To put down the foreign slave-trade, without first devising honest occupation for a dense1, idle, and mischievous2 population of Africa, would seal the death-warrant of every captive who, under the present system, is preserved as saleable booty. Hence it must be admitted, that to inculcate industry and to extend cultivation3 by voluntary labour, are indispensable stepping-stones towards the ultimate amelioration of a people who do not at present possess the elements for extended commerce. To create these would be to change the destinies of the Negro, by including him within the league of the rights of man; and habits of industry must rapidly raise him from savage4 ignorance to that state of improvement which is essential to fit him for the privileges of a freeman.
The present very limited exports of this immensely populous5 continent, which do not amount in value to those of Cuba, with only twelve hundred thousand inhabitants, must be reckoned among the chief causes of her misery6 and thraldom7. Few, if any, of the commodities bartered8 with other nations are the production of capital, labour, or industry, and in the minds of the whole population the ideas of prosperity and of a slave-trade are inseparable. But if all that is coveted9 could be placed within honest reach, in exchange for the produce of the soil, the hands which should cultivate it will never afterwards be sold.
“Legitimate commerce,” writes Sir Fowell Buxton, “would put down the slave-trade, by demonstrating the superior value of man as a labourer on the soil, to man as an object of merchandise. If conducted on wise and equitable10 principles, it might be the precursor11, or rather the attendant, of civilisation12, peace, and Christianity to the unenlightened, warlike, and heathen tribes, who now so fearfully prey14 upon each other to support the slave-markets of the New World; and a commercial system upon just, liberal, and comprehensive principles, which guarded the native on the one hand, and secured protection to the honest trader on the other, would therefore confer the richest blessings15 on a country so long desolated16 and degraded by its intercourse17 with the basest and most iniquitous18 portion of mankind.”
The average cost of a seasoned slave in Cuba is 120 pounds sterling19; but it has been seen that in Enárea and other parts of the interior he may be purchased for ten pieces of salt, equivalent to two shillings and a penny—for a pair of Birmingham scissors, or even for a few ells of blue calico. Hence it may be inferred that the hire of the freeman would be in the same ratio; and if so, it is obvious that this cheap labour, applied20 to a soil as productive as any in the world, would ensure to African tropical produce the superiority in every market to which it might be introduced.
Able advocates of the cause of humanity have upon these grounds clearly demonstrated, that, in order to suppress completely the foreign traffic in human flesh, it is only necessary to raise, in any accessible point affording the readiest outlet21, sugar, coffee, and cotton, and to throw these yearly into the market of the world, already fully13 supplied by expensive slave labour. The creation of this cheap additional produce would so depress the price current in every other quarter, that the external slave-trade would no longer be profitable, and would therefore cease to exist.
The baneful22 climate of Africa is the obstacle which has hitherto opposed the introduction of agriculture, and the chief object in seeking geographical23 information has been to discover some point whence the object may be accomplished24 with safety. That point is presented in the north-eastern coast, where, from no great distance inland to an unknown extent, the spontaneous gifts of nature are transcendently abundant—the people are prepared by misfortune to welcome civilised assistance—the soil is fertile and productive, and the climate, alpine25 and salubrious, is highly congenial to the European constitution.
All these countries are believed to be accessible from the Juba, more commonly called the Govind, which is said to rise in Abyssinia, and to be navigable in boats for three months from its mouth. Its embouchure is in the territories of the friendly sheikhs of Brava, seven in number, the hereditary26 representatives of seven Arab brothers, who were first induced to settle on that part of the coast by the lucrative27 trade in grain, gold, ambergris, ivory, rhinoceros’ horns, and hippopotamus’ teeth. They were formerly28 under the protection of Portugal; but even the remembrance of that state of things has nearly passed away from the present generation. From Mombás, which is the most northern possession of Syyud Syyud, the Imam of Muscat, the coast as far as the equator is in occupation of the Sowáhili, a quiet and intelligent race of Moorish29 origin, and thence to Zeyla, which is now in the hands of Sheikh Ali Shermárki, the entire population is Somauli. The climate, even so far south as Mombás, is notoriously good; and the government affords a striking contrast to that of the western coast, where the regions in corresponding latitudes30 are subject to bloody31 despotism, such as is submitted to by none but the ignorant savage.
