It is quite correct that they had had communication, as will appear subsequently by evidence in respect of this vessel; they actually received the amount of the insurance on the damaged goods landed at Cadiz. “Your whole interest was a commission upon the transaction?—Entirely. The extent of those transactions has been so limited in the course of nearly 20 years that we have been in this country, that the amount of the invoices that we have sent out has been something like 20,000l. or 22,000l. in the course of all that time. That is one part of the operations we have performed. The other operations are the acceptance of bills drawn by people on the coast; among them Pedro Blanco when he was there, upon ourselves, on account of Blanco & Cavallo, of Havannah, upon funds which Blanco & Cavallo had in our hands; for instance, the people at the Havannah, or in Spain, open a credit with us, and we accept the bills of the parties on that credit with us just the same as we should do with any other correspondent in any other part.” You will hear probably in evidence who this Pedro Blanco was. I shall prove that he was a person extensively engaged in the trade in slaves.
Then the evidence proceeds:—“You would have funds in your hands, arising from some commercial transactions between you and the Havannah merchant or the Cadiz merchant; and Pedro Blanco, upon the coast of Africa would draw upon the credit of those funds, being authorised by the Cadiz or the Havannah merchant?—Yes; and if Pedro Blanco had drawn five shillings beyond that, we should have protested, and in some instances we have protested. With regard to the vessel alluded to in this Report, the Augusta, our part in that concern has been simply that which appears from one of the letters: that is to say, Pedro Martinez, of Cadiz, had made choice of Jennings to buy the vessel, and lent him money to buy the vessel; because Pedro Martinez wanted him to have a vessel in the trade for the purpose of taking his goods to their destination.”
Gentlemen, it is always satisfactory in a case of this kind to know, if a person be charged with any offence, as Mr. Zulueta was, that a copy of the evidence is sent to him; and when a person under such circumstances makes a statement, it is satisfactory to know that if that statement be true, it can be perfectly and easily proved by him, that there is no doubt about it. No doubt evidence must be given sufficient to charge the prisoner with the offence before he can be called upon for his defence; but if he makes a statement, it is satisfactory to know that, if there is a defence, it is absolutely in his power. Mr. Zulueta is one of a firm; there is no difficulty therefore in proving all their transactions. If he has letters limiting him to 500l., there are means of proving that beyond all question.
He goes on: “I have now described the three kinds of operations in which we have been concerned, and our knowledge of all of them terminated with the execution of the orders of our correspondents. We had nothing more to do than to follow the orders of the purchaser in shipping the goods. With regard to the purchase of the vessel by Jennings; Jennings is a man who has been employed some time by Martinez; he has served Martinez as a chartered captain, and Martinez having been satisfied with his services, agreed to lend him that money on the security of the vessel, provided it did not exceed a certain amount; which was all the interference we had with it, just to see that a certain amount was not exceeded, 500l. or whatever it was.” “Then you were to furnish Captain Jennings with money for the purchase within a limited amount, say 500l., credit being given to him upon you by Pedro Martinez, of Cadiz?—That is just the point.” There is no doubt, gentlemen, as it would appear, that the letter I have read to you had been published, and was known to Mr. Zulueta, in which he writes and tells Jennings that they will not proceed in the purchase further than 500l. Certainly it was not known at that time that we should have the means of showing them that there was in fact no such limit to the purchase adopted, and that that letter could not be used for the purpose, for Mr. Zulueta does actually give 650l. for the purchase of that vessel.
He is then asked—“The Augusta being purchased by money advanced by your house for Martinez and Company, of Cadiz; and she then became the property of Pedro Martinez?—No, she became the property of Jennings; the money was lent to Jennings, and he bound himself by giving security on the vessel to answer for the amount. It is a mercantile operation, which is not unusual.” If it had been a mere loan and mortgage of the vessel, there can be no doubt of the fact; but it is for you to say whether that is the nature of the transaction. “You advanced the money to Captain Jennings for the purchase of the vessel, Jennings transferring the vessel to you as a security for the amount so advanced?—That is just the description of operation, which is a very general one in business.” Then he goes on to describe the transaction: “What is the object of such an operation?—I know very little, or almost next to nothing, of the operations in those parts of the world; but the object of such an operation I apprehend to be this: a vessel chartered with a stranger must be governed by the different clauses of the charter-party; the charterer must be limited to time and to places; and by Martinez having the vessel owned by a man with whom he could have a better understanding than with others, he might always send more advantageously articles from the Havannah to the Gallinas, and from here to the Gallinas. When I say articles, I mean legal articles.” “What advantage would there be in Mr. Jennings taking the articles rather as the owner than as captain under Martinez; was not he commander of the vessel as well as owner of the vessel?—Yes.” “He is made the owner, instead of being captain?—He is the owner as well as the captain of the vessel; he stands indebted to Martinez, and gives a bottomry bond for the vessel.” Gentlemen, the documents I have offered to you, which are the charter-party and the other papers relating to the vessel, do not amount to a bottomry bond; if there was one, there can be no difficulty in the prisoner proving it to you.
