As this account was remarkably coincident with the one given by William (Mr. Paul’s slave) as the witnesses could have had no possible communication, or the story have been the result of preconcert and combination, the sum of this intelligence was laid before the Governor by 9 o’clock, and by 10 o’clock the commanding officers of the regiments of the City militia, convened by his Excellency’s order, at the residence of the Intendant. On this and the succeeding afternoon, at another meeting of the same individuals, such measures were determined on by his Excellency, as were deemed best adapted to the approaching exigency of Sunday night.
On Sunday the 16th, at 10 o’clock at night, the following corps were ordered to rendezvous for guard—
Capt. Cattel’s Corps of Hussars, Capt. Miller’s Light Infantry, Capt. Martindale’s Neck Rangers, Charleston Riflemen, and City Guard.[[5]]
The whole were organized as a detachment, and placed under the command of Col. R. Y. Hayne. Although there was necessarily great excitement, and among the female part of our community much alarm, yet, the night passed off without any thing like commotion or disturbance, and it is peculiarly honorable to the corps on service, that in a populous town, the streets filled until a late hour with persons, uncertain whether it was safe to go to rest or not, not a single case of false alarm was excited. A steadiness altogether praiseworthy, in troops unaccustomed to guard duty, at least on an occasion involving such deep interest and distressing anxiety.
The conspirators finding the whole town encompassed at 10 o’clock, by the most vigilant patrols, did not dare to show themselves, whatever might have been their plans. In the progress of the subsequent investigation, it was distinctly in proof, that but for these military demonstrations, the effort would unquestionably have been made; that a meeting took place on Sunday afternoon, the 16th, at 4 o’clock, of several of the ringleaders, at Denmark Vesey’s, for the purpose of making their preliminary arrangements, and that early in the morning of Sunday, Denmark despatched a courier, to order down some country negroes from Goose Creek, which courier had endeavored in vain to get out of town.
No developement of the plot having been made on Sunday night, and the period having passed, which was fixed on for its explosion, it now became the duty of the civil authority to take immediate steps for the apprehension, commitment, and trial of those against whom they were in possession of information. Council was accordingly convened, and as a preliminary measure, it was deemed expedient, that a Court of the highest respectability, for the talents and integrity of its members, should be assembled, and that, whilst the requisitions of the Act of Assembly, of 1740, should be strictly complied with, in devolving the warrant of summons on the Magistrates; the Corporation saw no impropriety in affording these officers a list of such names of Freeholders, as they knew would meet in a preeminent degree the public approbation; and to these persons private letters were written by the authority of Council, strongly soliciting their acceptance of a trust, involving indeed the most irksome labour, as well as the deepest responsibility. In conformity with these arrangements, the following Court was organized on the evening of the 17th:—
| Magistrates, | |
| Lionel H. Kennedy, | } |
| and | } Esqrs. |
| Thomas Parker, | } |
| Freeholders, | |
| Colonel William Drayton, | |
| Nath’l. Heyward, | } |
| J. R. Pringle, | } Esqrs. |
| James Legare, | } |
| R. J. Turnbull. | } |
Cotemporaneously with the organization of this Court, a Committee of Vigilance and Safety was appointed from among the Members of Council, to aid the Intendant in the execution of the laws; to co-operate with him during the recess of Council, in all those measures necessary for exploring the causes and character of the existing disturbance, and bringing to light and punishment the suspected and guilty. How ably these functions were discharged by this Committee, it is not befitting the occasion or the circumstances under which this publication appears to dwell. Their generous devotion and unremitting assiduity to the public interests and safety, are left to the more appropriate appreciation of a community that witnessed their labours. This Committee consisted of Messrs. Wesner, Napier, Condy, Burger, and Simons, and were zealously aided by the rest of the Wardens; and for its service, four of the most active, intelligent, and confidential non-commissioned officers of the City Guard, were detached as Police Officers, to search suspected places, and to apprehend those for whom warrants might be issued. This Committee commenced its labours on the night of the 17th, and during the ensuing twenty-four hours, the following slaves were committed:—Rolla, Batteau, Matthias and Ned, the property of the Governor Bennett; Mungo and Peter, the property of James Poyas; Amhurst, the property of Mrs. Lining; Stephen, the property of T. R. Smith; Richard and John, the property of Jonathan Lucas.
On the morning of the 19th of June, the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders assembled at the Court-House, were sworn in, and proceeded to the arraignment of the above prisoners for trial. Who were charged “with attempting to raise an insurrection among the Blacks against the Whites.” In order that the public may understand the offence as defined in the Act of 1740, the clause, at length, will be found in the Appendix, marked (A.)
Before we proceed to a brief (and it necessarily must be very brief) abstract of the testimony offered in the cases brought before the Court, it may not be unimportant to observe, that, previous to their proceeding to the painful investigation with which they were charged, they laid down a variety of rules for their government, all of them subservient to justice as well as humanity. In the first place, it was decided, that the testimony should be regulated by those established rules of evidence, which are elsewhere found so important in the exposition of truth; that no slave should be tried but in the presence of his Master or his Attorney; that the testimony of one witness, unsupported by circumstances, should lead to no conviction involving capital punishment; and that the statement of the party himself, should be heard in explanation of such particulars, as seemed most inculpatory.