It consisted of free-born citizens, who, from the various contingencies of fortune, had become so poor, as to have recourse for their support to the service of the rich.

Of this kind were those, both among the Egyptians and the Jews, who are recorded in the sacred writings.[004] The Grecian _Thetes_[005] also were of this description, as well as those among the Romans, from whom the class receives its appellation, the [006]_Mercenarii_.
We may observe of the above-mentioned, that their situation was in many instances similar to that of our own servants.

There was an express contract between the parties; they could, most of them, demand their discharge, if they were ill used by their respective masters; and they were treated therefore with more humanity than those, whom we usually distinguish in our language by the appellation of _Slaves_.
As this class of servants was composed of men, who had been reduced to such a situation by the contingencies of fortune, and not by their own misconduct; so there was another among the ancients, composed entirely of those, who had suffered the loss of liberty from their own imprudence.

To this class may be reduced the Grecian _Prodigals_, who were detained in the service of their creditors, till the fruits of their labour were equivalent to their debts; the _delinquents_, who were sentenced to the oar; and the German _enthusiasts_, as mentioned by Tacitus, who were so immoderately charmed with gaming, as, when every thing else was gone, to have staked their liberty and their very selves.

"The loser," says he, "goes into a voluntary servitude, and though younger and stronger than the person with whom he played, patiently suffers himself to be bound and sold.