1. A, B, and D manuscripts: “mémoire pour” instead of “mémoire du.” All versions employ the singular form “mémoire,” not “mémoires.”
2. The 21-page memoir was numbered (apparently by Louverture), starting with the number 5. The last three pages were numbered 1 to 3. There is no page 4. Other numbers appear randomly, as if Louverture had used recycled paper.
3. The passage between “ma conduite” and “je dirai la vérité” was added in the margin of manuscript A, whose opening and final segments were heavily edited.
4. The spelling of “faite” and many other words in the memoir indicates that Louverture often pronounced a final “t” that is normally silent (see also “porte” on line 13 and “re grete,” “obgete,” “toute,” “boulete,” “interète,” “cachote,” and “vernette” later in the manuscript). Louverture also pronounced the final “s” and “r” in many words.
5. This is the first of many instances of hypercorrection in the text: aware that he had a tendency to simplify consonant groups, as Kreyòl speakers often do, Louverture compensated by needlessly complicating some words to sound more French. In this case, he added two “c” to “réflexions” (see also “fics” and “vix” later in the manuscript). He also added “i,” “r,” and “t” to some words.
6. The passage between “conduite” and “la commission avait rendu un arrêté” was added in the margin of manuscript A.
7. Throughout the manuscript, Louverture used the old spelling for the past tense (“oi” instead of “ai”), which he presumably pronounced /we/ instead of /e/. Jeannin also employed “oi.”
8. Read: “culture” (the edge of the page is damaged).
9. Louverture almost systematically misspelled the word “guerre” as “geurre,” either because he did not know how to spell it, or because he pronounced this word with a / ʒ/ instead of a hard /g/.
10. Manuscript D: “qu’ils n’en ayent” instead of “quil en naivoit.”
11. As in Kreyòl, Louverture often paid no heed to the gender of French nouns (in this case, “le rade” instead of “la rade”). See also “le premiere letre,” “une ordre,” “un seul piece” later in the manuscript.
12. Read: “surveiller” (the edge of the page is damaged).
13. The phrase “dudit département de l’ouest et du Sud, étant alors à” was added after “en chef” in the margin of manuscript B. “Etant alors” was switched to “résidant” between manuscripts D and C.
14. Manuscript D omits “que mes soperation finie.”
15. Louverture rarely used the letter “y” in the text to replace “ii” (here: “envoiér” instead of “envoyé”), presumably because this spelling norm had recently become standard. Jeannin also wrote “envoié” in manuscript A.
16. This is the first of many instances in the memoir where Louverture added an extraneous “i” in words, either because he actually pronounced them, or as a form of hypercorrection (here: “quiestions” instead of “questions”). See also “paquiet,” “Kierverceaus,” “St domiengue,” “conmuniquieraï,” “lendemien,” “mien vetoit,” “cienq,” and “flanquié” later in the manuscript. He also added “r,” “t,” and “c” to some words.
17. Manuscript D: “etc” instead of “ici.”
18. Illegible: possibly “tan” or “tres.” Manuscript D: “cela est inutile.”
19. Louverture added nasal sounds throughout the manuscript, here in “man noncant.” See also words like “conmandant,” “conmandement,” “conmision,” “conmis,” “campangne,” “pre ce dant ment,” “espangne.” Nasalizing words is common in rural Kreyòl. Louverture also had a distinctly nasal voice, which he attributed to a Vodou spell.
20. Manuscript D: “faisant” instead of “portant.”
21. Manuscript D omits “alors.”
22. Louverture often misspelled the name of his general Henry Christophe, probably in an effort to match an English pronunciation (Christophe was from Grenada). Jeannin, who had a hard time spelling unfamiliar Caribbean terms, also often misspelled Christophe’s name in manuscripts A, B, and D.
23. Read: “l’entrée.”
24. Louverture occasionally used archaic French spellings, in this case for the word “habitans” (modern French: “habitants”). See also “enfans” (“enfants”) and “isle” (“île”) and his use of “ii” instead of “y” and “z” instead of “s.”
25. This word is normally spelled “loin,” not “loing.” Perhaps Louverture used the archaic spelling of “loing,” mentioned in L. Quicherat, Traité de versification française, vol. 2 (Paris: Hachette, 1850), 382. Perhaps he pronounced the word “loin” with a final /g/, as is still done in Marseille.
26. Manuscript D: “de monter alors” instead of “a lors de monter.”
27. Louverture occasionally added /u/ sounds, in this case writing “encouloue” instead of “enclouer.” See also “au goumente” instead of “augmenter.”
