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Primary Source of the Month

Virginia Gazette (Purdie and Dixon), May 2, 1766.
Virginia Gazette (Purdie and Dixon), May 2, 1766.



Transcription:
APRIL 26, 1766.
  
RUN away from the subscriber, in Mecklenburg county, on Wednesday last, a fellow named JACK. It appears he has been principally concerned in promoting the late disorderly meetings among the Negroes, and is gone off for fear of being prosecuted for many robberies he has committed. He is a low squat made fellow, bow legged, his eyes remarkably red, has been branded on the right cheek R, and on the left M, though not easily to be perceived. It is supposed he intends for Carolina or Georgia. Whoever apprehends the said slave, and will deliver him to me, shall receive 50 s. if taken 50 miles from home and 6 l. a mile for a greater distance.
ROBERT MUNFORD.
  

By the 1760s, Virginia law contained harsh penalties for slaves who broke the law. Laws regulated how slaves could be sold, when they could testify in court, and so on. Today, these laws would be considered extremely cruel and racist. At the time, however, Virginia lawmakers viewed such laws as necessary. The runaway advertisement for Jack (above) is one of thousands that appeared in the Virginia Gazette during the eighteenth century.

Jack has been accused of committing not just one, but two crimes. He is accused of encouraging "disorderly meetings among the Negroes," and is also facing prosecution for committing robbery. According to one 1748 law, Jack would face up to 39 lashes for simply being present at unlawful meetings. The punishment for robbery included the possibility of branding or a serious whipping.

The "R" branded on Jack's right cheek indicates that Jack has previously been accused of being a rogue (engaging in an aberrant, disreputable, or dishonest behavior) or vagabond (a wanderer). The "M" on Jack's left cheek indicates that he has been convicted of manslaughter (someone died as the result of some accident or unintentional act by Jack).

Considering Jack's history, one can understand why he might have wanted to run away to avoid the possibility of more punishments.