The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-11-11
A New Book on nm Old subject.

account ever Wrltten OF tnS oTlBlu
growth, and suppression of this traffic
and in its appearance as a serial at
tracted much attention. The author has
made a thorough study of the subject
and tells his story with imparsiali,y, ac-
curacy. and an entire appreciation of th'
powerful dramatic interest of the nara
tive. The history of the slave trade l:
perhaps the strangest and most tragic
story to be found in the chronicles oil
the nineteenth century; it is full OF
paradoxcs. and is throughout a record Of
the unexpected. 1t is fortunate that, al
a period not SO far removed from tbs
passing of the system that tradition in
stead of record must be relied upon, an
author has been found who could tell this
story with the skill of Mr.. Spears.
The view which he takes of slavery in
general is indicated in a part of the pref
ace, which reads as fellows:
As it seems TO me. the facts fc,m the most re
markable story known to the history of CONNER
cal enterprise. Consider fos instance, the orisii
of the trade 1t WAS established because OF thu
sincere pity OF nder-hesrted and most praiee
worthy priest for an outraged people. No othei
trade had such exalted origin, and YET
the crucities and horrors OF it far suipsss thos
described in any other branch of history. Th'
soldiers who have looted cities, the pirates wht
have made passengers and sailors walk the plank
and the religious zealots who have burned then
opponents at the stake, were more merciful thar
the slave traders.
Further than that. trade ever paid such large
returns on the investments. More remarkable
ftil, the trade at one time made some who fol-
lowed il heroes. but at last degraded all who
were connected with il beyond the power oil
words to describe.
But now that have written out the facts,
am bound to say here in advance, and TO re-
peat further on that the intrinsic evil in the
slave trade was not found in the slaughter Of the
helpless during the raids in Africa, or the hcr.
rors of the Middle Passage, or the brutality oil
planters who deliberately worked their slaves to
death as matter of business policy; nor was II
in all these combined I cannot say all that is
in my thought, hut it is fact that the slave
trade and the plantations might have been carried
On proftably without any cruelty whatever 10
the slave. 1t is matter OF knowledge among peo-
pie now living that many planters promoted the
physical comforts and added to the mental pleas
urcs Of the slaves, while here and there ship
was found to make the Middle Passage without
losing life. The hc:rors Of the trade tina; cried
aloud to heaven for more than three hundred
years were merely the grosser natural outgrowths
Of the root evil In it.
And that evil was, briefly, the assump-
tion that any one class OF men is fit to
hold irresponsible power over any other
class. In this case representatives OF the
highest civilization the world had yet seen
held such power over a race of savages.
The result was disastrous TO the master
even more than to the slave. The trader.
in the end, was more degraded than the
flesh and blood in which he trafiicked.
At the time when the slave trade to
America began, slavery was common all
over the world. and some of the bravest
and most skillful captains OF that day
served their apprenticeship in slave
ships. Among them was John Paul Jones.
The second chapter of this volume deals
with some of these oldtime captains,
David Lindsay, Of Newport, R. l., being
taken as a type of his class. This captain
sailed the high seas during the middle de-
cade of the eighteenth century, and let
ter of his, which is quoted by the author,
shows the kind of man he was and the
conditions under which he piled his call
ing. 1t is curious and interesting docu-
ment:
Gentlemen: This third Of mine to you and now
! an to Lett you know my proceedings sense
II hhds OF rum yet Left abord, and God noes
when 1 shall Gett clear of it. We trade is SO
dull it is actually nof to make a man creasey.
My cheefe mate after making four or five Trips
in the boat was taken sick and Remains very bad
yeti; then I sent Mr.. Taylor he Colt not well
& three more of my men has been sick James
Dixon is not well now and wors than vt have
wore out my small cable also oakam have been
Obliged to buy one htase for / thought the con-
cequance OF VI lntrust on bord this vesiel was
two great to Rusk without cable TO trust, there
fore tegg you not Balm me in so doeing-
should be glad l coed come Rite home with my
slaves, for my vesel will not last TO proceed
Nc GOO DAYLIGHT al round her how
under deck. However / hope She will carry
me safe once more ] need not inlarge. Hcare
lyes Captains hamlet, James JeIson, Carpenter.
Butler 4 Lindsay. Gardner is dun, frginson
Is Con to Leward. All these is Rum Ships but
Ter is in 4 brig with $50 hhds from Barbados,
belongs to Cape Coast Castle. I've sent Small
boye TO my wife. ] conclude with my best En-
deavors for intrust Gentlemen, your faith
ful Servant al com'md
DAVID LINDSAY.
n. B. the whole i never had SO much
Trouble in all my VOICES. i shall rite to
barbados in few days.
This letter is almost as good as photo
graph OF the rough old sea-dog. The ship
n which he sailed was the brigantine San
lerson. smaller than the average Hudson
River brick schooner. and cheaply built.
This letter was written while she was ly-
ing in a West African port, being loaded
or the long voyage across the Atlantic. In
bados with his cargo of fifty-six slaves.
md reports that he lost one small gall''
N the voyage. He seems TO have been
superior TO the average SLAYER
Il his day. 1t is Interesting 10 note that be-
ore starting on this perilons voyage he
onsulted an astrologer to see when his ship
must sail to have all the kindly influences
4 the heavenly bodies in her favor.
At this time there was in addition to
he ordinary dangers of a voyage in small
nd imperfectly built sailing vessel, rauch
LANCER from pirates, for a SLAYER was too
ich a prize for the Aigerine and Spanish
he ever-present chance that the human
aTgo might rise against Its owners, made
he life of the slave captain no easy one.
nd Il gradually came 20 require such stern
nd unsparing cruelty that none but the
lost reckless and rufianly seamen cared TO
nGage in it.
After describing the slaveships and their
aptains the author writes of the condi- |
ions under which the slaves were captured |
The villages from which they came were |
dominated by primitive though not es- |
entially degrading social sysetm, of which |
layery was a part. The sources Of slave |
'wning amo&g native Africans are inter- !
sting to the student OF human nature. |
he slaves were comparatively few in num-
,er. and were captives taken in war or \
or debtors. When negro vom- |
n was unfaithful to her husband, the lat |
er had the right TO make a slave Of her |
over. Another crime which was punished |
y slavery was that of Decorating or re-
noving a neighbours fetish. But the coast |
lave trade never reached any great d. |
nensions till the advent of white nen |
rbo made the capture and traffic |
q slaves immensely profitable. Some |
I the natives became noted kidnap-
rs. Then the coast tribes were in /
tied TO make piratical raids on the |
Interior. and finally the white captains |
themselves took part in these expeditions. |
q all this record OF murder, robbery, and |