My Lord, No. 91. Sir A. Magenis to Earl Russell.-(Received April 5.) Lisbon, March 27, 1865. IN obedience to the instructions contained in your Lordship's despatch of the 15th instant, I addressed a note to the Duke de Loulé on the 24th instant (copy of which I have now the honour to inclose), giving his Excellency the substance of the Report of Her Majesty's Commissioner at Loanda, on the occasion of his recent visit to the south coast of Angola, for the purpose of endeavouring to obtain positive information respecting the complicity of the late Governor of Benguela, or others, in the Slave Trade, and expressing the confident expectation of Her Majesty's Government that the Government of His Most Faithful Majesty will find some means of punishing Senhor Gamitto, or of otherwise marking their sense of the betrayal by that officer of the trust placed in him by his Sovereign. To this note I have not as yet received a reply. I have, &c. (Signed) ARTHUR C. MAGENIS. Inclosure in No. 91. Sir A. Magenis to the Duke of Loulé. M. le Ministre, Lisbon, March 24, 1865. WITH reference to my note of the 16th December last, calling your Excellency's attention to the alleged connivance of the Governor of Benguela in the Slave Trade carried on from the south-west portion of the Portuguese Possessions in Africa, I have received the instructions of Her Majesty's Government to communicate to the Government of His Most Faithful Majesty the substance of a Report from Her Majesty's Commissioner at Loanda on the occasion of his visit to the south coast of Angola, by which it appears that although that offieer was unable to discover the names of the persons engaged in these slave-trading transactions, the information procured by him left little room for doubting that Senhor Gamitto, the late Governor of Benguela, was deeply implicated, and that he connived at and participated in the profits of the Traffic in Slaves, which it was his duty to have suppressed by all the means in his power. Mr. Vredenburg, the author of the Report in question, embarked on board Her Majesty's ship" Dart," on the 8th December last, for the purpose of visiting the coast to the southward of Loanda, with the object of discovering, if possible, the names of the persons engaged in the slave-trading operations which had been carried on from Benguela during the eighteen months previous. Her Majesty's Commissioner first visited the settlements of Benguela Velha and Quicombo. At these places, the persons with whom he communicated, while admitting that many slaves had been sent from the district, maintained that the shipments had taken place further south, at the same time disclaiming all knowledge of those concerned in these transactions. At Benguela, the next place visited, although not one among the many persons with whom Mr. Vredenburg conversed upon the subject attempted to deny that slave-trading operations had taken place in the neighbourhood, they all professed ignorance as to the persons who had been engaged in them. The Acting Governor-General of this latter town, Major Godinho, notwithstanding the difficulties which frustrated every attempt on his part to obtain direct testimony on this matter, did not hesitate to inform Her Majesty's Commissioner that, in the space of the two months during which he had been charged with the government of the district, he had learnt enough to satisfy him that the slave-trading which Senhor Gamitto had sanctioned had been scandalous and disgraceful." Major Godinho stated, in explanation of the inability of obtaining positive proofs against the offenders under which he laboured, that the greater part of the inhabitants were interested and compromised, adding, however, that although all his information was from hearsay, it was notorious that the late Governor had received large bribes to connive at the slaving operations. Among other matters, the Governor mentioned a statement that a shipment of slaves had even been made in a small bay at the entrance of the Bay of Benguela (Bahia Farta), the ship lying afterwards becalmed before the town. At Mossamedes Her Majesty's Commissioner met with similar general admissions as to the connivance of the late Governor and the importance of the slave-trading transac tions which had been carried on, coupled with the same careful reticience with respect to names and particulars. Here, too, the Governor, Senhor Costa Leal, spoken of in the Report as "a determined enemy of the Slave Trade," and one who having himself officially denounced the slave-trading operations carried on in Benguela, had every interest in obtaining evidence of the fact, was nevertheless compelled to admit the futility of his endeavours in that direction. Although persons from Benguela had been willing to inform him, in confidence, how for one particular shipment Senhor Gamitto had received 2 contos of reis (4441.), for such another a similar sum, that his last trip to Novo Redondo, prior to his departure, was to obtain a balance due for a shipment that he had