the slaves are procured, says,[A] "The slaves sold by the Negroes, are
for the most part prisoners of war, or taken in the incursions they make
in their enemies territories; others are stolen away by their
neighbours, when found abroad on the road, or in the woods; or else in
the corn fields, at the time of the year when their parents keep them
there all the day to scare away the devouring small birds." Speaking of
the transactions on that part of Guinea called the Slave Coast, where
the Europeans have the most factories, and from whence they bring away
much the greatest number of slaves, the same author, and also Bosman[B]
says, "The inhabitants of Coto do much mischief, in stealing those
slaves they sell to the Europeans, from the upland country.--That the
inhabitants of Popo excell the former; being endowed with a much larger
share of courage, they rob more successfully, by which means they
increase their riches and trade," The author particularly remarks,
"_That they are encouraged in this practice by the Europeans_; sometimes
it happens, according to the success of their inland excursions, that
they are able to furnish two hundred slaves or more, in a few days." And
he says,[C] "The blacks of Fida, or Whidah, are so expeditious in
trading for slaves, that they can deliver a thousand every month."--"If
there happens to be no stock of slaves there, the factor must trust the
blacks with his goods, to the value of one hundred and fifty, or two
hundred pounds; which goods they carry up into the inland country, to
buy slaves at all markets,[D] for above six hundred miles up the
country, where they are kept like cattle in Europe; the slaves sold
there being generally prisoners of war, taken from their enemies like
other booty, and perhaps some few sold by their own countrymen, in
extreme want, or upon a famine, as also some as a punishment of heinous
crimes." So far Barbot's account; that given by William Bosman is as
follows:[E] "When the slaves which are brought from the inland countries
come to Whidah, they are put in prison together; when we treat
concerning buying them, they are all brought out together in a large
plain, where, by our surgeons, they are thoroughly examined, and that
naked, both men and women, without the least distinction or modesty.[F]
Those which are approved as good, are set on one side; in the mean while
a burning iron, with the arms or name of the company, lies in the fire,
with which ours are marked on the breast. When we have agreed with the
owners of the slaves, they are returned to their prisons, where, from
that time forward, they are kept at our charge, and cost us two pence a
day each slave, which serves to subsist them like criminals on bread and
water; so that to save charges, we send them on board our ships the very
first opportunity; before which, their masters strip them of all they
have on their backs, so that they come on board stark naked, as well
women as men. In which condition they are obliged to continue, if the
master of the ship is not so charitable (which he commonly is) as to
bestow something on them to cover their nakedness. Six or seven hundred
are sometimes put on board a vessel, where they lie as close together as
it is possible for them to be crowded."
[Footnote A: John Barbot, page 47.]
[Footnote B: Bosman, page 310.]
[Footnote C: Barbot, page 326.]
[Footnote D: When the great income which arises to the Negroe Kings on
the Slave-Coast, from the slaves brought thro' their several
governments, to be shipped on board the European vessels, is considered,
we have no cause to wonder that they give so great a countenance to that
trade: William Bosman says, page 337, "_That each ship which comes to
Whidah to trade, reckoning one with another, either by toll, trade, or
custom, pays about four hundred pounds, and sometimes fifty ships come
hither in a year." Barbot confirms the same, and adds, page 350, "That
in the neighbouring kingdom of Ardah, the duty to the King is the value
of seventy or eighty slaves for each trading ship_." Which is near half
as much more as at Whidah; nor can the Europeans, concerned in the
trade, with any degree of propriety, blame the African Kings for
countenancing it, while they continue to send vessels, on purpose to
take in the slaves which are thus stolen, and that they are permitted,
under the sanction of national laws, to sell them to the colonies.]
[Footnote E: Bosman, page 340.]
