By the foregoing clauses it was most certainly intended that the election for committee-men should be free and uninfluenced, but that has not happened; for there was great interest made by those who were chosen committee-men the first year after the act passed, for establishing _the company of merchants trading to Africa_. After which, the several tradesmen employed by the African committee in London, and by their friends in Bristol and Liverpool, took up their freedom of the new company, in order to vote for committee-men; so that, at the expiration of the first year, when the committee-men that had been chosen for _London_, _Bristol_ and _Liverpool_ for the preceding year, could act no longer, then, or at the expiration of the three years (which we cannot now take upon us to say) three new committee-men were chosen instead of three that went out, which nine committee-men so chosen, continued to act for three years, when the three other were again elected; by which means there are twelve persons who take it by rotation alternatively, to be of the committee or not, as they agree among themselves; on which account it is a folly for any person, not being one of the twelve, to attempt getting elected a committee-man for either _London_, _Bristol_, or _Liverpool_; there having been as great interest made against such persons who have offered themselves, as hath happened on some occasions preceding the election of a member of parliament; therefore we have the greatest reason to believe, there is not any person who will again attempt to stand a candidate in opposition to one of the twelve persons who have had the direction and management so long, of which number those gentlemen are, we have mentioned in the account of the merchandize supplied by the committee-men, page 51. The several articles of merchandize purchased in Holland, are paid for in money, or bills of exchange, which is very disadvantageous to this country; and such goods may serve to make an assortment with those paid for by the government, and sent to Africa for the support of the forts there; which has been proved to have been the case before, consequently may be so again. That fact being admitted, and indeed it would be folly to think otherwise; what chance can any private traders have, when the committee’s servants have such a glaring emolument, besides so many other advantages over them? Were there any reason to ground the least supposition, that all things in Africa are carried on upon the square, and no methods practiced by the officers that command the several forts to monopolize the trade; can any one think even in such case, that private merchants, or matters of ships, who are obliged to pay _customs_, _house_ and _warehouse rents_, _servants_, and all sorts of other contingent expences, can possibly carry on a trade in any degree of equality with those persons, who are, as hath been before observed, exonerated from every article of expence?