be removed."[41]

In 1779 an act to prevent the sale of slaves out of the State was
passed,[42] and in 1784, an act gradually to abolish slavery.[43] Not
until 1787 did an act pass to forbid participation in the slave-trade.
This law laid a penalty of £100 for every slave transported and £1000
for every vessel so engaged.[44]


21. ~Restrictions in Connecticut.~ Connecticut, in common with the other
colonies of this section, had a trade for many years with the West
Indian slave markets; and though this trade was much smaller than that
of the neighboring colonies, yet many of her citizens were engaged in
it. A map of Middletown at the time of the Revolution gives, among one
hundred families, three slave captains and "three notables" designated
as "slave-dealers."[45]

The actual importation was small,[46] and almost entirely unrestricted
before the Revolution, save by a few light, general duty acts. In 1774
the further importation of slaves was prohibited, because "the increase
of slaves in this Colony is injurious to the poor and inconvenient." The
law prohibited importation under any pretext by a penalty of £100 per
slave.[47] This was re-enacted in 1784, and provisions were made for the
abolition of slavery.[48] In 1788 participation in the trade was
forbidden, and the penalty placed at £50 for each slave and £500 for
each ship engaged.[49]


22. ~General Character of these Restrictions.~ Enough has already been
said to show, in the main, the character of the opposition to the