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An Act providing for the voluntary enslavement of free persons of color in this State. 1857-1858 55 (1857)

handle is hein.slavery/ssactstn0203 and id is 1 raw text is: 55 CHAPTER 45. AN ACT providing for the voluntary enslavement of free persons of color in this State. . SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of M 0 the State of Tennessee, That it shall and may be lawful rttr.ho a for any free person of color, resident within this State, of the age of eighteen years, to choose his or her master, and convey him or herself into slavery, upon the terms and conditions hereinafter mentioned. SEc. 2. Be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That when any free person of color as aforesaid, desires to go in- to slavery, such person shall file a petition in the circuit or retition in erenit chancery court of the county in which such free person of or cannery color resides, setting forth his or her desires to choose an. court. owner, and go into slavery, and setting forth the name of such person, as he or she desires to become his or her owner, which petition shall be signed by such free person of color, or in the presence of at least two subscribing witnesses. SEC. 3. Be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the clerk of the court in which such petition shall have been filed, shall, upon the filing of said petition, order a notice, that such petit'on has been filed to be forthwith printed in Noie. some newspaper published in the town where said court is held, or if no newspaper is published in said town; then to be posted at the front door of the court house for at least one month, and shall issue a sumnnons to appear at the suc- ceeding term of the court, both the petitioner and the per- son designated in said petition. SEo. 4. Be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That upon the appearance of both the pecitioner and the person designated in the petition, the court shall proceed to exam- ine such party separately, as well as such other persons as said court may see fit, and if upon such examination the court shall be satisfied there is no fraud practiced upon the petitioner, and that there is no good reason to the contra- ry, the said court shall have power to grant the prayer of the petitioner, and if it determine so to do, that the court shall appoint three disinterested commissioners who shall bree comm's- examine and report to the court what in their opinion would be the cash value of such free person of color; which report shall be entered upon the record, and the person to whom said free person of color desires to sell him or herself, into slavery, shall pay into the clerk's office one tenth of said assessed value, which shall be paid over by said clerk to the trustee of said county for the use of common schools within the same, and the clerks of the dif-

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