ANTIGUA, (See Leeward Islands.) ANGUILLA. (See Leeward Islands.) BAHAMAS. History. COLONIES. A chain of islands lying between 21° 42′ and 27° 34 N. lat., and 72° 40' and 79° 5′ W. long. The group is composed of about 20 inhabited islands and an immense number of islets and rocks. The principal islands are New Providence (containing the capital, Nassau), Abaco, Harbour Island, Eleuthera, Inagua, Mayaguana, Andros Island, Great Bahama, Ragged Island, Rum Cay, Exuma, Long Island, Crooked Island, Acklin Island, Long Cay, Cat Island, Watling's Island, now known as St. Salvador, the Berry Islands, and the Biminis. St. Salvador, one of the islands composing this chain, was the first land discovered by Columbus on his voyage in 1492. The island of New Providence was granted by Charles II. to a proprietary body in 1670, and in 1671 Captain Johnson Wentworth was appointed by the proprietors to be their first Governor. It fell into the hands of the French and Spaniards in 1703, after which it became a rendezvous for pirates, who were extirpated in 1718 by the English, and a regular colonial administration formed. In 1781 the Bahamas were surrendered to the Spaniards, but at the conclusion of the war they were once more annexed by and finally confirmed to Great Britain, at the Peace of Versailles, 1783. In 1848 the Turks and Caicos Islands were separated from the other Bahamas, and formed into a distinct Government, under the Government-inChief of the Governor of Jamaica. Climate. The climate is very pleasant and salubrious in the winter season, and the Colony has in recent years been much frequented by visitors from the United States and Canada-there being an excellent hotel, the property of the Government, but leased to private management, and carried on on the American system. Trade and Industry. There are eleven colonial custom-houses and ports of entry in the Government of the Bahamas, riz., Nassau, Abaco, Eleuthera, Harbour Island, Exuma, Rum Cay, Long Island, Long Cay, Inagua, Ragged Island, and Bimini. Considerable quantities of pine-apples, oranges, and sponges are exported, chiefly to Eugland and the United States. The pine-apple crop is very precarious. The industry of salt raking has ceased to be remunerative, owing to the high protective duties imposed on salt by the United States. Cocoa nut planting is now carried on extensively; this and other branches of industry received a fresh impulse under the patronage of Governor Robinson in 1874. The sugar-cane grows luxuriantly in many of the islands, and is being more largely cultivated, the establishment of sugar mills having stimulated the planters to renewed exertions. The Colony enjoyed great prosperity during the American Civil War, when it was the headquarters of many blockade running operations. Constitution. The Executive Government is conducted by the Governor, aided by an Executive Council of 9 members. The Legislative authority resides in the Governor, a Legislative Council of 9 members, and a Representative Assembly of 29 members. The qualifications of Electors are full age, a residence of 12 months of which six have been as a freeholder or housekeeper, or a residence of six months and a payment of duties to the amount of 261. Os. 10d. The qualification of Members is possession of an estate of real or personal property of the value of 2007. The Executive Council is composed partly of official and partly of unofficial Members. The members usually have a seat in one of the branches of the Legislature. Tariff. The Customs Tariff of the Bahamas is as follows: Alcohol, per gallon Ale and porter, in wood, per gallon Ale and porter (in bottles), quarts, per dozen Apples, per barrel Beans and peas, per barrel. £ s. d. 4 0 0 6 120420046 . 0 3 4 0 9 2 60 Candles, sperm, wax and adamantine, or thousand Cocoa, per 100 lbs. Coffee, per 100 lbs. £20 per cent. ad valorem } £20 Coalts and foals, each Cordials, 20 per cent. ad valorem Corn, meal, and hominy, per barrel Currants, figs, and raisins, per 100 lbs Dogs, each Fish, dried or salted, per 100 lbs. Fish, pickled salmon, mackerel, and shad, per barrel. Fish, herrings, alewives and other kinds not enumerated, per barrel. Flour (wheat), per barrel, 2s. 6d. and 10 per cent. ad valorem Flour (rye), per barrel Gin, whiskey, and other spirits not enu- Honey and syrup, per gallon. 08 1 8380 t 02820 0 7 0 3 0 0 0.10 0 320100 0 0 1 0 10 0 0 0 0 0 10 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 3 £ s. d. description imported or supplied from a Bonded 0 0 9 03 0 1 0 1 0 10 0 Rum, stronger than 18 per bubble, per gallon 046 Rum, 18 and not weaker than 24 per bubble, per gallon. 