JAMAICA.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 7, Issue 363, 2 April 1866, Page 1

JAMAICA.

The Colonial Standard, in its packet summary, publishes a long defence of the. measures to suppress the late movement in Jamaica, on the ground of the great emergency, in reply to the articles in some of the English journals. It says :—■ The declarations of the rebels and their subsequent action after leaving Morant Bay negative the idea of a local riot, and explain the forbearance they showed to the woman, children, and doctors, in a manner capable of fixing the character of the movement. The band of rebels had assembled at at Stony Gut two or three days before going down to Morant Bay. They bad taken a fearful oath to stand by one another and to accomplish a certain purpose; they knew that all the military force which was available at the moment had been brought up to oppose them; they had a programme to which they stuck religiously, neither suffering excitement, the opportunity of plunder, or the temptation of outraging the unprotected women, to turn them from their purpose. They fought at Morant Bay, and stood to it resolutely. After carrying out their plans there they retired to prayer, and to thank God for their successes, and then divided into separate bodies, each of which took different directions across the country, levying recruits by the way, and each, though away from the others, adhering throughout to the original plan pursued at Morant Bay. The direction taken indicated the purpose of spreading the rebellion elsewhere than in the parish. The band which went east sent forward the threat to take and burn Port Antonio in the next parish. These bands, it is true, took to flight at the approach of the soldiers, but still they carried their ravages onward, and did not desist until the troops were actually upon them. A rebel attempted to decoy the soldiers from Morant Bay, on the pretence of leading them to the haunts of certain chiefs, but failed through suspicions which led to his detection. An address by Paul Bogle and other chiefs, issued after the arrival of the troops at Morant Bay, was found calling on the followers of the movement to rise. The rebels were evidently taken aback by the sudden presence of tlie troops and the prompt vengeance which was dealt out, and they became too demoralised to make head against the troops, but they evidently kept up action in order to encourage the co-operation they expected in other parts of the island. There nas a spirit of disaffection manifested in the neighboring parishes, which was not to be mistaken. Threatening letters were daily sent to obnoxious persons in great number. The rebels spared the doctors, but told why—viz., that they would want the doctors by and bye. They anticipated that surgeons would be useful to them. They spared the women and children, but for a purpose which they expressed. The torch was never applied by them, but from inevitable necessity or accident, and they gave the reason for it. The evidence in the case of Gordon will probably he published before long, and it will be seen that even before a civil tribunal he would have been convicted. It scarcely needs argument to prove that the prompt execution of the man, under the circumstances, was highly important. The urgency of the moment would not allow of his being handed over to the slow process of the civil tribunals. His position, as criminal awaiting trial, would have been a perpetual danger. It might be more regular to try a man in the ordinary way, but "circumstances alter cases,” and in the public emergency then subsisting such a course as regards Gordon would have been highly dangerous. The present constitution has been abolished, and the creation of a future constitution left absolutely to the judgment of the Queen. The general news of the past fortnight is not of much importance to the foreign reader. Everything now appears to have relapsed into quietness, but, as a precautionary measure, orders have been issued to the volunteers to turn out on guard during the Christinas holidays.

Maroons hare completed their tour to the western parishes, and returned home. They were everywhere received with earnest welcome and enthusiam. Colonel lyfe is quite recovered. The bill abolishing the the constitution was introduced, in consequence of the following message from the Governor : The Governor has much pleasure in laying before the Legislature an extract from a despatch which he has received from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, in reference to the late rebellion. The Governor also takes this opportunity of acquainting the Legislature, that so convinced are her Majesty’s Government of the paramount importance of a strong Government being at once constituted in Jamaica, that he has been confidentially informed (and which under existing circumstances ho feels justified in communicating to the Legislature,) that although for many years the disposition and practice of the Crown has been rather to devolve on colonial representative bodies the powers aud responsibilities of Governmet, than either to keep the powers it possessed, or to assume powers and responsibilities which had not hitherto belonged to it, yet in a case in which the Crown’s deprivation of power is incompatible with the welfare, and even the safety of the colony, there would be no hesitation on the part of her Majesty’s Government to accept any amount of additional responsibility which circumstanes might seem to require. Under this expressed willingness on the part of the Crown, to deviate from its ordinary policy and practice, and to undertake tha responsibility of directing the affairs of Jamaica for the future, the Governor would respectfully invite the Legislature so to amend the Act recently passed to alter and amend the Constitution, as would leave her Majesty unfettered in determining the character of the future constitution, and the administrative machinery by which the business of the country is to be conducted. The Legislature asked for more explicit information in relation to this matter, and was told by the Governor that he could not give it.