Evening journal., 1897-08-17
COLONIAL SERVANTS.
The Kind OF Help They Had in
Early New England
Meninls Were In some Cases Trans
ported Convicts md Mnlefac-
tors who Sold Themselves
Into servitude.

Into terFttudc.
Domestic service in America has
passed through three distinct phases.
The first extends from the early col
onization TO the time of the revolution;
the second from the revolution to about
1850; the third from 1850 to the present
time.
During the colonial period service of
every kind was performed by trans
ported conyicts, indentured white
servants or 'redemptioners," free will
ers.n negroes and Indians. The first
three classes--conyicts. redemptioners
and free willers-were of European, at
first generally English, birth.
Protests were often made against
this method of settlement, both by the
colonists themselves and by English
men, but 1t was long before the English
government abandoned the practice OF
transporting criminals to the Ameri-
can colonies.
OF the three classes of whites, or
Christian servants, as they were called
TO distinguish them from the Indians
and negroes, the free willers were
evidently found only in Maryland. They
were received under the condition that
they be allowed a certain number of
days in which TO dispose Of themselves
to the greatest advantage.
1t is impossible to state the pro
portion of servants belonging to the Two
classes of transported convicts and re-
demptioners, but the statement is APP
parently fair that the redemptioners
who sold themselves into service TO pay
for the cost of their passage constituted
by far the larger portion. These were
found in all the colonies. though more
numerous in the southern and middle
colonies than in New England. In
Virginia and Maryland they outnum-
bered the negro slaves until the latter
part of the seventeenth century. In
Massachusetts apprenticed servants,
bound for a term Of years, were sold
from ships in Boston as late as 1880,
while the general trade in bound white
servants lasted until the time of the
revolution, and in Pennsylvania even
until this century.
The first redemtioners were natural
ly of English birth, but after a time they
were supplanted by those of other
nationalities, particularly by Germans
and Irish. AS early as 1918 there was a
complaint of the Irish immigrants in
Massachusetts.
1t has been said that great majority
Of the redemptioners belonged at first
TO low class in the social scale. a con-
siderable number, however, both men
and women, belonged to the re-
spectacle, even TO the so-called upper
class of society. They were sent over
to prevent disadvantageous marriages.
TO secure inheritances to other members
of family or to further some criminal
Kcheme.
Many of these bond servants sold
themselves into servitude, others were
disposed of through emigration brok-
ers and still others were kidnapped, be-
ing enticed on shipboard by persons
called Spirits" The evil of "spiriting
away" both children and adults. be-
came so great that in 1864 the commit
tee for foreign plantations interposed.
and the council created the Office Of
register, charged with the duty of keep
ing a record of all persons going TO
America as servants, and the statement
that they had voluntarily left England.
This act was soon followed by another
fixing the penalty of death, without
benefit of clergy in every case where
persons were found guilty of kidnap-
ing children or adults. But even these
extreme measures did not put an end
TO the evil; and it is stated that 10000
persons were annually kidnapped after
the passage of the act.
The wages paid were, as a rule. small
though some complaints are found
especially in New England, of high
wages and poor service. More often the
wages were a mere pittance. Elizabeth
Evans came from Ireland to serve John
Wheelwright for three years. Hei
wages were to be three pounds a year
and passage paid. Margery Batman
after five years of service in Charles
town, was to receive a she goat TO helJ
her in starting life. Mary Polly. accord
ing to the terms of her indenture. wa,
TO serve ten years and then receiv,
"three barrels of corn and one suit o.
penistone and one suit shirts of dowlai
and one black hood, two hifts of dowla
and shoes and hose convenient
Domestic Service.