In the 18th century, Pennsylvania was becoming the hotbed of American development. Many people drawn to Pennsylvania were servants, whether for sometimes 4 years or as long as it took to pay off debts for their journey across the Atlantic. If they were not servants, they were slaves who had virtually no chance of freedom. Servants had the chance to become free after repaying their debts through work, but not the same for slaves. A Welsh farmer, Gabriel Thomas, who spent 15 years in Pennsylvania before venturing to England. He came to the conclusion that the wages of the poor were 3 times higher than those in England. Therefore, he returned and hired a blacksmith, whom he would pay 50 shillings in a day to make 100 pounds of iron. He hired many more people, such as a carpenter, a shoemaker and sawyers. (Thomas) The country's first settlers had to hire large numbers of English settlers and black slaves from Africa. The settlers would be the richest farmers because they did not pay rent, nor did they pay black servants and slaves. (Moraley) The bosses wondered why they didn't earn as much as the servants. (Thomas) The salary each worker would receive would determine their social class. When ships docked in Philadelphia, no one who had not paid was allowed to leave. If they could not pay their dues, they had to stay on board until they were bought by the rich. Once purchased, they are returned to their buyer and allowed to leave the ship. If a person is between the ages of 10 and 15, they are allowed to serve until they are at least 21 years old. Parents sold their children as servants to pay off their debt. If both parents die on board the boat, the children must pay the debt. If one spouse dies, the other living spouse must pay the deceased spouse's debt. If someone ran away for a day, that person was punished for a week, for a week they were punished for a month, for a month they were punished for half a year. If the master decides not to keep the fugitive, he can sell him to another master for a certain number of years. (Mittelberger) Black people had no laws to protect them. Negroes could suffer the harshest punishments, such as the master forcing them to marry..