An Essay on the Slavery and Commerce of the Human Species, Particularly the African Translated from a Latin Dissertation, Which Was Honoured with the First Prize in the University of Cambridge, for the Year 1785, with Additions

PART I.

Chapter 1191 wordsPublic domain

The History of Slavery.

CHAP. I. Introduction.--Division of slavery into voluntary and involuntary.--The latter the subject of the present work.--Chap. II. The first class of involuntary slaves among the ancients, from war.--Conjecture concerning their antiquity.--Chap. III. The second class from piracy.--Short history of piracy.--The dance carpoea.--Considerations from hence on the former topick.--Three orders of involuntary slaves among the ancients.--Chap. IV. Their personal treatment.--Exception in Ægypt.--Exception at Athens.--Chap. V. The causes of such treatment among the ancients in general.--Additional causes among the Greeks and Romans.--A refutation of their principles.--Remarks on the writings of Æsop.--Chap. VI. The ancient slave-trade.--Its antiquity.--Ægypt the first market recorded for this species of traffick.--Cyprus the second.--The agreement of the writings of Moses and Homer on the subject.--The universal prevalence of the trade.--Chap. VII. The decline of this commerce and slavery in Europe.--The causes of their decline.--Chap. VIII. Their revival in Africa.--Short history of their revival.--Five classes of involuntary slaves among the moderns.--Cruel instance of the Dutch colonists at the Cape.

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