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Show 6 ON THE SLAVERY AND CoMMERCE Having premifed this, we may now proceed to a general divifion of flavery, into voluntary and involuntary. The voluntary will comprehend the two claffes, which we have already mentioned; for, in the firft infl:ance, there was a contrall, founded on co'!fent; and, in the fecond, there was a choice of engaging or not in thofe practices, the known confequences of which were fervitude. The involuntary, on the other' hand, will comprehend thofe, who were forced, ·without any fuch condition or choice, into a fituation, which as it tended to degrade a part of the human fpecies, and to clafs it with the brutal, mufl: have been, of all human fituations, the moil: wretched and infupportable. Thefe are they, whom we fhall confider folely in the prefent work. We fhall therefore take our leave of the former, as they were mentioned only, that we might fl:ate the quefl:ion with greater accuracy, and be the better enabled to reduce it to its proper limits. CliAP, ... ---- OF THE HUMAN SPECIES. 7 C H A P. II. The firll: that will be mentioned, of the involuntary, were pr!foners of 7Var.* "It "was a law, ell:ablilhed from time imme" moria! among the nations of antiquity, to " oblige thofe to undergo ' the feverities of " fervitude, whom victory had thrown into " their hands." Conformably with this, we find all the Eall:ern nations unanimous in the practice. The fame cull:om prevailed among the people of the Weft; for as the Helots became the llaves of the Spartans, from the right of conquell: only, fo prifoners of war were reduced to the fame fituation by the rell: of the inhabitants of Greece. By the fame principles that actuated thefe, were the Romans alfo influenced. Their Hiftory will confirm the fact: for how many cities are recorded to have been taken; how many armies to have been vanquiihed in the field, and the wretched furvivors, in both inll:ances, to have been doomed to fer- • " N~ft-9- fv -r;d_~~~ 'Av9f~'iTDI~ d.f/'1~~ i.rtv, h.:tv tT;0Mp.Vv1"v u -u~A'' J_,._;, T~v !J...Ov1r.Jv iira.J ~ -rei: ~to!p..t/ct TZv £11 Tti l'tJ0A~, II J!1 T;_ xr»t.A.ct1cc..11 Xenoph. Ktlfd ncuJ\ L. 7· fin .. A 4 vi tude? |