Middletown transcript., 1897-06-12

servant as aforesaid, he or she so marryir
shall pay to the master or mistress of IL
servant, if man, twelve pounds, and if
woman, six pounds, or one years servic
and the servant so being married shs
abide with his or her master or mistres
according to indenture or engagement, an
one year after as aforesaid. And if an
person shall presume to marry. or be wi
nesses to any marriage contrary 10 til is &C
such person, so married shall forfeit twenI
pounds to the Proprietary and Governo
and the witnesses being present at sue
marriages shall forfeit and pay each &
them five pounds to the use of the Proprit
tary and Governor as aforesaid, and pa
damages to the party grieved, to be reco7
cred in any Court of Record within tn
government.
In 1706, the Assembly passed an "AC
about Arrests, and making Debtors pay b
Servitude." This law made a new class {
servants who could be sold into servitud
for debt. The act provided that if any on
shall become in debt, "and if no estate suf
ficient shall be found, the Debtor shal
make Satisfaction by servitude, according
to the judgment of the Court where sucl
Action is tried (not exceeding seven years
if a single Person, and under the age o
fifty and three years, and five years if
married man, and under the age of fort,
and six years) if the Plaintiff require it,
The same year forty -four poor debtors
some of them in prison for debt, objected
to the fee bilp' in petition to Governo
John Evans, in which they made state
ment: Some of your petitioners have beer
kept in the common goal until they could
find persons to sell themselves unto TO,
term of gears to pay the same, and re-
deem their bodtesl" The above law wal
afterwards repealed for the relief of insol
vent debtors; but it was not until February
the 9Th, 1919, that it was enacted that enc
Female shall be arrested or imprisoned for
or by reason of any debt contracted after
the passage of this act.
At the time of the French and Indian
war, some of the recruiting officers took ii
upon themselves to enlist servants and ap-
prentices. This was strongly opposed by
Pennsylvania. General Shirley was ad-
vised of the matter and, in 1855, he wrote
as follows to Colonel Dunbar: Upon
the Advices have received since my last
to you, from Gentlemen of greatest zeal for
his Majesty's Service, as well as the best
judges Of it in Pennsylvania and the other
Western Colonies, I am convinced that the
enlisting of Apprentices and indented
Servants there will greatly observe his in
terest. as well as be, in most cases grievious
to the Subject; and would, therefore, rec
ommend it to you in the strongest manner
to avoid doing it," He, however, after
wards countermanded his order, and on
the 9th of Feb, 1856, thus addressed him
self in letter to Governor Morrisi Il can
not conceive that the D istress arising
from the enlisting a few Servants can be
any thing like what the President and
Council seem to apprehend; for the num-
Der must be SO trifing. in Proportion to the
Labourers in your Government, that it can
have no visible effect on the Province in
general; and if any peculiar instances of
hardship should happen to particular per-
sons thereby, shall be always willing and
ready to consider circumstances on their
being represented to me.
my own Government Of the Massachu-
sets Bay is SO far from thinking it a hard
ship that indented Servants should be al
lowed to inlist, that they notl only cheer
fully consent to that, but have even i'm
pressed great numbers of indented Servants
for the Expedition against Crown Point"
Massachusetts, example, however, played
no part with the Pennsylvanians. The
masters of servants stated their grievances
in petition to the General Assembly, and
that body discoursed upon the evils of Gen.
eral Shirley's policy in an address to Gov
ernor Morris. They said great number
of bought servants had already been en-
listed by the recruiting officers "to the very
great oppression Of the said Masters, and
injury to the Provinces" that "as this Prov
ince has but few Slaves we are now obliged
to depend principally upon our Servants
to assist us in tilling our lands;" that "had
it not been for our constant Practice of i'm
porting and purchasing Servants to assist
US in our labour, so many men and so great
q quantity of provisions could not have
been furnished by the provinces" that eff
the Possession of a bought servant is thus
rendered precarious, at seed time and har.
vest, the Importation Of Servants will be
and the People driven to the
necessity of providing themselves with Ne
gro Slaves, as the Property in them and
their Service seems at present more secure;n
that this will weaken the Growth of the
Province rather than strengthen II, AS every
Slave may be reckoned domestick Enemy
Also that time and services of servants are
he legal property Of their masters, as sthey
nave as true and just Property in the Ser
rant bought as they had before in the |
money with which he was purchased"
The same difficulties arose at the begin |
ling Of the Revolution, In April 1777,
congress recommended to the different |
legislatures to authorize the enlisting of
ervants and apprentices. Pennsylvania
opposed 1t on the same. grounds as in 756. |
| committee of citizens of Cumberland d
ounty resolved that all apprenti ces
nd servants are Property of their masters
nd mistresses, and every mode of depriv-
ng such masters and mistresses of the
heir Property a Violation of the
tights Of mankind" Notwithstanding,
srvants and apprentices entered the army;
ut "the State passed an act March 12,177s,
laking compensation to those masters
hose servants or apprentices had enlisted
a the army