The Pennsylvania Abolition Society to Societé des Amis des Noirs (unpublished)

The Pennsylvania Society for the Abolition of Slavery, & for the relief of free Negroes unlawfully held in Bondage to the Society of Paris for the Abolition of the Commerse & Slavery of the Negroes.

We have received you address of the 29th. day of April 1788 by the hands of the Secretary of your Society Monsr. Brissot de Warville, who presented the same to us at a special Meeting called for the purpose of receiving him. We felt great satisfaction in this intoduction of a Gentleman whose general character is so estimable, & who has been so zealous & able a promoter of the cause in which you & we are engaged. To render all things as convenient as possible to him & to evince our respect for your Society we have appointed a Committee to aid him in the objects of his mission, & we trust that their joint exertions will furnish him with information that will answer your purposes & expectations. We have unanimously elected this gentleman one of our Members.

We observe with sincere pleasure you overtures for establishing a relation of Brotherhood, & mutual Correspondence between your Society & ours, which we also desire with equal earnestness, both on account of the respect we felt towards your Institution, & because we are convinced it will have very favorable effect as well in Europe as America in promoting the interesting objects for which we have associated. To those in our Country who do not yet see the necessity of abolishing the Commerce & Slavery of the unhappy Africans the efforts making in France may be held up so as to countenance & support our measures, & we trust there is reason to expect that the conduct of several of the States in discourageing the practice of Slavery & abolishing the Slave trade will not be without its influence in the Councils of France.

The present situation of the Laws of Pennsylvania on this subject & the Constitution of our Society will be found in the enclosed Pamphlets of which we request your acceptance.

Signed by order of the Society in Philada. the 8 of December 1788.

B. Franklin. President

Notation: Letter to French Socy.
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