Some decent points. But there are those who argue that we should avoid wherever possible harming lesser creatures, not for their sakes, but for our own - because to become accustomed to inflicting pain dulls our souls, that we might feel less compunction at doing harm to each other. I mean, is it not said that some of the most twisted killers started out tormenting cats and dogs and, yes, negroes? But such things eventually became too little to satisfy them.It’s true and we also need to consider the fact that it needs intelligence to understand pain. Animals, for instance, can react to physical pain but they lack the self-consciousness to recognize it as something personal because they are more like an automaton than a human being in that regard.
Bearing such things in mind, I would say that while of course some kinds of pain are necessary for the managment of beasts both two and four-legged, we should take especial care that we do only as little as is necessary, and especially be wary of enjoying it. And this is even more vital with the negro than with other forms of livestock, for their form and voice is closest to our own - why, if you closed your eyes, could you say for sure if was not one of your own daughters being branded?