But the reader will ask, what has this to do with poor Manuel Pereira,--or the imprisonment of free citizens of a friendly nation? We will show him that the complex system of official spoliation, and the misrepresentations of the police in regard to the influence of such persons upon the slave population, is a principal feature in its enforcement. To do this, we deem it essentially necessary to show the character of such men and the manner in which this law is carried out. We shall make no charges that we cannot sustain by the evidence of the whole city proper, and with the knowledge that truth is stronger than fiction. What will the reader say when we tell him that, among the leading minds of the city--we say leading minds, for we class those who are considered foremost in the mercantile sphere among them--are three brothers, unmarried, but with mistresses bought for the purpose, whose dark skins avert the tongue of scandal;--that, twice, men were sold, because of the beauty of their wives, to distant traders, that the brothers might cast off their old mistresses, and appropriate new ones to an unholy purpose; that these men enjoy their richly furnished mansions, are known for their sumptuous entertainments, set an example of mercantile honor and integrity, are flattered among the populace, receive the attentions of very fine and very virtuous ladies, wield a potential voice in the city government, and lead in the greatest development of internal improvements;--that these men even whisper high-sounding words of morality, and the established custom considers their example no harm when color is modified.