At the edge of the water I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the coast. It seems a paradise. The thin, swaying palms line up toward the sea; lush green grasses are set apart by the brick redness of the earth. The contrast between this startling loveliness and the sinister transactions and rituals performed here must have struck even Francisco de Souza's men, who somewhere in their hearts must have known that not all business is simply business. Here it occurred to me--the answer to the question that had haunted me throughout this journey--had the African slavers known what horrors attended slavery in the New World compared with slavery as practiced at home?
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