Measures at once simple and profitable, might therefore be adopted by the purchase or rent of land on this river, which is conjectured32 to be the Gochob, and would seem to promise easy access to the very hotbed of slavery. It has been well remarked by McQueen, in his Geographical Survey, that “rivers are the roads in the torrid zone;” and should the stream now under consideration fortunately prove fitted for navigation, the introduction through its means of the essential requisites33 to the happiness and the emancipation34 of the now oppressed continent, could not fail to confer the most inestimable advantages.
The power of Abyssinia, once so extended in this quarter, was known even to the Delta35 of the Niger. It was from the sovereigns of Benin that the Portuguese36 first heard of the glories of “Prester John;” and as it is quite certain that a communication did formerly exist, “by a journey of twenty moons,” through the countries in the upper course of the Egyptian Nile, there seems no reason to doubt that it might be readily renewed. Of the salubrity of the regions in which all these streams take their source, no question can be entertained. Ptolemy Euergetes, when sovereign of Egypt, penetrated37 to the most southern provinces of Ethiopia, which he conquered, and he has described his passage to have been effected, in some parts, over mountains deeply covered with snow.
Those portions of the continent which are blessed with the finest climate, and with the largest share of natural gifts, and which teem38 with a population long ravaged39 by the inroads of the kidnapper40, must be of all others the most eminently41 fitted to receive, and the most capable of bringing to maturity42, the seeds which can alone form the elements of future prosperity. And what nation is better qualified43 to confer such inestimable gifts, or more likely to profit by them, when judiciously44 bestowed45, than Great Britain? The most civilised nations are those which possess the deepest interest in the spread of civilisation, and none more than herself are deeply interested in the speedy suppression of the traffic in human beings.
No beneficial change can ever be anticipated, so long as the population of the interior remain cut off from all communication with enlightened nations—so long as they are visited only by the mercenary rover, and are hemmed46 in by fanatic47 powers, whose policy it is to encourage this monstrous48 practice. The Mohammadans are not only traders for the sake of slaves almost exclusively, but they are, as respects the greater portion of interior Africa, jealous, reckless, commercial rivals. It is not, therefore, surprising that they should exert all the influence which they possess from the combination of avarice49, ignorance, prejudice, and religion, to exclude foreign influence; and without roads, or any efficient means for the conveyance50 of heavy merchandise, it is not to be expected that the ignorant despot of the interior will ever think of making his slaves or his subjects cultivate produce of great bulk and laborious51 carriage, in order to procure52 in exchange articles which he requires, whilst with very trifling53 labour and still more trifling expense, they can be driven even to the most remote market, and there sold or exchanged.
But few people are more desirous or more capable of trading than the natives of Africa; and the facility with which factories might be formed is sufficiently54 proved by experience in various parts of the continent. Abundance of land now unoccupied could be purchased or rented at a mere55 nominal56 rate, in positions where the permanent residence of the white man would be hailed with universal joy, as contributing to the repose57 of tribes long harassed58 and persecuted59. The serf would seek honest employment in the field, and the chiefs of slave-dealing states, gladly entering into any arrangement for the introduction of wealth and finery, would, after the establishment of agriculture, no longer find their interest in the flood of human victims, which is now annually60 poured through the highlands of Abyssinia.
I trust that these remarks upon the importance of such a communication as the Gochob may prove to afford to the countries in which it is situated61, will not be considered either tedious or superfluous62. Much has been written upon the policy which has seen, in many a barbarous location, the future marts of a boundless63 and lucrative commerce—the centres whence its attendant blessings, knowledge, civilisation, and wealth, would radiate amongst savage hordes64. Here are no deserts, but nations already prepared for improvement, and countries gifted by nature with a congenial climate, and with a boundless extent of virgin65 soil, where the indigo66 and the tea-plant flourish spontaneously, and where the growth of the sugarcane and of every other tropical productions may be carried to an unlimited67 extent—regions affording grain in vast superabundance, and rich in valuable staples—cotton, coffee, spices, ivory, gold dust, peltries, and drugs. But although thus surrounded by natural wealth, and placed within reach of affluence68 and happiness, the denizens69 of these favoured regions imperatively70 require the fostering care of British protection, to become either prosperous, contented71, or free.
