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The History of Rome to the Destruction of the Western Empire
The History of Rome to the Destruction of the Western Empire Author:Oliver Goldsmith General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1820 Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million book... more »s for free. Excerpt: CHAPTER XII. From the Creation of the Decemviri to the Extinction. of that Office. The Commonwealth of Rome had now for near u. c. sixty years been fluctuating between the con- ""' tending orders that composed it; till at length, each side, as if weary, were willing to respire a while from the mutual exertions of their claims. The Agrarian law seemed now but little attended to; and all the animosity which it had produced, appeared subsided. But it has ever been with mankind, that they form new desires, in proportion to the number of their possessions. The citizens now, therefore, of every rank, began to complain of the arbitrary decisions of their magistrates, and wished to be guided by a written body of laws, which when known, might prevent wrongs as well as punish them; In this, both the senate and the people concurred, as hoping that such laws would put an end to the commotions that so long had harassed the state. It was thereupon agreed, that ambassadors should be sent to the Greek cities in Italy, and to Athens, to bring home such laws from thence, as by experience had been found most equitable and useful. For this purpose, three senators, Posthumius, Sulpicius, and Manlius, were fixed upon, and galleys assigned to convoy them, agreeable to the majesty of the Roman people. While they were upon this commission abroad, a dreadful plague depopulated the city at home, and supplied the interval of their absence with other anxiety than that of wishes fortheir return. In about a year, however, the plague ceased, and the ambassadors returned, bringing home a body of laws, collected from the most civiliz...« less