A. D. 1820. within two years. Acts relating to Slaves. this Act; or who shall leave this State as a servant of any white person, and shall return with any white person in said capacity. V. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any Penalty for sel- person or persons shall hereafter bring or cause to be brought into this ling free persons of color. State, any free negro or person of color, and shall hold the same as a slave, or sell or offer the same for sale to any person or persons in this State as a slave, every such person or persons shall pay for every such free negro or free person of color, the sum of one thousand dollars, over and above the damages which may be recovered by such free negro or free person of color, to any person or persons who will sue for and recover the same; which may be done either by indictment, or action in nature of ravishment of ward, established by law. peace. VI. Be it further enacted, That if any white person shall be duly conPenalty for cir- victed of having, directly or indirectly, circulated or brought within this culating papers calculated to State, any written or printed paper, with intent to disturb the peace or sedisturb the curity of the same, in relation to the slaves of the people of this State, such person shall be adjudged guilty of a high misdemeanor, and shall be fined not exceeding one thousand dollars, and imprisoned not exceeding one year. And if any free person of color shall be convicted, in the mode provided by law for the trial of such persons, of such offence, he or she shall, for the first offence, be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars; and for the second offence, shall be whipped, not exceeding fifty lashes, and be banished from the State; and any free person of color who shall return from such banishment, unless by unavoidable accident, shall suffer death without the benefit of clergy. In the Senate House, the twentieth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty, and in the forty-fifth year of the Independence of the United States of America. BENJAMIN HUGER, President of the Senate. PATRICK NOBLE, Speaker of the House of Representatives. No. 2254. AN ACT TO PROVIDE MORE EFFECTUALLY AGAINST THE OFFENCE OF HARBOURING NEGRO OR OTHER SLAVES. I. Be it enacted, by the honorable the Senate and House of Representatives, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, that if any white person shall harbour, conceal or entertain any runaway or fugitive slave, such person shall be liable to be indicted for a misdemeanor, or prosecuted in a civil action for damages, at the election. of the owner or person injured: and in case any person, being indicted, shall be convicted of said offence, such person shall be fined and imprisoned at the discretion of the court, not exceeding one thousand dollars fine, nor one year's imprisonment. II. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any free negro, mulatto or mestizo shall harbour, conceal or entertain any fugitive or runaway slave, and be convicted thereof before two justices and five freeholders, he shall suffer such corporal punishment, not extending to life Acts relating to Slaves. or limb, as the said justices and freeholders who try such offender, shall, in their discretion, think fit. In the Senate House, the twentieth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty-one, and in the forty-sixth year of the Independence of the United States of America. BENJAMIN HUGER, President of the Senate. PATRICK NOBLE, Speaker of the House of Representatives. A. D. 1822. AN ACT FOR THE BETTER REGULATION AND GOVERNMENT OF FREE No. 2277. NEGROES AND PERSONS OF COLOR; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. Free negroes I. Be it enacted by the honorable the Senate and House of Representatives, now met and sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of, the same, That from and after the passing of this Act, no free negro or leaving this person of color, who shall leave this State, shall be suffered to return; and State not to every person who shall offend herein, shall be liable to the penalties of the return. Act passed on the twentieth day of December, in the year one thousand eight hundred and twenty, entitled "An Act to restrain the emancipation of slaves, and to prevent free persons of color from entering into this State; and for other purposes." color. II. And be it further enacted, That every free male negro or person of color, between the ages of fifteen and fifty years, within this State, who Tax on free may not be a native of said State, or shall not have resided therein five negroes and years next preceding the passing of this Act, shall pay a tax of fifty dollars persons of per annum; and in case said tax shall not be paid, the said free male person of color shall be subject to the penalties of the Act against free persons of color coming into this State, passed on the twentieth day of December, one thousand eight hundred and twenty. land free ne III. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any vessel shall come into any port or harbour of this State, from any other No vessel to State or foreign port, having on board any free negroes or persons of color, groes or peras cooks, stewards, mariners, or in any other employment on board of said sons of color. vessel, such free negroes or persons of color shall be liable to be seized and confined in jail until said vessel shall clear out and depart from this State; and that when said vessel is ready to sail, the captain of said vessel shall be bound to carry away the said free negro or free person of color, and to pay the expenses of his detention; and in case of his neglect or refusal so to do, he shall be liable to be indicted, and, on conviction thereof, shall be fined in a sum not less than one thousand dollars, and imprisoned not less than two months; and such free negroes or persons of color shall be deemed and taken as absolute slaves, and sold in conformity to the provisions of the Act passed on the twentieth day of December, one thousand eight hundred and twenty, aforesaid. IV. