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Lot 230
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Rare 1788 Slave Trade Letter Requesting Payment for "Cargos of Slaves...such a valuable Property"
Rare 1788 Slave Trade Letter Requesting Payment for "Cargos of Slaves...such a valuable Property"
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Slavery
London, England, November 5 & December 3, 1788
Rare 1788 Slave Trade Letter Requesting Payment for "Cargos of Slaves...such a valuable Property"
LS

Manuscript letter twice signed, "Camden Calvert & King," 2pp, on bifold watermarked stationery measuring 8" x 12.75", London, November 5 and December 3, 1788, headed "Dupl." Integral address leaf to "Francis Grant Esqr. / Trelawney [sic] / Jamaica." Inner right page blank. Docketing at verso. Expected transmittal folds and creases. Scant remnants of wax seal with resulting opening tear. Age toning, scattered foxing, and soiling. In near fine condition.

This lengthy letter to Francis Grant is dated in two parts, November 5th and December 3rd of 1788, and concerns payment due and owing for the sales of "Cargos of Slaves," and notice of "Property to Purchase at least 2000 Slaves." Reading in full:

"Dupl.
London 5th Novr. 1788
Francis Grant Esqr.
Sir, we addressed you the 6th of Augt. since which we are favoured with yours of 1st and 24th July, the former Inclosing Dupls. of account Sales of the Venus's Cargo & the latter, acquainting us of the arrival of our Ship Fly to your address. We hope the selling her Cargo will not interfere with any Plan, that may be much more agreeable to you, then that of Selling Cargos of Slaves, Consigned to you, as ours have been, we can say with great Truth, say, you have made our Situation painful, by your Remittances, we have a hope, however, that the Sums for which your Notes are given, being trifling to you, particularly, them for the Venus's Cargo, we have to request you will do us the favor, to have them immediately taken up, in short, you cannot oblige us more than by letting us have Money for your Notes, for which we will allow any Discount.
We are with all due respect, Sir, Your Most Obed. Servts.
Signed / Camden Calvert & King."

"London 3d Decr. 1788
Sir, The foregoing is a Copy of our last to which we beg to refer and we further beg to enforce, what we their say, we may say, humbly, requesting you to relieve us from the situation, in which you have been pleased to place us, against our Consent, a Situation you must know was unpleasant to us and we must say for ourselves that the generous manner in which we trusted you with such a valuable Property demands some attention from you towards us.

The making all of you can of us, cannot altogether be your object, if it is and you think the business you have done for us will not afford your Paying a Commission, for Accepting your Bills we will Pay it ourselves, send us Bills, & we will submit the rest to your Honor, to do in, as you please. If you mean to stay in Jamaica and think the Sale of Slaves an object, it's to your Interest, to do what we request of you, if serving us, is no Inducement as we wish, & it is our Intention to send our Ship Recovery, Capt. Hewson, to be with you late in next year, with 370 Slaves, to load produce on our acct. home. We beg what we say here, may not be misconstrued as a former Letter of ours. Viz. where you answer you don't want to be spurr'd to Remit; the fact is we would not nay while we are in Trade, we could not suffer a risque of its being stagnated, as it now is, by such Remittances as you have sent us. The business we are in will not admit of it, we have very Seldom less, on the Coast of Africa, then Property to Purchase at least 2000 Slaves, that together with Ships & Craft for the purpose of carrying on the Trade, is not a trifling Sum, which with our various other calls, require our every Resource to enable us to keep up a tolerable degree of Credit. your Notes give a Stab to it.

We cannot make use of them, Bills of Exchange, when accepted by a good House, here, we can make use of, we are not thus solicitous, from any fear, or doubt about your Notes being punctually paid, but it's the inconvenience that they put us to that we so sensibly feel, as they Clog the Wheels of Our Commerce and you may be assured that they would have put a total stop to many, as respectable a House, as ours, in this City. From what we have justly said of our Situation, we doubt not, but you will immediately change it, and that you will also tell us whether you would wish to have the Recovery and on what Terms. Notes of hand we cannot take.
We are respectfully - Sir, Your Most Obed. Hble. Servts.
Camden Calvert & King."

Camden, Calvert and King was an eighteenth-century partnership that traded in London from 1760 to 1824, transporting slaves, and later, convicts. The principal partners were William Camden (173?-1796), Anthony Calvert (1735-1809) and Thomas King (174?-1824). They were the largest company in London involved in the triangular trade in enslaved people. Between 1776 and 1807, either together or separately, the firm's partners launched 93 slave voyages, and at its peak, Camden, Calvert and King was responsible for a fifth of all slave voyages sailing from London. Their ships transported more than 22,000 enslaved Africans, primarily from the West African coast to Jamaica and other Caribbean colonies. After the British Parliament passed the Abolition of Slave Trade Act in 1807, the company focused on transporting convicts to Australia.

Francis Grant (1746-1818) was a prominent Scottish planter, plantation attorney, and slave factor who accumulated significant wealth through the exploitation of enslaved labor in Jamaica, particularly within the Trelawny and Westmoreland parishes. Rather than just trading from a ship, Grant operated heavily on the ground as an attorney and factor. He managed vast plantations for absentee British landowners who remained in Europe.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 8" x 12.75"
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