Second Supplementary Ordinance to His Majesty’s Order in Council, establishing a Consolidated Slave Law.

 

By his Excellency James Alexander Farquharson, Colonel, commanding His Majesty’s Forces in the Island of St. Lucia, and administering the Civil Government, &c. &c. &c.

 

 

WHEREAS His Majesty, by his Order in Council, dated at the Court at Windsor on the 2d February last, hath been pleased, for the purpose of amending and ameliorating the slave laws throughout several of the British colonies mentioned in said Order, to repeal among others the Ordinance enacted by the Governor of St. Lucia, with the advice of the Council of Government, on the 8th February 1826, for the better government of slaves in St. Lucia, and for improving their condition, together with all Laws, Ordinances and Proclamations passed, enacted or promulgated within the said island in explanation thereof. And whereas His Majesty’s said Order in Council doth not embrace, nor was intended to embrace, all the points for which it has been, in consequence of the repeal of said Ordinance and additional ordinances and Regulations, necessary to provide:

 

His Excellency Colonel Farquharson, commanding His Majesty’s forces and administering the government, having submitted the whole subject to the consideration of the Privy Council, and especially recommended a revisal of said Order of 8th February 1826, and additional Ordinance of April 1827, he hath now been pleased, by and with the advice of said Council, to order, and doth hereby order, with a view of determining such other points as are not provided for by the said Order in Council, but were embodied in said Ordinance, as follows:

 

1. It having been necessary to determine the legal nature of property in slaves, it is declared that children born of slaves are the property of the owner of the mother; and therefore, when the father is in slavery and the mother free, the children are free; and when the father is free and the mother a slave, the children are slaves.

 

2. Slaves are moveable property, but they may be stipulated proper to the proprietor and his relatives of his stock and descent.

 

3. Slaves, for the purposes of property, are either personal or plantation slaves. Plantation slaves, for such purposes, are all slaves entered in a plantation return, and all slaves entered by name in mortgage deed, and the issue of all such plantation slaves.

 

4. And it is ordered, that all contracts or agreement for the alienation of slaves shall be passed before a notary, and that no proprietor whose estate is mortgaged shall separate his plantation slaves from the estate by sale or any other alienation, on pain of incurring such penalties as are provided against persons guilty of the fraudulent transfer of real property, and all such sales and alienations are declared null and void; and any notary drawing out or signing the deed of alienation shall be fined in a sum of not less than 50 l. or exceeding 200 l. sterling, and be interdicted from office for not less than three or more than six months.

 

Nor shall such proprietors manumit their plantation slaves, except by compulsory process; nor shall plantation slaves be taken in execution for any other debt than the price of their purchase, except it be together with the estate, or under the forms set forth in the laws made or to be made for the more effectual recovery of debts in St. Lucia; and all slaves belonging to the owner of the estate, who at the time of taking the estate in execution shall be employed thereof in the labour of the estate, shall thenceforth be deemed and taken to be plantation slaves.

 

5. And it being necessary to provide for the domestic government of slaves:

 

It is ordered that prayers shall be said every evening on the plantation; that slaves shall not be employed on festivals; and that on working days, when engaged in field labour, they shall be in the field and have commenced work at half after five o’clock; they shall be allowed half an hour at eight, and two hours from noon till two for their meals, and they shall leave the field at sunset.

 

6. And it is ordered, that when slaves are employed in manufacturing labour, they shall only be worked at night on extraordinary occasions of forced crops; that they shall then be distributed in spells or watches, and every slave so engaged shall in every possible circumstance have six hours consecutive rest, and two hours additional within the twenty-four.

 

The festivals are, New Years-day, Good Friday, Ascension-day, the Patronal fete of the Quarter, the King’s Birth-day and Christmas.

 

Provided, that the fact of slaves being exempted from labour, whether on Sundays, festivals, or otherwise, shall not in any case be sufficient to warrant their leaving the estate without the manager’s permission.

 

Provided also, that slaves may be compelled to work in their own provision-grounds for their benefit on all days allowed them by law, except Sundays: And provided, nevertheless, that adult slaves shall, under all and every circumstances, be allowed to attend market once in every month.

