§ After numerous petitions had been presented to the House, praying for the Abolition of Slavery, Mr. Secretary Canning presented, by command of his Majesty, the following Papers, in explanation of measures for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Slave Population of the West Indies:
§ DRAUGHT OF AN ORDER IN COUNCIL FOR IMPROVING THE CONDITION OF THE SLAVES IN TRINIDAD.
§ 1. "Whereas it is necessary that provision should be made for the religious instruction of the slaves in his majesty's island of Trinidad, and for the improvement of their condition. And whereas the Procurador Syndic of the Cabildo of the town of Port of Spain, in the said island, hath hitherto performed the duties of the office of protector and guardian of slaves in the said island, and it is expedient that the said office should be more fully established, and that the duties thereof should be more clearly ascertained, and that provision should be made for the support thereof. Be it, therefore, and it is hereby ordered by the king's most excellent majesty, by and with the advice of his privy council, that the Procurador Syndic of the Cabildo of the town of Port of Spain aforesaid shall be, and he is hereby confirmed in his said office of protector and guardian of slaves. And that as such protector and guardian of slaves he shall receive and be paid, at the time and in the manner hereinafter mentioned, such salary as his majesty shall be pleased to appoint; and that such salary shall commence from and after the 24th day of June, in the present year of our Lord, 182; and that on or before that day, if possible, or if not then, so soon afterwards as conveniently may be, the 1065 said protector and guardian of slaves shall f appear before the governor, or acting-governor for the time being, of the said island, and in his presence shall take and subscribe an oath in the following words, that is to say—
§ "I, A. B., do swear that I will, to 'the best of my knowledge and ability, 'faithfully execute and perform the duties 'of the office of protector and guardian of 'slaves in the island of Trinidad, without 'fear, favour or partiality—So help me 'God."
§ "Provided nevertheless, and it is hereby ordered, that nothing herein contained shall extend to prevent his majesty from disuniting the office of protector and guardian of slaves from the office of Procurador Syndic aforesaid, and from appointing a distinct and separate officer to act as, and be the protector and guardian of slaves, in case his majesty shall see fit so to do.
§ 2. "And it is hereby further ordered, that the said protector and guardian of slaves shall establish and keep an office in the town of Port of Spain in the said island, and shall regularly attend at such office on such days, and during such hours in the day, as the governor or acting-governor of the said colony, by any general or special orders to be by him from time to time issued, may appoint; and shall at such office, and not elsewhere, keep, deposit, and preserve the several records, books, papers, and writings, hereinafter directed to be kept by him.
§ 3. "And it is further ordered, that the said protector and guardian of slaves shall not be the owner or proprietor of any plantation situate within the said island, or of any slaves or slave employed or worked upon any plantation, or in any kind of agriculture, and shall not have any share or interest in, or any mortgage or security upon, any such plantation, slaves, or slave, and shall and is hereby declared to be incompetent to act as, or be the manager, overseer, agent, or attorney of, for, or upon, any plantation or estate within the said island, or to act as the guardian, trustee, or executor of any person or persons, having, or being entitled to any such plantation, or any slaves or slave; and in case any such protector and guardian of slaves within the said island shall have, acquire, hold or possess, either in his own right, or in right of his wife, or in trust for any other persons or person, any plantation situate within the said island, or 1066 any slaves or slave employed Or worked upon any plantation, or in any kind of agriculture, or any share or interest in, or any mortgage or security upon, any such plantation, or slaves or slave; or shall act as such manager, overseer, agent, attorney, guardian, trustee, or executor as aforesaid, he shall thenceforth, de facto, cease to be such protector and guardian of slaves as aforesaid, and forfeit such his salary, and some other fit and proper person shall forthwith be appointed to succeed to the said office. Provided nevertheless, that all acts which may be done by, or by the order of, any such protector and guardian of slaves, after any such avoidance as aforesaid of such his office, and before the same shall by public notice in the Gazette of the said island be declared void, shall be as valid and effectual in the law as if no such avoidance of office had occurred.
§ 4. "And it is further ordered, that the said protector and guardian of slaves shall be resident within the said island, and shall not quit the same without a special licence to be granted for that purpose by his majesty, through one of his principal Secretaries of State, or by the governor, or acting-governor for the time being, of the said island; and no such licence shall in any case be granted for any time exceeding three months, nor shall any such licence be granted by any such governor, or acting governor as aforesaid, unless it shall be made to appear to him, on the oath of some medical practitioner, that such absence is necessary for the recovery, of the health of the said protector and guardian of slaves.
§ 5. "And it isfurther ordered, that upon the death or resignation of the said protector and guardian of slaves, or in the event of his sickness, or other bodily or mental incapacity, or during his temporary absence from the said island, it shall be lawful for the governor or acting-governor to nominate and appoint some other fit and proper person to act as the deputy for the said protector and guardian of slaves, until his majesty's pleasure shall be known: and the said deputy shall receive such allowance, to be deducted from and out of the salary of the said protector and guardian of slaves, as the governor, or acting-governor for the time being of the said island, shall be pleased to appoint. Provided always, that no persons shall be appointed or be competent to act as such deputy as aforesaid who, 1067 according to the provisions of this order, would be incompetent to act as the protector and guardian of slaves. Provided also, that the protector and guardian of slaves in the said island shall at all times perform his duty in person, and not by deputy, except only in cases in which the governor or acting-governor of the said island is hereinbefore authorized to appoint a deputy for that purpose.
§ 6. "And it is hereby further ordered, that the said protector and guardian of slaves shall be, and he is hereby declared to be, a magistrate in and for the said island of Trinidad, and all such powers and authorities, of what nature or kind so ever, as are now by law vested in the commandants of the several quarters of the said island, for the maintenance of the public peace and good order, shall be, and the same are hereby, vested in the said protector or guardian of slaves, to be by him exercised throughout each and every quarter of the said island.
§ 7. "And it is hereby further ordered, that the commandants of the several quarters within the said island shall be, and they are hereby declared to be, assistant protectors and guardians of slaves, in their several and respective quarters; and the said commandants shall, and are hereby required, in their several and respective quarters, to be aiding and assisting the protector and guardian of slaves in the execution of the powers hereby committed to him; and for that purpose to obey and carry into execution such lawful instructions as they may from time to time receive from him, bout, or in relation to, the matters herein mentioned, or any of them.
