"The occupations of the common people in Egypt were carefully watched by the magistrate, and no one was allowed to live an idle life, useless to himself and to the community. It was thought right that the industrious citizen should be encouraged, and distinguished from the lazy or the profligate; and in order to protect the good and detect the wicked, it was enacted that every one should at certain times present himself before the magistrates, or provincial governors, and give in his name, his place of abode, his profession or employment, and the mode in which he gained his livelihood, the particulars being duly registered in the official report. The time of attendance was fixed, and those from the same parish proceeded in bodies to the appointed office, accompanied by their respective banners, and each individual being introduced singly to the registering clerks, gave in his statement and answered the necessary questions."[25] =Slavery.= Slavery has a very early date, as it is found at the very beginning of history, which is true in Egypt as elsewhere. The origin of slavery cannot be traced but in the early history of Egypt it appears that the slaves came from outside countries, gained through wars and raids and by purchase from dealers. Many of the captives who became slaves were placed in the service of the king and used on public works, as the building of temples, cutting canals, raising dykes and embankments, and the like. They were used in private, both black and white, to do the work in the fields and in the homes and elsewhere. They attended on guests at banquets and also were used to amuse them by singing and dancing and in other ways. The master had full power over his slaves, could sell them, remove them from place to place, if they escaped could pursue and recapture them, and do with them as he pleased, and yet he could not wilfully murder one of them or, if so, he himself was put to death. "The very kind treatment of Joseph, the mode of his liberation, and his subsequent marriage with the daughter of a freeborn Egyptian, a high functionary of the sacerdotal order, are striking proofs of the humanity of the Egyptians and of their indulgent conduct toward manumitted slaves."[26] At the same time, as with slaves everywhere and at all times, no doubt they were often cruelly treated, as is given concerning the Israelites, when "there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph."[27]