permitted, and that the Administrador of the Custom-house and the Commander of the Troops also received certain sums as the price of their connivance, still these persons all declined, when questioned, to accompany their assertions with a statement of details. After leaving Mossamedes, Her Majesty's Commissioner visited Elephant Bay and Equimina, and, touching once more at Benguela on his way back, returned to Loanda on the 29th of December, without having been able to gather any further information respecting the persons implicated in the recent slave-trading transactions. The unwillingness, on the part of the subordinate authorities, to say anything which might inculpate each other or their superiors, had universally frustrated his endeavours to obtain categorical proofs of a criminal participation in the Slave Trade, respecting the reality of which, however, those best calculated to judge do not apparently entertain the shadow of a doubt. On his return to Loanda, Mr. Vredenburg waited upon the Governor-General, and acquainted him with what he had heard respecting the late Governor of Benguela. His Excellency stated, in reply, that as substantial charges had been made against Senhor Gamitto, it was his intention to send down a Commissioner to Benguela, with the special object of inquiring into his proceedings. Mr. Vredenburg takes occasion, in this Report, to reiterate the high opinion entertained by him of the present Governor-General, who, it seems, has himself often expressed to Her Majesty's Commissioner his disgust and abhorrence of the character of many of his subordinates, whose conduct tended to throw discredit on him in the eyes of those unacquainted with him; lamenting, at the same time, the want of success which had hitherto attended his efforts to find more trustworthy persons. It is to this corruption and venality which, as unfortunately must be admitted, prevail among many of the authorities of the Portuguese Possessions in South Africa, that Her Majesty's Commissioner attributes the small grounds which at present exist for hoping that the Slave Trade will become extinct in those territories; an evil condition of things which can only be met by a most careful selection, on the part of the Portuguese Government, of thoroughly honest and fit persons to hold appointments in these Colonies, and by inexorably visiting those officials found guilty of delinquency with a punishment proportioned to so heinous an offence. In conclusion, therefore, I have been instructed by Her Majesty's Government to express their confident expectation that the Government of His Most Faithful Majesty will find some means of punishing Senhor Gamitto, or of otherwise marking their sense of the betrayal by that officer of the trust placed in him by his Sovereign. My Lord, Sir A. Magenis to Earl Russell.-(Received April 5.) Lisbon, March 27, 1865. 1 HAVE the honour to inclose copy of a note which, in obedience to the instructions contained in your Lordship's despatch dated the 15th ultimo, I addressed on the 13th instant to the Duke of Loulé, requesting his Excellency to convey to the GovernorGeneral of Mozambique the thanks of Her Majesty's Government for the assistance rendered by that functionary to Commander Parr, of Her Majesty's ship "Lyra," in the month of November last, on the occasion of a boat from the ship under his command being lost in the Mozambique Channel. I also inclose a translation of his Excellency's reply, dated the 17th instant. I have, &c. Inclosure 1 in No. 92. Sir A. Magenis to the Duke of Loulé. Lisbon, March 13, 1865. M. le Ministre, I HAVE received the instructions of Her Majesty's Government to request the Government of His Most Faithful Majesty to convey to the Governor-General of Mozambique their thanks for the kind and prompt assistance rendered by him to Commander Parr, of Her Majesty's ship "Lyra," in the month of November last, on the occasion of a boat from the ship under his command being lost in the Mozambique Channel, and two of her crew being, as it is supposed, afterwards murdered by the natives. The Governor-General of Mozambique lent Commander Parr a small steamer, and otherwise assisted that officer in a search for his missing boat, and for the men who were supposed to have been murdered, for which services Her Majesty's Government are now desirous that their thanks should be conveyed to that official. (Translation.) (Signed) I avail, &c. Inclosure 2 in No. 92. ARTHUR C. MAGENIS. The Duke of Loulé to Sir A. Magenis. Lisbon, March 17, 1865. I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of the note which you were pleased to address to me on the 13th instant, requesting that the thanks of your Government should be transmitted to the Governor-General of the Province of the Mozambique for the prompt and effective assistance which he rendered to Commander Parr of Her Britannic Majesty's ship "Lyra," on the occasion of the loss of a boat belonging to that ship. I have communicated the contents of that note to the Department