§ 8. "And it is hereby further ordered, that in all actions, suits, and prosecutions, which may at any time hereafter be brought or commenced in any tribunal or court of justice within the said island, wherein any slave may be charged with any offence punishable by death or transportation, or wherein any question may arise as to the right of any alleged slave to freedom, or wherein any person may be charged with the murder of any slave, or with any offence against the person of any slave, or wherein any question may arise respecting the right of any slave to any such property as he or she is hereinafter declared competent to acquire; then and in every such case such notice shall be given to the 1068 protector and guardian of slaves, of every such action, suit, or prosecution, as, according to the law of the said island, would be given to the said slave, if he or she were of free condition. And the protector and guardian of slaves shall, and is hereby required to attend the trial or hearing, and all other the proceedings in every such action, suit, or prosecution, as the protector of such slave, and on his or her behalf, and to act therein in such manner as may be most conducive to the benefit and advantage of any such slave.
§ 9. "And whereas his majesty hath been graciously pleased to intimate his intention to make effectual provision for the religious instruction of the slaves in the said island of Trinidad; and it will be proper and necessary, so soon as such his majesty's intentions can be carried into effect, that Sunday markets should be utterly abolished throughout the said island—Be it therefore, and it is hereby further ordered, that it shall and may be lawful for the governor, or acting-governor for the time being, of the said island, and he is hereby required, in obedience to any instruction which may for that purpose be issued by his majesty, through one of his principal secretaries of state, to issue a proclamation, in his majesty's name, for the discontinuance of all markets throughout the said island on the Sunday; and so soon as such proclamation shall have been issued, all Sunday markets shall forthwith cease, and be absolutely unlawful; and in any such proclamation, the said governor or acting-governor shall and may, and is hereby authorized to make all such rules and regulations as may be necessary for the effectual suppression of such markets, and to impose such penalties as may be requisite for giving effect to any such rules and regulations. And whereas a certain proclamation or ordinance was, on the 16th day of November, 1823, issued by the governor of the said island of Trinidad, whereby it was and is ordered and declared, "That from and after the first day of December then next, the market holden in the town of the Port of Spain, for the sale of meat, vegetables, and other provisions, on Sundays, and all other markets to be holden on the Sabbath day throughout the island, should be limited to the hour of ten o'clock in the forenoon, and that due warning 1069 should be given by the ringing of a bell at half-past nine o'clock, to all persons to prepare to depart; and that from and after the hour of ten in the forenoon, no person or persons whatsoever shall remain therein, or publickly show forth or expose for sale any meat, poultry, vegetables, provisions, fruits, herbs, wares, merchandise, goods, or effects, on the Lord's day, after the hour of ten o'clock aforesaid, upon pain that every person guilty of a disobedience or nonconformance of this Order shall forfeit the goods and effects so exposed for sale; or, on refusing to quit the place, forfeit the sum of ten shillings. And it is by the said ordinance further ordered, that if any person or persons shall offend in these premises, it shall be lawful for the chief of the police, or his assistants, or the clerk of the market, or any alquacil or constable, and they are respectively thereby required to seize the goods exposed for sale, and cause them to be taken before any judge or magistrate, or any regidor of the cabildo, who upon view of such goods so exposed shall order the same to be sold forthwith, and the proceeds thereof to be applied and disposed of as follows: that is to say, one-third to the informer, and the remainder to such pious or charitable purposes, and in such manner, as the magistrate or justice ordering the sale shall determine. And it is by such ordinance further ordered, that, in like manner, any person refusing to quit the market-place may be apprehended by the authorities aforesaid, who are authorised and required to demand the penalty thereinbefore provided; and, in default of payment, to commit the offender for twenty hours' imprisonment. And it is by the said ordinance provided, that nothing therein contained shall extend to the prohibition of dressing or selling meats in inns or victualling houses, nor the sale of fish at the fish-house, provided the same do not take place during the hours appointed and set apart for divine service. And it is by the said ordinance noticed and set forth, that the limitation thereinbefore declared, respecting the markets to be holden on Sundays, may not afford sufficient time for the sale of the articles and provisions necessary for the consumption of the inhabitants; and it is therefore thereby ordered that Thursday be also a market-day, on which free persons are invited to attend, so as to lessen the number of persons resorting to 1070 the market on Sundays, which is especially retained for the due and reasonable encouragement of the slave population in habits of industry; and as it may not occasionally be inconvenient for proprietors to permit their slaves to bring the produce of their labour to market on another day than Sunday, the day of Thursday in each week is thereby declared to be a market-day in future. And it is by the said ordinance further ordered, that when, and so soon as the same may be found practicable, the market on Sundays will be further limited to the hour of nine in the forenoon of the said day." And whereas it is expedient that the said Order or Proclamation, of the 16th of November, 1823, should continue and be in force throughout the said island, in the mean time, and until such proclamation as aforesaid shall be issued for the absolute and total abolition of Sunday markets. Be it, therefore, and it is hereby ordered, that the said ordinance or proclamation, of the 16th of November, 1823, shall be, and the same is hereby confirmed. And that the said ordinance shall be and continue in force within the said island, until a proclamation shall be issued in manner aforesaid, for the total abolition of Sunday markets therein.
§ 10. "And it is hereby furthe ordered, that if any person or persons within the said island shall work or employ any slave, at any time between the time of sunset on any Saturday, and sunrise on any Monday, or shall, during that period, procure, induce, or compel any slave to perform or engage in any labour, for the profit or advantage of his or her owner, manager, or employer, the person or persons so offending shall incur and become liable to a fine not exceeding fifty, nor less than five dollars. Provided nevertheless, that nothing herein contained shall extend, or be construed to extend, to any work or labour which any slave may perform on Sunday in the necessary attendance upon the person, or in the family, of his or her owner or employer; or in the necessary and unavoidable preservation of the cattle or live stock upon any plantation.
