The other passage relative to the question is Gellius xv. 27. 4,[80] in which Laelius Felix states that the voting in the comitia curiata was by genera hominum in contrast with the census et aetas of the centuriate assembly and with the regiones et loca of the comitia tributa. Niebuhr identifies genera with gentes.[81] It is clear, however, that in this passage Laelius is not concretely defining the voting units of the various assemblies, but is stating in a general way the principles underlying their organization into voting units. In the comitia centuriata the principle is wealth and age; census et aetas is not to be identified with centuria or with any other group of individuals in this assembly. In like manner regiones et loca expresses the principle of organization of the tribal assembly; or if used concretely, it must designate the tribes themselves, and not subdivisions of the tribes, for none existed. Correspondingly genera hominum signifies that the principle of organization of the curiate assembly is hereditary connection; but so far as the expression is applied concretely, it must denote the curiae themselves not subdivisions of these associations. The curia, a religious, social, and political group based on birth, might well be called genus hominum in contrast with the local tribe and with the century, composed artificially of men of similar wealth and age. It is well known, too, that voting within the curiae was not by gentes but by heads.[82] As no other passage from the sources, besides these two, has even the appearance of lending support to the proposition advanced by Niebuhr, and favored by others, that the curia was a group of gentes, we may conclude that this proposition is groundless. The result is that the gens had no connection with the comitial organization.
I. The Populus; the beginnings of Rome: Schwegler, A., Römische Geschichte, I. bk. viii; Peter, C., Geschichte Roms, i. 17 ff.; Niese, B., Grundriss der röm. Geschichte, 16 ff., 28 ff.; Jordan, H., Topographie der Stadt Rom im Altertum, I. i. 153 ff; iii. 34; Gilbert, O., Geschichte und Topographie der Stadt Rom im Altertum, i, ii; Richter, Topographie der Stadt Rom, 30 ff. (see review by H. Degering, in Berl. Philol. Woch. 1903. 1645 f.); Platner, S. B., Topography and Monuments of Ancient Rome, ch. iv; Schulze, W., Zur Geschichte lateinischer Eigennamen, 579-82; Pais, E., Ancient Legends of Roman History, ch. xii; Nissen, H., Das Templum, ch. v; Italische Landeskunde, ii. 488 ff.; Kornemann, E., Polis und Urbs, in Klio, v (1905). 72-92; Carter, J. B., Roma Quadrata and the Septimontium, in Am. Journ. of Archaeol. xii (1908). 172-83; Deecke, Wm., Die Falisker; Montelius, Die frühesten zeiten Roms, in Correspbl. d. deutsch. Gesellsch. f. Anthr. Ethn. u. Urgesch. xxxv (1904). 122; Pöhlmann, R., Die Anfänge Roms; Schrader, O., Sprachvergleichung und Urgeschichte, bk. IV. ch. xii; Heer, König, Sippe, Stamm in Reallexikon der indogermanischen Altertumskunde; Fustel de Coulanges, Ancient City, bk. iii; Leist, Graeco-italische Rechtsgeschichte, 103 ff.; Alt-arisches Jus Civile, i. 319-36; Meyer, E., Geschichte des Altertums, ii. 510 ff.; Mommsen, History of Rome, bk. I. chs. iii, iv; Röm. Staatsrecht, iii. 3 ff., 112-22; Marquardt, J., Röm. Staatsverwaltung, i. 3 ff.; Lange, L., Röm. Altertümer, i. 55-284; Das röm. Königtum, in Kleine Schriften, i. 77-104; Herzog, E., Geschichte und System der röm. Staatsverfassung, i. 3-23, 969 ff.; Willems, P., Droit public Romain, 17 ff.; Karlowa, O., Röm. Rechtsgeschichte, i. 30 ff.; Greenidge, A. H. J., Roman Public Life, ch. i; Bernhöft, F., Staat und Recht der röm. Königszeit, 69 ff.; Genz, Das patricische Röm, 51 ff.; Morlot, E., Les comices électoraux sous la république Romaine, ch. i.
