54. ITALY UNDER ROMAN RULE
THE ROMAN CITIZENS
Italy did not form a single state under Roman rule. About one-third of Italy composed the strictly Roman territory occupied by Roman citizens. Since ancient Rome knew nothing of the great principle of representative government, [29] it was necessary that citizens who wished to vote or to stand for office should visit in person the capital city. Few men, of course, would journey many miles to Rome in order to exercise their political rights. The elections, moreover, were not all held on one day, as with us, but consuls, praetors, and other magistrates were chosen on different days, while meetings of the assemblies might be held at any time of the year. A country peasant who really tried to fulfill his duties as a citizen would have had little time for anything else. In practice, therefore, the city populace at Rome had the controlling voice in ordinary legislation. The Romans were never able to remedy this grave defect in their political system. We shall see later what evils government without representation brought in its train.
THE ITALIANS
Over against this body of Roman citizens were the Italian peoples. Rome was not yet ready to grant them citizenship, but she did not treat them as complete subjects. The Italians were called the "allies and friends" of the Roman people. They lost the right of declaring war on one another, of making treaties, and of coining money. Rome otherwise allowed them to govern themselves, never calling on them for tribute and only requiring that they should furnish soldiers for the Roman army in time of war. These allies occupied a large part of the Italian peninsula.
THE LATIN COLONIES
The Romans very early began to establish what were called Latin colonies [30] in various parts of Italy. The colonists were usually veteran soldiers or poor plebeians colonies who wanted farms of their own. When the list of colonists was made up, they all marched forth in military array to lake possession of their new homes and build their city. The Latin colonies were really offshoots of Rome and hence were always faithful to her interests. Scattered everywhere in Italy they formed so many permanent camps or garrisons to keep the conquered peoples in subjection. At the same time they helped mightily in spreading the Latin language, law, and civilization throughout the peninsula.
ROMAN ROADS
All the colonies were united with one another and with Rome by an extensive system of roads. The first great road, called the Appian Way, was made during the period of the Samnite wars. It united the city of Rome with Capua and secured the hold of Rome on Campania. The Appian Way was afterwards carried across the Apennines to Brundisium on the Adriatic, whence travelers embarked for the coast of Greece. Other trunk lines were soon built in Italy, and from them a network of smaller highways was extended to every part of the peninsula.
[Illustration: Map, COLONIES AND MILITARY ROADS IN ITALY]
[Illustration: THE APPIAN WAY A view in the neighborhood of Rome. The ancient construction of the road and its massive paving blocks of lava have been laid bare by modern excavations. The width of the roadway proper was only fifteen feet. The arches, seen in the background, belong to the aqueduct built by the emperor Claudius in 52 A.D.]
USES OF ROMAN ROADS
Roman roads had a military origin. Like the old Persian roads [31] they were intended to facilitate the rapid dispatch of troops, supplies, and official messages into every corner of Italy. Hence the roads ran, as much as possible, in straight lines and on easy grades. Nothing was allowed to obstruct their course. Engineers cut through or tunneled the hills, bridged rivers and gorges, and spanned low, swampy lands with viaducts of stone. So carefully were these roads constructed that some stretches of them are still in good condition. These magnificent highways were free to the public. They naturally became avenues of trade and travel and so served to bring the Italian peoples into close touch with Rome.
ROMANIZATION OF ITALY
Rome thus began in Italy that wonderful process of Romanization which she was to extend later to Spain, Gaul, and Britain. She began to make, the Italian peoples like herself in blood, speech, customs, and manners. More and more the Italians, under Rome's leadership, came to look upon themselves as one people—the people who wore the gown, or toga, as contrasted with the barbarous and trousers-wearing Gauls.
[Illustration: A ROMAN LEGIONARY From a monument of the imperial age. The soldier wears a metal helmet, a leather doublet with shoulder-pieces, a metal-plated belt, and a sword hanging from a strap thrown over the left shoulder. His left hand holds a large shield, his right, a heavy javelin.]