thofe countries with neceffaries and life. Hence the con dition of a flave is hardly more burdenfome than that of fubject.

a

But in a monarchical government, where it is of the utmost importance that human nature fhould not be debased, or difpirited, there ought to be no flavery. In democracies where they are all upon an equality; and in aristocra cies, where the laws ought to use their utmost endeavors to procure as great an equality as the nature of the government will permit, flavery is contrary to the fpirit of the conftitution; it only contributes to give a power and luxury to the citizens which they ought not to have.

CHA P. II.

Origin of the Right of Slavery among the Roman Civilians.

ONE would never have imagined that flavery fhould owe its birth to pity, and that this fhould have been excited three different ways.*

The law of nations, to prevent prifoners from being put to death, has allowed them to be made flaves. The civil law of the Romans empowered debtors, who were subject to be ill ufed by their creditors to fell themselves. And the law of nature requires, that children, whom a father reduced to flavery is no longer able to maintain, fhould be reduced to the fame ftate as the father.

It is falfe

Thefe reafons of the civilians are all falfe. that killing in war is lawful, unlefs in a cafe of abfolute neceffity: But when a man has made another his flave, he cannot be faid to have been under a neceffity of taking away his life, fince he actually did not take it away. War gives no other right over prifoners than to difable them from doing any further harm, by fecuring their perfons. All nationst concur in detefting the murdering of prisoners in cold blood.

Juftinian's inftitutes, book i,

2. Nor

+ Excepting a few cannibals.

Sale

2. Nor is it true, that a freeman can fell himself. implies a price; now, when a perfon fells himself, his whole substance immediately devolves to his mafter; the mafter therefore in that cafe gives nothing, and the flave receives nothing. You will fay he has a peculium. But this peculium goes along with his perfon. If it is not lawful for a man to kill himfelf, because he robs his country of his perfon, for the fame reafon he is not allowed to fell himself. The liberty of every citizen conftitutes a part of the public liberty; and, in a democratical ftate, is even a part of the fovereignty. To fell one's citizenship* is fo repugnant to all reafon, as to be fcarce fuppofable in any man.. If liberty may be rated with refpect to the buyer, it is beyond all price to the feller. The civil law, which authorizes a divifion of goods among men, cannot be thought to rank among fuch goods, a part of the men who were to make this divifion. The fame law annuls all iniquitous contracts; furely then it affords redress in a contract where the grievance is most enormous.

The third way is birth; which falls with the two former. For if a man could not sell himself, much lefs could he fell an unborn offspring. If a prisoner of war is not to be reduced to flavery, much lefs are his children.

The lawfulness of putting a malefactor to death, arises from this; the law, by which he is punifhed, was made for his fecurity, A murderer, for inftance, has enjoyed the benefit of the very law which condemns him; it has been a continual protection to him; he cannot therefore object against it. But it is not fo with the flave. The law of flavery can never be beneficial to him; it is in all cafes against him, without ever being for his advantage, and therefore this law is contrary to the fundamental principle of all focieties.

If it be pretended that it has, been beneficial to him, as his mafter has provided for his fubfiftence; flavery at this rate fhould be limited to those who are incapable of earning their livelihood. But who will take up with fuch flaves? As for infants, nature, who has fupplied their mothers with milk, had provided for their fuftenance, and the remainder of their childhood approaches fo near the age in which they are most capable of being of service, that

3

* I mean flavery in a strict sense, as formerly among the Romans, and at prefent in our colonies,

that he who fupports them cannot be faid to give them an equivalent, which can entitle him to be their master.

Nor is flavery lefs oppofite to the civil law than to that of nature. What civil law can reftrain a flave from running away, fince he is not a member of fociety, and confequently has no intereft in any civil laws? He can be retained only by a family law, that is, by the master's au thority.

CHA P. III.

Another Origin of the Right of Slavery.

I WOULD as foon fay, that the right of flavery proceeds from the contempt of one nation for another, founded on a difference in customs.

Lopez de Gamar relates," that the Spaniards found near St. Martha, feveral baskets full of crabs, fnails, graffhoppers and locufts, which proved to be the ordinary provifion of the natives. This the conquerors turned to a heavy charge against the conquered." The author owns that this, with their fmoking tobacco, and trimming their beards in a different manner, gave rife to the law by which the Americans became flaves to the Spaniards. Knowl ledge humanizes mankind, and reafon inclines to mildness; but prejudices eradicate every tender difpofition.

CHAP. IV.

Another Origin of the Right of Slavery.

I WOULD as foon say that religion gives its profeffors a right to enflave thofe who diffent from it, in order to render its propagation more easy.

This was the notion that encouraged the ravagers of America in their iniquity.* Under the influence of this idea,

See hiftory of the conqueft of Mexico, by Solis, and that of Peru, by Garcilaffo de la Vega.

idea, they founded their right of enflaving fo many nations; for these robbers, who would abfolutely be both robbers and Chriftians, were superlatively devout.

Lewis XIII, was extremely uneafy at a law, by which all the negroes of his colonies were to be made flaves; but it being ftrongly urged to him as the readieft means for their converfion, he acquiefced without further fcruple.

CHAP. V.

Of the Slavery of the Negroes.

WERE I to vindicate our right to make flaves

of the negroes, these should be my arguments.

The Europeans, having extirpated the Americans, were obliged to make flaves of the Africans, for clearing fuch vaft tracts of land.

Sugar would be too dear, if the plants which produce it were cultivated by any other than flaves.

These creatures are all over black, and with fuch a flat nofe, that they can scarcely be pitied.

It is hardly to be believed that God, who is a wife being, fhould place a foul, especially a good foul, in such a black and ugly body.

It is fo natural to look upon color as the criterion of human nature, that the Afiatics, among whom eunuchs are employed, always deprive the blacks of their refemblance to us, by a more opprobrious distinction.

The color of the fkin may be determined by that of the hair, which, among the Egyptians, the best philofophers in the world, was of fuch importance, that they put to death all the red haired men who fell into their hands.

The negroes prefer a glafs necklace to that gold, which polite nations fo highly value: Can there be a greater proof of their wanting common fenfe?

It is impoffible for us to suppose these creatures to be men, because, allowing them to be men, a fufpicion would follow, that we ourselves are not Chriftians.

時 4

Weak

* Labat's new voyage to the ifles of America, vol. 4. P. 114. 1722, in

Weak minds exaggerate too much the wrong done to the Africans. For were the cafe as they ftate it, would the European powers, who make so many needless conventions. among themselves, have failed to make a general one, in behalf of humanity and compaffion ?

CHAP. VI.

The true Origin of the Right of Slavery:

IT is time to inquire into the true origin of the

right of flavery. It ought to be founded on the nature of things; let us fee if there be any cases where it can be derived from thence.

In all defpotic governments, people make no difficulty in felling themselves; the political flavery, in fome meafure, annihilates the civil liberty,

According to Mr. Perry,* the Mufcovites fell themfelves very readily; The reafon for it is evident; their liberty is not worth keeping.

At Achim every one is for felling himself, Some of the chief lords have not less than a thousand slaves, all principal merchants, who have a great number of flaves themselves, and these also are not without their flaves, Their masters are their heirs, and put them into trade. In thofe ftates, the freemen, being overpowered by the government, have no better refource than making themselves flaves to the tyrants in office.

This is the juft and rational origin of that mild law of flavery, which obtains in fome countries; and mild it ought to be, as founded on a free choice a man makes of a master, for his own benefit; which forms a mutual con, vention betwixt the two parties.

CHAP.

* Present ftate of Ruffia.

+ Dampier's voyages, vol. 3.