SELF-SUPPORTING EMIGRATION.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SPECTATOR.

Doctors' Commons, October 1818. Sta—I have just returned from the West of Ireland; where, with extreme po- verty existing and absolute starvation impending, I find but one desire prevalent among the young and able-bodied,—which Ls, to emigrate to some country where 1.119' may find work and wages.

Free emigration is considered to involve too large an outlay for either Govern- ment, or parishes or charitable associations to undertake. We must therefore make emigration, or the export of labour, support itself like the export of any other article wanted in the Colonies: until we do this, °might. tion will never be carried on effectually. The following plan is submitted as a mode of making a commencement in "self-supporting emigration!' It is arranged with an especial reference to the Roman Catholic Irish willing to emigrate to New South Wales.

It has been revised by persons well acquainted with the Irish habits, as well as by those of Colonial experience, who are of opinion that it would work. 1st. A society to be formed for establishing " self-supporting emigration." The best form of such a society would probably be a joint stock company, with limited liabilities; a capital of 10,0001. would be ample to start the system. 28. The society to select a certain number of Irish anxious to become emi- grants, of good character, and coming under the requisite conditions as to age, number of children, &c. 3d. The emigrant to enter into a bond with the society to allow the amount of his passage-money and fitting out, advanced by the society, to be deducted in the shape of passage-money tickets" from his wages in New South Wales until the whole should be repaid. The emigrant to give security—two sureties to the extent of 51.—for the due fulfilment of his engagement. In framing this engagement, we should bespeak the good offices of the Roman Catholic clergy, who would be best able both to explain its precise nature to the emigrant, and to cause it to be entered into in such a form as the peasantry would consider most binding. The priest would also be able to communicate with the Colonial ecclesiastical authorities, so that they should be advised of the engage- ment made by the emigrant, and the emigrant would be made aware that they possessed this information; and that, consequently, if he broke his pledge, he would fall under the censure of his spiritual advisers, and would be reported at home.

I have good authority for believing that the Roman Catholic clergy, with their usual attention to all that concerns the interests of the poor, would render cordial assistance in securing the performance of an engagement of the nature in ques- tion, which would be the means of rescuing men from the starvation which awaits them at home.

4th. The agent of the society on landing would take charge of the emigrants; who should be shipped so as to arrive at that period of the year (our winter) when the drays from the interior are down at the ports; the emigrant would thus be able to proceed with the return drays to the stations where the agent had pro- cured them engagements-' and the agent himself would accompany those not so engaged, with a return dray up the country, and distribute them at stations where labour was wanted.

5th. The employer, on having the labourer handed over to him, would sign an engagement with the ;society to keep back a certain amount from the wages of the labourer, for which he should give a "passage-money ticket" to the labourer when he paid him his wages at the end of the year, sending a duplicate to the society's agent: for the amount of this ticket, the employer would be responsible to the society.

The engagements with servants in New South Wales are generally for a year; and in the first year the emigrant would generally be able to repay the advance made to him by the society for passage-money and outfit. This for an adult, under such an arrangement with the Colonial Land and Emigration Commission- ers as that entered into by the Society for the Promotion of Colonization, would be covered for 101., and for a married emigrant with two children for 221.•

I shall be prepared with the details of this arrangement, and with drafts of the two documents (drawn by a highly-competent person) requisite, the one for the engagements between the emigrants and the society, the other for that between the colonial employer and the society. An act of Parliament for the purpose of bringing the machinery of the police, which is necessary wherever the " ticket of leave" system is in force, to bear upon runaway servants, would facilitate the operations of the society; but I be- lieve it can be made to work perfectly well without—for these reasons: There would be very little opportunity or temptation for an emigrant to break his engagement the first year; inasmuch as The hirings in Australia are yearly:

The wages are only paid yearly, and then in a great measure by tickets for goods; and thus the "passage-money ticket" would not be a new or strange ar- rangement, but one perfectly understood in the colony: The emigrant would for the first year be strange to the country, and not id- dined to attempt a flight into the bush:

And last, not least, such a flight with a wife and children would be im- practicable, and we know an Irishman would never leave his family behind him. These are reasons, independently of the fidelity with which an Irish Roman Ca- tholic keeps an engagement voluntarily entered into and attested by his priest, for trusting the plan. I confine myself in this proposal purposely to the case of Irish Roman Ca- tholics, anxious to emigrate to New South Wales, because I possess positive in-

formation as to Irish character and Colonial life in that colony. If the system

found to work as it is the opinion of persons well able to form a sound judg- ment upon it that it could not fail to do, with ordinary care and honesty on the part of the managers, it could of coarse be extended to other Colonies, and to the more skilful labourers of England and Scotland. The advantages of such a "self-supporting emigration" over all eleemosynary plans of emigration are so obvious that I need not enlarge upon them. One pal-

pable advantage is this—that by the plan proposed, the original capital (which I have placed at 10,0001.) would be continually returned to the company; and would therefore be available for keeping up a continual stream ot emigration,

which, like a river, would be fed by its own waters returning to it in another sha i pe. I submit, Sir, n conclusion, that "self-supporting emigration" ought to Its

tried, and that there can be no better opportunity than the present for doing so.

* Under this arrangement the passage-money of a man and his wife and two cliff.: dren under seven years of age Is 101.; the remaining 12/. would be for outfit and con- tingencies: for an adult in the prime of life the passage-money is 51.

There is required, in addition to these charges, an advance of II. per adult for bed- ding, ice.