§ 11. "And it is further ordered and declared, that it is and shall henceforth be illegal for any person or persons within the said island of Trinidad, to carry any whip, cat, or other instrument of the like nature, while superintending the labour of 1071 any slaves or slave in or upon the fields or cane-pieces upon any plantation within the said island, or to use any such whip, cat, or other instrument, for the purpose of impelling or coercing any slaves or slave to perform any labour of any kind or nature whatever, or to carry or exhibit upon any plantation, or elsewhere, any such whip, cat, or other instrument of the like nature, as a mark or emblem of the authority of the person or persons so carrying or exhibiting the same over any slaves or slave; and in case any persons shall carry any whip, cat, or other instrument of the like nature while superintending the labour of any slave or slaves in or upon any plantation or cane-piece within the said island, or shall use any such whip, cat, or other instrument as aforesaid, for the purpose of impelling or coercing any slave or slaves to perform any labour of any kind or nature whatsoever; or shall carry or exhibit upon any plantation, or elsewhere, any such whip, cat, or other instrument, as aforesaid, as a mark or emblem of their, his, or her authority over any slave or slaves, the person or persons so offending, and each and every person who shall or may direct, authorize, instigate, procure, or be aiding, assisting, or abetting in any such illegal driving, or use, or exhibition of any such whip, cat, or other instrument as aforesaid, shall be, and be deemed, adjudged, and taken to be, guilty of a misdemeanor, and being thereof convicted, shall suffer such punishment as is hereinafter provided.
§ 12. "And it is further ordered and declared, that it is and shall henceforth be illegal for any persons or person to inflict, in any one day, upon any male slave, for any crime or offence, or upon any ground or for any reason whatever, any number of stripes or lashes exceeding twenty-five in the whole, or to inflict upon any such male slave any punishment or correction by the whipping, scourging, or beating of his person, unless the person of such slave shall, at the time of such punishment or correction, be free from any laceration occasioned by any former whipping, scourging, or beating, or to inflict upon any such male slave any punishment or correction by the whipping, scourging, or beating of his person, until twenty-four hours at the least shall have elapsed from the time of the commission of the offence for, or in respect of which any such punishment or correction may be so inflicted; or to inflict upon any such male 1072 slave any such punishment or correction as aforesaid, unless one person of free condition shall be present at, and witness the infliction of, such punishment, other than besides the person by or by the authority of whom the same may be so inflicted; and in case any person or persons shall inflict, in any one day upon any male slave, any number of stripes of lashes exceeding twenty-five in the whole, or shall whip, scourge, or beat any such male slave at any time when there may be upon his person any laceration occasioned by any former whipping, scourging, or beating, or shall inflict upon any such male slave any such punishment or correction as aforesaid within twenty-four hours next after the commission of the offence, for or in respect of which the same may be so inflicted, or without the presence and attendance during the whole of such punishment of some person of free condition other than and besides the person by or by the authority of whom the same may be so inflicted, the person or persons so offending, and each and every person who shall or may direct, authorize, instigate, procure, or be aiding, assisting, or abetting, in any such illegal punishment of any such male slave, shall be, and be deemed to be, guilty of a misdemeanour, and being thereof convicted, shall suffer such punishment as is hereinafter provided. Provided nevertheless, that nothing herein contained shall extend, or be construed to extend, to any punishments which may be inflicted upon any male slave, under or by virtue of any sentence or judgement of any court of competent jurisdiction within the said island.
§ 13. "And it is hereby further ordered, that henceforth it shall not be lawful to correct or punish by flogging or whipping, any female slave within the island of Trinidad, for any offence committed or alleged to be committed by any such slave; and if any person or persons within the said island shall flog, whip, or correct any female slave, with any whip, cat, stick, or other such like instrument, the person or persons so offending, and each and every person who shall or may direct, authorize, instigate, procure, or be aiding, assisting, or abetting, in any such correction or punishment as aforesaid, of any such female slave, shall be and be deemed, adjudged, and taken to be guilty of a misdemeanour, and being thereof convicted, shall suffer such punishment as is 1073 hereinafter provided. And whereas, it is necessary that effectual means should be adopted for punishing such offences as may hereafter be committed by female slaves within the said island. Be it therefore, and it is hereby ordered, that any female slave who shall or may commit any offence within the said island, which, by the laws in force there, was heretofore punished by flogging, shall, for such her offence, be subject and liable to imprisonment, or to be confined in the stocks, or to such other punishment, or correction as may be necessary for the effectual suppression of such offences, and as may be specially sanctioned, in and by any proclamation to be hereafter issued by the authority and in the name of his majesty, in the said island. And the governor, or acting-governor of the said island, shall, and is hereby authorized to make and ordain such rules and regulations as may be necessary for preventing any excess in such punishments, or any abuse in the mode of inflicting the same. Provided that such rules and regulations be not in any wise repugnant to this present Order. And provided also that the same be forthwith transmitted by such governor or acting-governor as aforesaid, for his majesty's approbation; and that all such rules or regulations shall cease to be binding or in force within the said island, unless his majesty's allowance thereof shall be signified to such governor or acting-governor within two years next after the date of such rules and regulations.
§ 14. "And it is hereby further ordered, that there shall be kept upon every plantation and estate throughout the said island, a book to be called "The Plantation Record Book," and that it shall be the duty of the owner, proprietor, manager, or other person, having the direction of, and the chief authority in, the said plantation, to enter and record in the said book, at or immediately after the time of the infliction of any punishment whatsoever, on any female slave, or on any male slave, who may be punished with any number of stripes exceeding three, a statement of the nature and particulars of the offence for or in respect of which such punishment may be inflicted: and the time at which, and the place where, such offence was committed; and the time at which, and the place where such punishment was inflicted; and of the nature, extent, and particulars of 1074 the punishment, and, in the cases of male slaves, of the number of stripes actually inflicted upon the offender, together with the names of the persons by whom, and by the authority of whom, the punishment was inflicted; and of the persons or person of free condition present, and attending at the infliction of every such punishment.
