SD1035. Edward Moulton-Barrett (father) to William Wemyss Anderson
Published in The Brownings’ Correspondence, 4, 357 (in part).
London
Sept 2- 1839.
My dear Sir
I thank you for the motive which induced you to forward to me Mr Knibb’s letter to you upon matters connected with the management of my Estates, the very fact of which, was there wanting any other proof, is a sufficient condemnation of him as as Interferer in other men’s matters– The question with me concerning him is, what was & what is his professed object in going & staying in Jamaica; if to attend to secular affairs, if to drive worldly bargains for the People, if to get up political Unions, if to set Man against Man, if to render railing for railing, hard speeches for hard speeches, if to be in all things like all wor[l]dly Men around him, with few exceptions, if to effect all these was the great end of his going there, thereby he has fulfilled his vocation; but on the contrary, if he went to preach Glad Tidings unto men, to recommend the Gospel of God our Saviour unto all by a meek & quiet spirit, which we are told is in the sight of God of great force, to walk in Wisdom towards them that are without, as well as in truth to them that are within, to know nothing amongst them but Jesus Christ, & Him crucified, to direct the People from the Mammon of this world to the true riches above, to shew forth the spirit of Christ by rendering blessing for cursing, good for evil, to teach that the People’s conversation should be as becometh the Gospel of Christ, to inculcate the great, holy & divine principle of love, to shew forth, in fine, in all ways & by all means in word & conduct that he was unlike other Men for he strove to be like the Prince of Peace, I say, if these were his objects, then I hesitate not to say that he has woefully belied & perverted them–
Let me now just direct you, not to what has taken place elsewhere, unconnected with myself directly, but to what has occurred, as it were within my own circle, & Mr Knibb himself the main Informer– On the 20th August last 1838 he sent me a letter, accompanied with a newspaper which stated amongst other matters the introduction of a Coffin, containing chains & having certain inscriptions on it, into the Place, where God’s Word was read & prayer was wont to be offered, & after some bitter speeches & the most shameful reminiscences were had recourse to in order to avert the possibility of a good feeling being the consequence of the great change, the Coffin was taken out & buried a very heathen act, & this, for here is the point & scandal by professing Christians & under the eye & with the approbation of the so called Minister of the Gospel; indeed the very tone of his letter was most objectionable, I mean as viewing the Writer in the Character of a Servant of the Great Master, yet the humble Sojourner, who in reply to the application of one brother as against another with reference to an inheritance, for all we know, it might have been wrongfully kept back, said “Man, who made me a judge or divider over you” on the contrary what was the spirit which breathed through the greater part of that letter, why nothing less than that of a Wolsey Ego et Rex meus– By the way in reference to that letter it is well to remark here, in opposition to the Extract which you forwarded to me, what a contrast it forms in opinion & evidently in wishes as regards the writer of both with references to me & my interests. I will give you two quotations from each & leave all comment on them to yourself– August 20th He writes “An arrangement has been made with your Laborers on both Estates which I consider just & equitable, & I shall feel it my duty to urge upon the People a proper & conscientious fulfillment of their Contract, & I feel every confidence that I shall succeed” & again “It would be premature in me to hazard an opinion now, but I have not the shadow of a doubt, Come what may, that if we have fruitful seasons, Oxford & Cambridge will testify that they are not unmindful of the benefits they have received, but that they are determined to shew their gratitude by the propriety & industry they therein feel”– Now in your letter of May 14. 1839. After a statement that the People that are worth any thing would leave the Property, he says “as far as I am concerned I care very little about the issue” & again after speaking of Mrs Shirleys orders for the erection of 100 Houses on Hyde Hall, he adds “there the abused people will find a refuge while Mr Barrett will lose his most able hands”– Now reconcile these two statements of opinion if possible—but one word as respects the abused people, I would ask has any one of them made a complaint since the 1st August 1838, before that period I have as quoted before, Mr Knibbs own Certificate of my good conduct, no I have not heard of one, & indeed there has only been I believe a single Ejectment served & that on one, whom, were you to know the particulars, you would yourself justify me or