference due to your Lordship's opinions, I beg leave to address you these lines, hoping sincerely that, in the interest of justice, you will take in consideration my objections to the adoption of the partially elective Council proposed by the reform committee.
Everything possible has been done in order to discredit the counter petition, but whatever may have been the expressions of opinions laid before your Lordship by the ex-Lieutenant-Governor, Mr. Broome, and the adversaries of that petition, there is a fact which cannot be controverted, namely, that a document signed by about 7,000 inhabitants of this Colony has been sent to your Lordship, and whether most of those who have signed such doonment belong to the lower classes or not, I submit respectfully, that being British subjects, they are entitled to expect that their protest should be examined with care.
It is true that many crosses have been testified by witnesses as being the adhesion given by many ignorant Indians, but, without being politicians, such persons may well understand what is meant by the introduction of the elective system into the Legis- lative Council, and object to it, because Indians are naturally great conservatives.
With regard to the addition of two unofficials, I must say that the Indians are interested in seeing the number of unofficials increased, for if proper inquiry be made it will not be difficult to find an Indian member worthy of having a seat in the Legis- lative Council; and that portion of the population will thus be able to have its views represented, while at present the unofficials are either English born or they belong to the Creole population; and some time may elapse before there be a vacancy in the^\ Legislative Council.
I must now state that many of those who signed the counter petition are in a position to understand perfectly well its contents, and that it is a mistake to think that there are only very few Indians who are sufficiently educated to understand political questions; and if the number of Indians who have signed the counter petition (not afred crosses) be compared to the number of Indians who have signed the reform petition, it will be seen that Indian reformists are very few indeed.
The reform partisans may say that no attempt was made by them to obtain the adhesion of the Indian population, but such an assertion would but only prove the fact that the Indian element has been entirely put aside by the movers of the reform, and
Eu 8965.
K