one improperly brought by thofe who fold him to me, therefore I am to let loose 499 thieves and murderers poffibly, to prey on the community. To fuch, and fo many flagrant abfurdities will an Author be driven who fets up a point, from which he labours to deduce a system repugnant to the allowed practice of Antients and Moderns. He brings in Christianity as abolishing slavery, but unfortunately can find no proof. He draws together into one view all the cruelties which have ever been practised by Captains of ships to deter their flaves from rising; or by the Planters to keep them under fubjection; and by following the fame rule, and collecting all the inftances of barbarity practised by individuals in the most humane and beft civilized nation upon earth, fuch a picture might be drawn, that human nature would start at. His account of the law is no less defective, for he attempts to affert privileges for foreign flaves, at times, when even our own natural-born subjects had no claim to them. He humanely advises us to employ our own natives in the fultry heats of the colonies, and charitably wishes them funk in the sea, rather than we should carry on the African flave trade for their fervice. Sure the flaves abroad ought to be under an obligation of working for their living, as well as the natives of England are at home; and in many cafes, the latter labour harder and fare worfe; they certainly have a severer climate to contend with, as their cloathing runs away with great part of what they want to purchase provisions, and the flaves abroad want little or no cloaths, and are not injured by the intense heat of the fun. The other Writers quoted in the fame Pamphlet proceed on the fame false grounds, and would perfuade us to put an end to the African trade for fear of buying a few flaves, who were fraudulently and unjustifiably made fo, which furely is just as wife as if a man should cut off his legs for fear of wetting or foiling his feet. Seduced by this fpecious fide of the queftion, influenced by humane motives, and mifinformed of the real state of the flaves in our colonies, even the Bishop of Gloucester * warns us to fend them to their native homes. Poor creatures! Not one would accept of the offer, but would think it the greatest inhumanity to force their return. That in the native Africans' fale of negroes to our shipping, various

See his Sermon Feb. 21, 1766.

various frauds have been committed, and perfons improperly and unjustly fold; that Masters of ships have been inhumane, perhaps unneceffarily; that Planters have been wantonly cruel without cause, may be supposed from the enormity of crimes among ourselves. To these abuses then let efficacious remedies be applied; and the African merchants will own the highest obligations to government, if by falutary laws it can alleviate the distresses of those, whose labour supports our colonies and enriches our native country; but for the other unneceffary and impracticable scheme of univerfal freedom, (the device of the Puritans of North America, who now cry out for perfect liberty, as they once did for perfect purity, till they destroyed all real religion, and ruined both church and ftate; and who began these their last outcries, as appears by the dates of their works, only on our afferting our jurifdiction over them) from a careful review of laws human and divine, whoever attempts to promote it, must be declared a stranger to both ecclesiastical and civil polity, and an utter enemy to their country.

[ E. ]

THE benefits that might accrue to England from a trade to Port Hillsborough may be calculated from a review of the returns they made, and all at most reasonable rates.

6 tons of wooll, (to be had in great abundance).

4,000 goat skins.

1,200 deer ditto.

I ton of orchilla.

8 lb. weight of gold. 200 lb. of oftrich feathers.

1 ton of bees-wax.

These were only what were faved from plunder, the inhabitants having seized on much the greatest part of the cargo.

TH

[F. ]

HE Polly, Captain Walsh, a ship belonging to Mr. Adams, ftruck on the Bar of Bonny this last year, and was soon after attacked by the negroes. The Captain, finding he could not fave his

fhip, fent his boat's crew off, fhut himself up in his cabin, and when the King of Bonny and all his people were got on board, to the amount of 1500 and upwards, fet fire to the powder; and, Sampfon like, at his death punished the treachery of his affailants. To prevent the like fatal accidents in this dangerous river, I here, though fomewhat foreign to the purpose of this Treatife, prefent the African Captains with plain directions for going fafely into Bonny or New Calabar.