0 Rum, weaker than 24 per bubble, per gallon. Sheep, each. Shingles, Cypress, per thousand Tallow, per 100 lbs. Tea, of all sorts, per lb. Tobacco, manufactured, per 100 lbs. 3222050228 0 10 0 2 6 0 6 6 0 0 1 0 0 Turpentine (spirits of), per gallon Articles not enumerated, except such as 0 3 020 II. That all articles specified in the following Table of Exemptions be imported without the payment of any duties whatever: Table of Exemptions. Articles imported or supplied out of a Bonded Warehouse for the Imperial or Colonial Service. Articles imported or supplied out of a Bonded Warehouse for the use and accomodation of any officer of Her Majesty's Navy on full pay and doing duty within these Islands, or who may be serving within these Islands in any Imperial Department of Her Majesty's Service, except cattle and livestock. Articles of every description imported or supplied from a Bonded Warehouse for the use of the Governor or Officer administering the Government. Bulbs and roots, seeds of all kinds, shrubs, trees and plants, live birds, bullion, coal, cocoa-nuts, coin, copper, and composition, old, fit only to be re-manufactured, cotton, wool, dye-woods and stuffs, and divi divi, diving apparatus, flax, hemp, ice, iron, old, fit only to be re-manufactured, lignum vitæ, mahogany, manures and fertilisers of oll kinds, maps, metalline ores, monumental tablets, oakum, ova of fish, passengers' baggage, philosophical instruments and apparatus, printed books and pamphlets, provisions and stores of every An ad valorem export duty of 14 per cent. is also levied on all articles imported and subsequently exported, which have paid no other duties than warehouse duty, or auction tax or duty. Articles which have been imported for the Colonial Service and Imperial Lighthouse Service, and exported by the Government; articles which have been imported for the use and accomodation of any officer of Her Majesty's Army and Navy on full pay, and doing duty within these Islands, and exported by such officer; articles of every description which may be exported by the Governor or Officer administering the Government; passengers' baggage, turtle, woods, such as braziletto, cedar, fustic, lignum-vitæ, satin, logwood, mahogany, and ebony, old iron, old copper and brass, specie, old copper and brass, specie, old rags, old junk. Revenue and Expenditure. Clerk, G. E. Taylor, 751. 1673 1677 1684 J. C. Smith. 1687 G. A. McGregor. 1690 F. Bullard. 1694 J. S. Darling. 1694 J. S Johnson. J. P. Moore. " Phenny, George 1721 E. S. Hall. Rogers, Woodes, again 1728 Fitzwilliam, Richard Tinker, John.. 1738 Shirley, William 1759 Shirley, Thomas 1767 1774 1779 Browne, Montford Maxwell, Juo. Dunmore, Earl of Forbes John Dowdeswell, W. Cameron, Charles Rawson, R. W., C.B. K.C.M.G., C.B. Receiver-General and Treasurer, Robert Butler, 400l. 1st Clerk and Collector, J. A. Culbert, 2507.; 2nd. ditto, vacant, 1507. 3rd Clerk, T. V. Mathews, 607. Port Officer, Warehouse-Keeper, and Examining Officer, H. C. Lightbourn, 250l., and 851. boat allowance. Surveyor-General, Civil Engineer, and Commissioner of Crown Lands, I. W. Fowler, 3007. Clerks, J. H. McKinney, 1367. Cashier of Public Bank, Chas. F. Gahan, pro. tem., 6007. Clerk, Wm. Cuddeford, pro. tem., 150l. Inspector of Public Schools, G. Cole, 2007., and 847. allowance. Postmaster, R. C. Crawford, 2501. Resident Surgeon Superintendent of New Providence Dispenser of Medicines, C. S. Duncombe, 807. Chaplain, Rev. R. Saunders, 251. Inspector of Lighthouses, vacant, 8007. (from Clerk to Board of Public Works, H. A. Brook, 407. Judicial Establishment. Chief Justice, Chancellor, and Judge of Admiralty, fees in the Vice-Admiralty Court. Prothonotary, T. N. G. Clare, 2427., and fees as Police Magistrate, Nassau, T. A. Thompson, 3007. R. W. Farrington. Clerk, T. E. D. Brace, 801. Resident Justices, and ex-officio Collectors of Re- Abaco, T. N. G. Bethel, 1507., allowance 15l. Eleuthera, G. Preston, 150l. the Portuguese, who finding it uninhabited and rude in appearance, named the isle Los Barbados, from the number of bearded fig-trees which they found. In 1625 Sir William Courteen, a London merchant, under the protection of the Earl of Marlborough, who held a grant of the island from James I, fitted out two large ships, only one of Harbour Island, J. S. Solomon, 215l., allow- which arrived at Barbados, and the party, which ance 201 Inagua, G. A. McGregor, 2007. Long Island, A. V. Hudson, 70%. Rum Cay, Thos. O'Connor, 401. The Police Force consists of an Inspector, 1 Ser- consisted of some thirty persons, landed on the leeward side of the island formed a town called James' (or Hole) Town, and appointed Captain William Deane their governor. In 1627 the Earl of Carlisle obtained a grant from Charles I of all the Caribbee Islands. This grant was opposed by the former patentee, Lord Marlborough, but the matter was compromised on the Earl of Carlisle agreeing to settle on the Earl of Marlborough an annuity of 3007. Soon after