1.31 to 1.34

The growing power of the plebs was marked by the gradual rise of a new voting body, the comitia tributa, in which one man's vote counted as much as another's. This developed from the plebeian assembly (concilium plebis, which still continued to meet) by allowing patricians also to participate. After the passage of a law (lex Hortensia) in 287 BC making the acts of the plebeian assembly binding on all the people, these two bodies made most of the laws. Struggles Between Rich and Poor Side by side with the struggle for political power was the economic struggle between rich and poor. The wealthy landowners continued to increase their estates, taking the best of the lands and increasing their herds until they monopolized the public pasture. They continued the practice of lending money at ruinous interest to the small proprietors, reducing them to slavery when they could not pay. Moreover, the population of Rome was increasing too fast, and the soil was becoming poorer because of the primitive farming methods. The burden of constant warfare fell most heavily on the plebeians, who had to leave their little farms to fight the state's battles. Gradually, however, reforms were forced through, chief of which were the Licinian laws of 367 BC. These again revised the debt laws, limited holdings to 300 acres, and compelled the large landowners to employ a certain proportion of free laborers. While these important changes were taking place at home, the little city-state had been gradually extending its power. Compelled at first to fight for its very existence against powerful neighbors, Rome gradually fought its way to the leadership of the Italian peoples. This paved the way that was to lead to the conquest of the world.