The Spaniards and Portuguese treat their slaves in every respect better than the African slave-merchants; and I know, from personal inquiry, that none of M. de Suza’s slaves would accept their liberty from choice. I have found by calculation, that the expense of maintaining slaves for domestic purposes is much greater than the hire of them to perform any labour would be. The only advantage in holding slaves is, that you always have them in the house or premises, and in fact they are always considered as part of the master’s family, and their services readily procured, which is not the case in regard to hired slaves; for, so long as the African can procure food by theft or otherwise (at least it is so along the coast), they can never be induced to work. This is the great drawback upon all enterprise and improvement, either in agriculture or manufacture. The greatest suffering which the slaves undergo is in shipping; but owing to the vigilance of the English men-of-war cruisers, few opportunities for shipping them offer. When these do occur, large numbers are put on board, which frequently causes a loss in the number before reaching their place of destination. Since my arrival on this coast, I have often considered whether better and more humane measures might not be adapted in regard to the Slave Trade; first, by making it a law in all colonies to which slaves are transported, that they shall be free in a certain number of years--say ten years, if they be transported before sixteen years of age, and seven years, if after the age of eighteen years; and that the free transportation of slaves from the coast of Africa should be allowed. This system might in the end be attended with more beneficial results to Africa, and the slave in general, than the present system.