SLAVE DOCUMENT

Partly Printed Contract, for the hire of a black slave named David Jones for a period of slightly less than one year, with the slave owner's name, the names of two gentlemen "renting" the slave, and the conditions to be met to insure the health of the slave; docketed on verso. 1 page, oblong small 8vo. Virginia, 10 January 1850 It was common practice for slaveowners to "rent" their slaves to other white men looking for labor. The contracts traditionally ran from Christmas of one year to Christmas of the following year. The contracts required that a full year's worth of clothing be supplied for the slave. This contract stipulates a $75 fee for the rental, which represents only a fraction of the going rate for the purchase of a healthy and mature male slave.