1737 Aron van Madagascar
In the aftermath of the arson attempts in Cape Town in 1735—6, the authorities attempted to clamp down on the number of slave runaways in the vicinity, and in particular those linked to the maroon community based at Hangklip on False Bay, led by Leander Boegis.1 Commandos sent out to Hangklip were unsuccessful, but a number of runaways were caught on Table Mountain and in the region of present-day Fish Hoek. Aron van Madagascar confessed to several encounters with them, including providing Leander Boegis and his group with flint-stones, and meeting up with others near Fish Hoek.2 He did not stay with them – he was particularly disgusted by the fact that they ate snakes3 – but rather roamed around the area with other runaways before he was caught. The case gives an insight into the runaways’ underworld of the Cape Peninsula in these decades, and the contacts between runaways and slaves in the town.4
Footnotes
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A community of runaway slaves existed at Hangklip, on the southernmost point of False Bay, throughout the eighteenth century, where they were well positioned to evade Company commandos. However, they were dependent for food on raiding wagons coming over the nearby mountain passes, or else by obtaining supplies from sympathetic slaves or by raiding nearby farms. Often they were captured during such raids. For the fullest account of the Hangklip maroons, see Ross 1983: 54-72, who mentions this case on pp. 57 and 66-7. For other cases involving them, see 1785 Spadilje van Siam; 1786 Job van Madagascar; and 1786 October van Madagascar. ↩
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Aron’s confession is available in CJ 341, ff. 104-6. The only other documentation presented to the Council was the eijscheijschLiterally ‘claim’ or ‘demand.’ This is strictly speaking the eijsch ende conclusie without the final part about sentencing, but the term is often used as a shorthand for the whole document. (CJ 341, ff. 100-3). ↩
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It is not clear whether this was personal disgust or a cultural difference. ↩
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For other cases involving such interactions, see 1735 Company slaves; 1760 Achilles van de West Cust et al.; and 1786 October van Madagascar et al. ↩
CJ 786 Sententiën, 1736-1743, ff. 88-93.
Since, from the voluntary, verified confession of Aron van Madagascar, 30 years old, slave of the farmer Paul Jourdan, given without any torture or coercion of bonds, of irons, or the least threat of suchlike, it has appeared evident to the honourable Council of Justice of the Castle of Good Hope:
That the prisoner, more than several years ago, then being the slave of the widow Admiraal, was searching for wood on Table Mountain with a bondsman, by the name of Jannuarij. The same Jannuarij had told the prisoner that Leander Boegis, head of the rogues who resided at Vishoek, was present on Table Mountain and had given him, Jannuarij, two dubbeltjes1 with which to buy flint-stones; which two dubbeltjes that slave Jannuarij then handed over to the prisoner, with the request to buy the flint-stones for him, which the prisoner undertook to do; buying, as soon as he had come down from Table Mountain, with the money given him six flint-stones from a jongenjongenLiterally ‘boy.’ In Dutch it was common to use this word also to refer to male servants, irrespective of age. At the Cape, however, this usage was extended to slaves and then became exclusive, so that jongen (also in the deflected form jong) came to mean ‘male slave’, such that Afrikaans lost the use of the word to mean ‘boy’ and instead uses seun (from Dutch zoon) for both ‘boy’ and ‘son.’ In this primary meaning, the word has become obsolete in modern Afrikaans, except for the archaic terms tuinjong (‘garden boy’) and plaasjong (‘farm boy’), in the sense of male workers of colour. of the departed burgher Pieter Burij. On the following day, the prisoner, along with the aforementioned Jannuarij, took these flint-stones to the aforementioned slave Leander Boegis, who had with him two muskets and two bondsmen, whom the prisoner did not know. As they were coming towards him, Leander, took aim at them, but seeing, as they came closer, who they were, he kept off. The prisoner later recognised the slave Joumat in Vishoek as having been one of the two jongensjongensLiterally ‘boy.’ In Dutch it was common to use this word also to refer to male servants, irrespective of age. At the Cape, however, this usage was extended to slaves and then became exclusive, so that jongen (also in the deflected form jong) came to mean ‘male slave’, such that Afrikaans lost the use of the word to mean ‘boy’ and instead uses seun (from Dutch zoon) for both ‘boy’ and ‘son.’ In this primary meaning, the word has become obsolete in modern Afrikaans, except for the archaic terms tuinjong (‘garden boy’) and plaasjong (‘farm boy’), in the sense of male workers of colour. who accompanied Leander Boegis.2
