Art Out-of-Doors 
the course of thousands of years. 66 In the 
magnificent city of Ephesus/* wrote Vitru- 
vius, nearly nineteen centuries ago, “ there 
was an ancient law, hard indeed, but equi- 
table, to the effect that when an architect 
was entrusted with the execution of a pub- 
lic work, an estimate thereof being lodged 
in the hands of a magistrate, his property 
was held as security until the work was fin- 
ished. If, when finished, the expense did 
not exceed the estimate, he was compli- 
mented with degrees and honors. So when 
■* the excess did not amount to more than one- 
fourth of the estimate, no punishment was 
inflicted. But when the excess was greater 
than this amount the architect was required 
to pay it out of his own pocket. Would 
that such a law existed among the Roman 
people, not only in respect of their public, 
but also of their private buildings, for then 
unskilful architects would not commit their 
depredations with impunity, and only those 
who were the most skilful in the intricacies 
of the art would practise it. Proprietors 
would not be led into ruin through extrava- 
gant expenditure. Architects themselves 
374 