28. As is common in Kreyòl, Louverture often simplified the end of words, in this case by dropping the /z/ sound in “franchise” (see also “quin” instead of “quinze”). He did the same with /ʁ/, /l/, and /k/.
29. This is another example of hypercorrection. In this case, Louverture added an unnecessary /ʁ/ to hide his Kreyòl-derived tendency not to pronounce this letter (see also “grandre,” “jambre,” “surbordonnai,” “surporte,” “marvertis,” “mondre,” “tendre,” and “sourdrement”). Louverture also added “i,” “t,” and “c” to some words.
χ In manuscript C, Louverture added this passage in the margin: “pascer au fil de lépés la moitie de la garnison du fort liberté, quil nauroit point fait.” It was probably an initial oversight, because the passage is also in manuscript A, B, and D.
30. Manuscript D omits “d’abord.”
31. Manuscript D adds “la barrière de Boular passant par les jardins.”
32. Read: “j’allais.”
33. The use of “lui” in manuscript C was most likely inspired by the Kreyòl pronoun “li.” More generally, /y/, /œ/, and /e/ are often transcribed as /i/ in manuscript C.
34. Manuscript D omits “le cas.”
35. In many passages of the memoir, Louverture used the infinitive form of verbs instead of conjugating them (here: “forcé” instead of “força”). This is common in Kreyòl.
36. Manuscript D omits “de vaux dreuille.”
37. Manuscript D: “une grande partie” instead of “un partie.”
38. Manuscript D: “jamais” instead of “pas.”
39. Manuscript D: “le sang des Français, et qu’au contraire il aurait cru la trouver bien disposée” instead of “le sang des francoit comme heux, et il auroit cru de trouver cette garnisons Bien disposé.”
40. The phrase “et ma liberté” was added between the lines in manuscript B.
41. Louverture often followed the practice, common in Kreyòl, of not pronouncing the final “r” of a word (here: “partie” instead of “partir”). See also “férie” instead of “férir,” “remplis” instead of “remplir,” “retablis” instead of “rétablir,” “sortis” instead of “sortir,” and “aupprob” instead of “opprobre.” He also dropped /z/, /k/, and /l/ at the end of many words.
42. The phrase “à Saint Domingo” was added between the lines in manuscript B.
43. Read: “s’étaient.”
44. Manuscript D: “incluse” instead of “a lors.”
45. Louverture often added extraneous /e/ sounds (“demandéroit” instead of “demanderait”). See also “epousé,” “séra,” “am méné,” “éné,” and “citéroit,” among many other examples.
46. Manuscript D: “repris” instead of “pris.”
47. Louverture consistently misspelled the last names of Vernet, Boudet, Fressinet, and Brunet, most likely because he pronounced the final “t” of their names, as is common in southwestern France.
48. Manuscript D: “ma femme” instead of “mon nepouze.”
49. The spelling of “premiere” indicates that Louverture pronounced a final “r” that is normally silent (see also “Grenadiere,” “basére,” “au casionnere”). He did the same with the final “s” and “t” of many words.
50. As in Kreyòl, Louverture occasionally replaced the /o/ sound with /u/, in this case writing “boucoup” instead of “beaucoup” (see also “nouroiet” instead of “n’auraient,” “jou rois” instead of “j’aurais,” “ouquin” instead of “aucun,” and “coualition” instead of “coalition”). He also replaced /œ/ and /y/ with /u/ in many words.
51. Manuscript D: “qu’ils fussent porteur d’ordre du premier Consul pour moi” instead of “quil fusent porteur de letre pour moi du premiere consul.”
52. Manuscript D: “citoyen” instead of “monssieur.” Louverture chose to employ the term “sieur,” which was used to refer to whites in pre-revolutionary Saint-Domingue, instead of the more egalitarian “citoyen,” which had emerged during the French Revolution.
53. Louverture did not use modern capitalization rules. Instead, he capitalized words he wanted to emphasize, such as “tirer” here. As a general rule, he capitalized the words “gouvernement” and “general.”
54. Manuscript D: “que je chargeais de lui dire” instead of “que je chargerais delui.”
55. This is one of many instances where Louverture added an extra “i,” perhaps as a form of hypercorrection. He did the same in “révoquier” eight lines below.
56. Manuscript D: “deux” instead of “doux.”
57. Manuscript D omits “Boudette.” Note that Louverture pronounced the final “t” in “Boudet,” as he did with Vernet, Fressinet, and Brunet.
