The Obsessions of Louis

Until around 1720 on the islands, the commandeur was not a slave but always a white man, a paid “servant” of the colonists. But with the scarcity of white indentured servants, it soon became customary to promote slaves to the rank of Commandeur whose role is defined as follows :

“The Commandeur is the slave appointed by the inhabitant to lead the other slaves to work. The distinctive sign of this function is the whip he uses to revive the ardour of the lazy”.

During the trial, we learn that Bellevue offered Félicien the position of Commandeur, which would definitively protect him from the reprisals of those he denounced.

“You’re strong, you have nothing to fear from the atelier“, he told him, “and besides, we’ll protect you from his enmity by appointing you as Commandeur”.

The Overseer’’s authority was mainly exercised over the field negroes, but not, in principle, over the mill or sugar mill workers or the cart drivers, all of whom had their own particular chiefs. Above all, he was the enforcer of sanctions and punishments. So this slave, being promoted and ‘elevated’ to the position of persecutor of his fellow men, adds to the obligations of his task everything that such a schizophrenic position can trigger.

Louis, for instance, seems to have a clear-cut opinion of Adeline; behind his contempt, we can guess a personal feeling, a fixation.

Q : Didn’t Adeline also go to ask Sébastien for forgiveness?

Louis.
My goodness! Mr President, I don’t know.

Q : But do you think Adeline might have had reasons for not going to see Vallentin? For example, do you think she was afraid of him and that that was why she didn’t go and ask Vallentin for a pardon for the man she called her husband?

Louis.
Adeline? Being afraid of our master!? Oh no, Monsieur! I will never believe that.

Louis is a highly zealous commander. The trial reveals an executor able to carry out the worst abuses, always acting under his master’s orders, but also driven by his own impulses. On the third day of the hearing, Sébastien’s wife Adeline makes some startling revelations.

Mr. President.

Adeline, did Vallentin have Réville beaten?

Adeline.

Yes sir, sometimes. It was Louis who carried out our master’s orders.

And he also made him, by his orders, eat filth near Mr Vallentin’s hut, I saw. And when Réville spat out the excrement, Louis beat him.

Mr. President.

Did the commander hit this child with the full length of his whip?

Adeline.

No sir, it was with the small whip, that is, half the whip.

Réville confirms his mother’s statement. Vallentin’s lawyer then attempts a riposte.

Me Grandpré.

In the Negro language, the meaning of French words is often misplaced. For example, Negroes call “Sorcerer” someone who, in the true translation of their thought, is a poisoner. In this way, a simple childish prank can be turned into a torture. Please, Mr. President, ask Réville if it wasn’t children who rubbed his lips with filth?

So Is this just child’s play? What is a world where children are forced to attend executions, where they aren’t spared any abuse, where they can become the instrument of punishment themselves, where such ” pranks ” are invented?

Vallentin.

That woman is going to blame me all she can! Punishment did nothing for her son. I told the small negroes to trim him …

Adeline.

Once or twice, I saw M Vallentin order the small negroes to make him eat crap with a stick. They were forced to obey.

Adeline and Réville stood their ground, and Jacob confirmed what they’d said a few minutes later.

Jacob.
I didn’t see Réville beaten, but I heard he was made to eat shit.

Q : Did you hear that it was the little negroes who made him eat excrement?

Jacob.
I heard it was Monsieur who made him eat; but I didn’t see him.

The masks have come off and the tension is at its highest. Adeline and Réville stand together with incredible bravery. As tempers flare, Louis reveals an unsuspected side to his motives : he coveted this woman, and no doubt the presence of Sébastien at her side, the man she called her husband, prevented him from obtaining her. But it’s clear to see how Adeline herself resists the Commander’s abuse of power on herself and the ones she loves, with all her might and dignity.

Mr. President.
Louis, did you ever chastise Réville?

Louis.
Oh yes, often, very often. Réville is a nasty little thing. He steals yams, bananas and goats. Oh yes, I’ve whipped him well. You see, Monsieur, when negroes are small and do naughty things, you have to whip them to prevent them from becoming bad subjects; oh! Réville, I wiped him hard, the little rascal! He was breaking canes. I told him that if he continued, I’d make him eat junk food. I intended to make him eat some, to make him feel that he was hurting. The little brats threatened him.

Mr. President.
Réville, did you hear what the Commander said?

Réville.
Yes, sir, it was Louis who made me eat shit. Louis is lying when he says it’s not true.

Louis.
Ah, the little villain!

Adeline.
Sir, I maintain that I saw Louis feeding my boy dirty things.

Louis.
Can’t you see, Mr. President, that Adeline supports her son, who has every vice in the book? Adeline was very much in love with me; she used to tell me everything; she doesn’t say everything she knows here. For example, she told me she’d hit Sebastian with a pestle; she won’t admit it here.

Adeline.
I didn’t tell her that. If my deceased had been hit with a pestle, he’d have stayed put. Yes, it’s true, I had a hard time with Sébastien. But that was when I only had two of his children. Since the other three, we’ve never had a train, but I didn’t hit him with a rammer.