When you are off Cape Three Points, you will find in going across the Bite you must steer a foutherly course, at least S. E. by E. or S. E. and, before you can think yourself the length of Formofa, keep your lead carefully going; and, as foon as you have ground, haul to the southward, and if you deepen your water, you are fure of being to the fouthward of Cape Formofa, and may bear up to the N. E. till you fee the land, and run along shore in nine fathom. In running along shore you will open rivers; they are very small and all open about N. N. E. or N. E. When you are run fo far to the eastward as to open Samberera, it is much wider, and opens about N. by W. or N. N. W. and Fochea bearing about N. E. by N. a bluff point; then off the deck you will see no land to the eastward of Fochea, but from your topmaft heads, if clear weather, you will fee Rough Corner, by fome called King William's Caftle, bearing N. E. eafterly; then run fo far as to bring Fochea to bear N. by W. or N. N. W. and Rough Corner N. E. by E. on which you will have four or five fathoms water, and there come to an anchor, if not a proper time to go in. You may go in any time of the tide if you have wind, clear weather, and day light. It flows full and changes E. and W. when you have the marks to bear as above, and bound inwards, you will not have the river Bonny open ;., however, you may haul up to the northward within a cable's length and a half of the western breakers, and fo run boldly in, keeping a look-out from the mast-head for any fpits from the western breakers. If it blows any wind, nothing can hurt you, but what you may fee. in, keep the western breakers on board, and in running in, you will fhole in your water to three and three and a half fathom; when you have Fochea W. N. W. you are on the Bar, and immediately will deepen

Still as you run

your

your water to eight, ten and twelve fathoms, on which come to an anchor, and found for New Calabar. If you go into Bonny, you may run right up, only giving Rough Corner a small birth, and keep rather the starboard shore on board.-In coming out, you must observe the first quarter's ebb fets to the eastward right over the banks, and after that right out S. S. W. In going out, you must make bold with the western breakers, and stand no farther to the eastward than Bonny, half a cable's length, open, and ftill wider as you turn out. When you are over the Bar, you must be sure to keep the western breakers on board, and that will keep the river well open; for if you ftand far to the eastward, you will be puzzled with the patches and fhoal water. You must not venture to stand out to the fouthward, till you have Fochea N. or N. by W.-N. B. When you have made any part of the land between Formofa and Fochea, run no farther than you can see the land a-head in the evening, but' come to an anchor. It will be beft to come out in neep tides.

[ G. ]

The following Account of the Abuses in the Management of the Committee appeared in the Public Ledger last April.

April 20, 1772. THE great importance of the African trade to this kingdom, and your readiness to infert in your very useful paper, every commercial information, induce me to request you will communicate to the public, the following circumftances and obfervations relative to that trade, as foon as poffible, in the hope that they may not be altogether useless in fhewing the neceffity there is, that the bill brought into parliament this feffions, by Sir William Meredith, entitled, "A bill to regulate the admiffion of freemen into the company of merchants trading to Africa, anı the election of committee men thereof," which ftands ordered to be read a fecond time, the first day of May next, fhould pafs into a law.

In the feffions of parliament 1749, feveral petitions concerning the trade to Africa having been prefented to the Hon. the House of Commons ; F 2 that

that House did, on the 7th of March, refolve, "That on the 16th of the fame, it would go into a committee of the whole House upon the subject of faid petitions."

In the 11th and 12th of April following, the House fat in committee, and upon the 13th, Mr. Alderman Bethell, the chairman, reported, among other refolutions of the faid committee, "That in order to carry on the African trade in the most beneficial manner to these kingdoms, all his Majesty's fubjects whatsoever trading to Africa, be united into an open company, &c. and a bill was ordered to be brought in for that, and other purposes, of the faid petitions.

But many difficulties arifing from the distressful fituation of the then Royal African company, the bill did not get through both Houses, until the feffions 1750; when it was paffed under the defcription of "A bill for extending and improving the trade to Africa."

By the first section of which bill it is enacted, “That all his Majesty's fubjects, who shall trade to or from Africa, between Cape Blanco and the Cape of Good Hope, fhall for ever hereafter be a body corporate and politic, in name and in deed, by the name of the company of merchants trading to Africa."

By the 4th section of the faid bill, the management of the affairs of the company is directed to be in and by a committee of nine persons.

By the fifth fection of the faid Act, it is ordered, That the election of three of the faid committee, for that year, fhould be by "fuch of the traders or perfons intending to trade to or from Africa," who, in order to being admitted to the freedom of the faid company, fhould pay into the hands of the Chamberlain of London, the fum of forty fhillings each; Three other of the faid committee men to be chofen by fuch other of the traders to or from Africa, who, upon the like conditions, were to be admitted free of the faid company, at Bristol, and three others by such other of the traders to or from Africa, as, upon the like conditions, fhould be made free at Liverpool."

By the fixth fection of the faid Act, it is directed, That the elections of committee men shall be annual. By the twelfth section of faid Act, it is directed, That all his Majefty's fubjects, trading, or intending to trade to.

or