58. Read: “que je n’eusse.”
59. As is the norm in Kreyòl and popular French, Louverture occasionally elided consonants and vowels to facilitate pronunciation. In this case, he dropped the “r” in “Marmelade” (see also “lattinde” instead of “l’atteindre,” “re maque” instead of “remarquer,” “abitrairement” instead of “arbitrairement,” and “paraite” instead of “paraître”). He also elided “e,” “x,” “s,” and “i” in some words and dropped the final letter of others.
60. Manuscript D: “d’être blâmé du Gouvernement? Peut-il espérer d’être approuvé du premier Consul?” instead of “detre blamé du premiere Consul.”
61. As is common in Kreyòl, Louverture occasionally simplified French grammar, in this case by dropping the preposition “de” in “peu troupe” (see also “les cultivateur jen rabelle” instead of “les cultivateurs de Jean Rabel”). He did so repeatedly in certain passages, particularly the segment of the addendum that he wrote entirely on his own.
62. The phrase “sur les hauteurs” was replaced with “dans le chemin” in manuscript B.
63. The phrase “à St. Marc pour y recruter le plus de troupes que je pourrais” was replaced with “aux Gonaïves où une partie de ma Garde d’Honneur s’était rendue” in manuscript B.
64. Manuscript D: “une partie de ma Garde d’honneur s’était rendue” instead of “un partis de ma Garde d’honneur, qui été au port republicain se rendus pour me rejondre.”
65. Manuscript D omits “sur ma hatte.”
66. “Cette ville” was crossed out and replaced with “la ville de Gonaïves” in manuscript B. “Cette colonne” was also replaced with “la colonne qui se dirigeait au pont de l’Ester.”
67. Manuscript D: “six” instead of “quatre.”
68. The phrase “le Général Rochambeau commença l’attaque” was added in manuscript B.
69. The phrase “où je comptais faire grande résistance” was added in manuscript B.
70. The phrase “que j’avais fait à la Croix” was added in the margin of manuscript B.
71. Manuscript D: “à” instead of “ditte.”
72. Read: “j’irais.”
73. Manuscript D: “places” instead of “paroises.”
74. Manuscript D: “40” instead of “4.”
75. This is one of many instances in the memoir where Louverture added /e/ sounds, in this case in “dé,” “rémite” (same line), and “dé” (line 35).
76. The phrase “de la République” was added in manuscript B.
77. The phrase “Dessalines qui y était arrivé alors” was added in manuscript B.
78. Manuscript D: “qui devait être au Port-de-Paix, ou s’être retiré dans les montagnes” instead of “qui de voit etre retiré dans les montagne de por de pais.”
79. The phrase “où je lui avais ordonné de se camper sans savoir s’il avait déjà capitulé et soumis au Général Leclerc” was added in manuscript B. Louverture probably did not use the verb “camper” in the traditional French meaning of “setting up camp for the night” but in the Kreyòl meaning of “stay there” (the term is used three times in the manuscript).
80. Manuscript D: “l’assaut général” instead of “la saut.”
81. Read: “je devais infailliblement.”
82. Read: “la garnison, manquant d’eau, avait été obligée d’évacuer le fort.”
83. As in Kreyòl, Louverture occasionally switched from /y/ to /i/, especially when writing “qu’une” (see “quine” in this line and the following line). He also often replaced /œ/ and /e/ with /i/.
84. Manuscript D: “en mon absence et à mon insu” instead of “an mon absance.”
85. Manuscript D: “réunir” instead of “garder.”
86. Following the Kreyòl norm, Louverture occasionally dropped the letter “s,” in this case writing “resitance” instead of “résistance” (see also “desatre” instead of “désastres” three lines below). He also often elided “r,” “e,” “x,” and “i,” along with the endings of many words.
87. The phrase “me rapporte qu’il n’avait pu pénétrer” was replaced with “me dit qu’il n’avait pas trouvé le Général Dessalines” in manuscript B. Manuscript D: “Dessalines, mais qu’il avait” instead of “dessaline quil a voit.”
88. Louverture occasionally elided possessive adjectives, in this case writing “debarquement” instead of “son débarquement.”
89. Manuscript D: “au point qu’à part part quelques villes” instead of “a parut quel quin dant les ville.”
90. Manuscript D: “qu’il avait déja eu précédemment” instead of “quil avoit été de ja chef de bataion pre ce dant ment.”
91. Manuscript D: “qui a fait la guerre aux cultivateurs de Jean Rabel” instead of “qui a fait la geure dant cette partis qui a soullevé les cultivateur jen rabelle.”
92. The passage from “qui a poussé laudace” to “qui la vé en va his” is rendered in manuscript D as “qui a poussé l’audace même jusqu’à se défendre contre moi lorsque j’ai marché contre lui pour le soumettre.”
