Summary
Thirty-two miles to the south of Port of Spain, is the town of San Fernando. A small steamer runs daily between the two places, occupying three or four hours in the passage. It is subsidized by the Government to carry the mails. The accommodation for passengers is good. There were many on their way to the circuit court at San Fernando on the day of my passage, and among them the Puisne Judge. He fully confirmed the statements already made to me by Chief Justice Knox, that the Bengal immigrants exhibit the same readiness for perjury and falsehood, as in the courts of justice in India. Their presence in the island has led to some complications in the administration of the laws—Hindu customs and institutions which are lawful in India, sometimes conflicting with local usages and regulations—and giving rise to considerable fear, lest the decisions of the courts should be lowered from the high estimation in which they are now held, by the contradictory and false testimony imported into them whenever Coolies are concerned.
The view of Port of Spain, as we receded from the pier, was very fine, gradually expanding, till it embraced the northern mountains, the Dragon's Mouths, and the lofty promontory of Cumana and the Spanish Main.
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- Information
- The West IndiesTheir Social and Religious Condition, pp. 39 - 60Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2010First published in: 1862