§ 15. "And it is hereby further ordered, that if any person, being the owner, proprietor or manager, of any plantation or estate within the said island, or having the management thereof, or the chief authority therein, shall neglect or omit to make in the said Plantation Record Book, any entry which, according to the provisions of this present order, ought to be made therein, or shall not make such entry within two days next after the infliction of each and every punishment, to which the same may refer, the person so offending shall incur and become subject and liable to a penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds, nor less than five pounds sterling, British money; to be recovered and applied in manner hereinafter mentioned. And if any person or persons shall wilfully or fraudulently make, or cause or procure to be made, any false entry or fraudulent erasure in any such Plantation Record Book, or shall wilfully or fraudulently burn, destroy, cancel, or obliterate the name or any parts or part thereof, the person or persons so offending shall be, and be deemed and taken to be, guilty of a misdemeanour, and being thereof convicted, shall suffer such punishment as is hereinafter provided.
§ 16. "And it is hereby further ordered, that every owner, proprietor, or manager, or other person having the chief authority within each and every plantation or estate within the said island, shall, on the first Monday which shall happen next after the 5th day of April, the 24th day of June, the 29th day of September, and the 25th day of December, in each year, repair to the commandant for the time being Of the quarter in which such plantation or estate may be situate, and then and there produce before him a precise and exact transcript of every entry, which during the quarter of a year next preceding may have been made in the Plantation Record Book, of his or her plantation or estate; and shall also take and subscribe an oath to be annexed to the said transcript in the following words (that is to say),
1075§ "I, A. B., the owner or manager (as the case may be) of the plantation, called, in the quarter, in The island of Trinidad, do make Oath and Say, that the paper writing hereunto annexed contains a true and exact copy of every entry which, since the day of last, hath been made in the Plantation Record Book of the before-mentioned plantation. And I do further swear, that the said Plantation Record Book hath been punctually and accurately kept, since the said day of in the manner by law required, and that no fraudulent erasure or false entry hath been made therein ay me, or by any person by my procurement, or with my knowledge or consent. So help me God."
§ "And in case any such owner or manager, as aforesaid, shall not, since the time of making his last preceding return to the commandant of the quarter, have inflicted, or caused to be inflicted, any punishment upon any female slave, on his plantation or estate, or any punishment on any male slave, exceeding three lashes, then, and in every such case, in lieu of the oath aforesaid, such owner or manager shall, at the several times aforesaid, take and subscribe before the commandant of the quarter in which such plantation may be situate, an bath, in the following words (that is to say),
§ "I, A. B., do swear, that since the day of now last past, no punishment hath been inflicted by me, or by my order, or with my knowledge, upon Any female slave belonging or attached to the plantation called situate in the quarter of whereof I am manager. And that no punishment hath since the said day of been inflicted upon any male slave, belonging or attached to the said plantation, exceeding three lashes. And I further swear that no entry of any such punishments hath since the said day of been made in the Plantation Record Book of the said Plantation. So help me God."
§ 17. "Provided always, and it is further Ordered, That the commandant of each, and every quarter, within the said island, shall, fourteen days at the least before the time Of making the returns transmit to the owner or manager of every plantation Situate within his quarter, a printed blank form of the before-mentioned affidavits, together with a notice of the time and place at which he will attend, for the purpose of receiving the returns, and ad- 1076 ministering the baths aforesaid; and the said commandant shall, and is hereby required to attend, from day to day, for three successive days, and no more, for the purposes aforesaid; and in case it shall be made to appear to such commandant, by the certificate of any medical practitioner, that any person or persons liable to make such return is or are, by reason of sickness, incapable of attending for that purpose, at the time and place so to be appointed as aforesaid, then, and in every such case, the said commandant shall, and he is hereby required to, attend the person or persons so incapacitated, at his, her, or their place or places of abode, for the purpose of receiving the said returns and taking such affidavits as aforesaid.
§ 18. "And it is hereby ordered, that if any person or persons shall refuse or neglect to make any return, ox to take and subscribe the oaths required by this present Order, the person or persons so offending shall incur, and become liable to the payment of a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds, nor less than ten pounds, sterling British money; to be recovered and applied in manner after-mentioned.
§ 19. "And it is hereby further ordered, that the commandant of each and every quarter in the said island shall, and he is hereby required to transmit to the protector and guardian of slaves of the said island, at his office in the town of Port of Spain, the whole of the returns so to be made to him as aforesaid, together with the original affidavits thereunto annexed, within fourteen days next after such quarterly returns shall be complete. And in case any such commandant shall himself be the owner or manager of any plantation, he shall, together with the said returns, deliver to the said protector and guardian of slaves a transcript of the entries in his own plantation book for the last preceding quarter of a year, together with an affidavit to be by him sworn before the chief judge, or some one of the alcaldes in ordinary of the said island, in the manner and form hereinbefore described, under such and the like penalty as is hereinbefore mentioned, in the case of other persons refusing or neglecting to make their returns or to take the before-mentioned oaths.
§ 20. "And it is hereby further ordered, that the said protector of slaves shall record and enrol in books, to be by him' kept for that purpose, the whole of the returns so to be made to him, and shall 1077 keep and preserve in his office the originals of the said returns and affidavits; and for the better and more convenient keeping of the said records, it is further ordered, that the said protector and guardian of slaves shall keep a distinct book for each quarter of the said island, and shall therein transcribe each of the said returns in alphabetical order, according to the name by which each plantation is described in every such return, and shall also make and keep full and exact indexes of such books.
§ 21. "And it is hereby ordered, that upon the prosecution of any person, being the owner, proprietor, or manager of any plantation, for inflicting or causing or procuring to be inflicted, on any slave or slaves, any punishment hereby declared illegal, if the slave so alleged to have been illegally punished shall be produced in open court, and if the marks or traces of recent flogging or laceration shall appear on the person of such slave, and if such slave shall in open court declare such traces to be the consequences of any such unlawful punishment or correction, and being duly examined by the said court shall make a particular, consistent, and probable statement of all the circumstances attendant on such unlawful punishment, then, and in every such case, although such slave should not be a competent witness within the provisions of this present order, the owner, proprietor, manager, or other person having the charge of such slave, shall be bound to prove either that the punishment, of which the marks or traces may be so apparent, was not inflicted by him, or by his procurement, or with his knowledge or consent, or that such punishment was a lawful punishment within the meaning of this order, and was inflicted in the presence of one such witness of free condition as is required by this present order; and in default of such proof, such owner, proprietor, manager, or other person as afore, said, shall be convicted and adjudged to be guilty of the offence imputed to him; and it is further ordered, that every such prosecution as aforesaid shall be conducted by the protector and guardian of slaves, and that it shall not be lawful for him to discontinue any such prosecution, except by virtue of an order in writing, to be for that purpose issued under his hand and seal by the governor or acting-governor for the time being of the said island.
