But the slaves themselves instituted a ceremony which they consideredmorally binding, as far as they were concerned; and the slave-ownersdeemed it prudent to gratify their slaves by a recognition, in somedegree, of the marital relations that might exist among them. Thereforea certain set of rules came into operation, by general consent,governing the visits of the husband to the wife when owned by differentmasters. When the wife of a slave lived not more than five miles fromhis master he could visit her once a month; when she lived not more thanten miles away, he could go to see her once in two months; and when shelived twenty or more miles away he could go to see her only once in twomonths.