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the sheriff of Charleston District, and each and every other sheriff of this State, Sheriffs to carshall be empowered and specially enjoined to carry the provisions of this ry this Act into effect. Act into effect; each of whom shall be entitled to one moiety of the proceeds of the sale of all free negroes and free persons of color that may A.D. 1822. Harbor-master Acts relating to Slaves. happen to be sold under the provisions of the foregoing clause; provided the prosecution be had at his information. V. And be it further enacted, That it it shall be the duty of the harbormaster of the port of Charleston, to report to the sheriff of Charleston to report to the district, the arrival of all free negroes or free persons of color, who may arrive on board any vessel coming into the harbor of Charleston, from any other State or foreign port. sheriff. No person to hire to slaves their own time. Free negroes to have guar dians. VI. And be it enacted, That from and after the passing of this Act, it shall be altogether unlawful for any person or persons to hire to any male slave or slaves, his or their time; and in case any male slave or slaves be so permitted by their owner or owners, to hire out their own time, labor or service, the said slave or slaves shall be liable to seizure and forfeiture, in the same manner as has been heretofore enacted in the Act in the case of slaves coming into this State contrary to the provisions of the same. VII. And be it further enacted, That from and after the first day of June next, every free male negro, mulatto or mestizo in this State, above the age. of fifteen years, shall be compelled to have a guardian, who shall be a respectable freeholder of the district in which said free negro, mulatto or mestizo shall reside. And it shall be the duty of the said guardian to go before the clerk of the court of the said district, and before him signify his acceptance of the trust, in writing; and, at the same time, he shall give to the clerk aforesaid, his certificate, that the said negro, mulatto or mestizo for whom he is guardian, is of good character and correct habits; which acceptance and certificate shall be recorded in said office, by the clerk, who shall receive for the same fifty cents; and if any free male negro, mulatto or mestizo shall be unable to conform to the requisitions of this Act, then, and in that case, such person or persons shall be dealt with as this Act directs for persons of color coming into this State contrary to law; and the amount of sale shall be divided, one half to the informer, and the other half for the use of the State. VIII. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any Persons raising person or persons shall counsel, aid or hire any slave or slaves, free negroes rebellion to be or persons of color, to raise a rebellion or insurrection within this State, adjudged whether any rebellion or insurrection do actually take place or not, every felons. such person or persons, on conviction thereof, shall be adjudged felons, and suffer death without benefit of clergy. IX. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the Justices ex-of-commissioners of the cross roads for Charleston Neck, be, and they are ficio appointed, hereby declared to be, justices of the peace, ex-officio, in that part of the parish of St. Philip's without the corporate limits of Charleston, for all purposes, except for the trial of causes small and mean. In the Senate House, the twenty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty-two, and in the forty-seventh year of the Indepen. dence of the United States of America. JACOB BOND I'ON, President of the the Senate. PATRICK NOBLE, Speaker of the House of Representaitves. Acts relating to Slaves. AN ACT THE MORE OTHER PURPOSES. A. D. 1823. No. 2319. color to come I. Be it enacted, by the honorable the Senate and House of Representa. tives, now met and sitting in General Assembly, That from and after the No free negro passing of this Act, it shall not be lawful for any free negro or person of or person of colour to migrate into this State, or be brought or introduced into its limits, into this State. under any pretext whatever, by land or by water. And in case any such free negro or person of color, (not being a seaman on board of any vessel arriving within this State,) shall migrate into or be introduced into this State, contrary to this Act, he shall and may be carried by any white person before some justice of the peace of the district or parish where he or she shall be taken, which justice is hereby required to summon three freeholders and form a court to examine such free negro or person of color, and on conviction, to order him or her to leave the State; and every free negro or person of color, so ordered to leave the State, and thereafter remaining longer than fifteen days within the same, or having left the State and thereafter returning to the same, upon proof thereof made before any magistrate and three freeholders, and on conviction thereof, shall be subjected to be sentenced to such corporal punishment as the said magistrate and freeholders shall, in their discretion, think fit to order. And if, after the said sentence of punishment, such free negro or person of color shall again remain longer in this State than fifteen days, or having left the State shall thereafter return to the same, upon proof thereof before any magistrate and three freeholders, as aforesaid, and on conviction thereof, the said magistrate and freeholders shall adjudge the said free negro or person of color to suffer corporal punishment a second time; and for every repetition of the offence of remaining in this State contrary to this Act, or of coming into the same after departing therefrom, such free negro or person of color shall be liable to be proceeded against in like manner; and so on until such free negro or person of color shall cease to violate this Act. of any vessel. II. