He was sure,
that the noble earl did not care what the evidence would say on either
side; for his mind was made up, that the trade ought not to be abolished.
The noble earl had made a difference between humanity, justice, and sound
policy. God forbid, that we should ever admit such distinctions in this
country! But he had gone further, and said, that a thing might be inhuman,
and yet not unjust; and he put the case of the execution of a criminal in
support of it. Did he not by this position confound all notions of right
and wrong in human institutions? When a criminal was justly executed, was
not the execution justice to him who suffered, and humanity to the body of
the people at large?
The noble earl had said also, that we should do no good by the abolition,
because other nations would not concur in it. He did not know what other
nations would do; but this he knew, that we ourselves ought not to be
unjust because they should refuse to be honest. It was, however,
self-obvious, that, if we admitted no more slaves into our colonies, the
evil would be considerably diminished.
Another of his arguments did not appear to be more solid; for surely the
Slave-trade ought not to be continued, merely because the effect of the
abolition might ultimately be that of the emancipation of the slaves; an
event, which would be highly desirable in its due time.
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