Merchant-Vessel, and no Manifest produced by the Master that the rice was part of the Cargo for trade. The Papers and necessary Affidavits were delivered into the Registry on the 9th of January 1826, and a Monition was prayed for and issued on the 11th, citing the Parties interested in the Cause to appear, in proper time, before the Court; which Monition was returned to the Registry on the 19th. This Schooner, when taken, had only 4 Papers on board, viz: her Passport, Clearance, Muster-roll, and Log. Her Passport, granted by the Governor of St. Eustatius, "W. A. Von Spengler," on the 23d of November 1825, states her to be the property of John Hill, a Naturalized Subject of The King of Holland, residing in St. Eustatius. There is a Special Clause in the body of the said Passport, that it should hold "good for 12 Months for general Navigation, excepting on the Coast of Guinea." ("Goed voor twaalf Maanden our overal te navigeren uitgezonderd op de Kust van Guinea") Her Clearance, signed by J. Verscheur, the Collector at St. Eustatius, on the 23d of November 1825, states her to have cleared out with a Cargo for exportation for the Coast of Brazil, and her Log, in positive contradiction, proves her to have come direct to the Coast of Africa which she had made 2 days only previous to capture. The Master, Mate, and Steward, on their examination, deposed, that the Schooner in question, and Cargo laden on board of her, were the property of the said John Hill, that their object in coming to the Coast of Africa was to trade for palm-oil and ivory, and totally denied all knowledge of the facts stated by the Captors, with the exception of the acknowledgment that the Vessel was fitted with open gratings. The Master further deposed, that Instructions from the Owner for his future guidance had been sent to the Gallinas, to await his arrival there. Under these conflicting circumstances, the Court decreed a Commission of Inspection and Survey to issue to the Marshal, and two other respectable Persons to proceed on board the said Schooner Hoop, and to report thereon. Their Report confirmed, in every material point, the Declaration of the Captor. No Claimants appeared for the Vessel, and no doubt existing in the minds of the Commissioners as to the illegality of the Voyage in which the said Schooner Hoop was engaged when taken, Sentence of Condemnation was passed against her, and she was accordingly condemned as lawful Prize to the Crowns of Great Britain and Holland. Sierra Leone, February 15, 1826. J. T. WILLIAMS, No. 50.-J. T. Williams, Esq. to Mr. Sec' Canning.-(Rec. May 22.) WITH the present Despatch, I have the honour to transmit to you a Report of the Adjudication of the Schooner Amable Claudina, Claudio Picaluga, Master, sailing under Dutch Colours. She was detained by His Majesty's Ship Atholl, off the Castle of St. George d'Elmina, on the 12th of November, 1825, and sent here to be tried before the British and Netherlands Mixed Court of Justice, by which Court she was condemned on the 6th of February last, for having been concerned in illegally trafficking in Slaves. I also forward, herewith, the Report of the Case of the Brig Charles, Louis L'Oiseau, Master, sailing under the same Flag, which Vessel arrived in this Harbour on the 21st January, having been captured by His Majesty's Brig of War, Conflict, Lieutenant John Chrystie, Commander, off Duke's Town, in Old Calabar River, on the 22d of December last she is reported to be of 190 tons burthen, and is stated to have had on board, when taken, 265 Slaves: the trial of this Vessel took place on the 15th instant, and she was condemned as lawfu] Prize. It is, indeed, matter of great regret to me, to have to report to you, Sir, that this baneful traffick appears to have assumed a novel feature, and which, until it be checked, must of certainty tend most materially to increase the misery inflicted on the wretched population of this illfated Country. The Slave-trade is now carried on to a much greater extent than has been hitherto known, under cloak of the Flag of His Majesty the King of The Netherlands. During the last 8 Months, no less than 7 Vessels have been brought in by His Majesty's Squadron for Adjudication, viz. the Bey; Z; La Venus; Hoop; Amable Claudina; Charles; and Vogel; 6 of these Vessels were furnished with Papers from the Colonial Authorities at Saint Eustatius, and one at Curaçao. The 3 first Cases were decided previous to my arrival; the circumstances which were developed in each of them, elucidated so clearly the object