Sumptuary Laws among the Romans

Public incontinence is the inseparable companion of luxury.

If we leave the motions of the heart at liberty, how shall we be able to restrain the weaknesses of the mind?

At Rome, besides the general institutions, the censors prevailed on the magistrates to enact several particular laws for maintaining the frugality of women. This was the design of the Fannian, Licinian, and Oppian laws.

In Livy, the great ferment the senate was in when the women insisted upon the revocation of the Oppian law. The abrogation o f this law is fixed upon, by Valerius Maximus, as the period from whence we may date the luxury of the Romans.

Chapter 15: Dowries and nuptial Advantages in different Constitutions

DOWRIES should be considerable in monarchies, in order to enable husbands to support their rank and the established luxury.

In republics, where luxury should never reign, they should be moderate. But there should be hardly any at all in despotic governments, where women are in some measure slaves.

The community of goods, introduced by the French laws, between man and wife, is extremely well adapted to a monarchical government because the women are thereby interested in domestic affairs, and compelled, as it were, to take care of their family.

It is less so in a republic, where women are possessed of more virtue. But it would be quite absurd in despotic governments, where the women themselves generally constitute a part of the masters property.

As women are in a state that furnishes su fficient inducements to marriage, the advantages which the law gives them o ver the husband’s property are of no service to society= but, in a republic, they would be extremely prejudicial, because riches are productiv e of luxury. In despotic governments the profits accruing from marriage oug ht to be mere subsistence, and no more.

Chapter 16: An excellent Custom of the Samnites

THE Samnites were a very small republic. They had a custom to gather the young people in one place. Their conduct was examined. The best was allowed to choose the girl he wanted to be his wife. The second best chose after him and so on.

Admirable institution! The only recommendation, that young men could have on this occasion, was their virtue and the services done their country. He who had the greatest share of these endowments chose which girl he liked out of the whole nation.

Love, beauty, chastity, virtue, birth, and even wealth itself, were all, in some measure, the dowry of virtue. A nobler and grander recompence, less chargeable to a petty st ate, and more capable of influencing both sexes, could scarce be imagined.

The Samnites were descended from the Spartans. Plato, whose institutes are only an improvement of those of Lycurgus, enacted nearly the same law.

Chapter 17: Female-Administration

IT is contrary to reason and nature for women to reign in families, as was customary among the Egyptians. Their natural weakness prevents their preeminence.

However, women can govern an empire. The same weakness gives them more lenity and moderation which are fitter for a good administration than roughness and severity.

In the Indies they are very easy under a female government. It is settled that, if the male issue be not of a mo ther of the same blood, the females born of a mother of the blood-royal must succeed.

An d then they have a certain number of persons who assist them to bear the we ight of the government. According to Mr. Smith, they are ver y easy in Africa under a female administration. If, to this, we add the exa mple of England and Russia, we shall find that they succeed alike both in m oderate and despotic governments.