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no reference to the political difcuffions of that period; one, in which Mr. Jones expreffes his fentiments on the African flave trade, and the fecond containing an honourable declaration of that conduct which he would have pursued, if good fortune had placed him in the House of Commons.

"I pass with hafte by the coast of Africa, "whence my mind turns with indignation at "the abominable traffic in the human fpe"cies, from which a part of our countrymen "dare to derive their most inaufpicious "wealth. Sugar, it has been faid, would be " dear if it were not worked by Blacks in the "Western islands; as if the most laborious, "the most dangerous works, were not carried "on in every country, but chiefly in England,

by free men; in fact they are so carried on " with infinitely more advantage, for there is "an alacrity in a consciousness of freedom, "and a gloomy fullen indolence in a con"sciousness of flavery; but let fugar be as "dear as it may, it is better to eat none, to "eat honey, if sweetness only be palatable;

"better to eat aloes or coloquintida than vio"late a primary law of nature, impreffed on

every heart not imbruted by avarice, than "rob one human creature of those eternal

rights, of which no law upon earth can justly deprive him.

"Had it been my good or bad fortune, to "have delivered in the great affembly of re"prefentatives the fentiments which this "bofom contains, I am fenfible that my pub-"lic courfe of speaking and voting must "have clashed in a variety of inftances with

my private obligations; and the conflict of k interfering duties conftitutes, in my opi"nion, the niceft part of morality, on which "however I have completely formed my

system, and trust that no views of interest " will ever prevent my practice from coinciding with my theory."

Profeffions of this nature are sometimes made and forgotten, when the end, which they were meant to serve, has been attained; but fincerity was ever a prominent feature in

the character of Mr. Jones, and he was more difpofed to overftep the bounds of prudence by adhering to it, than to violate what he always deemed a primary law of morality.

In the autumn of this year, 1 find Mr. Jones at Paris. He had in the preceding fummer made a fhort excurfion to that capital; but the occurrences of these journeys are not of fufficient importance to engage the reader's attention. I recollect to have heard him mention, in anfwer to a question which I once put to him, whether he had feen Monfieur du Perron at Paris, that this gentleman ftudiously avoided meeting him during his refidence there.

The following letters written by Mr. Jones after his return to England are interefting, as defcriptive of his óccupations and fentiments, and as announcing his intention of writing an important hiftorical work, which he never found time to execute.

Mr. JONES to Lord ALTHORP.

I thought myself peculiarly

unfortunate last Friday in my way to London; at Chatham, where I had the pleasure indeed of feeing Lady Rothes reftored to perfect health, I fought in vain for Mr. Langton among the new ravelines and counterfcarps; and at Dartford I had the mortification to find, that you, my dear Lord, were not in camp, where I was not without hope of passing an evening, which I am perfuaded would have been equally agreeable to us both. After a very tedious and uncomfortable paffage, I arrived at Margate on Wednesday night, having been out of England a month exactly, half of which time I spent at Paris. In this interval I have feen, not indeed fo many men or fo many cities as the hero of the Odyffey, but a fufficient number of both to have enlarged very confiderably the sphere of my knowledge. I have heard much and thought more; but the refult of all I have heard and thought is, that the war, which I Life-V. I.

have invariably and deliberately condemned as no less unjust than impolitic, will continue

very long to defolate the country of our brethren, and exhauft our own. The principal object of my late excurfion has been completely answered; and I had more fuccess than I at firft expected in one or two fubordinate pursuits, profeffional and literary. I attended fome caufes at the palais, and have brought with me he works of a most learned lawyer, whofe nam nd merit I fhall have the honour of making known to our countrymen. I obtained access also to a fine manuscript in the royal library, which has given me a more perfect acquaintance with the manners of the ancient Arabians; and how little foever I may value mere philology, confidered apart from the knowledge to which it leads, yet I fhall ever fet a high price on those branches of learning, which make us acquainted with the human species in all its varieties. Paris itself, and all the roads to it are so perfectly known to you, that an account of my journey would be fuperfluous;