Penn himself, however, had little time to devote to pleasure, for much and difficult work awaited him. First of all it was necessary to rectify the evils which had given rise to so much complaint, chief of which was the introduction of contraband trade. He soon found that by no means all the inhabitants of his colony shared his disinterestedness or his loftiness of purpose. He met with especial opposition in his efforts to better the condition of the negro slaves. This traffic in human beings had continued to flourish ever since his first visit to America, for at that time its infamy was not recognized. The blacks were looked upon as creatures little above the brutes, to buy and sell whom was perfectly legitimate. In the first constitution drawn up by him, Penn had inserted an article stipulating that negro servants should be freed after fourteen years of service, provided they gave their former masters two-thirds of all they produced from the land assigned to them, failing which they were to return to servitude. This did not prevent the continuation of slavery, however, the legality or illegality of which being regarded as a question which no reasonable man need trouble himself about. The German settlers from the Rhine Palatinate were the only ones to protest against it, and they indeed left no stone unturned to secure support and recognition for their cause. Penn’s attempts to introduce a law for the benefit of the negroes therefore met with such strong opposition from the assembly that he was forced to abandon his benevolent plans until a more favorable opportunity should occur. He kept no slaves himself, preferring to hire those of his neighbors when he needed their services. The Indians were overjoyed at the return of the great Onas, who immediately renewed the old friendly relations with them. They had faithfully observed the treaty concluded in 1682 and had fared so well in consequence that other tribes which had then held aloof were now eager to join the alliance, to which Penn gladly agreed, as it would add in no small degree to the safety of his province. After this ceremony had been performed in the manner already described, Penn entertained his new allies in the great hall of his mansion, while they returned the hospitality by performing some of their wild dances upon the lawn for their host and his family.