176 THE SLAVES VII

Private slaves are mentioned in comedy much more fre-
quently than public slaves, and domestic slaves play a very
large part, as thev certainly did in everyday life * When
someone knocked at the door, he expected a slave to open to
him 2 Steward, housekeeper and cook were slaves, they were
found in houses where a larger number of slaves was kept, and
a division of labour was therefore usual.3 Frequently a slave,
either man or woman, went shopping in the market 4 The
maids went to the spring and the wells for water 5 Slaves of
both sexes, who often had to be called in the morning by the
mistress, cleaned the house and waited at meals. 6 It is perhaps
a joke, or at least the exception rather than the usual custom,
that the slave should offer his hair to the master to wipe his
hands on after he had blown his nose, or that the drinkers
should cry during a party 'Boy, the chamber-pot1'7 The flute-
players, who played during dinner, often did not belong to the
house, but were hired.8 Slav s. -girls ground the corn, but it was
a punishment to be sent to the mill 9 Slaves kneaded the dough,
and perhaps wore the famous collar to prevent them from
putting something in their mouths.10 It probably often hap-
pened that a domestic slave stole some food; at any rate, this
is a typical practice of the slave of comedy11 The general
evidence of comedy as to the duties of slaves is supported by
a number of passages in Euripides, in which the typical duties,
especially of female slaves, are described; foremost among
them are. sprinkling the floor and cleaning the house, grinding
corn and making bread, and weaving cloth 1 2

1 Anstotle declares that the holding of slaves serves 7Tpcc£i$, which represents
life, not TTOirjcns, which means production (pd I2$4a, jf)

2 F 37, cf Pherekr 86, also Eur Tro 49 2 f Aiakos (F 465), who opens the
door for Dionysos-Herakles, is later not a slave (F 61 6f ) Cf Radermacher, 211
It is probably on account of this Inconsistency that in our MSS the person
conversing with Xanthias (738£F) is sometimes called Aiakos and sometimes

3 W 613 — Xen oiL 9, loff — K 418, Philyll. 10 In this fragment cook
and flute-player seem to have the same social status They may be hired men,
but they are hardly free men See Plates IILz, XI Vr.
4 frg. 299, 503, Pherekr. 126, cf Lysias I, 8 5 L 328ff
6 L 1 8 — Phryn 2 D. — Krates 14, Pherekr 184, Ameips 2
7 K9io. — Eupolis 351, 5 8 frg 566, Philyll 10
* Pherekr. 10 — Lysias I, 18 l0 frg 301-2 1X P 14, PI 320, nsgf
12 Eur Hek i^Andr r66f, Tro qt)i8ylov 102$ I28ff(cf 182^309,356),
B* S*4*fiZ- 773. i oft 12