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ened, and conscientious persons. In addition to his first essay, Mr. Ramsay produced "An Enquiry into the E feets of the Abolition of the Slave-Trade; "A Reply to Personal Invectives and Objections;" "A Letter to James Tobin, Esq.;" "Objections to the Abolition of the Slave-Trade, with Answers, and an Examination of Harris's Scriptural Researches on the Lawfulness of the Slave-Trade;' and "An Address on the proposed Bill for the Abolition of the Slave Trade." From the time this good man took up the cause, he was incessantly engaged in it until his death, which, to all human appearance, was hastened by his exertions. But it was a noble cause in which he fell a martyr; and the good man died satisfied in having been instrumental in exciting an investigation of the subject, which, he felt fully convinced, must inevitably lead to the total abolition of the slavetrade.

The African cause was materially assisted by Captain J. S. Smith, of the Royal Navy, who came forward to corroborate the statements of Mr. Ramsay, when his character and reputation were attacked, and his statements denied. This circumstance induced Captain Smith to stand forth in a noble cause, and in behalf of an injured character. He wrote to his friend, Mr. Hill, and gave him permission to publish his letter, fully confirming the facts stated by Mr. Ramsay, of which Captain Smith had also been an eye-witness, but which had been so boldly denied.

These were the persons who, in a greater or less degree, maintained and diffused just and liberal sentiments on the subject of slavery, by which, in some instances, their own conduct was regulated;

T

in others, where they had no personal interest in the concern, their sentiments proved influential on those who had, and gradually prepared the way for actual and combined effort, in which some of the parties now introduced to the reader took a distinguished and efficient part.

SECT. XVI.—STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM OF NEGROES IN ENGLAND.

It has been a general observation, that the greatest darkness immediately precedes sun-rise, and the excessive aboundings of misery and oppression are generally the precursors of relief and deliverance. It was so in the case of the oppressed Israelites in Egypt, and it was so in that of the oppressed Africans. It had been a common practice with planters, merchants, and others, resident in the West Indies, when they occasionally came to England, to bring with them negro slaves to act as servants during their stay. It was perfectly natural that persons thus circumstanced should compare their own condition of slavery and hardship with the freedom and comfort enjoyed by servants in England. Such a comparison would, of course, make them very unwilling to return to the islands, and in consequence many of them absconded. The masters advertised, or otherwise searched for them, and, when found, they were seized and carried away by force.

There was a notion prevalent, that such proceedings were not sanctioned by the English laws, but that all persons who were baptized became free. The former idea was, after a long struggle,

established: no English aw did sanction the bringing of slaves into England; but the latter idea was unfounded: British liberty belongs to men as men, not as professing christians. However, while that sentiment prevailed, the negroes were anxious, as soon as they arrived in England, to obtain baptism, and, if possible, got such persons as godfathers, or witnesses of their baptism, as were likely to plead their cause, maintain their freedom, and resist any forcible attempt to send them out of the kingdom. As this resistance increased, the planters and others were greatly perplexed, being unwilling to lose their slaves, and afraid to run the risk of either taking them away by force, or appealing to a public tribunal for a decision. They applied to the Attorney and Solicitor-General for the time being, and obtained their opinion, that a slave coming from the West Indies to Great Britain or Ireland, either with or without his master, did not become free, nor could baptism bestow freedom upon him, or in any way affect his temporal condition or his master's right.* They also concluded that a master might legally compel his slave to return to the plantations. This was in the year 1729. The planters and merchants, emboldened by this decision, of course made it as public as possible, and adopted every means to render it effectual. The London papers abounded with advertisements of slaves who had absconded, with descriptions of their persons, and rewards offered for their apprehension; and sometimes they were advertised for sale by auction, either by themselves, or together with horses,

* True enough, because the master never had a right.

carriages, and harness. So totally unprotected were they, that persons wholly unconnected decoyed or seized them in the streets, and sold them to captains of West India ships. Thus was England for a time disgraced as the seat both of slavery and a slave-trade! It may just be remarked here, that there is nothing so barbarous and atrocious, but that human nature may be familiarized to it by habit and opportunity. It was indignantly denied by the advocates of slavery that negroes were kidnapped in Africa; but when human beings were a marketable commodity, they were kidnapped even in England. Another plea was, that the blackskinned negro was of an inferior race, upon the level with brutes; and that to enslave him, was not to enslave a man. But when kidnapping was found to be a profitable trade, those who engaged in it scrupled not at the colour of skin, but often seized children or unwary persons of European birth and complexion, and consigned them to the same slavery as the negroes. In the family of the writer of these pages, a boy of nine or ten years old was thus stolen and conveyed to Virginia, where for many years he worked as a slave, without the means of informing his distressed family of his condition; nor was this an uncommon case in those days.

In the year 1765, an African slave, named Jonathan Strong, was brought from Barbadoes by his master, who treated him very cruelly, particularly by beating his head with a pistol, which occasioned the head to swell, and afterwards produced a disorder in the eyes, and threatened blindness. To this an ague and fever succeeded, and lameness in both his legs. In this deplorable condition he was

turned adrift by his cruel master. The poor destitute creature was happily directed to Mr. William Sharp, a humane and benevolent surgeon, who devoted a portion of his time to gratuitous attention on the diseased poor.

In process of time he was cured; but while attending on his medical benefactor, he was introduced to one who was to become the instrument of imparting a yet more valuable and extended benefit. Mr. Granville Sharp, (see p. 193,) was brother to Mr. Sharp, the surgeon; and becoming interested in the case of Strong, he supplied his wants, and on his recovery got him a situation in the family of an apothecary, to carry out medicines. While thus employed, his old master happened to see him, and observing that he now appeared healthy and robust, determined to repossess him. Accordingly, having found out his residence, he employed two men to kidnap him; one of them was keeper of the Poultry Compter, (a prison so called), and the other an officer under the Lord Mayor, but neither had any legal warrant for what they were doing. They sent for him, under some false pretext, to a public house, where they seized him and conveyed him to the Poultry Compter, and there he was sold by his master for thirty pounds. In this distress Strong sent to those who had been his godfathers, and entreated their protection. They went to the prison, but were refused admittance. He then sent to Mr. Granville Sharp, who also went, but was refused access to the prisoner. He, however, insisted on seeing him, and charged the keeper of the prison at his peril to deliver him up, until he had been carried before a magistrate. Mr. Sharp also waited