93. “Les mal” is another example of Louverture’s tendency to add /e/ sounds. See also “sé retiré” (line 13), “les troupè” (same line), and “les mal” (line 21).
94. Louverture occasionally replaced /y/ with /u/, in this case writing “sourtout” instead of “surtout” (see also “lous” instead of “lu”). He also pronounced some /o/ and /œ/ sounds as /u/.
95. The phrase “après l’affaire de la Crête-à-Pierrot” was added in manuscript B.
96. Louverture omitted the letter “e” in words like“empressement” probably because he elided the sound /œ/, as is frequent in popular northern French and in Kreyòl (see also his spelling of “soulèvement,” “également,” “sûreté,” “cordialement,” and “arrondissement”). He also often elided “r,” “i,” “s,” and “x.”
97. Louverture treated the liaison, which is pronounced but not written in French, as part of the word itself, as is frequent in Kreyòl (here: “sordre” instead of “ordres”). He did the same in words like “nepouze,” “savoire,” “nescadre,” and the stereotypically Kreyòl word “zotre” (French: “les autres”).
98. Manuscript D: “en l’assurant que si jusques à présent je n’y avais déféré il avait trop de discernement et d’équité pour m’en imputer la faute; j’ai ajouté si vous n’envoyez” instead of “en la surant que sil nan voient.”
99. Manuscript D omits “plus anciens.”
100. The phrase “j’aiderai le Général Leclerc à faire tout le mal possible par la résistance que je lui opposerai” was added in manuscript B.
101. Manuscript D: “avaient été faits prisonniers lorsqu’on reprit le Port-au-Prince” instead of “lors quon na pris port au prince.”
102. This is one of many instances where Louverture, following the Kreyòl norm, employed the infinitive form of a verb instead of conjugating it (here: “j’apprendre” instead of “j’apprends”). See also “javois ecrire” (instead of “j’avais écrit”) line 46, and “lateigné” (“l’atteignis”), “sangager” (s’engagea”) and “duré” (dura) line 52.
103. The phrase “nommé Bel Argent” was added in manuscript B.
104. The phrase “qui avait évacué de la Crête-Pierrot” was added in manuscript B.
105. Manuscript B originally contained the phrase “Christophe se rendit effectivement au lieu indiqué, mais au lieu d’y trouver les citoyens Vilton et Hardy il y trouva une lettre du Général Leclerc lui-même qui l’engageait à se montrer au Haut-du-Cap.” It was crossed out and replaced by “Christophe, au lieu de se rendre à l’entrevue indiquée par le Général Hardy, reçut une lettre du Général Leclerc et.”
106. Manuscript D: “et il fut” instead of “et il.”
107. Manuscript D: “que j’avais toujours été soumis au Gouvernement français, puisque javais constamment” instead of “que j avoit constanment.”
108. Louverture probably used the word “principe” to mean “beginning” (instead of “principle”) because of the influence of the Spanish word “principio.”
109. The phrase “J’ai témoigné tant au Général Leclerc qu’à Christophe tout mon mécontentement de ce que celui-ci s’était rendu sans aucun ordre de ma part” was added in manuscript B.
110. Manuscript D (citing Leclerc’s proclamation): “j’ai tiré le voile de l’oubli” instead of “j le rai le voil de toubles.”
111. Read: “parlai.”
112. Manuscript D omits “je lui observé que je ne pus lai ce le conmandement san ce la, parce que je neseroit ja mai Tranquille.”
113. The phrase “à Marmelade” was crossed out and replaced with “chez d’Héricourt où je passai la nuit chez le Général Fressinet” in manuscript B. The phrase “et repartis lendemien ma tin pour la marmelade,” which does not appear in manuscript D, was added in manuscript C. Note that Louverture pronounced the final “t” in “Fressinet,” which he also did for Vernet, Voudet, and Brunet.
114. Louverture omitted the final “c” in “public” in the memoir, possibly because he did not pronounce the /k/ (he spelled “république” correctly, however). He also simplified the ending of other words by dropping the final /z/, /ʁ/, and /l/.
115. The phrase “et les larmes” was added in manuscript B.
116. Louverture and Jeannin occasionally employed “z” instead of “s,” a spelling norm that was archaic in 1802.
117. The word “places” was crossed out in manuscript B and replaced with “coutumes,” which also appears in manuscript D. Louverture corrected Jeannin’s mistake in manuscript C, writing “communes” instead.
