followed the mother, and became slaves
of his lord.

The Aldius, again, may not sell his lord's land or slaves, which
indicates that he held land and slaves under his lord.

What the word means, Grimm does not seem to know. He thinks it
synonymous with 'litus,' of whom we hear as early as Tacitus' time, as
one of the four classes, nobles, freemen, liti, slaves; and therefore
libertus, a freedman. But the word does not merely mean, it appears, a
slave half freed by his master; but one rather hereditarily half free,
and holding a farm under his lord.

Dio, however, is said to be an old German word for a slave; and it is
possible that aldius (a word only known, seemingly, in Lombardy) may have
signified originally an old slave, an old Roman colonus, or peasant of
some sort, found by the conquerors in possession of land, and allowed to
retain, and till it, from father to son. We, in England, had the same
distinction between 'Laet,' or 'villains' settled on the land, glebae
adscripti, and mere thralls or theows, slaves pure and simple. No doubt
such would have better terms than the mere mancipia--slaves taken in war,
or bought--for the simple reason, that they would be agriculturists,
practised in the Roman tillage, understanding the mysteries of
irrigation, artificial grasses, and rotation of crops, as well as the
culture of vines, fruit, and olives.

Next to them you have different sorts of slaves; Servus massarius, who
seems to be also rusticanus, one who takes care of his lord's 'massa' or
farm, and is allowed a peculium, it seems, some animals of his own, which
he may not sell, though he may give them away. And again, servus doctus,
an educated household slave, whose weregeld is higher than that of
others.

The laws relating to fugitive slaves seem as merciful as such things can
be; and the Lombards have always had the credit of being kind and easy
masters.

Connected with fugitive slaves are laws about portunarii, ferrymen, who
appear, as you know, in the old ballads as very important, and generally
formidable men. The fight between Von Troneg Hagen and the old ferryman
in the Nibelungen Lied, is a famous instance of the ancient ferrymen's
prowess. One can easily understand how necessary strict laws were, to
prevent these ferrymen carrying over fugitive slaves, outlaws, and indeed
any one without due caution; for each man was bound to remain in his own
province, that he might be ready when called on for