6847. Sir _R. H. Inglis_.] Have you any means of knowing how the slaves in the barracoons at the Gallinas were procured for the slave market; whether they were born in slavery, or were made slaves for the mere purpose of sale?--The fact that the general system of society in Africa is slavery, I believe is universally admitted. Those people were brought down from the interior to meet the demand upon the coast. 6848. Do you mean the Committee to understand that in your opinion they were born slaves, and brought up to the slave market, or that, having been free, they were made slaves for the slave market?--In my opinion they were all born in a state of domestic slavery, answering to a sort of villeinage in the early periods of our own history. But my belief is, that no African chief dare sell his domestic slaves in this way, except occasionally under the pretence of crimes committed, or of debts owing; they are generally, I fancy, either kidnapped or taken in wars, or in the ways I before mentioned. 6849. The kidnapping and the wars being for the purpose of supplying the slave market?--Undoubtedly, in my opinion. 6850. _Chairman._] Do you derive your information of the internal condition of the Africans from investigations of your own, or from what you have read?--Partly from inquiries I made while in shore at the Gallinas and up the Nunez. 6851. You do not believe that, generally speaking, the chiefs, the owners of slaves in Africa, have the right of selling their own slaves?--By no means; I believe they dare not do it; that the population would at once rise against it. 6852. Mr. _Aldam_.] Do you consider that the slaves are generally prisoners taken in wars that have incidentally arisen, or that there are wars carried on for the purpose of making slaves?--I believe both to a great extent; I believe that wars are frequently begun for the purpose of taking prisoners and making slaves, and frequently by agreement between two chiefs, who dare not sell their own people. They go to war in order to take each other’s people. 6853. Mr. _Forster_.] Did you hear of instances of that kind while you were in the country?--I have heard statements of that kind from persons conversant with the country up the rivers, and also from the natives. 6854. Captain _Fitzroy_.] Referring to the letter which you have produced from the chiefs of Sea-bar, was that letter written by a native?--It was written undoubtedly by a negro, whether a native of Sierra Leone, trading to Sea-bar, or whether one of the chiefs there, I cannot say; but I have seen natives write infinitely better than that. 6855. It is signed by Henry Tucker; who was that Henry Tucker?--He was one of the chiefs of the country in the neighbourhood of Sea-bar; they are a family who have dominion there. 6856. Was that chief, Tucker, educated at Sierra Leone?--I cannot say; I believe he was, but I am not sure about it.