the estates which have wrought, the people have struck
once or twice. We have in this parish ministers of every
denomination, and they are all acting very properly; but they do not
seem to have as much influence as expected; we must _be as
considerate and liberal as possible to secure their confidence_
ourselves. We are in St. Mary's paying the highest rate of wages in
the island; 1s. 8d. currency per day nett, with allowances, are
generally offered; I am giving here, from sheer necessity, 2s. 6d.
currency per day, without charging any rent in the mean time. In the
present state of things when so few estates are doing anything at
all, I have much satisfaction in saying that the people here, on
----, a good proportion of them were at work last week, and I have
now the mill about making sugar, with every probability, I think of
going on satisfactorily; and looking dispassionately at the great
change which has so suddenly taken place, our present difficulties
are not much to be wondered at.

Sunday night, 8th Sept.--The foregoing was written, but too late,
for the last packet; but as another sails to-morrow, I write you a
few lines more. There is, up to this moment, but little material
alteration in the state of affairs generally, certainly none for the
worse. I have made here twenty hogsheads of sugar since the 1st ult.
We are altogether in an uncertain state, but there are more mills
about, and more work doing _in this district than in any other in
the island_, which might and ought to be a feather in the cap of
Maitter, our late stipe. I have no time to say more now, excepting
that, although I am in great hopes that things will soon generally
improve, and am of opinion that our present difficulties are not to
be wondered at, yet our situation is still so critical, that I dare
not venture to hazard an opinion as to the success of the great
experiment, I repeat, however, again, that we have not seen anything
to disappoint or surprise us, bad as many things are."

_Extract of a Letter from an Attorney in St. Mary's, Jamaica, 24th
August_, 1838

"The services of the stipes are much wanting here; I am paying 10s. a
week for first class, 6s. 8d. for second, and 4s. 2d. for third, for
five days work; they say they will not work on Fridays. However, I have
got people at ---- to work today; they are behaving