Weekly national intelligencer., 1850-06-08
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.
THE Arsl( Lave TRADE.

Judged pirates and punished with DEATH The severity
Of the law obsruc its operation against those who only AID
and abet the offence without actually committing IT. and the
Presidents recent message calls attention to this fact But
General TAYLOR goes infinitely beyond this surrePtous as
.sance American citizens may herd h he earnestly inSss
the Legislature amendment Of the existing laws re-
lang to the African slave trade, wh reW to the eeefuaf
suppression of that barbaros traffic 1t is apparent that
this passage cannot be limited the Dg advantages the
slave dealers derive from the indirect assistance of the flag of
the United States and affords the veest hope that the
noble old soldier at their head will prove himself worthy Of
the seat Of Washington, and viii achieve fame in history
far above the range of any military hon. Capt
Dean,an r. NJ, ON the African Squadron, DC. London,
1850.
From an attentive examination of several re-
cent works on the state and prospects OF the
slave trade, we are convinced that the efforts OF
Christian nations against this enormous crime have
accomplished much towards its suppression and
that, by increased union vigilance, and energy on
the part of the leading maritime Powers OF the
world, its speedy and utter extinction will be effect
ed. To our own country belongs the undylng no
nor of having been first to enact laws against it,
and first to have urged its being stigmatized as pi-
racy by the laws Of the civilized world. England
contended for limited right of search, to which
we declined to accede and finally, by the arrange
ments of Mr.. Webster's treaty, both nations
agreed to station squadrons on the African coast
for the execution of their respective laws against
the slave trade For more than thirty years both
nations have labored with earnestness and zeal to
turn the opinions and practice of the world against
it and at present it is sustained by no law, and
is prosecuted only in violation Of law and the So
lemn obligations of treaties by the subjects OF
Spain and Brazil. / see with regret that several
parties in England are intent upon the withdrawal
of the British squadron from the African coast and
also that some of our own public men would ter
inmate the treaty by which the presence OF our
own squadron on that coast is secured. 1t cannot
well be doubted that the removal of these squad
rons from those shores would be the signal for an
immensely increased slave-trade, prosecuted with
accumulated horrors, for the dmnution, ii not de-
struction of lawful commerce, the increase of every
form Of piratical adventures, the extinction OF the
dawning lights of African civilization. and the
abandonment Of that afflicted quarter o. the world
to every species Of outrage. The arguments
urged in England against the continuance OF the
British squadron on the African coast, are based
upon its alleged ineficency, its expense, the NOR
tality among the crews and the increased mortal
ity produced by its presence in the slave ships.
In reply, Captain DENMAN and Lieutenant YULE
vindicate the African squadron from the charge of
ineHiciency, and show conclusively the other 90.
iections to be invalid. "By our calculations"
SAYS Captain DENMAN, therefore, the amount of
slaye.trade, even in lS46 and ls47, was reduced,
compared with 1885 and 1888, by T,O0O in
each year" "Even Mr.. HUTT's own tables
show in the years ls46 and ls47, compared with
the same periods, (no correction whatever being
applied,) reduction of 42,200 for each year"
The six previous years, as compared with the
slave-trade of Cuba in 1895, and that OF Brazil in
. 1888, our calculations show reduction amount
! ing to no less than lO5,262 in each year." "For
AZ go. Ipn ttnn holm Mi
. 8 the committees tables show a reduction of no
less than 70, ,629 in each year"
The efficiency of the British squadron is not
seen merely in the great reduction of the num-
Der of slaves imported into Brazil since its IN
creased operations, but more obviously IN the num-
ber of vessels captured and which, by their equip
ments, were clearly proved to be intended for the
reception of slaves. Since 1899, the number of
slave ships captured by the British squadronis
594, and since 1887 to ls47 inclusive, (according
to Lieut.. YULE,) 644 in some years more than
fifty per cent of the number engaged in the trade
so that the uncorrected tables of Mr.. HUTT, who
opposes the squadron, show an aggregate, as Capt.
DENMAN calculates, of 53S,I74 victims saved from
the horrors of slave.trade by PREVENTION How
can such results be denomnated failure! II is
delusve to judge Of the utility of the cruisers by
the number of slaves captured and liberated.
g Reckon" says Lieut. YULE, " the per centage of
equlpped vessels captured, Wnetner gnt or laden;
count how many Africans these would have car
red off, if left to proceed their track of ini-
'quity; estimate the diminuton.. III The trade,
proved by the very fact of the enormity ofprofts,
and then sum up the total direct effect produced
by our cruisers in the slave-trade."
- anxiously hope" says Sir CHARLES HoTHAM,
who has been recently two years in command on
that coast, that the save-lrade will never be al
lowed; if you were to remove all restrictions,
and take your squadron entirely away, small spe-
sculators would spring up, and undersell those who
are now in the markets the slave-trade would be
greatly increased in its horrors, and it would be
impossible to calculate the calamies which would
9 ensue; besides this, pirates would abound, and,
in my opinion, it would be impossible for Ieeiti-
: mate trader to conduct his operations on that
g coast"
The annual expense of the British squadron is
estimated at gl,O00,O00, yet what is this, COM
pared with the deliverance of Christian nations from
the reproach, and Africa from the horrors, of the
slave.trade, compared with the development of the
vast resources of that country, and the introduction
of her rude and barbarous population TO the inesti
mable blessings Of civilization and the Christian
religion.
Great efforts are made to represent the climate
of Africa as fatal to the officers and crews Of the
squadron, while the testimony of Sir CHARLES Ho-
THAN is, that the mortality during the two years OF