1. |
1.1. |
1.2. |
1.3. |
2. |
2.1. |
2.2. |
2.3. |
2.4. |
2.5. |
3. |
3.1. |
3.2. |
3.3. |
3.4. |
3.5. |
3.6. |
3.7. |
3.8. |
3.9. |
3.10. |
3.11. |
4. |
4.1. |
4.2. |
4.3. |
4.4. |
4.5. |
4.6. |
4.7. |
4.8. |
5. |
5.1. |
5.2. |
5.3. |
5.4. |
5.5. |
5.6. |
5.7. |
5.8. |
5.9. |
5.10. |
5.11. |
5.12. |
5.13. |
5.14. |
5.15. |
5.16. |
5.17. |
5.18. |
5.19. |
6. |
6.1. |
6.2. |
6.3. |
6.4. |
6.5. |
6.6. |
6.7. |
6.8. |
6.9. |
6.10. |
6.11. |
6.12. |
6.13. |
6.14. |
6.15. |
6.16. |
6.17. |
6.18. |
6.19. |
6.20. |
7. |
7.1. |
7.2. |
7.3. |
7.4. |
7.5. |
7.6. |
7.7. |
7.8. |
7.9. |
7.10. |
7.11. |
7.12. |
7.13. |
7.14. |
7.15. |
7.16. |
7.17. |
8. |
8.1. |
8.2. |
8.3. |
8.4. |
8.5. |
8.6. |
8.7. |
8.8. |
8.9. |
8.10. |
8.11. |
7.12. |
8.13. |
8.14. |
8.15. |
8.16. |
8.17. |
8.18. |
8.19. |
8.20. |
8.21. |
9. |
9.1. |
9.2. |
9.3. |
9.4. |
9.5. |
9.6. |
9.7. |
9.8. |
9.9. |
9.10. |
10. |
10.1. |
10.2. |
10.3. |
10.4. |
10.5. |
10.6. |
10.7. |
10.8. |
10.9. |
10.10. |
10.11. |
10.12. |
10.13. |
10.14. |
10.15. |
10.16. |
10.17. |
11. |
11.1. |
11.2. |
11.3. |
11.4. |
11.5. |
11.6. |
11.7. |
11.8. |
11.9. |
11.10. |
11.11. |
11.12. |
11.13. |
11.14. |
11.15. |
11.16. |
11.17. |
11.19. |
11.20. |
12. |
12.1. |
12.2. |
12.3. |
12.4. |
12.5. |
12.6. |
12.7. |
12.8. |
12.9. |
12.10. |
12.11. |
12.12. |
12.13. |
12.14. |
12.15. |
12.16. |
12.17. |
12.18. |
12.19. |
12.20. |
12.21. |
12.22. |
12.23. |
12.24. |
12.25. |
12.26. |
12.27. |
12.28. |
12.29. |
12.30. |
13. |
13.1. |
13.2. |
13.3. |
13.4. |
13.5. |
13.6. |
13.7. |
13.8. |
13.9. |
13.10. |
13.11. |
13.12. |
13.13. |
13.14. |
13.15. |
13.16. |
13.17. |
13.18. |
13.19. |
13.20. |
14. |
14.1. |
14.2. |
14.3. |
14.4. |
14.5. |
14.6. |
14.7. |
14.8. |
14.9. |
14.10. |
14.11. |
14.12. |
14.13. |
14.14. |
14.15. |
15. |
15.1. |
15.2. |
15.3. |
15.4. |
15.5. |
15.6. |
15.7. |
15.8. |
15.9. |
15.10. |
15.11. |
15.12. |
15.13. |
15.14. |
15.15. |
15.16. |
15.17. |
15.18. |
16. |
16.1. |
16.2. |
16.3. |
16.4. |
16.5. |
16.6. |
16.7. |
16.8. |
16.9. |
16.10. |
16.11. |
16.12. |
16.13. |
16.14. |
16.15. |
16.16. |
17. |
17.1. |
17.2. |
17.3. |
17.4. |
17.5. |
17.6. |
17.7. |
18. |
18.1. |
18.2. |
18.3. |
18.4. |
18.5. |
18.6. |
18.7. |
18.8. |
18.9. |
18.10. |
18.11. |
18.12. |
18.13. |
18.14. |
18.15. |
18.16. |
18.17. |
18.18. |
18.19. |
18.20. |
18.21. |
18.22. |
18.23. |
18.24. |
18.25. |
18.26. |
18.27. |
18.28. |
18.29. |
18.30. |
18.31. |
19. |
19.2. |
19.2. |
19.3. |
19.4. |
19.5. |
19.6. |
19.7. |
19.8. |
19.9. |
19.10. |
19.11. |
19.12. |
19.13. |
19.14. |
19.15. |
19.16. |
19.17. |
19.18. |
19.19. |
19.20. |
19.21. |
19.22. |
19.23. |
19.24. |
19.25. |
19.26. |
19.27. |
20. |
20.1. |
20.2. |
20.3. |
20.4. |
20.5. |
20.6. |
20.7. |
20.8. |
20.9. |
20.10. |
20.11. |
20.12. |
20.13. |
20.14. |
20.15. |
20.16. |
20.17. |
20.18. |
20.19. |
20.20. |
20.21. |
20.22. |
20.23. |
21. |
21.1. |
21.2. |
21.3. |
21.4. |
21.5. |
21.6. |
21.7. |
21.8. |
21.9. |
21.10. |
21.11. |
21.12. |
21.13. |
21.14. |
21.15. |
21.16. |
21.17. |
21.18. |
21.19. |
21.20. |
21.21. |
21.22. |
21.23. |
22. |
22.1. |
22.2. |
22.3. |
22.4. |
22.5. |
22.6. |
22.7. |
22.8. |
22.9. |
22.10. |
22.11. |
22.12. |
22.13. |
22.14. |
22.15. |
22.16. |
22.17. |
22.18. |
22.19. |
22.20. |
22.21. |
22.22. |
23. |
23.1. |
23.2. |
23.3. |
23.4. |
23.5. |
23.6. |
23.7. |
23.8. |
23.9. |
23.10. |
23.11. |
23.12. |
23.13. |
23.14. |
23.15. |
23.16. |
23.17. |
23.18. |
23.19. |
23.20. |
23.21. |
23.22. |
23.23. |
23.24. |
23.25. |
23.26. |
23.27. |
23.28. |
23.29. |
24. |
24.1. |
24.2. |
24.3. |
24.4. |
24.5. |
24.6. |
24.7. |
24.8. |
24.9. |
24.10. |
24.11. |
24.12. |
24.13. |
24.14. |
24.15. |
24.16. |
24.17. |
24.18. |
24.19. |
24.20. |
24.21. |
24.22. |
24.23. |
24.24. |
24.25. |
24.26. |
25. |
25.1. |
25.2. |
25.3. |
25.4. |
25.5. |
25.6. |
25.7. |
25.8. |
