The sun., 1909-02-28

was utilized 10 feed the great city. Neither
according TO Mr.. Fowler, ought We 20 be a
al surprised 10 find that the State had to
take over the task OF feeding the Roman
population and Of feeding 1t cheaply. Our
means OF transportation are 30 easily and
rapidly set in action and maintained that
IL would need a war with some great sea
Power TO convince us that London OF
Glasgow mught under certain oircum-
stances be starved; and as our attention
has never been drawn TO the details OF
food supply we do not readily see why
there should have been any such diff
Guilty at Rome as to call for the interven-
tion Of the State. Mr.. Fowler suggests
that perhaps the best way 10 realize the
problem is to reflect that every adult
inhabitant needed about three pounds of
grain day, so that IL the population OF
Rome is taken at half a million in Cicero q
time million and half pounds of wheat
would be demanded for the daily con-
sumption Of the people.
Many other cities besides Rome not
only felt the same difficulty but had re-
course to the same remedy-State i'm
portation OF cheap grain. IL is true that
some OF the greatest cities on the Medi-
terranean. such as Alexandria and An
tioch. we're in easy reach OF immense
grain fields, but this was not the case
with Rome. Either she must organize
her grain supply on secure basis or get
rid OF her swarms Of poor inhabitants
the latter alternative might have been
practicable II she had been willing to Let
them starve. but probably in no other way.
To attempt to drive them out upon the
land again was hopeless. for they knew
nothing Of agriculture and were unused
to manual labor. which they despised.
Thus ever since Rome had been n city Of
considerable size II had been the duty Of
the plebeian pdiles to see that It was ade-
quately supplied with grain; and in times
Of dearth or rather difficulty these mags-
trates had to take special measures to
procure IL. In the end the plebeans had
TO be fed largely az the expense Of the
state. and thus lapsed into state OF semi
pauperism. In Il. c. 20 Julius Caesar
found that no fewer than $40, 900 persons
were receiving grain from the State for
nothing; by a law Of which we still pos
sess fragment he reduced the number
70 10000. and by a rigorous system Of
niles contrived 10 insure that the number
should he kept at that point The whole
story Of Rome's grain supply. mixed up as
ii was with politics. is a wholesome lesson
on the mischief Of granting -outdoor
relief in any form whatever without
institutng means Of inquiry into each
individual case.
The drink Of tho Roman plebeisn was
water. but he mixed il with wine when
ever he could. He had no other intoNi-
eating beverage; we hear neither OF beer
nor OF spirits in Roman literature. italy
was we'll suited to the cultivation OF the
vine, and though down 70 the last century
of the republic the choice vintages came
chiefly from Greece. the production OF
rough wine must have been large. for il
was at times remarkably cheap. That
the common citizen expected TO be able
to qualify his water with wine seems
proved by a story told by Suetonius that
W hen the people complained to Augustus
that the price OF wine was too high he
curtly answered that Agrippa had but
lately given them an excellent water
supply. For his water the Roman plebeian
paid nothing. and on the whole in Cicero's
time he was fairly we'll supplied with it,
though great improvements we're later
effected in this respect Tho whole
amount Of water entering Rome by adue-
ducts in the last century Of the republic
Is computed at more than 10000 cubic
meters a day. which would amply suffice
for population Of half million. At the
present time Rome, with a population OF
$4,000. receives from all sources only
$4,000.