In his years as a slave, Said was employed in various capacities including those of tobacco pipe cleaner, travel companion, and shop boy and assistant. However, he also reports that slaves could be used in various capacities, and that eunuchs and concubines were common in Istanbul as they were in Borno. Although Said and his masters were Muslims during the period of his enslavement, not all his masters treated him kindly. In violation of Islamic law, the Tuareg raiders who enslaved him treated him like they would have 'wild beasts' (Said, 1873, p. 42). Abd-elKader is reported to have beaten him on many occasions, although he is also said to have offered him incentives and otherwise treated him mildly, especially when he revealed that he was Barka Gana's son. Said tells us that he was treated with extreme kindness by Hadji Daoud and his other Turkish masters.  
As Said notes, slaves resisted enslavement and negotiated conditions of servitude in many ways. He recounts a story of slaves who escaped from Tuareg merchants, and he mentions other slaves who sought freedom. Also, he tells us that he tried various strategies either to end his enslavement or to soften  
its harshness. For instance, he recounts how he sought better treatment and attempted to regain his freedom through ransoming (or by mentioning that he was Barka Gana's son) and how, on one occasion, he begged to be sold to another master. Similarly, he tells us that, as a slave in Islamic societies, he remained a devout Muslim.