 

7. Twenty-five and Twenty-six of old law to form one section.

 

8. And it is further ordered, that every slave without exception shall receive two thick linen and woollen dressed, and a hat or cap in the year. The dresses shall consist, for the men, of a shirt and trowsers; and for the women, of a chemise and jupe; and a shirt for the children. And that every manager shall give one week’s notice in writing to the protector, of the day on which the distribution is to take place.

 

And every adult shall also receive one pound and a half of salt fish or meat per week, and children half the quantity.

 

9. And whereas it often happens that managers make arrangements with their slaves for granting them other days in lieu of the festivals, and also further time in lieu of clothing and salt provisions; it is hereby ordered, that such arrangements, to be valid, shall be in future made in writing with the protector in behalf of the slaves; provided that no arrangement shall be valid, whereby slaves are or may be deprived of their Monday in every week after crop, and in every fortnight in crop.

 

10. And it is ordered, that every slave of fourteen years of age and upwards, shall have a portion of land allotted him for a garden, at least one carré for every two full grown slaves, which portion of land shall not be exchanged without their consent, except the manager shall have given them a warning of one year.

 

11. Every proprietor or possessor of a plantation shall provide the slaves attached thereto with good and comfortable huts, well wattled and thatched, so as to be perfectly wind and water tight, to be afterwards kept in repair by the slaves themselves. The head or chief of every family shall have a hut for himself and his family, separated into two or more apartments, according to the number of that family, and there should be cabanes or bed-places in those apartments, raised at least 18 inches, to preserve them from the dangerous effect of sleeping on the ground. Young slaves of fourteen and upwards, who have no family, shall be lodged at the rate of three or four to a hut, and they are to have their cabanes raised 18 inches from the ground as aforesaid. The slaves shall be allowed to enclose their huts with a fence or hedge, to form a little yard for their poultry and other small stock, and defend them from the incursions of the cattle in the pasture.

 

12. There shall be on every plantation an hospital built in an airy and healthy situation, proportioned to the number of slaves, and one or more female attendants attached thereto, and supplied with camp beds, mats and coarse bed linen. The slave who from sickness is incapable of doing his duty, shall there be lodged and minded until he be perfectly recovered; and when there is a medical practitioner in attendance, he shall enter on a journal the name of every patient, together with the nature of the disease and prescription.

 

13. And it is ordered, that a return of births and deaths, specifying in the latter case the nature of the disease, the name of the medical attendant, or respectable planter, attesting the cause of the disease, and the probable age of the deceased, shall be delivered in half-yearly to the protector, together with the record of punishments.

 

14. And that sick and infirm slaves, whether the malady be incurable or otherwise, shall be supported by their managers; and that all slaves shall be decently interred, and where it can be done, in consecrated ground.

 

15. And every manager, and other person having authority from a manager, who shall inflict any new and unauthorized punishments on slaves, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor; and any manager, or other person having authority from a manager, who shall maim or kill a slave, and every person, except managers or persons authorized by them, who shall maltreat slaves in any manner whatever, shall be severally liable to the same punishments as would in such cases be inflicted if any such act had been committed on persons of free condition.

 

16. And whereas it is necessary to set down penalties for such public offences as necessarily result from the condition of slavery being acknowledged and sanctioned by law.

 

It is therefore ordered, that a fugitive slave may, if he shall have been one week absent from his owner’s service, be adjudged to suffer punishment not exceeding 30 lashes and one month’s solitary confinement for the first offence; two months solitary confinement and 50 lashes for the second; three years hard labour in chains on the plantation or on public works and 100 lashes for the third; and the chain-gang for life for the fourth offence. And the said fugitives shall further be liable to be deprived of their Mondays until they shall have made good the time lost.

 

17. And it is ordered, that every free person who shall harbour or conceal a fugitive slave shall forfeit and pay 5 l. sterling to the Crown, and shall also be liable in damages to the owner to the extent of 1 l. sterling per diem; and if the offender shall not pay the above fine of 5 l. sterling within one week, the punishment may be commuted by the court to an imprisonment, which shall not be of less duration than 14 days, nor exceed three months. And every slave in whose hut shall be found a fugitive slave, shall suffer corporal punishment, which shall not in any case exceed 60 lashes or three months hard labour; and the manager shall forfeit 2 l. 10 s. sterling to the Crown.

