river Ancobar.” "The inhabitants of Adom always expose large quantities of corn, &c. to sale, besides what they want for their own use." The people of Acron seldom or never go to war; they husband their time and grounds so well, that every year produces a plentiful harvest." Speaking of the Gold Coast, he says, "their most artful works are the gold and silver hat bands they make for us, the thread and contexture of which is so fine that I ques tion whether our European artists would not be put to it to imitate them; and indeed if they could, and were no better paid than the negroes, they would be obliged to live on dry bread." "The people of Fida are so strongly bent on trade and agriculture, that they never think of war." Speaking of the Fetu country, he says, "frequently when walking through it I have seen it abound with fine well built and populous towns, agreeably enriched with vast quantities of corn and cattle, palm wine and oil. The inhabitants all apply themselves without distinction to agriculture: some sow corn, others press oil, and draw wine from the palm trees."

I will now read from the evidence certain extracts descriptive of the state of slaves in Africa; and from these it will appear whether even their situation is such a one as to give them much reason to envy the condition of their brethren, who have been carried to the West Indies. "The slaves are well fed, their labour is not constant, and there is no driver in Senegal and Gambia." "Domestick slaves have all the advantages of freemen." Born slaves cannot be sold but for a crime on trial by their own clan." And again, "domesticks are not sold by their masters but for enormous crimes, and after trial by their own clan.” Many slaves in Africa are not easily distinguished from their masters." "Slaves are treated well and familiarly at Angola." "On the continent of Africa slaves are few in number, they are treated well, eat with their masters, work along with them, and are well clothed." "The slaves of persons in Africa are treated by them as Europeans treat people of their

own family." Not to multiply extracts unnecessarily, I will only add on this head the declaration of a witness, who informs, that though "blacks in Africa have said they were slaves, he never discovered this from their treatment."

I cannot dismiss this branch of the subject without begging the committee to attend to some further extracts from authors of credit, which suggest how far Africa has benefited from her connexion with Europeans. They shall be but few, for were I disposed to increase them, there would be no end of my labour. I will pass over many I had selected for the purpose of stating them to the house, which respect, the practices of breaking up villages, and of depredations both of the whites on the blacks, and of the blacks on each other, encouraged and stimulated by the Europeans. But I must beg leave to read to the committee some of these which speak of the exertions of our active benevolence in inciting them to war, and of the effect of the slave trade upon the criminal law and the administration of justice. From these last it will appear how far we can pretend with any decency, that by our humane interference we had rescued their convicts from the barbarous severity of their sanguinary laws, and introduced a milder system of criminal jurisprudence.

Smith, who was sent out by the royal African company, in 1726, assures us, that "the discerning natives account it their greatest unhappiness that they were ever visited by the Europeans. They say that we christians introduced the traffick of slaves, and that before our coming they lived in peace. But, say they, "it is observable wherever christianity comes, there come with it a sword, a gun, powder, and ball.”

"The Europeans," says Brue, "are far from desiring to act as peace makers among them. It would be too contrary to their interests: for the only object of their wars is to carry off slaves, and as these form the principal part of their traffick, they would be apprehensive of drying up the source of it, were they to

encourage the people to live well together." "The neighbourhood of the Damel and Tin keep them perpetually at war, the benefit of which accrues to the company, who buy all the prisoners made on either side, and the more there are to sell, the greater is their profit for the only end of their armaments is to make captives to sell them to the white traders.” Artus of Dantzick says, that in his time, "those liable to pay fines were banished until the fine was paid, when they returned to their houses and possessions."

Bosman affirms, "that the punishment for adultery is by fine. The fine among the common people is four, five, or six pounds, and among the rich more, perhaps one or two hundred pounds, he has heard of fines of five thousand pounds." "The punishment for theft on the Gold Coast is by fine." The greatest crimes at Whydah are generally compensated by money." Speaking of the Gold Coast, he says,

Nobody is here fined above his ability, unless by an accumulation of crimes he hath given occasion there. to, and then he is sent into slavery." At Benin he informs us, that " theft is punished by restitution and fine, and if the thief is poor, after the restitution of the goods, if in his power, he is very well beaten."