II. The Primitive Tribes: Niebuhr, B. G., Röm. Geschichte, i. 300-321; English, i. 149-58; Schwegler, ibid. I. bk. IX. ch. xiv. § 2; Niese, ibid. 30 f.; De Sanctis, G., Storia dei Romani, i. 249-55; Gilbert, ibid. ii. 329-79; Nissen, Templum, 144-6; Ital. Landesk. ii. 7-15, 496 ff.; Jordan, H., Die Könige im alten Italien, 35-7; controverted by W. Soltau, in Woch. f. Kl. Philol. xxv (1908). 220-3; Mommsen, Röm. Staatsr. iii. 95-100, 109-12; Rom. Tribus, 1 f.; Lange, Rom. Alt. i. 81-101; Herzog, ibid. i. 23 ff.; Madvig, J. N., Röm. Staat, i. 95-8; Mispoulet, J. B., Les institutions politiques des Romains, i. 3-6; Soltau, W., Altröm. Volksversammlungen, 46-51; Willems, P., Le sénat de la république Romaine, I. ch. i; Bloch, G., Les origines du sénat Romain, 1-16, 32-8; Bernhöft, ibid. 79 ff.; Genz, ibid. 89-106; Meyer, ibid.; Der Ursprung des Tribunats und die Gemeinde der vier Tribus, in Hermes, xxx (1895). 1-24; controverted by Sp. Vassis, in Athena, ix (1897). 470-2; Kubitschek, W., De romanorum tribuum origine ac propagatione 1 ff.; Volquardsen, C. A., Die drei ältesten röm. Tribus, in Rhein. Mus. N. F. xxxiii (1878). 538-64; Bormann, E., die älteste Gliederung Roms, in Eranos Vindobonensis, 345-58; Holzapfel, L., Die drei ältesten röm. Tribus, in Beiträge zur alten Geschichte, i (1902). 228-55; Bertolini, C. I., I celeres ed il tribunus celerum; Zimmermann, A., Zu Titus, etc., in Rhein. Mus. N. F. 1 (1895). 159 f.; Schlossmann, S., Tributum, tribuere, tribus, in Archiv f. lat. Lexicog. xiv (1906). 25-40; Schulze, W., Zur Gesch. lateinischer Eigennamen, see index, s. Ramnenses, etc.
III. The Curiae: Pott, A. F., Etymologische Forschungen, ii. 373 ff.; Corssen, W., Ausspr. index, s. Curia; Vaniček, A., Etymologisches Wörterbuch der lat. Sprache, 160; Griech.-lat. etym. Wörterbuch, 1116; Niebuhr, ibid. i. 321-54; Schwegler, ibid. i. 610-12; Gilbert, ibid, index s. Curia; Richter, ibid. index s. Curia; Mommsen, Röm. Staatsr. iii. 89 ff.; Lange, ibid. i. 275-84, and index, s. Curia; Willems, P., Sén. Rom. ibid.; Bloch, G., Orig. d. sén. 290 ff.; Mispoulet, J. B., ibid. i. 7-9; Fustel de Coulanges, ibid. 154-7; Karlowa, ibid.; Genz, ibid. 32-50; Hoffmeister, K., Die Wirtschaftliche Entwickelung Roms, 5 f.; Soltau, ibid. 46-67; Müller, J. J., Studien zur röm. Verfassungsgeschichte, in Philol. xxxiv (1875). 96 ff.; Ihne, Wm., History of Rome, i. 113 f.; Newman, F. W., Dr. Ihne on the Early Roman Constitution, in Classical Museum, vi (1849). 15 ff.; Hoffmann, E., Patricische und plebeiische Curien; Kübler and Hülsen, Curia, in Pauly-Wissowa, Real-Encycl. iv. 1815-26; Pelham, H., The Roman Curiae, in (English) Journal of Philology, ix (1880). 266-79.
