Slave iron bit
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The iron bit, also referred to as a gag, was used by enslavers and overseers as a form of punishment on
Description
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Historical evidence
Several articles and newspapers mention what appears to be the iron bit, but the name of the device varies from region to region where it is used. The mask, bit, and gag all refer to this torture device, but may differ in their specific manufacturing and disciplinary purposes. An 1848 article in
A man wrote in an open letter to the editor of the Frederick Douglass Paper about an abolitionist who was demonstrating the actions of slave holders in the American South,
I recollect the horror that thrilled the hearts of the spectators, when Mr. Gurney one evening placed on his head an iron machine of torture, which inflicted great pain upon the slave, and an iron gag penetrated his mouth, confining his tongue and preventing articulation. He exhibited the whips also, and many other implements of cruelty adopted by the planters and their agents.
One newspaper advertisement from 1792 writes of a reward to be given for the capture of a runaway slave. The description of her is given that she is "5 feet three or 4 inches high, had on, when she went away, such clothing as negroes generally wear in the summer, and carried with her a white linen coat and jacket. She is a vile creature, and for her many crimes I punished her with an iron collar, but supposed she soon got that off."[2] Another article on the treatment of slaves by Delphine LaLaurie of Louisiana stated that "seven slaves were reportedly found in various parts of the residence and they were said to be in need of medical attention. Some of them were allegedly chained in uncomfortable positions and instruments of torture were said to have been found … [Specifically] iron collars with spikes or sharp edges."[3]
Literary accounts
Olaudah Equiano writes about the iron bit in his slave narrative, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, as "the iron muzzle". He writes that soon after arriving in North America he was taken to Virginia where he saw a black female slave “cooking the dinner, and the poor creature was cruelly loaded with various kinds of iron machines; she had one particularly on her head, which locked her mouth so fast that she could scarcely speak; and could not eat nor drink.”
Later he writes: “the iron muzzle, thumb screws, etc. are so well known as not to need a description, and were sometimes applied for the slightest faults" (Equiano 63 & 112).[4]
Toni Morrison references the punishment in her novel Beloved.
See also
References
- ^ "Slave Tortures: The Mask, Scold's Bridle, or Brank". 2011-09-23. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
- ^ "Virginia Gazette and General Advertiser (Davis), Richmond, January 18, 1792". The Geography of Slavery in Virginia. University of Virginia. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
- ^ Darkis, Fred (1982). "Madame LaLaurie of New Orleans". Louisiana History: The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association. 23 (4): 383–399.
- ^ Equiano, Olaudah (2002). "The Life of Olaudah Equiano". In Henry Louis Gates Jr. (ed.). The Classic Slave Narratives. New York: Signet Classic. pp. 15–248.