The Roman Empire to the Triumph of Christianity 293 which country life favors, were no longer reared, the number of marriages decreased, and the population of the Empire steadily shrank. The rapid decline of agriculture, which had long before overtaken Greece, and then Italy (p. 264), having now reached the provinces also, there were vast stretches of unworked fields which were slowly absorbed by forest wilds. As the amount of Fig. 125. Glimpses of a Roman Frontier Stronghold (Restored after Waltze-Schulze) Above, at the left, the main gate of the fort ; the other three views show the barracks (compare Fig. 114) land under cultivation steadily decreased, the ancient world was no longer raising enough food to feed itself properly. The scarcity was felt most severely in the great centers of popula- tion, like Rome, where prices at once began to go up. Our generation, afflicted in the same way, is not the first to complain of " the high cost of living." Industrial prosperity and the growth of manufactures in the cities could not avail to offset the decay of agriculture. Diminishing farm lands ; insufficient food supply
