The Suppression of the African Slave Trade to the United States of America Part 23

[27] _British and Foreign State Papers_, 1819-20, pp. 375-9; also pp. 220-2.

[28] _Ibid._, 1820-21, pp. 395-6.

[29] _House Doc._, 14 Cong. 2 sess. II. No. 77.

[30] _Annals of Cong._, 15 Cong. 1 sess. pp. 71, 73-78, 94-109. The motion was opposed largely by Southern members, and pa.s.sed by a vote of 17 to 16.

[31] One was reported, May 9, 1820, by Mercer's committee, and pa.s.sed May 12: _House Journal_, 16 Cong. 1 sess. pp. 497, 518, 520, 526; _Annals of Cong._, 16 Cong. 1 sess. pp. 697-9. A similar resolution pa.s.sed the House next session, and a committee reported in favor of the Right of Search: _Ibid._, 16 Cong. 2 sess. pp. 1064-71. Cf. _Ibid._, pp. 476, 743, 865, 1469.

[32] _British and Foreign State Papers_, 1820-21, pp. 397-400.

[33] _British and Foreign State Papers_, 1822-3, pp. 94-110.

[34] _House Reports_, 17 Cong. 1 sess. II. No. 92.

[35] _House Journal_, 17 Cong. 2 sess. pp. 212, 280; _Annals of Cong._, 17 Cong. 2 sess. pp. 922, 1147-1155.

[36] _British and Foreign State Papers_, 1823-4, pp. 409-21; 1824-5, pp. 828-47; _Amer. State Papers, Foreign_, V. No. 371, pp. 333-7.

[37] _Ibid._

[38] _Ibid._, No. 374, p. 344 ff., No. 379, pp. 360-2.

[39] _House Reports_, 18 Cong. 2 sess. I. No. 70; _Amer. State Papers, Foreign_, V. No. 379, pp. 364-5, No. 414, p. 783, etc.

Among the nations invited by the United States to co-operate in suppressing the trade was the United States of Colombia.

Mr. Anderson, our minister, expressed "the certain belief that the Republic of Colombia will not permit herself to be behind any Government in the civilized world in the adoption of energetic measures for the suppression of this disgraceful traffic": _Ibid._, No. 407, p. 729. The little republic replied courteously; and, as a _projet_ for a treaty, Mr.

Anderson offered the proposed English treaty of 1824, including the Senate amendments. Nevertheless, the treaty thus agreed to was summarily rejected by the Senate, March 9, 1825: _Ibid._, p. 735. Another result of this general invitation of the United States was a proposal by Colombia that the slave-trade and the status of Hayti be among the subjects for discussion at the Panama Congress. As a result of this, a Senate committee recommended that the United States take no part in the Congress. This report was finally disagreed to by a vote of 19 to 24: _Ibid._, No. 423, pp. 837, 860, 876, 882.

[40] _British and Foreign State Papers_, 1823-4, and 1826-7.

Brazil abolished the trade in 1830.

[41] This treaty was further defined in 1833: _Ibid._, 1830-1, p. 641 ff.; 1832-3, p. 286 ff.

[42] _Ibid._, 1833-4, pp. 218 ff., 1059 ff.

[43] _Ibid._, 1837-8, p. 268 ff.

[44] _Ibid._, 1838-9, p. 792 ff.

[45] Viz., Feb. 28, 1825; April 7, 1830; Feb. 16, 1831; March 3, 1831. The last resolution pa.s.sed the House: _House Journal_, 21 Cong. 2 sess. pp. 426-8.

[46] Cf. _House Doc._, 26 Cong. 2 sess. V. No. 115, pp. 35-6, etc.; _House Reports_, 27 Cong. 3 sess. III. No. 283, pp.

730-55, etc.

[47] These were the celebrated cases of the "Encomium,"

"Enterprize," and "Comet." Cf. _Senate Doc._, 24 Cong. 2 sess.

II. No. 174; 25 Cong. 3 sess. III. No. 216. Cf. also case of the "Creole": _Ibid._, 27 Cong. 2 sess. II.-III. Nos. 51, 137.

[48] _Ibid._, 26 Cong. 2 sess. IV. No. 179; _Senate Exec.

Doc._, 31 Cong. 2 sess. III. No. 29; 32 Cong. 2 sess. III. No.