Then he is asked: “Does Mr. Jennings upon this transaction make all the freight to his own profit?—Certainly; whatever he does is to his own profit.” That certainly was not the fact; for he was obliged to give up the vessel whenever called upon. “He is not, then, an agent for Martinez?—No, he is a person to whom Martinez lends the money to buy the vessel; whatever profit he derives is his own. Martinez has this advantage, which to a mercantile man is very perceptible, that he has got a charter with a man who stands in that relation towards him which gives him a sort of control over the vessel. If I, as a stranger, charter a vessel for Martinez, and he has spent one, two, or five days more in landing goods than the charter-party allows, I should make a claim for it; I should say, ‘You must keep to the charter.’ Now, when Jennings is indebted to him for the favour of a loan for the vessel, he is not upon a similar footing.” “So that he gets the vessel more under his own control?—Yes; in saying this I am putting an hypothetical case, but I do not know the mind of Martinez himself.”
Then he is asked: “You acted in this transaction merely as agent in the usual manner, as you would have acted for any house in any part of the world?—Exactly; if Martinez had told me, ‘You have got 500l. in your hands, pay that to Captain Jennings,’ I should have known nothing more of the transaction; I should have paid the money. But Martinez did not wish to go beyond a certain amount; and he says, ‘You exercise control, do not allow the man to pay more than 500l. for the vessel.’” Gentlemen, the letter treats it as a purchase for Zulueta. There may or may not be those directions; if there were, it is in his power to prove them; and it should be recollected that there was not time to get fresh instructions after the declaration that he could not exceed 500l. before he paid 650l. for it: it is only in a few days. If a man says, when charged with theft, “I bought the goods of such a person,” that is no evidence at all, unless, he proves that he bought them, which he may easily do if it is the fact. So here, if the prisoner says, though this letter, which purports to be the letter of instructions for the actual purchase, limits it to 500l., I received directions from Martinez to purchase at 650l., that is proved with perfect facility, for it must be by letter, and there are other persons in the firm who can prove it for him. “But beyond the purchase of the vessel and the shipment of the goods, the other arrangements and the subsequent transactions were entirely between Jennings and Martinez & Co.?—Most assuredly; except with the order of Martinez, I do not know how we could have done any thing with him in any way.” That of course will be proved.
Then it goes on: “Though the process of hypothecating a vessel may be usual between British merchants, is it usual to cover a transaction of Spanish slave trade with the British flag, by means of such an arrangement as that described to have taken place in the case of the Augusta?—In order to answer that question, it seems to me that it is fair that I should ask where is the transaction of covering, and where is the slave trade transaction? I know positively of my own knowledge that there is no such thing at all connected with the Augusta. If I had an opportunity, I could make my affidavit of that.” He is asked again: “Do you mean that you know that the Augusta was not engaged in any slaving transactions during the voyage upon which she left Liverpool?—Most assuredly not; in fact my testimony is hardly required of that, because every thing proves that. When she was detained, it was never said that she was upon a slaving operation at all. Before she left this port, after she was bought, she was completely rendered useless for that purpose.” Now leagers and things of that kind must be taken to pieces, for she would not be allowed to have those on board; but the staves forming them were left on board in a state in which they might very soon have been made ready for use. When the question comes, whether she was engaged in a slave trading transaction, you are to examine the grounds of the prisoner’s denial with reference to the other parts of the testimony, and how far that can be relied upon.
This question is then put: “The charge is, that she was engaged in carrying goods to a person engaged in the slave trade; not that she was engaged in the slave trade herself?—I most certainly say, that I do not know whether the person is so engaged or not.” “Is it usual to cover a transaction of Spanish trade with the English flag?—I am not aware that a Spanish merchant is prohibited chartering an English vessel.” No doubt a Spanish merchant is not; but if an Englishman knows that that vessel is being chartered for a slave trading transaction, and he is one of the persons chartering her for that purpose, I have no hesitation in stating that he is guilty under this Act of Parliament, for he is chartering a vessel to accomplish that illegal object; and if merchants in this country would not accept bills drawn by slave traders, if they would not send goods from this country to be employed for the purpose—in fact, the trade could not be carried on at all. Then he is asked: “But is it lawful to employ the British flag to cover a vessel that is not owned by a British subject?—I say that that vessel is owned by a British subject.” “By whom?—By Captain Jennings.” It is for you to say whether that is a covert, or a bonâ fide ownership. “Was not the money with which she was purchased, the money of Pedro Martinez—It seems to me that English captains and English subjects are not prohibited from borrowing money from Spaniards; she was bought with money lent by Pedro Martinez to Captain Jennings for the purpose.” Of course there can be no difficulty in showing that that was lent by persons connected with that firm, if it is true; if it is not true, of course it will not be shown.
