28 July. had a man's shadow in a cotton tree; consulted by his sister to release it
Evidence: Jane Henry to Thetford Hall sworn., "States that her brother very sick, all what the Doctor could do was no use he was getting worse”. She heard of a man living at Mr Smith’s[?] who could give advice, can give bath [?] went to him (the prisoner) on a Sunday, met him in his house sitting down, told him How do, told him Old man I come to you, he said Yes I see you come to me ask me what he came about, told him had a brother very sick” Asked me[] name and told him Bayley asked me if not Reid Bayley when I told him that it was Read Bayley he said brother had previously been to him with a came finger ? “he told her Bro that [] too many irons in the fire, some would burn, that he had too much to do then and must come another time, told me he was going to tell my bro how the sickness came and from that time Bro [] away and as I cared about my Bro’s sickness he could not give any [bath] as it would not be of service to my Bro.
Asked him the reasons why it would not be of any service, he said ‘he had my brother in a cotton tree’ asked him what cotton tree? if it was a strange cotton tree or one of Thetford Hale. He said his own behind the house (There is a cotton tree behind the house upon Mr Smith’s Penn) Asked him the reason for putting on my Bro in a cotton tree? told me John Reeve to Fullers Rest Pen brought my Bro, asked him what my Bro had done to John Reeve to make him bring him. He said that the prisoner went to Mount Pleasant, and on his return his wife Susanna Jackson gave him a dead cock and a pint of rum which had been left by Reeve to give to him (Polydore) asked him when old Susan Jackson gave the cock, what it was to do, said John Reeve left the word that what him & old Polydore was talking about he must go on with it. Asked him when that was? said the week when the fire [] was at [Mr Irings’s] (last day of July 1830} when his wife gave him the pint rum and dead cock, he tied it to the cotton tree, when he carried it he took out the guts of the cock and left it at the cotton tree and carried home the flesh and his wife dressed it for him. Threw the rum at the cotton tree, when he had done that on the following week John Reeve came to him again and told him to come to see if it was all go on and told Polydore to go on and that when the business was done his (JR’s) money was good--told John Reeve the business was going on. John Reeve went away and never heard any more about it until I came to him--told him I took it too late--if I did not look sharp my brother would be up 1/2 way--he was now too far gone when I came to him--to look sharp or I would lose my Bro--his wife told him he must not tell witness so--for if any thing happened to her bro it would go hard against him, Polydore. Told witness he had her brothers’ shadow in the cotton tree and his hand nailed to it. Have too babies always in the cotton tree dancing with her brother in [room] of his shadow. Polydore told her witness to go and bring her brother and he would try and take him out of the cotton tree--told him that my brother could neither walk nor ride, told him the same way as he could put her bro in the cotton tree, without seeing him, to cure him. Prisoner told witness to bring 2 dollars, a cock and a pint of rum. Witness left then and went home and the following day carried the cock, 2 dollars, a pint of rum to prisoner and gave them to him. Witness took Penelope and Richard (her massa negroes) with her to let them hear what Prisoner said. Witness requested him to mention to her what he had said the Sunday preceding that they might all hear the words. Prisoner went over all in her presence of his wife and my two Massa’s Negroes, every word that he had said on Sunday. Prisoners wife said that if Read Bayley got better she must hire negroes to cut down the cotton tree as it had killed too many people. That the prisoner on the Monday night took candle wood light and carried examinant and Penelope Butler to the cotton tree growing near some coffee bushes. The cotton tree well chopped up. The prisoner threw part of the rum on the cotton tree and took the rest to his house, held the live cock in his hand by [] two legs and beat his head on the cotton tree until he killed it. The blood gushed onto the tree. Took us back to his house and told them that he had pulled her bro out of the cotton tree and the two babys come back to the tree. Told witness that nothing would hurt her Brother and he would get better. Prisoner would not allow them to go into the house but made them stand at the door and poured some rum in each of their hands and mixed chalk with it until it came like soap suds and then rubbed it on the dead cock, the cock was not picked. Witness said at the time they went to prisoner she told him she had brought Penelope Butler with her to make him see her as John Reed had Penelope’s Butlers’s mother. Witness told prisoner to put down the 2 dollars which she had give him by itself, the whole party then proceeded home and witness [] what had taken place to Mr Wilbourne her overseer. She has known the prisoner about 12 months has a sister ... “ Witness did not observe any thing hanging on the cotton tree, only that it was very much chopped.
Penelope Butler gives evidence. pic 1101 too blurry to read--has these evidences.
Richard gives evidence. ... “prisoner carried back witness and she two women from the cotton tree to his yard and where they came there he told them to stop and he went into the house and brought out a piece of chalk in his hand which he chalked both their hands with and mixt it with the rum and which he made them [] the dead cock. When we were done he told us to go away. I never saw him do any of those things when he knew him at the time he was a runaway.
Susannah Jackson, to estate of Mr Smith. “That she know prisr for several years last pass. Witness lives with prisoner, as his wife. Lives at the witnesses house at the pimento walk at Mr Smith’s place where she is placed by her master to watch the coffee and pimento. Prisoner was taken out of witnesses house she was not present at the time prisoners had a wife named Elsy at the Whim. Witness has seen Jane Henry at witnesses house. John Reeve came to witness house after Xmas about 2 or 3 months back and brought a dead cock and a pint of rum [] the old man was not there and he brought it for the old man to do some work but as he was not at home he would leave it until he came and witness took the cock and rum and gave to the old man when he came home never saw John Reeve after that day does not know what sort of work prisoner was to do ... John Reeve was present one Sunday when Jane Henry came to prisoner and also on the Monday night when Jane Henry, Penelope Butler and Richard came about midnight Jane Henry brought a cock, some rum and two $ and gave it to prisoner to take her Bro out of the Cotton tree. Cotton tree is in the coffee piece. That Jane Henry, Penelope Butler and Richard went to the cotton tree with prisoner. Witness remained at the house, when they came from the Cotton tree they did not stand long before they went away.
[Did the brother survive or not?]
Verdict guilty. SEntence trans for life.

CO commentary on this case: CO 138/59 Glenelg to Sligo No 249, 12 April 1836
Case of Polydore: material facts are that he took advantage of Jane Harry’s credulity to persuade her that he could relieve her brother’s disease. He then got her to pay him money and food, in exchange performing “certain foolish ceremonies not perhaps ill calculated to impress her, and them, with a conviction and an awe of his supernatural forces. But he used this influence over their minds to encourage hope, and not to produce alarm, and excepting the form and circumstances of his proceedings, he does not seem to have differed much from those Empyrics who in every part of the world, and in every age (our own Country and times not excepted) have thriven upon the credulity and alarms of the sick, or upon the weakness and anxiety of their kindred and friends. Although Polydore explained the disease of Jane Henry’s brother by asserting that “he had his shadow in the Cotton Tree, and his hand nailed to it” &c., yet there is no proof or suggestion that the sick man himself had been told by Polydore either before, or during his illness, that such was cause of it. The man is not stated to have fallen ill by any such morbid excitement of his feeing, altho’ being ill, his relatives received this explanation as essential to the account which Polydore gave them of the efficacy of the pretended remedy. In short it appears to have been a mere case of quackery, with the substitution of conjuration for drugs.”