19; _Senate Reports_, 31 Cong. 2 sess. No. 301; 32 Cong. 1 sess. I. No. 158; 35 Cong. 1 sess. I. No. 36; _House Doc._, 26 Cong. 1 sess. IV. No. 185; 27 Cong. 3 sess. V. No. 191; 28 Cong. 1 sess. IV. No. 83; _House Exec. Doc._, 32 Cong. 2 sess.

III. No. 20; _House Reports_, 26 Cong. 2 sess. No. 51; 28 Cong. 1 sess. II. No. 426; 29 Cong. 1 sess. IV. No. 753; also Decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court, _15 Peters_, 518. Cf.

Drake, _Revelations of a Slave Smuggler_, p. 98.

[49] _British and Foreign State Papers_, 1834-5, p. 136.

[50] _Ibid._, pp. 135-47. Great Britain made treaties meanwhile with Hayti, Uruguay, Venezuela, Bolivia, Argentine Confederation, Mexico, Texas, etc. Portugal prohibited the slave-trade in 1836, except between her African colonies. Cf.

_Ibid._, from 1838 to 1841.

[51] These estimates are from the following sources: _Ibid._, 1822-3, pp. 94-110; _Parliamentary Papers_, 1823, XVIII., _Slave Trade_, Further Papers, A., pp. 10-11; 1838-9, XLIX., _Slave Trade_, Cla.s.s A, Further Series, pp. 115, 119, 121; _House Doc._, 19 Cong. 1 sess. I. No. 1, p. 93; 20 Cong. 1 sess. III. No. 99; 26 Cong. 1 sess. VI. No. 211; _House Exec.

Doc._, 31 Cong. 2 sess. I. No. 1, p. 193; _House Reports_, 21 Cong. 1 sess. III. No. 348; _Senate Doc._, 28 Cong. 1 sess.

IV. No. 217; 31 Cong. 1 sess. XIV. No. 66; 31 Cong. 2 sess.

II. No. 6; _Amer. State Papers, Naval_, I. No. 249; Buxton, _The African Slave Trade and its Remedy_, pp. 44-59; Friends'

_Facts and Observations on the Slave Trade_ (ed. 1841); Friends' _Exposition of the Slave Trade, 1840-50_; _Annual Reports of the American and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society_.

The annexed table gives the dates of the abolition of the slave-trade by the various nations:--

-------+-------------------+---------------------------+-------------- Arrangements Right of Search Treaty for Joint Date. Slave-trade with Great Britain, Cruising Abolished by made by with Great Britain, made by -------+-------------------+---------------------------+-------------- 1802 Denmark. 1807 Great Britain; United States. 1813 Sweden. 1814 Netherlands. 1815 Portugal (north of the equator). 1817 Spain (north of Portugal; Spain. the equator). 1818 France. Netherlands. 1820 Spain. 1824 Sweden. 1829 Brazil (?). 1830 Portugal. 1831-33 France. 1833-39 Denmark, Hanse Towns, etc. 1841 Quintuple Treaty (Austria, 1842 Russia, Prussia). United States.

1844 Texas. 1845 Belgium. France.

1862 United States. -------+-------------------+---------------------------+--------------

[52] Cf. _British and Foreign State Papers_, from 1836 to 1842.

[53] _Ibid._, 1839-40, p. 940.

[54] _House Doc._, 27 Cong. 1 sess. No. 34, pp. 5-6.

[55] _Senate Doc._, 29 Cong. 1 sess. VIII. No. 377, p. 56.

[56] _Ibid._, p. 72.

[57] _Ibid._, pp. 133-40, etc.

[58] _British and Foreign State Papers_, 1841-2, p. 269 ff.

[59] See below, Appendix B.

[60] _Senate Doc._, 29 Cong. 1 sess. VIII. No. 377, p. 201.

[61] _Senate Exec. Journal_, VI. 123.

[62] _U.S. Treaties and Conventions_ (ed. 1889), pp. 436-7.

For the debates in the Senate, see _Congressional Globe_, 27 Cong. 3 sess. Appendix. Ca.s.s resigned on account of the acceptance of this treaty without a distinct denial of the Right of Search, claiming that this compromised his position in France. Cf. _Senate Doc._, 27 Cong. 3 sess. II., IV. Nos.

52, 223; 29 Cong. 1 sess. VIII. No. 377.

[63] Cf. below, Chapter X.