 

18. And it is ordered, that any slave apprehended passing in any vessel or boat out of the Colony, without proper permission, may be adjudged to suffer 100 lashes, and imprisonment and hard labour at the discretion of the court. And every free person aiding or abetting them therein shall be guilty of a misdemeanor; and any slave so aiding or abetting them therein, shall be subject to the same penalties as the slaves endeavouring to escape.

 

19. And it is ordered, that all thefts of steel arms or firearms committed by slaves shall be deemed felonies; and that fugitive slaves carrying steel arms or fire-arms of any description when apprehended, shall be declared felons; and in case of resistance with such steel arms or fire-arms, they may be adjudged to suffer death.

 

20. And it is ordered, that a slave striking his proprietor’s wife or husband, or his manager, shall be guilty of felony; and in cases of aggravation may be adjudged to suffer death; and any slave striking a free person shall be liable to suffer imprisonment and hard labour at the discretion of the court.

 

21. Slaves attending meetings of slaves belonging to different masters, without the sanction of a public officer; slaves taken up masked or disguised; slaves keeping houses, trading or hawking without their managers permission; slaves offering for sale either gold, silver or jewellery; slaves selling sugarcanes, coffee, cocoa, indigo, cotton or logwood, without their manager’s permission; slaves found straggling without a passport; slaves purchasing or carrying muskets, swords, or any other offensive weapon, or gunpowder; slaves setting fire to their gardens without permission; slaves preparing or distributing drugs, or undertaking the care of sick persons; and generally all slaves guilty of police offences, together with all persons whether free or slaves who shall abet or countenance them therein, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

 

Provided that the punishment for misdemeanors committed by slaves shall not in any case exceed 30 lashes for the first offence, and 50 for the second and every subsequent offence of the same description, and three months hard labour at chain-gang.

 

22. Provided also, that slaves charged with crimes not specified in this Ordinance, shall be subject to the same pains and penalties as free persons.

 

23. And it is ordered, that the owners of fugitive slaves shall inform against such fugitives within 14 days to the commissary of the quarter, setting forth the presumed cause of the slave’s escape, his name, age, sex and distinguishing marks if any, on a penalty of 5 l. sterling; and that the commissary commandant shall once in each month send certified returns of such informations to the Procureur du Roi.

 

24. And every manager having reason to suspect any slave of having committed a crime, shall immediately cause him to be detained and delivered up to the commissary commandant; and he shall set forth in writing the cause of such detention, and lodge such information with said commissary within the three subsequent days, on pain of forfeiting 1 l. sterling for every day’s neglect in complying with the directions of the present section.

 

25. And whereas it is necessary to re-enact certain regulations with reference to property held by slaves;

 

It is ordered, that at the slave’s death his property shall go to such persons, whether in freedom or slavery, as would by the law of the colony be entitled to it, if the slave had died free. That in cases of thefts and other wrongs, the owner shall continue personally responsible for the injury done by his slaves; but he has his recourse on the slave’s property, or he may discharge himself by making over the offending slave to the party injured; in which latter case he must duly and in writing give notice of his intention, within one week after service of the copy of the judgment, on pain of being precluded from the right of option. And that the owner being a creditor of his slaves, shall have a preference over all others on the slave’s property, except the latter shall have engaged in trade with his consent; and all owners shall be responsible for whatever their slaves may have done by their orders express or implied.

 

26. And it is ordered that slave shall not, on pretence that they are parties to judicial suits, quit the manager’s service without his permission, unless they are required to attend by order of a magistrate or the protector; and in all cases when their attendance is no longer necessary, they shall return to the plantation, on pain of punishment as fugitives.

 

27. And whereas it is requisite to set down further rules with reference to the freedom of slaves, or reputed slaves, the following enactments having been reconsidered, are renewed and confirmed:

 

That manumissions obtained in St. Lucia by slaves registered there, shall continue to produce the same effect as if the party were born there; such emancipated slaves, though natives of foreign countries, need not, therefore, obtain letters of naturalization to entitle them to the prerogatives of natural born subjects.