they had in view, as to leave no doubt on the minds of the Judges, as to the illegality of the pursuits in which the Parties connected with these Vessels were concerned. For the particulars of the Hoop, I beg to refer you to my Despatch, and Report of the 15th of February. There are certain points connected with the Amable Claudina, and the Charles, more particularly the former, which I deem it my duty to submit to you. Had it not been for the application which was made to Captain Murray, by the Authorities of His Netherlands Majesty's Government on the Gold Coast, I humbly conceive his power would not have been competent to any interference with any Vessel, bearing that Flag, under I the walls of their principal Settlement. The peculiar circumstances of this transaction, called upon as he was by them to act, would, however, have rendered this observation on my part needless, did I not consider it to be my duty to communicate to you all such matters connected with this branch of the Publick Service, as may come to my knowledge. It would appear that the view which the Governor of Elmina took of this matter was, that the Moiety of the Proceeds of the Amable Claudina did, of right, belong to his particular Government on the Gold Coast, and, acting upon this impression, he wrote a Letter on the subject to His Netherlands Majesty's Judge. A translated Copy of this Letter was handed to me by Mr. Bonnouvrié, which I have deemed it best to forward to you, in order to guard against any observations that may, by possibility, be made; not that I anticipate any such, for the Vessel having been sent to this Court for Adjudication, the disposition of the Proceeds is so clearly provided for, as to leave no room for discussion. I also transmit a Copy of Mr. Breggen Paauw's Letter to Captain Murray, with the Affidavit of the latter, as well as the Affidavit of Lieutenant Caiger, who took possession of the Schooner. As all these Cases seem to bear a similar stamp, I have further thought it right to send you a Copy of the Licence granted by the Governor of St. Eustatius to the Persons concerned in the Amable Claudina. These Licences are evidently obtained (and that for the purpose of attempting to delude,) by Parties who are not at all connected, as regards the Person or the Property, with the Flag under which they endeavour to cloak their nefarious purposes. The 2 Vessels, the Bey and the Hoop are, doubtless, American Property; the Owners naturalized at St. Eustatius. Two others, the Z, and Venus, are French; the Owners and Consignees being Messieurs Saubot, Joubert, and Co. of Martinique. Half the Cargo of the Amable Claudina was French Property belonging to Persons at Bordeaux; and the connection of the Charles with Guadaloupe, renders her property, to say the least of it, doubtful. I have thought it to be my duty to communicate with my Colleague, Mr. Bonnouvrié, on the nature of these Proceedings, and he has assured me, that he has made strong representations to his Government on the subject; these, I hope, may have a beneficial influence, and that His Netherlands Majesty may be pleased to direct the Governors of his Colonies to exercise greater caution, as to the Parties to whom such Licences are granted. I cannot conclude my observations on this Case, without expressing my extreme regret, after the sense, you, Sir, had expressed of the Affair of the Rosalia, and others, that a similar line of proceeding should have been followed in the present instance: and that such mea sures should have been adopted to influence the re-shipment of the Slaves in the Amable Claudina, at, or near to, Popoe. I thought it necessary to communicate verbally with Commodore Bullen on this subject, and should have done so officially, had I not felt a delicacy, arising from the fear that I might be considered as overstepping the line of duty that has been marked out for me. The principal peculiarity in the Case of the Charles, is, that she is the only Vessel of the late number under the Dutch Flag that has been taken with Slaves on board. She also sailed under a Licence from the Governor of St. Eustatius, as appeared by the concealed Papers which were found on board. Amongst the French Papers which were first produced, there was one, dated at "Pointe à Pitre, Guadaloupe," 24th April, 1825, only 3 days previous to the date of a similar Document at Saint Eustatius; it states her to be "Le Brick L'Eugene, commandé par Le Sieur Louis Guion, appartenant à Monsieur Victor Rancé, allant au Grand Cabotage." For the further