Then he is asked: “Do you mean that the money was a loan to Captain Jennings, at the time he paid it for the vessel?—It was a loan to Captain Jennings.” “Do you mean that the ship was then Captain Jennings’s property?—It was.” “Was it in his power to sell that ship at any port he pleased?—There was a mortgage upon the vessel.” “You have stated that yours is an agency trade?—It is so, and in the multitude of business, any one can understand that 20,000l. in 15 or 20 years, can only be a mere trifle in the business of any merchant, without laying claim to a large business; and in following that business, we have executed shipping orders.” “To what part of the coast of Africa has that business been chiefly conducted?—I believe almost exclusively to the Gallinas.” I believe you will find the Gallinas is simply a slave trading place, and nothing else. “Have the goods that Mr. Martinez has ordered to be sent to the Gallinas, been all sent to the same individual?—No, to different individuals; sometimes to Pedro Blanco, who was for a certain time an agent of Pedro Martinez on the coast, and sometimes we have sent a bill of lading drawn in this way to order; we have sent it to Pedro Martinez as a voucher against his account.” “Do you know the nature of the trade of Pedro Martinez at the Gallinas?—I know from general report that Don Pedro Martinez himself is supposed to deal in slaves, and I believe it is so.” All his goods have been sent to the Gallinas. “Is he known at the Havannah as a dealer in slaves?—I do not know; but I believe so. I do not know why it should not be known at the Havannah, if it is known in other parts.” “Is a ship which is hypothecated liable to be foreclosed at any moment at the discretion of the mortgagee?—It depends altogether upon the terms of the mortgage. If the mortgagee says, ‘You must give me the money when I ask for it,’ of course he must sell the vessel if he has not got any thing else.” Read on in the same way this document, “but he is not bound to give the money in any shape or form.” “He would always have to deduct whatever freight had been earned. When the security may be called upon to be effective, depends upon the nature of the transaction between the parties.” “Your house had nothing to do with any letters that might be put on board the Augusta after she sailed from this country?—Nothing whatever.” “The Augusta was seized on the coast of Africa on the charge of slave trading?—I believe that was the case.” “Did you not appeal against that condemnation?—Yes, there is an appeal by the owner.” “Before the Privy Council?—Yes.” “That appeal is not yet decided?—I believe not.” “You stated that your transactions with Africa for Martinez have amounted to about 20,000l. in 15 or 20 years. What has been the amount of your whole transactions with Blanco and Martinez of the Havannah during that period?—Perhaps 100,000l. or a larger sum. For instance, we have received more than 40 or 50 cargoes of sugar from the Havannah consigned to us, and cigars; and we have received bills of lading of specie, shipped at Mexico, to be sold here, and bar gold, and things of that sort.” “Have you reason to suppose that the whole of that large commerce is subservient to the carrying on of the slave trade by the house of Blanco & Martinez at the Havannah?—I do not know; I know that they have large transactions in general business. I know that a short time ago I got 40,000l. or 50,000l. of Spanish bonds in the market for Martinez. I know that he is a large speculator in Spanish bonds and in securities of state.” “Is that speculating in Spanish bonds on account of the house at Cadiz, or the house at Havannah?—Speaking technically, I should say it was on account of the Cadiz house.” “The question related to the commerce of the Havannah house?—Pedro Martinez is a Havannah merchant. But with regard to Havannah merchants, we have received large consignments of sugar, cochineal, and sometimes Mexican goods, brought to Havannah, and shipped to us here.” “In what course of business have the proceeds of those consignments been disposed of; have they gone in sending supplies to the coast of Africa?—Out of that large amount of money 22,000l. is the amount of all the goods that we have sent to the coast of Africa in 20 years.” “Of all descriptions?—Of all sorts and kinds; I have gone through the invoice-book and found them out.” “Have the proceeds generally been disposed of by drafts from the parties themselves to your house?—By the parties at Havannah, when the exchange turns to their advantage.” “Have you reason to suppose that a large portion of the trade that they carry on at the Havannah is the slave trade?—I had no reason to know any thing of the kind; I have known more of their transactions with the slave trade since these things have been mooted than I ever knew before; I have had more knowledge of these things lately than I ever had in my life before; and when I say ‘I,’ I beg to state that I ought to state ‘we,’ for all my partners are in the same situation.” “Have you been employed by the house at the Havannah to ship manufactured goods from this country to Havannah, suitable for the African trade?—We have sometimes shipped goods to the Havannah of the same kind as those that were in the Augusta; cotton goods and other things of that sort.” “Has that been recently?—In the course of our operations.” “How many years ago?—In the course of these 15 or 20 years that we have been engaged in business with them; all that I could see in a moment by my books.” “Have you sent any goods of that description to the Havannah recently?—Not very recently; I think not for some years.” “Have you sent any goods of that description since you first began to send goods out direct to the coast of Africa?—They have been mixed; I cannot draw a distinction between the two destinations; some have gone to the Havannah, some to the Gallinas.” “Have those supplies of English manufactured goods, which heretofore went to the Havannah, to be used there for promoting the slave trade, been more recently sent direct from this country to the coast of Africa?—No, I do not think that is the case; I should think the contrary is more likely to be the case; but I think we have shipped in some months, or in some years, partly to the Havannah, and partly to the Gallinas.”