Page:The Philippine Islands, 1493-1803 (Volume 05).djvu/185

 loaned the money. This slavery extended only to the culprit, and not to his children or relatives, except to children who were born during his slavery.

It is usual among the natives of this island to aid one another with money-loans. He who borrowed from a chief or a timagua retained the money until a fixed time had elapsed, during which he might use the money that was lent to him; and besides, he divided with the lender the profit that he made, in acknowledgment of the favor that he had received.

It was a law that if he who borrowed the money became insolvent, and had not means to pay his debt, he was considered a slave therefor, together with the children born during his slavery; those already born were free.

It was a law among these people, when two men formed a business partnership in which each placed the same amount of money, that if one of them went to traffic with the money belonging to both, and while on a trading journey were captured by enemies, the other man who remained in the village must go to ransom his partner, with half of the ransom-price agreed upon; and the captive was then released from liability—not only for what was due to the partnership, but for the amount which was afterward given for his ransom, and was not obliged to pay anything. If the man who lost the money lost it in gambling, or by spending it with women, he was obliged to repay to the partnership the amount which he had drawn therefrom, and he and his children were obliged to pay it. If the amount were so great that they could not pay it within the time agreed upon, he and half his children would become the slaves of the partner. If there were two children, one was a slave