Page:The American Slave Trade (Spears).djvu/193

 This order calls to mind a certain game constable employed by the State of New York to prevent poachers from killing deer in the Adirondacks out of season. Some law-abiding citizens having notified him that Utica scoundrels were killing deer by jacklight on Little Black Creek Lake, the constable said: ‘Ill stop them at once.’ Thereat he drove as near to the lake as the woods roads would permit, and stuck his card in the splinters of a dozen or more stumps along the route.

“There,” said he; That 'll scare ’em out.” Then he drove home again.

Having fallen in with a British cruiser, Perry got authentic stories of two American vessels, the Illinois and Shakspeare, that brought slave-goods to the coast, and, after discharging, were loaded with slaves. Then the American flag was hauled down and away they went over the sea. The Illinois hailed from Gloucester, Mass., and was the property of Pason & Co.

In the instructions issued to British naval officers on the coast after the treaty of August 9, 1842, appears the following sentence:

"The commanding officers of Her Majesty’s vessels on the African station are to bear in mind that it is no part of their duty to capture or visit, or in any way interfere with, vessels of the United States, whether these vessels shall have slaves on board or not,"

The British officers had only to satisfy themselves that a ship really had American papers. They were even instructed to manœuvre so as to board without bringing to the vessels flying the American flag.

Meantime it should be noted that Perry had been