118. Read: “circonvoisins.”
119. Manuscript D: “divisé” instead of “divercé.”
120. Throughout the manuscript, Louverture rendered the word “bourg” as “bouque” or “bourque” (see, for example, p. 13, lines 16, 18, 33, 39). This probably reflected the old pronunciation of the letter “g” as a /k/ in a liaison, which has only survived in present-day French in the pronunciation of “Bourg-en-Bresse” but has remained in Kreyòl.
121. Read: “qui voyant.”
122. Illegible in manuscript C. Manuscript D: “afin” instead of “ët se fase.”
123. The phrase “et tout près du bourg qui n’en est éloigné que de deux cents pas” was added in manuscript B.
124. This is one of several instances in the second half of the manuscript where Louverture simplified French grammar in a manner typical of Kreyòl, in this case by dropping the preposition “en.” This passage would normally be “étaient en si grand nombre” in standard French.
125. The name “Placide” was added in manuscript B.
126. The phrase “et des figues bananes” was added in manuscript B. “Figues bananes” (also: “bacoves”) are a type of small, very sweet bananas common in the Caribbean.
127. One says “je suis resté” instead of “j’ai resté” in standard French, but the confusion between “avoir” and “être” is common in popular French.
128. Louverture pronounced the final “t” in “Brunet,” which he also did for Vernet, Boudet, and Fressinet.
129. Manuscript D adds “les environs d’Ennery.”
130. Jeannin wrote “hutte” (hut) in manuscript D. Louverture corrected it in manuscript C to “hatte,” a Dominguan term for a cattle ranch that Jeannin probably did not know.
131. Manuscript D: “je refusais” instead of “je ne veu.”
132. The cross symbol in the manuscript refers to the comment, a few lines below, that Leclerc must have meant “Ennery” instead of “Plaisance.” That comment was added in the margin of manuscripts A and B.
133. As is the norm in Kreyòl and popular French, Louverture occasionally elided some consonants and vowels to facilitate pronunciation. In this case, he rendered /ks/ as /s/ in “extrait.” He also elided “e,” “i,” “s,” and “r” in some words.
134. Manuscript D omits “sur votre conte.”
135. Manuscript C omits the following paragraphs, possibly because Louverture concluded that they digressed from the account of his arrest. Manuscript A included the first two sentences of this passage; the rest appeared in full in manuscripts B and D.
“ ‘P.S. Votre domestique qui va au Port-Républicain a passé ici ce matin, il est parti avec son passe en règle.’ Ce même domestique, porteur de son passe en règle, a été arrêté; c’est celui qui est dans les prisons avec moi.
Il est bon d’observer que j’étais instruit par le nommé La Fortune, qui a été arrêté avec les 3 personnes qu’on a assassiné, a eu le bonheur de se sauver, il m’a rapporté cet assassinat, lui ayant demandé s’il avait parlé au commandant des troupes à d’Ennery, il m’a répondu qu’oui, de fait j’envoyai chercher Justin commandant, qui commande à présent la Garde Nationale et trois autres personnes raisonnables, je leur ai fait sentir combien il était dangereux de laisser commettre dans leurs quartiers de semblables désordres, ils m’ont répondu l’avoir senti et en être très fâchés, tous les quatre m’ont assuré qu’ils feraient des recherches, je leur ai conseillé en les engageant à découvrir les auteurs, ils ont tous instruit leurs camarades, et ont aperçu les malfaiteurs cachés dans la lisière de Plaisance et d’Ennery. Le lendemain matin j’en ai été instruit et l’on m’a observé qu’il fallait des mesures sages pour les arrêter. Le commandant Néron m’a demandé un ordre, j’ai cru devoir donner cet ordre, et une lettre pour le commandant de d’Ennery, d’après la lettre du Gal Brunet ci joint en copie.
‘Il est ordonné au Commandant Néron, de partir de suite, avec un détachement de la Garde Nationale, qui sera partagé en trois portions. Premièrement, passera dans le carrefour de [Pierrot?] et l’autre dans les montagnes de d’Ennery et la troisième avec le commandant pour aller vers Plaisance, pour arrêter le Cen Léveillé, avec ses complices, qui a commis un assassinat. Le commandant passera auprès du commandant Pesquidoux pour lui donner un ordre pour si au cas il se trouve quelque détachement à Plaisance, pour que les commanda[nts] de ces places lui portent des secours.
A d’Ennery le 18 prairial an 10, dix heures du matin. Le Général pour copie conforme.’
D’après mes lettres le commandant a refusé le passage à la Garde Nationale et moi allant aux Gonaïves d’après la lettre du Gal Leclerc l’on m’a remis en chemin la lettre dont copie suit.
A d’Ennery le 18 prairial an 10.
