O Say Can You See

Negro Hannah
against
James Selby

Be it remembered that on the eleventh day of September in the year of Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety seven, the Chief Justice and Associate Justices of Worcester County Court in pursuance of the Act of Assembly in such case made and proved ed[?], transmitted to the General Court a Record of the pl Proceedings of a plea which was lately depending before them in the said County Court between Negro Hannah, Plaintiff, and James Selby, Defendant, and wherein the said County Court gave Judgment for the said James Selby against the said Negro Hannah, and from which said Judgment the said Negro Hannah prayed an Appeal unto our General Court; The tenor of which said Record and Proceedings is in form following, towit. In the Records and Proceedings of Worcester County Court, among other matters and things it is contained as follows, towit. Worcester County towit; At a Court of the State of Maryland held at Snow Hill Town in and for the County afd the second Monday of August, towit, the 14th day of the same month in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety seven.

Were Present–

The Honble John Done Esqr. Chief Justice
William Morris & William Purnell Esqrs. Associate Justices

Levin Pollitt Esqr. Shff.
John C. Handy Clk.

Negro Hannah
vs
James Selby

The following petition being prefered to the Court at June Term 1795. by Negro Hannah, the same was read in Open Court in these words following, towit. To the Honble Court of Worcester County now Judicially setting The Petition of Negro Hannah, humbly shews that your Petitioner is held in the bond of Slavery by a certain James Selby of Worcester County contrary to Law. She Therefore humbly supplicates your Honours to take her case with consideration, and grant her such relief as the Law directs, and she will ever pray &c

Whereupon by order of Court, Command was given to the Sheriff of Worcester County that he should summon the said James Selby if he should be found in his   Bailiwick that all Excuses sat apart he be and appear before the Justices of the County Court of Worcester, at a Court by them to be held at Snow Hill Town in and for the County afd the fourth Monday in November Anno Domini one thousand seven hundred and ninety five, to answer the Petition of Negro Hannah presented against him for freedom; and the same day is given to the afd Hannah here, and soforth. At which said fourth Monday of November came the afd Negro Hannah by William Whittington Gentn. her Atty: and the Sheriff, towit, Levin Pollitt Gentn. who now here returned that he had summoned the afd James Selby to be and appear before the Justices afd, at the time and place aforesaid, as by the foregoing Writ of Summons he was commanded. Thereupon the said James Selby puts in his place William Polk Gentn. his Atty: against the afd Negro Hannah of the plea aforesaid, Upon which, at the request of the Parties afd by their Atty afd day is to them now here given untill the next Court, to be held at Snow Hill Town in and for the County afd, the second Monday in June then next following in the same State as at present saving to the parties afd here & soforth. At which said second Monday of June came again the parties afd by their Attornies afd upon which at the request of the parties afd by their Attys afd, day is to then now here given untill the next Court to be held at Snow Hill Town in and for the County afd, the fourth Monday of November then next following in the same State, as at present saving to the Parties afd here, and soforth. At which said fourth Monday of November last mentioned came again the parties afd by their Attornies afd, upon which at the request of the parties afd by their Atty's afd further day is to them now here given untill the next Court by them to be held at Snow Hill Town in and for the County afd the Second Monday of February then next following in the same State, as at present saving to the parties afd here and soforth. At which said second Monday of February came again the parties afd by their Attornies aforesaid upon which at the request of the parties afd by their Attornies afd further day is to them now here given untill the next Court to be held at Snow Hill Town in and for the County afd the second Monday of August then next following, in the same State as at present saving to the parties afd here and soforth. At which said second Monday of August came again the parties afd by their Attornies aforesaid, and the said James Selby by his Attorney afd, come and says that the said Negro Hannah is not held in the bonds of Slavery contrary to Law, in manner and form as is alledged by the said Petition; and of this he puts himself upon Country, and the said Negro Hannah in like manner and soforth. Whereupon command was given to the Sheriff of Worcester County that he should cause to come here before the State's Justices of the County afd now Judicially setting, twelve good, free, and lawful men of the County   afd by whom the truth of the premises may be better known, and who are no way related to the parties afd to recognize upon their Oaths of and upon the premises afd, because as well the said Negro Hannah as the said James Selby have put themselves upon that Jury, and the Jurors of that same Jury whereof within is made mention by the Sheriff of the County afd to this matter impanelled and returned being called, towit. John H. Purnell, William Pollitt, Isaac Nicholson, John Selby, William Handy, Peter Corbin, Hezekiah Johnson, John Whittington, George Spencer, Rowland Beavans, Edward Stevenson, and Hillary Petts exactly came, who to the truth of the within contained being elected, tried and sworn, on their Oath say, that Negro Hannah is not held in the bond of Slavery Contrary to Law, in manner and form as the said Negro Hannah in her Petition hath set forth, as the said James Selby by pleading hath alledged. Therefore by the Court now here it is considered that the afd Negro Hannah is not entitled to her Freedom, and therefore accordingly dismiss the Petition and adjudge that the said Petition be returned to her Master. At which said Second Monday of August, at the Trial of the Issue afd, between the Parties afd the said Negro Hannah by her Atty afd, produced here in Court the following Bill of Exception and prayed that the same might be filed of Record, which said Bill of Exception is to this Record annexed, and is as followeth towit.