Moore, who resided seven years on the coast, as factor to the company, says, "since this trade has been used, all punishments have been changed into slavery; there being an advantage in such condemnation, they strain the crimes very hard in order to get the benefit of selling the criminal. Not only murder, theft, and adultery, are punished by selling the criminal for a slave, but every trifling crime is punished in the same manner.”

Atkins, speaking of adultery and theft, says, "trade has so infected them with covetousness and fraud, that the chiefs will put snares both for the one and the other, driving at the profit, and not at the punishment of a crime."

Loyer affirms, that "the king of Sain on the least pretence sells his subjects for European goods. He

is so tyrannically severe, that he makes a whole village responsible for the faults of one inhabitant, and on the least offence sells them all for slaves."

Such, sir, are the testimonies that have been born, not by persons whom I have summoned, not by friends to the abolition, but by men who were, many of them, themselves engaged in the slave trade. Many, many more I could add of the same kind; but these are abundantly sufficient to refute the unfoundassertions of these pretended advocates for humanity. But in truth were they even to make good their assertions, they would in my mind little mend their cause: were it ever so true, as it is most false, that you made them happier by taking them away, this would give you no right to take them against their will.

I have sometimes been reproached with my extravagant humanity. But I may now repel the accusation, and for myself declare, as I have said before, that I rest this question not on the ground of humanity but of RELIGION AND JUSTICE. It has sometimes also been imputed to me, that I am actuated by a spirit of fanaticism and bigotry; but I beg it may here be observed, that it is on my opponents and no on me that these charges may be fairly urged. Theirs are the very principles on which have been rested the grossest systems of bigotry and superstition that ever disgraced the annals of mankind. On what other principles was it that Mahomet sent forth his Mussulmen to ravage the world? Was it not these that lighted the fires of the inquisition? Have not both these systems been founded on the notion of your having a right to violate the laws of justice, for the purposes of humanity? Did they not both plead that they were promoting the eternal happiness of mankind; and that their proceedings were therefore to be justified on the dictates of true and enlarged benevolence? But the religion I profess is of another nature; it teaches me first to do justice, and next to love mercy; not that the claims of these two will ever be really found to be jarring and inconsistent. When you obey the laws of God, when you

attend to the claims of justice, you will then also best consult and most advance the happiness of mankind. This is true, this is enlarged benevolence; and of this it may be affirmed in the unparalleled language of a great writer," that her seat is the bosom of God, her voice the harmony of the world: all things in heaven and earth do her homage; the very least as feeling her care, the greatest as not exempted from her influence: both angels and men, and every other creature, though each in different sort and order, yet all with uniform consent, admiring her as the mother of their peace and joy."

I shall next touch for a moment on a ground whereon our opponents, driven as they are from place to place in quest of argument, have often attempted to take their stand. I mean of other nations being likely to carry on the slave trade if we were to abandon it; on which the conclusion is then rested, that if so, however wicked, however cruel it is, we might as well carry it on ourselves. Admitting the supposition to be just, the inference that is drawn from it was so completely exposed, last year, by the right honourable gentleman opposite to me, that it can hardly be necessary for me now to say a syllable on the subject. I will, therefore, only repeat what I have declared on former occasions, that I have no doubt if we were to abolish the slave trade, other nations would follow our example.

Nor can any thing be more unreasonable than for gentlemen to urge against the probability of this event, that the nations in question, so far from abolishing, have even lately passed edicts, and granted bounties for the encouragement of the trade. If for four or five years we have been carrying on a laborious investigation into its nature and circumstances; if after developing its genuine character, and ascertaining its dreadful effects, we still hang back and hesitate, was it fair to expect, as I argued on a former occasion, that the nations in question should relinquish

* Mr. Fox.