Le chef de bataillon commandant le quartier d’Ennery.
Au général de division Toussaint Louverture.
‘Je ne puis, citoyen Général, permettre dans le quartier que je commande aucun mouvement de troupes sons les ordres exprès du général commandant la division.
Je m’empresse de lui donner connaissance de celui que vous projetez en attendant sa réponse, je vous prie d’ordonner aux Citoyens de la Garde Nationale de rentrer chez eux.
J’ai l’honneur de vous saluer, signé Pesquidoux.’ ”
136. The word “famille” was crossed out and replaced with “fils et d’autres personnes” in manuscript A.
137. The word “personnes” was crossed out and replaced with “officiers” in manuscript A.
138. The phrase “pour la plupart femmes et enfants et cultivateurs” was added in the margin of manuscript A.
139. The phrase “qu’on avait” was replaced by “que l’aide de camp du Général Brunet avait” in the margin of manuscript A.
140. The spelling of “gence” and other words indicates that Louverture occasionally pronounced a final “s” that is normally silent. He did the same with the final “t” and “r” of many words.
141. “Mes deux enfants et mes nièces” was added in the margin of manuscript A. “Mes deux fils” was crossed out in manuscript B.
142. “On les a conduit à Gonaïves et de là à bord de la frégate la Guerrière” was added in the margin of manuscript A.
143. As is common in modern Kreyòl, Louverture often replaced /œ/ with /i/, in this case writing “qui” instead of “que” (see also “regitter” instead of “rejeter,” “tinire” instead of “tenir,” “soutinire” instead of “soutenir”). He also pronounced some /e/ and /y/ sounds as /i/.
144. The phrase “au Cap où j’espérais qu’on allait me conduire” was added in manuscript B.
145. Manuscript D: “ce billet” instead of “cet letre.”
146. The phrase “les personnes” was replaced with “mes enfants” in manuscript B.
147. Manuscript D: “on nous a encore gardé” instead of “on nous a garde.”
148. Manuscript D omits “demander.”
149. As is common in popular French and in Kreyòl, Louverture simplified the negative form “ne. . . pas” (or, in this case, “ne. . . plus”) by dropping the correlative conjunction “ne.”
150. Read: “considération.”
151. Louverture often simplified /yi/ as /y/, especially in the word “puisque” (see also “de pus” for “depuis”). He also occasionally replaced /œ/ with /y/.
152. Manuscript D: “ce traitement” instead of “cette meprise.” Manuscript B: “cette maniere de se conduire a mon egard” instead of “cette meprise.”
153. Louverture pronounced the final consonants in “respect,” as is the case in old and regional French (see also “circonspecte”).
154. Read: “rang” or “âge.” The former, found in manuscript D, is more likely.
155. Manuscript B: “oui” instead of “non.”
156. Manuscript D omits “et na voit au cune conpte a rendre au gouvernement.”
157. Manuscript D: “d’une partie” instead of “les plus grand partis.”
158. “et tous ce que je po sede dant cet partis” was added in Louverture’s hand in the margin of manuscript B.
159. The long passage that follows, from “arrete abitrairement” to “mal heure mau rait pas arrivé,” does not appear in manuscript B (there was only a short paragraph that was crossed out by Louverture) and was added as one long paragraph in manuscript D. That it was added so late in the writing process probably explains why it is one of the passages in manuscript C whose grammar differs most markedly from standard French. Personal pronouns are dropped before each verb. Verbs are not conjugated. Prepositions are dropped (such as “de” in “em parrè toute mes avoire”). Some articles are dropped (such as “un” in “comme un ver”).
160. Manuscript D: “ma” instead of “la.”
161. The sentence “nes ce pa couper sa langue et loui dire parlés” was added in Louverture’s hand in the margin of Manuscript D. Note that he pronounced /y/ as /u/ in “lui.”
162. This passage was underlined in the C manuscript, presumably by Louverture.
163. Manuscript D: “en conséquence point de justice” instead of “et point des justice pour moi.”
164. Manuscript D: “je sais que mes ennemis cherchés et payés dans tous les dispazons de la colonie pour trouver de faire des mensonges sur moi” instead of “jai cé con va cherché et paÿer dans toute les diapasons de la colonie et partous pour trouver ou faire des mensonge conpte moi.” Either sentence is unclear because of the odd use of the word “diapason.”
165. Louverture occasionally replaced /œ/ with /u/ (“soucoure” instead of “secours”). He also often replaced /o/ and /y/ with /u/.
166. Louverture added an extra “t” in “sageste” twice on the same page. This is probably an instance of hypercorrection. He also added “i,” “r,” and “c” to some words.
