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Show 102 ON THE SLAVERY AND CoMMERCE principles of reparation and punilhment to be applicable to the individuals of a community, yet would the former be unjull:, and the latter inapplicable, in the pr~fent cafe. Every Afric:m war is a robbery; and we may add, to our former exprellion, when we faid, "that thus have many thoufands of u n1en, in the moil: iniquitous manner, " been fent into fervitude," that we believe there are few of this order, who are not as much the examples of injufiice, as the people that have been kidnapped; and who do not additionally convey, when we confider them as prifoners of war, an idea of the mof1 complicated fcene of murder. The order of convich, as it exill:s almoll: folely among thofe princes, whofe dominions are contiguous to the European factories, is from this circumll:ance fo inconliderable, when compared with either of the preceding, that we ihould not have mentioned_ it again, but that we were unwilling to mmt any additional argument that occurred againf1 it. It has been !hewn already, that the puniihment of flavery is intliCl:ed from no other tnotivc, oF THE I-Iu~rAN SPECIES. 103 motive, than that of gratifying the avariet of the prince, a conlideration fo detefiable, as to be [uflicient of itfelf to prove it to be unjuf1; and that it is fo difproport,onate, from its nature, to the offence, as to afford an additional proof of its injufiice. We ihall add now, as a fccond argument, its difproportion from its continua11ce: and we ihall derive a third from the conlideration, that, in civil fociety, every violation of the laws of the community is an offence againil: theftate.t Let us fuppofe then an African prince, difdaining for once the idea of emolument: Jet us fuppofe him for once inflamed with the Jove of his country, and refolving to punifl1 from this principle alone, " that by " exhibiting an example of t~rrour, he may " preferve that happinifs of the publick, t Were this not the cafe, the government of a country , 0 u!d have no right to take cognizance of crimes, and punilh them, hut every individltal, if injured, would have a right to punilh the aggre!iOr with his own hand, which is contrary to the notions of all civilized men, whether among $he ancients or the moderns. G 4 " which |