planting the main industry of the inhabitants.[1] Under his direction roads were made, forts built, and considerable portions of the forest were cleared, and the present capital, Port Louis, was founded. Labourdonnais also promoted the planting of cotton and indigo, and is remembered as the most enlightened and best of all the French governors. He also put down the maroons or runaway slaves who had long been the pest of the island. The colony continued to rise in value during the time it was held by the French crown, and to one of the intendants,[2] Pierre Poivre, was due the introduction of the clove, nutmeg and other spices. Another governor was D’Entrecasteaux, whose name is kept in remembrance by a group of islands east of New Guinea.
During the long war between France and England, at the commencement of the 19th century, Mauritius was a continual source of much mischief to English Indiamen and other merchant vessels; and at length the British government determined upon an expedition for its capture. This was effected in 1810; and upon the restoration of peace in 1814 the possession of the island was confirmed to Britain by the Treaty of Paris. By the eighth article of capitulation it was agreed that the inhabitants should retain their own laws, customs, and religion; and thus the island is still largely French in language, habits, and predilections; but its name has again been changed to that given by the Dutch. One of the most distinguished of the British governors was Sir Robert Farquhar (1810–1823), who did much to abolish the Malagasy slave trade and to establish friendly relations with the rising power of the Hova sovereign of Madagascar. Later governors of note were Sir Henry Barkly (1863–1871), and Sir J. Pope Hennessy (1883–1886 and 1888).
The history of the colony since its acquisition by Great Britain has been one of social and political evolution. At first all power was concentrated in the hands of the governor, but in 1832 a legislative council was constituted on which non-official nominated members served. In 1884–1885 this council was transformed into a partly elected body. Of more importance than the constitutional changes were the economic results which followed the freeing of the slaves (1834–1839)—for the loss of whose labour the planters received over £2,000,000 compensation. Coolies were introduced to supply the place of the negroes, immigration being definitely sanctioned by the government of India in 1842. Though under government control the system of coolie labour led to many abuses. A royal commission investigated the matter in 1871 and since that time the evils which were attendant on the system have been gradually remedied. One result of the introduction of free labour has been to reduce the descendants of the slave population to a small and unimportant class—Mauritius in this respect offering a striking contrast to the British colonies in the West Indies. The last half of the 19th century was, however, chiefly notable in Mauritius for the number of calamities which overtook the island. In 1854 cholera caused the death of 17,000 persons; in 1867 over 30,000 people died of malarial fever; in 1892 a hurricane of terrific violence caused immense destruction of property and serious loss of life; in 1893 a great part of Port Louis was destroyed by fire. There were in addition several epidemics of small-pox and plague, and from about 1880 onward the continual decline in the price of sugar seriously affected the islanders, especially the Creole population. During 1902–1905 an outbreak of surra, which caused great mortality among draught animals, further tried the sugar planters and necessitated government help. Notwithstanding all these calamities the Mauritians, especially the Indo-Mauritians, have succeeded in maintaining the position of the colony as an important sugar-producing country.
Dependencies.—Dependent upon Mauritius and forming part of the colony are a number of small islands scattered over a large extent of the Indian Ocean. Of these the chief is Rodriguez (q.v.), 375 m. east of Mauritius. Considerably north-east of Rodriguez lie the Oil Islands or Chagos archipelago, of which the chief is Diego Garcia (see Chagos). The Cargados, Carayos or St Brandon islets, deeps and shoals, lie at the south end of the Nazareth Bank about 250 m. N.N.E. of Mauritius. Until 1903 the Seychelles, Amirantes, Aldabra and other islands lying north of Madagascar were also part of the colony of Mauritius. In the year named they were formed into a separate colony (see Seychelles). Two islands, Farquhar and Coetivy, though geographically within the Seychelles area, remained dependent on Mauritius, being owned by residents in that island. In 1908, however, Coetivy was transferred to the Seychelles administration. Amsterdam and St Paul, uninhabited islands in the South Indian Ocean, included in an official list of the dependencies of Mauritius drawn up in 1880, were in 1893 annexed by France. The total population of the dependencies of Mauritius was estimated in 1905 at 5400.
