Territory of Missouri
Northern Circuit

You are Commanded that you summon John Whitesides , that he be
and appear before the judges of our Superior Court of our Territory of
Missouri , at our said Superior Court to be held in and of the Northern
Circuit of the said Territory at the Town of St Louis on the fourth monday
in March next, then and there in our said court before and Judge
aforesaid to answer unto Daniel a free boy held in slavery, in a
plea of trespass assault of battery and false imprisonment to his
damage five hundred dollars and have you then and there
this writ and certify to our said Superior Court you
execute the same-

Witness the Honorable pending
judge of our said court at St Louis this fourteenth day of
december in the year of our lord one thousand and eight
hundred and eighteen and of our independence the forty thirdJ. C. Turner clk S. C. N. C.

Served this writ 8th
February 1819 by reading
it to the defend' at the
house of Mrs. Duett
St Ferdinand Town

ship- John K Walker
Dshff

Service--80travel 30 150$2.30

filed April 26th 1819J. C. Turner clk

No 196 Superior Court N. C.March Term 1819

This is an action of
trespass & false impri-
sonment Damage
$500 on which the
clerk will issue a
summons to the
defendant directed
to the sheriff of St
Louis county.

J Barton & Geyer

Sup. Court. N. Circuit

And the said defendant by R . Pettibone
his attorney comes and defends the force
injury when and as to the assault
ing beating bruising illtreating & imprisoning
the said plaintiff, as in his said declaration mentioned
the said Defendant says that the said plaintiff
ought not to have & maintain his aforesaid ac-
tion thereof against him, because he says
that before and at the said him when & in
the said declaration mentioned to wit at the
place & within the jurisdiction aforesaid, the
said plaintiff was & still is the slave of him
the said defendant, wherefore in his own
right, the said defendant, at the said time when
he did beat, imprison, & obtain in prison the
said Plaintiff, so being the slave of him the
said defendant, as he lawfully might do
which am the said support trespass
whereof the said plaintiff hath above thereof
complained against him - and this he is ready
to verify - wherefore he prays Judgement -

R Pettibone atty for Deft-

And the said Daniel saith he
ought not to be barred and precluded
from having and maintaining
his aforesaid action by reason of

of any thing by the said John
Whitesides above in his said plea
alleged, because he said that
at the said time when was
not the slave of the said defend
ant as the said defendant has in
his said plea alleged and this
be prays may be inquired of
by the country and the defend
ant doth the like.

J Barton atty for Dept

Plea --
Replication

filed Sept 20th 1819
J. C. Turner clk

Superior Court

St Louis county of John Whitesides
being duly sworn says this suit
is brought to try the freedom of the
said Daniel , and depends upon
the same principles as the foregoing suit
against the said Phebe Pruitt that the said
witness mentioned by the said Phebe in her said
affidavit, is material for him
on the trial of this cause, and that he cannot
safely proceed to trial without the said witness
this deponent knows of no other witness by
whom he can prove same facts which
he expects to be able to prove by
the said witness - And this deponent further
saith that he did not know of the materi-
ality of the said witness untill a short time since
and not untill it was too late to process his
witness at this court - This deponent has no
doubt. but that he shall be able to known
the testimony of the said witness at the next
session of this court and further saith not-

Sworn to & Subscribed this 22nd
april 1820 before J. C. Turner ClkJohn Whitsd

Territory of Missouri ,
Northern Circuit.ss.
The United States of America to Isaac
Coleau Greeting.

You are summoned that all excuses and delays being set aside you
personally be and appear before the judges of the superior court of our terri-
tory aforesaid at our said superior court
to be held in and for the northern circuit at the town of St. Louis , on the twenty eight
day of April being fifth day of the april term of our said court,
to testify and the truth to tell in a certain case then and there to be tried, and wherein Daniel
a freeman of colour is plaintiff and John
Whitesides is defendant on the part of the
said defendant and from day to day
until duly discharged by the court, and not depart the said court without the leave therof-and
of this fail not at your peril, and our sheriff of our county of St Louis is hereby
commanded then and there to make return of this our writ and certify to our said court how he
executes the same.

Witness the Honorable Silas Bent
Esquire presiding judge of our said court this twenty fifth day of
April in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred
and twenty and of our independence the forty fourth

I acknowledge the service of the within writ

Isaac Coteau

Superior Court April Term

subpoena

28th april
Isaac Coteau

St. Louis Circuit Court

Febry Term 1822-

On the trial of this cause it was passed
on the part of the plaintiff that mother of the
said plaintiff was earned into the new state of Illinois be-
tween twenty and thirty years age by one Phebe Whitesides
alias Pruitt and her husband when and where the said Winne
was by then held in slavery during the space of three
or four years; that at the end of the said time of three
or four years the said Phebe with her said husband
removed to the now state of Missouri and that the said
Winne has been held in slavery there into the present
time. The counsel for the defendant then required that court
to instruct the instruct that a residence in the then North
west territory (now Illinois ) as above mentioned did not
render the said Winne free under and in virtue
of the ordinance of the Congress of the year one thousand
seven hundred and eighty seven for the government of
the territory of the United States Northwest of the
river Ohio ; and also that the law did not authorize
the recovery of more than nominal damages in this
action by the plaintiff which instructions the court
refused but charged the Jury that said ordinance did
in law sit the said free if it should appear to
the satisfaction of the Jury that the said Phebe and her
husband resided there with instant to make that terri-

tory the house of themselves and of the saids Winne ; and
that the said plaintiff was entitled to damages in this
John of action on the same principles that any other
plaintiff night recover in an action of false imp-
prisonment. To there opinions of the Court delivered
to the Jury, the counsel for the defendant excepted and
prayed the Court to sign and seal a bill of exceptions
taken thereunto which is done accordingly in open Court
this tenth day of March in the year one thou-
sand eight hundred and twenty two.

N. B . Tucker

St. Louis Circuit Court

Bill of exceptions

Pettibone & Spalding atty

Superior Court Northern Circuit
March Term 1819

County of St Louis to wit; Daniel a free
Boy held in slavery and who is promised
by the Court to sue as a poor person,
by J Barton and Henry S. Geyer his
attorneys assigned as counsel by the said
Court. Complains of John Whitesides
of a plea of trespass. For that the
said John Whitesides heretofore. to wit
on the first day of January in the
year of our Lord one thousand eight
hundred and fifteen with force
and arms at the county aforesaid
unlawfully an assault did make
in an upon the said Daniel and
then and there beat bruised and
ill treated him the said Daniel
and then and there imprisoned him
the said Daniel and kept and
detained him in prison without
any reasonable or probable cause
whatsover and has ever since
kept and still doth keep and

detain him in prison against the
will of the said Daniel ; and contrary
to the Law of this Territory and other
wrongs to the said Daniel then and
there said against the parcel of the
United States of America and to
the damage of the said Daniel five
hundred dollars; and therefore sues
&c.

J Barton & Geyer atts