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
Every such vessel to be prohibited from purchasing or bringing home any
of the productions of Africa.
Every such vessel to be prohibited from bringing home a passenger, or
any article of produce, from the West Indies.
A bounty to be given to every vessel trading in the natural productions
of Africa. This bounty to be paid in part out of the tax arising from
the registers of the slave-vessels.
Certain establishments to be made by government in Africa, in the
Bananas, in the Isles de Los, on the banks of the Camaranca, and in
other places, for the encouragement and support of the new trade to be
substituted there.
Such then were the services, which Mr. Norris, at the request of William
Rathbone, rendered me at Liverpool, during my stay there; and I have
been very particular in detailing them, because I shall be obliged to
allude to them, as I have before observed, on some important occasions
in a future part of the work.
On going my rounds one day, I met accidentally with Captain Chaffers.
This gentleman either was or had been in the West India employ. His
heart had beaten in sympathy with mine, and he had greatly favoured our
cause. He had seen me at Mr. Norris's, and learned my errand there. He
told me he could introduce me in a few minutes, as we were then near at
hand, to Captain Lace, if I chose it. Captain Lace, he said, had been
long in the Slave Trade, and could give me very accurate information
about it. I accepted his offer. On talking to Captain Lace, relative to
the productions of Africa, he told me that mahogany grew at Calabar. He
began to describe a tree of that kind, which he had seen there. This
tree was from about eighteen inches to two feet in diameter, and about
sixty feet high, or, as he expressed it, of the height of a tall
chimney. As soon as he mentioned Calabar, a kind of horror came over me.
His name became directly associated in my mind with the place. It almost
instantly occurred to me, that he commanded the Edgar out of Liverpool,
when the dreadful massacre there, as has been related, took place.
Indeed I seemed to be so confident of it, that, attending more to my
feelings than to my reason at this moment, I accused him with being
concerned in it. This produced great confusion among us. For he looked
incensed at Captain Chaffers, as if he had introduced me to him for this
purpose. Captain Chaffers again seemed to be all astonishment that I
should have known of this circumstance, and to be vexed that I should
have mentioned it in such a manner. I was also in a state of trembling
myself. Captain Lace could only say it was a bad business. But he never
defended himself, nor those concerned in it. And we soon parted, to the
great joy of us all.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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