Excerpt from A History of Colonization on the Western Coast of Africa The best method of disposing of the free people of colour, so as to promote the highest interests both of them and the citizens of this country, among whom they dwell, is a subject of momentous consequence, concerning which very different opinions have been entertained. The idea of providing a place for them on the coast of Africa, met the views of a large number of the most intelligent and benevolent men in this country; and the apparent difficulty, if not impracticability, of removing so great a number of persons to such a distance, furnished, for a long time, the only objection to the enterprise. The obstacles were indeed very formidable, and would have discouraged the efforts of any men not animated by a noble enthusiasm in the cause of humanity. The first difficulty was to obtain a territory on the coast of Africa - a country possessed by numerous savage tribes, all deeply engaged in the slave trade, and jealous of every body, and every measure, which might possibly interfere with this nefarious traffic. The legislature of the state of Virginia had made an effort, through the President of the United States, to acquire such a territory, but without success. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.