Among other vicious practices common to these nations and proceeding from that fountain and abyss of evil, idolatry, one was that insatiable cupidity mentioned by the evangelist St. John as one of the three which tyrannize over the world. [1] This caused them, forgetful of that natural compassion which we owe to one another, never to lend succor in cases of need without assurance of profit. Consequently, whenever they made loans (not of money, which they did not use or possess, but of other things, most commonly rice, bells, and gold--this last more than all else, for when weighed it took the place of money, for which purpose every one carried in his pouch a balance), they must always agree upon the profit which should be paid them in addition to the sum that they were to lend. But the evil did not stop here, for the profit or gain itself went on increasing with the delay in making payment--until finally, in the course of time, it exceeded all the possessions of the debtor. The debt was then charged to his person, which the poor wretch gave, thus becoming a slave; and from that time forth all his descendants were also slaves. There was another form of this usury and slavery, by which the debtor or his son must remain from that time a slave, until the debt, with all the usury and interest which were customary among them, was repaid. As a result of this, all the descendants of him who was ether a debtor or security for the debt, remained slaves. Slaves were also made through tyranny and cruelty, by way of revenge and punishment for offenses of small account, which were made to appear matters of injury. Examples of these are: failure to preserve silence for the dead (which we have already mentioned), or happening to pass in front of a chief who was bathing (alluded to in the fable of Actaeon), and other similar oppressions. They also captured slaves in war by means of ambuscades and attacks, keeping as such all those whom they did not wish to kill. Since these cruelties were so usual among them, and, on the other hand, the poor are commonly oppressed by the powerful, it was easy to increase the number of slaves. Consequently they used to have, and still do have, a very large number of slaves, which among them is the greatest of riches. This has been no small hindrance to their conversion, and has fettered the hands of many ministers of the gospel, and subjected them to great doubts and perplexities. But since, on the one hand, pious individuals have, although with difficulty, paid ransoms; and, on the other, the royal magistrates have ascertained the facts and provided redress for those thus tyrannically treated who seek their liberty; and, moreover, since God our Lord has influenced many in their baptisms and confessions, an enormous number of ransoms have been given. Usury also quickly diminished, the creditors being satisfied with the original interest, without expecting a continual increase.