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Show 220 ON TH£ SLAVERY AND CoMMERCE the felicity of the petrflmt, have been tr~acherous to their own fenfations. But which are we to believe on the occafion? Thofe, who endeavour to drefs vice in the habit of virtue, or thofe, who derive their opinion from their own feelings ? The latter are furely to be believed; ~nd we may conclude therefore, that the horrid piCture which is given of the life of the peqfant, has not fo jtlfl: a foundation as the receiver! would lead us to fuppofe. For has he no pleafure 111 the thought, that he lives in his ow12 country, and among his relations and friends ? That he is aetuall y free, and that his children will be the fame ? That he can never be .fold as a beaft ? That he can fpeak his mind without the fear of the lajh? That he cannot even be firuck "oith impu- 1'ity? And that he partakes, equally with his fuveriours, of the proteflion of the lmo ?Now, there is no one of thefe advantage·s which the African pofTefTes, and no one, which the defenders of ilavery take into their account. Of OF THE HuMAN SPECIES. 221 Of the other comparifons that are ufually made, we may obferve in general, that, as they confifi in comparing the iniquitous praCtice of Oavery with other iniquitous praCtices in force among other nations, they can neither raife it to the appearance of virtue, nor extenuate its guilt. The things compared arc in thefe in fiances both of them evils alike. They call equally for redrefs, and are equally difgraceful to the *governments which fufter them, if not encourage them, to exifi. To attempt tl{erefore to jufiify one fpecies of iniquity, by comparing it with another, is no jufiification at all; and is fo far from anfwering the purpofe, for which the comparifon is intended, as to give us reafon to fufpeet, that the comparer • We cannot omit here to mention one of the cuftomJ, which has been often brought as a palliation of !lavery, and which prevailed but a little time ago, and we are doubtful whether it does not prevail now, in the metropolis of this country, of kidnapping men for the fervice of the Eafl:.India Company. Every fubjetl:, as long as he behaves well, has a right to the protetl:ion of government; and the tacit per .. miffion of fuch a fccne of iniquity, when it becomes known, is as much a breach of duty in government, as the condua of thofe fubjetl:s, who, on other occafionsJ would be termed, and punilhed as, rebellious. has |