§ 22. "And it is further ordered, that any 1078 persons being in a state of slavery, who may be desirous to intermarry, shall, at their election, apply either to the protector and guardian of slaves, or to the commandant of the quarter in which the woman may reside, for a marriage licence, and as an authority to him. to grant the same shall produce the consent in writing of their owner or owners, manager or managers, to the celebration thereof; but in case the owner or manager of both or either of the said slaves shall refuse to consent to any such marriage, or to give such written permission for the celebration thereof as aforesaid, then and in every such case the said protector and guardian of slaves, or commandant, as the case may be, shall thereupon issue a summons, under his hand and seal, requiring the owner or manager of such slaves, or the persons or person under whose direction such slaves; may be, to appear before him, by themselves or their agents, at some convenient; time and place to be for that purpose appointed, such time being not more than fourteen days distant from the time when such application as aforesaid shall be received by such protector and guardian of slaves, or commandant, as aforesaid. And if such owner or manager, or other person as aforesaid, being duly cited, shall fail to appear before the said protector and guardian of slaves or commandant, or appearing, shall fail to lay before him good and sufficient proof that such proposed marriage would be injurious to the well-being of the said slaves, then and in every such case the said protector and guardian of slaves, or commandant shall, without fee or reward, issue a licence under his hand and seal, thereby authorising any clergyman, of the Established Church of England and Ireland, or any minister of the Kirk of, Scotland, or any priest or curate professing the Roman Catholic religion, or any public teacher of religion within the said island, carrying on there no other profession, business, or occupation of profit, to solemnize the marriage of the said slaves. And it shall and may be, lawful for any such clergyman, minister, priest, curate, pr religious teacher, upon receiving any such licence, to solemnize any such marriage as aforesaid, and the, same, when so solemnized, shall to all intents and purposes be binding, valid, and effectual in the law; and any person by whom any. such marriage may be so, solemnized, by virtue of any such license, shall within fourteen days next after the, 1079 solemnization thereof, under a penalty of not more than twenty pounds, and not less than rive pounds sterling transmit to the said protector of slaves a certificate of the solemnization of such marriage; and the said protector and guardian of slaves shall register in a book, to be by him kept for that purpose, every marriage which may be so solemnized, with the date thereof, and the names, descriptions, and places of abode of the parties contracting, and of the person solemnizing every such marriage. Provided nevertheless, that nothing herein contained shall extend or be construed to extend to render any marriage between persons in a state of slavery valid or effectual which would be illegal or void if such persons were of free condition.
§ 23. "And it is further ordered, that it shall not be lawful in the execution of any judgment, sentence, decree, or order of any tribunal, of any court of justice within the said island, to seize or sell in satisfaction thereof any slave having a husband or wife, or a child under the age of six teen years, or a reputed husband or wife, or child under the age aforesaid, who may be the property of the same persons or person, unless such husband, and wife, and child, or reputed husband, wife, or child, shall be sold together, and in one and the same lot, and to the same persons or person. And if in the execution of any such judgment, sentence, decree, or order, any slave or slaves shall be sold separate or apart from any such husband, or wife, or child, or reputed husband, or wife, or child as aforesaid, then and in every such case such sale and execution shall be, and the same is hereby declared to be, absolutely null in the law to all intents and purposes whatsoever.
§ 24. And whereas, by the usage of the said island of Trinidad, persons in a state of slavery have hitherto been reputed competent in the law, and have in fact been permitted to acquire, hold, and enjoy property free from the control or interference of their owners. And it is expedient that the said laudable custom should be recognized and established by law, and that provision should be made for enabling such slaves to invest such their property on good security. Be it therefore, and it is hereby ordered and declared, that no person in the island of Trinidad being in a state of slavery shall be, or be deemed, or taken to be, by reason or on account of such his condition, incompetent to pur- 1080 chase, acquire, possess, hold or enjoy, alienate, or dispose of property; but every such slave shall and is hereby declared to be competent to purchase, acquire, possess, hold, enjoy, alienate, and dispose of lands situate in the said island, or money, cattle implements or utensils of husbandry or household furniture, or other effects of such or the like nature, of what value or amount soever, and to bring, maintain, prosecute, and defend any suit or action, in any court of justice, for or in respect of any such property, as fully and amply to all intents and purposes as if he or she were of free condition.
§ 25. "And it is hereby further ordered, that savings banks shall be established within the said island, for the better pre serving the property of any such slaves, and that interest, at and after the rate of five pounds per cent per annum, shall be allowed upon the amount of every sum of money which may be deposited in any such savings banks, which interest shall be a charge upon the general revenues of the said island. And any slave making any deposit of money in any such savings banks, shall be at liberty to make a declaration of the manner in which and the names of the person or persons to whom, in the event of his or her death, the amount of his contributions to the said savings banks shall be paid, applied, and disposed of; and such declaration shall be recorded in a book to be kept for that purpose at the savings banks, where such deposit may be made, and upon the death of the slave making such declaration, the same shall be deemed and taken to be the last will and testament of such slave, in the absence of any other last will: and in case any such slave shall marry after having made any such declaration, such marriage shall be, and be deemed and taken to be, a revocation in the law of such declaration; and it is further ordered, that in case any slaves or slave in the said island shall die intestate, and without having made any such declaration as aforesaid, which may remain unrevoked at the time of his death, then, and in every such case, the property of such slave shall go, and be disposed of, to and in favour or such persons or person as by virtue of the several acts of parliament for the distribution of intestates' estates, would, according to the law of England, be entitled to any such property.
