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required, to take up such wandering, sick, aged, or infirm slave or slaves, and to lodge him, her, or them, in the nearest workhouse, there to be clothed and fed, but not worked, at the expence of the master, owner, or possessor, until such trial as aforesaid can be had; and if it shall to the said justice, on such trial, that the party or parties so complained of is or are guilty of the said offence, and shall refuse to pay the said ten pounds, and the fees to such workhouse for the maintenance of such slave or slaves, together with the charges of the conviction, the said justice is hereby required and empowered, under the penalty of twenty pounds, forthwith, by warrant under his hand and seal, directed to the constable, to commit such offender or offenders to the common gaol of the county or parish where the offence shall be committed, there to remain until he or she shall pay the said sum of ten pounds, and charges as aforesaid; one moiety of which said fine shall be paid to the informer, and the other moiety shall be paid into the hands of the churchwardens of such parish, for the poor of said parish; any law, custom, or usage to the contrary notwithstanding.

V. And for the better encouragement of slaves to do their duty to their masters, owners, or possessors, be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That every master, owner, or possessor of slaves, shall, once in every year, provide and give to each slave they shall be possessed of proper and sufficient clothing, to be approved of by the justices and vestry of the parish where such master, owner, or possessor of such slaves resides, under the penalty of fifty pounds.

VI. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That all masters and mistresses, owners, or, in their absence, overseers of slaves, shall, as much as in them lies, endeavour the instruction of their slaves in the principles of the Christian religion, whereby to facilitate their conversion, and shall do their utmost endeavours to fit them for baptism, and as soon as conveniently they can, cause to be baptised all such as they can make sensible of a Deity, and the Christian faith.

VII. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That every master, owner, propietor, or possessor of slaves, his or her overseer or chief manager, at their giving in an account of their slaves and stock

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to the justices and vestry, on the 28th day of December in every year, shall, under the penalty of fifty pounds for every neglect, also give in, on oath, an account of the quantity of land in ground-provisions, over and above the Negro-grounds, upon such plantation, pen, or other settlement, where there are lands proper for the cultivation of such provisions; and, where there are not lands proper for such purposes, then an account, on oath, of the provision made on such plantation, pen, or other settlement, or means adopted for the maintenance of the slaves thereon; and shall also, at the same time, and under the like penalty, give in an account, on oath, of the nature and quantity of the clothing actually served to each slave on such plantation, pen, or other settlement, for the approbation of the justices and vestry as aforesaid; and shall, likewise, at the same time declare, on oath, that he hath inspected the Negro-grounds (where such grounds are allotted), of such plantation, pen, or settlement, according to the directions of this act.

VIII. And, in order to encourage slaves for every good and worthy act that they shall do, be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That every slave or slaves that shall take up any runaway slave, or inform against any person who shall have or conceal any runaway slave or slaves, so that such runaway slave or slaves may be taken and restored to his owner or owners; every such slave or slaves, so informing, shall be entitled to such reward as any justice shall in reason and justice think just and reasonable, and be paid by such person or persons as such justice shall determine ought to pay the same, not exceeding twenty shillings.

IX. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any slave or slaves shall kill or take any slave or slaves in actual rebellion, he or they shall receive from the churchwardens of the respective parishes where such slave or slaves shall have been killed, the sum of three pounds, and the sum of five pounds if taken alive, and a blue cloth coat, with a red cross on the right shoulder, to be paid by the churchwardens of the respective parishes where such slave or slaves shall have been killed or taken; the whole expence whereof shall be reimbursed by the receivergeneral for the time being, out of any monies in his hands unappropriated.