That the prisoner, more than a full year ago, ran away from his master’s house and, taking off with some jongensjongensLiterally ‘boy.’ In Dutch it was common to use this word also to refer to male servants, irrespective of age. At the Cape, however, this usage was extended to slaves and then became exclusive, so that jongen (also in the deflected form jong) came to mean ‘male slave’, such that Afrikaans lost the use of the word to mean ‘boy’ and instead uses seun (from Dutch zoon) for both ‘boy’ and ‘son.’ In this primary meaning, the word has become obsolete in modern Afrikaans, except for the archaic terms tuinjong (‘garden boy’) and plaasjong (‘farm boy’), in the sense of male workers of colour. from Rio de la Goa3 in the direction of the beach, eventually arrived above Vishoek, where they took their residence. Which is where the prisoner saw his comrades eating snakes, because of which, as he asserts, he was moved to leave them and continued his journey hither, meeting along the way the slaves Joumat, Adam and the recently executed Jamboe, from whom the prisoner, after staying there for two or three days, went away and came back to the Cape with the kettle of the aforesaid Jamboe, which he had stolen from him.
And considering that such crimes, which are not conducive to the general peace and which serve as encouragement and support for such vagabonds and villains, cannot remain unpunished, but ought to be punished most rigorously as an example to others.
Thus it is, that the honourable Council of Justice of the Castle of Good Hope, serving today, having carefully read and seen the written crimineelen eijsch en conclusie drawn up and delivered for and against the prisoner by the honourable independent fiscal, Meester Daniel van Henghel, in his official capacity and, further, having noted the voluntary, verified confession of the prisoner; moreover, having considered everything which served this case and which could have moved their honours, practising justice in the name and on behalf of the high and mighty Lords States General of the free United Netherlands and, having judged the prisoner Aron van Madagascar, is sentencing him with this: to be taken to the place of justice here, and there to be handed over to the executioner, to be thoroughly scourged on the bare back and to be branded, thereafter to be riveted in chains, in which to labour for a period of ten years on the honourable Company’s public works without payment, with further sentencing by the Council to the costs and expenditure of justice.4
Thus done and sentenced in the Castle of Good Hope on 28 March 1737, as well as pronounced and executed on the 30th thereupon in the month of March.
Let the sentence be done, [signed] J. de la Fontaine.
[signed] A. v. Kervel, J.T. Rhenius, Ns. Heijning, H. Swellengrebel, C. Brand, Js. Möller, R. Tulbagh, Mnus. Bergh, Corns. Eelders, Jan de Wit, Hendk. Oostwald Eksteen, Dl. Pfeil.
In my presence, [signed] Js. de Grandpreez, secretary.
Footnotes
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One dubbeltje was the equivalent of two stuijversstuijversAt the Cape and in the Dutch East Indies (where money was devalued due to a shortage of specie), one guilder (gulden) contained 16 stuijvers (as opposed to the usual 20). Two stuijvers made one dubbeltje.. ↩
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This detailed description of guns and their use by slaves is indicative of the authorities’ concern over armed slaves; see 1742 Jan Hendrik Hop. ↩
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This refers to the region of Southeast Africa, roughly modern Maputo, where the Company had a trading post until 1731 (Shell 2001). ↩
