MANUMISSION. The act of releasing from the power of another. The act of giv ing liberty to a slave.
The mndern acceptation of the word is the aet of giving liberty to slaves. But in the Roman law it was a generic expression, equslly applicable to the enfranchisement from the manna, the manci pium, the denninica potestas, and the paeria potestas. Manumittere signifies to escape from a power,— manna. Originally, the master could only validly manumit his slave when he had the dominium jure Quiritinm over him : if he held him merely in bonie, the manumission was null, according to the civil law ; hut by the jus hono,arium the slave wsa per mitted to enjoy his liberty de facto, but whatever he acquired belonged to his roaster. By the law Jun Norbana, passed under Tiberius in the year of Rome 772, the position of this class of quasi slaves was fixed, by conceding to them the same rights which were formerly enjoyed by the people of the colonies established by Latium ; and they were called LatiniJuniani,—Latini because they en joyed thejatt latinitatis,—Juniani because they owed this status to the law Junin. They did not possess the rights of Roman citizens: they could neither vote nor perform any public functions; they were without the capacity of being instituted heirs or legatees, except indirectly by a fideicom missum; they could make no valid will or act as tutors; but they had the commereinm, or right of buying and selling, and might witness a will made per tea et tibram. But at their death their masters were entitled to all their property, as if they had never e,eased to be slaves. In the language of the law. with their last breath they lost both their life and their liberty : in ipso ultimo spiritu simul ani mam atqne libertatem amitteba nt. Inst. 3. 7. 4; Gains, 3, 0 56 et seq. At first there were mily three modes of manumission, viz.: 1, vindicta 2, census; and, 3, teatamentum. The vindicta consisted in a fic titious suit, in which the assertor libertatis, as plain tiff'. alleged that the slave was free ; the master not denying the claim, the prmtor rendered a decision declaring the slave free. In this proceeding figured a rod,—festuca, vindicta,—a sort of lance (the sym bol of property), with which the ageertor libertatis tonchel the slave when he claimed him as free : hence the expression vindicta manumissio. Centaur, the second mode was when the slave was inscribed at the instance o'f his master, hy the censor, in the census as a Roman citizen. Testament° was when
the testator declared in express terms that the slave should be meue Cratinne li6gr esto,— or by a fideicommiseum,—heres wens rogo,te ut &MUM vicini mei servum,manumittoe fideicummitto heredis mei ut iete enm serum manumittot.
3. Afterwards, manumission might take place in various other ways : in encroeanctie eccleeiis, of which we have a form : Ex beneficie S. 4. per. Joannem episcopum et per Albertum S. + Caeatumi foetus est liber Lemtbertus, teste hac soncta ecclesia. Per epis .tolam. Justinian required the letter containing the, manumission to be signed by five witnesses. Inter amicae, a declaration made by the master before his friends that he gave liberty- to his slave': five wit nesses were required, and an act was drawn up in which it was stated that they had heard the de olaration. Per codicillum, by a codicil, which re-, quired to be signed 13Y, five witnesses. There were, many other modes of manumission, which were; enumerated in a Constitution of Justinian. C. 76,: 3-12; 1 Ortolan, 35 et seq. ; 1 Etienne, 78 et Beg:J. Lagrange, 101 et seq.
Direct manumission may be tither by deed 'or will, or any other act of notoriety done with the intention to manumit. A variety of these modes are described as used by an cient nations.
- Indirect manumission may be either by operation of law, as the removal of a slave to a non-slaveholding state animo morandi, . or by implication of law, as where the master by hit; acts recognizes the freedom of his slave.
In the absence of statutory regulations, it is held in this country, in accordance with the principles of the common law, that no formal mode or prescribed words were neces sary to effect the manumission ; it may be by parol ; and any words are sufficient which evince a renunciation of 'dominion on the part of the master. 8 Humphr. Tenn. 189; 3 Heist. N. J. 275. But mere declarations of in tention are insufficient unless subsequently , carried into effect. Coxe, N. J. 259 ; 8 Mart. La. 149 ; 14 Johns. N. Y. 324 ; 19 id. 53. Manumission may be made to take effect in future. Coxe, N. J. 4 ; 2 Root, Conn. 364. In -the mean time the slaves are called statu liberi See Cobb, Law of Slavery, passim; SEavus ;