debarring Spain and Brazil from the conduct of this traffic, the British lion is doing little more than acting the bully. Such writers forget the contract part of the matter. Were England seeking, by threat or force of arms, to promote the emancipation of slaves within any country or any colony, large or small, there might be some foundation for the argument. As it is, there is none. She is only demanding and requiring that Spain and Brazil should do what they have promised and engaged to do, what they have been paid for doing, but what they have hitherto failed to perform. Happy is it for England that, in enforcing these claims, she is fighting in the sacred cause of humanity.
"It is also said, and universally credited, that the present captain-general views the slave-trade with an indulgent eye. At all events, it is indisputable that the importation of slaves into the island, which fell off greatly under the influence of England and the activity of the English cruisers, during the latter years of the dynasty of the late governor, (Count O'Donnel,) has of late years, and since the Count of Alcoy assumed the reins of government, received a fresh impetus, and is now flourishing in fullest vigor. How far the governor is personally concerned in the production of this result, it were next to impossible to ascertain exactly; but assuredly his correspondence with the representative of Britain in the island, as to the landing of slaves, in the course of which the British consul-general offered to give his excellency ocular evidence of the truth of his informant's story — that slaves had been lately landed from a slaver, and were then in course of sale — does not indicate any desire either to suppress the traffic or to keep faith with Britain. Indeed, it is publicly affirmed that a regularly fixed fee (some fifty dollars a-head) is exacted by the governor on each slave that is brought in, besides sundry other fees to the captain of the port or harbor-master, and other officials, who have the power of prevention more or less in their hands. In short, the system is a complete one, and completely inoculated into the principles of Cuban government. No doubt a semblance of respect for. the solemn treaties made with Britain, and for the entering into which Spain has been paid, is kept up in the island. The barbarian victims of the inhuman slave-trade are exposed to sale not as slaves, but as 'goods' or 'merchandise,' (bultos,) and some such farce is occasionally exhibited as this: A few of the imported slaves — such of them as are sick, disabled, infirm, or likely to die, and of course are of little or no value — are taken possession of by government authority, and an attempt is made to 'throw dust in the eyes of the English,' by making a noise about the matter, and formally delivering up the miserable wretches, thus 'seized,' as slaves imported into Cuba, in violation of the solemn treaties made by Spain with England — much being vaunted, at the time, of Spanish honor and national good faith. If any thing could make matters worse than the real disregard of the treaties, it would be conduct such as this — hypocrisy added to dishonesty, and the whole veiled in high-sounding words. And yet such pretended seizures and deliveries are often taking place. One had occurred only a few days before I reached Cuba, the number then seized being under twenty; while the knowr number of slaves actually introduced into the island, during that and
