Roman Antiquities, and Ancient Mythology | Page 8

and called profane. These were
either public and common, as the air, running water, the sea and its
shores; or private, which might be the property of individuals.
None but a Roman citizen could make a will, or be witnesses to a
testament, or inherit any thing by it.
The usual method of making a will after the laws of the twelve tables
were enacted, was by brass and balance, as it was called. In the
presence of five witnesses, a weigher and witness, the testator by an
imaginary sale disposed of his family and property to one who was
called familiæ emptor, who was not the heir as some have thought, but
only admitted for the sake of form, that the testator might seem to have
alienated his effects in his life time. This act was called familiæ
mancipatio.
Sometimes the testator wrote his will wholly with his own hand, in
which case it was called hologr{)a}phum--sometimes it was written by

a friend, or by others. Thus the testament of Augustus was written
partly by himself, and partly by two of his freedmen.
Testaments were always subscribed by the testator, and usually by the
witnesses, and sealed with their seals or rings. They were likewise tied
with a thread drawn thrice through holes and sealed; like all other civil
deeds, they were always written in Latin. A legacy expressed in Greek
was not valid.
They were deposited either privately in the hands of a friend, or in a
temple with the keeper of it. Thus Julius Cæsar is said to have intrusted
his testament to the oldest of the vestal virgins.
A father might leave whom he pleased as guardian to his children;--but
if he died, this charge devolved by law on the nearest relation by the
father's side. When there was no guardian by testament, nor a legal one,
the prætor and the majority of the tribunes of the people appointed a
guardian. If any one died without making a will, his goods devolved on
his nearest relations.
Women could not transact any business of importance without the
concurrence of their parents, husbands, or guardians.
CHAPTER VI.
Public Rights of Roman Citizens.
The jus militiæ, was the right of serving in the army, which was at first
peculiar to the higher order of citizens only, but afterwards the emperor
took soldiers not only from Italy and the provinces, but also from
barbarous nations.
The jus tributorum was the payment of a tax by each individual through
the tribes, in proportion to the valuation of his estates.
There were three kinds of tribute, one imposed equally on each person;
another according to his property; and a third exacted in cases of
emergency. There were three other kinds of taxes, called portorium,

decumæ and scriptura.
The portorium was paid for goods exported and imported, the
collectors of which were called portitores, or for carrying goods over a
bridge.
The decumæ were the tenth part of corn and the fifth part of other fruit,
exacted from the cultivators of the public lands, either in Italy or
without it.
The scriptura was paid by those who pastured their cattle upon the
public lands. The jus saffragii was the right of voting in the different
assemblies of the people.
The jus honorum was the right of being priests or magistrates, at first
enjoyed only by the Patricians. Foreigners might live in the city of
Rome, but they enjoyed none of the rights of citizens; they were subject
to a peculiar jurisdiction, and might be expelled from the city by a
magistrate. They were not permitted to wear the Roman dress.
CHAPTER VII.
Places of Worship.
Templum was a place which had been dedicated to the worship of some
deity, and consecrated by the augurs.
Ædes sacræ were such as wanted that consecration, which, if they
afterwards received, they changed their names to temples.
Delubrum comprehended several deities under one roof. The most
celebrated temples were the capitol and pantheon.
The capitol or temple of Jupiter Capitolinus, was the effect of a vow
made by Tarquinius Priscus, in the Sabine war. But he had scarcely laid
the foundation before his death. His nephew Tarquin the proud,
finished it with the spoils taken from the neighboring nations.

The structure stood on a high ridge, taking in four acres of ground. The
front was adorned with three rows of pillars, the other sides with two.
The ascent from the ground was by a hundred steps. The prodigious
gifts and ornaments with which it was at several times endowed, almost
exceed belief. Augustus gave at one time two thousand pounds weight
of gold, and in jewels and precious stones to the value of five hundred
sestertia.
Livy and Pliny surprise us with accounts of the brazen thresholds, the
noble pillars