Washington sentinel. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1855, 1854-05-18

The first attempt to engagein the slave-trade
by the American colonists, occurred in l645,
and was made by two Boston merchants, one
of whom was member of the church. We
commend this historical fact to the abolitonists
and disunionists in New England The trade
being profitable, Boston was the first to engage
in it; slave labor becoming improbable, Mas
sachusetts was the first to abandon it. At one
time, white persons terminals and dissolute
persons) were transported to the American
colonies and sold into slavery. Finally, it be-
came regular business to seduce men and
women to leave England, and to make slaves
Of them on their arrival here. So usual was
this traffic in Englishmen, that the Scots who
into involuntary servitude in New England.
The royalist prisoners taken by Cromwell at the
battle of Worcester, the leaders of the insur-
recton of Penruddock, were shipped to Amer
lea as slaves and, in 1855, thousand Of the
gallant partisans of the Duke of Monmouth
were transported to America, to supply hands
to the colonial freeholders. In 1858, persons
coming into the colonies who were not Christ
ians in their native country, were subjected to
slavery, even if converted to Christianity after.
wards.
Slavery was introduced into Virginia in 1920;
into New England, in 1915; into Maryland, in
1850; into South Carolina, in 1911; and into
Georgia, l749. Slaves were first taken to
Pennsylvania by William Penn, the founder Of
the State and Stephens tells us that, though
he did somewhat to ameliorate their condition
afterwards, "he died shareholder For six
teen years after the first settlement Of Georgia,
slaves were not allowed by the trustees of the
colony; and it was not until after repeated
applications from the most influential men in
the province, among others the Rev. George
Whitfield, the celebrated divine, that the pro-
hiEition was relaxed. Mr.. Whitfield made
test of white and slave labor, on plantation
which he bought in Carolina, the result of
which was to confirm him in the opinion, as he
wrote the trustees, "that Georgia never can or
will be a fourishing province without negroes
are allowed" Finally it was determined to
admit slaves into Georgia. and a committee in
the British Parliament, at Tie head Of ahich
acas placed the Eartof tShat tesbuyy, was appoint
ed to prepare an act for that purpose. This
Earl Of Shaftesbury was, we presume, the an,
cestor of the present earl of that name, who
has made himself so conspicuous of late in his
attentions to Mrs. Stowe, and in his informed
ding with American slavery which his pro-
genitor helped to introduce:
In March, lib, contract was made be-
tween Spain and other powers for furnishing
slaves to the Spanish dominions in America.
July, l7l3, this contract was transferred to
England by the treaty of Utrecht, and thereby
England obtained the privilege of filling the
New World with negro slaves. No Frenchman,
nor Spaniard, nor any other persons might in
troduce single slave into Spanish America,
and England had the exclusive monopoly Of
the slave-trade for the Gulf of Mexico, on the
Atlantic, all along the Pacific and the English
colonies.
These monopolizing privileges we're enjoyed
by a company, the Asciento Company, and
Philip ", Of Spain, took one quarter of the
stock; Queen Anne reserved one-fourth to her
self, and the remaining half was divided among
her favorites. Thus the sovereigns of England
and Spain became the largest slavemerchants
in the world. BY the treaty assigning the con-
tract, her Britannia majesty undertook to bring
into the West Indies of America, belonging to
his Catholic Spanish majesty, in the space of
thirty years, $4,000 negroes, at the rate of
1890 each year.. These negroes cost nothing
but trinkets and toys and refuse arms, and
England gained by her total sale of slaves in
America, under this contract, the capital which
built up and confirmed the British empire in
Hindostan."
A little more than one hundred years ago,
the British were the greatest slave-traders in
the world, and it was contended and promul-
gated in England by British merchants, " that
the African slave-trade was the great pillar and
support Of the plantation trade in America !;
that the slave trade should be thrown into the
hands of her rivals, and the colonies depended
upon white labor, they would soon be undone
or shake off their dependence on the British
crown, as white men cannot be obtained as
cheaply as we have obtained Africans. Even
were it possible for white men to answer the
end of negroes in planting, we must drain our
own country of husbandmen, mechanics, and
manufacturers. Thus we might dread the pros
perity Of our colonies but while we supply
them with negroes we need have no such APP
prehensons."
It is estimated that over 100000 negroes
were imported from Africa to the English
American colonies, previous to l776 Raynal
puts the whole number taken by European ma
tons from Africa before that year at 100000.
Bancroft thinks the number imported into the
Spanish, French, and English continental colo
MES, previous to the prohibition of the slave
trade, was about 100000. The gross returns
to the English from the whole traffic in negro
slaves, is estimated at four hundred millions of
dollars!"
1t is mentioned as noteworthy fact "that,
at one time or another, every Christian poten-
tate and government has sanctioned the slave
trade between Africa and America, save only
the Pope of Rome" In 1887, the civilized