this the Earl of Carlisle being employed on a diplomatic mission, the Earl of Pembroke, then Lord Chamberlain, obtained a revocation of the former nobleman's patent in his favour, and supported Sir W. Courteen; but on the Earl of Carlisle's return from his embassy, he remonstrated with the king, who reinstated him in possession of the territory. Wolferstone, a native of Bermuda, was then commissioned by the Earl of Carlisle as governor, and in 1628 sixty-four settlers arrived in Carlisle Bay, commenced the erection of wooden houses, threw a bridge across the river which intersected the ground, and laid the foundation of Bridgetown, the present capital. The leeward and windward men opposed each other, the latter ultimately triumphing. As in all new colonies, the inhabitants met with no inconsiderable difficulties. Local feuds were added to domestic privations, but the civil war which raged in England contributed to people and enrich the island; and on the downfall of Charles, many families attached to the Royal cause found shelter in Barbados. The island was afterwards governed by Lord Willoughby, a Royalist, to whom it was conveyed by Lord Carlisle (son of the first patentee); but when the island was subdued by the power of the Commonwealth, he was banished. In 1662, after the restoration of Charles II, Lord Willoughby renewed his claim on Barbados, and the kinsmen and heirs of the two earls brought forward demands on the settlers. To satisfy these claims, a duty of 44 per cent. on all exports was imposed; and under certain conditions the proprietary government was dissolved and the sovereignty of Barbados annexed to the British Crown. The inhabitants long protested against the imposition of the 4 per cent. duties, but without success; and it was not till 1838, four years after the abolition of slavery, that the tax was abolished by an Act of Parliament. Barbados has not, like most of the neighbouring islands, changed owners: it has always remained in possession of Great Britain. Bridgetown, the chief town and port, is situated in the parish of St. Michael, in lattitude 13° 5′ 42′′ North, and longitude 3° 58' 29" West. This town contains, according to the census of 1881, 20,947 inhabitants, exclusive of the shipping, which amounted to 438. In 1861 a most important project for supplying the town with water was completed by a joint-stock company incorporated by an Act of the legislature. A railway from Bridgetown to the parish of Saint Andrew (23 ruiles as surveyed) was commenced in 1880, and completed on 10th September, 1882. Carlisle Bay, the harbour of Barbados, is an open roadstead, which is much exposed to the wind from the south and south-west. There is an inner harbour or careenage, protected by a structure called the Mole Head. The works in connection with this harbour are under the supervision and control of the Governor and Executive Committee. The island is almost encircled by coral reefs, which in some parts, as in the parish of St. Phillip, extend nearly 3 miles to seaward, and prove very dangerous to navigation. A lighthouse was erected in 1852 on the south point of the islands partly at the expense of the British government, A harbour-light was also placed on Needham's Point in 1855. Another lighthouse was erected on the east coast (in St. Philip's), and lighted on 1st May, 1875, by a second order dioptric flash light, given by the British Government. The chief articles planted for exportation for some years after the settlement of the island were indigo, cotton-wool, ginger, and aloes, besides several kinds of woods; and the manufacture of sugar does not appear to have been practised with much success till about the middle of the 17th century, when the cultivation of the sugar-cane increased rapidly, and the plant became, in commercial importance, the island's most valuable production. At that period, too, the introduction of African labour was commenced. It is stated that, in 1863, there were 358 sugar-works in operation. At the present time they number over 500. The produce of 1871 amounted to 53,800 hogsheads of sugar and 33,500 puncheons of molasses; in 1876, | 37,848 hogsheads of sugar, and 24,001 puncheons of molasses. In 1881 the produce amounted to 52,236 hogsheads of sugar and 33,521 puncheons of molasses. The population of the island in 1851 amounted to 135,939; and although it is estimated that some 20,000 were carried off by cholera in 1854, the census of 1861 showed a total of 152,727 inhabitants. By the census of 1871 there were 162,042 inhabitants, of whom 16,560 were white and the remainder coloured and black; the natural increase having been checked by the migration to other West Indian Islands of large numbers of the labouring population. By the census of 1881 the population is returned at 171,860. Where so