02/26/2021
In South Carolina, Caesar, a slave and medical practitioner who gained his freedom in 1750 in exchange for revealing his knowledge of dental and medical cures for poison and rattlesnake bite. He is widely considered to be the first African American to have his medical findings appear in print. In November 1749 a member of the Commons House of Assembly acquainted other members with āa Negro Man named Caesar belonging to Mr. John Norman of Beach Hillā who had reportedly cured several people āwho had been poisoned by Slaves.ā Caesar informed the representative that he would divulge the secret of his remedy for a āreasonable Reward.ā Intrigued by the offer, the assembly appointed a committee to investigate Caesarās claims and, if valid, determine his compensation. Several prominent witnesses testified to the efficacy of Caesarās cure, including Dr. William Miles and Henry Middleton. Caesarās master, John Norman, stated that his slave had ādone many Services in a physical Way, and in particular had frequently cured the Bite of Rattle Snakes, and [Norman] never knew him to fail in any one Attempt.ā He added that Caesar was also āvery famous in . . . the Cure of Pleurisies.ā Satisfied of the effectiveness of Caesarās antidote, the Commons House granted the elderly slave (he was believed to have been āaged near sixty-seven Yearsā) his freedom and an annual annuity of Ā£100 currency for the remainder of his life. Norman was granted Ā£500 in compensation.
The May 7ā14, 1750, issue of the South-Carolina Gazette published Caesarās cures for the benefit of the public. According to the Gazette, they never failed:
The Negro CAESARās Cure for Poison. Take the roots of Plantane and wild Hoare-hound, fresh or dried, three ounces, boil them together in two quarts of water to one quart, and strain it; of this decoction let the patient take one third part three mornings fasting successively, from which if he finds any relief, it must be continued, ātill he is perfectly recovered: On the contrary, if he finds no alteration after the third dose, it is a sign that the patient has not been poisoned at all, or that it has been with such poison as Caesarās antidotes will not remedy, so may leave off the decoction.
CAESARās Cure for the bite of a Rattle-snake. Take of the roots of Plantane or Hoare-hound (in summer roots and branches together) a sufficient quantity, bruise them in a mortar, and squeeze out the juice, of which give, as soon as possible, one large spoonful; if he is swells, you must force it down his throat: This generally will cure; but if the patient finds no relief in an hour after, you may give another spoonful, which never fails.
Demand for Caesarās cures was so great that the Gazette reprinted them the following year in its February 25āMarch 4, 1751, issue. They subsequently found their way into publications from across North America and even England, including the August 1750 issue of the Gentlemanās Magazine of London, John Toblerās South Carolina and Georgia Almanack in 1777, Massachusetts Magazine in 1792, and in the 1797 edition of Scottish physician William Buchanās classic work of lay medicine, Domestic Medicine. The Commons House continued to pay Caesarās annual annuity until April 1754, when the House journal recorded a payment of Ā£70.16.08 to the āEstate of Dr. Caesar, deceased, 8 months and a half annuity.ā He died sometime before March 5, 1754, when the Gazette advertised the sale of his effects at public auction. These effects included āone negro w***h, some provisions and household goods.ā