Negro Hannah
v.
James Selby

Petition for freedom &c in Worcester County at August Term 1797

The Petitioner by her Council moves the Court to direct the Jury, that if they find that Negro Hannah the petitioner lived in the State of Virginia, previous to the year seventeen hundred seventeen hundred & eighty six, and was an Inhabitant thereof, the bringing her into the State of Maryland by James Selby, in the year one thousand seven hundred and eighty six, and in that year hiring her to in the State of Maryland, that she is entitled to freedom, under the Act of the General Assembly of Maryland entitled "An Act to prohibit the bringing Slaves into this State, passed in the year 1783," which motion the Court overruled, and directed the Jury that if they find that James Selby was a Citizen and resident of Maryland, at the time of the importation afd in 1786, and was the proprietor of the said Slave before the year 1783, that he had a right to bring the said Slave into this State, and to hire her in the State of Maryland and that the said facts, as above stated, if proven, do not entitle the said Slave to her freedom under the said Act of Assembly; To which opinion and Judgment of the Court the Petitioner by her council Excepts and prays the benefit of her Exception according to the Statutes in such cases made and provided. William Morris (Seal) William Purnell (Seal). Thereupon the said Negro Hannah by William Whittington her Atty afd, prays an Appeal from the Judgment of this Court so as afd on the Verdict afd rendered against her unto the next General Court to be held for the Eastern Shore of this State, at Easton in Talbot County the second Tuesday of September then next following, which is by the Court   here unto her the said Negro Hannah granted and soforth. John C. Handy Clk: State of Maryland, Worcester County, towit; I hereby certify to all whom it doth or may concern that the aforegoing transcript is a true Copy, taken from the Records and Proceedings of Worcester County Court. In Testimony whereof I have hereto set my hand and affixed the Seal of my office this seventh day of September Anno Domini 1797.

Seal of Worcester County Court

John C. Handy Clk: of Worcester County Court

Thereupon appeared in our said General Court, the afd Negro Hannah by William Whittington Esquire her attorney, and said, that in the record and proceedings aforesaid and also in the giving of Judgment aforesaid, there is manifest Error in this, towit, that by the Record aforesaid it appears, that the Judgment afd in the plea afd given, was given for the said James Selby against her the said Negro Hannah, when by the Law of the Land that Judgment ought to have been given for the said Negro Hannah against him the said James Selby, therefore, in that there is manifest Error, and she prayed that the Judgment afd for that Error, and others, being in the Record and proceedings afd might be reversed, annulled, and held entirely as void, and that she the said Negro Hannah might be restored to all that she has lost by occasion of the Judgment aforesaid; And the said Negro Hannah by her Attorney aforesaid prayed the Writ of the State of Maryland of Scirefacias, to warn the said James Selby to be and appear before our said General Court, to hear the Errors assigned of and upon the Record and proceedings afd, And the said Writ was accordingly Issued Commanding the Sheriff of Worcester County that by good and lawful men of his Bailiwick he should make known unto the said James Selby, that he be and appear before the Judges of our General Court to be held for the Eastern Shore of the State of Maryland, at Easton in Talbot County, on the second Tuesday of April then next following, to hear the Record and proceedings, and also the Errors assigned thereon, if to him it should seem expedient, and further to do and receive what the Judges of our General Court should then and consider concerning him in this behalf; and that he the said Sheriff should have then and there the names of those before whom he should make the same known unto him, together with that Writ. The same day was given to the said Negro Hannah then and there &c. And now here at this day, towit, the second Tuesday of April in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety eight, comes the said Negro Hannah by her Attorney afd; and the Sheriff of Worcester County afd to whom the said Writ of Scirefacias afd was, in form aforesaid directed, makes thereof to the Court here thus endorsed, towit. "Made known in the presence of John Doe, and Richard Roe good and lawful men of my Bailiwick, so answers Zadock Sturgis, Shff." Whereupon as well the Record and proceedings afd, and the Judgment given in form afd, as the matters afd by the said Negro Hannah above for Errors assigned, being seen, and fully considered   by the Court here, and mature deliberation thereon had, it appears, to the Court here that there is manifest Error, as well in the Record and proceedings aforesaid, as also in the rendition of the Judgment afd; Therefore it is considered by the Court here, that the Judgment afd, for those Errors, and others in the Record and proceedings aforesaid, be revoked, annulled and held entirely as void; and that the said Negro Hannah be [?] Restored to all things which by reason of the Judgment afd she hath lost, And it is also considered by the Court here that the said Negro Hannah recover against the said James Selby the quantity of       pounds of Tobacco as well for her Damages which she hath sustained by occasion of the prosecuting her appeal afd as also for her Costs and Charges by her about her suit in this behalf laid out and expended: And because it clearly appears to the Court here, that Justice, and the Merits of this cause require that there should be a new Trial of the Issue aforesaid; Therefore the Court here according to the directions of the Act of Assembly in such case made and provided, order and direct a remission of the Record and proceedings aforesaid, to the Clerk of the said County Court of Worcester, with the Writ of the State of Maryland of Procedendo to the said County Court directing them to proceed in the action aforesaid, and to a new Trial thereof, in the same manner as if no Trial had taken place or any appeal had been prosecuted. The Records and Proceedings afd, with the said Writ of Procedendo are therefore transmitted to the Clerk of Worcester County Court accordingly.

Test. James Earle Junr Clk