[Original.]

Letter from W. WILBERFORCE, ESQRE., to the RIGHT HONOURABLE SPENCER PERCEVAL.

HERSTMONCEAUX, NEAR BATTEL, August 5th 1811.

MY DEAR PERCEVAL,-Allow me to recommend to your most serious attention a paper which I will inclose, and which I have just now sent to Lord Wellesley to whose department, I believe, the Business officially belongs. It is right to inform you that it comes to me from a Dissenting Minister named the Revd. Geo. Burder, the author of a very popular Work called Village Sermons, and a man highly respectable in point both of Talents, acquirements, and Character. He writes to me I should also state in Quality of Secretary to the London Missionary Society, an Institute which was form'd some 10 to 15 years ago, consisting of all the different religious Denominations, but chiefly Dissenters. The Society has an annual Meeting, I think in May, when for several days Sermons are preached, Collections made, &c., and great numbers attend from all parts of England. The Influence therefore of this Society is very considerable, and I believe the Missionaries they have employed (Dr. Vanderkemp, Mr. Kicherer, &c.), as well as the Success of their Labours, have been superior at the Cape and its Vicinity to those of any other Country. I am persuaded you will need no Stimulus other than that which the Horrid Contents of my Inclosure furnish to induce you to pay all due Attention to this Subject. Yours etc.

(Signed)

[Enclosures in the above.]

W. WILBERFORCE,

Extracts from the Letters and Journals of the Missionary James Read, relating the murders of Numbers of Hottentots.

BETHELSDORP, SOUTH AFRICA, 9th January 1811.

My Letter to the Directors of the Missionary Society in 1808 and which was printed in the 20th number of the transactions of the Society has given rise to circumstances of vast importance, if God should be pleased to incline the Government to give an impartial attention to the business, which is our daily prayer,

then would the most happy effects follow for the poor Hottentots. The persons who feel themselves hurt by my letter, and not without cause have shewn us much ill will since. Major Cuyler who was unfortunately appointed to investigate the matter has married one of these Farmer's Daughters, of course shutting his ears to the poor Hottentots. Indeed the complaints are become so numerous we can no longer pinch our consciences. There are of late several Hottentots missing, but we fear little will be done, as those who are accused as their murderers are not arrested. Some of the falsely called Christian Boers are accused of 8 or 9 murders. Many of our poor people have also lost their children, whom they keep as slaves, and will not restore. A poor old man has been travelling 9 or 10 times backwards and forwards to the Cape, and has now brought a Letter from the Fiscal, and an order from the Landdrost of Graaff-Reinet, after waiting several years, to the Boer to give him up his children, but is deterred from going, thro' fear of being killed. He entreated an officer of Justice to be sent, but was refused. With such kind of complaints we could fill a volume. I write these things that if you publish them, the subjects of England may prize their privileges. Should these things be buried in oblivion, for a few wicked men in the Colony who hate the Missionaries for bringing them to light, should we act according to humanity, justice, and religion? I believe when Government really understand it, we shall be commended instead of being condemned. I must entreat your cooperation, for such crimes still continue, upwards of 100 murders have been brought to our knowledge in this small part of the Colony. If we take the whole into account, what a field of blood, of innocent blood crying to God for vengeance. The following circumstance was related to me only a few days ago by Windvogel Stuurman one of our people. He was driver of a Waggon to a Boer, who had taken with him in his Waggon a Hottentot woman and her two children (Twins). Going between two mountains, the Boer ordered Windvogel to murder the Woman, which he refused to do. The Boer cocked and pointed his Gun at him threatening to shoot him if he did not. At which he threw a stone at her head which knocked her down, as she was rising again, the Boer shot her and horrid to add, left the twins with the dead mother a prey for the wolves or other ravenous beasts. He is anxious to make it known to Government but Lord Caledon will not give an opportunity.

