uted, was not the execution justice to him who suffered, and
humanity to the body of the people at large?

The noble earl had said also, that we should do no good by the
abolition, because other nations would not concur in it. He did not know
what other nations would do; but this he knew, that we ourselves ought
not to be unjust because they should refuse to be honest. It was,
however, self-obvious, that, if we admitted no more slaves into our
colonies, the evil would be considerably diminished.

Another of his arguments did not appear to be more solid; for surely the
Slave Trade ought not to be continued, merely because the effect of the
abolition might ultimately be that of the emancipation of the slaves; an
event, which would be highly desirable in its due time.

The noble lord had also said, that the planters were against the
abolition, and that without their consent it could never be
accomplished. He differed from him in both these points: for, first, he
was a considerable planter himself, and yet he was a friend to the
measure: secondly, by cutting off all further supplies, the planters
would be obliged to pay more attention to the treatment of their slaves,
and this treatment would render the trade unnecessary.

The noble earl had asserted also, that the population in the West Indies
could not be kept up without further importations; and this was the
opinion of the planters, who were the best judges of the subject. As a
planter he differed from his lordship again. If, indeed, all the waste
lands were to be brought into cultivation, the present population would
be insufficient. But the government had already determined, that the
trade should not be continued for such a purpose. We were no longer to
continue pirates, or executioners for every petty tyrant in Africa, in
order that every holder of a bit of land in our islands might cultivate
the whole of his allotment; a work, which might require centuries.
Making this exception, he would maintain, that no further importations
were necessary. Few or no slaves had been imported into Antigua for many
years; and he believed, that even some had been exported from it. As to
Jamaica, although in one year fifteen thousand died in consequence of
hurricane and famine, the excess of deaths over the births during the
twenty years preceding 1788 was only one per cent. Deducting, however,
the mortality of the newly imported slaves, and making the calculation
upon the Negroes b