[412] The force and beauty of this passage will be best understood by the following statement. A slave, of the name of Somerset was brought over to England from the West Indies, by his master, Mr. Stewart. Shortly after, he absented himself, and refused to return. He was pursued and arrested, and by Mr. Stewart's orders forcibly put on board a ship, the captain of which was called Knowles. He was there detained in custody, to be carried out of the kingdom and sold. The case being made known was brought before Lord Chief Justice Mansfield, in the Court of King's Bench, June 22, 1772. The judgment of Lord Mansfield, on this occasion, was as follows:—"A foreigner cannot be imprisoned here, on the authority of any law existing in his own country. The power of a master over his servant is different in all countries, more or less limited or extensive; the exercise of it therefore must always be regulated by the laws of the place where exercised. The power claimed by this return was never in use here. No master ever was allowed here to take a slave by force, to be sold abroad, because he had deserted from his service, or for any other reason whatever. We cannot say the cause set forth by this return is allowed or approved of by the laws of this kingdom, and therefore the man must be discharged." "In other words," says a report of the case, "a negro slave, coming from the colonies into Great Britain, becomes ipso facto Free."
[413] With what feelings of deep gratitude ought we to record the final emancipation of eight hundred thousand Negroes, in the West India Colonies, by an act which passed the British legislature, in the year 1834, dating the commencement of that memorable event from the first of August. The sum of twenty millions was voted to the proprietors of slaves, as a compensation for any loss they might incur. Mr. Wilberforce was at this time on his dying bed, as if his life had been protracted to witness this noble consummation of all his labours. When he heard of this splendid act of national generosity, he lifted up his feeble hands to heaven, exclaiming, "Thank God, that I have lived to see my country give twenty millions to abolish slavery."
The noble grant of the British and Foreign Bible Society (to commemorate this great event) of a copy of a New Testament and Psalter to every emancipated negro that was able to read, deserves to be recorded on this occasion. The measure originated in a suggestion of the Rev. Hugh Stowell. It was computed that, out of a population of eight hundred thousand negroes, one hundred and fifty thousand were capable of reading, and that an expenditure of twenty thousand pounds would be necessary to supply this demand. Forty tons cubic measure of New Testaments were destined to Jamaica alone. The Colonial Department was willing to assist in the transfer, but the Government packets were found to be too small for this purpose. It is greatly to the honour of some ship-owners, distinguished for their benevolence and public spirit, in the city of London, that they offered to convey this valuable deposit, free of freightage and expense, to its place of destination. The sum of fifteen thousand pounds was eventually contributed.
[414] Private correspondence.
[415] Cowper's books had been lost, owing to his original illness, and his sudden removal to St. Alban's.
[416] Private correspondence.
[417] Lady Balgonie.
[418] Dr. Ford was Vicar of Melton Mowbray, well known and respected, and a particular friend of Mr. Newton's.
[419] The author of this work proved to be Miss Hannah More.
[420] Well known for his celebrated works, on the "Being and Attributes of God," and the "Evidences of Natural and Revealed Religion."