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That it shall not be lawful for any free negro or person of color to come into this State, No negro to on board of any vessel, as a cook, steward, mariner, or in any other em- come into this ployment on board of such vessel. And in case any vessel shall arrive in State on board any port or harbour of this State, from any other State or foreign port, having on board any free negro or person of color employed on board such vessel as a cook, steward, mariner, or in any other employment, it shall be the duty of the sheriff of the district in which such port or harbour is situated, immediately on the arrival of such vessel, to apprehend such free negro or person of color, so arriving contrary to this Act, and to confine him closely in jail until such vessel shall be hauled off from the wharf, and ready to proceed to sea; and that when said vessel is ready to sail, the captain of said vessel shall be bound to carry away the said free negro or person of color, and to pay the expences of his detention; and in case such captain shall refuse or neglect to pay the said expenses, and to carry away the said free negro or person of color, he shall forfeit and pay the sum of one thousand dollars, and be liable to be indicted therefor, and also to suffer imprisonment for any term or time not exceeding six months. III. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That whenever any free negro or person of color shall be apprehended and committed to jail as having arrived in any vessel in the capacity of a cook, steward, A. D. 1823. soned under this Act, how to be dealt with. Acts relating to Slaves. Negroes impri- mariner, or otherwise, contrary to this Act, it shall be the duty of the sheriff, during the confinement in jail of such free negro or person of color, to call upon some justice of the peace to warn such free negro or person of color never to enter the said State after he or she shall depart therefrom; and such justice of the peace shall, at the time of warning said free negro or person of color, insert his or her name in a book to be provided by the sheriff for that purpose, and shall therein specify his or her age, occupation, height and distinguishing marks; which book shall be good and sufficient evidence of such warning; for which services, the said justice shall receive the sum of two dollars, payable by the captain of the vessel. And every free negro or person of color who shall not depart the State, in case of the captain's refusing or neglecting to carry him or her away, or having depart. ed shall ever again enter into the limits of this State, by land or by water, after being warned, as aforesaid, shall be dealt with as the first section of this Act directs for persons of color who shall migrate or be brought into this State. Penalty for bringing free negroes into State by sea. IV. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That it shall not be lawful for any master or captain of any vessel, or for any other per. son, to introduce or bring into the limits of this State any free negro or person of color, as a passenger, or as cook, mariner, steward, or in any other capacity, on board of such vessel, whose entrance into this State is prohibited by this Act; and if any master or captain of any vessel, as aforesaid, shall bring in or introduce into this State any such free negro or person of color, whose entrance is prohibited, as aforesaid; or if any other person shall introduce by land, as a servant, any free negro or person of color, every such person shall, for the first offence, be fined in a sum not exceeding one hundred dollars; and for the second offence, be liable to forfeit and pay, for each free negro or person of color so brought into this State, the sum of one thousand dollars, and shall, moreover, be liable to be imprisoned for any term or time not exceeding six months. V. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That it shall Free persons of not be lawful for any free negro or person of color, who has left the State color leaving at any time previous to the passing of this Act, or for those who may hereto return. after leave the State, ever to return again into the same, without being this State not Slaves from subject to the penalties of the first section of this Act, as fully as if they had never resided therein. VI. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That it shall not be lawful for any citizen of this State or other person, to bring into this certain places State, under any pretext whatever, any slave or slaves, from any port or not to be bro't place in the West Indies, or Mexico, or any part of South America, or from into this State. Europe, or from any sister State, which may be situated to the north of the river Potomac, or the city of Washington. Neither shall it be lawful for. any person to bring into this State, as a servant, any slave who has been carried out of the same, if at any time during the absence of such slave from this State, he or she hath been in ports or places situated in Europe, in the West Indies, or Mexico, or any part of South America, or in the States north of the river Potomac, or city of Washington. And any person who shall bring into this State any slave, contrary to the meaning of this Act, shall forfeit and pay the sum of one thousand dollars, and the said slave shall be a forfeiture to the State. VII. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That all free negroes and persons of color, and all other persons, shall be exempted from the operation of this Act, where such free negroes and persons of color |