Joseph Garneau seeks damages in the amount of four hundred dollars from Nicholas Herthel, a German cigar shop proprietor, who "unlawfully enticed" his slave Plato away from his service. Garneau further argues that Herthel then took Plato and "induced, used & employed" him to "descend into the vault of a privy ... for the purpose of cleaning the same." Plato was "overpowered by said noxious gases & forthwith died from the effects thereof." Depositions reveal that three "negroes" were killed in the "accident" and that two white men were rescued using ropes and poles, but later died. One of the "negroes," Reuben, was expressly employed by Robert White, the owner of the building and proprietor of a tavern therein, to complete the job and is described by White as "like the common run of niggers." It is unclear whether he was a slave. Plato was a "baker by trade" and often drove Garneau's bread cart. One eyewitness described the scene: "I could look down by the candles stuck in the sides of the vault & see the black faces." Another recounted: "We didn't try then to get the negroes out--we couldn't see them--about daylight they were taken out."
Result: Granted; appealed.
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Repository: Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, Missouri