[Footnote F: Note, from the above account of the indecent and shocking
manner in which the unhappy Negroes are treated, it is reasonable for
persons unacquainted with these people, to conclude them to be void of
that natural modesty, so becoming a reasonable creature; but those who
have had intercourse with the Blacks in these northern colonies, know
that this would be a wrong conclusion, for they are indeed as
susceptible of modesty and shame as other people. It is the unparallel'd
brutality, to which the Europeans have, by long custom, been inured,
which urgeth them, without blushing, to act so shameful a part. Such
usage is certainly grievous to the poor Negroes, particularly the women;
but they are slaves, and must submit to this, or any other abuse that is
offered them by their cruel task-masters, or expect to be inhumanly
tormented into acquiescence. That the Blacks are unaccustomed to such
brutality, appears from an instance mentioned in Ashley's collection,
vol. 2. page 201, viz. "At an audience which Casseneuve had of the King
of Congo, where he was used with a great deal of civility by the Blacks,
some slaves were delivered to him. The King observing Casseneuve
(according to the custom of the Europeans) to handle the limbs of the
slaves, burst out a laughing, as did the great men about him: the factor
asking the interpreter the occasion of their mirth, was told it
proceeded from his so nicely examining the slaves. Nevertheless, _the
King was so ashamed of it, that he desired him, for decency's sake, to
do it in a more private manner._"]
CHAP. XII.
Extracts of several Journals of Voyages to the coast of Guinea for
slaves, whereby the extreme inhumanity of that traffick is described.
_Melancholy_ account of a ship blown up on that coast, with a great
number of Negroes on board, _Instances_ of shocking barbarity
perpetrated by masters of vessels towards their slaves. _Inquiry_ why
these scandalous infringements, both of divine and human laws, are
overlooked by the government.
The misery and bloodshed attendant on the slave-trade, are set forth by
the following extracts of two voyages to the coast of Guinea for slaves.
The first in a vessel from Liverpool, taken _verbatim_ from the original
manuscript of the Surgeon's Journal, _viz._
"Sestro, December the 29th, 1724, No trade to day, though many traders
came on board; they informed us, that the people are gone to war within
land, and will bring prisoners enough in two or three days, in hopes of
which we stay."
The 30th. "No trade yet, but our traders came on board to day, and
informed us the people had burnt four towns of their enemies, so that
to-morrow we expect slaves off: another large ship is come in. Yesterday
came in a large Londoner."
The 31st. "Fair weather, but no trade yet; we see each night towns
burning, but we hear the Sestro men are many of them killed by the
inland Negroes, so that we fear this war will be unsuccessful."
The 2d of January. "Last night we saw a prodigious fire break out about
eleven o'clock, and this morning see the town of Sestro burnt down to
the ground; (it contained some hundreds of houses) So that we find their
enemies are too hard for them at present, and consequently our trade
spoiled here; therefore, about seven o'clock, we weighed anchor, as did
likewise the three other vessels, to proceed lower down."
The second relation, also taken from the original manuscript Journal of
a person of credit, who went surgeon on the same trade, in a vessel from
New-York, about twenty years past, is as follows; _viz._ "Being on the
coast, the Commander of the vessel, according to custom, sent a person
on shore with a present to the King, acquainting him with his arrival,
and letting him know, they wanted a cargo of slaves. The King promised
to furnish them with the slaves; and, in order to do it, set out to go
to war against his enemies; designing to surprise some town, and take
all the people prisoners. Some time after, the King sent them word, he
had not yet met with the desired success; having been twice repulsed, in
attempting to break up two towns, but that he still hoped to procure a
number of slaves for them; and in this design he persisted, till he met
his enemies in the field, where a battle was fought, which lasted three
days, during which time the engagement was so bloody that four thousand
five hundred men were slain on the spot." The person who wrote the
account, beheld the bodies, as they lay on the field of battle. "Think
(says he in his Journal) what a pitiable sight it was, to see the widows
weeping over their lost husbands, orphans deploring the loss of their
fathers, &c. &c." In he 6th vol. of Churchill's collection of Voyages,
page 219, we have the relation of a voyage performed by Captain Philips,
in a ship of 450 tuns, along the coast of Guinea, for elephants teeth,
gold, and Negroe slaves, intended for Barbadoes; in which he says, that
they took "seven hundred slaves on board, the men being all put in irons
two by two, shackled together to prevent their mutinying or swimming
ashore. That the Negroes are so loth to leave their own country, that
they often leap out of the canoe, boat, or ship, into the sea, and keep
under water till they are drowned, to avoid being taken up, and saved by
the boats which pursue them."--They had about twelve Negroes who
willingly drowned themselves; others starved themselves to
death.--Philips was advised to cut off the legs and arms of some to
terrify the rest, (as other Captains had done) but this he refused to
do. From the time of his taking the Negroes on board, to his arrival at
Barbadoes, no less than three hundred and twenty died of various
diseases.[A]
[Footnote A: _The following relation is inserted at the request of the
author._
That I may contribute all in my power towards the good of mankind, by
inspiring any individuals with a suitable abhorrence of that detestable
practice of trading in our fellow-creatures, and in some measure atone
for my neglect of duty as a Christian, in engaging in that wicked
traffic, I offer to their serious consideration some few occurrences, of
which I was an eye-witness; that being struck with the wretched and
affecting scene, they may foster that humane principle, which is the
noble and distinguished characteristic of man, and improve it to the
benefit of their children's children.