167. Manuscript D: “et c’était toute notre espérance” instead of “et ce toute que nous demandont ou espéront.”
168. Louverture often detached the first syllable when writing a word or, in this case, elided it altogether, writing “partien” instead of “appartient” (see also “joute” instead of “ajouté”). This is typical of Kreyòl.
169. Louverture occasionally dropped the final “l” (in this case, “qui” instead of “qu’il”), as is common in popular French and Kreyòl. He did the same with the final /z/, /ʁ/, and /k/ in many words.
170. Manuscript D: “ce n’est pas la paix qui doit faire la guerre” instead of “ce ne pas a la paix qui doit venire faire la geurre.” Louverture corrected Jeannin’s nonsensical phrasing.
171. Manuscript D adds “avec les officiers de ma suite.”
172. Louverture used the reflexive form “moi” instead of the nominative “je” as a personal pronoun, which is typical of Kreyòl (“mwe”).
173. Manuscript D: “un officier blanc” instead of “un blan.”
174. This is one of two passages that were underlined in manuscript C, presumably by Louverture.
175. Manuscript D omits “par des homme de bien, sage et de probité en fins des honnet Gence.”
176. Louverture added a sentence in his hand in the margin of manuscript B, then crossed it out (the sentence is illegible).
177. Manuscript D omits “a Santo domiengo.” Louverture probably added these words not to contradict the claim he made earlier in the manuscript that he was not present in Sámana when the French arrived.
178. Manuscript D: “en cas qu’ils eussent tort tous deux” instead of “en ca quil en fust tore tous deux.”
179. Manuscript D omits “contablé” (French: “comptables”).
180. Louverture added “sargant du Gouvernement et” in his hand in the margin of manuscript B, but the revision was not incorporated into later drafts.
181. The phrase “un sol” was replaced with “quelque somme” in manuscript A.
182. Manuscript D: “Smith” instead of “cimite.”
183. Read: “particulières” (the edge of the page is missing).
184. This is one of only two times that the word “slave” is employed in the manuscript. Note that the word is capitalized, like all the words that Louverture wished to emphasize. In manuscript A, the passage went “n’est-cepas pour moi un crêvecoeur j’ai été esclave je ne le cache pas mais je n’ai jamais été réprimandé.”
185. Louverture probably spelled the French “mon” as “moi” to approximate the Kreyòl possessive determiner “mwen.”
186. The phrase “je les renvoÿer toute a la cul ture, et organise quelque regiment dapre lo torisation du Ge neral lavaux” was added in Louverture’s hand in the margin of manuscript B. He also added “au francais” and “il na pa pu la prendre” in the two following sentences.
187. Manuscript D: “angles” instead of “coins.”
188. The phrase read “avec une seule pièce de canon que j’avais prise” in the original version of manuscript B. Louverture added “je marché avec une piesce, mai je vé pris neufe a la petiterie vier” in the margin of manuscript B. The phrase became “et pris neuf pièces de canon avec une seule pièce de canon et neuf que j’avais prises a la Petite Rivière” in manuscript D.
189. Using the word order of standard French, the passage would read “je les ai tous envoyés.”
190. Read: “Gibraltar.”
191. The phrase “onze cents hommes de garnison anglaise” was added in the margin of manuscript A.
192. Manuscript A adds “retranché par des fossés, je l’ai emporté d’assaut à la tête de mes grenadiers. Après y avoir reçu sept blessures je me suis de même emparé de.”
193. From this point forward, Manuscript C is written in a thinner, lighter ink. Louverture’s handwriting also gets progressively tinier as the memoir progresses. The first full page (page 2) contains 47 lines and 2,500 characters. There are 72 lines and almost 5,000 characters on page 14.
194. Read: “différentes.”
195. The following passage from “on me garote” to “de ma vix” does not appear in manuscript A.
196. Louverture often treated prepositions and articles as if they were part of the word itself, writing here “dinfamie” instead of “d’infamie” (see also “dun” instead of “d’un” on line 51). This is common in Kreyòl (“dlo” for “de l’eau”).
197. Manuscripts A, B, and D include the following passage: “En arrivant en France j’ai écrit au premier consul et au ministre de la marine pour leur rendre compte de ma position et leur demander des secours pour moi et ma famille. Sans doute ils ont senti la justice de ma demande, et ont ordonné qu’on m’accordât ce que je demandais, mais au lieu d’exécuter leurs ordres on m’a envoyé de vieux haillons de soldats déjà à moitié pourris et des souliers de même. Avais-je besoin qu’on ajoute cette humiliation à mon malheur.” Louverture may have deleted this passage after Caffarelli confiscated his uniform during the visit and he realized that such humiliations were the French government’s official policy.
