Page:The Ancient City- A Study on the Religion, Laws, and Institutions of Greece and Rome.djvu/503

 CHAP. II. TnE ROMAN COXQUEST. 497 provinces. These families, thus increasing their wealth with every generation, became immeasurably opulent, and eacli one of them was a jiower, compared with the people. The other cause was, that the Roman, even the poorest, had an innate respect for wealth. Long after real clientsliip had disappeared, it was, in a certain sense, resuscitated under the form of a liomage paid to great fortunes; and it became a custom for the poor to go every morning to salute the rich. It docs not follow from this that the struggle be- tween rich and poor was not seen at Rome, as well as in other cities; but it commenced only in the time of the Gracchi, — that is to say, after the conquest was iilmost afhicved. Besides, this struggle never had at Rome that character of violence which it assumed everywhere else. The lower orders of Rome never ardently coveted riches. They aided the Gi-acchi in a lukewarm manner; they refused to believe that these reformers were working for them, and abandoned them at the decisive moment. The agrarian laws, so often presented to the rich as a menace, always left the peo- ple quite indifferent, and agitated them only on the surface. It is clear that they were not very eager to possess lands; for, if they were offered a share in the public lands, — that is to say. In the domain of the state, — they at least never l)ad a thought of despoiling the rich of their property. Partly i'roin inveterate re- spect, and partly from a habit of doing nothing, they loved to live by the side of the rich, and as it were in their shadow. The rich class had the wisdom to admit to its circle the most considerable funilies of the subject and allied cities. All who were rich in Italy came gradually to form the rich class of Rome. This body continued to 32