Mr. Joseph Kincaid protested against the reference made in the second report of the committee to the free negro. The report stated that, “Unenviable as is the condition of the slave, unlovely as is slavery in all its aspects, bitter as the draught may be that the slave is doomed to drink, nevertheless, his condition is better than the condition of the free man of color, in the midst of a community of white men with whom he has no common interest, no fellow-feeling, no equality.”[60] “From the above conclusions, which the committee arrived at in their report, it would seem,” said Mr. Kincaid, “that they hold slavery to be a more enviable situation, than that of freedom under the above circumstances: Therefore, it would seem to follow, that those colored people, who are now free, should be subjected to slavery, in order to better their condition—and that slavery should be rendered perpetual.”[61] Despite the persistent efforts of a small though respectable minority in behalf of abolition, it cannot be said that the convention at any stage of its proceedings evinced any pronounced anti-slavery attitude. It was more anti-negro than anti-slavery. It deplored the existence of slavery, and indicated that in the course of time colonization might eliminate slavery. In anticipation of a possible compensated emancipation, the convention inserted a clause in the constitution by a vote of 30 to 27, forbidding the legislature to abolish slavery without the consent of the owners and without paying them a money equivalent for the slaves emancipated. It was later attempted to place a constitutional prohibition on compensated emancipation, but it failed by a vote of 3 to 20.[62] VI. ABOLITION SENTIMENT AFTER 1834.