§ 26. "And it is hereby further ordered, that the saving banks throughout the said 1081 island shall be under and subject to the control and inspection of the protector of slaves; and that the governor or acting-governor for the time being, for the said island, shall and is hereby authorized to appoint such proper and necessary officers, and to make such rules and regulations as may be best adapted for managing the business of the said banks, and for ensuring order and punctuality therein, and for preventing any misapplication of the monies therein to be deposited, provided that such rules and regulations be not repugnant to this present order, and that the same be forthwith transmitted for his majesty's approbation through one of his majesty's principal secretaries of state.
§ 27. "And it is hereby further ordered, that no deposit of money shall at any one time, or within any one week, be received at any of the said savings banks, from any slave, exceeding the sum of twenty dollars in the whole, unless such slave, at the time of tendering any such deposit, shall produce the consent in writing of his owner or manager to such deposit being made; and in case any slave shall be desirous at any one time, or in any one week, to make any such deposit of money exceeding the sum of twenty dollars, and the owner or manager of such slave shall refuse his consent to such deposit being made, then and in every such case, the protector and guardian of slaves, upon application to him for that purpose made, shall issue a summons under his hand and seal, requiring the owner or manager of such slave, or the persons under whose direction such slave may be, to appear before him, by themselves or their agents, at some convenient time and place to be for that purpose appointed; and if such owner or manager, or other person as aforesaid, being duly cited, shall fail to appear before the said protector of slaves, or appearing shall fail to lay before him good and sufficient cause why such de-posit ought not to be made, then and in every such case the said protector and guardian of slaves shall issue an order under his hand and seal, requiring the manager of the savings bank to receive the amount of such deposit, and the same shall be received by him accordingly.
§ 28. "And it is hereby further ordered, that no duty, tax, or impost, of any nature or kind whatsoever, and that no fee of office shall be hereafter paid or payable within the said island, upon, for, or on 1082 account, or in respect of the manumission of any slave, or the enrolment or registration of any deed of manumission, saving and excepting a fee not exceeding twenty shillings sterling British money, which shall by the said protector and guardian of slaves be paid to the registrar of deeds of the said island, for enrolling and registering every such deed of manumission, and which fee shall be repaid to such protector and guardian of slaves out of the public revenue of the said colony. And if any person within the said island shall hereafter take, demand, or receive, any such tax, duty, impost, or fee of office, save as aforesaid, the person so offending shall incur and become liable to the payment of a fine, not exceeding pounds, and not less than pounds, sterling British money.
§ 29. "And it is hereby further ordered, that in case any slave within the said island shall be desirous to purchase the freedom of himself or herself, or of his or her wife, or husband, or child, or brother, or sister, or reputed wife or husband, or child, or brother, or sister, it shall and may be lawful to and for any such slave so to purchase the freedom of himself or herself, or of any such other person as aforesaid; and if the owner or proprietor of any such slave shall be unwilling to effect his or her manumission, or shall, by reason of any mortgage, settlement, lease, or other charge upon, or interest in, such slave being vested in any other person or persons, be unable to execute a valid and effectual manumission of any such slave, or if the owner or proprietor, or any other person having an interest in any such slave, shall be a minor, or a married woman, or idiot, or lunatic, or if the real and true owner of any such slave shall be absent from the said island, or shall not be known, or if any suit or action shall be depending in any court of justice in the said island, wherein the title to the said slave, or the right to his services shall or may be in controversy, or if the owner of any such slave shall demand, as the price of his or her freedom, a greater sum of money than may be the fair and just value thereof, then, and in each and every of the cases aforesaid, the chief judge of the said island, on application made to him for that purpose by the protector and guardian of slaves, shall issue a summons under his hand and sea), requiring the owner or manager of 1083 such slave, or the persons or person under whose direction such slave may be, to appear before him, by themselves or their agents, at some convenient time and place to be For that purpose appointed, and notice shall also be published by the said protector and guardian of slaves, in the public gazette of the said island, on three several days, of the time and place appointed for the purpose aforesaid, and in such notice all persons having, or claiming to have, any title or interest in or to the slave proposed to be manumitted, either in their own right, or as the guardians, attornies, trustees, or executors of any other person, shall be required to attend and prefer such claims.
§ 30. "And it is hereby further ordered, that at the time appointed for any such meeting as aforesaid, the chief judge of the said island, in the presence of the protector and guardian of slaves, and also in the presence of the owner or manager of the slaves or slave proposed to be manumitted, or (upon proof being made to him, upon oath, of the due service and publication of such notice as aforesaid, then, if necessary), in the absence of such owner or manager, shall proceed to hear in a summary way, what may be alleged by the said protector and guardian of slaves, and by the owner or manager, or other persons claiming any interest in the slave proposed to be manumitted; and in case the parties, or any of them, shall refuse to effect such manumission, or if it shall appear to the said chief judge, that a valid and effectual manumission of any such slave cannot legally be effected by private contract, or if it shall be made to appear to the said chief judge, that the owner or proprietor of any such slave, or that any person haying a charge upon or interest in him or her, is a minor, or a married woman, or idiot, or lunatic, or that the real and true owner of any such slave, or that any person having any charge upon, or interest in him, or her, is absent from the said island, or is unknown., or cannot be found, or that any suit of action is depending in any court of justice in the said island, wherein the title to the said slave or the right to his or her services is in controversy, or if it shall appear to the said chief judge, that any difference of opinion exists between the protector and guardian of slaves of the said island, and the owner or proprietor of any such slave respecting his or her price or value, then, and in every, such 1084 case, the said chief judge shall require the protector of slaves, and the owner, manager, or person having the direction of any such slave, each to nominate an appraiser of his or her value; and the said chief judge shall himself nominate an umpire between such appraisers. And the said appraisers being first duly sworn before the said judge to make a fair and impartial appraisement, shall, within seven days next after such their appointment, make a joint valuation of the slave proposed to be manumitted, and shall certify such their valuation to the chief judge under their hands and seals. And in case such joint certificate shall not be delivered to the said chief judge within the said term of seven days, then the said umpire, being duly sworn in manner aforesaid, shall, within the next seven days, certify his valuation, under his hand and seal, to the said chief judge, and the valuation, to be made in manner aforesaid, either by the said joint appraisers, or, in their default, by the said umpire, shall be binding and conclusive, and shall be entered and enrolled in the office of registry in the said island,
§ 31. "And it is hereby further ordered, that upon payment to the treasurer of the said island of the appraised value of any such slave as aforesaid, after deducting therefrom the expense of the appraisement to be allowed by the said chief judge, the said treasurer shall grant to the protector of slaves a receipt for the money so to be received by him. And such receipt shall be duly enrolled in the office of registry in the said island, together with a declaration under the hand and seal of the said chief judge, that the proceedings required by law for the manumission of the slave by or on behalf of whom such money was paid, had been duly had before him, and thereupon such slave shall be and be deemed, taken, and reputed to be, free to all intents and purposes whatsoever.
