Thus by
the competition of slaves and their exalted situation the greater part
of the citizens were reduced to extreme misery.
=Social Strife.=--The poor governed the cities and had no means of
living. The idea occurred to them to despoil the rich, and the latter,
to resist them, organized associations. Then every Greek city was
divided into two parties: the rich, called the minority, and the poor,
called the majority or the people. Rich and poor hated one another and
fought one another. When the poor got the upper hand, they exiled the
rich and confiscated their goods; often they even adopted these two
radical measures:
1. The abolition of debts;
2. A new partition of lands.
The rich, when they returned to power, exiled the poor. In many cities
they took this oath among themselves: "I swear always to be an enemy
to the people and to do them all the injury I can."
No means were found of reconciling the two parties: the rich could not
persuade themselves to surrender their property; the poor were
unwilling to die of hunger. According to Aristotle all revolutions
have their origin in the distribution of wealth.
Pages:
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265