The Gag

The gag is a kind of iron muzzle with leather straps designed to restrain the mouths of slaves. They are not very common, it was Vallentin who introduced them to the Balisier, after having had them forged on site.

President.

Didn’t the commander sometimes put gags on some of the negroes in the habitation ?

François, former slave of Sébastien.

Yes, sir, to anyone who got into mischief, for example, those who broke canes. It was Mr Vallentin who had the gags put on the habitation. There weren’t any before him, but the negroes were too bad.

Slaves reported keeping it for between 1 and 7 days, sometimes night and day. This suggests that they could hardly eat or drink during this long period.

President.

Did Louis ever gag you?

François.

Yes, because I had taken four canes; I was hungry. I wore it for a week. They left it on me at night. We also gagged St-Jean, Rémi, Félix and Etienne, to punish them for stealing corn, potatoes or yams, or eating cane.

The aim was to punish or even prevent petty theft. In some cases, gagging was applied as a preventive measure, at harvest time, to prevent slaves from eating cane. But Vallentin’s slaves suggest other reasons: to humiliate and ridicule them.

Mercure.
The gags were made like horse bits, and hurt a little. But the negroes who wore them were humiliated. They were ashamed and the other Negroes laughed.

Jammes, Assessor.
Mercure, when a slave has deserved a punishment, tell us if he wouldn’t rather wear the gag than receive 4 stakes, 29 lashes?

Mercure.
Ah! Sir, he prefers the gag.

Jammes, Assessor.
It’s a mitigation to correctional punishments.

Here’s Vallentin’s line of defence: present the gag as a measure of clemency. Better still, as a therapeutic instrument against a strange disease.

Vallentin.

I had two gags forged to put on my soil eating Negroes.