in Roman antiquity, were general assemblies of the people, lawfully called by some magistrate for the enjoinment or prohibition of any thing by their votes.

The proper comitia were of three sorts; curiata, centuriata, and tributa; with reference to the three grand divisions of the city and people into curiae, centuriae, and tribes: For, by comitia calata, which we sometimes meet with in authors, in elder times were meant all the comitia in general; the word calata from καλά, or calo, being their common epithet; though it was at last restrained to two sorts of assemblies, those for the creation of priests, and those for the regulation of last wills and testaments.

The comitia curiata owe their origin to the division which Romulus made of the people into 30 curiae; ten being contained in every tribe. They answered in most respects to the parishes in our cities, being not only separated by proper bounds and limits, but distinguished too by their different places set apart for the celebration of divine service, which was performed by particular priests (one to every curia), with the name of curiones.

Before the institution of the comitia centuriata, all the grand concerns of the state were transacted in the assembly of the curiae; as the election of kings and other chief officers, the making and abrogating of laws, and the judging of capital causes. After the expulsion of the kings, when the commons had obtained the privilege to have tribunes and ediles, they elected them for some time at these assemblies; but that ceremony being at length transferred to the comitia tributa, the curiae were never convened to give their votes, except now and then upon account of making some particular law relating to adoptions, wills, and testaments, or the creation of officers for an expedition; or for electing some of the priests, as the flamines, and the curio maximus, or superintendent of the curiones, who were themselves chosen by every particular curia.

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The power of calling these assemblies belonged at first only to the kings; but upon the establishment of the democracy, the same privilege was allowed to most of the chief magistrates, and sometimes to the pontifices.

The persons who had the liberty of voting here were such Roman citizens as belonged to the curiae; or such as actually lived in the city, and conformed to the customs and rites of their proper curiae; all those being excluded who dwelt without the bounds of the city, retaining the ceremonies of their own country, though they had been honoured with the jus civitatis, or admitted free citizens of Rome. The place where the curiae met was the comitium, a part of the forum: No set time was appointed for the holding thereof, or any other of the comitia, but only as business required.

The people being met together, and confirmed by the report of good omens from the augurs (which was necessary in all the assemblies), the rogatio, or business to be proposed to them, was publicly read. After this (if none of the magistrates interposed), upon the order of him that presided in the comitia, the people divided into their proper curiae, and consulted of the matter; and then the curiae being called out, as it happened by lot, gave their votes man by man, in ancient times viva voce, and afterwards by tablets; the most votes in every curia going for the voice of the whole curia, and the most curiae for the general consent of the people.

In the time of Cicero, the comitia curiata were so much out of fashion, that they were formed only by 30 dictors representing the 30 curiae; whence, in his second oration against Rullus, he calls them comitia adumbrata.

The comitia centuriata were instituted by Servius Tullius: who, obliging every one to give a true account of what he was worth, according to those accounts, divided the people into six ranks or classes, which he subdivided into 193 centuries. The first classis, containing the equites and richest citizens, consisted of 98 centuries. The second, taking in the tradesmen and mechanics, consisted of 22 centuries. The third, 20. The fourth, 22. The fifth, 30. The sixth, filled up with the poorer sort, but one century; and this, though it had the same name with the rest, yet was seldom regarded, or allowed any power in public matters. Hence it is a common thing with the Roman authors, when they speak of the classes, to reckon no more than five, the sixth not being worth their notice. This last classis or order was divided into two parts, or orders; the proletarii and the capitales. The former, as their name implies, were designed purely to stock the republic with men, since they could supply it with so little money; and the latter, who paid the lowest tax of all, were rather counted and marshalled by their heads than by their estates.

Persons of the first rank, by reason of their pre-eminence, had the name of clasici; whence came the name of clasici authores for the most approved writers. All others, of what classis soever, were said to be infra classem. The assembly of the people by centuries was held for the electing of consuls, censors, and praetors; as also for the judging of persons accused of what they called Comitia, called *crimen perduellionis*, or actions by which the party had showed himself an enemy to the state, and for the confirmation of all such laws as were proposed by the chief magistrates, who had the privilege of calling these assemblies.

The place appointed for their meeting was the *campus martius*; because in the primitive times of the commonwealth, when they were under continual apprehensions of enemies, the people, to prevent any sudden assault, went armed, in martial order, to hold these assemblies; and were for that reason forbidden by the laws to meet in the city, because an army was upon no account to be marshalled within the walls: yet, in latter ages, it was thought sufficient to place a body of soldiers as a guard in the Janiculum, where an imperial standard was erected, the taking down of which denoted the conclusion of the comitia.

Though the time of holding these comitia for other matters was undetermined; yet the magistrates, after the year of the city 601, when they began to enter on their place, on the kalends of January, were constantly deferred about the end of July and the beginning of August.

