Austin Allen Mrs.

McGuire AP US History 12 September 2011 DBQ: Slavery and Indentured Servitude The Africans that first immigrated to the American colonies in 1619 were not slaves. Rather, they were indentured servants who would eventually be free after a number of years when their obligations were fulfilled.1 However, slavery eventually became the main source of labor for many reasons. Slavery replaced indentured servitude in the Southern colonies because slaves were more widely available, often more efficient and easier to manipulate, and more beneficial to their owners because they were treated as property, as opposed to servants, who were treated as human beings. A major factor in the rise of slavery was the fact that African slaves greatly outnumbered indentured servants. In the mid-1660s, the supply of white indentured servants fell, and their prices rose sharply. Meanwhile, the population of African slaves greatly exceeded the amount of indentured servants, and was easily accessible. Aaron Forgelmans Journal of American History indicates that, around 1700, slaves made up 47 percent of the total number of immigrants coming into America. It also points out that indentured servants made up only a mere 18 percent of the population (Doc. A). This clearly shows that the slave population more than doubled the amount of incoming servants. We can safely conclude that this information is reliable because the author

ushistory.org, The Growth of Slavery <http://www.ushistory.org/us/6c.asp> (Sep. 9, 2011).

Allen 2 was an objective historian looking back on events in the past. The logical course of action for a plantation owner to take was to buy slaves because of their abundance and the price of the average servant was much greater than it had been before. Taking this into consideration, it is understandable that owners in the South would switch from indentured servitude to slavery. Furthermore, owners could get a higher quantity of slaves because of their vast numbers. This is crucial to those who own large plantations because one slave can only do so much work. In his letter, Reverend Johann Martin Bolzius relates that half an acre is the daily task of a Negro (Doc. C). Because Bolzius was a man of religion, he most likely did not own slaves. His description may not be entirely accurate due to this. However, it is reasonable to assume that if a plantation owner had relatively large fields, he would want to obtain as many workers as possible for the best price. As a result, numerous owners relied on slaves rather than indentured servants for manual labor. Lastly, owners could obtain extra slaves for free due to the passing of the Virginia Slavery Act, which states that all children [] shall be held bond or free only according to the condition of the mother (Doc. D). Plantation owners aware of this law knew they could abuse it by raping female slaves in order to produce slave children for no extra cost. Clearly, this loophole could not be accomplished with an indentured servant. Due to the aforementioned factors, slave owners were convinced to use slaves instead of servants, causing slavery to overshadow all other methods of forced labor. Slavery also out-ruled indentured servitude because slaves were more efficient, more reliable, and easier to manipulate. For example, Johann Martin Bolzius explains the highly skilled but backbreaking labor that was done on the plantation (Doc. C). Because indentured servants come and go, the plantation owner will need to train every single one that arrives. On the other hand, slaves are at the plantation for their whole lives, so they have more experience,

Allen 3 and are therefore more efficient workers. This could lead to slaveholders potentially yielding more crops and earning more money. In addition, slavery was more economically efficient than indentured servitude because slaves [could] be kept as long as a Man [pleased] (Doc. H). If an owner committed to indentured servitude, he would have to pay for another servant every few years. On top of that, efforts must be made to train the servant. Clearly, investing in AfricanAmerican slaves would yield the most labor with the least amount of money. This alone was a critical cause of the rise of slavery. Lastly, owners preferred African slaves over indentured servants because they were easier to manipulate and maintain due to the ability to keep them ignorant and uneducated. The record of Bacons rebellion shows that when black and white servants united in a cause, the richest sort [did] not like it, and higher-ups were afraid servants would band together and overthrow them. Because of this event, racial lines associated with slavery were hastened, and the majority of the population switched to slavery so that they could separate different groups within the lower class to prevent an uprising. Without a doubt, the most significant difference between slavery and indentured servitude is the idea that an indentured servant is a treated as a human being, while slaves are, by law, treated as personal property. This gives plantation owners a substantial advantage because it allows them to do whatever they want with their slave. The Virginia Slavery Act of 1705 states that all [] slaves [] shall be held, taken, and adjudged, to be real estate and shall descend unto the heirs and widows of persons departing this life (Doc. G). The document clearly proclaims that slaves were to be treated as property, and could even be inherited by relatives. Consequently, plantation owners possessed complete control over their slaves. This was a main reason why slavery became predominant in the Southern colonies. Further, if a plantation owner were to kill an indentured servant, he would be tried for the murder of a living human being. On

Allen 4 the other hand, if an owner kills a slave that he owns, [the slaves] death shall not be accounted a felony and the master [shall be] acquitted from molestation (Doc. F). This demonstrates the freedom the owner is given with an African-American slave, as opposed to being restricted with a servant. Lastly, in Document H, Benjamin Franklin points out that slaves may be kept as long as a Man pleases, [] while hired men are continually leaving their master (Doc. H). This simple statement shows why owners chose slaves over servants. They owned slaves, and could keep them for as long as they wished, while indentured servants caused major inconveniences by departing at random times, potentially when they were needed most. Because slaves were treated as property, and because owners had the right to keep them for as long as they wished, slavery overpowered indentured servitude. After slavery was introduced and legalized in Virginia through the Virginia Slavery Act, the idea quickly spread to the Southern colonies. It was then legalized because Southern plantation owners realized that slavery was far superior to indentured servitude.