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Aron was sentenced ‘in cas van aufugie en gedaane asistentie aan een gewapende troep gaauwdieven’ (on the charge of being fugitive and having given assistance to an armed troop of rogues), CJ 19, ff. 28-30. This sentence was that recommended by the Fiscal in the eijscheijschLiterally ‘claim’ or ‘demand.’ This is strictly speaking the eijsch ende conclusie without the final part about sentencing, but the term is often used as a shorthand for the whole document., CJ 341, ff. 102v-3. ↩
Nademaal uijt de libere, gerecolleerde confessie van Aron van Madagascar, oud 30 jaaren, slaaff van den landbouwer Paul Jourdan, buijten pijn ofte dwang van banden, van ijsers, dan wel de minste bedrijging van dien, gedaan, den edelachtbaren Raad van Justitie des Casteels de Goede Hoop evidentelijk is gebleeken:
Dat hij gevangen over eenige jaaren geleden, zijnde toen slaaff van de weduwe Admiraal, met een lijfeijgen, Jannuarij genaamt, hout op de Tafelberg soekende, denselven Jannuarij hem gevangen gesegt heeft, dat Leander Boegis, hooft der gaauwdieven, dewelke haar verblijff aan de Vishoek hielden, zig op de Tafelberg bevond, en hem Jannuarij twee dubbeltjes had gegeeven om daarvoor vuursteenen te coopen, welke twee dubbeltjes dien slaaff Jannuarij hem gevangen alstoen overgaff, met versoek voor deselve vuursteenen te coopen, ’tgeen hij gevangen aannam te doen, koopende, soo als van de Tafelberg afgekoomen was, van een jonge van den vertrokkene burger Pieter Burij, voor ’t hem meede gegeeven geld, ses vuursteenen, die hij gevangen, nevens meergemelde Jannuarij, des anderen daags op de Tafelberg aan den bovengenoemde slaaff Leander Boegis bragt, denwelken bij zig twee snaphanen en twee lijfeijgenen, die hij gevangen niet kende, had, leijdende hij Leander, soo als bij hem quamen, op hun aan, dog siende, soo als naderde, wie zij waren, hield hij aff, hebbende hij gevangen naar dato in de Vishoek den slaaff Joumat erkend voor een van de twee jongens denwelke Leander Boegis verselden.
Dat hij gevangen, over een groot jaar geleden, uijt zijn baas huijs is weggeloopen en met eenige Rio de la Goase jongens haar coers naar strand settende, zijn se eijndelijk gekomen boven de Vishoek, daar zijlieden haar verblijff namen, alwaar hij gevangen zag dat zijne makkers slangen aten, waardoor hij, soo als voorgeeft, bewoogen wierd om haar te verlaten en de reijse herwaards aan te nemen, ontmoetende onderweegs de slaven Joumat, Adam en den onlangs g’executeerde Jamboe, van dewelke hij gevangen, naar twee off drie dagen vertoevens, is weggegaan en naar de Caab terugge gekomen met de ketel van voorseijde Jamboe, die hij denselven ontstolen had.
Ende ten aansien zulke misdaaden, dewelke tegens de algemeene rust strekkende zijn en dienen tot aanmoediging en onderhouden der vagabonden en booswigten, niet ongestraft kunnen blijven, maar ten exempel van anderen op ’t rigoureuste dienen gestraft te werden.
Soo is ’t, dat den edelagtbaren Raad van Justitie des Casteels de Goede Hoop, ten daage dienende, aandagtelijk hebbende geleesen en geresumeerd den schrijftelijken crimineelen eijsch en conclusie door den heer Independent Fiscaal, meester Daniel van Henghel, nomine officii op ende jegens den gevangen gedaan ende genomen, wijders geleth op derselver vrijwillige gerecolleerde confessie en op alle ’tgeene voorts ter sake dienende was en haar Edel Agtbaarens konde doen moveeren, doende regt uijt name ende van weegens de hoogmogende Heeren Staaten Generaal der vrije Verenigde Nederlanden, den gevangen Aron van Madagascar hebben gecondemneert, gelijk haar Edel Agtbaarens denselven condemneeren mits deesen: omme gebragt te werden ter justitieele plaats alhier en aldaar den scherpregter overgeleverd zijnde, op de blote rugge dapper gegeesseld, en gebrandmerkt te werden, daar naar in de ketting geklonken zijnde, daarin den tijd van thien jaaren aan ’s edele Compagnies gemeene werken voor niet te arbeijden, condemneerende den Raad wijders den gevangen in de costen en misen van justitie.
Aldus gedaan ende gesententieerd in ’t Casteel de Goede Hoop, den 28e Maart 1737, mitsgaders gepronuncieert ende geëxecuteerdt den 30e der daaraanvolgende maand Maard.
Fiat Executie, [get.] J. de la Fontaine.
[get.] A. v. Kervel, J.T. Rhenius, Ns. Heijning, H. Swellengrebel, C. Brand, Js. Möller, R. Tulbagh, Mnus. Bergh, Corns. Eelders, Jan de Wit, Hendk. Oostwald Eksteen, Dl. Pfeil.
Mij present, [get.] Js. de Grandpreez, secretaris.