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X. And, in order to 'prevent any person from mutilating or dismembering any slave or slaves, be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any master, mistress, owner, possessor, or other person whatsoever, shall, at his, her, or their, own will and pleasure, or by his, her, or their, direction, or with his, her, or their, knowledge, sufferance, privity, or consent, mutilate or dismember any slave or slaves, he, she, or they, shall be liable to be indicted for each offence in the supreme court of judicature, or in any of the assize courts of this island; and, upon conviction, shall be punished by fine, not exceeding one hundred pounds, and imprisonment, not exceeding twelve months, for each and every slave so mutilated or dismembered; and such punishment is declared to be without prejudice to any action that could or might be brought at common law, for recovery of damages for or on account of the same; And, very atrocious cases, where the owner of such slave or slaves shall be convicted of such offence, the court hefore whom such offender shall have been tried and convicted, are hereby empowered, in case they shall think it necessary, for the future protection of such slave or slaves, to declare him, her, or them, free, and discharged from all manner of servitude, to all intents and purposes whatsoever: And, in all such cases, the court are hereby empowered and authorised, if to them it shall appear necessary, to order and direct the said fine of one hundred pounds to be paid to the justices and vestry of the parish to which the said slave or slaves belonged, to the use of the said parish, the said justices and vestry, in consideration thereof, paying to such of the said slave or slaves, so made free, the sum of ten pounds per annum, for his, her, or their, maintenance and support during life; and in case any slave or slaves shall suffer any before-decribed mutilations, such slave or slaves, on his, her, or their, application to any justice of the peace, the said justice of the peace shall be, and is hereby, directed, required, and empowered, on view, and certain conviction of the fact, to send such slave or slaves to the nearest workhouse where such offence shall be committed, and such slave or slaves shall be there safely kept, and carefully attended, at the expence of such parish, until such time as there may be a legal meeting of the justices and vestry of such parish; which justices and vestry, so met, are hereby created and appointed a council of protection of such

slave or slaves: And the said justices and vestry, so met, are hereby directed and empowered, to make further and full inquiry, upon view, into the commitment of the mutilation of such slave or slaves; and, if to them it shall appear proper, the said justices and vestry are hereby empowered and required to prosecute to effect such owner or owners; the expence of which prosecution shall be paid by the parish where such offence shall be committed: And in case the owner or owners of such slave or slaves shall appear capable of paying the costs and charges of such before-mentioned prosecution, the said justices and vestry are hereby empowered to commence suit or suits against such owner or owners of such slave or slaves, and recover all costs and charges out of purse, by them laid out and expended in such suit or suits: And the keeper or supervisor of the workhouse where such mutilated slave or slaves shall have been first committed, is hereby directed and required, upon due notice of the first meeting of the justices and vestry of the parish where the offence was committed, to produce such mutilated slave or slaves, for the inspection and direction of such justices and vestry, under the penalty of twenty pounds for every neglect, in not producing before such justices and vestry such slave or slaves.

XI. And be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That in case any justice of the peace shall receive any complaint or probable intelligence from any slave or otherwise, that any slave or slaves is or are so mutilated, or is or are confined without sufficient support, it shall and may be lawful for such justice of the peace, and he is hereby empowered and required, forthwith to issue his warrant to any constable, ordering him immediately to proceed to the place where such slave or slaves, so mutilated, are confined, and such slave or slaves to release and bring before such justice, who, on view of the fact, is hereby authorised to send such slave or slaves to the workhouse for protection, and who is there to be kept, but not to be worked, until inquiry shall be made into the fact according to law.

XII. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any person hereafter shall wantonly, willingly, or bloody-mindedly, kill, or cause to be killed, any Negro or other slave, such person so offending, shall, on conviction, be admitted guilty of felony, without benefit of

clergy, and shall suffer death accordingly for the said offence: Provided always, That such conviction shall not extend to the corrupting the blood, or the forfeiture of lands or tenements, goods or chattels; any law, custom, or usage, to the contrary thereof, in anywise notwithstanding.

XIII. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That from and after the passing of this act, any person or persons that shall wantonly or cruelly whip, maltreat, beat, bruise, wound, or shall imprison or keep in confinement, without sufficient support, any slave or slaves, shall be subject to be indicted for the same in the supreme court of judicature, or in either of the courts of assize, or courts of quarter-sessions in this island; and, upon being thereof legally convicted, he, she, or they, shall suffer such punishment, by fine or imprisonment, or both, as the judges or justices of such courts shall think proper to inflict; any law, custom, or usage to the contrary in anywise notwithstanding: And such punishment is hereby declared to be without prejudice to any action at common law that could or might be brought for the recovery of damages for and on account of the same, in case such slave or slaves shall not be the property of the offender.

XIV. And, in order to restrain arbitrary punishments, be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That no slave on any plantation or settlement, or in any of the workhouses or gaols in this island, shall receive more than ten lashes at one time and for one offence, unless the owner, attorney, guardian, executor, or administrator, or overseer, of such plantation or settlement, having such slave in his care, or supervisor of such workhouse, or keeper of such gaol, shall be present; and that no such owner, attorney, guardian, executor, administrator, or overseer, supervisor, or gaol-keeper, shall, on any account, punish a slave with more than thirty-nine lashes at one time, and for one offence, nor inflict, or suffer to be inflicted, such last-mentioned punishment, nor any other number of lashes, in the same day, nor until the delinquent has recovered from the effects of any former punishment, under the penalty of ten pounds for every

* In the former act, 51.