25.9. |
25.10. |
25.11. |
25.12. |
25.13. |
25.14. |
25.15. |
26. |
26.1. |
26.2. |
26.3. |
26.4. |
26.5. |
26.6. |
26.7. |
26.8. |
26.9. |
26.10. |
26.11. |
26.12. |
26.13. |
26.14. |
26.15. |
26.16. |
26.17. |
26.18. |
26.19. |
26.20. |
26.21. |
26.22. |
26.23. |
26.24. |
26.25. |
27. |
28. |
28.1. |
28.2. |
28.3. |
28.4. |
28.5. |
28.6. |
28.7. |
28.8. |
28.9. |
28.10. |
28.11. |
28.12. |
28.13. |
28.14. |
28.15. |
28.16. |
28.17. |
28.18. |
28.19. |
28.20. |
28.21. |
28.22. |
28.23. |
28.24. |
28.25. |
28.26. |
28.27. |
28.28. |
28.29. |
28.30. |
28.31. |
28.32. |
28.33. |
28.34. |
28.35. |
28.36. |
28.37. |
28.38. |
28.39. |
28.40. |
28.41. |
28.42. |
28.43. |
28.44. |
28.45. |
29. |
29.1. |
29.2. |
29.3. |
29.4. |
29.5. |
29.6. |
29.7. |
29.8. |
29.10. |
29.10. |
29.11. |
29.12. |
29.13. |
29.14. |
29.15. |
29.16. |
29.17. |
29.18. |
29.19. |
30. |
30.1. |
30.2. |
30.3. |
30.4. |
30.5. |
30.6. |
30.7. |
30.8. |
30.9. |
30.10. |
30.11. |
30.12. |
30.13. |
30.14. |
30.15. |
30.16. |
30.17. |
30.18. |
30.19. |
30.20. |
30.21. |
30.22. |
30.23. |
30.24. |
30.25. |
31. |
31.1. |
31.2. |
31.3. |
31.4. |
31.5. |
31.6. |
31.7. |
31.8. |
31.9. |
31.10. |
31.11. |
31.12. |
31.13. |
31.14. |
31.15. |
31.16. |
31.17. |
31.18. |
31.19. |
31.20. |
31.21. |
31.22. |
31.23. |
31.24. |
31.25. |
31.26. |
31.27. |
31.28. |
31.29. |
31.30. |
31.31. |
31.32. |
31.33. |
31.34. |
12. The Circumstances in which the Romans changed the Value of the
Specie. The Spirit of the Laws | ||
There was formerly very little gold and silver in Italy. This country has few or no mines of gold or silver. When Rome was taken by the Gauls, they found only a thousand-weight of gold [20] And yet the Romans had sacked many powerful cities, and brought home their wealth. For a long time they made use of none but copper money; and it was not till after the peace with Pyrrhus that they had silver enough to coin money: [21] they made denarii of this metal of the value of ten ases, [22] or ten pounds of copper. At that time the proportion of silver was to that of copper as 1 to 960. For as the Roman denarius was valued at ten ases, or ten pounds of copper, it was worth one hundred and twenty ounces of copper; and as the same denarius was valued only at one-eighth of an ounce of silver, [23] this produced the above proportion.
When Rome became mistress of that part of Italy which is nearest to Greece and Sicily, by degrees she found herself between two rich nations -- the Greeks and the Carthaginians. Silver increased at Rome; and as the proportion of 1 to 960 between silver and copper could be no longer supported, she made several regulations with respect to money, which to us are unknown. However, at the beginning of the second Punic war, the Roman denarius was worth no more than twenty ounces of copper; [24] and thus the proportion between silver and copper was no longer but as 1 to 160. The reduction was very considerable, since the republic gained five-sixths upon all copper money. But she did only what was necessary in the nature of things, by establishing the proportion between the metals made use of as money.
The peace which terminated the first Punic war left the Romans masters of Sicily. They soon entered Sardinia; afterwards they began to know Spain; and thus the quantity of silver increased at Rome. They took measures to reduce the denarius from twenty ounces to sixteen, [25] which had the effect of putting a nearer proportion between the silver and copper; thus the proportion, which was before as 1 to 160, was now made as 1 to 128.
If we examine into the conduct of the Romans, we shall never find them so great as in choosing a proper conjuncture for performing any extraordinary operation.
12. The Circumstances in which the Romans changed the Value of the
Specie. The Spirit of the Laws | ||