PURCHASE OF AFRICAN SLAVES.
15
the natives themselves. This plan was laid before the council in Spain, and although strongly resisted by Cardinal Ximenes, who saw the impropriety of condemning an innocent nation to perpetual slavery to save another, the measure was carried by a majority of voices, and Charles granted to a favourite courtier a patent, empowering him to purchase slaves in Africa, and ship them to the West Indies. This patent was purchased by some Genoese merchants, who immediately put it into execution, and thus that detestable traffic, the “ slave trade," was introduced by men calling themselves Christians, and professing to follow the doctrines of their divine Master, while they deliberately set at nought his great precept — “ Do unto others as you would have others do unto you." It is not within the plan of the present work to inquire how much the situation of the Indians was improved by this arrangement, but will merely observe, that while Las Casas spent his time, his money, and his health, in trying to benefit his favourite people, he forgot all other classes, and completely shut the door of mercy upon the unoffending Africans ; and for no other cause than it had pleased their Creator to bestow upon them greater strength than upon the natives of the West, they were torn from their country, their friends, and home, and, to “ increase a stranger's treasures," consigned to hopeless misery. To the Portuguese and Genoese the slave-trade exclusively belonged for many years ; at length, the Dutch, seeing the gainfulness of it, engaged in it; and in 1564, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, Sir John, then Mr. Hawkins, introduced this bloodstained commerce (for so it may justly be termed) into the English trade, and thus tarnished the bright name he had acquired by his many naval victories. Oh, that England, so famous for her spirit of liberty, should have ever imbrued her hands in this inhuman traffic ! —that she, the " empress of the waves," should have lent her power to crush these unfortunate beings !—that that