Page:General History of Europe 1921.djvu/188

CHAPTER X ROME AND CARTHAGE I. COMMERCIAL POWER OF CARTHAGE; THE FIRST PUNIC WAR 197. Development of Business Interests in Rome. Rome's conquest of the Greek cities of southern Italy had brought her into contact with a far higher civilization than she had previously known. She was particularly influenced by Greek business enter- prise. For a time the Romans used Greek silver coins, but by the year 268 B.C. they began for the first time to issue silver coins of their own. Just as had happened in Athens earlier, a moneyed class now made its appearance in Rome. This class, however, was made up largely of merchants. There was no considerable manufacturing carried on, as at Athens, Rome was a great center of shipping and commerce rather than an industrial city. 198. Commercial Supremacy of Carthage. But when the ever- increasing numbers of Roman merchant ships issued from the Tiber, they found the western Mediterranean already occupied by their great rival Carthage. As the trade of Carthage had increased she had extended her control eastward and westward along the African coast, and her enterprising merchants had even seized southern Spain, with its valuable silver mines. The Car- thaginians did not believe in free trade, but proposed to monopo- lize all the business they could for themselves. So they closed the ports under their control to all foreign ships. Vessels of other cities venturing into the western Mediterranean harbors were promptly rammed and sunk by Carthaginian warships sent out to protect the business of their city. With increasing vexation 128