rather my Agent, in getting rid of, having been guilty of thieving– I only wish that you could see my Agent’s letters on the subject, with Messrs Knibbs & Woods sentiments & conduct respecting recent transactions on my Estate– I have placed it before the Society here, but of course I did not ask them to form any opinion until they had heard from Mr Knibb to whom I believe they have transmitted a copy of it– Look again to the correspondence with Mr Jump in the public papers as respects the number of persons of the baptist persuasion, which he asserted in his tabula were working continuously on the Estates, why they might be on the Estates & working, but that was not the question, & it was the veriest equivocation that ever I heard; the assertion meant to convey & which was properly contradicted, that they were working for the Estate & that continuously: but my main object is to direct you to the spirit of the two Writers, & can any Man doubt in reading them which had the gentlest spirit of the two; which displayed the least acrimony & ill feeling, surely Jump’s– I recollect talking the thing over with a reliable friend of mine, when he observed upon it, I am sure that Man is right, speaking of Jump, for the other does get into a passion– Is it come to this that the Priestcraft is to be denounced & resisted in this Country by Dissenters, but upheld & acted out in its most rampant form by the latter in her Colonies, that a Proprietor is to be charged with listening to tale Bearers, because he pleases to exercise a right over his property & change his agent, & made to hear the vengeance of those who object to such a change– No, they little understand me, who think that I can be intimidated, & least of all through my Pocket– What a contemptible opinion they must entertain of me– I know well the Mr Knibb has great influence among the people, but I warn him against using it unlawfully much longer, the day must come, when if he be Christs he will feel a bitterness which pertains to a conduct such as he has pursued, he has sowed the wind & he will peradventure reap the whirlwind– I charge him with having directed the People from the contemplation of heavenly things to earthly, with having cast a stumbling block in the way to the pure, peaceful, holy & separate path of the Kingdom, & with having raised up obstructions & thrown difficulties in the way to the complete emancipation of the Negroe Race in other Countries for a time by which a glorious change has been made to work so ill, & thus stayed the mouth of light & truth & liberty– I have prayed for him, I know that his position, voiced as it has been, was hard for flesh & blood to bear, he has fallen, but God is able to raise him & establish him, & yet make him of good report among all Men, especially of them that believe & to be a faithful servant of the ever blessed Lord & Master, for which from my Soul I say, Amen.
With you I have a high respect for Mr Farquharson, but Managers under the new System, must live on the spot, his absence from my Estates, & at such a distance as he was occasioned me great loss; My Crop with all his influence with Mr Knibb, & the latters influence with the People was not last year finished until Novr no preparation was made for the future Crop in the way of putting in Plants, & the Stone Walls on Cambridge for a considerable distance were down, thus letting in all sorts of trespassers, indeed the best part of the Land was altogether thrown out of |long|– I consulted no one & my Son for I suppose Knibb alludes to him as the tale bearer, knew nothing of the change until the Power was executed & sent off– It is my own act & I am still persuaded that I have judged right– I have now done with this unpleasant subject, on which I would not have troubled you, had you not tempted me–
Whenever you come to England, I shall be truly happy to see you & talk over many things which necessarily interest me much as connected with events present, past & future– Your new Governor I hear has sailed, he carries with him a high Character attested by those who know him in the East, & I am told he is likely to act by himself & for the Country– I am sorry that Laboucheer’s [sic, for Labouchere’s] Bill did not pass, for the best thing for us is to make us a Crown Colony, I think many are becoming of the same opinion now, but reason was put in abeyance & party feeling triumphed– I was one of the 7 who voted against |Barge’s| resolutions in opposition to the Bill–
I must hasten to conclude with the assurance of being
Yrs very truely
E M Barrett
N.B. The releases will soon come out they are at length ready for engrossing–
In the former part of my letter when I speak of Dissenters I include not the Moravian, the Independent or Wesleyan for they have gained golden opinions from all–
Address, on integral page: Wm W. Anderson Esqre / Kingston / Jamaica.
Publication: None traced.
Source: File copy at Eton College Library.
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