Historical Notes

All for Steel Pan!

“A Man Preparing for Carnival” (The Vincentian, February 11, 1950)

“Alfred Audain of Layou was arrested and charged for the larceny of a half gasoline drum. On Monday morning Alfred appeared before the Magistrate and pleaded ‘guilty’.”{{more}}

How comes Alfred by this half of gasoline drum? We will find out.

“One Saturday morning in the early hours, about 3 am, Corporal Coombs who was doing his usual detective patrol, spotted a man moving across Victoria Park with something looking quite suspicious. He dashed across like a torpedo and caught up with Alfred who, perhaps, was trying to make Layou by daybreak to have his pan tuned up in the real steel band fashion. Well Cpl Coombs asked him where he was going with this half of gasoline drum. Alfred hesitated trying to find something to tell the Corporal. Whatever he said was not enough for the Cpl to believe so he took him to headquarters where he was detained and charged for the larceny of this half of gasoline drum. Well, at daylight, a man went to the Police station and made a report that he had in his yard a half of a gasoline drum which suddenly disappeared. He was shown a half of a gasoline drum by the corporal–in-charge which he identified as being the half of the gasoline drum which was missing from his yard.

“Sergeant A.C Allen, the Prosecuting Officer in this case, told the Magistrate that there were several reports from people of the missing of drums. Some have also disappeared from the Power Station. The Magistrate turned to Alfred, ‘If you want to bring out a Steel band you must buy your pans and don’t try to get it in this way.’ Alfred was fined $5 which he paid in order to make certain that he plays mas.”