For if liberty is only an adventitious right; if men are by no means superiour to brutes; if every social duty is a curse; if cruelty is highly to be esteemed; if murder is strictly honourable, and Christianity is a lye; then it is evident, that the _African_ slavery may be pursued, without either the remorse of conscience, or the imputation of a crime.

But if the contrary of this is true, which reason must immediately evince, it is evident that no custom established among men was ever more impious; since it is contrary to _reason, justice, nature, the principles of law and government, the whole doctrine, in short, of natural religion, and the revealed voice of God_.
* * * * * FOOTNOTES [Footnote 111: Epist.

to Philemon.] [Footnote 112: The _African_ slave is of this description; and we could wish, in all our arguments on the present subject, to be understood as having spoken only of _proper slaves_.

The slave who is condemned to the oar, to the fortifications, and other publick works, is in a different predicament.

His liberty is not _appropriated_, and therefore none of those consequences can be justly drawn, which have been deduced in the present case.] [Footnote 113: See the description of an African battle (Footnote 049).] [Footnote 114: The lowest computation is 40,000, (Footnote 060).] [Footnote 115: The legislature has squandered away more money in the prosecution of the slave trade, within twenty years, than in any other trade whatever, having granted from the year 1750, to the year 1770, the sum of 300,000 pounds.] [Footnote 116: Sermon preached before the University of Cambridge, by the Rev.Peter Peckard.] [Footnote 117: The first noted earthquake at Jamaica, happened June the 7th 1692, when Port Royal was totally sunk.