All the time between their election and confirmation they continued as private persons, that inquisition might be made into the election, and the other candidates might have time to enter objections, if they met with any suspicion of foul dealing. Yet, at the election of the censors, this custom did not hold; but as soon as they were elected, they were immediately invested with the honour.

By the institution of these comitia, Servius Tullius secretly conveyed the whole of the power from the commons: for the centuries of the first and richest classes being called out first, who were three more in number than all the rest put together, if they all agreed, as generally they did, the business was already decided, and the other classes were needless and insignificant. However, the three last scarce ever came to vote.

The commons, in the time of the free state, to remedy this disadvantage, obtained, that before they proceeded to voting any matter at these comitia, that century should give their suffrages first upon whom it fell by lot, with the name of *centuria prerogativa*; the rest being to follow according to the order of their classes. After the constitution of the 35 tribes into which the classes and their centuries were divided, in the first place, the tribes cast lots which should be the prerogative tribe; and then the centuries of the tribes for the honour of being a prerogative century. All the other tribes and centuries had the appellation of *jure vocato*, because they were called out according to their proper places.

The prerogative century being chosen by lot, the chief magistrate, fitting in a tent in the middle of the campus martius, ordered that century to come out and give their voices; upon which they presently separated from the rest of the multitude, and came into an inclosed apartment, which they termed *septa*, or *ovilia*, passing over the pontes or narrow boards laid there for the occasion; on which account, *de ponte deici* signifies to be denied the privilege of voting, and persons thus dealt with are called *deponitani*.

At the higher end of the pontes stood the *diribitores* (a sort of under officers so called from their marshalling the people), and delivered to every man, in the election of magistrates, as many tables as there appeared candidates, one of whose names was written upon every tablet. A proper number of great chiefs were set ready in the *septa*, and every body threw in which tablet he pleased.

By the chiefs were placed some of the public servants, who taking out the tablets of every century, for every tablet, made a prick or a point in another tablet which they kept by them. Thus, the business being decided by most points, gave occasion to the phrase *omne tulit punctum*, and the like.

The same method was observed in the judiciary process at these comitia, and in the confirmation of laws; except that, in both these cases, only two tablets were offered to every person; on one of which was written U. R. and on the other A., in capital letters: the first standing for *ut rogas*, "be it as you desire," relating to the magistrate who proposed the question; and the last for *antiquo*, or "I forbid it."

It is remarkable, that though in the election of magistrates, and in the ratification of laws, the votes of that century, whose tablets were equally divided, signified nothing; yet in trials of life and death, if the tablets pro and con were the same in number, the person was actually acquitted.

The division of people into tribes was an invention of Romulus, after he had admitted the Sabines into Rome; and though he constituted at that time only three, yet as the state increased in power, and the city in number of inhabitants, they rose by degrees to 35. For a long time after this institution, a tribe signified no more than such a space of ground with its inhabitants. But at last the matter was quite altered, and a tribe was no longer *pars urbis*, but *pars civitatis*; not a quarter of the city, but a company of citizens living where they pleased. This change was chiefly occasioned by the original difference between the tribes in point of honour. For Romulus having committed all fordid and mechanic arts to the care of strangers, slaves, and libertines; and reserved the more honest labour of agriculture to the freemen and citizens, who by this active course of life might be prepared for martial service; the *tribus rusticorum* were for this reason esteemed more honourable than the *tribus urbanae*. And now all persons being desirous of getting into the more creditable division; and there being several ways of accomplishing their wishes, as by adoption, by the power of censors, or the like; that rustic tribe which had the most worthy names in its roll, had the preference to all others, though of the same general denomination. Hence all of the same great family, bringing themselves by degrees into the same tribe, gave the name of their family to the tribe they honoured; whereas at first the generality of the tribes did not borrow their names from persons but from places.

The first assembly of the tribes we meet with is about the year of Rome 263, convened by Sp. Sicius, tribune of the commons, upon account of the trial of Coriolanus. Soon after, the tribunes of the commons were ordered to be elected here; and at last, all the inferior magistrates, and the collegiate priests. The same comitia served for the enacting of laws relating... Comitiales lating to war and peace, and all others proposed by the tribunes and plebeian officers, though they had not properly the name of leges, but plebiscita. They were generally convened by the tribunes of the commons; but the same privilege was allowed to all the chief magistrates. They were confined to no place; and therefore sometimes we find them held in the comitium; sometimes in the campus martius, and now and then in the capitol. The proceedings were in most respects answerable to those already described in the account of the other comitia, and therefore need not be insisted on. Only we may farther observe of the comitia in general, that when any candidate was found to have most tablets for a magistracy, he was declared to be designt or elected by the president of the assembly; and this they termed renunciari consul, pretor, or the like; and that the last fort of the comitia only could be held without the consent and approbation of the senate, which was necessary to the convening of the other two.