↑Willem Adriaan van der stel succeeded his father, Simon van der Stel, as Governor of the Cape in 1699; Willem van der Stel abused his official position to corner an over-supplied market in farm produce. Van der Stel was jealous of Adam Tas's wealth and easy going life, and in 1706 he used his legal powers to arrest and imprison him. Tas became a Stellenbosch legend when he had this petition drawn up against incumbent Governor W.A. van der Stel and other farming officials. Tas and his fellow free burghers were protesting against the corruption and extravagant lifestyle of Van der Stel and the fact that abuse of power by officials led to unfair competition with burghers. The Tas petition was submitted to the Lords Seventeen, the governing body of the Dutch East India Company (VOC), in Amsterdam. The petition was rejected and on Sunday, 28 February 1706 Magistrate Starrenburg arrested Adam Tas. From documents in the desk of Tas, Van der Stel established the nature of complaints against him and also the names of the dissatisfied burghers. Though several more burghers were arrested and punished, they were victorious at the end, when the Lords Seventeen in October 1706 categorically prohibited officials to own land or to trade. His wife Elizabeth van Brakel tried hard to get him released; when Adam Tas was finally freed after thirteen months, he named his farm 'Libertas' (liberty). Van der Stel was recalled to the Netherlands in 1707. Sources: http://www.sahistory.org.za/dated-event/adam-tas-arrested; http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/SOUTH-AFRICA/2005-05/1116668205 (seen and added by Philip van der Walt with the kind help of Maria Labuschagne on Apr 3, 2017.)
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