are thefts committed. by natives within the Colonial jurisdiction." There are also Boards of Agriculture, of Public Works, of Health, all the members of which are of course men of color, — and the management of these and other public affairs is conducted with energy and intelligence. Most of the public officers are elected annually by the people.
In reference to the high state of morals in the colony, there is very strong testimony. Governor Mechlin, a former Governor of the colony, remarks, — "As to the morals of the colonists, I consider them much better than those of the people of the United States; that is, you may take an equal number of the inhabitants from any section of the Union, and you will find more drunkenness, more profane swearers and Sabbath-breakers, than in Liberia. You rarely hear an oath,° and as to riots and breaches of the peace, I recollect but one instance, and that of a trifling nature, since I assumed the government of the colony." The Rev. Beverly R. Wilson, an intelligent colored minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church, spent fourteen months in Liberia, which he visited, at his own expense, to ascertain whether he could find there an advantageous home for himself and family. He says: "The morals of the colonists I regard as superior to the same population in almost any part of the United States. A drunkard is a rare spectacle, and when,exhibited is put under the ban of public opinion at once. To the praise of Liberia be it spoken, I did not hear, during my residence in it, a solitary oath uttered by a settler: this abominable practice has not yet stained its moral character and reputation, and
