Rome would not permit a rival, so she wholly destroyed Carthage, her great fleets of ships, her hoards of money, her stores of goods and her great buildings. It is said that Romans sowed salt where Carthage once stood so that nothing might ever grow there.
ROME CONQUERS THE WORLD BUT GROWS WICKED
280. How Rome Came to Win Victories. The wars made great soldiers out of the Romans, who, now that they had trained generals, began to conquer all the nations about them. They invaded Macedonia, Greece, Asia, and Africa, destroying the mighty nations which had grown out of the work of Alexander the Great.
How the Romans defeated the phalanx
How do you suppose the Romans defeated the Macedonian phalanx? The Roman generals planned the battle with the Macedonians so that it always occurred in a forest or on rough broken ground where the phalanx could not stand in solid columns. With the phalanx already in disorder the Romans charged and defeated them easily.
Roman slaves
281. The Effect on the Romans. Long before the Romans began to conquer other nations they were a simple farmer-like people living by raising grain and horses and cattle and sheep. But as soon as they began to conquer other nations many of the Romans grew proud and haughty. A great many grew rich from what they took from the defeated nations. Hundreds of Romans who had been small farmers now lived on great farms. On these farms or plantations the work was done by slaves, who were prisoners taken in battle. Some of these slaves were rude men taken in wars against half-savage people. Others, like the Greeks, were well educated, and really knew more than their masters. Those who belonged to this class of slaves were treated kindly and often played the part of tutors to the children of their rich masters.
282. The Rich and Poor Quarrel Again. The rich men oppressed the poor in many ways. A great many poor went to Rome to live because they found it hard to make a living on their little farms. Then, too, the great city was full of interesting doings. Besides, the city did not permit her poor to starve. Great shiploads of grain were brought from Egypt to feed them.
The Gracchi