for the Navy and Colonies for the proper purposes, and His Majesty's Government feel great satisfaction that the conduct of that official should have been pleasing to Her Britannic Majesty's Government. Sir, Earl Russell to Sir A. Magenis. Foreign Office, April 17, 1865. WITH reference to Mr. Vredenburg's despatch to me of the 20th of January last, transmitted to you under flying seal, in which he reports the capture of the mate of the Spanish slave-steamer "Ciceron," I transmit to you a copy of a letter from the Commander of Her Majesty's ship "Griffon," which has been communicated to me by the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, containing further information respecting the movements of the "Ciceron," which vessel you will perceive has been again thwarted in an attempt to ship a cargo of slaves from the African coast. I have to desire that you will communicate the foregoing information to the Portuguese Government, and express the earnest hope of Her Majesty's Government that the mate of the "Ciceron," who is now in gaol in Angola, may meet with the punishment he so justly deserves, for engaging in the inhuman Traffic in Slaves. You will further inform the Portuguese Minister that Her Majesty's Government have received advices from Cuba reporting the arrival of the "Ciceron" at a port in that island, after her unsuccessful attempt to procure slaves on the African coast, and she is stated now to have gone to Matamoros to ship a cargo of cotton; but it is possible, as her commander was formerly engaged in Slave Traffic on the East Coast of Africa, that she may, on her next voyage, endeavour to procure a cargo of slaves from thence. I am, &c. My Lord, No. 94. Sir A. Magenis to Earl Russell.-(Received May 3.) Lisbon, April 26, 1865. WITH reference to my despatch dated the 28th January, inclosing copy of a note which, in accordance with your Lordship's instructions, I had addressed to the Duke de Loulé on the 14th January, calling his Excellency's attention to the continued export of slaves, under the pretence of their being free labourers, from the mainland to the Island of St. Thomas, as well as to the Slave Trade from Benguela, and the connivance of the subaltern Portuguese authorities generally, and furnishing his Excellency with an extract from the Report of Her Majesty's Commissioner at Loanda; I have now the honour to inclose translation of the reply of the Portuguese Government dated the 19th instant. Count d'Avila incloses copy of a note from the Department of the Navy and Colonies translation of which I also transmit), endeavouring to prove that many of the complaints of Her Majesty's Government are groundless. For what regards the export of free negroes, his Excellency refers me to previous notes, copies of which were forwarded to your Lordship in my despatches of April 5, 1862, of June 5 and of November 26, 1863; and after reiterating the assurance that the Government of His Most Faithful Majesty has hitherto complied, and will always comply by all means in their power, with the Treaty of the 3rd of July, 1842, concludes by informing me that a copy of the extract from Mr. Vredenburg's report will be forwarded for the information of the Governor-General of Angola. (Translation.) Inclosure 1 in No. 94. Count d'Avila to Sir A. Magenis. Foreign Office, Lisbon, April 19, 1865. WITH reference to the note, dated the 14th of January last, which you addressed to my predecessor, communicating an extract from a Report of the British Commissioner at Loanda respecting the transport of negroes from the African continent to the Island of St. Thomas, and the Slave Trade said to be carried on at Benguela, with the connivance of the local authorities, I have the honour to forward herewith the copy of a despatch from the Department for the Navy and the Colonies, dated the 31st of March last. From the contents of that despatch, you will observe that the question of the transport of free negroes or freed-men (libertos) to St. Thomas must be looked upon to have been sufficiently elucidated by the correspondence of which copies were forwarded to you on the 26th of March, 1862, 22nd of May, and 24th of November, 1863. With respect to the Slave Trade speculations to the south of Loanda, reference is made in that despatch to the correspondence which was communicated to you on the 9th of February last. It is stated therein, that it has been clearly shown and proved that many of the complaints made by Her Britannic Majesty's Government against the Portuguese authorities in Africa are groundless; that those functionaries in our African provinces against whom there have appeared proofs of connivance in the traffic have been dismissed and proceeded against; and that the Portuguese Government have up to the present day, and will always comply by all means in their power with the Treaty of the 3rd of July, 1842. You will, however, perceive from the above-mentioned despatch that a copy of the extract from the Report of the British Commissioner would be forwarded