great a population exists, great industry is essential to enable the people to live. Thus, labour is cheap, and the productive capacity of the soil has been greatly brought out. The island has the appearance of a well-kept garden. From an early date, each of the 11 parishes into which the island is divided was presided over by a clergyman of the Church of England; but it was not till 1824 that the Bishopric of Barbados and the Leeward Islands, with British Guiana, was created. In 1842, upon the resignation of Dr Coleridge (the first bishop), British Guiana and the Leeward Islands were separated from the Windward, and constituted distinct sees. Barbados possesses a college founded by General Codrington, a native of the island, who died in 1710, and whose name it bears. It was affiliated to Durham University in 1875. It is under the administration of the S. P. G., who are the Trustees of General Codrington's will. There are several theological scholarships of the value of 30. per annum from the College funds, and four Island Scholarships at 401. per annum paid from the Colonial Treasury. The latter are confined to natives or sons of natives. There is a good grammai school, called Harrison College, in Bridgetown, established on an old foundation endowed many years ago, which has been liberally supported by the legislature, and promises useful results. has a staff of 7 university men as Masters, a It Professor of Chemistry and Agricultural Science and a Professor of German. The average number of pupils is about 140. Another First Grade School," The Lodge," situated in St. John's parish, to the N.E. of the island, was re-opened in 1882, after having been closed for several years. The number of pupils at the close of 1883 was 16. There are four Barbados Scholarships, established by the Education Board, and endowed by the Colony, each of the annual value of 175/., tenable at Oxford or Cambridge for four years. Besides these scholarships there are grants in aid to the successful competitors for the Gilchrist scholarships of 751. each per annum for three years. A police force was established in Barbados in 1835 by an Act of the Legislature, and is stated to have been the first attempt in the British West India Colonies to establish a force of that description upon a similar footing. In 1882 the Harbour Police (established in 1867) were combined with the Land Police, and a Corps of Writ Officers added to the Force. A Juvenile Reformatory was opened in April, 1883. An inland Post was first set on foot in 1852 ; and has since been amalgamated with the Colonial Post Office. Through this office a letter may be sent to any part of the island, reaching its destination the same day, for 1d. the oz. Money Orders are granted to all parts of the world to which the English system extends. A lunatic asylum and a lazaretto are kept up at the public expense: and there is a general hospital in Bridgetown, to the support of which the colony contributes 6,6301. per annum. The deposits in the Savings Bank amounted, on 31st December, 1884, to 56,543. The number of depositors was 6,300. Branch savings banks have been opened in the rural districts. There is a station of the West India and Panama Telegraph Company at Barbados. The island forms the head-quarters of Her Majesty's forces in the West Indies command, under a major-general, who resides in Barbados. The troops stationed in the island are garrisoned at St. Ann's, situated at the southern extremity of Bridgetown. Volunteer rifle, artillery, and yeomanry-cavalry corps were organized in 1859, but were disbanded in 1868. The colony possesses representative institutions, but not responsible Government. The Crown has no more than a veto on legislation, but the Home Government retains the appointment and control of public offices. The Government consists of a Governor, a Legislative Council, consisting of nine mombers appointed by the Queen, and a House of Assembly, having twenty-four members elected annually on the basis of a very low franchise. The qualification of members and electors are regulated by a Franchise Act, which became law in April, 1884, and which repeals all previous legislation on the subject. By this Act a very liberal extension of the franchise has been granted, and it is estimated that almost 4,200 electors will be registered under its provisions, the number previous to its enactment being only 1,641. The executive part of the Government consists of the Governor, Officer commanding the troops, the Colonial Secretary, the AttorneyGeneral ex officio, and such other person as is nominated by the Queen, one member of the Legislative Council, and four members of the House of Assembly nominated by the Governor. This body is called the Executive Commitee, and introduces all money votes, prepares the estimates |