About the year 1749, I sailed from Liverpool to the coast of Guinea.
Some time after our arrival, I was ordered to go up the country a
considerable distance, upon having notice from one of the Negroe Kings,
that he had a parcel of slaves to dispose of. I received my
instructions, and went, carrying with me an account of such goods as we
had on board, to exchange for the slaves we intended to purchase. Upon
being introduced, I presented him with a small case of English spirits,
a gun, and some trifles; which having accepted, and understood by an
interpreter what goods we had, the next day was appointed for viewing
the slaves; we found about two hundred confined in one place. But here
how shall I relate the affecting sight I there beheld! How can I
sufficiently describe the silent sorrow which appeared in the
countenance of the afflicted father, and the painful anguish of the
tender mother, expecting to be for ever separated from their tender
offspring; the distressed maid, wringing her hands in presage of her
future wretchedness, and the general cry of the innocent from a dreadful
apprehension of the perpetual slavery to which they were doomed! Under a
sense of my offence to God, in the persons of his creatures, I
acknowledge I purchased eleven, whom I conducted tied two and two to the
ship. Being but a small ship, (ninety ton) we soon purchased our cargo,
consisting of one hundred and seventy slaves, whom thou mayest, reader,
range in thy view, as they were shackled two and two together, pent up
within the narrow confines of the main deck, with the complicated
distress of sickness, chains, and contempt; deprived of every fond and
social tie, and, in a great measure, reduced to a state of desperation.
We had not been a fortnight at sea, before the fatal consequence of this
despair appeared; they formed a design of recovering their natural
right, LIBERTY, by rising and murdering every man on board; but the
goodness of the Almighty rendered their scheme abortive, and his mercy
spared us to have time to repent. The plot was discovered; the
ring-leader, tied by the two thumbs over the barricade door, at sun-rise
received a number of lashes: in this situation he remained till sun-set,
exposed to the insults and barbarity of the brutal crew of sailors, with
full leave to exercise their cruelty at pleasure. The consequence of
this was, that next morning the miserable sufferer was found dead,
flayed from the shoulders to the waist. The next victim was a youth,
who, from too strong a sense of his misery, refused nourishment, and
died disregarded and unnoticed, till the hogs had fed on part of his
flesh. Will not christianity blush at this impious sacrilege? May the
relation of it serve to call back the struggling remains of humanity in
the hearts of those, who, from a love of wealth, partake in any degree
of this oppressive gain; and have such an effect on the minds of the
sincere, as may be productive of peace, the happy effect of true
repentance for past transgressions, and a resolution to renounce all
connexion with it for the time to come.]
