when a seemingly permanent shelter and job were found. Because of the many unemployed free persons and freedmen who lived in poverty, the runaway’s labor would be paid below a minimal rate; often the fugitive would be hungry, wet, and cold. And yet, there also existed two ways to achieve at least the same if not a better life than had been endured before the flight: seeking asylum in the house of a free and, if possible, high-standing person; or entering the precincts of a temple that was permitted