A. D. 14* 143 



much lying. Merchandize, if not carried to a great extent, is, in his 

 opinion, no better. But the merchant, wlio imports from every quarter 

 great quantities of goods, and diflributes them to the pubUc without 

 falfehood, is not very much to be blamed : and if, after making a for- 

 tune, he retires from trade to the country, he may with great propriety 

 even be praifed *. Such were the fentiments of one of the mofl en- 

 Ughtened of the Romans upon the merit and dignity of commerce : and 

 no evidence of an author, writing exprefsly for the pubhc, can be com- 

 pared with this work of Cicero, addreifed to his own fon, for a genuine 

 reprefentation of the low eflimation, in which trade was held by the 

 Romans. It may alfo be obferved, that Pliny, who in his univerfal 

 work expatiates in the juft praifes of agriculture and gardening, of me- 

 dicine, painting, and ftatuary ; and alfo pays due attention to works in 

 gold, filver, brafs, jewels, v^^ood, &c. yet has not a word upon merchan- 

 dize, except juft obferving, that it was invented by the Phoenicians. 

 The proud fenators, however, with all their contempt for fair trade, had 

 from the earlieft ages of their republic made a practice of increafing 

 their wealth by a bafe and extortionate trade of ufury. 



The citizens of Rome thought themfelves fuperior to all kings f ; 

 and feveral commanders of armies and governors of provinces, whofe 

 rank entitled them to large dividends of the plunder of the world, pof- 

 fefled greater quantities of gold and filver, than fome fovereign princes 

 can command, even in the prefent depretiated flate of the pretious 

 metals. 



The Romans, glutted with the fpoils of the earth, fet no bounds to 

 their extravagance. Whatever was very expenfive became the object of 

 their defire ; and the moft enormous (or even incredible) prices were 

 given for things of little or no real ufe. Silk, and a fine fpecies of linen 

 called byflinus, fold for their weight in gold. The value of pretious 

 ftones and pearls, being merely imaginary, can be rated only by the re- 

 dundant wealth, or folly, of the buyer. We are told by Pliny, that he 



* ' SordiJi enim putandi, qui meivantur a mer- order to prove the Romans to have been a com- 



' catoribus quod llatlm vendunt : nihil enini profi- inercial people, liave elevated the alFociatious of 



' ciunt, nlli admodum mentiantur : nee vero quid- river boatmen, and the fullers of the Roman camps, 



' quam ell turpins vanitate. Mercatura au- into tlie charailer of mercantile compaaies. 



' tern, fi tenuis ell, fordida putanda eft. Sin mag- f The noble Romans wcie prohib'ted from dc- 



* na et copiofa, multa undlquc apportans, multifque gyad'm^ themfelves by marrying into royal faniihes: 

 ' fine vanitate impartiens, iion ejt achnodum I'ltvper- and thence Berenice, a Jewifh princefs, was obliged 

 ' anda : atque etiam, li fatiata qiiaellu, vel conten- to be content with the rank of concubine to the 

 ' ta polius, utfxpe ex alto in portum, ex ipfo portu emperor Titus ; ar.d even Cleopatra, the fovereign 

 ' fe in agros poirelTionefque contulerit, videtur jure queen of the rich and populous kingdom of Egypt, 



• Optimo poiTe laudan,' Cicero de o£ic. I., i, rt. was only the concubine of Antony. But Felix, 

 150, 151. the procurator of Judxa, Samaria, and Gallilee, 



In this paffage there is not a word of exports- mentioned in the Aib of the apoftles, who had beea 



tion : and indeed it is evident, that the Romans a flave, was of fulBcient quahty to be the hulband 



had little or no idea of any thing in the charailer of three fucceflive queens, \Sueton in Claud, e. 28j 



of a merchant beyond that of a purveyor of fubfift- or rather princelTcs, one o: whom was a grand-- 



cnce and luxuries. But fome modern writers, in daughter of the celebrated Cleopatra, 



