struction and horror that occurred in the French Colony of St. Domingo. It is moreover urged, that Europeans are guilty of injustice in enslaving the Africans, and that it is inconsistent with morality to suffer this iniquitous traffic to subsist for one moment longer. These reasons, however, are more specious than solid, and their apparent conclusiveness disappears the moment that we proceed to examine them.

The danger apprehended on the part of the Blacks is so remote, and so easy to be prevented, that it may well be termed groundless, and the melancholy scenes of St. Domingo were, fortunately, of such a description, that their repetition is scarcely possible. To produce in the Island of Cuba a recurrence of similar calamities, it would be necessary that a sanguinary and fierce Revolution should break out in Spain similar to that of France; that in the height of it, there should be planned the mad project of liberating all the Blacks, and of placing them upon a footing of equality with the Whites, in point of rights and condition; that the Agents of the Government should instigate them against all who might object to such new Institutions; that we ourselves should furnish arms and ammunition to some of them, who might affect to adhere to the just cause of the King; and, finally, that the English should clothe, arm, embody, and discipline a large proportion of them, with a view of making War on the Spaniards, and of laying waste that rich and flourishing Colony. It was such an extraordinary concurrence of circumstances as this, which caused the Negro, Toussaint L'Ouverture, when he least imagined it, to find himself at the head of a force capable of engendering, in his haughty soul, the daring thought of throwing off the yoke, and of rendering himself independent. If it be morally impossible, that so long a series of crimes, indiscretions, and follies, should be repeated, it will likewise be impossible for the Blacks to commit again, any where, the horrors and devastations of St. Domingo. This is the less to be feared in our Possessions, because, in them, the number of Slaves is much inferior to that of the Blacks of free condition, and because that of the Negroes and Mulattoes is not disproportioned to that of the Whites; from which prudent equilibrium there results, in favour of the latter, a security so stable as never to have been sensibly interrupted for centuries. The insurrections which have been occasionally excited by our Slaves have been partial and momentary; the vigilance of the Magistrates, and the interests of the Masters, have always quenched the flame with wonderful ease and rapidity, when it had scarcely blazed forth. This danger so much apprehended, cannot, therefore, in any sensible degree, be increased by the small number of Negroes that may be imported in the short space of 5 years; but, even supposing that it should increase, we should then, in order to alleviate or dissipate it, have only to adopt prudent and wise measures, which would not be productive either of grievous or irreparable injuries.

The other reason, deduced from the injustice of the traffic, is equally untenable with the preceding. If the subject were not of itself so grave and momentous, it might suffice to reply to this reason by stating, that the Authorities quoted for its support were not held in any esteem, at the period when they might have been supposed to have carried great weight, and that it did not prevent the most enlightened Governments of Europe from authorizing the Slave Trade by their Laws, and from protecting it with their arms. The Religious Orders themselves, whose habits were worn by the Writers alluded to, possessed large plantations, without ever hesitating about the slavery of their Negroes; an irrefragable proof of how little they were swayed by such an opinion. It would certainly be a very singular circumstance, that the Princes of Europe should have been blind, with respect to a matter of such easy comprehension, have continued so for upwards of 300 years, and have been incapable of dispelling their blindness, until the British Parliament at length revealed to them the recondite and mysterious doctrine, that the slavery of the Blacks is contrary to the rights of mankind. There have always been, and there always will be, Slaves in the World. There were Slaves among the People of God; so there were in the ancient Republicks of Greece, and in the ancient Empires of Asia; in like manner at Rome, as well in the time of the Kings as in that of the Consuls and Emperors: we find Slaves among the people of the North, who invaded, subjugated, and divided among themselves the Western Empire: finally, there were Slaves in all modern Nations that arose out of the ruins of that colossal Empire. At present, we meet with Slaves in many Kingdoms of Europe; they are found in Asia; and Africa likewise is inundated with them.

