THEWHITEINVADERS
probably that of Governor Adriaan van der Stel, who owned r69 slaves in
1706. The largest holding of a burgher was probably that of Martin Melck,
who had 101 slaves in 1774. In 1750, there were 681 slave owners in the
colony. Only 7 of them owned more than 50 slaves and another 25 owned
between 26 and 50, whereas 385 owned fewer than 6 slaves. Finally, few
Cape slaves were manumitted, and the rate of manumission declined over
time, so that there was never a large community of "free blacks." The free
blacks initially had the same rights as the white settlers, but the law began
to discriminate against' them in the 1760S, and by the 1790S they were
obliged to carry passes if they wished to leave town. Though few in num-
bers, however, the free blacks were a significant influence in the colonial
society. They moderated the congruence between race and enslavement.
The occupations of the Cape slaves varied greatly, depending on who
owned them and where they lived. The company housed its slaves in a
building in Cape Town, where they provided the basic labor force for public
works. Company officialsand burghers who lived in Cape Town employed
their slaves as domestic servants, artisans, fishermen, market gardeners,