Reader, bring the matter home to thy own heart, and consider whether any
situation can be more completely miserable than that of these distressed
captives. When we reflect that each individual of this number had
probably some tender attachment, which was broken by this cruel
separation; some parent or wife, who had not an opportunity of mingling
tears in a parting embrace; perhaps some infants, or aged parents, whom
his labour was to feed, and vigilance protect; themselves under the most
dreadful apprehension of an unknown perpetual slavery; confined within
the narrow limits of a vessel, where often several hundreds lie as close
as possible. Under these aggravated distresses, they are often reduced
to a state of despair, in which many have been frequently killed, and
some deliberately put to death under the greatest torture, when they
have attempted to rise, in order to free themselves from present misery,
and the slavery designed them. Many accounts of this nature might be
mentioned; indeed from the vast number of vessels employed in the trade,
and the repeated relations in the public prints of Negroes rising on
board the vessels from Guinea, it is more than probable, that many such
instances occur every year. I shall only mention one example of this
kind, by which the reader may judge of the rest; it is in Astley's
collection, vol. 2. p. 449, related by John Atkins, surgeon on board
admiral Ogle's squadron, of one "Harding, master of a vessel in which
several of the men-slaves and women-slaves had attempted to rise, in
order to recover their liberty; some of whom the master, of his own
authority, sentenced to cruel death, making them first eat the heart and
liver of one of those he had killed. The woman he hoisted by the thumbs,
whipped, and slashed with knives before the other slaves, till she
died."[A] As detestable and shocking as this may appear to such whose
hearts are not yet hardened by the practice of that cruelty, which the
love of wealth by degrees introduceth into the human mind, it will not
be strange to those who have been concerned or employed in the trade.
[Footnote A: A memorable instance of some of the dreadful effects of the
slave-trade, happened about five years past, on a ship from this port,
then at anchor about three miles from shore, near Acra Fort, on the
coast of Guinea. They had purchased between four and five hundred
Negroes, and were ready to sail for the West Indies. It is customary on
board those vessels, to keep the men shackled two by two, each by one
leg to a small iron bar; these are every day brought on the deck for the
benefit of air; and lest they should attempt to recover their freedom,
they are made fast to two common chains, which are extended on each side
the main deck; the women and children are loose. This was the situation
of the slaves on board this vessel, when it took fire by means of a
person who was drawing spirits by the light of a lamp; the cask
bursting, the fire spread with so much violence, that in about ten
minutes, the sailors, apprehending it impossible to extinguish it before
it could reach a large quantity of powder they had on board, concluded
it necessary to cast themselves into the sea, as the only chance of
saving their lives; and first they endeavoured to loose the chains by
which the Negroe men were fastened to the deck; but in the confusion the
key being missing, they had but just time to loose one of the chains by
wrenching the staple; when the vehemence of the fire so increased, that
they all but one man jumped over board, when immediately the fire having
gained the powder, the vessel blew up with all the slaves who remained
fastened to the one chain, and such others as had not followed the
sailors examples. There happened to be three Portugueze vessels in
sight, who, with others from the shore, putting out their boats, took up
about two hundred and fifty of those poor souls who remained alive; of
which number, about fifty died on shore, being mostly of those who were
fettered together by iron shackles, which, as they jumped into the sea,
had broke their legs, and these fractures being inflamed by so long a
struggle in the sea, probably mortified, which occasioned the death of
every one that was so wounded. The two hundred remaining alive, were
soon disposed of, for account of the owners to other purchasers.]
Now here arises a necessary query to those who hold the balance of
justice, and who must be accountable to God for the use they have made
of it, That as the principles on which the British constitution is
founded, are so favourable to the common rights of mankind, how it has
happened that the laws which countenance this iniquitous traffic, have
obtained the sanction of the legislature? and that the executive part of
the government should so long shut their ears to continual reports of
the barbarities perpetrated against this unhappy people, and leave the
trading subjects at liberty to trample on the most precious rights of
others, even without a rebuke? Why are the masters of vessels thus
suffered to be the sovereign arbiters of the lives of the miserable
Negroes, and allowed with impunity thus to destroy (may I not properly
say, _to murder_) their fellow-creatures; and that by means so cruel, as
cannot be even related but with shame and horror?
CHAP. XIII.
Usage of the Negroes, when they arrive in the West Indies. An hundred
thousand Negroes brought from Guinea every year to the English colonies.
The number of Negroes who die in the passage and seasoning. These are,
properly speaking, murdered by the prosecution of this infamous traffic.
Remarks on its dreadful _effects and tendency_.
