“The Europeans,” says Bruce, “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 traffic, 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 Dantzic, says that in his time, “those liable to pay fines were banished till the fine was paid; when they returned to their houses and possessions.”

Bosman affirms “that formerly all crimes in Africa were compensated by fine or restitution, and, where restitution was impracticable, by corporal punishment.”

Moore 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.”

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 fault of one inhabitant; and on the least offence sells them all for slaves.”

Such, he said, were the testimonies, not of persons whom he had summoned; not of friends of the abolition:  but of men who were themselves, many of them, engaged in the Slave-trade.  Other testimonies might be added; but these were sufficient to refute the assertions of his opponents, and to show the kind services we had done to Africa by the introduction of this trade.

He would just touch upon the argument, so often repeated, that other nations would carry on the Slave-trade, if we abandoned it.  But how did we know this?  Had not Denmark given a noble example to the contrary?  She had consented to abolish the trade in ten years; and had she not done this, even though we, after an investigation for nearly five years, had ourselves hung back?  But what might not be expected, if we were to take up the cause in earnest; if we were to proclaim to all nations the injustice of the trade, and to solicit their concurrence in the abolition of it!  He hoped the representatives of the nation would not be less just than the people.  The latter had stepped forward, and expressed their sense more generally by petitions, than in any instance in which they had ever before interfered.  To see this great cause thus triumphing over distinctions and prejudices was a noble spectacle.  Whatever might be said