User talk:Ctaylor

                       Sugar Plantations Become Killing Machines

In the early to mid 1800s the sugar plantations in the Caribbean gained a reputation some refere to as KILLING MACHINES. There was a tremendous amount of slaves dieing while working on sugar plantations. The American slave population began to decrease rapidly in the Caribbean, more so as the sugar plantations began to develop and the gang system was introduced. The gang system was a harsh factory-type work discipline. The numbers Rogozinski gives in his book, A Brief History Of The Caribbean, of decreased slavery populations are horrific. On the island of Jamaica about 750,000 slaves were imported and by 1834 only 310,000 slaves were freed. The death toll percentage was even higher in Barbados, which imported 387,000 and only freed 81,000 in 1834. Cruel masters, poor food and housing, intense work schedule, diseases, and the torturous trip of the Middle Passage were several causes that led to a population decrease. Within the first three years of arrival to the islands one out of every three slaves would die from one of the causes mentioned prior. One other reason for the rapid decrease in slavery population was that the death rate was much higher than the birth rate. Not only with the poor diet of low-protein and low-fat cause the slaves to be more susceptible to diseases but it also reduced pregnancies. Even worse off than adults only three of four babies made it past the age of five. The life expectance of those surviving childhood was less than 40. Some abolitionists believed planter purposely kept the birth rate in check because with a mother and a child there were two mouths to feed but neither were working. Others believe that women did not want to have children that would become property of their master.

Reference:Rogozinski, J. (1999). A Breif History Of The Caribbean.(ch 10-11)

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