of life is over; if, finally, in canvassing the question, he earnestly pray to God for light and direction; we feel little doubt that he will have wisdom enough to change his opinions, and honesty enough to avow the change. Lord Teignmouth and Mr. Dealtry are men of too much modesty not to be distressed by the predictions which we should feel disposed to utter with regard to them. They know their own feelings; and few can either describe or participate them, because very few have been called to do good upon so large a scale. As to the members of the two institutions, who may be considered as the actors in this controversy, many of whom perhaps, as well as the two societies themselves, have been dragged most unwillingly into contending ranks; they will enjoy, we trust, the satisfaction, and discharge the duties appropriate to their distinct enterprizes. The members of the Bartlett's Buildings' Society will scorn, we hope, to adopt the hue and cry of the self-appointed champions of their institution. They will deem it sufficient honour to have led the way in this glorious career. They will be content to do good in the sphere within which they have limited themselves; and, while they move brightly and steadily on in their own celestial path, will rejoice to see another orb darting into other regions, and illuminating other skies. The members of the Bible Society, finally, will, we predict, under the divine blessing, stand undismayed at the assaults of their enemies. Moving in the pure atmosphere of duty, they will look unterrified at the storms which roll beneath them. They will discountenance every effort to depreciate the sister society, and rejoice to say "nos duo turba sumus" we two are a host." They will unanimously ostracize the member who at any period shail attempt to divert the grand tide of the institution from the vast channel of general commerce into the petty dykes of his own territory. They will consider the divinations of their enemies as beacons lighted up, not indeed to commemorate any past misconduct, but to warn them against impending dangers. They will endeavour to recommend the Bible to others by displaying its influence upon their own character public and private. Many of them will see the advantages of unity so strongly illustrated in the consentaneous movements of this society; and will, by the rehearsals of forbearance, be so practised for the great theatre of life, that, if they do not fall back into the bosom of that church which they have forsaken, they will at least learn to regard her with esteem and affection. The Church itself will stand more erect in consequence of such a change. Our Zion shall become a "fair place, and the joy of the whole earth :" on its top shall descend the dew of heaven, and from its foot break out the springs of love and joy, and refresh every land with their sacred waters. The wheels of this society shall multiply, till by the touch of one spring every quarter of the globe is set in motion. The prophetic vision of the Apocalypse shall be accomplished; "And the angel' shall fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to them who dwell on the earth, and to every nation, kindred, tongue and people, saying with a loud voice, "Fear God, and give glory to him." Substance of the Debate in the House of Commons, Friday, June 15, 1810, on the African Slave Trade. London: Ridgway. 1810. pp. 33. WE are greatly indebted to the individual who has preserved this record of a most interesting debate, in which we have nothing to regret, but the absence, through indisposition, of the leader in the great work of abolishing the slave trade. When we call to mind the difficulties which he had to encounter in the early stages of his progress, the obloquy with which he was assailed, and the large majorities by which, during almost twenty years, his efforts were uniformly defeated; and contemplate the almost unexampled unanimity with which, both in and out of Parliament, those efforts are now extolled, and that trade, which it was their object to repress, reprobated and condemned, we stand astonished at the change. In whatever light this phenomenon is viewed; whether it be regarded as the fruit of the steady and unwearied perseverance of Mr. Wilberforce and his friends, or as marking a great amelioration in the general state of moral feeling in this country; it is equally a ground of satisfaction and gratitude. Having such a striking example before our eyes, we should take encouragement from it not to be deterred from the prosecution of objects unquestionably good, by the obstacles, even though apparently unsurmountable, which oppose their attainment. What cause, involving the happiness of our fellow-creatures, has ever had difficulties to overcome more powerful than those which stood in the way of the abolition of the slave trade? Prejudices deep and inveterate; interests numerous and extensive; plans of attack and defence well combined and ably executed; activity ever wakeful; invention ever new; a disregard of all moral considerations; seemed to set at defiance every effort of reason, and every appeal of benevolence. The combination thus produced was most formidable. The practised courtier; the mere politician; the high Tory, both in church and state; the advocate of expediency; the unthinking, the dissipated, and the licentious; the planters, the carriers, the buyers, and sellers of sugar and coffee, and cotton and rum; the manufacturers of guns and gunpowder, of leg-irons and handcuffs; the growers and venders of horse beans; the retailers of rotten fish; the annuitants of West-India estates, with their cousins to the fifth degree :-all these, and many more, joined to uphold the ruthians, who sallied forth from our ports to plunder Africa of her sons, at whatever expense of blood and misery; and the still more crimina! beings, who, prostituting the name of merchant, issued to these ruffians the necessary means and instructions for their work of pillage and death. If we have seen the cause of justice and humanity gradually prevailing, and at length triumphing over this hostile body, though for a time supported by the weight of official influence, what may we not expect to be the issue of, similar attempts, if properly conducted? Why need we fear, for instance, that the plans for the general extension of education to the poor, for the universal diffusion of the word of God, or for the evangelizing of a world lying in darkness, should be frustrated