Editing Edward Carson (section)

=== Cadbury Bros. ===

In 1908 Carson appeared for the London ''[[Evening Standard]]'' in a libel action brought by [[George Cadbury]]. The ''Standard'' was controlled by Unionist interests which supported [[Joseph Chamberlain]]'s [[Imperial Preference]] views. The Cadbury family were [[Liberalism|Liberal]] supporters of [[free trade]] and had, in 1901, purchased ''[[The Daily News (UK)|The Daily News]]''. The ''Standard'' articles alleged that Cadbury Bros Ltd., which claimed to be model employers having created the village of [[Bournville]] outside [[Birmingham]], knew of the slave labour conditions on [[Portuguese São Tomé and Príncipe|São Tomé]], the Portuguese island colony from which Cadbury purchased most of the [[Cocoa bean|cocoa]] used in the production of their [[chocolate]].<ref>{{cite book | title=A civilised savagery: Britain and the new slaveries in Africa, 1884–1926 | author=Kevin Grant | publisher=Routledge | year=2005 | isbn=0-415-94901-7 | page=[https://archive.org/details/civilisedsavager0000gran/page/110 110] | url=https://archive.org/details/civilisedsavager0000gran/page/110 }}</ref>

The articles alleged that George's son William had gone to São Tomé in 1901 and observed for himself the slave conditions, and that the Cadbury family had decided to continue purchasing the cocoa grown there because it was cheaper than that grown in the British colony of the [[Gold Coast (British colony)|Gold Coast]], where labour conditions were much better, being regulated by the [[Secretary of State for the Colonies|Colonial Office]]. The ''Standard'' alleged that the Cadbury family knew that the reason cocoa from São Tomé was cheaper was because it was grown by slave labour. This case was regarded at the time as an important political case as Carson and the Unionists maintained that it showed the fundamental immorality of free trade. George Cadbury recovered [[contemptuous damages]] of one [[Farthing (British coin)|farthing]] in a case described as one of Carson's triumphs.<ref>''Chocolate on Trial: Slavery, Politics, and the Ethics of Business'', by Lowell J. Satre {{ISBN|0-8214-1626-X}}</ref>