The truth could easily be ascertained if only impartial Judges were to examine. Conscience compels me to bring these things before you, and the hope that survivors may get protection from the hands of their tyrants and murderers, whose wealth and influence seem to bid defiance to any measures to curb or punish them. The policy of punishing or conniving I leave to persons of greater judgment, and to the account of those whom it may concern, but I tremble for any Government where justice is sacrificed to policy. Tho' I may bring down resentment upon me for what I have done, I shall have God and justice on my side, and your prayers and the sighs and cries of hundreds of my poor people for whom I plead. The Directors will, we hope, do what they can. We have reason to believe that many could give us more information but are afraid to expose themselves to the resentment of the Boers, being without any protection from them. There has been a great decrease of the Hottentot nation in the last 10 years, and if these things continue they may soon become an extinct people. It was entirely in consequence of this oppression that the Hottentots rose some years ago. Happily our institution was then just formed, and was the means of stopping the rebellion, if it may be so called. Most of them joined our institution as soon as they were assured of an Asylum and have ever since been the most peaceable subjects. We are not therefore afraid of this matter being made public. If Mr. Wilberforce, the friend of injured Africa, had a fair statement of this business, he would surely exert himself, we hope, with the same success. Our only wish is that suitable persons might be appointed to examine into matters. We had hoped that Lord Caledon would have sent such persons. But his Excellency must be kept in ignorance, or be prejudiced against us, and the institution, and the Hottentots, as our enemies cease not to misrepresent us, so that his Excellency is to be pitied not knowing who to believe. From these misrepresentations proceed our hindrances to going to other nations. We hope Dear Brethren you will not cease to pray for our success that hindrances may be removed out of the way of the free propagation of the Gospel.

Extract from the Journal October 8th.

Brother Read was summoned by the Beadle to appear the next day before the Landdrost Major Cuyler at 9 o'clock. At the time appointed the Landdrost informed him that he had received an order from the Governor, to examine him on oath, on the ground of a Letter he had written in 1808 to the Directors of the Missionary Society published in the 20th number of their transactions respecting the sufferings and murders of Hottentots. He readily acknowledged he had written that Letter, and mentioned persons who could give evidence, who being called were intimidated, and some little difference being found in their declarations from the unfriendly behaviour he experienced, it was visible that the examination was not very pleasant. Brother Read then gave the Landdrost two papers for the information of his Excellency Lord Caledon, containing accounts of 14 murders (some of the sufferers were members of our institution) and is able to mention 70 more cases most or all of which have been committed since our residence in the Colony, and most of the reputed murderers are still living, some of them holding Offices under Government, besides innumerable instances of ill usage. On the 19th Brother Read addressed a Letter to Lord Caledon a copy of which follows at the end of the Journal offering to go to Cape Town, but to our utter astonishment he has as yet received no answer. We begin to fear the Letter is somewhere detained, we are however daily praying that these injuries may in due time be redressed.

Copy of a Letter addressed to the GOVERNOR EARL CALEDON,

October 19th 1810.

MY LORD,-On the 8th of this month I was summoned to appear before Major Cuyler, the Landdrost, to give information of some acts of cruelty and murder mentioned in a Letter of mine written to England dated August 30th 1808. I have given the Major an account of the persons who informed me, and shall with the greatest cheerfulness give every further information in my power, if it should be your Lordship's desire. I have likewise given to Major Cuyler two papers containing many acts of barbarity since I have been in this country, and where no justice

has ever been administered, not even the least notice taken of them, which is undoubtedly the cause of the continuance of the inhumanity committed against the poor people in question. It has pleased God in his providence, my Lord, to cast me and my fellow labourers in such a situation as enables me to become better acquainted with the sufferings of this people than any other person whatever. The poor Hottentot in vain turns his eye to any to whom he dare unbosom himself. He has sought perhaps for redress at the hazard of his life, at last he finds a friend in the Missionary, whom he begins to experience is more or less concerned for his temporal as well as his spiritual welfare; then, but not without some degree of fear, he tells his pitiable story, and a heart of stone must bleed to hear the father relate the slavery of his child, the child the loss of his Father, the tender husband of his wife, and wife the loss of her husband, the survivor forced into endless bondage, and the orphans worse than slaves. I hope that the time is near, that their cries will be heard, and their complaints impartially attended to, and effectual means adopted to deliver them from their oppressions. Providence seems to point to you, my Lord, as the person to whom this is reserved; and the heart of your humble servant, and his Missionary Brethren will rejoice when this shall engage your Lordship's attention, and the evil be cured. They will consider their prayers answered, and your memory will be revered by these sufferers and their posterity. The information I have given to Major Cuyler is a very small part of what we should be able to produce, and ought to be produced to prove the acts of cruelty already committed notwithstanding your Lordship's late good intentions, and active measures to put a stop to some of these abominations. I beg leave to submit to your Lordship a few ideas upon the subject. I must acknowledge that I find some difficulty in giving this information thro' Major Cuyler. I should be sorry to hurt the Major's feelings, by giving particulars of many horrid acts reported to be committed by many who are nearly related to him, which undoubtedly would be very unpleasant for him to hear and be obliged to transmit to your Excellency, and which would not for this reason be expected to be impartial. From the reports of the Major's conduct towards Hottentots bringing their complaints before him I am sorry to say that I cannot look on him as an impartial person to examine the grievances of this class of afflicted people. Another idea of the

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