or materially retarded by the opposi tion raised to them? Let those who are engaged in pursuing those objects emulate the firmness and perseverance of the abolitionists, and, under the Divine blessing, they cannot fail of success. The obstacles which they have to overcome are comparatively weak and inefficient, mere cobweb obstructions, which it requires but a small effort to remove; while the good to be achieved is incalculable, embracing the happi-. ness of a world, and running parallel with eternity. But, to return to our subject. Many people too hastily concluded, that when the Parliament of Great Britain had passed an act abolishing the slave trade, all that was requisite for the removal of that enormity had been effected. This, however, was far from being the view of the leaders in this great cause. They knew the men they had to contend with; and that although the legislature had pronounced. the condemnation of the slave trade, that sentence would be wholly unavailing without a continuance of the same exertions and vigilance which had advanced them thus far. It would not be the mere denuncia tion of pains and penalties, but their infliction, which could restrain men inured to rapine, and habituated to sacrifice all principle and all feeling to gain. The abolitionists, therefore, have remained at their posts, only varying the object of their attention. Their efforts were formerly directed to the legislative prohibition of the trade; they are now employed in rendering that prohibition as effectual as possible. With this view, Mr. Brougham, whose services in this great cause have been in the highest degree important, brought forward a motion in the House of Commons for an address to his Majesty on the subject of the slave trade; acknowledging with gratitude the endeavours his Majesty had used, in compliance with the wishes of Parliament, to induce foreign nations to concur in relinquishing this disgraceful traffic; but expressing regret that those measures had been so ineffectual; and praying his Majesty to persevere in his endeavours to produce a general abolition of the slave trade, and to direct the adoption of such measures as should give effect to the laws for abolishing it. The address further stated, that the House had learned with indignation that certain persons in this country had not scrupled to continue the detestable traffic in slaves; and prayed his Majesty to give to all officers of the navy, and others, such orders as might effectually check practices equally contemptuous to the authority of Parliament, and derogatory to the interests and the honour of the country. In addition to this address, a resolution was proposed and adopted, which, after stating that the House had learnt, with surprise and indignation, the attempts that had recently been made to evade the prohibitions of the acts abolishing the African Slave Trade, went to pledge the House, that, early in the next session of Parliament, it would take into its consideration such measures as should tend effectually to prevent such daring violations of the law. CHRIST. OBSERV. No. 108. The speech with which Mr. Brougham prefaced these motionswas one of singular ability and effect; but it will not be in our power to give more than a hasty sketch of it. The friends of the abolition, he ob served, had never expected that any legislative measure would at once destroy the slave trade. They were aware how obstinately such a trade would cling to the soil where it had taken root; they anticipated the difficulty of extirpating a traffic which had entwined itself with so many interests, prejudices, and passions: but they had, nevertheless, considerably under-rated the dif ficulty; they had under-rated the wickedness of the slave trader and the infatuation of the planter. While nothing had been done to circumscribe the foreign slave trade, it was now found that this commerce had not completely ceased even in this country. In America the trade was prohibited, as in this country; but it was still carried on extensively by Americans: in Spain and Portugal it was still sanctioned by law, and even encouraged. The extent of the Spanish slave trade he could not exactly specify; but as into the island of Cuba alone there had of late been annually imported about 8000 slaves, it might be inferred that the whole extent was considerable. The extent of the Portuguese slave trade was more exactly known. It amounted to an export from the coast of Africa of about 30,000 slaves annually. The Americans also were great slave traders at present. In defiance of their own laws, which their government, though anxious to carry them into execution, had not the means, from the want of a navy, of enforcing, they largely supplied with slaves not only the Spanish and Portuguese colonies, but our own. If this state of things were permitted to continue, it would be in vain that we abolished the trade in our own colonies. Jamaica was within a night's sail of Cuba: Trinidad and Guiana were placed in close contact with Spanish settlements from which 5 G slaves were easily conveyed; and from St. Bartholomew's they were transported in the night time to St. Croix, St. Kitt's, and other islands in the vicinity. Some arrangement, therefore, had become absolutely necessary, with those foreign powers who were in amity with us. Happily our influence at present was great both with Spain and Portugal. We had done much for both countries. We had lavished our blood and our treasure in defending them from cruelty and oppression; and it was certainly not asking too much to require that they should give over a course of iniquity towards nations as innocent as they, and infinitely more injured. And at any rate some arrangement might be made with them, to prevent their flags from being used for the purpose of a foreign slave trade. With respect to America, all that was necessary was, that there should be an agreement, stipulating that the cruizers of both countries should carry into effect the abolition laws of both. And even without such an agreement, the experiment of capturing American slave ships might safely be made. The American government, he had reason to believe, would not reclaim in such a case: and he was of opinion that the claims of the individual owners, applying to our courts of prize for the restoration of the captures, ought to meet with no attention, as they clearly could not establish any right of property in such a case, the laws of their own country