circumstances of this Case, I beg your reference to the Report. I find one Document among the Papers of the Charles, a Copy of which I think of importance to send to you; it is a Receipt for the large sum of 600 Dollars, received by "T. G. Groebe," the Government Secretary at St. Eustatius, for renewing the Register and Musterroll, and for obtaining Security for 2000 Dollars, which Security, it appears, by other Documents, was given that she should not be illicitly employed in the Slave-trade. The last Vessel in the List, which I have given in the preceding part of this Letter, the Vogel, arrived here on the 11th Instant: she was taken off Grand Carrow, by a Boat of His Majesty's Ship Brazen, Captain Willes, on the 22d of January last, on the plea of being fitted out for the Slave trade The Court will have to take this Case into consideration in a few days, when I shall have the honour to make my Report to you upon it. I fear there may have been the appearance of a neglectful delay in some of my Communications, but this has been caused by circumstances which I regret, but not by myself; they are such as, I trust, may not again occur, and I have, therefore, Sir, to pray your indulgence. I have the honour to be, &c. The Right Hon. George Canning. J. T. WILLIAMS. (Enclosure 1.)-Report of the Case of the Amable Claudina, Claudio Picaluga, Master, captured under Netherlands Colours. THE Amable Claudina, a Schooner of the burthen of 85 tons, of which Claudio Picaluga was Master, was taken possession of in the Roadstead of St. George d'Elmina, by Lieutenant Caiger, acting under orders from Captain James Arthur Murray, of His Majesty's Ship Atholl, on the 12th day of November, 1825. The Declaration of Captain Murray sets forth, that, on the day specified, being off Elmina Castle, he detained the Schooner Amable Claudina, sailing under Dutch Colours, commanded by Claudio Picaluga, who declared her to be bound from Bordeaux to the Coast of Africa, on the ground of her having on board a moveable, or Slave-deck, open gratings, and being fitted for the reception of Slaves; that she was supplied with an extraordinary number of water-casks for a Cargo of Slaves, and also on the plea of her having had Slaves on board during the Voyage which she was then prosecuting, being in contradiction to the Explanatory and Additional Articles to the Treaty of the 4th May, 1818, between His Majesty and His Majesty The King of The Netherlands, signed at Brussels, the 25th January, 1823. His Majesty's Ship Atholl, having arrived at Sierra Leone (previous to the Amable Claudina,) and representations having been made that His Majesty's service required her early departure to another Station, the Captor's Proctor petitioned the Court to be allowed to file the Papers, which was granted; and the said Papers, together with Captain Murray's Affidavit, were lodged in the Registry on the 3d January, 1826. On the 11th January, an Affidavit of Captain Murray was filed in Court, having attached to it a Letter delivered to him, the said Captain Murray, and thus addressed, "To the Captain of His Britannick Majesty's Ship of War, just arrived in Cape Coast Roads." This Letter was from J. C. Vander Breggen Paauw, as Second in Command at Elmina Castle. It was dated "Elmina Castle, 11th November, 1825," and states, that, in consequence of the Governor, Major Last, being very ill, the management of the Publick Service devolved upon the Writer; and informing the Commander of His Britannick Majesty's Ship, that a Schooner, under Dutch Colours, came to anchor in those (Elmina) Roads that morning; that from her Papers, and other circumstances, he had every reason to suspect that she was engaged in the Slave-trade. Mr. Breggen Paauw further expressed it to be his sincere wish, as well as his duty, to put a stop to this detestable Traffick; and his hope, that the Commander of His said Britannick Majesty's Ship would examine the Vessel. It was in consequence of this Letter, that Captain Murray proceeded to Elmina, and caused possession to be taken of the Schooner Amable Claudina, on the grounds which have been previously stated in his Declaration, and sent her for Adjudication to the British and Netherlands Mixed Court of Justice at this Place. On the same day (the 11th of January,) a Monition was prayed, and issued accordingly. Claudio Picaluga, the Master, in his examination on the Interrogatories, states himself to be a Genoese by birth; that his Place of residence is Curaçao; that he is a Naturalized Subject of the King of |