The Indian races are, by the laws of Spain,. de clared to be freemen, and the old practices, known by the name of repartimientos, by which, under the pretext of being protected by individual Spaniards, they were, in fact, reduced to the condition of slaves, has been long abolished. Many of the Indians re side in their own separate villages and towns. They are kept distinct whilst there from the white race, and ruled by their own hereditary chiefs. The go vernment of Spain requires from each chief an an nual tax of two dollars for every individual under his government, which he collects from his unfortunate dependants, often with great severity ; though that severity has been attempted to be softened by the appointment of white corregidors, whose duty it is to protect the Indians from the oppressions of their native princes. This tribute from the Indians was intended to favour rather than oppress them, as, in consideration of it, they are exempted from all other imposts. In the Spanish dominions, a most impoli. tic tax, called Alcavala, originally imposed by the Moors when they ruled the peninsula, is universally levied. It is six per cent. upon all sales of property; but in consideration of this tribute, the Indians, in those places where they are ruled by their own chiefs, are exempted from this payment.
The chiefs who rule these Indian tribes are under the superintendence of the corregidors, who are con sidered as their guardians ; and the people, in the eye of the law, considered as minors, in a state of pupilage. They can enter into no contracts, nor do any other act, without the direction of their chief, who avails himself of this condition of their being, to enrich himself from their scanty possessions, when ever he can blind or bribe the corregidor, by whom he is controlled. Whilst residing in their native vil lages, these Indians can contract no marriages with the whites. The only liberty they enjoy is the power of removing from their towns to the places where no chief rules. This they can do at their pleasure, and may then hire themselves as servants or labourers for their own account. In these changes of situa tion, they too often only remove from the slavery of their native chief to the worse slavery of their own vicious propensities. Like all uncivilized people, they are excessively addicted to the abuse of ardent spirits ; the first money obtained by labour is gene rally applied to this pernicious gratification. The Creoles, who know their weakness, when they wish to engage them as workmen in mines or-manufacto ries, gratify them with spirits, till they become in debted to them in such sums as give them a power to keep them at work on their own terms, under pretence of extricating them from the debts they have contracted. As in these situations they have no natural protector, either in their own chief or their corregidor, as they had in their native villages, they become the prey of the Creoles, who kilnw they are not able to procure redress from the ordinary courts of law, which are both tedious and expensive.
In spite of the benevolent attention which the court of Spain has constantly given to the situation of the Indians, the lot of the general mass, though in law they are freemen, is certainly much worse than that of the Negro slaves in the Spanish dominions, or even of the slaves in the English, Dutch, and French colonies, where they are treated with more harsh ness than by the Spaniards.
New Granada has partaken less of the iniquity of the African slave trade, than any other division of the western world, except Mexico. In the interior, the most populous part of the country, there are few or no negro slaves. What do exist are in the towns on the coast, or in the plantations in the lower and warmer climates, where the tropical productions are cultivated. Of late years, very .few have been im ported; and those who were formerly brought into the country have so mixed with the other races, from the natural desire of bettering the condition of their offspring, that the number of mulattoes, quade roons, quinteroons, and other mixtures of whites and negroes, far outnumber the unmixed blacks, and the Zambos, the race between the Negro and the Indian, are supposed fully to equal them.
We have before remarked, that the condition of the negro slaves in the Spanish colonies is preferable to that of the same class in the other European esta blishments. Their state, indeed, more nearly ap proximates to that of apprenticeship for life, than what may be properly termed slavery. They are considered by the law as persons capable of holding property, and enjoying other rights. Ill treatment from the master, or any member of his family, en titles them to manumission, without price, however highly they may be valued. When, by their econo my in the time allotted them to labour for them selves, they have saved a stated sum, they may re deem themselves, though the price the master may have paid for them, or can sell them for, should ever so far exceed that amount. They are allowed two days in each week to work for themselves ; when, by the labour of those days, they have saved sufficient, they may at the fixed price purchase another day, and so proceed till they have obtained their freedom. A slave may purchase the freedom of his child at a very low sum. By these regulations the number of slaves is considerably lessened, and the lot of those who are not redeemed is considerably softened. These humane regulations have been framed in Spain. They have been opposed or censured by the Creoles, and can only be put into practice by the European Spaniards, who, by acting the part of pro tectors to this race, acquire their confidence, and in cur the animosity of their masters.