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1
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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2
mischievous
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| adj.调皮的，恶作剧的，有害的，伤人的 | |
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cultivation
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| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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populous
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| adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的 | |
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misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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thraldom
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| n.奴隶的身份，奴役，束缚 | |
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bartered
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| v.作物物交换，以货换货( barter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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coveted
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| adj.令人垂涎的；垂涎的，梦寐以求的v.贪求，觊觎(covet的过去分词)；垂涎；贪图 | |
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equitable
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| adj.公平的；公正的 | |
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precursor
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| n.先驱者；前辈；前任；预兆；先兆 | |
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civilisation
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| n.文明，文化，开化，教化 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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blessings
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| n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福 | |
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desolated
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| adj.荒凉的，荒废的 | |
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intercourse
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| n.性交；交流，交往，交际 | |
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iniquitous
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| adj.不公正的；邪恶的；高得出奇的 | |
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sterling
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| adj.英币的(纯粹的，货真价实的)；n.英国货币(英镑) | |
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applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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outlet
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| n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄 | |
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baneful
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| adj.有害的 | |
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geographical
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| adj.地理的；地区(性)的 | |
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accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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alpine
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| adj.高山的；n.高山植物 | |
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hereditary
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| adj.遗传的，遗传性的，可继承的，世袭的 | |
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lucrative
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| adj.赚钱的，可获利的 | |
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formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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moorish
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| adj.沼地的，荒野的，生[住]在沼地的 | |
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latitudes
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| 纬度 | |
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31
bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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32
conjectured
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| 推测，猜测，猜想( conjecture的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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requisites
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| n.必要的事物( requisite的名词复数 ) | |
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emancipation
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| n.（从束缚、支配下）解放 | |
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delta
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| n.（流的）角洲 | |
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Portuguese
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| n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语 | |
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penetrated
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| adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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teem
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| vi.(with)充满，多产 | |
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ravaged
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| 毁坏( ravage的过去式和过去分词 )； 蹂躏； 劫掠； 抢劫 | |
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kidnapper
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| n.绑架者，拐骗者 | |
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eminently
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| adv.突出地；显著地；不寻常地 | |
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42
maturity
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| n.成熟；完成；(支票、债券等)到期 | |
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43
qualified
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| adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的 | |
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judiciously
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| adv.明断地，明智而审慎地 | |
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45
bestowed
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| 赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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46
hemmed
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| 缝…的褶边( hem的过去式和过去分词 )； 包围 | |
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47
fanatic
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| n.狂热者，入迷者；adj.狂热入迷的 | |
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48
monstrous
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| adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的 | |
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49
avarice
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| n.贪婪；贪心 | |
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50
conveyance
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| n.(不动产等的)转让，让与；转让证书；传送；运送；表达；（正）运输工具 | |
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51
laborious
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| adj.吃力的，努力的，不流畅 | |
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52
procure
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| vt.获得，取得，促成；vi.拉皮条 | |
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53
trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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54
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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55
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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56
nominal
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| adj.名义上的；(金额、租金)微不足道的 | |
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57
repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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58
harassed
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| adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词 | |
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59
persecuted
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| （尤指宗教或政治信仰的）迫害(~sb. for sth.)( persecute的过去式和过去分词 )； 烦扰，困扰或骚扰某人 | |
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60
annually
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| adv.一年一次，每年 | |
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61
situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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62
superfluous
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| adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的 | |
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boundless
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| adj.无限的；无边无际的；巨大的 | |
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hordes
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| n.移动着的一大群( horde的名词复数 )；部落 | |
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virgin
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| n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的 | |
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66
indigo
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| n.靛青，靛蓝 | |
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67
unlimited
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| adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的 | |
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68
affluence
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| n.充裕，富足 | |
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69
denizens
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| n.居民，住户( denizen的名词复数 ) | |
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imperatively
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| adv.命令式地 | |
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contented
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| adj.满意的，安心的，知足的 | |
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