The primary source, courtesy of the Avalon Project of Yale University, is concerned with South Carolina's entry into the fervor of boycotting British goods in protest of Acts designed raise taxes from the colonial subjects. This Non-Importation document is designed to both spell out why the colonies are boycotting goods from Britain, and show what they will be abandoning as a result of the boycott.
One of the more curious findings of the document is the ban on slaves imported from Africa and the West Indies. This is certainly an explanation for why there was a severe drop in the number of slaves imported, as discussed in class on Monday, but I'm forced to wonder whether such a ban would've taken place had there not been a growing population of American-born slaves to replace whatever losses would've occurred as a result of this boycott.
It is also interesting to note that the language of the document shows that the colonists are still overwhelmingly loyal to the king and to the British Empire, even referring to themselves as "his Majesty's dutiful and loyal subjects". Independence is not an option that appears to be on the table at this time. Most of the colonists still want to stay subjects to the king, but they want their rights restored as free English subjects.
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