Section
If, while in the illness that ends in death, a man sets free a single slave and owns nothing else, only one-third of that slave is emancipated. Should his debts exhaust the whole estate, no part of the slave is freed at all.

If he emancipates three slaves whose total value equals his entire property and the three are of equal worth, one of them is released by drawing lots; the same ruling applies when he says, “I have freed one-third of you,” or, “One-third of you is free.” If he declares, “I have freed one-third of every one of you,” the official procedure is still to resort to a lottery, though another opinion maintains that one-third of each slave becomes free without drawing lots.

The lottery is carried out by taking three identical slips: on two is written “bondage” and on one “freedom.” The slips are rolled up, placed in capsules as previously described, and one slip is drawn on behalf of one of the slaves. If the slip marked “freedom” appears, that slave is emancipated and the other two remain slaves; if a “bondage” slip appears, that slave stays in servitude and another slip is then drawn for a second slave. It is also permissible to write each slave’s name on a slip and then draw a single slip marked “freedom”; whose ever name comes up is freed, while the others remain in bondage.

Suppose, instead, that the three slaves are unequal in value—one worth 100, another 200, and the third 300. Two “bondage” slips and one “freedom” slip are again used. If the “freedom” slip falls to the slave valued at 200, he is liberated and the other two remain slaves. If it falls to the 300-unit slave, two-thirds of him are freed. If it falls to the 100-unit slave, he is freed in full; a second draw is then held between the remaining two, with one “bondage” and one “freedom” slip, and from whichever of them the latter slip comes, the value needed to complete the owner’s allowable one-third is emancipated.

When there are more than three slaves and they can be grouped both by number and by value—for example, six slaves of equal worth—they are arranged in three lots of two. If grouping by value is possible but not by number—such as six slaves where one is worth 100, two together are worth 100, and three together are worth 100—the single slave forms one share, the pair a second, and the three a third.

If an equal division by value cannot be achieved—say, four slaves of identical worth—then, according to one opinion, they are divided into three shares: one, one, and two. Should the lot of freedom fall on a single slave, he is emancipated and another draw is held to complete the required one-third; if it falls on the pair, the remaining two stay in bondage and a further draw is conducted among them, whereupon the slave selected by that lot is emancipated.