IV. The Gentes: Fustel de Coulanges, ibid. bk. ii; Leist, Graeco-ital. Rechtsgesch. 11 ff.; Alt-arisches Ius Gentium; Alt-arisch. Jus Civ. i. 461-76 (Irish Kin); Hirt, H., Indogermanen, ii. 409-56; Engels, F., Der Ursprung der Familie, des Privateigentums und des Staats, ch. v; Howard, G. E., History of Matrimonial Institutions, I. pt. i; Levison, W., Die Beurkundung des Zivilstandes im Altertum; Wildebrandt, M., Die politische und sociale Bedeutung der attischen Geschlechter vor Solon, in Philologus, Supplb. vii (1899). 135-227; Kovalevsky, M., La gens et le clan, in Annales de l’institut international de sociologie, vii (1900). 57-100; Ruggiero, E., La gens in Roma avanti la formazione del comune; Schwegler, ibid. i. 612-15; Lange, ibid. i. 211-59, and see index, s. v.; Mommsen, Röm. Forsch, i. 1-127; Röm. Staatsr. iii. 9-53, and see index s. v.; Mispoulet, ibid. i. 9-14; Willems, Sén. Rom. i. chs. i-iii; Müller, J. J., Studien z. röm. Verfassungsgesch. in Philol. xxxiv (1876). 96-104; Bloch, G., ibid. 102 ff.; Recherches sur quelques gentes patriciennes, in Mélanges d’archéologie et d’histoire de l’école Française de Rome, 1882. 241-76; Soltau, ibid. 58-64, 652-5; Bernhöft, ibid.; Genz, ibid. 1-31; Bloch, L., Die ständischen und sozialen Kämpfe in der röm. Republik; Holzapfel, L., Il numero dei senatori Romani durante il periodo dei rei, in Rivista di storia antica, ii. 2 (1897). 52-64; Marquardt, J., Privatleben der Römer, 1-26, 353 f.; Deecke, ibid. 275 ff. (on Italian names); Michel, N. H., Du droit de cité Romaine; Köhm, J., Altlateinische Forschungen, 1-21; Lécrivain, C., Gens, in Daremberg et Saglio, Dict. ii. 1504-16; Ruggiero, E., Diz. ep. iii (1906). 482-6; Casagrandi, V., Le minores gentes ed i patres minorum gentium; Staaf, E., De origine gentium patriciarum; Lieboldt, K., Die Ansichten über die Entstehung und das Wesen der Gentes patriciae aus der Zeit der Humanisten bis auf unsere Tage; Botsford, G. W., Some Problems connected with the Roman Gens, in Political Science Quarterly, xxii (1907). 663-92.
CHAPTER II
THE SOCIAL COMPOSITION OF THE PRIMITIVE POPULUS
This chapter[83] is primarily an inquiry into the social composition of the comitia curiata. At the same time it seeks to solve a problem which is doubtless the most fundamental in the early political and constitutional history of Rome. The result we reach will determine our conception of the whole course of constitutional development, and of the accompanying political struggles, to the complete equalization of the social ranks. For if we believe, as do many of the moderns,[84] that the primitive Roman state was made up exclusively of patricians, we are forced to the conclusion that the constitutional development to the passing of the Hortensian laws centred in the gradual admission of the plebeians and the clients to citizenship—perhaps even in the amalgamation of two distinct peoples. If on the other hand we take the ground that from the beginning the plebeians and the clients were citizens and voted in the comitia curiata, we must think of these inferior classes as struggling through the early history of their country for the acquisition not of citizenship but of various rights and privileges, social, economic, religious, and political, formerly monopolized by a patrician aristocracy. In attempting to solve the problem here proposed it will be advantageous to consider (1) the ancient view, (2) the conventional modern view, (3) the comparative-sociological view.