Dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

1036 SERVUS. SERVUS.
whole management of the estate was frequently former master as their patron ( arpo Trd'ris), and to
entrusted, while the master resided in the city; fullfil certaisl duties towards him, the neglect of
the household slaves were under a steward (raeuias), which rendered them liable to the 8tcqr a7rooerathe female slaves under a stewardess (Taelea). o[ov, by which they imight again be sold into
(Xen. Oeco. xii. 2, ix. 11.) slavery. [LI3ERTUS, p. 705, a; APOSTASIOu
The Athenian slaves did not, like the HIelots of DsIE.]
Sparta and the Penestae of Thessalv, serve in the Respecting the public slaves at Athens, see
armies; the battles of Marathon and Arginusae, DE0osil.
when the Athenians armed their slaves (Pausanl. It appears that there was a tax upon slaves at
i. 32. ~ 3; Schol. ad Asristohs. Ran. 33), were Athens (Xen. de TVect. iv. 25), which B1ckh (Publi.
exceptions to the general rule. Lceon. pp, 331, 332, 2d ed.) supposes was three
The rights of possession with regard to slaves oboli a year for each slave.
differed in no respect from any other property; Besides the authorities quoted in the course of
they could be given or taken as pledges. (Dem. inz this article, the reader may refer to Petitus, Leq.
Pantaenet. p. 967, in Azphob. p. 821, in Onetor. i. Att. ii. 6. p. 254, &c.; Reitermeier, Gesch. der
p. 871.) The condition, however, of Greek slaves Scelaveei in GYriechenland, Berl. 1789; Limburgvas upon the whole better than that of Romnan Broulwer, Histoire le la Civilisation cdes Grecs, vol.
ones, with the exception perhaps of Sparta, where, iii. p. 267, &c.; Gottling, de Notione Servitutis
according to Plutarch (Lye. 28), it was the best aeud Arislotelem, Jen. 1821; IIermann, LeAlsbzuce
place in the world to be a freeman, and the worst clder giech. Staatsalt. ~ 114 and especially Becker,
to be a slave (E', Aaclte3atpUoi KCal TlrV -/AEV5ePOV Csar ikles, vol. ii. p. 20, &c.
eAms'ra C ixsevspo ee bat, ecal'rbmv aosXov CWIOALra SERVUS (RoMsN). SE'RVITUS. " Servitus
soA'ov). At Athens especially the slaves seem to est constitutio juris gentiums qua quis doiniio
have been allowed a degree of liberty and indul- alieno contra naturam subjicitur." (Florent. Dig.
gence, which was never granted to them at Rome. 1. tit. 5. s. 4.) Gaius also considers the potestas of
(Compare Plut. de Garr2i. i8; Xenoph. de Rep. a master over a slave as "juris gentium " (i. 52).
At/l. i. 12 ) OIn the reception of a new slave into The Romans viewed Liberty as a Natural State,
a house at Athens, it was the custom to scatter and Slavery as a condition which was contrary to
sweetmeats (KaTaXvr'ilae'a), as was done in the the Natural State. The nutual relation of Slave
case of a newlry married pair. (Aristoph. Plut. 768, and Master amonF the Romans was expressed by
with Schol.; Demosth. in Stepsh. p. 1123. 29; the terms Servus and Dominus; and the power
Pollux, iii. 77; Hesych. and Suidas, s. v. Ka'ra- and interest which the domlinus had over and in
XO-,aTa'.) the slave was expressed by Dominium. The term
The life and person of a slave were also pro- Dolinsium or ownership, with reference to a slave,
teted by the law: a person who struck or smal- pointed to the slave merely as a thing or object of
treated a slave was liable to an action (U'pecos ownership, and a slave as onle of the Res Mancipi.ypacpY, Dem. in Mid. p. 529; Aesclsin. ins Tism. p. was classed with other objects of ownership. The
41; Xen. de Rep. Ath. i. 10; Athen. vi. p. 267, word Potestas was also applied to the master's
f; Meier, Att. Proc. p. 322, &c.); a slave too could power over his slave, and the same word was used
not be put to death without legal sentence. (Eurip. to express the father's power over his children.
IrecEub. 287, 288; Antiph. dce caed. Herod. p. 728.) The boundaries between the Patria and Dominica
Ile could even take shelter from the cruelty of Potestas were originally very narrow, but the child
his master in the temple of Theseus, and there had certain legal capacities which were altogether
elaim the privilege of being sold by him (7rpauv wanting to the condition of the slave. The master
aTlres'Oat, Plut. T/zes. 36; Pollux, vii. 13; Meier, had no Potestas over the slave, if he had merely a
Att. Proc. p. 403, &c.). The person of a slave, "' nudum juns Quiritium in servo:" it was neceshowever, was not considered so sacred as that of a sary that the slave should be his In bonis at least.
freeman: his offences were punished with corporal (Gaius, i. 54.)
chastisement, which was the last mode of punish- According to the strict principles of the Roman
ment inflicted on a freeman (Dem. in Tinocr. p. Law, it was a consequence of the relation of Master
752); he was not believed upon his oath, and his and Slave that the Master could treat the Slave as
evidenlce in courts of justice was always taken with he pleased: he could sell him, punish him, and
torture. put him to death. Positive morality however and
Notwithstanding the generally mild treatment the social intercourse that must always subsist beof slaves in Greece, their insurrection was not un- tween a master and the slaves, who are immedifrequent (Plat. Ley. vi. p. 777): but these insur- ately about him, ameliorated the condition of
rections in Attica were usually confined to the slavery. Still we read of acts of great cruelty
mnining slaves, who were treated with more severity committed by masters in the later Republican and
than the others. On one occasion they murdered earlier Imperial periods, and the Lex Petronia
their guards, took possession of the fortifications of was enacted in order to protect the slave. The
Sunium, and from this point ravaged the country original power of life and death over a slave,
for a considerable tille. (Atllen. vi. p. 272, f.) wvhich Gaius considers to be a part of the Jmus
Slaves were somletimes manumitted at Athens, Gentium, was limited by a constitution of Anto.
though not so frequently as at Rome; but it seems sninus, which enacted that if a man put his slave
doubtful whether a master was ever obliged to to death without sufficient reason (sine causa), he
liberate a slave against his will for a certain sum of was liable to the same penalty as if he had killed
money, as some writers have corlcluded from a pas- another man's slave. The Constitution applied to
sage of Plautus. (Casin. ii. 5. 7.) Those who were Roman citizens and to all who were under the
manumitted (&reXEvOepoe) did not become citizens, Imperium Ronlanum. (Gaius, i. 52, &c.) The
as they did at Rome, but passed into the condi- salne Constitution also prohibited the cruel treattion of Metics. They were obliged to honour their nlent of slaves by their masters, by enacting that