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Drunk and disorderly on Tobago sugar estates

DR RITA PEMBERTON The typical image of a sugar plantation shows enslaved Africans labouring in the fields, while descriptions of the plantation complex focus on the activities considered central to the business of the plantation. Plantation records provide detailed information on labour and its related problems for cultivation and processing and the systems deemed appropriate to obtaining and, more importantly, controlling the behaviour of the enslaved labour force. In addition, these records also reflect planter concerns with production levels, profits and market-related issues. As a result, much of the history of the sugar colonies focuses on plantation operations related to the production of sugarcane and its manufacture into sugar, rum and molasses for export, and social issues pertaining to the relations between the enslaved Africans and their white enslavers. However, plantation life was not solely devoted to formulating and implementing laws for controlling resisting enslaved Africans, for there was another side to the saga of sugar, which, although very prevalent, is not always given the prominence it deserves. There are frequent references to the short lifespan of white males on Caribbean sugar plantations, and 18th- and 19th-century Tobago was considered a particularly deadly environment for Europeans. The causes given for the high death rate include several tropical diseases, those associated with poor infrastructure and the activities of errant white males. During the early years of the island as a British possession, this last factor was considered of sufficient importance to warrant the intervention of the newly minted assembly and council. In relation to this topic, three factors must be recognised. Firstly, the production of alcohol stimulated the consumption of alcohol. The reason why the price of rum was so high was its appeal to the taste of Europeans at home or in the colonies, where access was easy and white men were free to imbibe. Also, rum-tasting encouraged rum-drinking, and plantation owners and managers and their white employees who consumed rum became drunk and engaged in noisy and unruly behaviour and in violent actions such as raping African women and girls on the plantation. Rum also was given as a reward to enslaved workers, some of whom, especially those in the towns, became addicted to it. Drunkenness was also a feature of life on a sugar plantation. Secondly, European tastes for wine made this a desirable item which was a permanent feature on the import list of most plantations. These two factors provided opportunities for vendors who ran businesses in which alcohol was sold. These were the taverns, which provided accommodation and sold food, wine, rum, beer and other imported beverages; and the tipping houses, in which men gathered to drink and where noisy brawls frequently occurred. These were mainly in and around Scarborough. Thirdly, there existed traditions of fermenting alcohol from potatoes and other foods on the island. Consequently, there was a demand for alcohol in its various forms which was satisfied by a local market. The administrative opposition to local rum sales was driven by the fact that rum was the highest export earner and it was important to reduce the opportunity for local consumption and illegal sales to inhibit its export potential. Administrative concerns were also directed at illegal sales of rum to passing ships and importing foreign-produced alcoholic products from passing ships. The administrators in Tobago sought to induce change to these undesirable habits by law. In 1768, the assembly and council of Tobago passed “An Act to prevent undue frequenting of Taverns and Tipping Houses, and to refrain all persons who were not licenced from selling by retail, rum, or any other spiritous or fermented liquors and to prevent clandestine importation of the same.” It was approved by the Governor in Chief of Grenada, the Grenadines, Tobago, St Vincent and Dominica. This law targeted alcoholism, drunkenness and unacceptable behaviour, which occurred in places where white men gathered to buy and drink alcohol. The lawmakers noted with concern that abuses and disorders in taverns and tipping houses where fighting frequently occurred were on the increase, were offensive to the industrious element of the population and needed to be curbed. Under this law, it was illegal to sell wine, beer ale, rum or any other fermented or spiritous liquor, whether mixed or unmixed, after the ensuing October 1 without a licence from any two justices of the peace, who were the sole authorised agents to issue such licences. These licences remained valid for a year and had to be renewed annually on October 1. Those seeking licences had to pay £50 with sureties for maintaining good order on their premises. Complaints from two or more people about riotous and disorderly conduct on any premises would lead to suspension of the licences unless the owners produced certificates of good behaviour. Licences cost £6 12 shillings, and there were penalties for anyone caught selling alcohol without licences. First offenders would be charged £3 6 shillings; for a second offence the charge was £10; and £20 for a third. Payments were to be levied by a constable and made before two JPs. Half the penalty was to be used as the reward for an informer, and the remainder allocated to the public treasury. It was illegal to attempt to import any spirituous liquor without recording it at the secretary’s or naval office. The items belonging to those caught trying to import alcohol without permission would be forfeited from either the importers or buyers. Any package under ten gallons would be sold and 1/3 of the proceeds would be paid to the informer. This was a draconian law intended to be the basis of firm action to terminate an undesirable situation on the island, but it was not easy to implement. The businesses which were the main targets were owned by influential merchants or planters whose operations could not be easily terminated. Effective surveillance at the ports was not possible because of manpower deficits; hence much illegal trading went unreported. So despite its noble intentions, the law did not initiate the required change. The operations of taverns and tipping houses through which drunkenness and disorderly behaviour were facilitated continued virtually unabated until the closure of distilleries on the island and the demise of the sugar industry. The post Drunk and disorderly on Tobago sugar estates appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.