The History of the Rise, Progress and Accomplishment of the Abolition of the African Slave-Trade, by the British Parliament (1839)Clarkson, Thomas
History
The History of the Rise, Progress and Accomplishment of the Abolition of the African Slave-Trade, by the British Parliament (1839)
Clarkson, Thomas
Slave trade -- Africa
At this sitting, at which ten members were present out of the twelve, a
discussion unexpectedly arose on a most important subject. The
committee, finding that their meetings began to be approved by many, and
that the cause under their care was likely to spread, and foreseeing,
also, the necessity there would soon be of making themselves known as a
public body throughout the kingdom, thought it right that they should
assume some title, which should be a permanent one, and which should be
expressive of their future views. This gave occasion to them to
reconsider the object for which they had associated, and to fix and
define it in such a manner that there should be no misunderstanding
about it in the public mind. In looking into the subject, it appeared to
them that there were two evils quite distinct from each other, which it
might become their duty to endeavour to remove. The first was the evil
of the Slave Trade, in consequence of which many thousand persons were
every year fraudulently and forcibly taken from their country, their
relations and friends, and from all that they esteemed valuable in life.
The second was the evil of slavery itself, in consequence of which the
same persons were forced into a situation where they were deprived of
the rights of men, where they were obliged to linger out their days
subject to excessive labour and cruel punishments, and where their
children were to inherit the same hard lot. Now the question was, which
of the two evils the committee should select as that to which they
should direct their attention with a view of the removal of it; or
whether, with the same view, it should direct its attention to both of
them.
It appeared soon to be the sense of the committee, that to aim at the
removal of both, would be to aim at too much, and that by doing this we
might lose all.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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