Untitled - African American History

ead of slavery with her son." 1
SLAVERY IN GREECE. Ixiii
This concubinage did
not emancipate the mother. In the same appeal Tecmessa
acknowledges her state of slavery. 2
Another source of slavery among the Greeks was from
the sale of strangers, residents in the city, Metics, who,
upon failure to discharge their obligations to the state,
or upon fraudulently, by marriage, introducing them-
selves into the family of a citizen, were condemned to
slavery. 3
Sometimes slavery was voluntarily submitted to as an
homicide. 4
expiation for an offence, especially
There were two kinds of slavery among the Greeks,
which may be denominated agrestic, attached to the
land, or serfs, and domestic or personal servants. The
former consisted chiefly of the conquered inhabitants of
a country, who were first made the slaves of the com-
munity, and were retained in the possession of the conquered
territory. 5
Among conquered nations, however,
there was a difference in the degree of servitude, arising
from the circumstances under which the conquest was
effected, and the degree of force used therein. Of some,
tribute only was required, and an acknowledged state of
dependence, with a liability to answer the calls of the
conquerors for men and munitions of war. Such were
admitted to bear arms in the wars, and sometimes to
hold offices, though their condition was still inferior to
that of citizens. In Laconia, these were termed Perioiki,
occupying a middle rank between the freemen and the
Helots. 6
In other cases, when the resistance was obstinate, or,
after subjection, the vanquished were rebellious, a more
1
Sophocles, Ajax, 485-518.
2
Ibid.
3
Wallon, i, 160. 4
Wallon, 63. i,
5
Wallon, torn, i, 56 ; Smith's Diet. " Servus" (Greek).
6
Wallon, torn, i, 94, et seq. ; Grote's Hist, of Greece, vol. 364. The
ii,
original meaning of the word "
xsptotxot is, surrounding neighbor states,"
and is thus used by Thucydides, i, 17, by Isocrates, De Pace, p. 182.