chap, iv.] WEST INDIES. 325 
nions of foreign powers, (so conveniently situated 
for contraband traffic), can hesitate a moment to 
pronounce, that an attempt to prevent the intro¬ 
duction of slaves into our West Indian colonies, 
would be like that of chaining the winds, or giving 
laws to the ocean.* 
The next object to which it was proposed to di¬ 
rect our inquiries, is the mode of conveying slaves 
from Africa to the West Indies, and their mortality 
on the voyage; constituting the second ground on 
which most of the petitioners to parliament for an 
abolition of the trade, have rested their application. 
But before I proceed to consider this part of my 
subject, it may not be improper to offer a few ob¬ 
servations concerning the great disproportion of 
sexes in the purchases that are made on the coast; 
it being a well known fact, that of the vast num¬ 
bers of slaves annually exported from Africa, about 
one third only are females. This circumstance has 
* It was said (with what truth I know not) that besides confiscation 
of ship and cargo, it was meant to consider the clandestine importa¬ 
tion of slaves into our colonies as a felonious act, and to punish it 
capitally. The Spaniards treat many species of smuggling in this 
manner, and in no part of the world is the contraband traffic so pre¬ 
valent as in the Spanish dominions. It is a curious question, in what 
manner a cargo of slaves, seized as contraband, would be disposed of I 
To declare a set of poor helpless savages -free, and turn them loose in 
a strange country, without food orcloathing, would hardly be thought 
of, and to send them back to Africa, besides the expense and length 
of the voyage, would be to consign them over to certain destruction. 
This difficulty seems to have been altogether overlooked during the 
discussion of the slave business in parliament. 