 

28. And that the emancipated slave is expected to pay the greatest respect to his late owner, and his owner’s wife or widow, and children; any offence committed against them will be more severely punished than against a stranger, but the slave is certainly exempted from all duties, claims or services which his former owner might pretend to as his patron over his person or property.

 

29. A slave marrying a free owner becomes free; and the issue of the slave and owner, though born before marriage, become free and legitimate, provided they are not the issue of an adulterous connection and belong to either of the parties.

 

30. British born slaves obtaining their manumissions in a foreign country shall not be considered free in St. Lucia unless the manumission be confirmed by the proper authorities in a British country, or unless the same shall have taken place with the full consent of the proper and lawful owner.

 

31. Persons of colour who shall have resided in St. Lucia in an unmolested state of freedom for 21 years together, shall not, on any pretence, be required to produce their deeds of manumission, nor shall their right to freedom, from the expiration of said period of 21 years, be called in question. And in all cases he who affirms a person is his slave, is bound, unless he is in actual possession of the property in the said person, to prove his right, the presumption being in favour of natural liberty.

 

32. Persons in holy orders may baptize, as free, children under the age of one year, though born of mothers in a state of slavery, provided the owner of the mother consents thereto. Mentioned shall be made of such consent in the register of baptism, and the register shall be signed by the officiating minister and the owner.

 

A certificate of baptism in the above form shall have, in favour of the child, the effect of a deed of manumission.

 

33. The minister shall transmit all such certificates of baptism, which are to be written and signed by himself to the procureur general, that the latter may be enabled to require the bail mentioned in His Majesty’s Order in Council, sec. 54, and to inscribe the certificate upon a register which he shall keep for this purpose.

 

34. Persons in holy orders shall not, on the penalty of 100 l sterling, baptized as free a child of colour, without the permission of the mother’s owner, unless the mother be generally reputed free, or unless her freedom be proved by an act of manumission in due form, or a declaration upon oath, made before the commissary by two respectable inhabitants, other than the father of the child.

 

35. The clauses of all wills containing a grant to a slave of his freedom shall be laid before the governor by the heir, the executor, or the party interested in the will, within three months from the day on which the will shall have been opened, and the said will shall within the said time be registered at the greffe, or register-office of the Court of First Instance, on the penalty of 100 l, sterling; one half for the benefit of the colony, and the remainder for the benefit of the slave.

 

In case the said extracts shall not be presented within the above time, the slave, or any person for him, may apply to the protector, who shall cause an action to be entered to recover his liberty, or the slave may at his option enter an action to the same effect in his own names. But in either case, the proper officer shall be bound to prosecute the delinquents for the fine. And all notaries and greffiers who shall have received wills containing clauses of manumissions, shall extract copies of the said clauses, and forward the said copies within one month from the day on which the said wills shall have been opened to the procureur general, on the penalty of 50 l. sterling, and three months interdiction

 

36. And it is ordered, that no authority whatever, whether administrative or judicial, shall deprive of his liberty and reduce to a state of slavery a person free either by birth or by manumission, or by twenty-one years prescription.

 

The following concluding enactments are also approved.

 

It is ordered, that the definitions set forth in the 81st section of His Majesty’s said Order in Council, shall apply to both the Supplementary Ordinances enacted in consequence thereof, except inasmuch as relates to the slaves that are to be deemed plantation slaves, for the purposes of property; the distinction between personal and plantation slaves in this respect, only being as set forth in the 3d section of this Ordinance.

 

38. And it is ordered, that all offences against this order committed by managers, to which no specific penalty is attached, shall be deemed misdemeanors, and all misdemeanors shall be punished in the manner set forth in the 74th section of His Majesty’s Order in Council.

 

39. And it is ordered, that the condemned slaves fund shall continue under the regulations established by the repealed Order in Council of February 1826.

 

40. And it is ordered, that all fines shall be recovered and applied in the manner set forth in the 76th section of His Majesty’s said Order in Council.

 

Given under my hand and the seal of Government, this 3d day of May, in the eleventh year of His Majesty’s reign, and in the year of our Lord 1830.

 

By his Excellency’s command,

 

(signed) George Washington Busteed, Chief Secretary.