Authorities.—F. Leguat, Voyages et aventures en deux isles désertes des Indes orientales (Eng. trans., A New Voyage to the East Indies; London, 1708); Prudham, “England’s Colonial Empire,” vol. i., The Mauritius and its Dependencies (1846); C. P. Lucas, A Historical Geography of the British Colonies, vol. i. (Oxford, 1888); Ch. Grant, History of Mauritius, or the Isle of France and Neighbouring Islands (1801); J. Milbert, Voyage pittoresque à l’Île-de-France, &c., 4 vols. (1812); Aug. Billiard, Voyage aux colonies orientales (1822); P. Beaton, Creoles and Coolies, or Five Years in Mauritius (1859); Paul Chasteau, Histoire et description de l’île Maurice (1860); F. P. Flemyng, Mauritius, or the Isle of France (1862); Ch. J. Boyle, Far Away, or Sketches of Scenery and Society in Mauritius (1867); L. Simonin, Les Pays lointains, notes de voyage (Maurice, &c.) (1867); N. Pike, Sub-Tropical Rambles in the Land of the Aphanapteryx (1873); A. R. Wallace. “The Mascarene Islands,” in ch. xi. vol. i. of The Geographical Distribution of Animals (1876); K. Möbius, F. Richter and E. von Martens, Beiträge zur Meeresfauna der Insel Mauritius und der Seychellen (Berlin, 1880); G. Clark, A Brief Notice of the Fauna of Mauritius (1881); A. d’Épinay, Renseignements pour servir à l’histoire de l’Île de France jusqu’à 1810 (Mauritius, 1890); N. Decotter, Geography of Mauritius and its Dependencies (Mauritius, 1892); H. de Haga Haig, “The Physical Features and Geology of Mauritius” in vol. li., Q. J. Geol. Soc. (1895); the Annual Reports on Mauritius issued by the Colonial Office, London; The Mauritius Almanack published yearly at Port Louis. A map of the island in six sheets on the scale of one inch to a mile was issued by the War Office in 1905. (J. Si.*)
MAURY, JEAN SIFFREIN (1746–1817), French cardinal and archbishop of Paris, the son of a poor cobbler, was born on the 26th of June 1746 at Valréas in the Comtat-Venaissin, the district in France which belonged to the pope. His acuteness was observed by the priests of the seminary at Avignon, where he was educated and took orders. He tried his fortune by writing éloges of famous persons, then a favourite practice; and in 1771 his éloge on Fénelon was pronounced next best to Laharpe’s by the Academy. The real foundation of his fortunes was the success of a panegyric on St Louis delivered before the Academy in 1772, which caused him to be recommended for an abbacy. In 1777 he published under the title of Discours choisis his panegyrics on Saint Louis, Saint Augustine and Fénelon, his remarks on Bossuet and his Essai sur l’éloquence de la chaire, a volume which contains much good criticism, and remains a French classic. The book was often reprinted as Principes de l’éloquence. He became a favourite preacher in Paris, and was Lent preacher at court in 1781, when King Louis XVI. said of his sermon: “If the abbé had only said a few words on religion he would have discussed every possible subject.” In 1781 he obtained the rich priory of Lyons, near Péronne, and in 1785 he was elected to the Academy, as successor of Lefranc de Pompignan. His morals were as loose as those of his great rival Mirabeau, but he was famed in Paris for his wit and gaiety. In 1789 he was elected a member of the states-general by the clergy of the bailliage of Péronne, and from the first proved to be the most able and persevering defender of the ancien régime, although he had drawn up the greater part of the cahier of the clergy of Péronne, which contained a considerable programme of reform. It is said that he attempted to emigrate both in July and in October 1789; but after that time he held firmly to his place, when almost universally deserted by his friends. In the Constituent Assembly he took an active part in every important debate, combating with especial vigour the alienation of the property of the clergy. His life was often in danger, but his ready wit always saved it, and it was said that one bon mot would preserve him for a month.
- ↑ Labourdonnais is credited by several writers with the introduction of the sugar cane into the island. Leguat, however, mentions it as being cultivated during the Dutch occupation.
- ↑ The régime introduced in 1767 divided the administration between a governor, primarily charged with military matters, and an intendant.