depriving them of every such right*, The principle here asserted by Mr. Brougham has since been recognized and acted upon in our prize courts. In pronouncing sentence in the case of an American slave ship condemned in the Vice-Admiralty Court of Tortola, and brought by appeal before the Privy Council, Sir William Grant, in the name of the Court (which consisted of himself, Sir William Scott, and Sir John Nichol) observed as follows:-"We have now, from the abolition of the slave trade, a right to affirm, that, prima facie, the trade is illegal; and to throw on claimants the burden of proof that, in respect of them, by the Mr. Brougham then adverted to the evasions of the abolition acts in this country. For this purpose every expedient had been adopted which the perverse ingenuity of unprinci. pled avarice could suggest. Vessels were fitted out from Liverpool and London, as if for some innocent commerce, but in reality intended for the slave trade. He held in his hand the record of a court of justice which threw much light on this subject. It appeared from thence, that persons, daring to call themselves English merchants, had, but a few months ago, in the very river which washed the walls of the House of Commons, been detected in the act of fitting out a vessel of great bulk, for the purpose of tearing upwards of seven hundred wretched beings from Africa, and carrying them, through the unspeakable horrors of the Middle Passage, to endless bondage and misery; to toil which knows no limits, nor is broken by any rest. Mr. Brougham here read several extracts from the record of condemnation of the vessel in question in the Court of Exchequer the preceding Hilary term. It appear ed, that, besides an enormous stock of provisions, water-casks, muskets, &c. there were found on board fiftyfive dozen of padlocks, ninety-three pair of handcuffs, one hundred and ninety-seven iron shackles for the feet, fourteen hundred weight of iron chains, one box of religious implements: and, that the bodily as well as the spiritual health of this human cargo might not be neglected, authority of their own laws, it is otherwise As the case now stands, we think we are entitled to say, that a claimant can have no right, upon principles of universal law, to claim the restitution, in a prize court, of hsman beings carried as his slaves. He must shew some right that has been violated by the capture-some property of which he has been dispossessed, and to which he ought to be restored. In this case the laws of the claimant's country allow of no right of property such as he claims. There can, therefore, be no right to restitution. The conse quence is, that the judgment must be af firmed." the slave merchants, out of their rare humanity, allowed, for the medical wants of seven hundred negroes of all ages, crammed into a loathsome cage, and carried through new and perilous climates, during a voyage of weeks, or even months, one little medicine chest, value five pounds! -Nor was this the only instance of the kind. At one port of this country, six vessels had been just fitted out for the same series of de, testable crimes. It was fit, to let our indignation fall on those who still dared thus to trade in human flesh, thus to engage in crimes of the deepest dye. He must protest loudly against the abuse of language, which gave to such men the name of merchants. It was not commerce, it was crime, they were driving. He deemed too highly of commerce, to endure that its name, by a strange perversion, should be prostituted to the use of men who lived by treachery, rapine, torture, and murder, and who habitually practised the worst of crimes for the basest of purposes. For ordinary murder there might be some excuse; but here we had to do with cool, deliberate, mercenary murder. The ruffians who went on the highway, or the pirates who infested the seas, at least exposed their persons; but these wretches durst not do this: they set on men to rob and kill, in whose spoils they were willing to share, though not in their dangers. They were, in short, cowardly suborners of piracy and mercenary murder. To suppress these practices, Mr. Brougham recommended arrangements with Spain, Portugal, and America, and an increase of the naval force on the African coast, chiefly by the accession of small light-armed ships, which could follow the slave ships up creeks and rivers. He strongly urged an immediate attention to this point, and an extensive and powerful effort to root out the trade. If once extinguished, it would not again spring up. The industry and capital required by it would find other vents. The labour and ingenuity of the persons employed in it would seek such channels as were open to them. Some of them would naturally go on the highway, while others would betake themselves to piracy; and thus the law might in due time dispose of them. All the measures he had mentioned, however, were mere expedients. The only real and effectual remedy which could be applied, was at once to declare that trading in slaves was felony. When in this country so many trivial offences were visit ed with such severity, could any one, who knew what slave-trading was, hesitate in at length agreeing to punish it as a crime. The idea of stopping it by pecuniary penalties, while its gains were so enormous as they were at present was utterly vain. While you levied your pence, the wholesale dealers in blood and torture pocketed their pounds, and laughed at your twopenny penalty. A waterman who overloads his boat in the river Thames, if one of the passengers. should by accident be drowned, is liable by the 10th of Geo. II. to be transported for seven years as a felon. How did we treat those who overloaded their vessels with negroes, so as knowingly and wilfully to ensure the death of many and the torments of all? We imposed upon them a pecuniary mulct. What had the divine legislator said on this subject?" Whosoever stealeth a man and selleth him, or in whose hands he shall be found, shall surely be put to death." And what was our gloss on this text? "Whosoever stealeth a man, and tortureth him, and killeth him, or selleth him into slavery all the days of his life, shall surely pay twenty pounds." trusted this grievous incongruity would be done away, and he pledged himself to bring in a bill to that effect early in the ensuing session. We rejoice to find that the whole of Mr. Brougham's speech was received with great applause by the House, and no part of it with more |
