CO885-(20-21) — Page 563

2.

2,2

I have conferred with the Executive Council on this question; and at a meeting on the 25th ultimo the following decision was recorded:-

•

The Council concur in the objections expressed in the Sub-Intendant's report, and advise that the leasing of Crown lands be confined to such lands as are suitable for the growing of rice."

3. I concur with the advice given by the Council, and would add that there are considerable areas of land suitable for the cultivation of rice in this Colony.

I have, &c.,

GEORGE R. LE HUNTE,

Governor.

258

The views of the Immigration Department here were opposed to any modification, and I enclose a copy of a further memorandum by the Protector of Immigrants on the subject.

In all the circumstances I consider it advisable to adhere to the original pro- posal and to withdraw the exceptions which it was proposed to make in favour of

return" immigrants from Trinidad, British Guiana, and Fiji.

3. The question of the leasing of Crown land, to which reference is made in the last paragraph of your despatch, has been dealt with in a separate despatch.*

I have, &c.,

GEORGE R. LE HUNTE,

Governor.

j

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference -

C.O. 885

21 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

Enclosure in No. 154.

HONOURABLE COLONIAL SECRETARY,

I AM not in favour of leasing our Crown lands, and I am quite convinced that the existing system of cash payment is that best suited for this Colony.

In the fifties or sixties, as an inducement to the labouring class to settle on the Crown lands, Indian immigrants who had completed their term of service were given free grants of land, and the Creoles were allowed to purchase lands upon small yearly payments spreading over a period of years (ten years, I believe). Neither experiment proved a success.

Hundreds of petitions were made and thousands of acres were surveyed under the two schemes, but very little of the lands so surveyed was put under cultivation; the petitioners' only concern being to make as much money out of the land as they could by selling the timber and reaping one or two annual crops before abandoning the lands.

Under a system of lease the same objectionable practices would surely be repeated. I am quite confident that no amount of pressure possible would ever induce the class of people we would have to deal with to fulfil the conditions which would have to be imposed by the Government.

It was these objectionable practices, and the difficulty of getting the people to carry out their obligations to the Government, which caused the system of quit rent which existed here for many years, and which is practically the same as leasing, to be abolished.

I am sorry I overlooked this matter. Your memorandum, which is confidential, was locked up in my safe, and it is only this morning I remembered it.

25 September, 1913.

37482

F. GANTEAUME,

Sub-Intendant.

Enclosure in No. 155.

MEMORANDUM BY THE PROTECTOR OF IMMIGRANTS.

HONOURABLE COLONIAL SECRETARY,

WITH regard to return immigrants," I do not think I can add anything to what I have already said in my annual reports.

There is no doubt that nearly all the important disturbances on estates, and many of the minor ones, have been engineered by this class of men, and though they have not always been convicted as ringleaders, the Department, on enquiry, has been satisfied as to their having been the instigators.

It was suggested at the conference with the delegates that in future "returns from Natal and Surinam should not be sent, but those from other Colonies, if otherwise fit, should not be objected to. I doubted the wisdom of this, but my opinion was over-ruled.

8 September, 1913.

33884

(No. 323.)

SIR,

W. H. COOMBS,

Protector of Immigrants.

No. 156.

JAMAICA.

THE SECRETARY OF STATE to THE GOVERNOR.

Downing Street, 31 October, 1913.

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch, No. 308, of the 18th of August last,† respecting the proposals for carrying out the amalgamation of the Emigration Agencies at Calcutta and Madras.

2.

I shall be glad to have your definite concurrence in the proposal contained in the thirteenth paragraph of the letter from the Emigration Agents at Calcutta of the 3rd of April last,f that "it will very materially simplify the work of the Calcutta Agent if he is authorised by all the Colonies to supplement from Madras at his discretion any shortage of labour that may occur in the northern recruiting districts," and to be able to inform the Emigration Agents whether coolies from the Madras districts may be recruited for service in Jamaica, should they, deem it necessary to supplement recruiting from that source.

I have, &c.,

L. HARCOURT.

No. 155. TRINIDAD.

THE GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE.

(Received 29 October, 1913.)

[Answered by L.F. transmitting copies of Nos. 169, 170 and 175.] (Confidential.)

Government House, 8th October, 1913.

SIR,

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your confidential despatch of the 8th of August last,* asking to be furnished with certain information respect- ing the recommendations made as a result of a conference between this Government and the two representatives of the Indian Government who have enquired into the conditions of East Indian labour in Trinidad.

2. In reply to the enquiry contained in the fifth paragraph of your despatch,. I have the honour to inform you that the proposed modification of the policy of rejecting all "return" emigrants was only made to meet, as far as we were able, the objection of the representatives of the Indian Government to the proposed rule.

No. 133.

33884

(No. 400.)

SIR,

No. 157. TRINIDAD.

THE SECRETARY OF STATE to THE GOVERNOR. [Answered by Nos. 176 and 185.]

Downing Street, 31 October, 1913.

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch, No. 353, of the 4th of September,§ from which I note that the Legislative Council has approved

‡ No. 119.

§ No. 149.

• No. 154.

↑ No. 140.