Page:Substance of the speech of His Royal Highness the Duke of Clarence, in the House of Lords.djvu/17

 to deviate from his previous principles, sanctioned by years and fortified by experience, I have yet to learn the cause of his conversion.

But we shall, my Lords, take a more minute survey.—At the very moment in which I address your Lordships, the state of the African Trade is thus: One hundred and eighty-three vessels, measuring 49,065 tons, navigated by 6276 seamen.

Having given this account of the African Trade, and brought it down to the present moment, I beg leave to call your Lordships attention to the Sierra Leone Company, who are the Petitioners in favour of this Bill. Mr. Stevens has informed us, that the object of the Company was not so much that of commerce, as a total and complete Abolition. I approve of his confession, and admire his candour: but while I bestow encomiums on the power of his talents, and the honesty of