The law of the empire in force through Italy and Sicily:
1. Slaves who were Christians could not be held by those who were not Christians.
2. It being unlawful for others than Christians to hold them, these others could have no property in them: the persons so held were entitled to their freedom.
3. The church was the guardian of their right to freedom, and the church acted through the bishop.
4. Consequently it was the duty, as it was the right, of the bishop to vindicate that freedom for those so unjustly detained.
5. The right and duty of the pope was to see that each bishop was careful in his charge, and this part of his charge came as much as any other did under the supervision of his superior and immediate inspector, and it was the duty of that superior to reprehend him for any neglect.
6. The law of each country was to regulate the duty of the master and slave, and if that law made, as in Italy and its environs, the church the proper tribunal for looking to the performance of those duties, any neglect of the church in its discharge would be criminal.
7. Through the greater part of Italy and Sicily, at this period, the pope was the sovereign, and it was only by his paramount influence that the half-civilized Gothic and Lombard chiefs were kept in any order, and their despotism partially restrained.
They were times of anarchy, between which and the present no analogy exists. The Jews and separatists from the church were very numerous, and on their side, as well as on that of their opposers, passion frequently assumed the garb of religion, and the unfortunate slave was played upon by each. The position of the pope was exceedingly difficult, for while he had to restrain the enemies of the church on one side, he had to correct the excesses of its partisans upon the other.