4

It is. liHMl, 14 VL-avs .siiK.H; t!ic l;i,-ft :ii;f lA' lii»- cralion, li^^ since tliu most inij)urtanl v-u v..[ milieu llie first. Tliore still rciiiain iu Slavery, almiii ("iT")!' <>'.) AiVicans on tiiu C'.utiiioiit and islaii'ls ui' .inerica ; that is to ,s;iy, nt-ariy -tl'ili) U;lO in tin." Cnilod Jr-tatds, iiJarly 'i(HM) (MM) in Hra/.il. TOO U0(.! in Cuba, an.l f'ovtn Vm), antl •>■» i)t)n in tl.r }>nti;h jii)Sses>ions. The .slaves ot Sr. Doniiniio wore set free uniU-r niai'tial law. auiiil tin.! t!i.-<(irilors of the tirst I^'rcnch lu;vointion ; tiins(,' of <4i-eat IJi'i'ain wen; It'll into lilitMty in tinn.; ul" pro- fonnil poaec, l»j eart-fullv ))ro}>arei] statutes ; tiinse of {ranee and l>einnark durini:' the lvi.;voluti(;nary year of IS-IS, 'ont without llie iiiterposition niavtial law. Wf! have hei'e, thi.'U, all tiie j)o.<sil»!e eonditiotis of a eonnnu- tiity, — j)caee, war, and that iniennediatc stale which we rail lo.'volu'.ion. If the v>:- perinuMit had faileil in any of (hese eases, we r;;i;.^ht think it owini.!; to pe'cnliar cii'cuni-

itanees ; if it had filled in all we niiiiiifc

tiiink t!ie jioliey :i mistaken one. at least, so far a.s these Islands are concerned ; if it has

-.ue,eeeih;d in all, sha.ll we say it will also

.succeed every v>diere '.' Let it he noticed that tii(} nuiidier of slaves set free is ahout two- Sifihs ol" those in this cotuilry ; or, to Ije niorc; exact, as in;iny as are now in the tStates ol' J>cla.ware, .Maryland, l^entuckv. 'iruinia, 'iVninessee, .Missouri, Arkansas, Ijouisiana, Texas, ami Florida. Unt while the 1 GOO (MM) freeilmcii i.tccupied an area of les.s than

>l)l) (K)l> sijuan,' miles, these ten States iiave

an areaof <i<HI (M.h'j sijuare ndles, — a cirenm- .^t:!.!',ce verv favoral>le to I'iniancijKition : while tiu.' (diinate of noh(; ot' them is such as tu ex- clude the white man from a(iive labors, as in the West Indies. .Vt the period of emancij»ation. St. l>on)in- tfo presented a condition of tilings somewhat like our own at this moment, hut, nuich more lik.e what oiu's may he a year hence if we do liot avail ourselves of the teachings of e.xpe- r'.enee. l^'or thi'ee years the colony had heen torn by civil wars betwetMi the whites and muiattoes, in whicii the negroes iiad taken little part. The Spaniards, in alliaiu-e with the revolted .^lave.s (U" IT'.'l, and in the inter- est of the exiK^d Hourbons, had invaded the country, and occupied .-several important plaee.s. The I'^nglish, then as now eager to destroy ;i eonuuereial rival, were in treaty with the plant,er.s to invade the island also. The French llepublic, rep)resented in St. Do- mingo iiy i.wo coimni.^sioner.Q, Sontlionnx and- l*olverel, was on the point <jf losijig the rich colnriy, 'j he connuissioucr.s had but a thou- ! sand i'^rench sttldier.^. a few hundred nuuut- toi's. and tiie iVagment of loyal .slaveholders, to oppos(^ ,-<o many »;nemies. At this erisi.s, by n f)old act oi" justice, the verv thouirht of which they had re]>elled ibtu' nu)nihs before, they brunght to the Freiudi cause the nower- fuf aid of OtKl (SOU negroes. On tlu; •i'.llh of .Augu.^t. IT'.'o. they de(d;!rcd all the .'slaves free, -lust three wtM'k.s after, the .I'iUgii.sli troops huided, i)Ut it was too late. On the -lib of iel>rn.ary, 17!)1, the National (/'in- vention conliruteil the ]>roclaination of the (Jonunissioners, tiiid abolished shivery in the othc)' colonies. In -June of the same year, T(uissaint Fi'Ouverture, with rA)[)0 men, wiio till then had fought under the S]>a!ii>ih iia.g, fo!-cei! himself into the chief city, re- leased the b'rench General, and put himscdf and ills tu^grt» soldiers at the orders of the Kepublie. From that hour the fortune of the war was changed. The I"i!iglish were driven out, (171)8) the Spanish retired, and early in 181)1, Tous.sfnit proclaimed the i'h'encb Kepublie in the Spanish. j)(utior. of the Island, tdi'eady ceded to France by the treaty of IT'.'o, thus (.'onlirming the lilieralion of 100 OOO more slaves who had been own- ed by the Sjianiards. In the nu;antime, war alone bad not oct;u- j)ied the great genius of this negro wiirrior and statesman. Having become virtually t'overnor of the eolojiy, in ITlX) he In-.d set b.imself to the task of organizing free labor, — a work begun i.iy the lrenc!i Commi.>^sion- ers in ITDd. Sonthonax, returning from an absence 111 h ranc(i, in IT'dd, was astonished at the ])ros])erity wiiieh he saw. After the expulsion i>f the Fjiiglish, in 17U8, Toussaint recalled the fugitive plaiiter.=;, gave them their former slaves lor hired, luborer.s, and opened the jiorts lo free trade. To direct and enforce liisreguhitions. he jmt the whole island under military government, and supported his sys- tem of labor, when n.'sisted, by the bayonet. The fruits of this sagacious policy were in- .stantly visilde. Commerce returned to the unfortunate Itdaiid ; labor flouiishe<l ; the planters grew rich ; ihe condition of the la- borers was wonderfully improved ; the <.«ov- ernmeut was re.s|)eeted, and every thing promised well for the future. Suddenly, all this prosperity wa.s again destroyed — not by the negroes, wdio had cre- ated it — but by the .stupendous folly of Na-