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17The public laws forbid a greater thickness than one foot and a half to be given to walls that abut on a public way, and the other walls, to prevent loss of room, are not built thicker. Now brick walls, unless of the thickness of two or three bricks, at all events of at least one foot and a half, are not fit to carry more than one floor, so that from the great population of the city innumerable houses would be required. Since, therefore, the area it occupies would not in such case contain the number to be accommodated, it became absolutely necessary to gain in height that which could not be obtained on the plan. Thus by means of stone piers or walls of burnt bricks or unsquared stones, which were tied together by the timbers of the several floors, they obtained in the upper story excellent dining rooms. The Roman people by thus multiplying the number of stories in their houses are commodiously lodged.
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