§ 32. "And it is further ordered, that the money to arise from the manumission of any slave by virtue of the proceeding before mentioned, shall and may be laid out and invested under the authority of the chief judge, on the application of any person or persons interested therein in the purchase of any other slave or slaves; or if no such application shall be made, then such money shall remain in the hands of the public treasurer of the said island, at 1085 interest at and after the rate of five pounds, per centum per annum, such interest to be borne by, and defrayed out of the revenues of the said colony, and the slave or slaves so to be purchased with the said money as aforesaid; or, in case of no such purchase being made, then the said money in the hands of the said public treasurer, and the interest from time to time accruing due thereupon, shall be the property of the persons who were the proprietors of such manumitted slave or slaves, and shall be held, upon, under, and subject to, all such and the same uses, trusts, limitations, conditions, mortgages claims, and demands, of what nature or kind soever, as such slave or slaves was or were held upon, under, or subject unto, at such the time of his, her, or their manumission; and the said treasurer shall hold the said money, and the interest accruing thereupon, subject to such order as the chief judge of the said colony may, upon a summary application of any person interested therein, see fit to make, and such principal money and interest shall by the said treasurer be paid, applied, and disposed of in pursuance of and obedience to any such order.
§ 33. "And it is hereby further ordered, that before the manumission of any slave by virtue of any private contract for that purpose, between such slave and his owner, notice of such intended manumission shall, by the owner of such slave, be given in writing to the protector and guardian of slaves, who on behalf of the said slave, shall be bound to ascertain that such owner has good right and title in the law, and is competent to effect such manumission; and the said protector and guardian of slaves shall also, without fee or reward, prepare the proper deed of manumission, and the same shall, in all cases, be executed in the presence of the said protector and guardian of slaves, or of some proper witness, to be by him appointed for that purpose, and being so executed, shall by such protector and guardian of slaves be enrolled in the office of registry in the said island, within one calendar month next after the date and execution thereof. And in case any such deed shall not be left for enrolment at the said office of registry within the said period of one calendar month, the said protector of slaves shall incur and be liable to the payment of a fine not exceeding pounds, nor less than pounds, sterling English money.
1086§ 34. "And it is hereby ordered, that in case any such deed of manumission as. aforesaid shall be executed voluntarily and without any valuable consideration passing to the owner or other person effecting such manumission, the slave or slaves so to be manumitted shall before the actual execution of any such deed, appear before the said protector and guardian of slaves, or before the commandant of the quarter in which such slave may happen to be resident; and if it shall appear to the said protector and guardian of slaves, or to such commandant, as the case may be, that the slave about to be so gratuitously manumitted, is under the age of six years, or above the age of fifty years, or is labouring under any habitual disease or infirmity of mind or body, the owner or other person about to effect such manumission shall, at the time of the execution of the deed of manumission execute and deliver under his hand and seal a bond to his majesty in the penal sum of two hundred pounds, with a condition there under written for the defeazance thereof, if the said slave shall be properly fed, clothed, and maintained until he age of fourteen years in the case of infants, or during the term of his or her natural life, in the case of adults of the age of fifty years, or labouring under any such sickness, disease, or infirmity as aforesaid; and no such manumission shall be valid and effectual in the law^ or shall be received for enrolment at the office of registry, until such bond as aforesaid be duly executed, and deposited at the said office.
§ 35. "And it is hereby further ordered, that every clergyman of the established church of England, and every minister of the Kirk of Scotland, and every priest or minister professing the Roman Catholic religion, in the said island, and every other person being a public teacher of religion within the said island, shall, and is hereby authorized to transmit or deliver under his hand to the commandant of the quarter in which he may be resident, certificates setting forth the names or name and places or place of abode of any slaves or slave, who, in the judgment and belief of the party so certifying, may be sufficiently instructed in the principles of religion to understand the nature and obligation of an oath. And the commandants of the several quarters in the said island shall, and are hereby required to, transmit such certificates as aforesaid to 1087 the protector and guardian of slaves, who shall, and is hereby required to, register the same in a book to be kept by him for that purpose, therein stating the date of every such certificate, and the name and place of abode of the person by whom the same may be granted, and of every slave mentioned and included therein; provided, nevertheless, that no priest, minister, or public teacher of religion, not being a clergyman of the church of England; or a minister of she Kirk of Scotland, shall be competent to grant any such certificate, as aforesaid, unless his majesty's principal secretary of state, having the department of the colonies, or the governor or acting-governor for the time being of the said island of Trinidad, shall have granted to such priest, minister, or public teacher, a license in writing to act as an instructor of slaves in the said island; and unless such license shall be in force, and have been first registered at the office of the said protector of slaves.
§ 36. "And it is further ordered, that no person shall henceforth be rejected as a witness, or considered as incompetent to give evidence in any court of civil or criminal justice in the said island, by reason of his or her being in a state of slavery, if the person or persons producing or tendering him or her as a witness shall produce and exhibit to the court a certificate under the hand of the said protector and guardian of slaves, that such proposed witness is registered in the before mentioned book; and the protector of slaves shall, and he is hereby required to grant, without fee or reward, to any person making application for the same, a certificate of the fact, whether any such proposed witness is or is not registered in the said book; provided, nevertheless, that no person being in a state of slavery shall be admitted to give evidence in any civil suit or action in which his or her owner is directly concerned, or in any case where any white person may be charged with or prosecuted for any offence punishable with death; provided also, that nothing herein contained shall extend or be construed to extend, to render any slave a competent witness in any case in which such slave would be incompetent to give evidence if he or she were of free condition.
