is a cylindrical stone, about five feet in diameter and two
feet high. Upon this, forming part of the same block, or else firmly
fixed into it, is a conical projection about two feet high, the sides
slightly curving inwards. Upon this there rests another block,
externally resembling a dice-box, internally an hour-glass, being
shaped into two hollow cones with their vertices towards each other,
the lower one fitting the conical surface on which it rests, though
not with any degree of accuracy. To diminish friction, however, a
strong iron pivot was inserted in the top of the solid cone, and a
corresponding socket let into the narrow part of the hour-glass. Four
holes were cut through the stone parallel to this pivot. The narrow
part was hooped on the outside with iron, into which wooden bars were
inserted, by means of which the upper stone was turned upon its pivot,
by the labor of men or asses. The upper hollow cone served as a
hopper, and was filled with corn, which fell by degrees through the
four holes upon the solid cone, and was reduced to powder by friction
between the two rough surfaces. Of course it worked its way to the
bottom by degrees, and fell out on the cylindrical base, round which a
channel was cut to facilitate the collection. These machines are
about six feet high in the whole, made of a rough gray volcanic stone,
full of large crystals of leucite. Thus rude, in a period of high
refinement and luxury, was one of the commonest and most necessary
machines--thus careless were the Romans of the amount of labor wasted
in preparing an article of daily and universal consumption. This,
probably, arose in chief from the employment of slaves, the hardness
of whose task was little cared for; while the profit and encouragement
to enterprise on the part of the professional baker was
proportionately diminished, since every family of wealth probably
prepared its bread at home. But the same inattention to the useful
arts runs through everything that they did. Their skill in working
metals was equal to ours; nothing can be more beautiful than the
execution of tripods, lamps, and vases, nothing coarser than their
locks; while at the same time the door-handles, bolts, etc., which
were seen, are often exquisitely wrought. To what cause can this
sluggishness be referred? At present we see that a material
improvement in any article, though so trifling as a corkscrew or
pencil-case, is pretty sure to make the fortune of some