The People inhabiting this latter Quarter of the World have, at the same time, their Law of Nations, which, in fact, is found in all Countries, however barbarous they may appear to us. They wage War, conclude Peace, and send and receive Ambassadors. With regard to their Prisoners taken in War, who were formerly murdered and devoured, they have, for the last 3 centuries, been sold by them to all that have offered to become purchasers. By this exchange, those Unfortunates have lost nothing. Should any one entertain doubts concerning this assertion, let him enumerate, how many of those that have been carried to Spanish America,—not a few of whom obtain their freedom and acquire property,—have evinced a desire to return to their native Country. But how can they be desirous of returning; when they are themselves even ashamed of their origin, and hide their condition of Bozal Negroes, as carefully as, with us, a murderer conceals his infamy? It is true that the Africans, in order to carry on this traffic, commit thefts and cruelties, but these are exceptions, and are not alone sufficient to characterize the trade, in general, as unjust, much less for prohibiting it all of a sudden. Robberies have always

been very frequent; but this consideration has never led any one to look upon the possession of property as urjust, nor has the idle fear that things bought and sold are liable to be stolen, ever been thought a sufficient motive for interdicting all trade.

But, supposing even the Slave Trade to be as unjust as it is asserted to be, still the immediate abolition of it would not, on that account, be necessary. If a Law were to be passed for the continuance of the unjust traffic, it would not be preceptive, but only permissive. It would put constraint on no one; and to buy or not to buy Slaves, would depend entirely on the free-will of the Parties. He, who should regard this Traffic as justifiable, might purchase Negroes; and he who should deem it unjust, need not buy any. The true principle in matters of Legislation is, not to prohibit what the divine, moral, or positive Laws direct, nor to direct what those Laws prohibit. When this rule is transgressed, the wise maxim, that we ought to yield obedience to God in preference to man, assumes its whole force. But when the question at issue is, whether or not we shall allow practices to continue that have existed in all Ages; then the considerations of utility and expediency ought also to be attended to. The apprehension of causing greater mischief than that which it is proposed to remedy, has ever weighed much in the minds of prudent Legislators. Hence, there is no Code of Laws, however wise and virtuous its Authors may have been, which does not abound in this description of expedients and exceptions. This originates in the frailty of human nature, is dictated by the necessity of temporizing with it, and will endure as long as Men and Laws endure.

Under all these considerations, we are of opinion, that His Majesty ought to be advised, immediately, to accede to the request of the Prince Regent of Great Britain, by prohibiting to all His Majesty's Subjects the Traffic in Bozal Negroes, and to ordain as follows:

First, That the Traffic on the Coast of Africa, North of the Equator, should cease from this moment; and on the Coasts to the Southward of the Line, from and after the 22nd of April, 1821.

Secondly, That His Britannic Majesty be called upon to make complete indemnification to the Owners of the Spanish Ships which have been captured by His Cruizers; and that, for this purpose, a Person be authorized to execute the correspondent liquidation, in concert with the Chamber of Commerce of The Havana, and the Intendant of Porto-Rico, from whence alone Claims have been forwarded.

Thirdly, That His Britannic Majesty be called upon to issue strict and effectual Orders to His Cruizers, not to capture, detain, or examine, under any pretext whatever, such Spanish Ships as shall, within the stipulated period, proceed to purchase Slaves on the Coasts of Africa, situated to the South of the Equator.

Fourthly, and Lastly,-That His Catholic Majesty will be pleased to take into consideration the great prejudices to which the American

Landholders will be exposed, by the Abolition of the Slave Trade; and to direct such measures to be taken as his exalted judgment shall deem most proper, for increasing the population of the Whites in his Ameri. can Dominions, more especially in the Island of Cuba, where the want of hands will be felt more than in any other quarter; for which reason the Council would most earnestly recommend that, whilst this point is under examination, and commerce in general is being regulated, His Majesty should neither alter nor restrain, the permission enjoyed by that Island, of carrying on a direct trade with Friendly and Neutral Nations.