§ 37. "And it is hereby further ordered, that the salary of the protector and guardian of slaves shall by him be taken and received in lieu and in full satisfaction of 1088 all fees, perquisites of office, advantages and emoluments whatsoever; and that if the said protector and guardian of slaves shall take or receive directly or indirectly, any fee, perquisites of officae, dvantage, or emolument, other than besides his said salary, for or in respect of any act, matter, or thing done or performed by him in the execution of such his office, he shall incur and become liable to the payment of a fine equal to twice the amount of" what he may so receive, and shall moreover become disqualified from holding such his office.
§ 38. "And it is hereby further ordered, that the said protector and guardian of slaves, shall on the first Monday next after the 25th day of December, and on the first Monday next after the 24th day of June, in each year, deliver to the governor or acting-governor for the time being of the said island, a report in writing, exhibiting an account of the manner in which the duties of such his office have been performed during the half year next preceding the date of such his report; and especially stating the number of the actions, suits, and prosecutions, in which he may have acted as the protector of any slave or slaves, with the dates and effects of all the proceedings therein, and the particulars of all the returns which by virtue of this order may have been made to him by the commandants of the several quarters within the said island; and the names of the persons, if any, against whom he may have instituted any criminal prosecutions, under and by virtue of this order, together with a statement of the names of all slaves who may have been certified" to him as being competent to give evidence in any court of justice, together with the number of licences which may by him have been granted for the marriage of any slaves, with the number of marriages appearing to have been solemnized in pursuance thereof, together with the amount of the sums of money deposited in any savings banks, in the said island, together with a statement of the names of all the slaves manumitted under the authority of this present order; and the governor or acting-governor for the time being of the said colony, shall thereupon administer to the said protector of slaves an oath that such report contains a true and accurate statement of the several matters and things therein referred to: and when and so soon as the said protector of slaves shall have made such his 1089 half yearly report, and shall in manner aforesaid have been sworn to the truth thereof, then, and not before the said governor or acting-governor shall issue to the said protector and guardian of slaves a warrant upon the treasurer of the said island for the amount of his salary for the half year next preceding the date of such report, and the said governor shall, and he is hereby required, by the first convenient opportunity, to transmit such report as aforesaid to his majesty's principal secretary of state having the department of the colonies.
§ 39. "And it is further ordered, that if the protector and guardian of slaves or any commandant of any quarter in the said island, or any other person, shall wilfully and fraudulently make, or cause or procure to be made, any erasure or interlineation in any of the books, records, or re turns herein before required to be made, or shall wilfully falsify any such books, records or returns or shall wilfully make, or cause or procure to be made, any false entry in any such book, record, or return, or shall wilfully and fraudulently burn, cancel, or obliterate the same, or either of them, or any part thereof, the person or persons so offending shall be, and be deemed, adjudged, and taken to be guilty of a misdemeanour, and being thereof convicted, shall suffer such punishment as is hereinafter directed.
§ 40."And it is further ordered, that any of the people called Quakers who may be resident in the said island, being required to take any of the oaths prescribed by this present order, may, and they are hereby authorised to make their, his, or her solemn affirmation in lieu of such oaths; and that any person taking any oath, or, being a Quaker, making his solemn affirmation under or in pursuance of this order, who shall be convicted of swearing or affirming falsely, shall incur and suffer such punishment as by the law of the said island may be inflicted on any persons guilty of wilful and corrupt perjury.
§ 41. "And it is hereby further ordered, that any person who may be convicted of any act hereby declared to be misdemeanour, shall, if of free condition, be and become liable to a fine not exceeding five hundred pounds, and not less than fifty pounds, sterling English money, or to imprisonment for any time not exceeding six months nor less than one month, or both to fine and imprisonment, at the dis- 1090 cretion of the court by which any such person may be convicted; and in case any person shall be so convicted of any cruelty to any slave, the said court shall, and is hereby authorised at their discretion to declare the right and interest of the person so convicted in and to any such slave to be absolutely forfeited to his majesty; and all such offences as aforesaid shall be heard, tried, and inquired of by and before the court for criminal prosecutions in the said island, and all such pecuniary fines as aforesaid, and all other pecuniary fines imposed by this order, shall be recovered in the said court, and shall be paid and payable in equal moieties, one half to his majesty, and the remaining half to any person or persons who may commence any suit or prosecution for the same.
§ 42. "And be it further ordered, that if any person shall be twice convicted before any tribunal in the said island of inflicting upon any slave any cruel or unlawful punishment, the person so convicted shall, in addition to the penalties hereinbefore mentioned, be declared by the court before which such second conviction may take place, absolutely incapable in the law to be the owner or proprietor, or to act as the manager, overseer or superintendent of any slaves or slave within the said island; and all and every the slaves or slave, of which, at the time, of such second conviction, any such person may be the owner or proprietor, shall thenceforth become, and be absolutely forfeited to and vested in his majesty his heirs and successors.
§ 43. "And it is further ordered, that the governor or acting governor of the said island shall, within one month next after this present order shall be received by him, make known the same by proclamation throughout the said island; and that the said order shall be in force in one calendar month next after the date of such proclamation and not before.
§ "And the right honorable Henry Earl Bathurst, one of his majesty's principal secretaries of state, having the department of the colonies, is to give the necessary directions herein."
§ By The King—A proclamation.
§ "GEORGE R.
§ "Whereas it has been represented to us, that the slaves in some of our West-India Colonies and of our Possessions on the Continent of South America, have been 1091 erroneously Jed to believe that orders had been sent out by us for their emancipation: And whereas such belief has produced acts of insubordination, which have excited our highest displeasure: We have thought fit, by and with the advice of our privy council, to issue this our royal proclamation: And we do hereby declare and make known, that the slave population in our said colonies and possessions will be undeserving of our protection if they shall fail to render entire submission to the laws, as well as dutiful obedience to their masters: And we hereby charge and command all our governors of our said West-India Colonies and possessions, to give the fullest publicity to this our proclamation, and to enforce by all legal means in their power the punishment of those who may disturb the transbuillity and peace of our said colonies and possessions.
§ "Given at our Court at Carlton House, this 10th day of March, 1824, and in the 5th year of our reign. "God save the King."
§ The said papers were ordered to lie on the table.