198. The first draft of manuscript A originally stopped here. Sentences added in the margin brought manuscript A all the way to “une pareille absurdité” (before the addendum).
199. Read: “je mets en défi.”
200. Read: “prendre.” This is one of a few typos in the text (see also “gouvernemenet” on line 9). These are relatively few, a sign that Louverture carefully proofread the manuscript and that most misspellings reflect his lack of schooling and his way of speaking, rather than lack of attention on his part.
201. Manuscript A ends with this sentence. Manuscripts B and D include a short version of the following addendum.
202. Manuscript D omits “leclerc.”
203. Manuscript D: “plusieurs de” instead of “de.”
204. Manuscript D omits “et porter soins a notre malheureuse famillle.”
205. Manuscript D adds “est libre.”
206. Read: “puisse le.”
207. Illegible (the edge of the page is missing). The passage ends with “à mon tour” in manuscript B.
208. The following extended passage, from “pour quoi que le General Le clerc” to “je les repete encor je demande que le General leclerc et moi paroisions en sanble de vant un tribunal” (p. 21, line 27) does not appear in Manuscripts A, B, or D. Louverture must have written it entirely on his own.
209. Read: “tous avaient les meilleures intentions.”
210. Read: “frégate” (the edge of the page is missing).
211. Read: “on le laissait déjà aborder à la passe.”
212. Louverture treated “Port-au-Prince” as if it were a single word, as is the case in modern Kreyòl.
213. Louverture’s grammar differs markedly from standard French in the segment of the addendum that he wrote entirely on his own. By writing “porteur dordre” (standard French: “qu’il était porteur d’ordre”), he omitted the subordinating conjunction, the personal pronoun, and the verb. His handwriting is also more rushed and less legible, especially at the end of long words.
214. The placement of the letter “s” in the word “sotilité” (French: “hostilités”) is an example of three characteristics of Louverture’s writing style and of Kreyòl: (1) writing the liaison as if it were part of the word itself (“sotilité”); (2) simplifiying pronunciation by dropping some consonants (“hostilités”); (3) not indicating the plural form (“hostilités”). See also “zodre,” five lines below.
215. Read: “souffrir qu’aucun désordre ne se fasse.”
216. Judging by his spelling, Louverture pronounced the French word “faisait” /fese/ instead of /fœze/, as would be the norm in modern French. See also “fait sait” on line 45.
217. Note the use of the interjection “et bien,” typical of the oral style of this passage.
218. Read: “il s’est servi de ce moyen.”
219. The word “toute” was added by Louverture in the margin, indicating that he proofread manuscript C.
220. Like Kreyòl speakers, Louverture occasionally simplified vowels and combinations that are hard to pronounce (in this case, dropping the “i” in “dénonciations”). He did the same with “x,” “r” (see “conte” in the same line), and some word endings.
221. Read: “sous.”
222. Read: “réclamation.”
223. Read: “avec toutes les nations avec lesquelles je faisais la guerre.”
224. Read: “Il y a vingt à trente autres affaires.”
225. The sound /e/ becomes /i/ in the word “tis moint” (French: témoins”). Louverture also rendered many /œ/ and /y/ sounds as /i/.
226. This is the end of the extended passage, added by Louverture in manuscript C, that does not appear in manuscripts A, B, and D and whose creolized and evocative French is typical of his personal style.
227. The following sentences in manuscript C are identical (aside from minor spelling variations) to those personally added by Louverture at the end of manuscript B. Manuscript D also contains a final appeal in Louverture’s hand, but its content is slightly different. Louverture normally used manuscript D as the template for manuscript C, so one may surmise that he wrote the final appeal to manuscript D just before he handed the document to Caffarelli, leaving him no time to make a personal copy, and that he used the end of manuscript B (which he had kept with him) as the template for the last sentences of manuscript C.
228. Manuscript D: “prononcé dons sur un homme quie plus mal heure que coup pable, gairice mes plai illé tre profond, vous seul peurret portes les remede saluter” instead of “prononcé dont sur mon sor, mes plai et tre profond, porté les remede salutaire.” Manuscript B is identical to manuscript C.
229. Manuscript D adds “ma position, et més service merite toute votre a tantion.” Manuscript B is identical to manuscript C.
230. Manuscript B ends with Louverture’s initials. Manuscript D ends with a full signature, complete with three masonic dots, presumably because this was the official copy meant for Bonaparte. Manuscript C is not signed, presumably because this was Louverture’s personal copy.