In the year 1696, Southern brought forward his celebrated tragedy of Oronooko, by means of which many became enlightened upon the subject, and interested in it.  For this tragedy was not a representation of fictitious circumstances, but of such as had occurred in the colonies, and as had been communicated in a publication by Mrs. Behn.

The person who seems to have noticed the subject next was Dr. Primatt.  In his Dissertation on the Duty of Mercy, and on the Sin of Cruelty to Brute Animals, he takes occasion to advert to the subject of the African Slave Trade.  “It has pleased God,” says he, “to cover some men with white skins and others with black; but as there is neither merit nor demerit in complexion, the white man, notwithstanding the barbarity of custom and prejudice, can have no right by virtue of his colour to enslave and tyrannize over the black man.  For whether a man be white or black, such he is by God’s appointment, and, abstractly considered, is neither a subject for pride, nor an object of contempt.”

After Dr. Primatt, we come to Baron Montesquieu, “Slavery,” says he, “is not good in itself.  It is neither useful to the master nor to the slave; not to the slave, because he can do nothing from virtuous motives; not to the master, because he contracts among his slaves all sorts of bad habits, and accustoms himself to the neglect of all the moral virtues.  He becomes haughty, passionate, obdurate, vindictive, voluptuous, and cruel.”  And with respect to this particular species of slavery, he proceeds to say, “It is impossible to allow the negroes are men, because, if we allow them to be men, it will begin to be believed that we ourselves are not Christians.”

Hutcheson, in his System of Moral Philosophy, endeavours to show, that he who detains another by force in slavery, can make no good title to him, and adds, “Strange that in any nation where a sense of liberty prevails, and where the Christian religion is professed, custom and high prospect of gain can so stupify the consciences of men, and all sense of natural justice, that they can hear such computations made about the value of their fellow-men and their liberty, without abhorrence and indignation!”

Foster, in his Discourses on Natural Religion and Social Virtue, calls the slavery under our consideration “a criminal and outrageous violation of the natural rights of mankind.”  I am sorry that I have not room to say all that he says on this subject.  Perhaps the following beautiful extracts may suffice:—­

“But notwithstanding this, we ourselves, who profess to be Christians, and boast of the peculiar advantages we enjoy by means of an express revelation of our duty from heaven, are in effect these very untaught and rude heathen countries.  With all our superior light, we instil into those whom we call savage and barbarous, the most despicable opinion of human nature.  We, to the utmost of our power, weaken and dissolve