note: transcription publicly contributed - please contact us with comments, errors or omisions

44

Hammonds Plains 24th March 1837

Sir,

I beg leave to state to you for the information of His Excellency Lieutenant General Sir Colin Campbell, H.C.B - etc etc etc

The state of the coloured people at Hammonds Plains - there are fifty nine families living in the most abject state of poverty and wratchedness perishing both for Food
and Clothing and owing in great measure to the failure of the last years crop and the Severity of the present winter they have been forced to eat up all that little portion of seed they had laid up to plant in the spring, thus are they distetute (sp) of every thing that can afford the least comfort -

Some of them have prepared some good ground to plant in the Spring if they can get the seed - but this they are unable to do of themselves -

I have the honour to be Sir your most obedient humble Servant

Robert Thomson