The legislature required owners of canoes, boats, and pettyaugers to obtain licenses and provide financial security against their use in escapes or removals of enslaved people. The preamble explicitly acknowledged that Spanish Trinidad promised refuge and civil liberty to fugitives. The law exposes the political geography of escape: Grenadian authorities mobilized coastal patrols and property penalties to prevent enslaved people from reaching a jurisdiction where they might claim freedom.
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Why did the 1789 boat-licensing law identify Trinidad?
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Explanation
The law explicitly feared that enslaved people might use boats to reach Spanish territory promising protection.