“Sure there were incidents of mistreatment but it was by no means standard practice”
Very true. It may sound harsh, but would a farmer today take a sledge hammer to a brand new tractor if it malfunctioned? A slave was much more expensive, comparatively speaking.
**A slave was much more expensive, comparatively speaking.**
That is why many slaveholders had WHITE Indentured Servants who they had to release after a few years. The owners would work them to death before releasing them.
Also, when New Orleans Canal was dug, slaves were used till they began to die from mosquito borne diseases. They, representing REAL WEALTH, were withdrawn, and Irish paid workers were brought in to finish the canal.
Loss of a black slave meant loss of investment. no one cared if an Irishman died as no one owned him and he took his chances.