Madrid, February, 1816.

FRANCISCO REQUENA.

FRANCISCO YBANEZ LEYBA.

FRANCISCO DE ARANGO.

FRANCISCO XAVIER CARO DE TORQUEMADA.
JOSEF NAVIA Y BOLANOS.

BRUNO VALLARINO.

MARIANO GONZALEZ DE MERCHANTE.

(3.)—REPLY of the Majority of the Council, to the Opinion of the Members who oppose the immediate Abolition of the Slave Trade.

THE Council see no cause for altering the opinion which they have already given. They cannot pay any deference to the example of The United States, which allowed their Citizens the term of 21 years; nor to that of the Parliament of Great Britain, which took 19 years to receive the Reports of the Planters in its Colonies, and to collect whatever information could throw a light upon the subject; nor yet to that of the Prince Regent of Portugal, whose plan has been to restrict the Trade in question to the Coasts of Africa situated to the South of the Equator, and to defer the Abolition to another time, and by another Treaty.

If these examples were allowed to be quoted as precedents, they would prove more than they are intended to do. They would sanction the continuance of the Trade, not for the limited space of 5 years, but for a great many years; and we should now have to begin to obtain the Reports of the Planters throughout the American Colonies, with a view to collect all possible information to enlighten us upon the question, -to spend at least 19 years more in prosecuting this inquiry, and, at the end of that period, to postpone the prohibition to another time, and to make it the subject of another Treaty!

These examples do not prove that the Slave Trade ought to be continued; they prove the very reverse, In regulating our proceedings, we ought not to look to the time which it has taken other

Nations to examine into the matter, before they passed the sentence of prohibition. We are solely to govern ourselves by the result of the long and tedious investigations which we have had, which is no other than a concurrence in the principle already agreed upon by the Nations most concerned in this traffic, viz.: that it is in direct opposition to humanity.

Whilst this principle was but imperfectly understood, whilst its different bearings were not distinctly known, and whilst prejudice, interest, and cupidity kept it, notwithstanding its brilliant light, concealed under a thick veil, so as to prevent its rays from penetrating it, we need not be surprized at a delay, during which mankind were neither clearsighted enough to be aware of the outrages committed against nature, in its lowest state of degradation, nor capable of hearing its cries, which ought to have moved the compassion of the rest of the species, in proportion to the multitudes of their suffering Fellow

creatures.

It is, therefore, not the length of time which has been consumed by other Nations in investigating the circumstances, previously to the abolition of a traffic which has degraded the dignity of man, that ought to regulate our conduct before we adopt the same measure. Those Nations had to contend with two powerful Enemies;-Opinion, that governs all, and Interest, that overcomes all. It was a generally received notion, and which had been long entertained, that benefits were about to be conferred upon the unhappy Beings, who, at that very moment, were to be exposed to the utmost outrages.

It is not surprizing that the Nations alluded to, who have had the glory of being our Predecessors in the abolition of an abuse that had prevailed for upwards of 2 Centuries, should have been tardy in accomplishing it. No one can doubt, that such operations require time, and mature consideration, and that, in general, remedies ought to be applied, in the beginning, with a cautious hand; because, even when their efficacy is indisputable, a concurrence of extraneous circumstances often opposes itself to the activity with which it would be desirable to proceed.

The case is different with regard to Spain. To her the question is presented, after having been discussed during the course of a long examination; the path which she has to pursue is unobstructed and open; and she finds no longer any traces of that prejudice, which formerly, usurping almost the name of public opinion, made Men act without remorse, inasmuch as they had not yet begun to inquire into the real character of the practice.

But, now that the state of things is totally changed, we ought to proceed in an entirely different manner. We should no longer waste our time in discussions, as these have been exhausted; we should not lay down and sanction the principle of abolition, because