“Justice was imprinted in their minds, not laws,” wrote one Greek historian, noting that the Slavs did not yet have written legislation. “Theft was rare and was considered more important than any crime. They despised gold and silver as much as other mortals desired it. And here is the testimony of another author: “The tribes of the Slavs lead the same way of life, have the same morals, love freedom and cannot stand slavery. They are especially brave and courageous in their country and are capable of all kinds of labor and hardship. They easily tolerate heat and cold, and nudity of the body, and all kinds of inconveniences and disadvantages. They are very affectionate towards strangers, whose safety they care most of all: they escort them from place to place and instruct themselves with the sacred law that a neighbor must take revenge on his neighbor and go to war against him,if he, in his carelessness, instead of guarding, admits any case where a stranger suffers misfortune."
The Greeks noticed the peculiarities of the communal patriarchal order of life of the Slavs: “The captives of the Slavs are not like those of other peoples, they do not always remain in slavery; they define a certain time for them, after which, having paid a ransom, they are free to either return to their fatherland, or remain friends and free with them. " Often entering into battles with the Slavs, the Greeks very carefully studied the character of the Slavs and their military habits: “They are excellent warriors, because military science is becoming a harsh science for them in every detail. The highest happiness in their eyes is to die in battle. To die of old age or from some incident is a shame, more humiliating than which nothing can be. They are generally handsome and tall; their hair is cast in light brown color. Their eyes are more belligerent than fierce. " “They often make raids, surprise attacks and various tricks, day and night, and,so to speak, they are playing with war. " “Their greatest art is that they know how to hide in rivers under water. Often, caught by the enemy, they lie for a very long time at the bottom and breathe with the help of long reed tubes, the end of which is taken into the mouth, and the other is pushed out to the surface of the water and thus sheltered in the depths. " Surprisingly, this observation: "The Slavs do not tolerate any power"