2 ŁO MONEY -VXD PROPERTY IX
power. There is no doubt that these imminent dangers
brought about a certain change in social and political condi-
tions. Nevertheless, in the tirades against the corruption and
blindness of Athenian democracy, whether made by ancient
oligarchs or by modern scholars, though they are justified in
certain details or even to some extent generally, the facts are
neglected, that m spite of short periods of economic distress,
Athens throughout the larger part of the fourth century was
a prosperous community, and that she experienced no grave
social or economic crisis in the two succeeding centuries.1
This chapter confirms our views based on our investigation
Into vocational activity and social organization, we realize the
unity of a middle class, which spread over town and country^
of craftsman and peasant, shopkeeper and trader Perhaps we
should meet one objection. There was a view expressed most
clearly m some lines of Euripides that the citizens' body was
divided into three parts.2 Euripides distinguishes the 'useless*
rich who only want to be still richer, the people who, owning
nothing, are full of envy and therefore easily seduced by the
demagogues, and thirdly those between these two groups who
represent the backbone of the State. The only basis on which
this division is made is that of property All other distinctions
1 This is perhaps rather a sleeping statement, but I think on the whole it holds
good, even though the gap between rich and poor had dangerously widened
For a detailed account of the later periods cf J Day, An Economic History of
Athens under Roman Domination (1942) — As an example of modern deprecation
of fourth-century democracy see W Erb, Sckmol/ers Jakrbuch^ 61 (193?)* esp
68$ff, 6935* — Rostovtzeff (see p. 4, note i) has tried (99ff) to make it clear that
conditions increasingly deteriorated during the fourth century, chiefly because
of the fallmg-off of trade, especially export trade He opposes the view that this
century as a whole was a period of economic exuberance. In this he is probably
right, but a reasonable prosperity of economic life during the fourth centur}
remains a fact in spite of short periods of distress. Rostovtzeff himself considers
the crisis of the last part of the century only a temporary decline, though one
which brought about 'the necessity of readjusting' economic life I do not take
Menander as a reliable witness for a new improvement in economic conditions
(see p 42, n- i), and I believe that RostovtzefFs view of a gradual economic
decline in the fourth century is hardly more justified than Beloch's opposite view
There were ups and downs, but at least as many ups as downs The 'shrinking of
the market for Greek products', which R makes much more evident than previous
writers, may, to some extent, have started before Alexander's death, but even then
it was mainly due to new political developments, to the opening of new trade
routes and finally to the devastating wars of the Successors
* Eur. Hik 238E