The Saber and Scroll Journal Volume 9, Number 1, Summer (June) 2020 | Page 23

and Scroll
toric Site, Little Falls, NY
dition, Africans had immunity to Old
World diseases. They were better laborers,
and they had nowhere to escape to
once transplanted to the New World.
The colonists themselves came to believe
that they could not survive without
Africans. 6 During the infancy of the
American Republic, there were differing
views of the practice of enslavement.
Certainly, slavery was inconsistent with
the values espoused in the Declaration
of Independence: “We hold these truths
to be self-evident, that all men are created
equal, that they are endowed by their
Creator certain inalienable rights, that
among these are life, liberty, and the
pursuit of happiness.” This declaration
was in direct contrast with the practice
and institution of African enslavement.
James Madison asserted that slavery
was indeed inconsistent with Republican
ideals. 7 Madison was not alone in
his abhorrence for slavery; Benjamin
Franklin, Samuel Adams, John Adams,