When the vessels arrive at their destined port in the colonies, the poor
Negroes are to be disposed of to the planters; and here they are again
exposed naked, without any distinction of sexes, to the brutal
examination of their purchasers; and this, it may well be judged, is, to
many, another occasion of deep distress. Add to this, that near
connexions must now again be separated, to go with their several
purchasers; this must be deeply affecting to all, but such whose hearts
are seared by the love of gain. Mothers are seen hanging over their
daughters, bedewing their naked breasts with tears, and daughters
clinging to their parents, not knowing what new stage of distress must
follow their separation, or whether they shall ever meet again. And here
what sympathy, what commiseration, do they meet with? Why, indeed, if
they will not separate as readily as their owners think proper, the
whipper is called for, and the lash exercised upon their naked bodies,
till obliged to part. Can any human heart, which is not become callous
by the practice of such cruelties, be unconcerned, even at the relation
of such grievous affliction, to which this oppressed part of our species
are subjected.
In a book, printed in Liverpool, called _The Liverpool Memorandum_,
which contains, amongst other things, an account of the trade of that
port, there is an exact list of the vessels employed in the Guinea
trade, and of the number of slaves imported in each vessel; by which it
appears that in the year 1753, the number imported to America by one
hundred and one vessels belonging to that port, amounted to upwards of
thirty thousand; and from the number of vessels employed by the African
company in London and Bristol, we may, with some degree of certainty,
conclude, there are one hundred thousand Negroes purchased and brought
on board our ships yearly from the coast of Africa. This is confirmed in
Anderson's history of Trade and Commerce, lately printed; where it is
said,[A] "That England supplies her American colonies with Negroe
slaves, amounting in number to above one hundred thousand every year."
When the vessels are full freighted with slaves, they sail for our
plantations in America, and may be two or three months in the voyage;
during which time, from the filth and stench that is among them,
distempers frequently break out, which carry off commonly a fifth, a
fourth, yea sometimes a third or more of them: so that taking all the
slaves together, that are brought on board our ships yearly, one may
reasonably suppose, that at least ten thousand of them die on the
voyage. And in a printed account of the state of the Negroes in our
plantations, it is supposed that a fourth part, more or less, die at the
different islands, in what is called the seasoning. Hence it may be
presumed, that at a moderate computation of the slaves who are purchased
by our African merchants in a year, near thirty thousand die upon the
voyage, and in the seasoning. Add to this, the prodigious number who are
killed in the incursions and intestine wars, by which the Negroes
procure the number of slaves wanted to load the vessels. How dreadful
then is this slave-trade, whereby so many thousands of our fellow
creatures, free by nature, endued with the same rational faculties, and
called to be heirs of the same salvation with us, lose their lives, and
are, truly and properly speaking, murdered every year! For it is not
necessary, in order to convict a man of murder, to make it appear that
he had an _intention_ to commit murder; whoever does, by unjust force or
violence, deprive another of his liberty, and, while he hath him in his
power, continues so to oppress him by cruel treatment, as eventually to
occasion his death, is actually guilty of murder. It is enough to make a
thoughtful person tremble, to think what a load of guilt lies upon our
nation on this account; and that the blood of thousands of poor innocent
creatures, murdered every year in the prosecution of this wicked trade,
cries aloud to Heaven for vengeance. Were we to hear or read of a nation
that destroyed every year, in some other way, as many human creatures as
perish in this trade, we should certainly consider them as a very
bloody, barbarous people; if it be alledged, that the legislature hath
encouraged, and still does encourage this trade, It is answered, that no
legislature on earth can alter the nature of things, so as to make that
to be right which is contrary to the law of God, (the supreme Legislator
and Governor of the world) and opposeth the promulgation of the Gospel
of _peace on earth, and good will to man_. Injustice may be methodized
and established by law, but still it will be injustice, as much as it
was before; though its being so established may render men more
insensible of the guilt, and more bold and secure in the perpetration of
it.
[Footnote A: Appendix to Anderson's history, p. 68.]
CHAP. XIV.
Observations on the disposition and capacity of the Negroes: Why thought
inferior to that of the Whites. Affecting instances of the slavery of
the Negroes. Reflections thereon.