to the GovernorGeneral of Angola for his own information, and in order that he may renew his orders for the effectual repression of the Slave Trade, and for the punishment with the full rigour of the laws of any functionary that should transgress them. I avail, &c. (Signed) COUNT D'AVILA. (Translation.) Inclosure 2 in No. 94. The Duke of Loulé to Count d'Avila. Department for the Navy and Colonies, Most Illustrious and Excellent Sir, I RECEIVED your Excellency's despatch dated the 30th of January last, inclosing the copy of a note in which Her Britannic Majesty's Minister at Lisbon states, with reference to the extract which he forwarded from the Report of the British Commissioner at Loanda, that he had received instructions from his Government to press upon the Portuguese Government the necessity of removing the local authorities of the Province of Angola, whenever there may exist well-grounded suspicions of their being in league with the slave-dealers, and of punishing the individuals who are notoriously engaged in the Slave Trade; and in accordance with your Excellency's wishes that I should, after taking cognizance of those documents, enable you to reply in a proper manner to that Minister, I have the honour to state to your Excellency what follows. The extract from that report chiefly refers to the transport of negroes from the African continent to the Island of St. Thomas under the pretence (according to the statement made by the British Commissioner) of their being free labourers; and to the Slave Trade on the coast of Benguela, which, according to the same Commissioner, is carried on with the connivance of the subaltern Portuguese authorities. With respect to the first part, Her Britannic Majesty's Minister does not say anything in his note, and as far as regards the second part, he himself acknowledges that all the reports received by his Government tend to prove that the present Governor-General of Angola honestly and faithfully endeavours to the best of his ability to comply with the engagements of the Portuguese Crown for the suppression of the Slave Trade; nevertheless, that Minister declares, in conclusion, that the good intentions of that Governor are neutralized and his efforts thwarted by his subordinates, who in some places to the south of the province are in league with the slave-dealers. On examining the above-mentioned Report, we see that the British Commissioner gives the following information: 1. That the Governor-General of Angola has scrupulously kept his resolution of not granting passports to slaves for St. Thomas, but that all ships bound to that island have carried ten freedmen ("libertos "). 2. That the same Governor, entertaining suspicions that the two men who had obtained passports as freedmen were slaves, had directed the necessary inquiries to be made; and that in fine it had been proved that as they had never been registered as slaves they were free according to law. 3. That a Portuguese felucca had been captured with thirty or forty slaves who had embarked in French territory for the Islands of Princes and St. Thomas. 4. That the landowner in St. Thomas, Senhor José Maria Prado, had entered into a contract for supplying the French possession on the Gaboon with cattle; and that his vessels, after discharging, proceed to take in slaves between that place and Cape St. Catherine, and particularly in the neighbourhood of the River Cama, and convey them to St. Thomas. 5. That the Governor-General of St. Thomas had sent a special Commissioner to Benguela for the purpose of obtaining evidence with a view to the punishment of the offenders; that he has done all in his power to impress on the minds of the subaltern authorities the obligations and duties which they owe to society and to the nation in whose service they are engaged; and that in consequence of information given by the same Governor-General a barque fully equipped for the Slave Trade had been captured by the British cruizers. 6. That the officer in command of the Portuguese Naval Station, Captain Garção, deserves the highest praise for the zeal and energy with which he has acted, thus showing himself in marked contrast to his predecessor. In reply to each of these items of information given by Her Britannic Majesty's Commissioner at Loanda, I have the honour to state to your Excellency, 1. That the question of the transport of blacks, either freedmen ("libertos") or free, to St. Thomas has been already sufficiently elucidated in the despatches from this Department under my charge, of the 24th of February, 7th of March, 5th of June, and 28th of October, 1862, and 27th of June and 10th of November, 1863. 2. That from the above information it may be seen that the Governor-General of Angola endeavours, as it is his duty, to prevent his orders being frustrated with respect to the granting of passports only to blacks who are either freed men or free, and not to slave negroes. Your Excellency is well aware that all slaves that existed in the Portuguese K CLASS. B |